Is It Easier To Lose Weight On A Carb Based Or A Low Carb Diet?

Is It Easier To Lose Weight On A Carb Based Or A Low Carb Diet?

When people want to lose weight, one of the main decisions they have to make is whether they want to go on a diet that uses carbs as their energy provider, or to go on a low carb diet. Both diets seem to work, but which one works better?

In all honesty, there is no real answer to this question. The main reason is the law of thermodynamics.

It doesn’t really matter what you eat – as long as you consume less calories than your body needs to operate, you will lose weight. The main difference between these diets is the percentage of mass lost – muscle compared to fat.

Low carb diets, which usually induce ketosis, are muscle sparing in nature. This means that when the body needs extra energy, it consumes fat (or ketones, a byproduct of the ketosis process) instead of attacking lean body mass. This means that a high percentage of the weight you lose will be from fat.

Carb focused diets, on the other hand, sometimes lead to more lean body mass loss. This is just because your body has never transitioned into ketosis. If your body needs extra energy, it sometimes breaks down lean body mass to feed itself.

It is important to note, though, that you will only be able to notice a real difference if you are on an extreme diet. It is not as if your muscles are going to shrivel up and disappear on a carb based diet. As long as you keep calories at a reasonable level, continue on a workout plan, and don’t diet for very long periods of time, either diet will work well. You will lose a bunch of fat and you will maintain most of your muscle mass.

What has your experience been with carbohydrates and losing weight?