I used up my inspiration and energy in writing this long e-mail answer, so I'm sharing it here in this article. 

 Someone asked me the following question:

"Can you tell me how many carbs you limited yourself to
when you were on low carb?
Did it work well for you?
I seem to have more luck counting carbs."
 

Here's my answer. 

I think that low-carb is an excellent diet plan, and if it is a workable plan for you, go for it. Personally, whether I'm doing low-carb or not, I've found that it is necessary for me to track my food, and count calories.

All of my own research and experimentation and observation leads me to believe that Calories Count, even when doing low-carb, and IF there is a "calorie edge" to eating low carb, it is a very small one, probably not more than 100 calories a day.

I've seen that people who choose to eat more calories than they burn ...over time... while doing low-carb will still gain weight. Low-carb -- when it's VERY low carb -- tends to be more satiating, and more and more I suspect that --- over time --- it works primarily because people ingest less food.

My experiments with low-carb have been during maintenance at normal weight, so it can't be fairly compared with someone in the weight-loss phase.

I am intrigued by Gary Taubes' position about carbs, (see the BOOK TALK Section at DietHobby.com) and did a lot of experimenting with it in 2011.

I have experimented with what is known as ZERO carb -- which actually turned out to be around 5-10 carbs a day, because I choose not to give up my very small amount of plain, Greek yogurt.

However, during most of my low-carb experimentation, I worked to keep my carbs around 20 or less.

When I'm doing my "normal" - "balanced" food plan, my carbs are usually around 50-80 or less. For me, a normal, really high-carb day would only be about 100 carbs. It just turns out that way, because I don't have a large enough calorie allowance for more.

My own experience .. so far .. because I expect to be doing further future experimentation with low-carb
is that ... either because of the lack of variety in the food, or because carbs cause more cravings (& at this point for me I can't honestly say which)

My appetite tends to be satisfied at around 1100-1200 calories a day, which is just a tiny bit ABOVE my calorie allowance to maintain my current weight, and over a long period of time, would still involve a weight-gain, but I didn't lose any actual fat weight at that calorie level on 20 carbs or on zero carbs.

What happened for my body, was that my weight dropped between 3 to 5 lbs DURING THE TIME I was low-carb, but I feel very certain that this drop was only due to water-weight, because within a week or two of returning to a very-low-calorie, "balanced" diet of around averaging only 800 calories, and my weight quickly adjusted to the previous number.

This happened to me 4 different times, each time after more than a month of successful low-carb eating so I never experienced even a real fat loss of even 1 or 2 lbs,after weeks and weeks of low-carb eating.

That's the personal data I have so far, but it isn't conclusive, and I will be doing more experimentation.

My preference is to receive diet questions in the comment section of DietHobby.com rather than in e-mails, so that the comment and my answer will benefit all of the readers there.

Due to my time limitations, When I spend time writing a long e-mail answer, there's a good chance it will wind up as a future article, anyway.

Like it just did. 

             
Weight-loss and Maintenance of that weight-loss is hard work. This is a Truth that needs to be faced in order to achieve long-term success.  Everywhere we turn we see advertising statements about how quick and easy weight-loss is... IF you just buy and use that One Specific Product.

That product could be a food, a supplement, a diet plan, exercise equipment, clothing, a book, a video, or an idea. It could be just about anything that can be sold for money.

Those marketing lies are common, but seldom do we see in bold black-and-white the truth that no matter what product we might use,
weight-loss is slow and hard, and maintenance of that weight-loss is seldom achieved.

There are now quite a few "reality" TV shows concerning weight-loss. These consist primarily of a trim and muscled, naturally thin, person, setting forth difficult physical tasks for very fat people, then berating and encouraging those people in order to "help" them "start to live their lives".

I find this prejudiced-against-fat people statement particularly offensive, because fat people have lives that are just as productive and enjoyable as thin people.The quality of one's life depends on that person's attitudes and thoughts,
not on their physical size, or even their physical condition.

I didn't start "living my life" only when I was a normal weight,
I've lived my life for all my life, whether fat or thin.

Sometimes it seemed good, sometimes it seemed bad, but it is the only Life that I have here on earth (as far as I know), and it's been continuous since I was born.  It didn't only "start" after weight-loss.

The action shown in these television shows mostly involves physical tasks, including exercise.  Because, otherwise, for long periods of time, we would just be looking at people NOT EATING the amounts or kinds of higher-calorie foods that are currently considered socially acceptable and desirable in our culture.This would be about as entertaining as watching paint dry.

Everywhere you hear people being told to "change their lifestyle". Like THAT is a different process than dieting forever. But, it isn't.

Our lifetime eating habits are culturally and emotionally based, and are extremely difficult to change long-term. To make it even harder, habit and emotion are only part of the equation, because physical elements are also involved. 

The bodies of the "reduced obese" do everything possible to return that person to their previously obese condition. There are quite a few articles already here at DietHobby addressing this issue,and this will continue to be an ongoing topic here.

Accepting the rather unpleasant Truths about weight-loss and maintenance has helped me become successful in that area, and personally, I don't see how it is possible for an obese person to achieve long-term weight-loss success without coming to terms with those Truths.

   Just checking in to say Hello to everyone. This morning the scale said 116.8 lbs.  This is the lowest weight I've been since April, and I'm very pleased about it.  Especially since my calorie count has been about the same, ...which of course is really very low... and I haven't been exercising.

