Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
HOW TO EAT MORE FAT - MARK'S DAILY APPLE
A great new post from Mark Sisson:
The leaders of the dietary establishment either keeled over or started arming themselves with pitchforks as I wrote that title. (It’s a good day to enjoy the subversion, I think.) On a serious note, let me unpack this worthy question – one I tend to get often: how does one incorporate more fat into a day’s eating? This common inquiry usually comes from someone new to the Primal way of eating; someone that has just started ditching grains and sugars and is having a hard time replacing carbs with the fats they’ve always been told to avoid. And replace, at least in part, they must, or experience the inevitable crankiness and hunger (and possible failure) associated with not eating enough food.
Of all the things we do for our health, I think we all find this to be one of the more enjoyable efforts – at least once we get the hang of it. Go as clean as you can of course – pastured and organic or as close to it as you can obtain and afford. (It ensures better nutrition and fewer toxins.) But let’s not get caught up in details today. I’m ready to dig in. Are you?
Read the rest of the article here to find out Mark's take on eating more fat and how to do it.
The leaders of the dietary establishment either keeled over or started arming themselves with pitchforks as I wrote that title. (It’s a good day to enjoy the subversion, I think.) On a serious note, let me unpack this worthy question – one I tend to get often: how does one incorporate more fat into a day’s eating? This common inquiry usually comes from someone new to the Primal way of eating; someone that has just started ditching grains and sugars and is having a hard time replacing carbs with the fats they’ve always been told to avoid. And replace, at least in part, they must, or experience the inevitable crankiness and hunger (and possible failure) associated with not eating enough food.
Of all the things we do for our health, I think we all find this to be one of the more enjoyable efforts – at least once we get the hang of it. Go as clean as you can of course – pastured and organic or as close to it as you can obtain and afford. (It ensures better nutrition and fewer toxins.) But let’s not get caught up in details today. I’m ready to dig in. Are you?
Read the rest of the article here to find out Mark's take on eating more fat and how to do it.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
NUTRITIONAL KETOSIS - WEEK 7 RESULTS
You might remember that I had a little setback last week. I decided to stick with it, and start using coconut and MCT oil more regularly. I did not make any fat bombs, but I did have the oil every day. I'm not sure if it was this that turned the tide, but the tide definitely turned, and I have made progress this week.
It's been seven weeks since I started my experiment with nutritional ketosis. I am eating higher fat, lower protein and very low carb. Here are my charts:
In summary, in the past 7 weeks:
At this point, it looks like I'm going to eat this way from now on, so I'm not calling it an experiment anymore. I will continue to post my results once a week until I hit my goal.
It's been seven weeks since I started my experiment with nutritional ketosis. I am eating higher fat, lower protein and very low carb. Here are my charts:
In summary, in the past 7 weeks:
I lost 1/2" around my neck
I lost 3/8" around my bicep
I lost 1/4" around my bust
I lost 1-3/8" around my midriff
I lost 2-3/4" around my waist
I lost 1-3/4" around my navel
I lost 1-5/8" around my hips
I lost 1/2" around my thigh
I lost 3/8" around the calf
I lost 3/8" around my bicep
I lost 1/4" around my bust
I lost 1-3/8" around my midriff
I lost 2-3/4" around my waist
I lost 1-3/4" around my navel
I lost 1-5/8" around my hips
I lost 1/2" around my thigh
I lost 3/8" around the calf
I lost 8 pounds on the scale (lost 9.5 pounds of body fat and gained 1.5 pounds of lean mass).
I went down 4.7 percentage points on my body fat.
I went down 0.037 points on my waist-to-hip ratio.
I tracked my food every day this week. If you want to know exactly what I am eating, look here, and then you can click the page numbers at the bottom to see each individual day.
