It's been a big week for me, so I haven't been posting as much as I would have liked. We are moving to China, and on Tuesday my husband Charlie and the dog (Sisi) left for England (where he's from - the husband that is, not the dog who is pure American, from Middletown Humane Society). The dog will live with a friend of Charlie's mother for the year we are in Beijing. Then, yesterday, I drove my Dad to Newark Airport, after a 10 day visit. He is 84, and I managed to make sure he got into the fast lane at the security check at the airport. I can't believe that they make everyone stand in line that long, if I hadn't made a fuss, he would have been standing there for 30 minutes. Afterwards, I got home and just collapsed into bed. I woke up at 6am with my contact lenses in and all my clothes still on.
I'll be leaving myself -- with the kids -- in about week, probably on the 3rd of February - it's weird to think that next time I see Charlie it will be at Beijing airport...
The good news is that I've been keeping up the diet, and my notes of my weight and eating in my small pink notebook. Also, before he left, Charlie said how thin my stomach was feeling. I asked if that was good, and he said yes. Wow, might I even fit into the clothes I wore having before having children in the near future? That would be very exciting.
So, going backwards:
Day 20 (today): I weigh exactly 157 lbs (starting weight: 166 lbs, target weight: 155 lbs).
Breakfast: Coffee
Lunch: Cottage cheese and tomatoes, cheddar cheese
Dinner: Moussaka (made with coconut flour at your recommendation!). Snacks: Paleo Apple Pancakes (recipe from fastpaleo.com -- again thanks to rec made by one of you -- made with coconut flour and flax seeds), Eggs with sardines.
The kids heard I was making pancakes, and got very excited. They are normally very fussy eaters, so I said they wouldn't like these particular type of pancakes. But they did!
Day 19 (yesterday): 157.8 lbs
Breakfast: Coffee, sausages and eggs
Lunch: Onion soup, Cheese
Dinner: Zzzzzzzzzz
Day 18: 157.6 lbs
Breakfast: Coffee
Lunch: Spinach omelette
Dinner: Steak, avocado bacon salad (made with spinach)
Snack: Dutch licorice. I know, I know, it's got sugar in it, but my Dad brought it from Holland and I could not resist. I think only Dutch people love licorice, but those of us who do love it, it's v hard to resist.
Day 17: Forgot to weigh myself
Breakfast: Coffee
Lunch: Vegetable soup, salad with mozzarella
Dinner: Eggplant Parmegiano, Greek Salad, Calamari. DILEMMA: I got these from a local Italian restaurant along with the takeaway pizza for my Dad and the kids. When I got home and opened the packet, I realized they probably did contain flour, but I ate them anyway. Not particularly because I found them irresistible, more because I thought, I can't be too fanatical about this diet. I do my best, but throwing food away because I made a mistake would just be too radical.
Snacks: Bittersweet chocolate, licorice
Friday, January 27, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
Days 15 & 16 - Huge thank you for your comments
Days 15 & 16
Weight: 158lbs, 159 lbs (starting weight: 166 lbs)
I can't tell you how incredibly useful all your advice and comments are. When I started this blog, I thought it was just a way of having a public record of my weight loss progress, a way to be more disciplined about it by writing things down. I had no idea there would be all this wonderful advice, and great tips flowing in. It really makes it so much more doable. Thank you.
I really liked the comment that I shouldn't stress too much about breakfast (sometimes the more you worry about things, the harder they become), but I was getting a bit nervous about the speed of my weight loss, which seemed a bit too fast, given that I'm not hugely overweight to begin with. I had a slight fear of becoming anorexic (which I was, very briefly, as a teenager): just too skinny. Not that I'm there yet -- at all -- I suppose just this feeling that I was heading towards becoming thin too fast. I don't if that makes any sense. Anyway, I made sure I had breakfast.
Yesterday I had bacon, eggs and sausages for breakfast, carrot & leek soup, jamon serrano and caprese salad for lunch, and roast beef, green beans and salad for dinner.
Today I've had eggs, bacon, soup, almonds in the morning/lunch and plan to make cod baked with cream, prawns, and basil for dinner. In fact I'd better get to it now!
Weight: 158lbs, 159 lbs (starting weight: 166 lbs)
I can't tell you how incredibly useful all your advice and comments are. When I started this blog, I thought it was just a way of having a public record of my weight loss progress, a way to be more disciplined about it by writing things down. I had no idea there would be all this wonderful advice, and great tips flowing in. It really makes it so much more doable. Thank you.
I really liked the comment that I shouldn't stress too much about breakfast (sometimes the more you worry about things, the harder they become), but I was getting a bit nervous about the speed of my weight loss, which seemed a bit too fast, given that I'm not hugely overweight to begin with. I had a slight fear of becoming anorexic (which I was, very briefly, as a teenager): just too skinny. Not that I'm there yet -- at all -- I suppose just this feeling that I was heading towards becoming thin too fast. I don't if that makes any sense. Anyway, I made sure I had breakfast.
Yesterday I had bacon, eggs and sausages for breakfast, carrot & leek soup, jamon serrano and caprese salad for lunch, and roast beef, green beans and salad for dinner.
Today I've had eggs, bacon, soup, almonds in the morning/lunch and plan to make cod baked with cream, prawns, and basil for dinner. In fact I'd better get to it now!
