One more easy day on zero carb eating

Yesterday went very easily. I was pretty full most day but had a lingering headache, probably from my period. I put about a tsp of Celtic salt with a cup of water and drank it. I think it helped, the headache went away and I was pretty energetic all day.

Dinner was really good. They served matza ball soup. I just had the broth although I know there was no real broth in it and it was made with commercial powder full of crap. They also served salmon in teriyaki sauce which was also probably not ideal but the fish was good and I was happy. 

I was really full and was not able to put anything else in my mouth even though they served a pretty plate with berries. The ice cream didn't tempt me at all either. I felt really full all evening and was crazy thirsty at night. So I drank water. 

This morning I am not yet hungry. Still full and mildly thirsty. I woke up early and am full of energy. 

Life is good :)

I am so full today

Yesterday I put on a pair of jeans that I didn't wear for few days only and were lying around, have not been in washer or dryer. They felt very tight! My legs and butt were squeezed in. I panicked. these are my comfy jeans. 

I weigh in the day before and was still the same. 
During the day I found out it was that TOM. Perhaps the body change has something to do with it or perhaps it is my new way of eating. 
Most likely it is both. 

I had ground beef scrambled with 2 eggs for breakfast and then for lunch I stopped at Five Guys for the first time in my life and ordered 2 bunless burgers. To my surprise I actually got 4 patties as apparently each burger has 2 patties. I wasn't able to finish all 4, I ate about 2.5 patties and saved the rest. 

I cooked in crock pot a beef bone in rib and it turned out really good. The girls LOVED it! It came out soft and tasty. I made it with cocoa nibs and cinnamon. I was too full to actually eat dinner. 

Yesterday was the first day I didn't want or have any nuts (macadamia or brazil)  or 100% chocolate. The only non meat I had was about 2 tbs of heavy whipping cream in my afternoon coffee. 

I had plenty of energy during the day but was tired  in the evening around 8pm. Went to bed early (like 9:30). 

This morning I woke up with a headache. Still not hungry. Had a little bit of the rib beef from yesterday but am still feeling full and do not want to eat. Drinking tea and am still constantly thirsty. 

Still have plenty of meat in the fridge. Ground beef, burger patty leftover and of course the rib. 

Food is so simple right now. It is liberating! Making meat is so easy. I have a couple of recipes now, chicken wings, chicken drumsticks, whole chicken or even duck for roasting, beef bone rib, beef hamburger, ground beef, salmon (in oven with butter, can't wait to try it, until now only had it with olive oil!). I haven't investigated other beef parts as I already have enough variety and don't really want or need more. But in future I will venture into top sirloin and chuck. 
I also want to buy lamb chops and try to make them. I had a Paleo recipe for a while but never bought them as they seem expensive. 

My skin is totally cleared from acne! It is just amazing! In less than a week! I have done the Whole 30 and my acne didn't budge. Now in just few days it has cleared completely. I do not feel anything developing under my skin. I haven't been cleaning my face with wipes or doing any of the stuff I was trying to do before (and actually didn't help!). I stopped drinking ACV daily. I was trying to do it following some recommendations I saw online but yesterday on my ZV group they said the ACV damaged teeth, so I am glad I am not doing it any more. The only thing that happened since I started cleaning my face and drinking ACV was that my face was super dry. Now it is not dry and clean. I haven't used moisturizer today yet. My face feels great. I only used sulfur yesterday on 2 spots that haven't cleared yet but today they are clear. Now I only hope the old marks fade away. Not sure i I should apply anything on them or not. 
My skin feels really nice and soft. 

We are having dinner at the Rabbi's family today. They are vegetarians. Will serve salmon and a bunch of carbs, fruit and veggies for sure. 
I should probably go on a full stomach. It is almost noon and I am still not interested in food. Learning to listen to my body. 

Feeling great today and planning ahead

Eating zero carb is tasty, satisfying, filling and low cost. With each day I feel better and less doubtful about it.

I just finished my lunch, 10 (plain) chicken wings I bought at Safeway earlier (for $8) I might have a piece of fish as I think I still haven't lost interest in food.

