A Somewhat Typical Low-Carb Day

I thought I would share a day of low-carb eating that is relatively typical for me. I know lots of folks picture hunks of meat and cheese eaten in a true caveman fashion but that doesn't have to be the case.

This was my eating for today, all added up I stayed below 30g of carbohydrates which is great!

Typically for breakfast I eat an Atkins bar. Today I had the Dark Chocolate Coconut Crunch bar which is my 2nd favorite. It reminds me a little of an Almond Joy that's got more crunch than coconut, a little on the chewy side. It has (as the label shows) only 3 net carbs. (Chocolate Hazelnut is my favorite for those of you wondering.)

Mid-morning I grabbed a handful of Trader Joe's White Cheddar Popcorn. A fistful is only about 1/4 of the 2 cup serving size, so when you do your low carb math (carbs-dietary fiber x serving size portion) it comes out to about 3 net carbs. This popcorn (in small portions) is a great solution to texture craving for me.

For lunch I cut up 2 pieces of low-fat string cheese (negligible in carbs) and spooned 2-3 tbsp of Trader Joe's bruschetta. It's a great little lunch or occasional late night snack and only has around 3 net carbs.

Although I have lost most of my physical sugar cravings, I do still have a sweet tooth and the Atkins Nutty Fudge Brownie is an acceptable fill. It's by no means a real brownie, but on the diet it works.

For dinner I made my family meatball subs. I took 2 sauced meatballs with minimal sauce and added 2 more meatballs without sauce and a scoop of canned diced tomatoes. I cut the meatballs up into small pieces and melted cheese on top. These were frozen meatballs and had some fillers so they had 6 carbs/ serving. If you made your own, you could reduce the carb count. All told, this dinner was about 8 carbs.

One of my favorite things to eat on this diet is Ralphs CarbMaster brand yogurt. There are several flavors I'd recommend and one of my favorite is the Carrot Cake flavor. I add some walnut pieces for texture and a dollop of whipped topping (Cool Whip or the store bought equivalent) that gives it a dessert feel.  (I also recommend the vanilla flavor with fresh blueberries.)

As far as drinks go, my primary fluid intake is brewed iced tea and water. Sometimes I'll add a sugar free Hawaiian Punch drink mix to my water. I also have a bottle of Diet Mountain Dew every other day or so. I'm not usually a soda drinker, but on this diet I tend to more but none of my carbohydrates come from fluids, though I am working towards a day that I'm going to "splurge" on a glass of non-fat milk which I miss tremendously.

On that note, I also take vitamins daily to keep my diet better balanced. In addition to a good multivitamin I take both calcium +D and potassium because those are the biggest deficiencies in the low-carb lifestyle. If you ever feel a leg cramp on this diet, you're probably not getting sufficient potassium.

So there it is, a somewhat typical low-carb day.

A Somewhat Typical Low-Carb Day

I thought I would share a day of low-carb eating that is relatively typical for me. I know lots of folks picture hunks of meat and cheese eaten in a true caveman fashion but that doesn't have to be the case.

This was my eating for today, all added up I stayed below 30g of carbohydrates which is great!

Typically for breakfast I eat an Atkins bar. Today I had the Dark Chocolate Coconut Crunch bar which is my 2nd favorite. It reminds me a little of an Almond Joy that's got more crunch than coconut, a little on the chewy side. It has (as the label shows) only 3 net carbs. (Chocolate Hazelnut is my favorite for those of you wondering.)

Mid-morning I grabbed a handful of Trader Joe's White Cheddar Popcorn. A fistful is only about 1/4 of the 2 cup serving size, so when you do your low carb math (carbs-dietary fiber x serving size portion) it comes out to about 3 net carbs. This popcorn (in small portions) is a great solution to texture craving for me.

For lunch I cut up 2 pieces of low-fat string cheese (negligible in carbs) and spooned 2-3 tbsp of Trader Joe's bruschetta. It's a great little lunch or occasional late night snack and only has around 3 net carbs.

Although I have lost most of my physical sugar cravings, I do still have a sweet tooth and the Atkins Nutty Fudge Brownie is an acceptable fill. It's by no means a real brownie, but on the diet it works.

For dinner I made my family meatball subs. I took 2 sauced meatballs with minimal sauce and added 2 more meatballs without sauce and a scoop of canned diced tomatoes. I cut the meatballs up into small pieces and melted cheese on top. These were frozen meatballs and had some fillers so they had 6 carbs/ serving. If you made your own, you could reduce the carb count. All told, this dinner was about 8 carbs.

One of my favorite things to eat on this diet is Ralphs CarbMaster brand yogurt. There are several flavors I'd recommend and one of my favorite is the Carrot Cake flavor. I add some walnut pieces for texture and a dollop of whipped topping (Cool Whip or the store bought equivalent) that gives it a dessert feel.  (I also recommend the vanilla flavor with fresh blueberries.)