Friday, January 20, 2012
Day 14 - I feel like I am eating sawdust
Weight: 158.2 lbs (pre-diet 166 lbs)
It's not that I'm not thrilled at how well this diet is working. I am. But my lack of interest of food is just plain strange. Yesterday, at lunchtime, I sat down to a mozzarella, tomato and basil salad, a combination I love. True, it's Belgioso mozzarella, it's a bit more plasticky than I would like, but still. It was bad. I had to force every bite down. I really did feel as if I was eating sawdust.
As you may have picked up by now, I have issues with breakfast and lunchtime. So it's not entirely surprising that I still don't enjoy those. But I'm having trouble with dinner too. We had baby back ribs the other night, which again, I would normally love. Instead, I ate what I had to, and then stopped. I then had an extra one, just because I felt I should, but eating it was not pleasurable at all. Sawdust again.
Sometimes when I'm driving, I imagine what it must have been like being a caveman: you ate what you had to to survive - a rabbit here, a leaf there - and no, just like most animals, it wasn't about taking great pleasure in your food. Maybe it's just psychological, but I'm beginning to feel a bit like that, this lean, alert, semi-starved creature.
I know this is not everyone's experience of this diet, but I think it may be the experience for those of us who were never particularly keen on meat, or rather were particularly keen on carbohydrates. I really could survive for months on pasta aglio and olio - i.e. some spaghetti with a bit of garlic and olive oil. I hate rich sauces on my pasta, and equally, on bread, just a tiny sliver of ham or salami was enough for me. I never ever ate a Subway sandwich because there's just too much stuff on it. So again, and I don't want to drone on here, but the very heart of my eating platform has just been ripped away, and I am still finding that really, really hard...But tomorrow, rather than moaning, I am going to do a list of pluses and minuses of this diet. I want to be a bit more systematic about my thoughts.
Food today
Breakfast: coffee (sorry, I just couldn't face it)
Lunch: Cauliflour fried with eggs
Dinner: Artichokes in egg and butter sauce, Moussaka, made with 25g of wholewheat flour for the topping...is that OK?
It's not that I'm not thrilled at how well this diet is working. I am. But my lack of interest of food is just plain strange. Yesterday, at lunchtime, I sat down to a mozzarella, tomato and basil salad, a combination I love. True, it's Belgioso mozzarella, it's a bit more plasticky than I would like, but still. It was bad. I had to force every bite down. I really did feel as if I was eating sawdust.
As you may have picked up by now, I have issues with breakfast and lunchtime. So it's not entirely surprising that I still don't enjoy those. But I'm having trouble with dinner too. We had baby back ribs the other night, which again, I would normally love. Instead, I ate what I had to, and then stopped. I then had an extra one, just because I felt I should, but eating it was not pleasurable at all. Sawdust again.
Sometimes when I'm driving, I imagine what it must have been like being a caveman: you ate what you had to to survive - a rabbit here, a leaf there - and no, just like most animals, it wasn't about taking great pleasure in your food. Maybe it's just psychological, but I'm beginning to feel a bit like that, this lean, alert, semi-starved creature.
I know this is not everyone's experience of this diet, but I think it may be the experience for those of us who were never particularly keen on meat, or rather were particularly keen on carbohydrates. I really could survive for months on pasta aglio and olio - i.e. some spaghetti with a bit of garlic and olive oil. I hate rich sauces on my pasta, and equally, on bread, just a tiny sliver of ham or salami was enough for me. I never ever ate a Subway sandwich because there's just too much stuff on it. So again, and I don't want to drone on here, but the very heart of my eating platform has just been ripped away, and I am still finding that really, really hard...But tomorrow, rather than moaning, I am going to do a list of pluses and minuses of this diet. I want to be a bit more systematic about my thoughts.
Food today
Breakfast: coffee (sorry, I just couldn't face it)
Lunch: Cauliflour fried with eggs
Dinner: Artichokes in egg and butter sauce, Moussaka, made with 25g of wholewheat flour for the topping...is that OK?
Day 13 - 您 一定 要吃 早飯 !
I've got a bit out of synch here, so I'm going to post twice today.
First, of all, yesterday's weigh in:
159 lbs (starting weight: 166lb)
Morning: coffee
Lunch: spinach soup and caprese salad (mozzarella, tomatoes, basil)
Dinner: avocadoes filled with crab, cumin, coriander and mayonnaise; spinach with melted butter; meat fondu.
Fortune, I really smiled when I read your comment: a gentle reminder to have more breakfast is one of those themes that seems to run through my life. In 1999, when I took a semester out of graduate school to live with a Chinese family in Beijing (studying Chinese in school is all very well, but you do actually need to be able to interact with other human beings), the mother very much took me under her wing. I was 29 at the time, so hardly young and vulnerable, but no matter. She was constantly chatting to me, and took a great interest in all my activities, but also got used to the fact that as a student, I tended to get up after the rest of the family had left the house. One morning, I came out of the bedroom, to a large piece of paper on the table saying "您 一定 要吃 早飯!" "You must eat breakfast!" I've still got it somewhere, maybe I should hang it on the wall.
