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has it really been a year???
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May. 9th, 2007 @ 03:55 pm
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I guess so...I'm 50 now, as of a few days ago...after spending last fall with a very sick husband, hospitalized twice, nearly died the first time...and then being so ill myself for 4 months, I guess everything fell by the wayside. I had maintained well on low carb until my husband was hospitalized the first time in September, but there was no time to cook while I took care of everything that had to be done and spent as much time as possible at the hospital...I existed on restaurant food during that entire time, and again when he was hospitalized a second time (for the same thing) in November. Then in December I developed a serious health issue, and had to eat what I could eat, and didn't worry as much about what it was. So, by my 50th birthday I'd gained back 20 lbs., just since fall. Back on track again now, however, and have taken a couple of those lbs back off...
Amazing the way people want to see you fail. When I had a choice of cooking a meal, or grabbing fast food so that I could spend more time with my husband in ICU, people would say, "See? I knew you wouldn't be able to take it and would give up!" Unbelievable...but people's hearts are as they are, and if they need to feel superior to me, more power to them. I don't have that need and don't understand it, but I know that "he who is first shall be last" and I live accordingly.
Anyway. Starting my 2nd half-century the right way, more healthy than I have been in months, and ready for more progress! |
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Life changes
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May. 11th, 2006 @ 09:39 am
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So much has happened that has affected the way I eat.
First, I hit my one-year anniversary of eating low carb, and I was 290 at that point. I was starting to obsess with the scale again, weighing myself many times a day (yes, I know that tells me nothing useful) and doing a lot of mental hand-wringing. So I decided to take a break from counting and recording every bite that went into my mouth, and just "live the life". If I maintained, fine. If I gained, I'd adjust what I was eating but I had to relax a bit and ease up on myself. I already had enough going on that any stressors I could rid myself of, I did. Obviously lowcarb eating isn't a stressor :) but certainly all the recording in FitDay and the constant weighing was making my crazy.
Second, our home in Lansing finally sold, and we had just a couple of weeks to find a new home up north, make an offer, close on both houses, pack, and move. 'Nuff said.
The eating plan has been great. I find that I'm still eating all of the same meals I've prepared for the last year, buying the same foods, and nothing has changed. I don't buy or prepare carby foods, they aren't even in the house; we eat meats, veggies, and dairy, and concentrate on getting lots of fats. So no problem there.
The one thing that HAS changed is that we have been eating at restaurants a lot. And, as I've written previously, I prefer buffets so that I can have a couple of bites of a lot of different foods. Mentally, this helps me not feel deprived because, even though I don't miss carby foods (with one exception which I'll mention in a minute), there's still the mindset that a buffet means "eat anything you want". Wrong, and part of the reason I'm fat, but still something I need to work around. So for the most part I did well, and now that the kitchen in my new house is set up, and I have groceries in the house, no more restaurants - YAY! We prefer my cooking anyway.
Now for the exception :). McDonald's french fries. They're a tool of the devil to keep people fat :). But, on the day I closed on my house, I took my carb blockers (more on that later) and had a Big Mac and fries - with a diet drink of course :). While I was totally enjoying eating it I was thinking about how I will have to be extra vigilant from now on against carb cravings, that it will set me back and make my cravings re-appear with a vengeance, etc...but none of the above happened! In fact, for weeks before that meal, I was thinking of McDonald's fries; in the 2 weeks since, I haven't thought of them once - nor have I have any carb cravings.
Shortly I will post another entry about my experience with carb blockers. Meanwhile, though I just want to say: (a) not all carb blockers are created equal, and (b) when I use a carb blocker before a restaurant meal I can eat some carbs, such as a single slice of pizza or a small baked potato, without any of the after-effects that plague me when I eat carbs sans blocker - bloating, gas, reflux, fatigue, etc. So, my burger and fries didn't affect me one way or another, and I have managed to maintain my weight over the last 6 weeks or so.
Until things settle back into a normal routine, I will continue to just maintain and not worry too much about loss. When I'm ready to start losing again, I'll know, and will make the dietary/activity adjustments necessary to do so. Meanwhile, the rest of my life has gotten so big that I'm choosing not to worry about getting smaller for the moment :). And it's going just fine! |
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from an ASDLC post
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Feb. 27th, 2006 @ 12:02 pm
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This is a response I posted to ASDLC (usenet) in answer to the question, "What is your [carb] addiction that can become your downfall?" and thought I'd also post it here, since I haven't posted in a while...
"I don't really have any addictions, I have some foods I miss but either I've found a lowcarb substitute (ie, friend turnip slices with garlic powder for chips; vanilla yogurt with unsweetened coconut for desserts, etc.) or I've found - or created - other foods I like better. OTOH, if someone sat me down in a Chinese buffet restaurant every day and paid for it, I'd find that nearly impossible to resist - lol. Still...I allow myself one Chinese buffet meal each month, and it doesn't seem to make me want more. Ditto
"real" pizza, my husband and I get a thin'n'crispy crust pizza once a month. Those are the 2 things I've worked into my lifestyle because I enjoy them.
