Five most common mistakes people make when they start Banting

We all know starting a new diet can seem exciting at first but we soon find out that it takes a lot more self-control than we had anticipated.

/> Nutritional therapist and Banting expert Sally-Ann Creed, the author of The Low-Carb Creed and co-author of the The Real Meal Revolution , shares the five most common mistakes people make when they start Banting.
1. Eating too much fat
‘This should never be called a high-fat diet as much as it is a healthy fat diet,’ says Creed. ‘By eating too much fat, you will not only make yourself feel a bit nauseous, but if you are a woman, you may end up gaining weight rather than losing it.’
Creed says some people confuse the low-carb, healthy-fat lifestyle (LCHF) with a ketogenic diet. ‘A LCHF lifestyle embodies primarily low-carb intake, a moderate protein intake and a moderate healthy-fat intake. Some athletes and younger men do better on more fat, but as a rule this is not really necessary.
With a ketogenic diet (often used to treat epilepsy and, more recently, cancer) this is an incredibly high healthy-fat, low-protein and low-carb diet best followed under the guidance of a qualified health professional,’ says Creed.

2. Trying to include the wrong foods
‘When you begin a LCHF lifestyle, you are best off avoiding all legumes, grains, added gluten, seed oils and other verboten items,’ says Creed. She says while there is a move to include all these back into the diet and to make them ‘okay’ again, they are not part of the classic LCHF lifestyle .
‘It’s always a good idea to be properly educated by someone qualified who has been in the field a long time, instead of allowing social media to educate you,’ says Creed.
3. Too many dairy products
If anything can trip you up, these can, says Creed. ‘It is my contention that nobody with a weight problem should be on dairy products while they are in their weight-loss phase, apart from real butter or ghee,’ says Creed. ‘Dairy is high in milk sugar (lactose) and other hormones which put the brakes on weight loss – especially in females. It’s an individual thing, so each person needs to find their tolerance level, and whether or not dairy works for them.’

4. Expecting results too soon
‘In the first week everyone and anyone will lose weight on any diet whatsoever, especially a low-carb diet!’ says Creed. ‘This doesn’t mean it’s going to work well for you – the “weight” lost is just water that has been retained by the tissues.
Once you go low-carb, your body will retain less water and the weight loss can be more marked than when you embark on any other weight-loss programme which has got some small amount of carbs included.’ While going LCHF in the first week will show obvious weight loss, says Creed, it may slow down after that, so give your body time to adjust. ‘It took a long time to abuse your body and pile on the extra kilos – it takes time to safely lose weight without jeopardising your health,’ says Creed.
5. Going nuts
People often eat way too many nuts on LCHF diets, says Creed. Eating too many nuts and seeds will prevent weight loss and can potentially be inflammatory due to the high omega-6 fatty acid levels present, warns Creed. So eat nuts and seeds very sparingly, whether you are overweight or not.
‘Many people embarking on the LCHF lifestyle bake and cook all sorts of breads, muffins, pancakes and a variety of other things [containing nuts and seeds], and then wonder why they are gaining weight or at worst not losing,’ says Creed. ‘The underlying secret of LCHF is to eat real food – not baked goods or bought processed food. Buy single-ingredient foods and eat simply. Once in a while, it’s acceptable to have a small piece of baked LCHF cake, but not daily!’