First, of all, yesterday's weigh in:
159 lbs (starting weight: 166lb)
Morning: coffee
Lunch: spinach soup and caprese salad (mozzarella, tomatoes, basil)
Dinner: avocadoes filled with crab, cumin, coriander and mayonnaise; spinach with melted butter; meat fondu.
Fortune, I really smiled when I read your comment: a gentle reminder to have more breakfast is one of those themes that seems to run through my life. In 1999, when I took a semester out of graduate school to live with a Chinese family in Beijing (studying Chinese in school is all very well, but you do actually need to be able to interact with other human beings), the mother very much took me under her wing. I was 29 at the time, so hardly young and vulnerable, but no matter. She was constantly chatting to me, and took a great interest in all my activities, but also got used to the fact that as a student, I tended to get up after the rest of the family had left the house. One morning, I came out of the bedroom, to a large piece of paper on the table saying "您 一定 要吃 早飯!" "You must eat breakfast!" I've still got it somewhere, maybe I should hang it on the wall.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Day 12 - I've lost 7 lbs in less than two weeks!
Wow, that subject line sounds like the spam I get in my email inbox all the time. But it's true. This morning I weighed in at 159.2 lbs.
Thank you, btw, for all your helpful comments re: the spouse/partner. I have some news to report on this front. Charlie came back from Chicago, said he'd stuck to the diet while he was there, and was really surprised when he stepped on the scale and weighed 196 lbs. That means he's lost approximately 10 lbs.
FOOD
Breakfast: Coffee
Lunch: I went to a Chinese restaurant with my Dad (he came for a surprise visit so I didn't have to go via Italy to China to see him with all the kids. He is 84 and sadly has quite an aggressive prostate cancer. Even though I'm moving to China, I'm going to be spending a LOT of time in Italy this year, to be with him)
I ate: Broccoli and beef, very greasy pork ribs. I skipped the rice, of course.
Dinner: Roast beef, Brussels sprouts, Greek(ish) salad, leeks fried in butter (if you've never eaten this before, this is THE way to eat leaks. Delicious with steak and roasts)
Post-dinner: Glass of cognac while playing liar dice with my Dad and Charlie.
Thank you, btw, for all your helpful comments re: the spouse/partner. I have some news to report on this front. Charlie came back from Chicago, said he'd stuck to the diet while he was there, and was really surprised when he stepped on the scale and weighed 196 lbs. That means he's lost approximately 10 lbs.
FOOD
Breakfast: Coffee
Lunch: I went to a Chinese restaurant with my Dad (he came for a surprise visit so I didn't have to go via Italy to China to see him with all the kids. He is 84 and sadly has quite an aggressive prostate cancer. Even though I'm moving to China, I'm going to be spending a LOT of time in Italy this year, to be with him)
I ate: Broccoli and beef, very greasy pork ribs. I skipped the rice, of course.
Dinner: Roast beef, Brussels sprouts, Greek(ish) salad, leeks fried in butter (if you've never eaten this before, this is THE way to eat leaks. Delicious with steak and roasts)
Post-dinner: Glass of cognac while playing liar dice with my Dad and Charlie.
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.
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.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Day 10 - And a message from Gary
Morning weigh-in: 160.8 lbs (starting weight: 166.4 lbs)
OK. I have to admit I'm surprised by that. It's all still potentially water loss, and yes, 166.4lbs was my weight in the evening (when I'm heavier, I guess everyone is) whereas this was in the morning...but still. It's getting to actual serious amounts.
I was also very pleased to get some feedback on my diet from Gary himself. Among his words of wisdom:
"The reason you're not hungry is because you're burning your own fat for fuel, which is a good thing. Missing the carbs is not surprising. You have to think of it as any addiction. It takes a few weeks before you get over the initial cravings."
This does seem to fit with what I'm going through, provided it passes in a week or two...
FOOD
Yesterday
Lunch: Frittata, with red peppers, mushrooms , spring onions
Dinner: Cottage cheese, tomatoes
Lettuce leaf with melted goats cheese
Steak, and red cabbage with apple
Today
Breakfast: Bacon and eggs, coffee
Lunch: Onion soup, (made with broth) and grated cheese
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Day 9 - "I can't imagine anyone less suited to an Atkins diet."
Morning weigh-in
Me: 162.8 lbs
Charlie: 203 lbs
OUT TO DINNER
I had my first night out since starting this diet. I drove to Manhattan to have a good-bye dinner with some friends. We went to a very nice restaurant in the West Village called Malaparte, right around the corner from where they live. It's an Italian restaurant, so I was worried, but I in fact had a delicious meal, and didn't even tell anyone I was on the diet. I had grilled squid with rocket salad, a caprese salad with real buffalo mozzarella (if you're Italian you will know REAL mozzarella can only be made of buffalo milk, which is much fattier than cow's milk). Then as a main course I had a delicious steak with rocket. The only downside of my evening: I drank a glass or two of Prosecco, a glass or two of red wine, and woke up....with a headache. So did Charlie...