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
1456 calories
128.7g fat (79.6%)
51.2g protein (14.1%)
23.2g carbs (6.4%)
My goal was a little higher, and I did not intentionally eat less:
I stopped testing my blood ketones and glucose because the results are always the same and the strips are expensive. After a few weeks go by, I'll test again for good measure. If something starts going wrong, I will test sooner, but for now, I don't see a reason to test.
My goal was a little higher, and I did not intentionally eat less:
1539 calories
135g fat (79%)
54g protein (14%)
27g carbs (7%)I stopped testing my blood ketones and glucose because the results are always the same and the strips are expensive. After a few weeks go by, I'll test again for good measure. If something starts going wrong, I will test sooner, but for now, I don't see a reason to test.
At this point, it looks like I'm going to eat this way from now on, so I'm not calling it an experiment anymore. I will continue to post my results once a week until I hit my goal.
This is my goal:
136 pounds scale weight
40.8 pounds body fat (30%)
95.2 pounds lean mass (70%)
11.875" neck
28" waist
39.125" hips
0.716 waist-to-hip ratio
To get there, I need to lose 4.5 pounds of body fat, gain 1.1 pounds of lean mass and lose 2" around my waist.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
NUTRITIONAL KETOSIS - WEEK 6 RESULTS
As Robert Burns once said, "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft agley." In other words, we can plan and plan and do everything right, but it sometimes does not work out, despite our best efforts. After doing very well for five weeks, my progress hit a wall and bounced off in the opposite direction. This happened, seemingly, because of one meal at which I ate too much protein and too many carbs, including some fresh strawberries, as part of a birthday celebration for my husband. Now, the results were not devastating, but still. Come on! If the only way to maintain weight loss is to eat PERFECTLY at every single meal for the rest of my life, it's pretty discouraging.
On the other hand, I did lose 5/8" around my navel in the past week, and that is substantial to me, visceral fat-wise.
I'm now looking back to see if there is anything else I have changed since I started, to see if there could be some other reason why I am gaining again other that one day of overeating. For the first week or so, I ate really, really high fat, and although it worked at first, it stopped working, and decreasing my fat by 50g per day got me losing again. The only other thing I can think of that I have changed is that I am not eating coconut oil the way I was when I first started this. As a matter of fact, I have not made my coconut candy in over a week, and I have been getting in the habit of cooking my eggs with butter about half the time instead of coconut oil. Also, I have been skipping my MCT oil cocktail on some of the mornings lately, in favor of having a little bit more fat with my meals.
Just in case this lack of coconut/MCT oil may have something to do with my weight gain, I am going back to making sure that I have it on a daily basis. Today, I will make some coconut oil candy and start having a piece or two every day and I will make sure not to skip my oil cocktail in the mornings.
It's been six weeks since I started my experiment with nutritional ketosis. I am eating higher fat, lower protein and very low carb. Here are some of my charts:
In summary, in the past 6 weeks:
I tested my blood ketones one time this past week because the strips are so expensive, and I can see that eating this way is keeping me in nutritional ketosis. In order to stay there, my level should stay between 1.0 and 3.0. My average of all the times I have tested is 2.2. Here are my results since I started testing:
Because I can see that the way I am eating is keeping my blood sugar stable, I am not testing it every day. I did test two times this past week. My average of all the times I have tested is 85, which includes after meals. Here are my results since I started testing, and these numbers are excellent:
I am continuing my experiment. I am in nutritional ketosis, and my blood sugar is normal. I am not hungry during the day, and I think I have hit on a good amount of fat to be eating.
On the other hand, I did lose 5/8" around my navel in the past week, and that is substantial to me, visceral fat-wise.
I'm now looking back to see if there is anything else I have changed since I started, to see if there could be some other reason why I am gaining again other that one day of overeating. For the first week or so, I ate really, really high fat, and although it worked at first, it stopped working, and decreasing my fat by 50g per day got me losing again. The only other thing I can think of that I have changed is that I am not eating coconut oil the way I was when I first started this. As a matter of fact, I have not made my coconut candy in over a week, and I have been getting in the habit of cooking my eggs with butter about half the time instead of coconut oil. Also, I have been skipping my MCT oil cocktail on some of the mornings lately, in favor of having a little bit more fat with my meals.
