easing into 0carb or maybe not (aka Steak Lovers' Diet)

imsovain · easing into 0carb or maybe not (aka Steak Lovers' Diet)

Some people have reported having problems with zero carb. For those with transition problems, I suggest "The Steak Lovers' Diet" (SLD) by Melvin Anchell, which is a mostly meat diet with a very restricted selection of carbs (about 60 carbs a day).

You can use the SLD to transition to zero carb, or maybe stay on SLD permanently.

- The SLD does not specify raw meat, which may appeal to some for taste or safety reasons.
- Some people on very low carb diets experience electrolye problems due to sodium, potassium, calcium, and/or magnesium depletion.
- The authors of "Life Without Bread" in their clinical experience have found that going below 72g of carbs is a point of diminishing returns.
- There is some evidence that 50g of carbs is necessary for proper thyroid function. (This info will be at the end of this post.)
- To sum up, I am suggesting that some people will do better (both for weight loss and health) on some carbs rather than none.

This is the diet in a nutshell:

1. Two or three meals a day, as desired.

2. All the meat you like at each meal, as long as it doesn't contain hidden carbs (i.e., meat extenders, dextrose from "curing", etc.). An important difference from most members on this forum is that Anchell doesn't ask people to eat raw meat.

3. One "ordinary portion" of exactly one of the following foods: potato, sweet potato, rice, grapes, pear, banana, blueberries, raspberries, watermelon, grapefruit. An "ordinary portion" would be, for example, a half grapefruit, a medium-sized banana or spud or sweet potato or pear; about 3/4 cup of berriess, cooked rice, or grapes; a slice of watermelon about the size of his book (an ordinary trade book, not particularly thick). That's it. No other "foods" are allowed.

4. Spices are okay, including mustard, hot sauce, etc.

5. Limited amounts of alcohol in the form of spirits (no beer or wine or sweetened liqueur) is allowed.

6. No artificially sweetened drinks.

7. Black coffee or plain tea are allowed. No milk, cream or sweeteners.

8. You can use any oil you like, including butter. And he allows mayo, if it has no sugar (some do).
That's it. If it's not on the list you can't have it.

Buy the book and/or go to the following links for more descriptions of the diet and peoples' experiences:

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=295008
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=305046

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THYROID INFO

WesleyT

- There is some evidence that 50g of carbs is necessary for proper thyroid function. (This info will be at the end of this post.)

i'm a bit skeptical about that one, there is evidence that zero carb will "deplete" serotonine, while most ppl here experience a "happy feeling" on this diet Wink

ReddyMcMeaty

I think the happy feeling comes with time. Maybe immediately for people who have no "issues" with seratonin, but speaking for myself and a large number of other women there is a period of time when starting zero carb where we are nasty angry and very unhappy people. It is most definitely a hormonal/neurotransmitter thing. Maybe our bodies are not able to produce enough on their own immediately... because when, after a period of stress (think bleeding and hurt baby.. well maybe unless you're a mother you can't understand that stress) anyway a bowlful of mashed potatoes or a hefeweizen beer is like chill pill. I can literally feel it working like a tranquilizer. So, IMO maybe for some people the steak lover's diet could be a transition.... I have not used it as one though so Dunno

Shinigami

Moronic_Pathways

i don't know if this has anything with thyroid,but whenever i go no carb/sugar for on the 5th-6th day- i begin to become super alert and need less sleep, i wake up energized/borderline wired and i am more even keel.
But sometimes that feeling becomes manic and not as bad but still is comparabile to when i drink sugar/red bull- this usually only happens when i eat alot of rare meat,it overstimulates me...no complaints,just curious.i feel like i am driven by a motor on no carbs sometimes ,especially with rare meats... Wow

sometimes all at once

woof_woof

Stefansson during his one year experiment showed no thyroid problems.

Scout Finch

Wouldn't thyroid problems (hypo) cause people to stall out if they are trying to lose weight? Slow down the metabolism, as it were. If this is a concern on zero-carb, you can always get TFTs and get the results interpreted.

Low thyroid is definitely not a problem for me. If anything, I'm the other way: high energy, fast metabolism. The serotonin thing is an issue for me, however. Nothing that a beef holiday once in a while doesn't solve, though! Yup

Quoldrix

marly · Steak Lovers' Diet by Melvin Anchell

Dr. Anchell was my doctor in the 1960s (yes, I'm old but still adorable). He based his regimen on Dr. Alfred Pennington's work at Du Pont in the 1950s.

For significant information, I recommend searching for Pennington's research rather than Dr. Anchell's book. Pennington did not make the second item of the diet a rigid choice, as Anchell does. He chose the various fruits and veggies based on their availability and low-allergy causing history. Anchell took this information and codified it into a fairly intimidating program.

I bought the June 1950 edition of Holiday magazine from a vintage dealer online (expensive) and typed the entire article. I can post it in segments if there's any interest in it or I can e-mail it as a long post to anyone who would like to read it.

I prefer zero carb at the moment, but the Pennington plan is a proven healthful approach to eating well and losing weight.

Marly

woof_woof

Based on my experience I feel better after eating steak and potatoe then after eating steak and cheese so he may be on something.

ReddyMcMeaty

I lost weight recently "without trying" by cutting out dairy. I'm pregnant and succumbing to cravings was eating very large quantities (I know, not wat he recommends) of rice and potato and fat along with my meat..I just kept losing even though the amount I ate was ridiculous. I stopped losing and gained over the month vacation in Canada where I consumed dairy again.

I think if zero carb is not what a person WANTS to do, for simplicity or for dietary beliefs or even just dietary tastes then the steak lover's diet is excellent.

easing into 0carb or maybe not (aka Steak Lovers' Diet)

Steak Lovers' Diet by Melvin Anchell