No Carb hi fat low carb low fat HELP!!!!!

Hi all
I am sooo confused by all the eat this not that stuff I see on this board and other places its driving me nuts (short trip)
I have seen recommendations to eat a very low carb diet, also Atkins stile diet which has High fat and others say no sugar just splenda or sucralose and others say those cause many issues and are really bad for you
I could just eat cardboard but I am sure something in there is bad for you. 
I think the way to do this is stay with healthy whole food and stay away from bagels and white bread but what do I know

what do you guys think?
and more importantly why do you think that way.

Honestly I don't focus on fat at all... I focus on Calories, Carbs,and protein. I try to stay between 6-800 calories a day, 40 or less carbs, and 70+grams of protein. I like to just monitor my fat and sodium. Sugar to me isn't a big issue - because if something is high in sugar it is high in carbs so I will already rule it out. Use a tool like Myfitnesspal.com to log your food. For my carb fix I normally have pita chips, crackers, low carb wrap, occasional breaded chicken. Bottom line is to follow what your nutritionist told you to do. Personally I follow the successful vets on here - since they have been there and done that and had amazing results. I will do what my nutrionist says when I get to maintenece. Try something for a week if the scale doesn't move or you aren't losing inches, then try something else. It is trial and error once you get on real food to find out what really works for your body. Good luck!

I'm very similar to Jennifer above... I am aware of my fat, and feel like I should be aiming for 30grams or less epr frisco's doctor's plan, but for my body low carb is more important and I am often 35-45 grams of fat... I average around 600-650 calories right now at 10 weeks out.

To me it was simple, I chose I doctor who had a proven record of success and followed his plan.  Before I had surgery, I tried every possible diet out there and eventually I became convinced that my own knowledge was not enough to get me to goal and keep me there.  That is why I decided to find someone who consistently helped patients get to goal.  I researched for over a year, looking at every surgeon and program out there and decided that my doctors stats were the best I could find.  I then made a decision to do everything he told me to do.  I ate what he said, in the amounts that he told me and did not second guess his advice.  I ate 600-800 calories until goal, under 40 g. of carbs and over 70g. of protein.  I reached goal in 6.5 months and have maintained ever since.  (27 months since surgery).  Before VSG became really popular, this was the main program for most patients.  Now, there are many doctors performing the VSG and there are many opinions about the right diet out there.  You need to find who you think is right (based on their stats) and follow that program.  Between you and me, there are many doctors that think it is OK to lose 50-70% of your EW, they have programs that get you to that level.  My doctor aims to get you to 100% EW in the first year in most cases.  That is what he aims for and that is what I wanted.  It worked for me.

I have read the success you and Frisco have had with your surgeon so you are on to something I think
My Dr. doesn't really have a plan as far as carbs calories or anything so maybe I will follow yours
judging from your results it looks like I could do worse

You could do a lot worse!  :)  Most of the vets on this board followed this plan.  Good luck to you.

What works for one person may not work for another, so you have to experiment. Also, what you do or don't do, eat or don't eat is also very dependent on your body makeup and how much exercise you get. I have experimented with what works for me before and after surgery. Here is what I have found:

My first focus, as most doctors and nutritionists will tell you, is protein. Minimum is 70g per day. I don't always get that, but I always try.

For carbs, I don't count the number of carbs, per se, I used to, but now that I have a good feel for what carbs are in what,  I have broken it down to the "what" and not the "how many". It is good to count them if you are not sure what foods are higher in carbs than others. When I was counting, I was shooting for a weekly goal which averaged to 30-40 carbs per day. I just make sure that any carbs I get come mostly from veges first (not potatoes) and whole grains second. I limit any "high" carb items to once or twice per week. This means I won't eat a whole wheat pasta, corn, oatmeal or other high carb choice more than one per week, twice at the most. I always avoid carbs from sugar and anything white (flour, bread, etc.).

I don't worry about fats other than making sure I choose healthy fats - olive oil, grapeseed oil, etc. I have seen that a low carb diet will produce weight loss results in me even if I am eating butter and full fat cheese. Just don't overdo it, but it certainly makes doing without sugar more tolerable when you can still eat some fat.

Finally, I track calories. I set a goal for myself to eat between 800-1100 calories daily. This is more than a lot of people who are trying to reach goal, but based on what I have read, it is a healthy number. I am losing weight slower than other people, but I think some of the side effects that can come from losing too much too fast are minimized. I have also found that if i eat too few calories, the weight loss comes to a grinding halt. It is better to eat more calories and exercise more than to eat too few calories. Your body will rebound to the weight loss faster with more exercise anyway.

If you stay within a certain calorie range and eat 3 meals a day, you will naturally have to make better food choices or the calories will quickly exceed your goal.

I do drink drinks with artificial sweeteners. I think like almost anything the key is moderation. When I was pregnant I had gestational diabetes and my doctor said I could use artificial sweeteners in moderation. If all you ever drink is drinks with artificial sweeteners then I think you need to rethink your hydration strategy, but as a part of an otherwise balances diet, I think SOME drinks with artificial sweeteners are ok. I have seen and read all of the dire warnings and I just don't believe that there is a problem with it in moderation. Some people are sensitive to them, however, so it is different for those people.

Good luck!

i dont stress myself with the details too much and have reached goal with no stalls.

in general i try and eat healthy, i buy better quality meats, organic, grassfed when possible, i eat alot of cheese, not always low fat, and i eat some carbs but dont go crazy, milk is also a staple in my diet while some people avoid it because of carbs.

while you are losing i think its best to keep your carbs under 60grams which is why people push for sugar free stuff/no bread/no pasta/ no rice but some people are more sensitive to carbs than others. i can eat 65-95g a day and still lose weight. i have always kept my fat between 40-50g a day and havent had a problem..

what i would suggest is to follow your doc's plan, and see what works for you. you may be one of those who needs to keep carbs under 30-40g..it varies.

It all depends on your body and working out. Thank God, I'm not carb sensitive. However, I still count them, fat, calories, protein, sugar, and sodium. I'm going for balance overall. Also, I work out really hard 5-6 days a week and low cal did not work for me. I had a 3 wk. stall a couple mos. ago when I tried to go lower everything, upped protein to speed up my weightloss, opp. effect. I'm not the fastest loser, fine with me, NOW.
So, there are so many different variables. Early out is the time to play around to see what works for you.