"One thing I should mention: There are those who, when they quit smoking for example, can't have any cigarettes around or they'll light one up. When I quit over 15 years ago, I ALWAYS kept a pack with me, for over a year after quitting. If I knew there were there and accessible to me, I could tell myself "maybe later" when a craving struck. I "maybe later"ed for all that time without lighting up once. When my dad quit drinking he carried a flask with him everywhere for the rest of his life, for the same reason. Without knowing it was there he would have great anxiety, even panic (same as I did with cigarettes) which caused a "I need a drink (or cig, in my case) and I need it NOW!" urgency that could have been his downfall - or mine.
"So I guess different people handle it different ways. As long as I know I'll have that Chinese buffet or "real" pizza coming up before long, I can handle the thoughts I have about them without having those thoughts become cravings.
"One other thing: I'm not in a hurry to lose my weight, it's coming off slowly but surely. It's more important to me that I enjoy my lifestyle and not fighting with myself over things that don't matter much in the grand scheme of things. I know that (a) my health issues have disappeared, (b) the weight is coming off the same way it came on: a pound or 2 here and there, over a period of years, and (c) I feel great and am happy. If I were to get nazi-ish with myself, someday I'd just say "screw it" and go back to
old ways. So my own way isn't for everybody, it's working for me and that's all I care about. :)" |
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Just some stuff :)
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Feb. 7th, 2006 @ 09:37 am
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During the last week, with travel and my step-dad's funeral, I did fine with my eating plan...although my "fine" and others' may not mean the same thing - lol. On Friday at the funeral dinner I ate half a roll and 2 of those little roasted red potatoes. My carb count was still under 100g for the day and that was fine. Then on Saturday I had Hungry Howie's low carb pizza. First "real" pizza I'd had since I started - I thought I'd really love it after all this time, but you know what? Just about every low carb dish I make tastes better to me than that pizza did! But my carb count for Saturday was high also - but still under 100g. (<100g is considered low carb by many; some experts say most people will stay in
ketosis if they stay <100g but I'm HIGHLY skeptical, for me at least.)
One thing that Pete and I did try before both of our carby meals was white kidney bean extract capsules. I'd read about them, and in various discussion groups some people said that they do work. So I got some a while back, figuring if I ever chose to eat a carby meal (and I that every so often), at least I'd take those first. Here's what I learned: Normally when I eat carbs, I get sick afterward - bloaty, logy, bellyache, gassy, headache, etc., then the next day I'm up about 6-8 lbs in water weight - which is of course gone within a couple of days and I'm back where I started. However, when I took the capsules before each of those 2 carby meals, NONE of that happened. I felt just like I always do - as if I hadn't
had any. That could have been just "wishful thinking" on my part, mind over matter and all that, but the scale doesn't lie, and I didn't gain a single ounce either time! While I didn't lose, I didn't gain either. And they worked the same way for Pete, BTW :).
Obviously this is NOT an endorsement of taking pills and eating carbs. But because I do incorporate a carby meal into my life once a month or so (twice this month, following my Chinese buffet at the end of January!), it's nice to know that I don't have to mess myself up when I do. I suppose I'll have to be careful not to allow the WKBE capsules to be my "permission" to eat more carbs without consequence - OTOH,
I don't foresee that becoming an issue, since I like lowcarb foods so much better anyway. They'll come in handy when I have my monthly Chinese buffet dinner though .
In other news...
I've been consistently making bread for Pete and I, and have gotten so used to "my" bread that the roll I ate on Friday tasted too soft and tasteless to me - lol. I've been trying to stay away from wheat altogether, and my bread was better when I used Vital Wheat Gluten in it, but it's still pretty good
for a sandwich, or I like to put cheese (extra sharp cheddar for me!) on it and put it under the broiler for a couple of minutes also. When I'm planning soup, I cut a couple of pieces into cubes and toss them into the dehydrator and make good croutons to use instead of crackers - and I can also press it out real thin and it bakes into crackers that I love with cream cheese or almond butter...anyway, though it tasted "foreign" to me at first, now I really enjoy it. The only grain that I put in it is some oat
bran...the rest of the ingredients are flax meal, protein powder, egg, oil, sea salt, splenda, onion powder, and water.
Lately our meals have started to fall into a comfortable pattern. Mornings I have a yogurt or some cheese; mid-day is our main meal which usually consists of a meat and 2 veggies; evenings we have a salad with some sort of meat on it. Snacks are typically string cheese, but sometimes I have the afore-mentioned crackers on hand, or the ones made with sunflower seeds - that's the exception rather than the rule though. While I haven't lost anything in a couple of weeks, that's not surprising because of the upheaval in my life, and 3 carby meals in those 2 weeks :). I know that eventually it will come off, the same way it came on - a few ounces here, a few ounces there, over a period of years. But it's been really nice to have established our meals the way we do; it makes the way we eat "normal" rather than different, somehow.