CHAT WITH COLLEGE ROOMMATE
I had a long conversation by phone with my graduate school roommate. She has often been on diets and trying to get her weight down, so I told her I was in the throes of an Atkins-style diet. She started laughing and said "I can't imagine anyone less suited to an Atkins diet." I would tend to be the cook when we lived together and was in the habit of coming home and cooking either spaghetti with broccoli and anchovies or penne with tuna fish, or risotto of some kind. That's all I ate, really. No meat. Anna has also tried an Atkins diet, but gave up after a few weeks, she said. It was real Atkins, i.e. even vegetables were discouraged, and she said that after a few weeks she never wanted to see an egg, or a piece of cheese, or meat again. She said she'd only come down to see me if I came off the diet, because diets make people grumpy (I'd confessed to her that I'd been being a bit grumpy to people). I told her no. I am trying this. I am very stubborn when I want to be.
Yesterday's meals
Breakfast/lunch: Swedish meatballs and smoked salmon at Ikea
Late afternoon snack: Cottage cheese, tomatoes and caviar
Dinner: Coconut flour blinis with sour cream and caviar
Corn on the cob with lots of butter
Baby back ribs.
Creamed spinach with cumin seeds and almonds
Me: 162.8 lbs
Charlie: 203 lbs
OUT TO DINNER
I had my first night out since starting this diet. I drove to Manhattan to have a good-bye dinner with some friends. We went to a very nice restaurant in the West Village called Malaparte, right around the corner from where they live. It's an Italian restaurant, so I was worried, but I in fact had a delicious meal, and didn't even tell anyone I was on the diet. I had grilled squid with rocket salad, a caprese salad with real buffalo mozzarella (if you're Italian you will know REAL mozzarella can only be made of buffalo milk, which is much fattier than cow's milk). Then as a main course I had a delicious steak with rocket. The only downside of my evening: I drank a glass or two of Prosecco, a glass or two of red wine, and woke up....with a headache. So did Charlie...
CHAT WITH COLLEGE ROOMMATE
I had a long conversation by phone with my graduate school roommate. She has often been on diets and trying to get her weight down, so I told her I was in the throes of an Atkins-style diet. She started laughing and said "I can't imagine anyone less suited to an Atkins diet." I would tend to be the cook when we lived together and was in the habit of coming home and cooking either spaghetti with broccoli and anchovies or penne with tuna fish, or risotto of some kind. That's all I ate, really. No meat. Anna has also tried an Atkins diet, but gave up after a few weeks, she said. It was real Atkins, i.e. even vegetables were discouraged, and she said that after a few weeks she never wanted to see an egg, or a piece of cheese, or meat again. She said she'd only come down to see me if I came off the diet, because diets make people grumpy (I'd confessed to her that I'd been being a bit grumpy to people). I told her no. I am trying this. I am very stubborn when I want to be.
Yesterday's meals
Breakfast/lunch: Swedish meatballs and smoked salmon at Ikea
Late afternoon snack: Cottage cheese, tomatoes and caviar
Dinner: Coconut flour blinis with sour cream and caviar
Corn on the cob with lots of butter
Baby back ribs.
Creamed spinach with cumin seeds and almonds
Friday, January 13, 2012
Day 7 - no philosophizing today...just the stats
Morning weigh-in
Me: 161.2 lbs (starting: 166.4 lbs)
Charlie: 204 lbs (starting: 205.6 lbs) "This seems like a lot of hard work to lose so little"
Maria: 184 lbs (starting: 182.2 lbs)
Meals these past 24 hours:
Dinner yesterday:
Snack: pistachio nuts, cottage cheese
Starter: Mozzarella, tomato and basil salad, with a side of prosciutto and artichoke hearts
(Charlie's response: "Looks like we're in the middle of summer.")
Main course (both Nigel Slater recipes):
Herbed salmon with garlic cream sauce
Green beans with sesame seeds cooked in soy sauce and Japanese wine
Lunch today (both old family favorites):
Crispy lettuce leaves with melted goats cheese
Zucchini filled with parmesan and eggs beaten together, baked.
Exercise:
Run up the hill next to our house. It's so cold today, it almost hurt to breathe...and it's snowing!
Me: 161.2 lbs (starting: 166.4 lbs)
Charlie: 204 lbs (starting: 205.6 lbs) "This seems like a lot of hard work to lose so little"
Maria: 184 lbs (starting: 182.2 lbs)
Meals these past 24 hours:
Dinner yesterday:
Snack: pistachio nuts, cottage cheese
Starter: Mozzarella, tomato and basil salad, with a side of prosciutto and artichoke hearts
(Charlie's response: "Looks like we're in the middle of summer.")
Main course (both Nigel Slater recipes):
Herbed salmon with garlic cream sauce
Green beans with sesame seeds cooked in soy sauce and Japanese wine
Lunch today (both old family favorites):
Crispy lettuce leaves with melted goats cheese
Zucchini filled with parmesan and eggs beaten together, baked.
Exercise:
Run up the hill next to our house. It's so cold today, it almost hurt to breathe...and it's snowing!
