1)  Lack of energy while on diet made it difficult to function.
2)  Digestion problems.
3)  Constipation.
4)  Low carb foods not tasting good.  

Here is our solution to problems 1, 2, and 3 above.

Focus on improving your digestion so you can stick with the diet without problems 1, 2 and 3. To do this you need to:

A)  Enzymes can help with all of those problems!   Enzymes take the work load off the digestive system so the body does not have to expend as much energy on digestion, which gives us more energy for day to day activities.    Also, poor digestion leads to poor nutrient absorption which causes fatigue and a lack of energy.   Enzymes improve digestion of proteins and all foods and improve bowel movement function.

It can be difficult to succeed at a low carb diet without taking enzyme supplements.   Caveman diets work, but without the caveman’s diet of raw milk, raw vegetables and fruits and grains that grew in healthy, chemical free soil, we might not get enough enzymes to efficiently digest a high protein diet. Our poor diets, stress filled lives, chemical laden foods, cooked foods, prescription drug use, etc.,  can leave us woefully lacking in enzymes.

Enzymes help us completely break down the  food we eat so that the vitamins and minerals in the food can be absorbed by the body.  Poor digestion can lead to reduced nutrient absorption and that causes the body to crave nutrients,  which means…. you crave MORE FOOD!  

Choose an enzyme supplement with a high quality blend of as many enzymes as possible.   This replaces the enzymes that may be missing in our food and can make up for the reduction in enzymes some bodies produce do to age, stress, chemicals and drugs.  Protein rich foods are harder for the body to break down than foods such as vegetables and fruit, enzymes give us the help we need to easily digest the foods we eat on this diet.  The closer your body can get to the optimal amount of digestive enzymes the better your digestion will be. 

B)  Take a good quality Probiotic supplement.  Probiotics or “good bacteria” improve digestion, bowel movement and further help to reduce the fatigue one can experience when changing to a high protein diet.  Choose a probiotic with a good variety of beneficial bacteria and at least several billion organisms per capsule.  Probiotics can work better when used in combination with enzymes.

Solution to problem # 4:

Make the diet livable by eliminating the restrictions most of these diets include that make preparing great tasting low carb meals and snacks too difficult.

A)   By creating the Livable Low Carb Diet we have developed a diet any healthy adult can easily stick to, and because it’s easy to stick to,  it’s even more effective than other low carb diet plans.   With this diet you can eat great tasting food and never go hungry. 

Low carb diets tell us to avoid any sugars and carbs.   The sauces, dressing and marinades we use to enhance the flavor of our foods do contain sugar and carbs so other diets tell you to avoid them.  The Livable Low Carb Diet encourages us to use dressings and sauces to greatly enhance the flavor of the foods we eat in a low carb diet program.   Plain chicken is boring and gets old fast, but marinated chicken or BBQ chicken is delicious.  The amount of carbs added is minimal and by helping people stick to the diet it actually makes our diet more effective.   Having a diet that we can enjoy great tasting food with is a key element in making the diet “livable”.   

Salads are allowed on low carb diets but you are supposed to use fat free/sugar free dressing or plain oil and vinegar.   Forget about that and eat a salad with every meal and use any dressing you like.  The carbs will be minimal, you’ll be happy and your taste buds won’t get bored and tempt you to dive into a cake or a huge pile of spaghetti.     Find new dressings and switch it up to keep it fun.  

With steak chicken and pork use A-1 or Heinz 57, BBQ sauces, etc.    Steak sauce can even make a cheap steak taste great and the carbs are not enough to hinder the diet.   With pork or beef ribs, go ahead and use the BBQ sauce and have several kinds on hand.   

Fish is super healthy but many folks find it too plain and maybe tasteless.   Try a teriyaki marinade on salmon, the carbs added by the marinade are not enough to be a diet deal-breaker and it makes salmon taste incredible.  A can of tuna with real mayonnaise, a little salt and onion powder tastes fantastic and mayo is very low in carbs.

Spices such as pepper, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder,  cayenne pepper and hot sauces are great to liven up a low carb meal.

Use onions to add flavor.  Onions are great for you and low in carbs (except shallots) and can be added to salads, meat dishes, omelets etc, to spice things up

Enjoy variety!

Try new cheeses.  Cheese is great for low carb diets;  most people have only just scratched the surface of the vast variety of cheeses available and the exciting flavors they offer.   Cheese sticks are a great, easily carried snack.  Broccoli is great for a low carb diet and tastes great with melted cheese. Cheese is delicious by itself and can add low carb flavor to many dishes.