Oh, and I made a cream soup recently also! Broccoli cheese. I boiled broccoli in chicken stock (not a whole lot, maybe ½c for the 1# package of frozen chopped broccoli), then blended it with my stick blender right in the pan and added seasonings, half'n'half (if you can afford heavy cream I'm sure that would be better), sour cream, stirred until it came back to a boil, and added a generous (maybe ¼c) topping of the cheese in each bowl. It was totally delicious! Next time I'm going to top it with some bacon also, I think. I never realized how EASY it is to make creamy soups before, always just opened a can BLC (before low carb)! |
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A few misc. things - all low carb :)
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Jan. 17th, 2006 @ 10:29 am
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First - I'm now back down to where I was before the holidays. My goal was to not gain between Thanksgiving and the new year; at the same time, I did give myself permission ahead of time to be not quite as stringent with what I eat when I was at family gatherings or parties with friends. Being that this is a lifestyle change, I know that I will always have to accomodate various circumstances. All in all, I learned a few things. One is that it doesn't take much to put weight back on - although I suspect that it was mostly water weight. From my 297# pre-holydays starting point I fluctuated back and forth as much as 6# (morning weight). With that much up and down, I'm guessing I had lots of water gained and lost. Looking back now, overall (and easily back at 297#), I'm seeing that the worst that happened was that I have delayed my weight loss - not a big deal as I have no real target date for reaching my goal - and caused myself some indigestion. Next year I will likely handle it the same way.
Second - yet another discussion about calories brought to mind something that I was aware of but had never put into words until this morning. According to Fitday, I eat about 1500-2200 calories each day, of which about 75% are fats, 5% are carbs, and 20% are protein - those are my goal ratios and most days I'm right on the money. And I'm losing about 2#/week most weeks. Would I have the same result if I ate 75% of that number of calories every day as carbs? YIKES - absolutely not! That's what got me fat in the first place! It wasn't how many calories, it was WHAT I ate. Knowing this about myself, and being comfortable with it is what is making this dietary lifestyle so agreeable.
Third - I wonder how many times, now, I've said, "It ISN'T a diet, it's how we eat"??? :) Seems that anywhere we go, friends and relatives are determined to talk us into eating things we don't eat. Why are others so determined to cause failure? |
| » A week into the New Year - and the cost of low carb food |
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And my weight is all over the place! I know it isn't the scale...but just in the last week my weight has fluctuated within an 11# range! I know that can't be accurate. So I keep on keeping on :). My goal doesn't have a time limit attached but I have this love-hate relationship with the scale and know that the numbers probably mean more to me than they should :). Still, I think of my weight as the lowest weight it has given me, since the fluctuations are always upward...and I keep that as my current weight until I hit a new low. And ignore all the crazy numbers :).
Meanwhile - found hamburger on sale for 46¢/lb recently, and romaine for 39¢/head, so I stocked up and we're eating lots of salads. Good thing I'd just bought more ranch dressing but if all else failed, I still have vinegar and oil in the house! And Pete has found that he likes sardines, and they are cheap also! Frozen veggies are anywhere from $1.79-$2.50 for a 2.5# bag...I can always find chicken for 69¢/lb, and pollock for $1.99...right now Kroger has catfish for 10#/$10 too! Pork has been staying under $2/lb...and our string cheese that we love for snacks (and in Pete's lunches) is only $1.99 for a dozen sticks! We buy $10 worth and they last several weeks... Something else I discovered: half'n'half freezes very well! I found the quart bottles at Kroger on the sell-by date for only 69¢/bottle, and stocked up. I put them in the freezer, and put them into the fridge to thaw on an as-needed basis. Usually it thaws over the course of a couple days, at just about the same rate as I use it in my coffee and recipes, so it's working out perfectly! When I think of what I used to spend on groceries when I also purchased carby foods, and compare it to what I spend now, I want to kick myself for all the money (to say nothing of the good health!) that I wasted!
Such a bounty, and such a savings on our groceries, living low carb :)
Jan. 7th, 2006 @ 11:29 am
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| » Made it through the holidays! |
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I've gone up and down a few pounds, depending on what I ate, but it's been clear that I've been gaining water weight from the whole glycogen thing, since it disappears as fast as it came. But through the holidays I've had an epiphany of sorts. I wrote it on my lowcarb.owly.net site but because it is so important to the entire process my low carb LIFE (as opposed to DIET), I am going to add it here also:
"I am not a slave to food anymore. I'm not only referring to the HUNGER that I mentioned above, but there aren't issues associated with what I eat. I'm not in a hurry to lose the weight (although of course I'm pleased to see it go!), and know that I will be eating this way forever anyway - so the fat will all be gone in good time. Part of not being a slave means that I'm not a carb-nazi. Having a piece of pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving or a sliver of birthday cake on a friend's birthday is part of my life, I don't panic at the thought that a chinese dinner once a month is going to put me back where I started - fear of food no longer controls me anymore than HUNGER does. There is balance, something that must exist for any eating plan to be do-able for life."