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Day 6 - Bootcamp breakthrough
Thank you so much for your comments, which are a HUGE help. I have good news to report. I went to bootcamp this morning. This is something I've been doing twice a week since September, and I absolutely love it. Initially we were outside in the park, since November we've been indoors. We do exercises and running which don't require anything much apart from your own body. And it's fun. The woman who runs it, Donna, is great, knows what she's doing, gets us going, and is super-nice. If anyone lives in the Hudson Valley NY area, I really recommend joining the group. What I've found with exercise, is that you have to want to do it. If I think "Oh no. I have to go to the gym today," I know I'm onto a loser. Previously, the only place where I really enjoyed exercising was at my Dad's house in Italy. I run up the hill behind his house, on the dirt tracks amidst the olive groves, up, up, until I reach the tall pine trees at the top and sit down and look out at the view over Rome. Whenever I'm there, I get very fit, because I want to go running every day. It's a treat. Not surprisingly, this is not something I've been able to replicate in "normal" life. It's always "Oh no. I have to go running." Bootcamp changed all this. I want to go, I think because the company is so nice. One Danish woman doing it is actually 79 years old (I think), you wouldn't believe it, she looks about 60. She used to be a cross-country skiing champion.
Anyway, I struggled through bootcamp today. I really felt my muscles hurting as I did the exercises. This doesn't normally happen. Even exercises I normally find easy (eg. standing with my back against the wall with knees bent so I'm in a sitting position - sorry don't know the term for it) I found hard to do. I could feel my stomach muscles as I was doing planks, I could feel my arm muscles as we used the kettlebells. It's very strange, because normally it's only the day after that they ache. But afterwards I felt great. I still do. Those who recommended exercise are right!
My weight is 162 lbs, so down approx 4 lbs since starting this...and I feel very upbeat and energetic.
FOOD
I still have an issue with eating though. I really appreciate your recommendations on food, and will try to follow some of your tips. I think my issue is partly one of time management, in this sense: my days have never been structured to allow time to think about food/recipes during the day. I rush around with the kids, I spend time in my office making calls and doing work, and it's only in the evening that I have time to think about food. It's not that I don't want to cook all these lovely recipes and think about them, but my day isn't organized to allow it.
So, for example, yesterday, I really honestly wanted to eat lunch, but I didn't get around to it. I had bacon, eggs and sausages for breakfast, and spent the rest of the day getting by on water (and maybe a cup or two of coffee) as I drove the kids around and did interviews from my office. I finally found myself in ShopRite at 6pm, buying food, and trying to come up with ideas, which I did. I had a great recipe book with me, Nigel Slater's 30-Minute Cook which has lots of enticing vegetable and meat dishes. I also had one www.fastpaleo.com recipe with me, for pancakes. But I got so tired I actually sat down on the floor at one point, and just looked at my shopping list.
When I got home, I ate a ton of pistachios, and quickly put together an avocado filled with crab, cilantro, mayonnaise and turmeric. We were supposed to have steak and various things as our main course, my husband had offered to cook, but I had a "quick rest" before dinner, read my mystery for a few minutes, and promptly fell asleep. When my husband asked me if I wanted dinner I had no idea what he was talking about. I woke up in the middle of the night with the light on, my contact lenses in, all my clothes on, and my husband asleep beside me.
This is partly because I'd had to stay up till 2.30 am the night before, writing up an interview. So it seems like a one-off. But there always seems to be something throwing off my day...
Anyway, I struggled through bootcamp today. I really felt my muscles hurting as I did the exercises. This doesn't normally happen. Even exercises I normally find easy (eg. standing with my back against the wall with knees bent so I'm in a sitting position - sorry don't know the term for it) I found hard to do. I could feel my stomach muscles as I was doing planks, I could feel my arm muscles as we used the kettlebells. It's very strange, because normally it's only the day after that they ache. But afterwards I felt great. I still do. Those who recommended exercise are right!
My weight is 162 lbs, so down approx 4 lbs since starting this...and I feel very upbeat and energetic.
FOOD
I still have an issue with eating though. I really appreciate your recommendations on food, and will try to follow some of your tips. I think my issue is partly one of time management, in this sense: my days have never been structured to allow time to think about food/recipes during the day. I rush around with the kids, I spend time in my office making calls and doing work, and it's only in the evening that I have time to think about food. It's not that I don't want to cook all these lovely recipes and think about them, but my day isn't organized to allow it.
So, for example, yesterday, I really honestly wanted to eat lunch, but I didn't get around to it. I had bacon, eggs and sausages for breakfast, and spent the rest of the day getting by on water (and maybe a cup or two of coffee) as I drove the kids around and did interviews from my office. I finally found myself in ShopRite at 6pm, buying food, and trying to come up with ideas, which I did. I had a great recipe book with me, Nigel Slater's 30-Minute Cook which has lots of enticing vegetable and meat dishes. I also had one www.fastpaleo.com recipe with me, for pancakes. But I got so tired I actually sat down on the floor at one point, and just looked at my shopping list.
When I got home, I ate a ton of pistachios, and quickly put together an avocado filled with crab, cilantro, mayonnaise and turmeric. We were supposed to have steak and various things as our main course, my husband had offered to cook, but I had a "quick rest" before dinner, read my mystery for a few minutes, and promptly fell asleep. When my husband asked me if I wanted dinner I had no idea what he was talking about. I woke up in the middle of the night with the light on, my contact lenses in, all my clothes on, and my husband asleep beside me.
This is partly because I'd had to stay up till 2.30 am the night before, writing up an interview. So it seems like a one-off. But there always seems to be something throwing off my day...