Just in case this lack of coconut/MCT oil may have something to do with my weight gain, I am going back to making sure that I have it on a daily basis. Today, I will make some coconut oil candy and start having a piece or two every day and I will make sure not to skip my oil cocktail in the mornings.
It's been six weeks since I started my experiment with nutritional ketosis. I am eating higher fat, lower protein and very low carb. Here are some of my charts:
In summary, in the past 6 weeks:
I lost 1-1/8" around my midriff, 2-1/8" around my waist, 1-5/8" around my navel and 1" around my hips.
I lost 4.8 pounds on the scale (lost 6.5 pounds of body fat and gained 1.7 pounds of lean mass).
I went down 3.3 percentage points on my body fat.
I went down 0.033 points on my waist-to-hip ratio.
Although I ate pretty much the same way for the whole week, I only tracked my food for five days, and, on one day (the overeating day), I estimated my food. If you want to know exactly what I am eating, look here, and then you can click the page numbers at the bottom to see each individual day.
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
1543 calories
133.2g fat (77.7%)
57.4g protein (14.9%)
28.7g carbs (7.4%)
This was my goal, and I was not too far off:
One setback is not enough to discourage me that much, so I will continue to eat this way for the next week.
This was my goal, and I was not too far off:
1539 calories
135g fat (79%)
54g protein (14%)
27g carbs (7%)One setback is not enough to discourage me that much, so I will continue to eat this way for the next week.
I tested my blood ketones one time this past week because the strips are so expensive, and I can see that eating this way is keeping me in nutritional ketosis. In order to stay there, my level should stay between 1.0 and 3.0. My average of all the times I have tested is 2.2. Here are my results since I started testing:
Because I can see that the way I am eating is keeping my blood sugar stable, I am not testing it every day. I did test two times this past week. My average of all the times I have tested is 85, which includes after meals. Here are my results since I started testing, and these numbers are excellent:
I am continuing my experiment. I am in nutritional ketosis, and my blood sugar is normal. I am not hungry during the day, and I think I have hit on a good amount of fat to be eating.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
NUTRITIONAL KETOSIS - WEEK 5 RESULTS
It's been five weeks since I started my experiment with nutritional ketosis. I am eating higher fat, lower protein and very low carb.
Here are some of my charts:
In summary, in the past 5 weeks:
I tested my blood ketones one time this past week because the strips are so expensive, and I can see that eating this way is keeping me in nutritional ketosis. In order to stay there, my level should stay between 1.0 and 3.0. My average of all the times I have tested is 2.2. Here are my results since I started testing:
Because I can see that the way I am eating is keeping my blood sugar stable, I am not testing it every day. I did test two times this past week. Here are my results since I started testing, and these numbers are excellent:
I am continuing my experiment. I am in nutritional ketosis, and my blood sugar is normal. I am not hungry during the day, and I think I have hit on a good amount of fat to be eating.
Here are some of my charts:
In summary, in the past 5 weeks:
I lost 1-1/8" around my midriff, 2-1/4" around my waist, 1" around my navel and 7/8" around my hips.
I lost 4.8 pounds on the scale (lost 6.5 pounds of body fat and gained 1.7 pounds of lean mass).
I went down 3.3 percentage points on my body fat.
I went down 0.039 points on my waist-to-hip ratio.
Although I ate pretty much the same way for the whole week, I only tracked my food for five days. If you want to know exactly what I am eating, look here, and then you can click the page numbers at the bottom to see each individual day.
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
1560 calories
138.8g fat (80.1%)
58.2g protein (14.9%)
19.6g carbs (5%)
This was my goal, and I was not too far off:
I will continue to eat this way for the next week.