I had eggs and chicken for breakfast (estimated cost $4?) and will make ground beef for dinner (estimated cost $3). 
I have been drinking coffee (can't calculate this but probably around $1 a day?) sometimes I add about a tbs heavy whipping cream (25c?). 
A whole day worth of food for about $15 and it is soooo simple! 

No need to spend much time (and money!!!!) at the store, plan menu, count calories and nutrients figure out why this hurts or why this happens or why weight isn't dropping and how can you eliminate this or that or what to change in my diet? 

Also, no need to store tons of ingredients at home. When I was low carb I stocked up on: nuts, nut butters, almond milk, protein powder, flax, almond/coconut flour, psylium husk, quest bars, a large variety of (low carb) veggies, avocados, olive oil, avocado oil, and probably even more items that I cannot remember right now.

It all adds up and require me to go to the store more often since veggies have limited shelf life. I needed to cook few times a week so I could prepare the veggies.

I have been at it only about 4 days now and I feel great. I have no cravings AT ALL!!! The first few days it was a little hard to wake up, but on these first days I also had a little bit of cabbage in my beef. I am also eating a couple squares of 100% chocolate and 5 brazil/macadamia nuts, a habit I can't yet kick.
Now I am only stuck with the chocolate and brazil/macadamia nuts.

My skin cleared. I have no cystic acne since I switched to meat, it completely cleared. It improved from yesterday until today. Unbelievable! I still have dryness in that area. Hope it will improve tomorrow. I don't feel any new acne developing which feels great.

Day 3 of zero carb update

Haven't weighted still but I do feel like I am shrinking. My clothes feel good on me. My tummy feels tighter, less bloated. 

My hormonal acne is clearing. I do not feel anything new developing and I really hope it stays this way. 

I stopped drinking the apple cider vinegar. It wasn't awful but I don't think it was helping. I forgot to apply sulfur yesterday on the remaining 2 spots and haven't put tea tree on the old marks that I would like cleared. It is very dry now. I have a feeling I need to eat fattier meat. Will get the skin off chicken drumsticks I have in fridge and fry it in ghee.... I also have turkey bacon which I plan to have with eggs for breakfast. Then chicken drumsticks for lunch and burger for dinner. 

I also noticed I am more thirsty especially at night. 

I am so relieved I don't need to think up recipes and prepare. 

I am only wondering about quantity. Not sure yet how much to eat? Hoping to learn to get signals from my body.

Switching to (almost) Zero Carb

I have about 15lbs to drop which I gained on low carb grain free diet. 
I have been eating ultra healthy diet, my friends think I am very srict since I do not touch grains or sweets. But in reality I have been over thinking food for a very long time. Paleo/LC recipes. All those nuts and almond/coconut flour baking ...... Even all the veggie recipes. 

I have been doing xtra lc for a couple days now, almost zero carb, with just some cabbage that I had made before with my ground beef (crack slaw), 5 brazil nuts and 2 squares of 100% chocolate. I am feeling really good. I even think my skin is starting to clear. I have always had hormonal acne (only learned about this term in the past week!) on my chin (even though I am turning 46 next month!) I haven't stepped on the scale but I can feel my clothes fitting a tiny bit looser, I feel my tummy a little tighter. Can't report anything on my thighs and behind ;-) I will weigh in and report either way in the next few days.  

I have been at around 20-25 net carbs for about a month and did not lose any weight. I did have appetite, hunger and cravings sometimes but in the past 2 days I haven't experienced any problem! 

Life is so much easier. I just need meet.

What I am finding interesting is I am not sure about how much to eat. I think that with time my body will adjust and give me signs of fullness. They say to eat until I am full/satisfied but even after over 2 years of low carb and grain free my body is not exactly trained in when to stop eating. When I was still on the old SAD diet I stopped eating when I would explode and not be able to eat anymore. I had to overeat because that rice, quinoa, hummus, whole wheat pasta or even vegetables, tasted soooo good and I just 'had' to have another serving.

When I was on MF/TSFL I missed that fullness but stuck with the diet and started to enjoy not feeling so full. But psychologically I still had some expectation for this feeling and a bit of deprivation of not having it.

