"I've got 99 problems and they're all carbs."
Let's recap:
March 5, 2015 = 146 lbs
Check out the websites linked on the previous post for what got me started on the low-carb diet.
I don't have my notes with me and I'm kinda lazy today so I don't even want to go to the websites, but here's what I remember and stuck with me, even to this day.
EAT & DRINK
Meat
Eggs
Full-fat dairy: yogurt, cream cheese, cheese, butter, mayo
Almond milk
Heavy whipping cream
Water, Water, WATER
Nuts
Blueberries, strawberries....any berry
Green beans
Asparagus
Spinach
Cauliflower (cauliflower became my new best friend)
Dark chocolate
Almond flour
Coconut flour
Coconut oil
Olive oil
Coffee (Thank the gods!)
DO NOT TOUCH
Sugar, Sugar SUGAR (soda, candy, ice cream, fruit juice, etc.)
Did I say Soda?
"White carbs": flour, rice, pasta, bread, potatoes
Regular milk
Bananas
Apples
Beans
Corn
Vegetable oil
Ketchup
BBQ sauce
I'm sure these lists are longer but that's what I remember off the top of my head.
Look at that list again....the good list. The list that says you can eat meat and veggies and cheese and heavy whipping cream and fruit. How is it possible to eat fat and lose weight?
I couldn't comprehend it, but a lot of people smarter than me did the research and proved the results, so who was I to argue with something that went against everything I had ever learned about food?
Eat the fat!
Before starting the low carb diet, I had stomach issues most the days of my life. Pain so intense I would black out. Diarrhea often. Pain, pain, pain. When I told my psychiatrist about starting this diet she was curious how my body would react. Let me tell you, it was fucking awesome. Sure, I still had bad days, but they were few & far between...not every damn day.
I've never been tested for a gluten allergy and I don't really care if I am allergic. I just know that today, when I eat carbs (like I have been a bit more regularly), I don't feel as good. My stomach still isn't anywhere near as bad as before, but I do notice my fingers swelling, my stomach bloating, I'm gassier and brutal honesty here, my bowel movements just aren't as satisfying as before.
Almost every cat I've ever owned celebrates after pooping, running helter skelter throughout the house like they're so relieved and free. That's how I want my BM's to feel, honestly. Like, "Yes, thank you, I feel so much lighter!" I don't get that feeling when I load up on carbs. I do when I cut them and eat smarter.
On that note....
My pantry wasn't exactly set up for a low carb diet. And by pantry I mean my freezer because I could basically store all of my non-refrigerated/frozen food in one cupboard in 2015 but my freezer was full of food..... I now couldn't eat. Pizza, frozen lasagna, Sister Schubert's Dinner Rolls (or what I've learned to call "Nun Buns"), ice cream sandwiches, ice cream, frozen pie, etc, etc, etc.
Today, I'm happy to say, I barely have enough kitchen space and my freezer is full of rice cauliflower, meat, & zucchini noodles (and yes, peanut butter ice cream because, come on! There is such a thing as "cheat day").
Speaking of cheat day.... What a bonus! I'll get to that.
The first meals I remember eating quite often were:
There were others, but even I'm getting bored with recipes. These should at least get you started.
In my first month (March 2015) while I was retraining my body to not want sugar and while I was teaching myself how to cook, I tried to keep track of every carb I put into my body. Some days my carb intake was as low as 10g. Most days it was around 20g.
Don't forget, when counting carbs, subtract the fiber (listed along with sugar below the carbohydrate nutrition facts on labels). Your body can't digest fiber so it doesn't affect your blood sugar levels. So, when checking labels, even if it's a high-carb food, make sure you check the grams of fiber. Something you thought was bad because it was high in carbs, might be okay because it's also high in fiber, of which, you subtract from the grams of carbs to get your net carb intake. Read this. It explains it so much better than I ever could.
I lost 5 lbs my first week. (141 lbs). By March 19, I was 138 lbs (total weight loss 8 lbs). By March 22, 137 lbs (9 lbs). July 28, 2015 - 130 lbs (16 lbs).
Remember this picture?
....to this....
130 lbs was a momentous moment for me. Only 10 lbs away from my normal and 16 lbs lighter than my heaviest.
And let me just say, with all honesty, I WAS NEVER HUNGRY. Never. The toughest part for me was putting down the soda. I had to find a soda that worked for me and it is Diet Canada Dry, still to this day. However, I drink a lot more water now than I do soda, which was a whole new lesson I had to learn. Put down the damn soda. Pick up the fucking water. The other tough part was nixing my regular desserts (peanut butter M&M's, ice cream, whatever...). That's why I always had low-carb peanut butter cookies on hand. Always. (I love peanut butter, have you noticed?)