This was my goal, and I was not too far off:
1539 calories
135g fat (79%)
54g protein (14%)
27g carbs (7%)I will continue to eat this way for the next week.
I tested my blood ketones one time this past week because the strips are so expensive, and I can see that eating this way is keeping me in nutritional ketosis. In order to stay there, my level should stay between 1.0 and 3.0. My average of all the times I have tested is 2.2. Here are my results since I started testing:
Because I can see that the way I am eating is keeping my blood sugar stable, I am not testing it every day. I did test two times this past week. Here are my results since I started testing, and these numbers are excellent:
I am continuing my experiment. I am in nutritional ketosis, and my blood sugar is normal. I am not hungry during the day, and I think I have hit on a good amount of fat to be eating.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
THE LAST 100 VISITS TO THIS BLOG FROM AROUND THE WORLD
I'm global, baby! It's fun to look at the Site Meter for my blog and see where people are reading me from. This map shows the locations of the last 100 visitors:
BEYOND EASY PULLED PORK - EVERYDAY PALEO
Bill and I love to throw a pork roast into the slow cooker and make pulled pork, and I sometimes throw in a packet of onion soup mix to flavor it. Of course, the ingredients in the mix are less than desirable... I found this recipe for pulled pork at Everyday Paleo. The spice blend is great and there are no ingredients that I do not know how to pronouce! This site has some great recipes! Enjoy!
Sunday, August 5, 2012
NUTRITIONAL KETOSIS - WEEK 4 RESULTS
It's been four weeks since I started my experiment with nutritional ketosis. I am eating higher fat, lower protein and very low carb. After looking at what an average body fat percentage is for a woman my age, I have adjusted my goal, which means I now have only 7.5 pounds of fat left to lose and 0.9 pounds of lean mass left to gain.
Here are some of my charts:
In summary, in the past 4 weeks:
I tested my blood ketones one time this past week because the strips are so expensive, and I can see that eating this way is keeping me in nutritional ketosis. In order to stay there, my level should stay between 1.0 and 3.0. My average of all the times I have tested is 2.2. Here are my results since I started testing:
Because I can see that the way I am eating is keeping my blood sugar stable, I am not testing it every day. I did test two times this past week. Here are my results since I started testing, and these numbers are excellent:
I am continuing my experiment. I am in nutritional ketosis, and my blood sugar is normal. I am not hungry during the day, and I think I have hit on a good amount of fat to be eating.
Here are some of my charts:
In summary, in the past 4 weeks:
I lost 1-1/8" around my midriff, 2-1/8" around my waist, 7/8" around my navel and 7/8" around my hips.
I lost 4.8 pounds on the scale (lost 6.5 pounds of body fat and gained 1.7 pounds of lean mass).
I went down 3.3 percentage points on my body fat.
I went down 0.036 points on my waist-to-hip ratio.
If you want to know exactly what I am eating, look here, and then you can click the page numbers at the bottom to see each individual day.
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
Here are the averages of what I ate this past week:
1549 calories
136.4g fat (79.2%)
55.3g protein (14.3%)
25.1g carbs (6.5%)
This was my goal, and I was not too far off:
I will continue to eat this way for the next week.
This was my goal, and I was not too far off:
1539 calories
135g fat (79%)
54g protein (14%)
27g carbs (7%)I will continue to eat this way for the next week.
I tested my blood ketones one time this past week because the strips are so expensive, and I can see that eating this way is keeping me in nutritional ketosis. In order to stay there, my level should stay between 1.0 and 3.0. My average of all the times I have tested is 2.2. Here are my results since I started testing:
Because I can see that the way I am eating is keeping my blood sugar stable, I am not testing it every day. I did test two times this past week. Here are my results since I started testing, and these numbers are excellent:
I am continuing my experiment. I am in nutritional ketosis, and my blood sugar is normal. I am not hungry during the day, and I think I have hit on a good amount of fat to be eating.