It has been getting better but I am still not sure when to stop eating or if I had enough. Sometimes I know I want to eat out of just wanting.

I hope this psychological eating will disappear.

Messed up, then balanced and now finding a new way

I have not been blogging. Last weekend went for a little day hiking trip with my family to Point Reyes. Beautiful nature and ocean. I realized I get an appetite when outdoors and walking. Probably all the fresh air .....

I brought good food with me. Beef Jerky (Sophia's Survival Food, I really like the Original flavor, just grass fed beef and salt), quest bars, cucumbers, canned tuna, hard boiled eggs, nuts, even had flax muffins with me!

I did not limit myself with food and didn't stress about it. But then in the evening we stopped in San Francisco for dinner. I went to a sushi place with my daughter. I sneaked 2 seaweed rolls and couldn't avoid the white rice. I also had cucumber salad and grilled chicken bowl. I am sure the soy and other sauces were not great for me. I did not feel full/satisfied after I ate and I was,having increased appetite for few days after. 

Problem is two days later we went again to Asian buffet and I couldn't resist buy try some dessers. I am sure I wouldn't have even contemplate trying them if I hadn't slipped with the sushi two,days before. 

In any case, I didn't dwell on it, I just returned to my eating and training. Two days later my weight is same as before. I am a bit disappointed I am not down but happy I am not up. 

My husband has been sick with flu since Tuesday. He's moping at home. Kids were off school and I have been shuffling them around all week. I only trained once,this whole week. It wasn't super hard. I think I am ready for week 3 day 1 do c25k. Really want to be moving but am just worn out from having kids 24/7 AND a sick DH who keeps moaning about how sick he is. I cannot help but think, if it was the other way I would still be driving kids around and arranging activities for them. He doesn't have to do it. He can just rest. I guess it is what it is. He didn't have to carry them, give birth or nurse them either.... :-)

I asked on the Ketogenic Dieters FB group about losing the last 10-15lbs and someone pointed me to a fabulous new blog My Zero Carb Life. It totally threw me into curiosity mode. I have been reading and joined the FB group Zeroing In On Health. I started reading about Vilhjalmur Stefansson experience with the Eskimo and got really intrigued. 

Since I don't have any success with the low carb and it doesn't seem like the 20g net carbs are making any difference for me I will go into 30 day zero carb. Just meat and water. It seems easier in many ways. From what I have read so far, it kind of let's body regulate everything by itself. Appetite and body composition.

I haven't gone zero carb just yet. For the past couple days I have reduced my veggies to just a bit of cabbage, spinach and some homemade Paleo bbq sauce. I only had shredded chicken breast in fridge but I understand it is lean meat and thus not suitable for this way of eating as you need to eat meat with fat. Not that you need added fat, you just need meat with its own natural fat. I will need to add some fat for cooking but not vegetable fat. 

So far, I seem to be doing well. My clothes feel loose. I have energy and so far no problem with #2, but I read that if I do happen to have problems just up the fat.

I am going to make Grinbenes/schmaltz it seems really nutritious, yummy, fulfilling and a really good snack. 

Will keep reporting on a more regular basis.

No weight loss

I am not losing. Perhaps my body is adjusting to exercise? Yesterday I repeated c25k week 2 day 3 and it was not hard. I jogged all 6 laps of 1.5min and was not exhausted. I am sure week 3 will challenge me. Imalsomwant to step up my exercise on days I don't run and start building muscle. 

Yesterday I binged on sunflower seeds. Not my greatest moment. I am not sure what happened. Once I started I couldn't stop. My daughter wasn't feeling well and we stayed home instead of going to the ice rink, watched Dance Moms and I just allowed myself to eat those damn little things. No measuring and no control. 

I was full for the rest of the day though. Skipped dinner. Just had beef jerky, I figured protein is my best bet.

I also have breakout. Not sure what is causing my acne. Perhaps. Whey protein? Eggs? Both? I wish I would at least get closer to 140 already. I have been limiting my eating for few months now and still no loss. It seems like I need to reduce. Probably lower my protein to 100g....

Modern eating

Now it makes perfect sense but 12 years ago I opted for the convenience. Ready finger food. 

