You want to lose weight? Then stop your own Groundhog Day loop!
My favorite film? Hands down Groundhog Day. It’s the closest thing to a perfect movie. What’s not to love? Bill Murray plays pompous TV weatherman Phil Connors sent to Pennsylvania to cover Punxsutawney Phil’s forecast, but gets caught up in an endless time loop living Groundhog Day over and over again. It’s anyone’s guess how many times he lived that day repeatedly (I say decades!), but after indulging in further destructive behavior, he final starts to re-examine his life and figure out what’s really important.
Besides being an awesomely funny movie, it hits home with me because I saw a little of myself in Phil Connors’ situation.
I was caught in my own seemingly endless Groundhog Day loop: Read More
As expected I gained weight back after my 7-day fast. However, I think I could have minimized the weight gain if I didn’t miserably fail at my other monthly challenge – giving up alcohol for 30 days. I broke my fast with a birthday dinner and that included wine. OK, not a biggie. I made it to my birthday. So why not celebrate, right?
Well, it didn’t stop with the birthday. The next day we met up with friends we haven’t seen in ages. And the wine flowed.
The next day I didn’t have time to go grocery shopping so we went out for dinner…and I ordered a glass of wine. Soon we’re going out to dinner nearly every night for the last two weeks, which means a glass or two with dinner. Ugh! Read More
My first read of the new year, The Case Against Sugar by the man whose done more to influenced the nutrition debate over the last 10+ years than anyone else, Gary Taubes.
I try avoiding sugar as much as possible. It jacks up my blood sugar and insulin levels too much. It’s why I don’t eat fruit (with the exception of the occasional berry).
The only way to really avoid it is to not eat any processed foods — it’s loaded with sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup or the more than 50+ names sugar goes by. But is sugar really the new tobacco?
Today I start Gary Taubes’ new book, The Case Against Sugar. As readers know, I’m a huge fan of Taubes. His Why We Get Fat is the book that saved my life and set me down my ketogenic path.
Taubes did a great job taking down the bad science behind the idea that dietary fat (saturated fat in particular) was causing heart attacks, obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and recent growth of cancers. Looks like he’s putting the spotlight on the real culprit.
Don’t let the scale define you. In a given day, the scale goes up and down more than the stock market, so perspective is needed. The scale only shows one data point. Never let it control you.
There are other ways you can track how you are doing.
Take your measurements monthly — way better than a scale
Before and after photos — pictures don’t lie
How your clothes fit
Getting more sleep
Progress on creating healthy habits
Keep a journal tracking how you feel (more energy, happier), mobility (can you climb stairs without feeling winded), your overall well being
I’m kicking off the new year with a 7-Day Fasting Challenge as a way to heal my body. Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhoto.net and phasinphoto.
I’m ringing in the New Year with a week-long fast. Crazy? Not really. I’m a believer in fasting and it’s many benefits like: lipolysis, boosting mental capacity, reducing insulin resistance, and resetting your set weight point.
Intermittent fasting helped me rediscover what it feels like to be satiated by stablizing the hormone leptin (the hormone signals the brain that you’re full).
However, the big driver behind this 7-day fast is autophagy – the cellular cleansing process. According to Dr. Jason Fung, autophagy is the “body’s mechanism of getting rid of all the broken down old cell machinery (organelles, proteins and cell membranes).”
Now all cells in our body are programmed to die after a certain number of divisions. That’s apoptosis. Autophagy takes place at the sub-cellular level. Basically only parts of a cell need to be purged and replaced. Dr. Fung compares this to replacing car parts rather than the whole care.
Fasting not only stimulates autophagy (clearing out the bad), but it increases growth hormone so our body can produce new cell parts. Double bonus! Read More
Why do the press equate healthy fats with fast food? Most news reporters and editors are intellectually lazy. That’s why you should always question any health “news” you read.
Awesome! However, the opening paragraph of that story is wrong. “Fatty foods” are not necessarily good for you. After a bit of eye rolling on my part, I continued reading and was pleasantly surprised. The rest of the story seems spot on about healthy saturated fats.
What really caught my attention was the photo the editor chose to use. A greasy, triple stack cheeseburger. Really?
