Low Carb Diet
Interview with Jimmy Moore

In this interview we are happy to talk to the experienced low carb, high fat expert Jimmy Moore.

Jimmy has an amazing story to tell both from a personal perspective and from a diet philosophy view. He has one of the absolutely best updated diet sites on the web. If you want the full perspective on the low carb, high fat approach you'll find it there.

1. Jimmy, thank you for this chance to interview you. Through several years of blogging, first through your well-visited Blogspot blog and now http://www.livinlavidalowcarb.com, you have shared your amazing life-changing story from 410 pounds down to the healthy man you are today. How would you sum up your low-carb approach and the changes it has made in your life?

Thank you so much for inviting me for this interview today.  My low-carb lifestyle approach is pretty simple:  I've found the plan that works for me (Atkins), followed that plan exactly as prescribed by Dr. Atkins himself in DR. ATKINS' NEW DIET REVOLUTION and I've followed the dictates of that plan ever since.  

Making this change beginning on January 1, 2004 has arguably been the most important decision of my entire life.  Before livin' la vida low-carb, I didn't care a bit about diet, healthy nutrition, and fitness.

Now that's all I think about before I put something in my mouth to eat or engage in physical activity.  The Jimmy Moore of 2009 is nothing at all like the Jimmy Moore from before 2004.  That's the miracle of the healthy low-carb way of life.

The Different Approaches to Weight Loss

2. Nowadays a new type diet looks to appears almost every day, though it seems to circle around 1) low carb 2) high protein, low/medium fat 3) calorie restriction 4) vegetarian type diets - all with variants to it. You have tried different paths to where you are today - including the low-calorie approach. Why do you consider low carb the way to do and would you share with us a normal day of eating?

Actually, there's one other dietary approach that you did not list that is probably the MOST effective way to shed stored body fat--a high-fat, low-carb diet.  When you greatly reduce or remove the carbohydrates from your diet, dietary fat, even saturated fat, becomes the fuel instead.  

My experience personally and in watching success stories following this way of eating consists of a high percentage of fat calories, a moderate amount of protein at each meal, and as few carbs (mostly from non-starchy veggies) as possible.

This is a delicious, nutritious, and satisfying way to eat to see unbelievable improvements in weight and health.  Unlike low-calorie and low-fat diets, you are NEVER hungry on low-carb and the food is out of this world.  It really is the most luxurious way to eat and be healthy EVER!  You can see exactly what I eat on a daily basis at http://lowcarbmenu.blogspot.com.

Jimmy Moore On How to Plan the First 12 months and Sugar Substitutes

3. If you were to advise someone who wanted to go the low carb way and you had 12 months to guide. What steps would you have your "student" take - what books to read, what to focus on and at what time to expect the regular "humps" to overcome?

I get this question a lot from my new readers.  

My advice to them would be to read Dr. Jonny Bowden's LIVING THE LOW-CARB LIFE for a side-by-side comparison of the various popular low-carb plans to find the plan that is right for you.  We are all different with individual health needs, so choosing carefully which plan to follow is essential.  Once you find the plan, DO IT!  Yes, it will be difficult at first, but doing something this life-altering is worth it.  

I lost weight very quickly and then hit a 10-week stall where I could have thrown my hands up in the air and quit my diet.  But that would have been silly since I had done so well with it.  

Although you will have "humps" from time to time, persevering and pressing forward with what you know is the healthiest way to eat--high-fat, moderate protein, and low-carb--will make you a success as well.  You can also find some excellent support sites and blog at http://lowcarblinks.blogspot.com

4. You recently made a interesting post concerning sweeteners/sugars and the pitfall of relying on fructose.  What do you personally recommend to sweeten up the food abit - do you have experience with such as stevia or erythritol?

I personally enjoy the new erythritol/stevia blends like the new Truvia product that came out in late 2008.  While Splenda has been a popular choice for low-carbers like me for the past few years, I think a lot of people are looking for more natural sugar alternatives that taste good without the need for chemical concoctions.

I have my own chocolate bar called "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Bar" (available at http://chocoperfection.com/la_vida_sts.html) and it is sweetened with a fiber-based sweetener called oligofructose and erythritol.  There will be a slew of stevia products coming out in 2009.

Sticking to a Low Carb Diet And Exercise "Preloading"

5. Do you have any "secret" tips to our readers that you have discovered over the years ; for sticking to the low carb diet, motivational tips or food choices to spice it up?

There's nothing secretive or magic about livin' la vida low-carb.  

But I think what surprises people the most about this way of eating is that when you eat a proper high-fat, low-carb diet, amazing things happen to your health--your HDL "good" cholesterol goes WAY up above 50, your triglcyerides plummet to below 100, your LDL cholesterol particle size (measured by the NMR Lipoprofile test) becomes predominantly the large, fluffy, protective kind, your blood pressure drops, your acne clears, your mind becomes sharper...the list of improvements is endless!  

One tip I like to give people who have a tough time giving up sugar is to think of it as rat poison.  Here's a YouTube video I did about this:  http://livinlavidalowcarb.com/blog/?p=2161.  My favorite "secret" low-carb food is spaghetti squash.  This low-carb vegetable can be the PERFECT pasta alternative.

6. What about exercise when doing low-carb. It has been advised by "guru" low carb fitness trainers such as Rob Fagan to stack up on carbos as the last meal the day before hard workouts. Do you personally have a view on this?

Carbohydrate-loading before your workout is actually counterproductive.  Ask real low-carb fitness experts like Fred Hahn, Art DeVany, Lyle McDonald, and Dr. Jeff Volek who will tell you a low-carb, high-fat diet gives you all the energy your body needs to maximize fat loss and loading up glycogen stores for a typical workout.

Because of a basic metabolic process known as gluconeogenesis (learn more about it in this YouTube video: http://livinlavidalowcarb.com/blog/?p=2428), the body can make all the carbs it needs for energy by converting protein through the liver into glucose.  

This idea that the body "needs" carbs is one of the most ridiculous and unfounded claims against low-carb diets out there.

The Low Carb Future

7. Finally, you have quite a large number of followers and you have maintained an impressive consistancy on your blog. You have also published a 188 page book.  I am sure many of our readers wonder : can we expect a full range of Jimmy Moore products/plans coming up - what are your final dreams in terms of helping people through a low carb plan?

Thanks again for this excellent interview!  I'm humbled by the response I've had at my blog (http://www.livinlavidalowcarb.com/blog) and podcast show (http://www.thelivinlowcarbshow.com) these past four years and I hope to be doing this for the next FORTY plus years as long as people are willing to read and listen.

I am currently working on a my second book that will detail many of the lessons I've learned about healthy living over the past five years and will include a lot of information about low-carb diets and the wonderful world of blogging.

I'm looking forward to releasing this in Summer 2009.  Ideally, I'd like to take my "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" message to the radio airwaves and maybe even television.  Additionally, I want to keep writing books and doing projects that help spread the truth about the low-carb message.  We've been sold a bill of goods from the media and the low-fat supporting "experts" for so long, it's time people are given the REAL answers they need to their weight and health problems.  

I'm still young and expect to be doing this for many more years and decades to come!

Thank you Jimmy for some great answers to the questions. We wish you all the best with future projects and teaching the low carb, high fat diet!

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