The only thing I'm doing different right now is my zero wheat experiment.  I've having some veggies and fruit, and even had some potato chips, so my carbs aren't super-low, ...that is...not super-low when we consider my calorie count totals. 

It looks like this house repair, construction guy intrusion, is going to go on for a couple more weeks. My little repair job is the kind that the construction company schedules in between other bigger jobs, so it's hit and miss, here and there, which I find difficult.

This past week, I've also been putting in 12 to 15 hour days on my computer dealing with small technical details on my videos which are stored on the companion Diethobby YouTube channel. Tech things to do with YouTube navigation and rating issues etc.  It isn't that technically difficult, but it involves hitting the keys over and over and over and over and over and over for hours and hours and hours and hours.

I've become obsessed with getting that organizational detail done, and hopefully after a couple of more days,  I'll have accomplished it.
 
 I'm also spending a lot of time as the YouTube Grandma answering the comments and questions of people
who are visiting the DietHobby channel.  I've noticed some new registrations here at DietHobby.com, this past week, and I think they might be people that I've directed here for more info and support re dieting and weight-loss.

Life goes on....as I'm always writing here. We have to be committed to our food plan and follow through even in the busy, stressful times in order to be successful with weight-loss and maintenance of that weight-loss. That's what I'm working very hard to do as well.

Today I'm rather lacking in inspiration, except for sharing my own life's details.  However, there are many very inspirational and informative articles in the Archives.
Take the time to read some.

Avoidance of regaining lost weightis the primary goal of weight-maintenance.

Recently on a forum I frequently visit I read a post by a person who is working to maintain her weight-loss.  She had gained 5 lbs over time, and said:

“I can’t believe I let myself slip”

  I considered that statement and compared it with my own experience.
Over the past three years, my body has added about 5 - 7 lbs to its stabilized weight.

All the while, I’ve been working hard to keep that from happening, and I’m still working to lose that regain and to avoid gaining more.

In my own case, I wouldn’t call it “slipping”.  I didn’t “slip”.  It’s more like my body was being pulled along a surface by an unknown force,
while I was desperately working to cling, grasp, clutch, and hold on to any surface that would stabilize me and keep me from moving.

This process is still going on. Every day I work to keep my body at its “normal” weight, here in my maintenance weight range near the 115 lb area,even though my body thinks “normal” is over 200 lbs, and seems to inch my weight higher despite all my best efforts to keep this from happening.

Based on my past experience, I am well aware that if I chose to stop continually and consistently working to maintain my current weight, it wouldn’t be like missing my step
and falling off a curb to land on a nearby surface.
It would be more like jumping out of a plane without a parachute, my body rapidly hurling a long distance toward my potential destruction.

I’ve now been maintaining near my goal weight for 5 years and 7 months, and it takes more work to do it now than it did the first two years. It’s not surprising to me that less than 5% maintain their weight-loss, what surprises me is that the percentages are that high.

Some might think that this article is negative thinking,but I believe that   Acceptance of Reality is a positive and helpful thing. I am grateful that I was able to reach my weight goal,and I am grateful for every day that my body stays near it.

The Reduced Obese are constantly being lied to by the media, and marketing interests...including the medical profession, which serves to instill false expectations.

Weight loss is not easy, and long-term Maintenance is even harder.
It is a mistake to believe that maintaining a weight loss is easy, and that someday in our lifetime we can do it without a struggle.

   We need to get over it.  It ain’t happening.

Each of us is an Experiment of One, and
what works for one doesn’t always work for another.

 People have different genetics, body composition,
lifestyle, and eating preferences.

Also, the BMR or RMR and Activity Factor percentage numbers re individual calorie burn contained in the “experts” charts are formulas that are based on averages, and are very incorrect for many people.

  Even that generally recommended Low of 1200 calories a day can be more calories than the body of a small, older woman is able to use, and will cause a weight gain for some. My past 7 years of detailed daily food-intake records prove that this is the case for my own mid-60s, 5’0”, 115 lb body.

Approaching weight loss with a "one size fits all" eating routine results in frustration and loss of motivation  when our results don't match those of another.

 The best diet plan will allow us to learn new eating habits and re-shape our lifestyles in a way that will allow us to achieve and maintain our desired weight.

It helps to figure out our desired eating pattern. Some people find it difficult to eat a large breakfast and make that a smaller meal, or skip it entirely. Some skip dinner. Some do well eating three meals, avoiding all snacks, and others find eating small meals and snacks works better for them.  Some people eat only once a day within specific time limits.  Some people vary their eating schedules to include frequent fasts.

Different eating schedules can be an effective tool in weight management, but it is important for each of us to know our own preferences, and figure out what eating plan will work best for us, individually. After a desired eating schedule is determined, we divide our food-intake and calories with that plan in mind.

 Be realistic.
We need to know our diet weaknesses so we can incorporate them into our plans.

Set reasonable goals.
The only program that is guaranteed to help us reach our weight goals is the one we will do consistently.  There is no magic eating plan, program, or product that is guaranteed to help us lose weight and keep it off. 

 
Trying to follow a plan or program that has worked for someone else through a one-size-fits-all approach is a path doomed to fail  if it isn't something that fits into our own personal lifestyles and preferences.

Instead of giving in to the marketing campaigns or the success stories of others, and following a plan that doesn't fit one’s preferences and lifestyle, it is helpful to take a little time to make a plan that does.

 I find that when I build my own individual program and put my likes and preferences at the center,  I am more likely to own that plan and make it work to reach and maintain my goals.