It completely undermines the news in the story.
Anyone reading that story who buys into calories in/calories out is going to think either: 1. The story is “fake news” or 2. I can eat a big ass cheeseburger and lose weight.
Why choose a photo that conjures up unhealthy fast food in one’s mind? The only thing potentially healthy with that burger might be the meat (and only if it is 100% pure beef). Everything else in that burger is highly processed and should be tossed.
The photo is so misleading. The story doesn’t say eat fast food burgers all you want. Healthy fats like butter, cream and healthy oils are specifically mentioned.
Here’s a novel concept, why not depict the actual healthy fats mentioned in the story you are publishing? It’s not that hard to find in Shutterstock.
If your job is to provide news to the public, why half-ass it?
My stress levels are astronomical thanks to my raging hormones. I’m giving mindfulness a shot. Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and Stuart Mills.
Over the last few weeks I’ve experienced some serious daily meltdowns. My hormones are raging. I’m stressing over every little thing. Emotionally I’m a mess. And I don’t have a clue what to do about it.
I’ve read about mood swings a woman experiences during menopause. But reading about what to expect is far different from reality.
My oncologist said there was a shot that my symptoms could become debilitating. But I brushed that off. Summer and early fall I experienced mild heat flashes. My mood was upbeat. I thought menopause was a snap.
With all the holiday parties coming up, here are my top LCHF friendly adult beverages. Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhoto.net and Rawich.
I can’t believe tomorrow is December. Where did the time fly? That mean the seasonal parties are just around the corner. After Thanksgiving, the party season picks up steam as we head into the New Year. Funny how those seasonal festivities always coincide with the us packing on pounds. Hmmmmm…
So starts the time of sugary desserts and carb-heavy comfort foods. But the one thing we tend to over look when it comes to the holiday madness is booze.Hooch. Liquid bread. Sauce. Hard stuff. Oats soda. Liquid courage.
Yep, I’m talking about alcohol.
The good news is you can still enjoy adult beverages in moderation while living a low carb lifestyle. You just need to know what to drink.
Below are my top 5 alcohol choices when hitting the party circuit this season. Read More
The number I’m staying under for Thanksgiving is 30. Thirty grams total carbs for the day. Not net carbs. Total carbs. I think I have a menu that gets me there. Of course I’m doing a 24 hour fast that ends with Thanksgiving dinner. To me the real challenge isn’t keeping my allowed carb count for the day. It’s cooking while fasting. Yikes!
Anyway, I hit the grocery stores today. Yep, that’s stores with an “s” because this is the week I rarely find what I need at one grocery store. Fingers are crossed that won’t be the case, but Thanksgiving grocery shopping is the one time where you really need to expect the worst but hope for the best.
So, I have my list. I’ve already posted videos of the turkey and stuffing recipes I’m using. I’m adding in a high fat veggie dish — Brussels sprouts au gratin. For the crunch on top I’m skipping the breadcrumbs and going with bacon. Yum!
I’m making a cranberry sauce too, but I’m not making that much. We always have way too much of it stuff leftover. So I’m cutting back on the recipe. I debated whether I should even make it. It is difficult to get a reasonable carb count. But folks love it so. My plan is to limit myself to half a serving.
The husband put in a request for an apple pie. Not a low carb apple pie, but a real apple pie. His argument — “It’s Thanksgiving after all and you’re fasting afterwards.”
True. I planned to try a 7 day fast shortly after Thanksgiving. More on that next week.
I do make a mean apple pie. It isn’t healthy, but it is glorious. So I might just make tiny apple pies for the husband and my mom. As for me? I’d rather have an extra glass of champagne (1.5g of carbs, ya know!).
Dot’s Thanksgiving Menu
Turkey (2g carbs/serving)
Mushroom Sausage Stuffing (5.5g carbs/serving)
Brussels Sprouts Au Gratin (est. 4g carbs/serving)
Cranberry Sauce (est. 3g carbs/half serving)
Champagne (est. 1.5g carbs/serving)
Overall that puts me just under 20g of carbs so far. So room for seconds, but only if I’m hungry. Just need to stay strong and avoid nibbling while cooking.
As expected 