(note: HUNGER is that gnawing, urgent, even panicked gotta-eat-something-and-gotta-eat-it-NOW! feeling that we get when we eat carbs, as opposed to hunger, which is our body's normal, much more subtle signal that it needs refueling.)
I've gotten great comfort from the above realization, because one of my former food issues relating to HUNGER had morphed into another issue when I started living low carb: that I would mess up, eat half of a cookie, and end up back where I started: out of control, HUNGRY all the time, powerless over my weight gain. Knowing that the occasional small amount of carb (ie, breading on a couple pieces of fried fish once a month - not a plateful of spaghetti or a bowl of rice) doesn't have power over me is incredibly liberating, and has released me from from the mental slave-to-food feeling that had always tortured me - as much as not eating carbs has released me from the physical slave-to-food that my body had on me for the first 47 years of my life.
Thank God :).
Jan. 2nd, 2006 @ 11:04 am
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| » How we think about our "diets"...low carb musings |
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As Thanksgiving and the Christmas holy-days approach, it's interesting to hear how people refer to their lowcarb diets. It becomes even more clear to me than usual that the word "diet" has two meanings: in the broad sense of the word meaning the sum total of what we eat in a lifestyle sort of way, or in the short-term sense of the word meaning a temporary eating habit - indicating deprivation - to accomplish a goal.
I've asked quite a few people how they will accomodate their lowcarb lifestyle for Thanksgiving (2 days from now), and have been surprised that, rather than hearing about their tasty lowcarb recipes and menus, every single person who has replied has indicated that they'll "go off their diet" for the day!
It may appear to be mere semantics when one low carber plans to "go off their diet", and another plans to continue their diet (broad sense) and maybe have a spoonful of sweet potatoes or a bit of gravy or cranberry sauce. After all, both are "cheating", right?
Wrong. The true "cheater" sees Thanksgiving as a valid opportunity to escape the shackles of their deprivation, an excuse to rationalize poor eating choices. The chances are great that the "cheater" will revert back to the pre-lowcarb lifestyle for the day, stuffing himself without thought to consequences (or worse yet, not caring) which will include turpor, fatigue, bloat, indigestion, and insulin responses that could very well begin the "gottahavecarbsgottaeatNOW" belly talk that we all remember so well. So. Given this, is the dieter (temporary) who "cheats" doomed to failure? Quite possibly, but not because of this one meal. Certainly s/he can take steps to undo the damage, drink plenty of water, exercise avidly for the next few days, get right back on their "diet" the next morning...and the weight loss will continue. No, if there is to be a failure, it will be because of the mindset that eating low carb is a temporary measure, something to fix their weight and then go back to prior eating habits - the ones, by the way, that caused the problem in the first place. Just the fact that they see their diet as something they need to escape from, something negative to be endured for a time...that's what will increase the chance of long-term failure.
So what IS the difference between the cheater and the low carber who relaxes their diet (broad sense) for the day? It is, once again, all in the mindset. The lifestyle low carber realizes that their life will always and forever amen be about wise choices, and also that their lifestyle can easily accomodate the occasional increase in carbs for a meal. There is no need for rationalization, no sense of having to escape from an enforced lack, no feelings of deprivation from which they must have relief. Thanksgiving dinner, like any other meal, is all about delicious choices - no more, no less. Because having accepted that they've made a healthy lifestyle change and embracing the many benefits, every day is Thanksgiving.
Nov. 22nd, 2005 @ 01:52 pm
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| » Weight loss milestone |
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Obviously weight loss was the reason I started low carb, but when I found out the many MANY other benefits to eating this way I realized that, even if I never lost another pound, I'd never go back. I've written before about those benefits, and I've also written that I don't mind losing my weight slowly, I know that I'll get to my goal. I kind of have half an idea in my mind that I'd like to reach 200# by the end of 2006...but it's not really a big deal to me if I don't. I will be eating this way for the rest of my life, and as many years as it took to reach my top weight by eating wrong, it will take time for my body to regain its health and normal weight by eating right. And I'm more than satisfied with that, as the journey is as great to me as the destination.
The last time I was weighed was on an electronic scale in the fall of 2004, and my weight was 364. I'm guessing that I probably put on a few more pounds between then and the spring of 2005, when I started low carb, but I don't know how much because I didn't have access to a scale that would weigh me. But my body shape and fit of my clothes told me that I did...but I've still used 364 as my starting weight. I began low carb on April 3, 2005, and in the first 3 months I lost 54#. Then I stopped losing. And I started obsessing about "the numbers", jumping on and off the scale many times a day. My enjoyment of the journey faded as the number on the scale became all-important. So, blessedly, my dear husband took the scales to the basement - out of sight out of mind, as I rarely go down there.