Before gaining that weight, I never would have guessed that I would one day 1. Count any nutritional facts on any sort of label 2. Not drink 3-4 cans of soda a day 3. Be on any sort of goddamn diet 4. Cook and so many other things. But I did. I did count carbs. I did keep track. I did learn to cook. I did "diet", tho because I could eat until I was full and eat good food, at that, it didn't really feel like a diet. I did put down the soda (for the most part). I crave water instead of sugar today. I know that sometimes when my stomach rumbles, it doesn't necessarily need food. It needs water. I've learned to think about how much food I've eaten today vs. how much I've moved my body. Our body's need energy to move. Food = energy. If I'm not moving (expending energy) all that much, how much food (energy source) do I really need? Am I just bored and so I eat? Usually. Did I workout today? If yes, then sure, eat up. If no, eat a lighter meal.
Next post I'm going to get into my workout routine....what I did in the beginning and what I do now. I absolutely love working out and I'll get into why. I hope you'll join me!
Love & light,
Me
March 5, 2015 = 146 lbs
Check out the websites linked on the previous post for what got me started on the low-carb diet.
I don't have my notes with me and I'm kinda lazy today so I don't even want to go to the websites, but here's what I remember and stuck with me, even to this day.
EAT & DRINK
 |
| Buy this instead of regular granulated sugar |
Eggs
Full-fat dairy: yogurt, cream cheese, cheese, butter, mayo
Almond milk
Heavy whipping cream
Water, Water, WATER
Nuts
Blueberries, strawberries....any berry
Green beans
Asparagus
Spinach
Cauliflower (cauliflower became my new best friend)
Dark chocolate
Almond flour
Coconut flour
Coconut oil
Olive oil
Coffee (Thank the gods!)
DO NOT TOUCH
Sugar, Sugar SUGAR (soda, candy, ice cream, fruit juice, etc.)
Did I say Soda?
"White carbs": flour, rice, pasta, bread, potatoes
Regular milk
Bananas
Apples
Beans
Corn
Vegetable oil
Ketchup
BBQ sauce
I'm sure these lists are longer but that's what I remember off the top of my head.
Look at that list again....the good list. The list that says you can eat meat and veggies and cheese and heavy whipping cream and fruit. How is it possible to eat fat and lose weight?
I couldn't comprehend it, but a lot of people smarter than me did the research and proved the results, so who was I to argue with something that went against everything I had ever learned about food?
Eat the fat!
Before starting the low carb diet, I had stomach issues most the days of my life. Pain so intense I would black out. Diarrhea often. Pain, pain, pain. When I told my psychiatrist about starting this diet she was curious how my body would react. Let me tell you, it was fucking awesome. Sure, I still had bad days, but they were few & far between...not every damn day.
I've never been tested for a gluten allergy and I don't really care if I am allergic. I just know that today, when I eat carbs (like I have been a bit more regularly), I don't feel as good. My stomach still isn't anywhere near as bad as before, but I do notice my fingers swelling, my stomach bloating, I'm gassier and brutal honesty here, my bowel movements just aren't as satisfying as before.
Almost every cat I've ever owned celebrates after pooping, running helter skelter throughout the house like they're so relieved and free. That's how I want my BM's to feel, honestly. Like, "Yes, thank you, I feel so much lighter!" I don't get that feeling when I load up on carbs. I do when I cut them and eat smarter.
On that note....
My pantry wasn't exactly set up for a low carb diet. And by pantry I mean my freezer because I could basically store all of my non-refrigerated/frozen food in one cupboard in 2015 but my freezer was full of food..... I now couldn't eat. Pizza, frozen lasagna, Sister Schubert's Dinner Rolls (or what I've learned to call "Nun Buns"), ice cream sandwiches, ice cream, frozen pie, etc, etc, etc.
Today, I'm happy to say, I barely have enough kitchen space and my freezer is full of rice cauliflower, meat, & zucchini noodles (and yes, peanut butter ice cream because, come on! There is such a thing as "cheat day").
Speaking of cheat day.... What a bonus! I'll get to that.
The first meals I remember eating quite often were:
- scrambled eggs (mixed with a little almond milk), topped with quite a bit of cheddar cheese, black olives, mushrooms, bacon, (Walmart generic bacon bits) and full fat sour cream and sausage (I buy the Walmart generic bag of frozen sausage links).
- I fell in love with the Walmart generic brand frozen veggies. (I swear there's one called Hong Kong, but I can't find it on their website so I must be mistaken, but whatever it was, I ate a shit-ton of it.)
- Chicken topped with cheese, black olives, guacamole (yes!) and green beans on the side.
- I also ate a lot of green beans. Canned, frozen, doesn't matter.
