Tuesday, September 3, 2013

LEAVING ZERO CARB / THOUGHTS ON ALTERNATE DAY INTERMITTENT FASTING


GOODBYE TO ZERO CARB

I have been eating virtually zero carb for over six weeks now.  My blood sugar has normalized and I am firmly ketogenic, according to my blood tests, so I have decided to start very slowly adding back in some carbs from vegetables and other non-meat sources.  Why?  Because I miss vegetables and I want to eat them if I can without raising my blood sugar.  If eating a very small amount of vegetables still raises my blood sugar, I will have to back off again.  During this six weeks, I have come to realize that I am a "volume eater" and when you eat only meat and fat, you don't get to eat very much in the way of bulk.  I would like, if I can tolerate it, to eat a side of vegetables or a salad from time to time.  I am not going back to vegetables because I think I "need" fiber.  I don't think I need fiber, but I also don't think that the amount of fiber I will get in a small amount of vegetables is going to harm me in any way.

I know that this opinion is wrong, according to the Zero Carb Community, so sorry if I have offended anyone.  I still believe that a person can get all the nutrients they need from just meat and fat.  I just want to eat some veggies here and there, even though I know I don't "need" them, nutritionally speaking.  If there are people out there who eat just animal products and they are content with that and feel fulfilled eating that way, more power to them!  I have given it a good six weeks, and I don't think I will ever feel content eating this way.  I want to eat a fresh tomato.  I want to eat sauteed cabbage and onions in bacon grease.  And you can't stop me.

Some might say, "Yeah, well, I want to eat cake and ice cream, but I don't, because I know it is not healthy, and neither are vegetables!"  I agree with the first part, about eating sugar and grains, and legumes, for that matter, but I am not convinced that vegetables are unhealthy, if prepared the correct way.  For instance, after all I have learned during this past six weeks, I will not eat raw kale or broccoli again.  Cooked, yes.  Raw, no. 

Today I ate some pumpkin and I am having the much-yearned-for sauteed cabbage and onions for dinner tonight, and I feel happier already!

CHANGING UP THE ALTERNATE DAY INTERMITTENT FASTING

I also have been doing Alternate Day Intermittent Fasting (ADIF) for over three weeks, and I am going to keep that up.  I have not been enjoying it very much, although the body fat loss has been steady.  Here are my concerns:

1.  I am still ravenously hungry on the days that I fast (eating only 300 calories, so not a total fast), and I feel miserable about it. I don't know if I am going to be able to sustain this way of eating if it means that I have to starve every other day.

2.  On the days that I eat normally, I am trying not to track my food and just eat to satiety, but the more I try to do that, the more I am losing control and overeating. I have found that the only way I don't overeat is if I track every bite of food that enters my mouth. Day before yesterday, while not tracking, I found that I was thinking about food constantly and eating all the time. All I can think of is that I won't be able to eat the next day, so I am snacking all the time.

3.  It's not that I'm not losing weight, because I am, but I don't know if it is worth the deprivation that I am experiencing.

4.  Before starting ADIF, I was doing plain old Nutritional Ketosis and very carefully tracking everything I ate, but eating around the same amount of food each day, which was usually around 1500 calories. I was losing weight doing that, too, and one of the reasons I wanted to do ADIF was because all the tracking was driving me crazy. As it turns out, I still have to track doing ADIF, or else I obsess about food all day and overeat.  The other reason why I wanted to do it was because eating a "normal" amount of food every day meant that I never got to eat what I felt like was enough to satisfy me.  Getting to eat more every other day makes it worth it having to eat less on the alternate day.

5.  The more I am doing ADIF, the more unnatural it is feeling. It just does not feel right to only really eat every other day. I guess some people have success eating that way and do not feel deprived and they feel it is very natural.  Not me.

6.  Some might say that if I am losing weight, what is the problem with eating all I want to on my non-fasting days. The thing is, though, that if I eat all I want, my blood sugar goes up, and that is what I am trying to avoid.  Besides, I don't like feeling out of control and eating obsessively.

7.  It is tough to basically not eat every other day when I am not the only person living in my house. My husband has been very patient, but I can tell that it is starting to wear on him that he is on his own for meals every other day.