Still, for the following couple of months, I could tell by my body shape/fit of clothes that I wasn't losing. I was once again enjoying the journey (I absolutely love the challenge of shopping and cooking, creating new dishes to try, the searching for and sharing of new information, the fellowship of the ladies on the Christian Low Carb Ladies yahoogroup that I now co-own, etc.), but wasn't losing weight. I wasn't concerned because I knew that the loss would resume again eventually...but after a while I began to think about changing my strategy. Previously I'd been eating high fiber with low carb, moderate protein, moderate fats. During my information searches I'd read a lot about high fat with low carb, and decided to try that. In Sept. 2005 the weight loss started again (going by body shape and fit of my clothes) after I (a) omitted grains/grain-based foods almost totally from my diet, and (b) increased my fat intake dramatically. I was shooting for 75-80% of my calories to come from fats, about 5% from healthy carbs (veggies and dairy mainly), and 15-20% from proteins.
Well that sure did jump-start my weight loss! Meanwhile, I'd noticed that the scales in the basement were still registering the same weight, no matter now much bigger my clothes were getting, so I just quit weighing myself completely. Until Sunday. I was at my step-mother's house and she has a really good, quality scale there. I weighed myself and was amazed to see that I'd not only reached the 300# mark during the last 2 months, I was just below it!
Now I haven't been overly worried or concerned about "the number" lately, and the journey is still the most important part of it for me - how great I feel, the fun of shopping/creating, etc - but I do have to admit that seeing that needle go below 300 was a major thrill for me! AND, to make it even better, it was at a large family gathering where I could share my news and excitement with the people who are important to me - what an awesome topper to a great day, eh? :)
But it got better yet - my step-mother GAVE me the scale when I went home! She said that she gets weighed at her doctor's appointments anyway, and my grandmother had given it to my father (who passed away in 1998) and that I could just have it! So it sits in the bathroom, not in the basement, and I get on it many times a day again - but this time not to obsess about "the number", but to relive the excitement of seeing the needle pass that 300 mark! :)
Nov. 15th, 2005 @ 09:12 am
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| » The family party and how it went |
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Wonderfully well :). I've mellowed over the months I've been living low carb, and realize that the VERY OCCASIONAL carby food will not automatically add all my weight back on, nor will it make me crave carbs again. In fact, I see no change in my weight loss patterns from the VERY OCCASIONAL carby meal. Given this, here is what I chose from the offerings available to me:
- 1 chicken breast, with skin/coating
- 1 spoonful of cole slaw
- 1 chunk of pickled beet
- 1 small helping (3 bites) of cheesy potatoes
- 1 generous helping of a salad my wonderfully thoughtful cousin made for me...and then a 2nd, but more moderate, serving of same. This was an absolutely delicious salad consisting mainly of raw broccoli and cauliflower, with some sunflower seeds, chopped red onion, and a few raisins - and full-fat mayo and splenda! It was absolutely wonderful!
I bypassed the cake and ice cream, bypassed the rolls, and everything else because it looked too carby but I had MORE than enough to eat...and given that was my only meal of the day (I'd also eaten a couple of string cheese sticks earlier in the day, and had a lowcarb yogurt later, after I'd gotten home 11 hours after the meal), I did very well. Just guessing but I know I was easily well under 100g for the day. So no harm done.
AND, I had an absolutely delightful time with my relatives, whom I don't get to see nearly often enough. We only get together a couple of times a year, and seeing how all the kids (some of whom I haven't seen in a few years) are growing, it made me aware again of how quickly time passes. My grandmother is so loving, gentle, and faithful to the Lord, she is so inspiring and I love her so much! At 99 she's as sharp as she was at half that age, and even though her body isn't as vigorous her personality shines so strongly that one wouldn't even notice.
It was a wonderful day to celebrate the life of a wonderful woman!
Nov. 14th, 2005 @ 08:59 am
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| » With family and friends |
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Lately I've been dealing with how to eat when at family gatherings. Nobody else in my family is eating low carb, and there are lots of casseroles full of rice and noodles. Salads often include pasta, and meats are typically breaded/battered. It's tough to turn down that crunchy, delicious chicken skin when it's coated with flour before it is fried :(.
Tomorrow is another family meal, my grandmother's 99th birthday celebration, and I'm really looking forward to it! I've come to the realization that IT ISN'T ALL ABOUT FOOD! That is one of the things that got me fat in the first place, thinking that food was more important than it is. Throughout my life, food was part of everything. Every school performance or special occasion was followed by dinner out and I have continued that practice into adulthood. Boredom was resolved by eating. Feeling bad about something was eased by food. Get-togethers with others are never without food of some sort, and the majority of discussions about them revolve around what kinds of food will be served, who is bringing what dish, or which restaurant will host it.
It's not about food. It's about family. It's about sharing experiences, sharing good times, sharing and making memories. It's about photos and stories for future generations. And everything about tomorrow is about seeing the family that I love but that I don't see often enough. Depending on what will be served, if I have to I can "make do" with a salad but the day is all about family and, specifically, my grandmother whom I love so dearly and see so rarely.