Now my kids are already addicts. Even though I make food they often prefer frozen store bought meat/fish over my home made. Even my chicken teriyaki is not so popular as restaurant one. Well, no wonder! I do not add sugar to my chicken while some sweetener is always present in store bought food. I Was shocked to see sugar as one of ingredients in supermarket roasted chicken. Basically we are all sugar addicts. I am pretty much giving up, hoping that when my kids grow up they will chose to detox themselves or somehow keep their addiction under control. 

http://news.nationalpost.com/the-kids-menu/

As to how I am doing, I am ok. Completed week 2 of c25k I am going to repeat it as I am still very weak. I really have to push myself. On the days I don't run i exercise 20min. Really want to also walk but always get sucked into computer. Need to really commit and just walk. 

My eating is ok. I am mostly keeping on plan but am not really losing anything so will need to make adjustments. 

I will give it another week before I lower my protein to 90-100g

I really want to drop those 15lbs! 

New Habits and eliminating snacking

I have established a new habit. I drink all the time between meals. Coffee, tea, water. At any given moment I have something to drink.
My best new habit is in the evening and it's already become a reflex. I put hot water on a little after 8 when girls start to get ready for bed.  I make a huge mug of herbal tea and sip it for the next hour.
Works well for me. I am glad I managed to establish this new habit. It is much better than my previous Quest bar in afternoon around 4:30pm.. .

Got this article on Ketogenic Dieters FB group I am on. http://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/0503/eating-for-pleasure-not-hunger-activates-the-brain.aspx

Really resonates with me.

Importance of nutrients

During the past few days I learned that when I don't eat enough protein and fiber for breakfast the rest of my eating is off. Greek yogurt with almonds is a sustainable breakfast but only until noon, then I am hungry. 

The days that I hit my macros are really good days for me. I feel good. My body feels good. There is something about these numbers that really works for me. I am satisfied, no food cravings,I get to the next meal without drama and I have no drama after the meal. No wanting something additional after my meal, no temptations. If I only can stick to what works I will be in good shape.

I stopped weighing daily. In the past once or twice a week worked for me. 

I started week 2 in C25K and it is challenging. I was only able to jog 1.5 min twice the rest 4 jogs I made it only 1-1.15 min. Will probably need to repeat week 2 for two weeks. Breathing is not my problem, my legs are.

Will weigh tomorrow .....

Lesson learned, eat proper macros at each meal,helps make good choices at next meal

I had a great start to my day. Lost a pound and I hope never to find it and keep losing more. 

 Did my week 1 day 3 couch to 5 k training. Came home, showered and made breakfast. I had 2 eggs with power greens and zucchini plus 3 Apple chicken links. I didn't notice it wasn't enough protein. I did notice it around noon when I started to feel hungry. Since I was out on errands I tried to keep going but noticed the emergency nuts in my purse. I. Ended eating half of them (about 1oz). Came home and had my lunch, ran out to get kids from school. I did not feel satisfied though. Drank water and coffee but had to have beef jerky. Dinner was outside and I had salmon cooked in some sauce that I am sure had soy and or fruit. Asparagus, green beans and cucumber. I came home and had a cheese stick and about 1oz sunflower seeds. 

I am not super happy about my choices. I would prefer not to snack but I have learned that when I have a good meal with proper nutrients i.e. 40g protein, ~23g fat and about 6 g net carbs i am pretty happy and satisfied. It also seems that using 1 scoop of whey protein isolate is working well for me. 

Tomorrow it will be time to use what I learned. 

Dr. Barbara Berkley - When Food Become Drugs - very powerful!