As I go along with this way of eating, I think every day that I can't keep this up and I want to quit.  On the days that I eat a normal amount, I feel like I am eating too much and on the days that I fast, I want to eat more.

I put these questions to my fellow ADIF-ers at the Low Carb Friends forum, and I got a lot of good advice.

I have decided to keep on keeping on, but I am going to eat more on my fasting days and track my food on my non-fasting days, instead of trying to eat freely.  Here is my new plan, which will keep me in the ketogenic realm, and should help with my hunger on fasting days and with my overeating on non-fasting days:

Non-Fasting Day:
1850 calories
144.4g fat (70.2%)
105.6g protein (22.8%)
32g carbs (6.9%)   

Fasting Day:
463 calories
36.1g fat (70.2%)
26.4g protein (22.8%)
8g carbs (6.9%)

Averaging the two days together:
1156 calories
90.3g fat (70.2%)
66g protein (22.8%)
20g carbs (6.9%)

Of course, these are the exact numbers that my spreadsheet gives me, and I would not be obsessive about hitting those exact numbers on each day, but I would attempt to get close to them.

I would think that an average of 1156 calories per day of high fat, moderate protein, very low carb food would allow my body to access its fat stores.

Doing this, I am going to be trying to increase my carbs just a little bit and start eating some lower carb veggies and see if my blood sugar can handle it.  Also, I am counting total carbs, not net carbs, so even if I am getting 32 total carbs on my non-fasting day, it is really only a fraction of that number that will impact blood sugar.

So, anyway, that is my plan, and we'll see how it goes.  Thanks for reading!

18 comments:

  1. Keep up the good work! And thanks for being an encouragement. :)

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  2. Hey there Rebecca & greetings from Nova Scotia, Canada! I am a huge fan and follower of your blog. I want to thank you ever so much for sharing your insights with well, the world! :) I too, am experimenting with "what works" and yes, it IS pretty crazy how many people have the metabolic challenges that they do. I do I.F. and find it just easier to skip one day of eating. However, I can't say by the 23 hour, "Oh, do I love this!". Like you, I am discovering that probably just switching up calories and yet keeping a ceiling on "up" days is the way to maintain a lifestyle. At any rate, I am a true advocate of HF/LC! Wish me luck on getting b/w 20-30 lbs. off...with a goal of April. :)

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    1. Thanks for reading and for your enthusiasm for the LCHF way of life! I have been thinking about trying to eat nothing for a day now and then. If I do, I'll blog about it here.

      I do wish you all the best and I hope you'll keep me posted. I am very interested to hear how you are doing. You should start a blog!

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    2. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    3. When I clicked on your name, I saw that you already have a blog. Did you forget about it? :)

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    4. LOL Rebecca...I started one and then didn't know how to do much with it. I think I had trouble accessing it and that was a long time ago. I kind of gave up on the idea. :) That's what I mean about my technical skills. LOL! What year was that anyway? I'm guessing 2004 or something. At any rate, it was in my mind at some point to begin blogging (prob. from loving Jimmy Moore's site so much :)), but then forgot about it & enjoying "listening" right now to others like you! :)

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    5. It was 2007. :) http://lovinlowcarblifestyle.blogspot.com/

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    6. Thanks for jogging my memory, Rebecca & I guess then, I did think of it...and then forgot that I did it. :) I am chuckling right now, but yes, a wee bit embarrassed. (blush!)

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  3. Dear Rebecca,
    Sincere greetings from Nova Scotia, Canada! I want to sincerely thank you for your blogs and incredible insight into HF/LC and the metabolic challenges many of us face. I have a goal to lose b/w 20-30 lbs. (by April). I would take 15 and run. lol! I'm a 45 yr. old female and the only thing that has helped me to not balloon out into oblivion would be the late, great Dr. Atkins's work. However, while it's kept "that" from happening, I still struggle with losing body fat. I have reversed type II (due to following Atkins), but the scale is not my friend. -Your experimentation with I.F. is inspiring me to consider maybe doing 1500 on one day, 1000 on the next. If calories are so important, then eating at an average of 1285/day in this way, better darn well do something in the direction of weight loss! I try to keep my fat at around 75-85%, so I will continue on with that. But in the meanwhile, I set up a google account JUST to thank you personally! I wish you luck on whatever your weight loss goal is and I completely admire your transparency on how this is all working out for you. We're in this together, girl! :) p.s. Your before/after pics are incredible & whether you lose another pound, you look as fit as a fiddle! :) Thank you, your friend in N.S.