As far as drinks go, my primary fluid intake is brewed iced tea and water. Sometimes I'll add a sugar free Hawaiian Punch drink mix to my water. I also have a bottle of Diet Mountain Dew every other day or so. I'm not usually a soda drinker, but on this diet I tend to more but none of my carbohydrates come from fluids, though I am working towards a day that I'm going to "splurge" on a glass of non-fat milk which I miss tremendously.

On that note, I also take vitamins daily to keep my diet better balanced. In addition to a good multivitamin I take both calcium +D and potassium because those are the biggest deficiencies in the low-carb lifestyle. If you ever feel a leg cramp on this diet, you're probably not getting sufficient potassium.

So there it is, a somewhat typical low-carb day.

Low Carb Basics - Keto-what?

Ketosis. 

Definition: the abnormal accumulation of ketones in the body as a result of excessive breakdown of fats caused by a deficiency or inadequate use of carbohydrates. Fatty acids are metabolized instead, and the end products, ketones, begin to accumulate. This condition is seen in starvation, occasionally in pregnancy if the intake of protein and carbohydrates is inadequate.

Sounds scary, right?   Well it might be, but focus on this line right here: Fatty acids are metabolized. This is the point of the low carb diet, when you give up carbohydrates, your body begins to metabolize your own stored fat for the energy needed.  And you lose weight. 

Low carb diets are NOT for the thin, they are for the fat.  And if you don't have a wealth of fat stored (that I assume you want to get rid of) then don't do a low carb diet (unless you are living at a healthy "critical carb level" and only slightly in ketosis.)

Wait, slightly?  Yes, slightly, there are LEVELS of ketosis, and for me personally, knowing this is the best gauge for me on how I am doing with the diet.  Sometimes the scale moves slowly and I wonder "Am I doing this right??"   And for me the ability to "pee on a stick" for reassurance works well. 

Below is a picture of "testing for ketosis." Ketostix can be bought at pretty much any drug store.  Reli-On is the least expensive I have found and is carried by Wal-Mart.  Ir's a box of 50 for about $7.00.  How long 50 sticks lasts for you depends on how frequently you test.  I test typically between 3 and 5 times per day, depending how I am eating on a particular day.  The more carbs I'm eating, the more frequently I test to verify they're effect, because being knocked "OUT of ketosis" is actually detrimental to the diet.

Typically I run in the "moderate" range.  The test above was after an entire day at the beach eating very little and getting a lot of exercise swimming in the ocean.  "Eating less, moving more" has the same effect on burning fat as it does on burning calories, so I tested "large" on the ketosis scale.  I was able to eat a few more carbs later for dinner with a smaller effect because of it.  (This is why exercise is good for any diet.)

If your test stick shows any level of positive, from trace to large, you are burning fat and moving in the right direction in your weight loss.  Trace however will create a very small effect.  Trace to small is the "zone" one would want to live in in the maintenance portion of weight loss.  For active weight loss, you want at least small, but moderate to large will show the greatest effect on the scale and in your waistline. 

The important thing to know/ remember about ketosis is you have to commit to the diet. You cannot move in and out of ketosis and have a successful weight loss.  If you are eating the higher calorie, higher fat foods that work and are allowed in a "low-carb" diet and are bouncing in and out of ketosis , you WILL gain weight.  So be careful to resist the temptation to think just a "handful of MnMs" or a "small piece of cake" won't effect you.  In a calorie counting diet you might be able to get away with little slips like that, but in a low-carb diet, you cannot go there.  The good news, once you get past induction, most sugar cravings fade greatly or even disappear. (Your tongue may still crave a treat, but your body will not have the hankering for sugar.)

For me this testing option is one of the best plus sides to low-carb dieting.  I can test myself at any time to reassure myself I am burning body fat and therefore losing weight.  All I have to do is pee on a stick. :)

Low Carb Basics - Counting Carbs

For those interesated in following a low carb diet or lifestyle for weight loss and eventual basis, I thought I would share a few basics. 

First of all it's important to know HOW to count your carbs.  When you first start a low carb diet you have to spend about two weeks on an extremely low carb level, less than 20 grams of carbs per day.  This phase of the diet is call "induction" on the Atkins diet, but the concept is the same no matter what plan you are following.  You cut your carbs to that low level for a period of 2 weeks in order to begin the chemical process of "ketosis."

Ketosis is when your body ceases to burn carbohydrates for energy and burns instead your fat reserves.  After induction each person has to find their own "critical carb level" to continue the stages of weight loss, pre-maintenance and eventually maintenance.  Testing for ketosis (you pee on a stick) you can monitor how your body reacts to carbohydrates.  Some people will have to stay low, taking in only 25-30 NET carbs per day.  Other folks can tolerate as many as 60-70 carbs per day. Trial and error is the only way to discover the answer, and of course the fewer carbs anyone takes in, the faster the weigh tends to come off, but even more so, you will lose inches faster than pounds. 