Everything isn't about food - how liberating is THAT? :)
Nov. 12th, 2005 @ 10:41 am
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| » Learning to Live |
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Living "on a diet", and just plain "living" are 2 different things. And I've been working on incorporating the two.
Lately my meal schedule and choices have been different, for days at a time. And I had to learn real quick how to adapt a low carb lifestyle with irregular mealtimes, snacks available at hospital vending machines, and eating at restaurants more than at home. Because I don't weigh myself, I can't say how many pounds were gained or lost, if any - but I can say that my clothes have been, if anything, looser after these last 2 weeks, not tighter.
First, I learned that keeping a few string cheese sticks and a small jar of roasted sunflower seeds in my purse was an essential. Because when it comes to hospital vending machines - THERE IS NOTHING LOW CARB! During long overnights with my relative, I needed to eat but my choices were limited to coffee and water. And I really got coffee'd out! So the cheese sticks and the sunflower seeds were my nutritional salvation.
Second, I learned that even in a low-fat, high carb household such as my mother's, I could find something to eat. At first glance it would seem that my lifestyle wasn't possible. But it is amazing how delicious a bowl of broccoli/cauliflower mix is when you nuke it with a scoop of cheese whiz and some chopped summer sausage in it :). Add a little dish of cottage cheese on the side and it's a great meal, any time of the day! Once I bought some eggs and hamburger then, I was pretty well set for the week!
Third, I learned that I could cope with restaurants on a near-daily basis. They all have salads and ranch dressing, so that's a no-brainer. Most have a salad bar where I could add some hard-boiled egg and other raw veggies. And most will serve a hamburger patty with cheese on a bed of lettuce. Great meal at just about any restaurant (although we didn't do fast food very much). I also learned that Arby's has a great low carb wrap. We've been eating Subway's wraps for a couple of months now and they're GREAT, but Arby's was a new one. And, perhaps most importantly, I learned that I could have a seafood platter at Big Boy, complete with battered food - cottage cheese instead of fries - and it didn't make me sick like carbs usually do, and it didn't make me fatter overnight, and it didn't set off cravings for more carbs. Of course, that was my only meal that day but it certainly didn't kill me or throw me off my diet for good, and that was the best thing I learned, quite possibly. 2 weeks later, I had half a slice of thick-crust pizza. My total carb count for the day was still under 30g but it didn't kill me either. NOR DID IT THRILL ME! And that was another great thing I learned - my tastes have changed, and carby foods don't taste so great to me anymore...
So, I believe I'm maturing into the lifestyle. It's a no-brainer that I don't buy carby foods to keep in the house, and it's a no-brainer that my diet (and my husband's) consists of meats, veggies, greens, and some dairy - and that's it. But when push comes to shove and our usual food choices aren't available, we can not only make do but can continue to practice our healthy lifestyle anyway.
Oct. 10th, 2005 @ 10:06 am
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| » Eating Out, Low Carb Style |
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It may seem counterproductive to eat at a buffet restaurant when one is trying to lose weight, but we find that just the opposite is true. And here is why.
Anytime we eat foods that include multiple ingredients, we're taking a chance that there will be hidden carbs. And there usually are. Of course, there can be hidden carbs (marinades, flavorings, seasonings, etc.) in any food...but the chances are much lower in "pure" foods than in combined foods - ie, much less in a grilled steak than in a slice of meat loaf.
When we eat at a sit-down restaurant, we have maybe 3-4 different foods that make up a meal. And if any one of those foods has hidden carbs, then we're eating more of it than because of the portion size, compared to how we eat at buffets. At the buffet, we can take just a small amount of a much great number of foods, and of course choose the foods that don't have multiple ingredients. Even if one of our choices does have hidden carbs, we're eating much less of it.
Naturally, one could have a simple salad with full-fat ranch dressing at a sit-down restaurant, could see the toppings, and be pretty safe. I'm just not a person who is content with a salad as a meal, however.
We went up north and stayed in a motel over Labor Day weekend, and there was a Ponderosa right next to the motel. We ate there for almost every meal. Breakfast was coddled (not scrambled - some restaurants include pancake batter) eggs, a couple of slices of bacon or ham or sausage (any of these meats often have hidden carbs!), and strawberries or cantaloupe. Dinners were baked chicken or fish (passing by the battered/breaded foods, giving the combination foods a miss as well), or a small steak with a big salad or our own making and whatever the cooked vegetables were on the buffet. A little cheese on the vegetables and/or a scoop of cottage cheese, and it was a great meal! In addition, for cost savings we only eat out twice a day when we're travelling, and keep foods like cheese, cold chicken legs, raw veggies/dip, lowcarb homemade cookies, etc. in our room for munching or a light lunch.
So...that is how we manage eating satisfying, varied low carb meals when we travel, and when we eat in restaurants.