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    1. We certainly do seem to be on a similar track, don't we? My average for the up day and the down day is 1155 calories, and as long as I keep it high fat and very low carb, I find it hard to imagine how I can fail to lose some more body fat.

      Please let me know if you decide to do 1000/1500 and how it goes for you, okay?

      As for me, I am enjoying getting to eat 1810 on my up days, and I tried yesterday to eat only two meals, each 250, for lunch and dinner. It seems easier to eat two slightly larger meals than having to eat a tiny breakfast, lunch and dinner.

      I am also considering skipping breakfast and lunch on the down day and getting to eat a 500 calorie dinner with my husband.

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  4. Happy Sunday, Rebecca! I'm hoping that my comments to your blog, have got to you! I'm posting as "Zephir" & I am new to google, so I'm truly hoping you rec'd them. :) Please post something on here if you did...your LC/HF friend in Canada!

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    1. Yep, I have gotten them and published the comments you made the other day. Thanks for reading and for commenting!

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  5. I still believe that a person can get all the nutrients they need from just meat and fat

    You're absolutely right, and here's a website that proves it: http://mostlymeatiswhatieat.blogspot.com/

    We don't need veggies, because the the grass-fed animals we eat have already eaten greens for us. As for fiber, we don't really need that either: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/dietary-fiber-is-bad-for-sex-thats-the-only-claim-about-it-that-isnt-a-myth/

    Fat is what moves the stool--not fiber. Fiber just makes the stool fluffy.

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  6. I still believe that a person can get all the nutrients they need from just meat and fat.

    You're absolutely right! The grass-fed animals WE eat have already eaten the greens FOR us. For proof that we don't need a single vegetable in our diets, here's a complete dietary rundown of how to do a carnivore diet properly: http://mostlymeatiswhatieat.blogspot.com/

    And as for fiber, we really don't need that either--it's FAT that moves the stool, not fiber. Fiber just makes the stool big and fluffy: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/dietary-fiber-is-bad-for-sex-thats-the-only-claim-about-it-that-isnt-a-myth/

    Vegetation is something you eat for variety and when the supply of meat/fat runs low or out completely. If you apply logic, this means we no longer have to hold ourselves hostage to extremely perishable foods which get bought weekly or so, encouraging CONSUMERISM. If you feel you must eat something green, try growing your own sprouts--a batch takes about 3 days to grow, and they keep in the fridge for at least 1 1/2 weeks when a paper towel is included in the storage bag. You can make many, many batches from just one bag of organic sprouting seeds--this is cheaper than whole greens, and even gardening! What's more, you do it in the house, so no weather/insect/theft worries.

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  7. I still believe that a person can get all the nutrients they need from just meat and fat

    You're absolutely right, and here's a website that proves it: http://mostlymeatiswhatieat.blogspot.com/

    We don't need veggies, because the the grass-fed animals we eat have already eaten greens for us. As for fiber, we don't really need that either: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/dietary-fiber-is-bad-for-sex-thats-the-only-claim-about-it-that-isnt-a-myth/

    Fat is what moves the stool--not fiber. Fiber just makes the stool fluffy.

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  8. There is nothing wrong with adding veges to your diet. It's the recommended source of carbs if you are going to get any at all.

    I don't think I will ever be convinced to give up my Greek Salad with heaps of Fetta Cheese and all drenched in glorious full fat Ranch! :)

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    1. Well, there are two schools of thought on that. Some people believe and teach that vegetables are unhealthy. I don't necessarily believe that. It was hard giving up the veggies and I am happy to be eating a small amount of them again. I still only eat around 20-25g of total carbs per day, and most of that comes from veggies.

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