Eggs are easy, you can prepare them in many ways and they taste great cooked with cheeses and meats.   Always keep some hard boiled eggs handy in the fridge for a fast snack and add mayonnaise for flavoring if you like.  Eggs unfortunately are high in cholesterol.  One large egg contains approximately 186 mg of cholesterol.   Normal healthy adults should limit cholesterol to a maximum of 300mg per day, so eggs and other high cholesterol foods such as fried foods and fatty meats like sausage, must be monitored.   Eggs can be enjoyed more by eliminating the yolk (which contains ALL of the cholesterol in eggs).  Scrambled eggs still taste great with just one whole egg (yolk included) and 2 egg whites (yolk separated and discarded).  Egg substitutes like Egg Beaters© are great as well.   

Most fruits are high in carbs and are not allowed, but there are a few you can still eat and benefit from the high levels of vitamins, minerals and fiber.   Enjoy avocados, strawberries, raspberries and rhubarb.  Keep these on hand for a sweet snack.

Eat nuts.  True nuts are a tasty food for low carb diets and easy to have around for a healthy snack.  Nut mixes (salted or non)  without peanuts (which are not nuts and high in carbs) can be taken anywhere and are ideal to satisfy a snack craving.   Cashews are not a true nut and have higher carbs but most mixes don’t have enough of them to worry about,  just avoid eating solely cashews.   For an alternative to commercial nut mixes find a store that sells nuts in bulk and make your own mix.  Almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, filberts, macadamias, Brazil nuts and pecans are all very low in carbs.  You can mix them in a bag and add a little salt or even a seasoned salt like Lawry’s.   Shake up the bag to coat the nuts and you’ve got a great healthy snack.  Dry roasted nuts are fine too.  Pistachios are not true nuts and are higher in carbs.

Tomatoes are a great source of vitamins and fiber on a low carb diet.  

Remember to include plenty of low carb vegetables and nuts and fruits.  It’s not healthy to skip these,  so eat salads, asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, etc or generally “green vegetables” which are low in carbs.   Asparagus tastes great with melted butter and a little salt.  You need the nutritional value of these foods and the fiber content.

It seems amazing that you can enjoy high fat foods like good steaks and eggs and drop weight, but for many people really works! 

* Please note:  This diet is intended for normal healthy adults only.   One should consider having their cholesterol level checked before and during high protein diets.

What you can eat and what you can’t eat.    Basically you need to stay away from high carbohydrate foods while on the diet until you reach your weight loss goal and then reintroduce these foods.   An easy way to identify high carb foods is by thinking “white foods” such as sugars, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, etc.  It’s really not a very long list but the American diet is very heavy on these carbohydrate loaded foods.   The good news is there are lots of tasty foods you can eat.   Below is a basic list just to give you an idea of what to enjoy and what to avoid.  Anything you don’t see on the list simply do an internet search to find out if its low carb or not.  

Do Eat:

Meats
Fish
Eggs
Cheeses
Nuts
Broccoli
Spinach
Cabbage
Lettuce
Tomatoes (sparingly)
Onions
Bok Choy
Asparagus
Cauliflower (try a mashed cauliflower recipe as a substitute for mashed potatoes)
Avocado
Strawberries
Raspberries
Rhubarb

Quick Snacks:

Mixed nuts (no peanuts).
Cheese sticks
Sliced meats like sandwich turkey, rolled up.
Sliced meats wrapped around a cheese stick.
An Avocado
Hard boiled eggs
 

Don’t Eat:

Carrots
Pasta
Breads
Rice
Potatoes
Sugar (use a substitute like Stevia)
Pizza
Flour products (tortillas, muffins, cakes, etc.)
Fruits (except those listed above)
Corn
Squashes
Yams or sweet potatoes
Grains and Grain products like cereal.

* For normal healthy adults only.   

Information provided on this site is for educational use only, and is not intended as medical advice. If you have health concerns you should always check with your health care professional before self-administering remedies. This information has not been evaluated by the US Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to treat, cure or diagnose any medical condition.

* We cannot guarantee specific results, as your results can vary.  

References:  (1) Gastrointestinal regulation of food intake, The National Center for Biotechnology available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1716217/  (2)  The Secret To Losing Weight By Improving Digestion available at:  http://www.dreliaz.org/the-secret-to-losing-weight-by-improving-digestion/   (3)  The Food Enzyme Concept Dr. Edward Howell Executive Book Summary by Nicholas Calvino, DC Available here:  http://sites.commercecreators.com/folder1399/listing/EnzymeNutrition.pdf  Other references:  (1) Cichoke, Anthony J.  (1999). The Complete Book of Enzyme Therapy. Avery Publishing Group: New York.  (2) Santillo, Humbart.  Food Enzymes: Missing Link to Radiant Health.   (3)  The Probiotics Revolution, The definitive guide to safe, natural health solutions using Probiotic and prebiotic foods and supplements,  By Gary B. Huffnagle and Sarah Wernick  (4)  The Probiotic Cure: Harnessing the Power of Good Bacteria for Better Health,  Martie Whittekin, CCN