Sep. 9th, 2005 @ 12:09 pm
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| » long time no see! |
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There hasn't been much new to report this last month...weight loss seems to have slowed to a crawl after several things changed within the space of a week or less: (1) I'd been raising my carb count by 5g every so often, and I hit 40g/day; (2) I got lax about limiting my grains and was eating more lowcarb sprout bread, high-fiber crackers and things, etc.; (3) I got lazy about taking my Detoxilean* and fiber. So I don't really know which - if any - of these caused the slowdown but I've been going up and down a couple of pounds ever since.
(*Detoxilean has weight-support herbs and fiber in it.)
So, a few days ago I dropped my carb count back down to about 25g/day (not a problem), eliminated most grains again (will still have flax meal because of the EFAs and fiber), started taking my Detoxilean at the max. recommended dosage, started eating fiber pills before every meal (to replace that from the grains), and have increased by water intake - probably still not enough, but more than before. I'm also putting in time on my exercise bike EVERY day, which I'd also gotten lazy about. I need to start walking again...
Since I got myself back on track I dropped almost 2#...although they were back again this morning. I need to just quit weighing myself, just live and eat right and quit obsessing about the weight! Now I'm eating meats, vegetables, salads, and some dairy only. And am going to put my scales in the basement! I started out knowing that if I ate right, drank plenty, got exercise, eventually the damage I've done to my body would be undone. Now I'm obsessing about my actual weight and need to stop!
I think I will also go back to posting my daily food intakes here; it may be boring but maybe someone will read it who is interested, and even if not, I can look back easily if I want to.
Aug. 31st, 2005 @ 09:21 am
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| » How LowCarb has helped me |
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I've had acne issues since I was 11, it's been a problem through pregnancy, complete ysterectomy/menopause, all sorts of "diets"...until I went low carb. All I have left are the scars.
I've had continuous problems with flatulence my entire adult life - not a single peep since I went low carb.
My sedate lifestyle I *thought* was from a simple lack of interest in anything active; now I have so much energy and am discovering what I've been missing all this time.
I used to get up 3-4 times/night and sleep restlessly. My husband would come home from work in the morning and the bed was a mess. Now I sleep through the night, and often wake up in the same position I went to sleep in. OK, so my old joints are a bit stiff as a result, but I'm sleeping so much better, and waking up ready to go instead of feeling logy the first half of every day!
Previously, eating Titrilac like candy and swallowing Zantacs was the only way I got relief from reflux. Now...what's reflux? (I'd have thought that the weight loss would eventually fix that anyway...little did I know that the lack of carbs would resolve it before I'd even lost 10#!)
Previously, I'd feel bloated and stuffed after every meal, no matter whether I had small portions or big. Now, I don't remember what it feels like to be bloated and stuffed.
My mood swings used to be horrible, and fighting with bouts of depression was a way of life. Within the first 2 weeks of low carb, I became myself again, jolly, easy-going, fun, and funny.
When people tell me that eating low carb is "dangerous" and tell me I shouldn't do it...I can honestly tell them that I've never been healthier. Even if I didn't have to do it for weight loss, or even if I never lost another pound...knowing what I know now, I can't imagine ever going back.
Jul. 21st, 2005 @ 11:37 pm
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| » ramblings and musings about allergies and hormones and other stuff |
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http://www.springboard4health.com/notebook/health_food_addiction.html
I've been reading a bit about food allergies and obesity lately after they've been discussed in various online arenas; I'm not self-diagnosing any such allergies, but think it's interesting just the same. ( http://www.springboard4health.com/notebook/health_food_addiction.html is one article that's been mentioned.)
I've idly wondered at times if something along these lines explains my extraordinary success with cutting back my carbs so drastically although at this point it isn't of huge import to me since I won't be going back to eating "the old way" anyway...but the descriptions I've heard, eating and eating whether hungry or not, being unable to stop when merely full, but rather continuing to eat until it's physically impossible to eat any more - or until getting sick...those were the things that plagued me in the past.
My doctor, who wanted me to have the WLS, told me that it works because I HAVE to stop eating at a certain point or I will make myself sick. I told him that I would be sick a lot then, because even knowing that I HAVE to stop eating, I couldn't. He dismissed that and his PA just told me to "eat more fruits and vegetables" - her solution to my super-morbidly obese state.
I know that I've praised God for this answer, finally, and every day is another miracle in my life because those impulses, which I used to see as a sign of weakness, are GONE. I'm eating like a normal person now, only when I'm hungry, and stopping when I'm just sated but not stuffed or, often, even full - but still feel satisfied with that. And all this without exerting will power or self-coercion. For the first time in my life food isn't my issue, and my weight is returning itself to normal.