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Day - 5 Losing weight, but miserable
Morning weigh-in: 162.1 lbs
My weight is going in the right direction, but I am not happy. I think of the book that Gary recommended, by Brillat-Savarin, the French gastronome (who struggled with his weight), and feel I am most comfortable in his world. He is describing people like me - who like eating pastries and desserts and potatoes dauphinoise, drinking wine and sitting around at the table for hours. And yet, here I am on a paleo diet. I'm beginning to worry that while cavemen may have been super-healthy and slim, they did not have much fun...
But I won't let negative thoughts like these prevent me soldiering on. I am in week one, which everyone says is hard. Despite not feeling like eating, I forced myself to have eggs, bacon and sausages for breakfast this morning. My husband btw is much happier than he was, but still doesn't find meals very enjoyable. His weight is also moving in the right direction, though I haven't got the exact number with me here in the office. In other news, the lovely woman who babysits my kids, Maria, has now joined the diet. She really struggles with her weight - she is not tall, but weighs 182 lbs. It is actually a pity because she is very, very pretty - I would say beautiful. She is very energetic and doesn't eat much, and yet, her body is very rotund (she won't mind me saying that). She was at her wit's end, because while she ate very little, she didn't lose weight. If nothing comes out of this for Charlie or I, but Maria finds a way of losing weight successfully, it will be a huge achievement.
Both Charlie and Maria were laughing at me at dinner last night, because I looked so miserable. She said that I should consider myself lucky that we were all doing this together, because it's much harder doing it on your own. I will remember to buy portions for three now, so she can eat with us.
My weight is going in the right direction, but I am not happy. I think of the book that Gary recommended, by Brillat-Savarin, the French gastronome (who struggled with his weight), and feel I am most comfortable in his world. He is describing people like me - who like eating pastries and desserts and potatoes dauphinoise, drinking wine and sitting around at the table for hours. And yet, here I am on a paleo diet. I'm beginning to worry that while cavemen may have been super-healthy and slim, they did not have much fun...
But I won't let negative thoughts like these prevent me soldiering on. I am in week one, which everyone says is hard. Despite not feeling like eating, I forced myself to have eggs, bacon and sausages for breakfast this morning. My husband btw is much happier than he was, but still doesn't find meals very enjoyable. His weight is also moving in the right direction, though I haven't got the exact number with me here in the office. In other news, the lovely woman who babysits my kids, Maria, has now joined the diet. She really struggles with her weight - she is not tall, but weighs 182 lbs. It is actually a pity because she is very, very pretty - I would say beautiful. She is very energetic and doesn't eat much, and yet, her body is very rotund (she won't mind me saying that). She was at her wit's end, because while she ate very little, she didn't lose weight. If nothing comes out of this for Charlie or I, but Maria finds a way of losing weight successfully, it will be a huge achievement.
Both Charlie and Maria were laughing at me at dinner last night, because I looked so miserable. She said that I should consider myself lucky that we were all doing this together, because it's much harder doing it on your own. I will remember to buy portions for three now, so she can eat with us.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Day 4 - early evening
I wasn't able to weigh myself this morning as my scale, which is digital, started saying 4.8 lbs before I even stepped on it. I was already a bit suspicious of it, so I'd ordered a new one from Amazon, it'll arrive either today or tomorrow. Anyway, as several of you have pointed out, it's not necessarily good to weigh oneself constantly.
I've got a whole list of things to buy from the supermarket -- now I have more of an idea what this diet is all about -- and I will go and buy them tomorrow. Unfortunately, I've had a bit of a work crisis today (plus on Tuesdays I am constantly driving my children from one activity to the next - speech therapy, gymnastics etc) so I haven't gone shopping yet. I am definitely eating too little during the day. Today, so far, I have only eaten a handful of walnuts, a block of cheddar cheese and some prosciutto. I know it's not good, and I promise not to do it again! Dinner looks good though, Charlie is cooking. We are planning asparagus with butter and eggs, roast pork and cabbage or broccoli.
Thinking today's eating pattern through as I write this, I have to confess it's fairly typical. I'm always a bit vampire-like, eating minimally during the day when I'm very busy, and then, feasting at night with a big meal with (hopefully) multiple courses and wine. Not that I am drinking wine, as of yesterday. I have given it up.
I am drinking lots of water, by my standards. This feels great. I normally don't have much interest in water, I just drink tea and coffee or, after 6pm beer or wine. It feels much more natural to want water instead of any of those.
This was yesterday's eating log (I know, not enough):
Breakfast - Bacon and eggs
Lunch - Walnuts
Snack - Carrots dipped in mayonnaise
Dinner - Steak with garlic and butter sauce, red cabbage cooked with (just a little bit of) apple, carrot salad with vinaigrette.
I've got a whole list of things to buy from the supermarket -- now I have more of an idea what this diet is all about -- and I will go and buy them tomorrow. Unfortunately, I've had a bit of a work crisis today (plus on Tuesdays I am constantly driving my children from one activity to the next - speech therapy, gymnastics etc) so I haven't gone shopping yet. I am definitely eating too little during the day. Today, so far, I have only eaten a handful of walnuts, a block of cheddar cheese and some prosciutto. I know it's not good, and I promise not to do it again! Dinner looks good though, Charlie is cooking. We are planning asparagus with butter and eggs, roast pork and cabbage or broccoli.
