Can I just get an indication of anyone whose managing to do this in Taiwan? Do food stalls do barbeque skewers etc? What about sugar free lollies or chocolates? 
Just about everything you need to know about the Atkins Plan.
The “South Beach Diet” is another good low-carb nutrition plan.
Cool thanks man- I should have been a bit more specific- that site DOES have everything I want to know yr right!! I been doin it for a while now- and last year I went to Thailnad and just abandoned it in favour of yummy Thai noodle and rice dishes- but carbs really don’t agree too well with me long term and I was wondering if there was anyone out there who is managing to make a go of it in TW? Sugar free lollies etc? Or do I have to bring another 18 packets? 
You won’t get a lot of sugar replacement products off the shelf here. Taiwanese still think food is for energy so they can work harder. Give them another 10 years and they’ll be trying to find products that have zero nutritional value. Probably when they get over the idea that being a fat bastard makes you look wealthy.
Given there is so much hype about how bad those products are it’s probably not a bad thing to give them away. I’ve adapted by having fresh lemon squeezed into filtered ice water where I used to have the low calorie cordials etc.
There are things like sugar free gum in the 7-11’s. I buy them. Probably other stuff if you look.
That is one thing you will not have a problem finding.
Em-dogz -
I hear ya. Taiwan is a tuff place for healthy food. It takes a lot of personal inspection and a lot of cooking for your self. I like the noodles also…and its tough.
I shop the traditional markets 3 - 4 times a week and have found out who has the ‘good stuff’ and make buddies with them.
Thanks Tainan CB- good advice. Thanks ironman but “fresh lemon squeezed into filtered ice water” probably mayb won’t cut it for me. However I think I should just shut my mouth and see how I feel when I get there- I know the climate will probably change what I find tasty anyway. Right? RIGHT? I hope so. Sniff.
More importantly, why are you still doing the low-carb diet thing? :loco:
That’s so last year. I thought the fad had been thorougly debunked and everyone was back to eating healthy again.
[quote]Low carb diet health risk fears
Following a low carb diet could cause serious health conditions, doctors in the US have warned.
Dr Lyn Steffen and Ms Jennifer Nettleton, from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health in Minneapolis, said: "Low carbohydrate diets for weight management are far from healthy, given their association with ketosis, constipation or diarrhoea, halitosis, headache, and general fatigue to name a few side-effects.
“These diets also increase the protein load to the kidneys and alter the acid balance in the body, which can result in loss of minerals from bone stores, thus compromising bone integrity.”[/quote]
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4814314.stm
[quote=“Mother Theresa”]More importantly, why are you still doing the low-carb diet thing? :loco:
That’s so last year. I thought the fad had been thorougly debunked and everyone was back to eating healthy again.
[quote]Low carb diet health risk fears
Following a low carb diet could cause serious health conditions, doctors in the US have warned.
Dr Lyn Steffen and Ms Jennifer Nettleton, from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health in Minneapolis, said: "Low carbohydrate diets for weight management are far from healthy, given their association with ketosis, constipation or diarrhoea, halitosis, headache, and general fatigue to name a few side-effects.
“These diets also increase the protein load to the kidneys and alter the acid balance in the body, which can result in loss of minerals from bone stores, thus compromising bone integrity.”[/quote]
news.BBC.co.uk/2/hi/health/4814314.stm[/quote]
It’s all things in moderation. The idea is to even out the fats, carbs and protein.
Not weigh in hard on carbs. I try to avoid carbs like the plague and end up about 60%carbs and 20% each on fat and protein anyway.
You’re right. Atkins is an old idea and had its time but it tilted peoples thinking away from the old carbs are good for you routine and the healthy eating pyramids are starting to look a bit better around the world.
I am not a hard core low carber, but before coming to Taiwan I shed a fair bit of weight just cutting back on carbs. Nothing crazy, just watching it here and there.
I have found it very difficult to do the same here mainly because finding health food choices out and about is much more difficult (such as salads, sugar free drinks etc)
Sure, there are places around and the supermarkets are OK, but if you are out driving and pull over somewhere for lunch it all gets pretty difficult.
