My husband and I went low carb after I read the Primal Blueprint (same guy who has the Mark's Daily Apple blog). That man changed our lives. The book absolutely motivated me to want to do right by my body and it has made a huge difference. We changed our lifestyle completely in September 2012. Since then, I've lost a little over 70 pounds and my husband is hovering at somewhere around 60. I saw my doctor for the first time since I started it and she was so happy, she hugged me.
Low-carb for us has been very healthy. We still eat fruit and veggies. My husband is Cuban so we still eat beans, too. We've just learned that our carbs have to be taken in moderation and we avoid anything made with refined sugar or flour. But if we want something, we eat it. If I want a piece of cheesecake, I have one. I just don't have one everyday or eat the whole cheesecake anymore.
The weight loss has made a huge difference, too. We're more active now just because we can be. My feet don't hurt after 30 minutes of walking. My knees and back don't ache all day every day. I don't just sit all the time because it hurts to do anything else, anymore. When I go to the playground with my granddaughter now, I'm climbing the jungle gym with her.
Whoever said you need carbs as if a low-carb diet meant cutting carbs out entirely doesn't understand how this works. Of course, you need carbs. You can't get every vitamin and mineral your body needs from meat alone. But you don't need high-sugar, processed carbs that the body doesn't have to work to digest. If your body has to work to digest it and if it's high in fiber, it's good for your body (in moderation).
The key here is MODERATION. Too much of anything is not good for you and we've become a society that just doesn't do anything in moderation. Sex addicts have issues because they don't have sex in moderation. Alcoholics have issues because they don't drink alcohol in moderation. Shopaholics have issues because they don't shop in moderation. And overeaters have issues because they don't eat in moderation. Even people who exercise too much have issues. My point is that there is a huge difference between a low carb diet and a no carb diet. Eating carbs in moderation is the key to making this work.
The other key for me was considering the consequences of my actions. What I mean by that is along with eating in moderation, I now heavily consider the long term effects of what I'm putting in my mouth to determine if it's worth it. A bonus is that I realized that, just as my WS had issues with considering the long term effects of some of his behaviors, I also did when it came to food and some other areas of my life. When we started trying to eat more deliberately and with long term consequences in mind, we realized that it was something we needed to start applying to other areas of our lives as well. We're now more careful spenders, eaters, exercisers, and thinkers in general. We've paid off more debt, have money in savings, spend better time together, and enjoy life more all the way around. But it all started with the Primal Blueprint and a low carb diet in September 2012. That book really made me think about my life and how to change it for the better.