Thinking today's eating pattern through as I write this, I have to confess it's fairly typical. I'm always a bit vampire-like, eating minimally during the day when I'm very busy, and then, feasting at night with a big meal with (hopefully) multiple courses and wine. Not that I am drinking wine, as of yesterday. I have given it up.
I am drinking lots of water, by my standards. This feels great. I normally don't have much interest in water, I just drink tea and coffee or, after 6pm beer or wine. It feels much more natural to want water instead of any of those.
This was yesterday's eating log (I know, not enough):
Breakfast - Bacon and eggs
Lunch - Walnuts
Snack - Carrots dipped in mayonnaise
Dinner - Steak with garlic and butter sauce, red cabbage cooked with (just a little bit of) apple, carrot salad with vinaigrette.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Day 3: morning
My weight: 163.2 lbs (Pre-diet 166.4 lbs)
Charlie: Went to work at 6.20 am while I was still comatose so I did not see him and have no idea whether he managed to avoid his usual bowl of cereal or what his weight is.
OK. I have tried to take on board your comments. I will drop the fruit and fruit juice, I will not drink wine, and I will try and cut down on the caffeine, which can't be good either. I will also try and eat more calories, but I just don't feel like it. I'm going to read the comments and recommendations again to get ideas for snacks and things I might actually feel like eating, but right now, even though it's 1.35pm, I do not want lunch. I had a slight headache earlier, and took some aspirin which worked. I feel absolutely fine, just zero interest in food. I'm drinking water though. I have the feeling I have some walnuts in the cupboard. I guess I could snack on them? I don't mind the idea of that.
Charlie: Went to work at 6.20 am while I was still comatose so I did not see him and have no idea whether he managed to avoid his usual bowl of cereal or what his weight is.
OK. I have tried to take on board your comments. I will drop the fruit and fruit juice, I will not drink wine, and I will try and cut down on the caffeine, which can't be good either. I will also try and eat more calories, but I just don't feel like it. I'm going to read the comments and recommendations again to get ideas for snacks and things I might actually feel like eating, but right now, even though it's 1.35pm, I do not want lunch. I had a slight headache earlier, and took some aspirin which worked. I feel absolutely fine, just zero interest in food. I'm drinking water though. I have the feeling I have some walnuts in the cupboard. I guess I could snack on them? I don't mind the idea of that.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Day 2: evening - finding it tough
My weight: 164.4 lbs (Pre-diet 166.4 lbs)
Charlie's weight: 205.8 lbs (Pre-diet 205.6 lbs)
Charlie is so upset with some of the early symptoms that he has just eaten some All-Bran...
What I ate today:
Breakfast - one cheese and zucchini omelette, one cup of coffee, half a glass of orange juice
Mid-morning - one tangerine
Lunch - Sausages and salad
Afternoon - one cup of tea
Supper - "Russian" eggs (like deviled eggs but with sardines and capers)
Baked haddock with spinach and sour cream, one glass of red wine.
Charlie's weight: 205.8 lbs (Pre-diet 205.6 lbs)
Thank you everyone for all the comments which are very helpful and encouraging. I will start weighing myself a bit less, as it does become rather all-consuming. Probably just once a day in the morning in these early stages, and then moving down to 2-3 times a week as I get settled in.
Today both my husband and I are struggling. "Is being on a diet always this miserable?" he asked me this evening. Neither of us feel hungry, but we feel kind of empty and a bit strange. When I heard about Atkins-style diets in the past, I thought, "Wow, it sounds good, eating as much as you want, eating meat, eating fat. But does it work? And is it healthy?" Right now, I'm sort of in the opposite place. Speaking to Gary convinced me that it works, and doing it myself I realize that it is healthy, even by conventional standards: avoiding carbs means I skip the snacks when I would normally eat cookies and chips. I'm not eating more red meat than usual, but I am eating fish and vegetables to fill the gap left by pasta, rice and potatoes. But I'm not enjoying eating very much! I almost can't be bothered to eat. We still have all the ingredients to make a delicious apple crisp: that's what I want to eat, I miss sugar!
Charlie is so upset with some of the early symptoms that he has just eaten some All-Bran...
What I ate today:
Breakfast - one cheese and zucchini omelette, one cup of coffee, half a glass of orange juice
Mid-morning - one tangerine
Lunch - Sausages and salad
Afternoon - one cup of tea
Supper - "Russian" eggs (like deviled eggs but with sardines and capers)
Baked haddock with spinach and sour cream, one glass of red wine.
Day 2: morning
My weight: 163.6 lbs (Pre-diet 166.4 lbs)
Charlie's weight: 206 lbs (Pre-diet 205.6 lbs)
I woke up in the middle of the night, with a headache. I don't know if I can blame it on the diet or the fact I drank too much coffee, tea and wine yesterday. I couldn't get back to sleep, which is quite unusual for me. Like the kids, I still have a bad cold, so it's also my own snoring that keeps waking me up. This morning, I feel fine. Charlie did some exercise yesterday, running around the field above our house, plus rowing on the machine. He says he feels completely the same as usual, no impact from diet yet.
