Pre-Flight Checklist (or Prepping for the Journey)
Okay, WOW! Where to start?
In August, 2017, I was diagnosed as having type 2 diabetes.
For years I had been able to put that diagnosis on hold with my high protein diet. A couple times a brought me problem temptations, namely Halloween and Easter. Candy. Chocolate. Yes I admit it. I am a chocoholic. (Wow I am surprised that is in the computer dictionary!) Other times, not often, I just want something salty, crispy, crunchy. You know...like chips, nuts, or other not-good-for-you foods and junk foods. So on those occasions, which really weren't often at all, I would just let myself enjoy myself. Whenever I had a doctor's appointment coming up within a month or two, I would behave myself and eat the high protein foods and stay clear of the bad carbs. It wasn't difficult at all because I had lived that way most of my life. But in the younger years (I am now 63) I wasn't limiting carbs.
Well, this time, I didn't outsmart the blood test.
So for the past year I have been "seriously playing around" with the Ketogenesis Diet. (Ha! Now THAT isn't in the dictionary!) But I still had periods of wanting the chips, and other bad carbs, though not as often. I actually made it through both Halloween and Easter without craving the chocolate! Then stumbled a month later. However, since candy was no longer on sale, I didn't buy as much; and therefore, did not eat as much. In spite of my moments of weakness, I managed to lower my A1C and lose 27 pounds!!!
My mom always said when you get older, your taste buds change. Her words. She was right. Although I do still crave chips and other junk salty snacks, I don't like the taste anymore, and using my mom's phraseology, "I like them but they don't like me." I just did not feel good at all anymore when I ate those things. But the chocolate cravings...still there. And I knew there were recipes and ways to have chocolate without blowing the health and diet. So I started looking for them. I don't buy candy anymore. If I want chocolate things, I make my own. From scratch and imagination. I've been doing much, much better with staying away from the bad carbs totally, and sticking to the high proteins and fats.
So then, this past week I decided that I needed to really spend some serious time learning what all a Ketogenesis Diet really was instead of just playing around with it. I have learned over this past year that I totally feel better when I stay away from the bad carbs. I feel really sluggish and tired and dull-headed after eating them. It only takes a day or two of getting back to the low carbs and the good carbs to feel good again. I want to know more. I want to feel better still. And I want to lose more weight and be more healthy overall. If just playing around with keto made me feel better, what would I feel like if I went all out keto?
This past week, well since Friday anyway, I have been 100% high protein and fat, no carbs. I have been doing the intermittent fasting as well, eating only once a day each day. Since I have been playing around this past year with this diet, I noticed that I am not hungry anymore, that I don't crave things like I used to, and that when I do eat, I get filled up faster than I used to.
Now I have to make a disclaimer here. For most of my life I have gone most days without breakfast or lunch, eating only supper and whatever snack later on. So this intermittent fasting that is part of the keto diet is really very much a habit with me to begin with. So this is not a big change in my lifestyle. Also, I have always been a big protein and fat eater, though not like what is suggested on the keto diet. I love veggies. But I love meats more. You won't see me pulling off the skin from chicken. But I always used the vegetable oils, vegetable shortenings, margarine, etc. I never used the real, natural, not made in a factory fats except those that were part of the actual foods. This diet seems like it was made for me.
The biggest problem I am having at this point today, is questioning how I am going to get all the fat into my diet that I am supposed to eat? I mean, 75% of the diet is supposed to be these good fats. That's a lot! Then you eat 20% protein and 5% carbohydrates. So this week, I have been focusing on tweaking things to work on that fat content. I mean today I even tried, and liked, "Bulletproof Coffee!" Hearing the recipe makes it just sound so gross, but it is actually pretty good. And there are ways to doctor it up so you can have a variety of flavors.
Avocados!!! I've never liked them and never tried one until a few years ago. I never liked guacamole. Still don't. All my life I was told avocados are bad for you because they are so fatty. So now, they are among the really good fats you can have. I am going to have to have a more serious taste test of this fatty food. I didn't like the texture, but it tasted a lot like mayo. Maybe I can adjust my taste buds a bit and learn to tolerate them.
Okay, well this is getting long, and I don't want to bore anyone. So if you are still awake, and still reading this, keep coming back. Lift off is Sunday. This is pre-flight. I will be writing about my progress on this journey, sharing videos of things I learn, sharing photos of my progress, and maybe what I eat. Who knows? I will NOT be talking about weight other than maybe pounds lost (or gained). I will be talking about sizes dropped, hopefully. Weight is ambiguous. Fat, muscle, water...everyone has their own body dynamics and weights really don't tell you a lot about a person's size or health. But their clothing size, how they look, how they feel...those are much better measuring tools.