So I said it NET carbs?  What exactly is a NET carb?  It's the carb count low carb eaters need to concern themselves with.  Certain carbs, specifically dietary fiber and sugar alcohols do not have a profound effect on blood sugar or the ketosis process. 

In induction you want to stay extremely low, so you should stick to (lean) meats and cheese, eggs and beyond that a salad is all you should incorporate during the first two weeks, and by salad I mean lettuce , a little tomato and either a couple tbs or Ranch, or oil and vinegar dressing.  Basic salad, but hold on tight things will get better after the first two weeks.

Once beyond induction you can begin to try more foods.  You should 5-10 carbs (to each day) a week at a time as you discover how many carbs you can tolerate and still lose weight.  So that means week 3 you're looking to be between 20-30 carbs, and week 4 30-35 carbs per day.  When you're no longer testing in the darker phase of ketosis then you need to lower your carb intake again, and be warned "sugar carbs" are the worst of all.

 

Here's an example of how to figure out your net carb count.  What we have here are 3 items I put together to make one of my favorite desserts/ treats. The three items above are Ralphs brand CarbMaster yogurt Carrot Cake flavor.  I top it with a scoop of Ralph's equivalent of "Cool Whip" (which is also low carb) and a tbs of walnuts.

The yogurt (left) has 4 NET carbs.  The total carbs = 4 and there is no dietary fiber or sugar alcohol to deduct.  The second photo is of the whipped topping (real whipped cream is NOT a low carb alternative, it has a lot more sugar in it). Likewise there is nothing to deduct from the carb count, it's total NET carbs is 2.
Then we add the walnuts (photo on the right). Total carbs = 4, BUT we DEDUCT 2 carbs for "dietary fiber." So the walnuts actual NET carbs are 2 (4 total - 2 dietary fiber.)  So the entire carb count for the "treat (which is quite yummy by the way) is 8 NET carbs. 

That's how you count carbs.  Typically most meats (unless they are processed or are treated with sugars or syrups) have no carbs.  Hard cheeses (cheddar, swiss, provolone, etc.) are negligible, <1 g. Be careful of sandwich meats and thinks like prepared tri-tips, you HAVE to read the labels.

OK, that's our first lesson.  Come back soon for more. :)

2 Months, 20 lbs

The photo on the left is my son's high school graduation. I will forever regret my condition in that picture. I have a huge distance to go, but I wanted to see my actual progress. I pray that picture will be the LAST of the "worst photos, and the pic on the right will be a step of change along the way. I at least don't mind the "look" and don't cringe when I see it. I will take it FOR NOW.

TWENTY

It's like a mile marker along this journey. The "20 lb" weight loss. It took 51 days to get here, which seems sort of long, but when I do the math (because I am a "do the math" kind of girl) I am actually losing 2.75 pounds per week, which is actually a very good rate. Wii Fit only recommends a pound per week, so you know, I'm ahead of the game.

At some point today I want to go to the grocery store. I don't want to buy anything, I just want to go in the frozen section and pull out a 20 lb bag of ice and pick it up for a minute. It's a great hands on example for me of exactly what I've lost. (Though I wish it melted more like ice.) When I put my skirt on this morning it was looser, noticeably so. I definitely FEEL better, but the truth is, when you have 80 pounds to lose, 20 is not evident in appearance. No one else is really noticing the loss, so for me, going in and grabbing that bag of ice will actually reinforce the sense of accomplishment.

Yes, that's right, I said 80 lbs, actually 81.2 is my original goal. I'd like to get down to a weight about 12 lbs above where I was when I got married. Maybe it's a lofty goal, perhaps too lofty, and maybe I will find the skin sags and the effort won't accomplish it, or even be satisfied at an early mile marker, but for now, it's the goal I have set - 5 lbs more than what my driver's license says, and my aim.

I could dream that it means only another 153 days, but I know the pace of loss will ebb and flow, and only get harder as I get closer, but at least i can hope that by my birthday next March I might be able to buy myself some new clothes. Time will tell, for now, I press on.

Day 49

I'm not thrilled with this photo, I have a looonnnnnggg way to go, but I have to find the little victories in the journey.

I tried these capris on at the beginning of summer and there was about 4 inches between button and button hole. This top is pinned at the breast because at one point it stretched to the point you could see flesh between button holes because it was so right. Now it's laying flat, no stretch, that's progress.

I look forward to less chins and someday swimming in these pants. I'm not where I want to be, but this photo is a marker that I'm also not where I was. I press on!