Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Day 11 - I think this diet may be working...

Morning weigh-in: 159.8 lbs (pre-diet 166 lbs)

During the day it's more but I was really excited that first thing this morning, when I weighed myself, I'd got under the 160 lb mark. As a weight loss project, I'm really not looking to go below 155 lbs, so there's not much further to go. Really amazing actually! Maria is also heartened by her progress, she's down a couple of pounds and I think feels, for the first time ever, that this is a diet that might actually work. She has quite a long way to go, but I think will stick with it because she really does want to get thinner and now has a way of getting to that objective.

Beyond weight loss, I've got various lifestyle issues to ponder, especially as my husband Charlie has announced that he only ever intended to be on the diet for two weeks, so will be back to the carbohydrated life soon (I'll report his final weight when he returns from a business trip to Chicago). Mostly it's about how I actually get myself to eat more, as I think I'm probably a bit undernourished. But it's late, so I'll leave those till tomorrow.


FOOD

Yesterday
Dinner
Vegetable stir-fry, avocado with crab

Today
Breakfast
Boiled egg, carrot (I know it's not allowed, but there wasn't much else in the fridge)
Lunch
Chicken stir fry
Dinner
Kielbasa sausage, sauerkraut, green salad
Onion baked in egg.

5 comments:

  1. Hi Sophie:

    Lots of families have this division. So you just cook the basic foods that you can eat, and microwave your husband some potatoes, or heat up a bagel. This gives your family the choice of how they want to eat.

    I would be interested in knowing why your husband - presumably in the face of the now-overwhelming scientific evidence in favor of low-carb - rejects that knowledge. Do you know his usual insulin levels, lipid panel, all that?

    If so, it would be intriguing to understand why he doesn't want to improve those - as woman, you're somewhat protected, but as a man, he is exposed to heart issues at his age and on a Standard American Diet.

    What does he tell you when you ask, if I may be so bold? Let me encourage you to keep up the lifestyle change, for you own health! It's working for you, and you seem to be well on the way to adapting.

    Best wishes.

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    Replies
    1. I think using the words "division" and "rejects" are strong biased and would serve no purpose in a family discussion. As a life-long dieter who just started this way of eating about 2 weeks ago, I think I'm pretty qualified to say that WHATEVER works for a person to lose weight FIRST has to be their choice and something they are willing to commit to. You can't use guilt, statistics, or other external incentives in losing weight.

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  2. Good job. A carrot is just fine for the primal-paleo lifestyle; it just slows the weightloss a bit.

    Read the nutritional label on the Kielbasa, however, ...

    Keep it up, and remind your husband that NO temp diet has ever been worthwhile. This is about more than a couple of pounds. It is about healthier living. When you reach your target weight, load up on carrots, apples, and the ocassional taste of honey but continue to avoid HFCS and grains. As you learn more, you will find that this lifestyle presents more opportunity than restriction. You are not depriving yourself, you are escaping a prison that you yourself did not make.

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  3. Sophie,

    You're doing great. How are you feeling? Are you still depressed and unsure or are you feeling like this might work for you?

    As noted above, this is more than about losing pounds. It's about living healthier and being healthier. There are all sorts of issues associated with the standard American diet - diseases that are promoted by that lifestyle.

    Having said that I live in a split household. My wife refuses to give up her carbs. She likes a piece of toast in the morning with her eggs. She often eats berry jams loaded with sugar. She'll eat mac and cheese if I'm not home for dinner. It's not as if she doesn't have the knowledge. We've discussed what I've learned and she's even begun Taubes' "Why We Get Fat" (though she found it dry and put it down) and "Wheat Belly" (put it down as well). However, I suspect that she isn't ready for it yet. She complains about a few extra pounds. She'll come around when she's ready. How do we deal? Well, we intersect in most ways. We both cook and she likes to eat much of what I enjoy. But if she wants a potato or bread or some such, then she has to make that for herself, mostly. I do cook her breakfast every morning and reluctantly include the toast. Other than that, she's on her own. By keeping plenty of my convenient foods around (some nuts, boiled eggs, and so on) I encourage her to eat more of those as they are easy to grab and go. She's eating healthier, if not low carb.

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  4. It's sad that your husband doesn't want to keep going, just make sure he understands that he's supposed to help. If he makes dinner make sure its something the both of you can eat, if he goes shopping ask him not to bring junk food into the house.

    And if your worried about nutrients just get some kale! Awesomeness in a serving. Just make sure you cook it in a way you find tasty

    ReplyDelete