Whether it's a food allergy, or a hormone (insulin or glucagon or leptin or whatever?) issue really doesn't matter to me now, because I'm getting the results I want...but it might explain why it's working so awesomely for me but others don't have the same result. I also was scanning a site this morning that discussed diabetes and the relationship of carbs, fats, and protein... http://www.diabetes-book.com/ ...and it seems that there's a whole more to how we eat than just calories or just fats or just carbs or just protein, and the more I read the more I realize that we really don't know about why some eating plans work for some people and not others. And I'm seeing that the way I tried the same things over and over and over again in the past, even though they weren't working for me I just kept doing them anyway, was setting my OWN self up for failure. But I'm not one to dwell in the past, just learn from it and look forward, and once more I have to thank God that, even though I wasn't paying attention for so long (as I described at http://lowcarb.owly.net/WillPower.html ) He finally just affected my will on April 3rd so strongly that I would have taken more of my will to resist than to comply :).
Anyway - these are the thoughts I've had running through my mind the last day or two...
Jul. 6th, 2005 @ 11:02 am
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| » a boring menu entry |
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breakfast - coffee
dinner - 2 pork chops, 1/4c organic no suger added applesauce, 1c spinach with butter
supper - 2 cups raw cauliflower dipped in buttermilk dressing
snacks - munched on high fiber chocolate almond cookies all day
Today's numbers from fitday:
kcal - 1624 (no goal/limit)
fat/sat - 137/47g (no goal/limit)
net carbs - 22g (13g below limit)
fiber 25g (5g below goal)
protein 59g (9g above min., 41g below limit)
liquids - 3 mugs coffee w/ half'n'half and sweet'n'low; 16 oz. flavored water
Did good with protein, got close on fiber, lots of veggies, all in all a good day! Weight holding steady since Monday.
Jul. 6th, 2005 @ 12:36 am
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| » THUNDERBIRDS! and more... |
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Today Pete and I were gone most of the day, so my eating was way off. We went to an air show in Battle Creek and saw the USAF Thunderbirds - WHAT A THRILL!!! I get so emotional at events like parades and circuses - and air shows lol - I started crying as we were walking in the gate and didn't stop until it was over!
Anyway, my eating was pretty messed up today. At lunchtime I had a Subway CarbConscious Tuna Wrap with a diet coke, and when we got home I had a cup of cottage cheese and what was left in the bottom of a bag of pork rinds. I also drank a 16 oz. glass of flavored water and had a bunch of coffee with half'n'half and sweet'n'low, as usual...
Here are my miserably pathetic numbers for today - lol!
kcal - 744 (no goal/limit)
fat/sat - 46/14g (no goal/limit)
net carbs - 13g (22 below allowance)
fiber - 9g (19 below goal)
protein - 63g (13 above min., 37 below limit)
Jul. 4th, 2005 @ 12:04 am
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| » Independence from CARBS! :) |
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Today I had to make choices from a large array of carby foods at a family get-together. I did the best I could, passed up all potatoes, pasta, crackers, candy, brownies, cake...even picked every bit of skin and coating off the fried chicken. According to fitday, I didn't do too badly at all!
breakfast/lunch - 1 cucumber, chopped, with 2 b/s chopped chicken breasts tossed with 1/4c mayo and a generous portion of paprika (my favorite spice these days)
dinner/supper - 2 fried chicken thighs, with all skin/coating removed, 1/4 c. of cole slaw, 1 c. of fruit salad consisting mostly of strawberries, blueberries, and cantaloupe, with some watermelon; I picked out most of the watermelon though.
snack - Blue Bunny Carb Freedom Raspberry Yogurt
drinks - 2 mugs of coffee; 12 oz. diet pepsi; 32 oz. flavored water; 12 oz. plain iced tea
Gotta admit - picking off all that crispy delicious coating and skin from the chicken thighs was the biggest challenge yet. I even had to remind myself that what I weigh will "taste better" and last longer than those 2 crispy, carby skins...but it was tough, the toughest challenge yet...
My fitday numbers for today:
kcal - 1992 (no goal/limit)
fat/sat - 135/48g (no goal/limit)
net carbs - 30g (5g under allotment)
fiber - 23g (7g under goal - but closer than most days - YAY!)
protein - 153g (53g over limit)
Jul. 4th, 2005 @ 12:01 am
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| » Saturday Stuff |
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I had a friend over for dinner, and of course cooked low carb fare. I think she enjoyed it? I added the recipes to my personal site (http://lowcarb.owly.net/recipes.html). We had Chicken with Creamy Florentine Sauce (one of my all-time favorite dishes!), asparagus with butter, and High Fiber Biscuits. Delightful meal, I had a double-serving of the chicken, and 2 biscuits, plus the asparagus, for a grand total of 28g of carbs - of which 18g were fiber! What a healthy excellent meal!
Unfortunately I didn't eat enough today, I ended up with only 15 net carbs, it was a busy day and I didn't get hungry, had plenty to eat. I wish I had more veggies and a salad on my list of foods today but it's too late to eat now so I'll just try to make up for it tomorrow!
Jul. 2nd, 2005 @ 11:22 pm
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