In her book Dr. Barbara Berkley talks about how food is worse than drugs because no one pushes you to use drugs, it is not displayed everywhere in plain site and isn't enticing you everywhere you turn, no one tells you "it's ok, just today, you can afford it" and the like, no one criticizes you for abstaining. I really really resonate with it. I know it seems a little strict but I don't think so. I have been on weight loss and maintenance journey for several years now and I can tell you from experience she is not crazy or strict. Starting to look at some food as drugs. I,actually hid the mixed nuts in the back of my shelf today. If I don't see it, it will not tempt me. I'd rather eat chicken, slice of turkey/beef or hard boiled egg than munch on nuts. I have to start dealing with my drug. 

http://www.refusetoregain.com/2015/02/post-re-run-controlled-by-a-cookie-when-foods-become-drugs.html 

Low carb pancakes

My breakfast plate before cream cheese 

Breakfast after creem cheese

Week 1 Day 2 C25K behind me

I did not make any excuses. Even though I got home after 9:30 (late school start day) and had a ton of things to do, I popped the chicken breasts in the crock pot with all ingredients and ran out of the house for my week 1 day 2 couch-to-5-K training. 

I really really enjoy it. 

I am also a little motivated by this friendly competition with my husband. 
He said that if i run he will run, so my excuse to actually do it is to either be better than him or just keep him healthy (he has really difficult sleep and stress issues and this running is actually very helpful for him). 

It is amazing how good I feel with this training. I don't know why I stopped. 
I think i just let myself get bored, or just let myself tell myself that I am bored. I kept doing the same streets but who cares! I am feeling so great! I have flexibility with my time and as long as I don't make excuses and just make it a priority I "Just Do It". 

My sleep has improved tremendously, well more like waking up improved, I have never had sleep problems. I wake up not tired and much earlier, without the alarm.

Something Dr. B. said in her blog or book (or both) really touched me. She said that she is 60 (or something near that age) now and it seems like just 2 weeks ago she was 45. So she has no illusions, she will be 80 in no time. I look at both our parents (my husband's and mine), they all have health problems, they can barely walk (they are 83/84). They didn't exercise until they retired and even then it was just walking. Our moms never drove a car so they always walked to work and/or store, bus etc. 
I watch other people near that age at our Synagogue, they are active, they actually exercise, they have vitality! I know I cannot plan that far ahead but I want to give myself a fair chance. 

Thoughts about quantities of food

I have been thinking a lot in the past few days about quantity. Dr. Berkley says that the quantity of food you eat in maintenance doesn't change drastically from the amount you ate while losing weight. 

When I was on Medifast/TSFL it was one of the first things I learned that the quantities I always thought normal and healthy are actually gigantic!

I remember visiting my cousin in The Netherlads gazillions years ago, when I was still young and single, in my early 30s, she had breakfast and a sandwich for lunch her main meal was dinner. I thought back then that she eats very little. Little did I know that she actually was more in the right direction than the three big meals plus snacks and endless lattes that I was eating. I never thought my coffee with low fat/non fat milk 3 and sometimes 4 times a day was contributing to my growing appetite and body.

I am trying to decide now if I am eating too little or too much and of what. I haven't been able to lose any weight in the past month. It is disappointing. When I was doing Medifast/TSFL I had a set routine. It was easy and pretty much predictable. I usually dropped about 2lbs a week unless it was the week of my period. I stalled here and there,when I got closer to 135 and the last 5lbs from 135 to 130 were very s l o w. I was doing C25K then and had to up my protein. 

I now have a good idea of the reasonable quantity of food for my body. There is that much meat/figs/eggs I can eat a day. So that's my protein and it is hard to overeat. It is actually sometimes hard to eat enough (if you go by Pinney/Volek/McDomald 40g recommended protein per meal). My other food staple veggies, are also not likely to cause overeating. Another point is that I eat from a salad plate, I fill it with protein and veggies. That's it. 

I do it 3 times a day. Hard to overeat. But..... There are nuts. I am not sure I overeat them. I am not sure they are the ones stalling me. I have had weight loss after I ate more than my usual nuts. I do eat small quantity 1 or 2 oz max. I had days when I didn't eat them at all and still didn't lose. 

Perhaps my body is still adopting to Keto. I am not sure. Perhaps it is hormones. Perhaps I am in peri menopause. 

Time will tell. 

I was down to my usual 147.4lbs this morning after yesterday's 149+. I remember that when I did cardio training I was advised not to weigh in the day after and thought perhaps my running had something to do with the scale gain. I now make sure to walk on days that I don't run. I do feel great! I will continue to figure it out.