Slow Carb Diet Review

Insights into Slow carb diet

Get ready to have your mind blown…Are you ready? In Tim Ferris’ book The Four Hour Body, he says you can lose 20 lbs of fat in 30 days with Slow carb diet – and without exercising. Do you believe it?

I couldn’t, and so I looked into it. The promises offered were reminiscent of every diet ever created. Rapid weight loss, eat whatever you want of the selected foods, it’s easy. It’s the missing piece of knowledge you never knew, but, now that you do, your life problems will be solved. I was left with the question; does it work?

What is the Slow carb diet

The slow carb diet is fairly simple and similar to other diets like the ketogenic diet. You follow guidelines and over time you see results.

The guidelines for the slow carb diet are as follows:

1. You can eat whatever you want one day a week, a cheat day. On the cheat day, you can eat whatever you desire.
2. The other six days you can still eat till you feel full but you have to follow the rest of these rules.
3. Absolutely no sugary foods, that includes fruit, this is one key difference between many diets.
4. No caloric drinks, in fact, drink mostly water and preferably a lot of water.
5. Another rule and a big change for many people who are new to diets is to eliminate carbohydrate-based foods.
6. The last guideline is to try and eat the same meal multiple times.

PROTEIN

• Eggs, lots of eggs are recommended by Tim Ferris
• Lean meats, like chicken and other poultry
• Other meats are acceptable as well, like beef and pork
• Seafood

LEGUMES AND BEANS/MORE PROTEIN

• Lentils
• Soybeans
• Pinto Beans
• Red Beans
• Black Beans
• Snap Peas

VEGETABLES

• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Cauliflower
• Kale
• Sauerkraut and Kimchi
• Asparagus
• Peas
• Green beans

CARBS

• NONE, no carbs allowed

DIARY

• Cottage cheese only, no other dairy

FRUIT

• No sugary fruit, so tomatoes and avocados.

Does this diet REALLY work?

If you’re a skeptic like me then you are still hesitant on this diet’s effectiveness and rightfully so. This diet was created by Tim Ferris, the best selling author and someone who finds hidden patterns in successful people. He has a popular podcast, multiple books, and a handful of awards.

He is a successful man, but he is not a nutritionist, or a biologist, or anything that you would expect to create a healthy diet. That doesn’t mean the diet is bad, but it definitely means you should be cautious.

Tim Ferris did consult some people who actually know what a diet should or shouldn’t be, and they agreed with some of his diet restrictions while you can find others who disagree with other parts of the diet. Specifically with the long term effects of staying on the diet.

Dairy is not recommended on this diet along with fruit and whole grains. These are widely considered healthy if eaten in moderation however they are considered banned foods for the slow carb diet. While it is possible to live without these items, it could cause vitamin and other nutrient deficiencies especially when compounded by the concept that you are supposed to eat the same meals over and over.

This creates a lack of variety especially when it comes to vegetables which is where most people get most of their vitamins.

Weight loss app proof

I will admit that there are reasonable reasons for each restriction in the diet, but this diet has never been studied closely. The only study performed on the slow carb diet is one through an app where people signed up and recorded their own weight loss.

The study posited that 84% of participants lost at least 8 pounds after 4 weeks. This is a significant result and has a little bit of credit to it but 4 weeks doesn’t show the long term results of a diet like this. The results could be a combination of muscle loss and water weight loss which is not fat loss.

I don’t think most people want to use this diet to just lose muscle and water after a month and then gain it back once they switch to a more sustainable diet.

Perhaps this diet isn’t so bad though, at least in the short term of about a month. I mean if you’re new to diets, then this can help you build beneficial habits like eliminating most processed foods, and eating “healthier” food groups, as well as helping you be aware of what you are actually eating.

Carbs are not bad, but they do have a tendency to be calorie-heavy and so would be bad for those trying to shed some pounds. This diet limits dairy because lactose is supposed to increase insulin which has been seen to have a negative correlation with weight loss.

The slow carb diet does encourage the consumption of cottage cheese which has lower lactose and higher protein than other dairy products. The sugar in fruit, fructose, can increase blood fat levels which is supposedly bad for fat loss.

The cheat day is also supposed to have some science to it, by eating a lot every once in a while you’re preventing your body from keeping equilibrium with your, hopefully, lower-calorie days thereby increasing your metabolism.

Should I try it?

Maybe by now, you are wondering if this diet is right for you or if it even works. Well in my non-medical opinion I would say it could definitely cause weight loss.

I have researched other diets and have found processed foods specifically sugary ones to be a big factor in weight loss or lack thereof.

A big factor in whether this diet or any diet is going to work for you is whether you stick to it. A diet shouldn’t be something you do for a month, it should be a lifestyle choice.

So a good indicator of whether this diet is good for you is how much of a lifestyle change is it for you. If you have to change a lot then you are less likely to stick to it.

Final thoughts

The possibility to eat as much of the prescribed foods is a good benefit but I’m concerned with its effectiveness in weight loss. While ideally, you won’t get hungry if your body doesn’t need it, this isn’t always the case and what kind of food you consume doesn’t change the number of calories ingested. I understand proteins and vegetables are less calorie-dense than carbs you should still be somewhat mindful of the number of calories consumed.

Overall, I would say that this diet will work for some people, but most people may have trouble sticking to the habits and dietary restrictions. It’s important to note for those who think they need to lose weight, just trying to diet is better than not trying and sulking about your weight.

If you really want to accomplish a goal you have to take action and one little step is better than standing still.