See ye next time...
In August, 2017, I was diagnosed as having type 2 diabetes.
For years I had been able to put that diagnosis on hold with my high protein diet. A couple times a brought me problem temptations, namely Halloween and Easter. Candy. Chocolate. Yes I admit it. I am a chocoholic. (Wow I am surprised that is in the computer dictionary!) Other times, not often, I just want something salty, crispy, crunchy. You know...like chips, nuts, or other not-good-for-you foods and junk foods. So on those occasions, which really weren't often at all, I would just let myself enjoy myself. Whenever I had a doctor's appointment coming up within a month or two, I would behave myself and eat the high protein foods and stay clear of the bad carbs. It wasn't difficult at all because I had lived that way most of my life. But in the younger years (I am now 63) I wasn't limiting carbs.
Well, this time, I didn't outsmart the blood test.
So for the past year I have been "seriously playing around" with the Ketogenesis Diet. (Ha! Now THAT isn't in the dictionary!) But I still had periods of wanting the chips, and other bad carbs, though not as often. I actually made it through both Halloween and Easter without craving the chocolate! Then stumbled a month later. However, since candy was no longer on sale, I didn't buy as much; and therefore, did not eat as much. In spite of my moments of weakness, I managed to lower my A1C and lose 27 pounds!!!
My mom always said when you get older, your taste buds change. Her words. She was right. Although I do still crave chips and other junk salty snacks, I don't like the taste anymore, and using my mom's phraseology, "I like them but they don't like me." I just did not feel good at all anymore when I ate those things. But the chocolate cravings...still there. And I knew there were recipes and ways to have chocolate without blowing the health and diet. So I started looking for them. I don't buy candy anymore. If I want chocolate things, I make my own. From scratch and imagination. I've been doing much, much better with staying away from the bad carbs totally, and sticking to the high proteins and fats.
So then, this past week I decided that I needed to really spend some serious time learning what all a Ketogenesis Diet really was instead of just playing around with it. I have learned over this past year that I totally feel better when I stay away from the bad carbs. I feel really sluggish and tired and dull-headed after eating them. It only takes a day or two of getting back to the low carbs and the good carbs to feel good again. I want to know more. I want to feel better still. And I want to lose more weight and be more healthy overall. If just playing around with keto made me feel better, what would I feel like if I went all out keto?
This past week, well since Friday anyway, I have been 100% high protein and fat, no carbs. I have been doing the intermittent fasting as well, eating only once a day each day. Since I have been playing around this past year with this diet, I noticed that I am not hungry anymore, that I don't crave things like I used to, and that when I do eat, I get filled up faster than I used to.
Now I have to make a disclaimer here. For most of my life I have gone most days without breakfast or lunch, eating only supper and whatever snack later on. So this intermittent fasting that is part of the keto diet is really very much a habit with me to begin with. So this is not a big change in my lifestyle. Also, I have always been a big protein and fat eater, though not like what is suggested on the keto diet. I love veggies. But I love meats more. You won't see me pulling off the skin from chicken. But I always used the vegetable oils, vegetable shortenings, margarine, etc. I never used the real, natural, not made in a factory fats except those that were part of the actual foods. This diet seems like it was made for me.
The biggest problem I am having at this point today, is questioning how I am going to get all the fat into my diet that I am supposed to eat? I mean, 75% of the diet is supposed to be these good fats. That's a lot! Then you eat 20% protein and 5% carbohydrates. So this week, I have been focusing on tweaking things to work on that fat content. I mean today I even tried, and liked, "Bulletproof Coffee!" Hearing the recipe makes it just sound so gross, but it is actually pretty good. And there are ways to doctor it up so you can have a variety of flavors.
Avocados!!! I've never liked them and never tried one until a few years ago. I never liked guacamole. Still don't. All my life I was told avocados are bad for you because they are so fatty. So now, they are among the really good fats you can have. I am going to have to have a more serious taste test of this fatty food. I didn't like the texture, but it tasted a lot like mayo. Maybe I can adjust my taste buds a bit and learn to tolerate them.
Okay, well this is getting long, and I don't want to bore anyone. So if you are still awake, and still reading this, keep coming back. Lift off is Sunday. This is pre-flight. I will be writing about my progress on this journey, sharing videos of things I learn, sharing photos of my progress, and maybe what I eat. Who knows? I will NOT be talking about weight other than maybe pounds lost (or gained). I will be talking about sizes dropped, hopefully. Weight is ambiguous. Fat, muscle, water...everyone has their own body dynamics and weights really don't tell you a lot about a person's size or health. But their clothing size, how they look, how they feel...those are much better measuring tools.
See ye next time...
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