You need to just accept the fact that Taiwan has mostly shit tasting and shit quality food with almost useless nutritional information on them. Once you accept this fact, you can then keep healthy by doing twice as much exercise as you normally do.
voila!
I did Atkins for a while over the past couple of years before coming here. Like you, my body tends to function better when I eat fewer carbs: I feel more energetic, have better skin, and fewer stomach problems. However, since I came here a few months ago, I’ve mainly been eating cookies, scallion pancakes and rice. I’m not much of a meat-eater, but I’ve heard so many horror stories about the toxic vegetables here that I’m just not sure what food is safe to buy yet–beyond the high calorie/low nutrition pre-packaged snacks.
Good luck staying on your diet. And if you find out anything, let me know 
Mother Teresa- Its not de-bunked if you have type II diabetes! :loco:
A healthy diet for me HAS to be very low in sugar- and carbs regulate insulin production. The idea is to replace sugar and carbs with healthy low carb things like fish and nuts and green vegies- just because its possible to wrap a piece of cheese in bacon and fry the whole thing in butter doesn’t mean thats the way to do it. 
The low fat dogma is wisely acknowleged to be the culprit for Americas skyrocketing obesity levels and type II diabetes since the 70s onwards (before the low fat phenomena obesity levels were stable at %17). I know that cutting out sugar rather than fat goes against the grain of what you have always been told is “healthy”- try and think of it in terms of different types on fats.
[quote=“Em-dogz”]Mother Teresa- Its not de-bunked if you have type II diabetes! :loco:
A healthy diet for me HAS to be very low in sugar- and carbs regulate insulin production. The idea is to replace sugar and carbs with healthy low carb things like fish and nuts and green vegies- just because its possible to wrap a piece of cheese in bacon and fry the whole thing in butter doesn’t mean thats the way to do it. 
The low fat dogma is wisely acknowleged to be the culprit for Americas skyrocketing obesity levels and type II diabetes since the 70s onwards (before the low fat phenomena obesity levels were stable at %17). I know that cutting out sugar rather than fat goes against the grain of what you have always been told is “healthy”- try and think of it in terms of different types on fats.[/quote]
Good post dogz.
I don’t think MT will be able to do anything with that but give you a big 
I’ve got to agree with Persephone as well. If I eat a big carb meal I just want to sleep and that’s not what I get out of bed in the morning for. Not only that but I get to the next meal and go “What do I do with this, I’m not hungry at all”
Check the stickie at the top of the H&Fitness thread relating to Taiwanese produce. It was written by Muchaman who has lived here for many years and writes the Lonely Planet guide to Taiwan. He knows the facts.
It is a difficult thing to sort out. The best you can do is buy fruit and vegetables with known sources. Costco seems to have a lot of imported fruit and vegetables. Costco will become your friend here, it is a big American supermarket chain. Huge quantities of everything but you plan a trip and buy accordingly. Ignore the bakery. I enjoy walking past and looking at the apple pies, cakes and other goodies.
Sorry Ironman, no . I didn’t realize he/she had diabetes and I do acknowledge that people with diabetes should be very careful about their sugar intake, even in the form of carbs. But. . .
That’s ridiculous. The culprit for America’s skyrocketing obesity and diabetes levels is supersized meals, burgers and fries, pizzas, 32 ounce sodas, nachos covered in cheese, potato chips, chocolate bars, cake, cookies, ice cream and all that other great crap that Americans eat in such excess. In other words, the typical high fat, high sugar US diet.
Despite those who criticize Taiwan food, I think the diet here is far healthier – much smaller portions and far more vegetables (something many Americans rarely eat). True, many things here are fried in too much oil and fast food has made great inroads, but at least the portions here tend to be far smaller than the US and the kind of disasterous foods I described in the above paragraph are not a staple of most people’s diets. By comparison, noodle soup and dumplings are extremely healthy food.
True.