- Low-carb cheeseburger pie: 1 lb ground beef, browned; drain fat; place in casserole dish sprayed with olive oil or coconut oil; top with cheddar cheese. In separate bowl, mix 1/2 C mayo, 1/4 C heavy whipping cream, 2 eggs, pinch of salt (can add bacon bits, if you want...I usually don't). Pour this mixture onto cheddar-topped beef. Bake at 350 for 30-35 mins. This is a definite go-to for me.
- Low-carb meatloaf: 1 lb ground beef, uncooked. Mix with 1 egg, some worcestershire sauce (maybe a couple of teaspoons), crushed croutons (guess which I buy? Yep, generic. I put some in a ziploc baggie, then crush with a hammer. It's fun.) Form into a loaf-like shape, smoosh into a loaf pan, bake at 425 for 30 mins.
- Loaded Cauliflower Casserole - OMG, this is so freaking good.
- Zucchini Parmesan Crisps - This was a miserable failure. I hope you have better luck.
- Spaghetti Squash Carbonara - I'll get into spaghetti squash later. This was good, but....
- Pancakes! https://thenovicechefblog.com/2017/06/low-carb-pancakes/ or https://www.wholesomeyum.com/recipes/keto-low-carb-pancakes-with-almond-flour-coconut-flour-paleo-gluten-free/ or https://lowcarbyum.com/gluten-free-coconut-flour-pancakes/. And now I want pancakes.
- Low Carb Taco Pie - also very good
- Parmesan Pork Chops
- Peanut butter cookies: 1 C natural chunky peanut butter, 1 egg, 1 C Great Value (GV) Sucralose (see pic above). That's it. Mix by hand, roll into ball, place on baking sheet, smoosh down with a fork and bake at 350 for 12 minutes. These are probably what kept me sane the first few months.
- Cinnamon Crumb Coffee Cake - pretty darn good.
- Low Carb Chocolate Mug Cake - I am so happy so many website have mug cake recipes! Since I live alone, it's nice to just whip up a quick sweet for myself. There are a lot out there so just google "low carb mug cake" and take your pick. Paleo Mug Cake
- Almond Flour Shortbread Cookies - I raved about these, but PB cookies are my go-to.
There were others, but even I'm getting bored with recipes. These should at least get you started.
In my first month (March 2015) while I was retraining my body to not want sugar and while I was teaching myself how to cook, I tried to keep track of every carb I put into my body. Some days my carb intake was as low as 10g. Most days it was around 20g.
Don't forget, when counting carbs, subtract the fiber (listed along with sugar below the carbohydrate nutrition facts on labels). Your body can't digest fiber so it doesn't affect your blood sugar levels. So, when checking labels, even if it's a high-carb food, make sure you check the grams of fiber. Something you thought was bad because it was high in carbs, might be okay because it's also high in fiber, of which, you subtract from the grams of carbs to get your net carb intake. Read this. It explains it so much better than I ever could.
I lost 5 lbs my first week. (141 lbs). By March 19, I was 138 lbs (total weight loss 8 lbs). By March 22, 137 lbs (9 lbs). July 28, 2015 - 130 lbs (16 lbs).
Remember this picture?
 |
| March 2015 |
....to this....
 |
| July 2015 |
130 lbs was a momentous moment for me. Only 10 lbs away from my normal and 16 lbs lighter than my heaviest.
And let me just say, with all honesty, I WAS NEVER HUNGRY. Never. The toughest part for me was putting down the soda. I had to find a soda that worked for me and it is Diet Canada Dry, still to this day. However, I drink a lot more water now than I do soda, which was a whole new lesson I had to learn. Put down the damn soda. Pick up the fucking water. The other tough part was nixing my regular desserts (peanut butter M&M's, ice cream, whatever...). That's why I always had low-carb peanut butter cookies on hand. Always. (I love peanut butter, have you noticed?)
Before gaining that weight, I never would have guessed that I would one day 1. Count any nutritional facts on any sort of label 2. Not drink 3-4 cans of soda a day 3. Be on any sort of goddamn diet 4. Cook and so many other things. But I did. I did count carbs. I did keep track. I did learn to cook. I did "diet", tho because I could eat until I was full and eat good food, at that, it didn't really feel like a diet. I did put down the soda (for the most part). I crave water instead of sugar today. I know that sometimes when my stomach rumbles, it doesn't necessarily need food. It needs water. I've learned to think about how much food I've eaten today vs. how much I've moved my body. Our body's need energy to move. Food = energy. If I'm not moving (expending energy) all that much, how much food (energy source) do I really need? Am I just bored and so I eat? Usually. Did I workout today? If yes, then sure, eat up. If no, eat a lighter meal.
Next post I'm going to get into my workout routine....what I did in the beginning and what I do now. I absolutely love working out and I'll get into why. I hope you'll join me!
Love & light,
Me
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