How much can you eat on a low carb diet – and still lose weight?

How much can you eat on a low carb diet – and still lose weight?

If you stop eating carbohydrates, and live on dead animals only, you may not lose any weight. I’ve seen way too many patients in ketosis for weeks without weight loss, because they are eating too many calories. The calorie monsters on a low carb diet are cheese and nuts. It’s almost impossible to lose weight eating any significant amounts of cheese, because the calories are so high, or nuts, because both calories and carbohydrates are so high. You need to find a way to limit the amount of dead animal you are eating. Think in terms of pounds a day. On a very low carb diet (5-10 grams of carb per feeding), most patients can lose 3-4 pounds a week, eating 1 pound (16 ounces) a day of dead animal. If you’re lucky, you can take your dead animal up to 1.5 pounds (24 ounces) a day, and still lose weight. Once your dead animal hits 2 pounds a day though, you’re more likely than not in maintenance or weight gain territory.