But, when I was at college studying (a few years ago plus 20) those looking for a healthy lifestyle followed the good eating pyramid and were under the impression that we could eat as much carbs as we wanted. Bread, rice, potato etc was the good stuff.
But, people were getting fat on this type of diet. Me included.
We now know that eating a smaller meal (as you mention) and combining fats and protein will slow digestion and you don’t get the sugar peaks and troughs and in Dogz case it obviously has medical implications.
I’ve got a body that wants to be 280lb like my Dad was and I have to fight it every single day. Carbs are the enemy. I really want to eat those sticky bun things/ coffee scrolls from Costco that are covered in the white icing, a whole pack of 6.
Yea, those are great. My wife let me buy them once – that was it. They’re far too sweet for her taste and you’re right they are very unhealthy. But it’s not just that they are carbs. It’s that they are refined white sugar and refined white flour covered with a thick layer of oil and more sugar (which is why they taste so good 
). I don’t think they should be forbidden, though. One can freeze them and only take them out one at a time for an occassional treat. All things in moderation, right.
Anyway, I suspect that you, me and Em-dogz are probably very much in agreement on what constitutes a healthy diet.
Good:
Lots of fresh fruits and veggies, fish, lean meats, chicken, whole grains and products made from them, water; and fats, carbs and protein in moderation. Raw, unprocessed, boiled, baked, steamed or simmered are preferable, and eat in moderation.
Bad:
Refined white flour, sugar, corn syrup and the like, oil, fat, salt, processed foods (incl. canned/frozen/microwave foods), fast foods, preservatives, artificial additives, fried foods and massive servings.
There’s nothing magical about the above and one doesn’t need to purchase books, attend seminars, or buy special products to eat such a diet. It’s just common sense. I believe the longest-lived people in the world are in Okinawa and I would bet you’ll find many healthy people there in their 70’s, 80’s and 90’s who have happily eaten such a healthy diet their whole lives without giving a thought to it and have never heard of Atkins, the Zone Diet or the South Beach Diet.
Ok OK, so everyone agrees what is healthy, but wasn’t the original question whether anyone had done it here? I did it for a couple of months last year in Vietnam and agree that home cooking is the way to go. I did find a local cafe that would make very tasty egg white omelettes but otherwise took care of my food needs at home.
As an aside I didn’t really lose any weight until I quit the beer because it is so full of carbs (damn) and once I cut carbs completely I got unbelievably constipated (very painful) but I did drop 17KG in 4 months with exercise and diet and 1 month of no beer.
Has anyone lost a bunch of weight and kept it off though? 1 year after my peak I am only 7Kg lighter than at the start of the regime i.e. I have put back on 10KG!!!
I know a few people who have, but they’re more disciplined about it than most.
I’d like to take the opportunity here to reiterate that the Atikins diet is designed to be a lifestyle change–only the first step of which is total elimination of carbs. After the first few weeks–or months, if you are significantly overweight–you are supposed to go back to eating carbs in moderation. And yes, you will get constipated without the carbs. For me, it was worth the freedom from sugar cravings and the energy boost; for some of my friends, it was not.
Also, I don’t think the Atkins diet is for everyone. I think you have to aware of your body. Doing the Atkins diet can help you to become more aware of what you put into your body and what your body needs. Several of my friends got very sick on the diet, but I never did. I think the reason for that was that their bodies needed more carbs than mine. Possibly because of genetic differences, possibly because they were getting too much exercise or not enough sleep and vitamin supplements to offset the dietary change. Of course, for the ones that were only trying to lose 7 pounds, I think doing Atkins was just plain unnecessary.
[quote=“Edgar Allen”] I did it for a couple of months last year in Vietnam and agree that home cooking is the way to go. I did find a local cafe that would make very tasty egg white omelettes but otherwise took care of my food needs at home.
[/quote]
I’ve tried making egg white meals. My Taiwanese SO absolutely freaks at the “waste” of throwing the egg yolks away.
It is expensive though, I replace the fat from the egg yolks with avocado (when available here) and smoked salmon if it’s a morning meal.