We had a really delicious omelette with cheese and zucchini for breakfast this morning. Quite a relief to have a change from cereal...
Charlie's weight: 206 lbs (Pre-diet 205.6 lbs)
I woke up in the middle of the night, with a headache. I don't know if I can blame it on the diet or the fact I drank too much coffee, tea and wine yesterday. I couldn't get back to sleep, which is quite unusual for me. Like the kids, I still have a bad cold, so it's also my own snoring that keeps waking me up. This morning, I feel fine. Charlie did some exercise yesterday, running around the field above our house, plus rowing on the machine. He says he feels completely the same as usual, no impact from diet yet.
We had a really delicious omelette with cheese and zucchini for breakfast this morning. Quite a relief to have a change from cereal...
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Day 1: evening weigh-in
My weight: 165.4 lbs (Pre-diet: 166.4 lbs)
What I ate today:
Breakfast - two cups of tea
Lunch - Avocado, bacon and spinach salad, with vinaigrette
Afternoon - two cups of coffee
Early evening - Italian salami sausage, a few slices
Dinner - Artichokes (with butter and egg sauce) followed by roast chicken and leeks fried in olive oil
2 glasses of wine
One tangerine
Charlie: 208.6 lbs (Pre-diet 205.6 lbs)
What I ate today:
Breakfast - two cups of tea
Lunch - Avocado, bacon and spinach salad, with vinaigrette
Afternoon - two cups of coffee
Early evening - Italian salami sausage, a few slices
Dinner - Artichokes (with butter and egg sauce) followed by roast chicken and leeks fried in olive oil
2 glasses of wine
One tangerine
Charlie: 208.6 lbs (Pre-diet 205.6 lbs)
Day 1: morning weigh-in
This is before eating breakfast (which I normally skip anyway) or having a cup of tea:
164.2 lbs
Which means I've already lost 2 lbs just by sleeping, before even doing anything!
Charlie, my husband, is joining in the experiment and weighs 205.6lbs.
I'm such a bread and pasta addict that I'm a bit skeptical about how I'm going to do on this non-carb diet, but I will say one thing in its favour so far: shopping at the supermarket yesterday for the family was a lot quicker and easier, when I could ignore an entire food group. No bakery goods, no chips, no cereals, no cookies, no pasta: just meat, fish and vegetable. It was quite liberating.
The cost was about the same as usual though, $288 for the week, which I suppose reflects the fact that meat is more expensive, and vegetables can be quite overpriced too.
164.2 lbs
Which means I've already lost 2 lbs just by sleeping, before even doing anything!
Charlie, my husband, is joining in the experiment and weighs 205.6lbs.
I'm such a bread and pasta addict that I'm a bit skeptical about how I'm going to do on this non-carb diet, but I will say one thing in its favour so far: shopping at the supermarket yesterday for the family was a lot quicker and easier, when I could ignore an entire food group. No bakery goods, no chips, no cereals, no cookies, no pasta: just meat, fish and vegetable. It was quite liberating.
The cost was about the same as usual though, $288 for the week, which I suppose reflects the fact that meat is more expensive, and vegetables can be quite overpriced too.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Pre-diet evening weigh-in
So this is my last evening eating carbs and I've made the most of it. Not only did I eat large chunks of cake, as is traditional on Epiphany in my family -- btw I got the wedding ring, meaning a romantic year lies ahead -- but my husband (Charlie) and I then went out to dinner to the nearest bar and I ate a hamburger in a bun, a lot of french fries, and a pint of beer.
I've just weighed myself, and on the eve of this, my first ever official diet, I weigh 166.4 lbs.
I've just weighed myself, and on the eve of this, my first ever official diet, I weigh 166.4 lbs.
Preparations
In my Dutch family, we traditionally bake a cake on Epiphany, January 6th i.e. today. In it, we hide three items: a thimble, a penny and a wedding ring. If you get the thimble, it means you'll work hard for the year. If you get the penny, you'll get rich. If you get the wedding ring, it means love is in the air.
Unfortunately, this cake is made of exactly the things that Gary has warned me need to be avoided, including, in equal quantities (200g), the dreaded white flour (I wonder if unbleached is better?) and sugar. (I guess the four eggs, the 200g of butter and the cocoa are OK).
As is typical with these resolutions, this means I will have to start my diet tomorrow (mañana, mañana). I will however weigh in tonight, to see what my starting weight is. I'm normally 165 lbs, but I fear the Christmas season may have made some slight changes to that...Also, the scale is very erratic, and I have to kick it to make it work. Hmm. I wonder, given this is a scientific experiment, whether I should get my hands on another one?
Unfortunately, this cake is made of exactly the things that Gary has warned me need to be avoided, including, in equal quantities (200g), the dreaded white flour (I wonder if unbleached is better?) and sugar. (I guess the four eggs, the 200g of butter and the cocoa are OK).
As is typical with these resolutions, this means I will have to start my diet tomorrow (mañana, mañana). I will however weigh in tonight, to see what my starting weight is. I'm normally 165 lbs, but I fear the Christmas season may have made some slight changes to that...Also, the scale is very erratic, and I have to kick it to make it work. Hmm. I wonder, given this is a scientific experiment, whether I should get my hands on another one?
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