No diary for me; a thought-penny in the Banting pool

Recently, on the Real Meal Revolution website, there was quite an uproar about diary products being moved to the "Orange" list (although it was moved back after the uproar).  People on Banting sites were panicking and fretting. It made me realize, that many people are still looking for a formula that they can blindly follow. It was one of the first things I learnt when reading RMR and then the Stephen Phinney books. No one person's diet will be the same. Our bodies are so different. That is why we do have some healthy people able to eat a lot of carbs without the same challenges as the rest of us. There are genetic variations and we just have to accept that not everybody is the same. And as such, we all have to deal with our own quirks. For me, eating Banting or LCHF is not a recipe. It's something that you should feel comfortable with and understand the basics. Some lucky ones, usually men, find Banting easy and they lose weight and feel great overnight, with minimal effort.

However, many people "struggle" with the "how to", the "appetite control", the "no snacking principle" and the weight loss remains slow or elusive. Banting as a lifestyle does not fix our "bad" eating habits or our stress disorders. It may help us re-learn to listen to our bodies better, but as a rule, this still requires you as an individual to apply your mind. I am a stress eater for example, sometimes, I just feel like eating, especially when I am stressed at work. I have improved dramatically on Banting. I can generally say that I am much more in control of my cravings than I used to be. Before I switched to I couldn't eat a meal without CRAVING sugar afterwards. When I had to deal on top of that, with my sugar addiction, it became a spiral of hypoglycemic events.

Today, I have no issues with not eating sugar, or potatoes, or rice, or pasta or bread. I find eating this way easy, but I have mentally struggled with the slower than expected weight loss. I have researched this of course and found several good reasons that would make me a "slow" loser.

a) My stress levels are very high, I work in a very high stress environment (11 hours a day)
b) I have no thyroid, thus is medically dependent on my Eltroxin dose to be correct
c) We easily eat too much protein
d) Nuts are dense in calories and should be used sparingly rather than a snack when you are peckish
e) I have tested my ketones on and off dairy: I have a severe response to dairy. When using cheese and milk products, my blood ketones are significantly lower than without these products. So, although I don't pick up weight when using dairy, it hampers my weight loss significantly.

We are also consciously trying to not eat too much protein. If I am hungry, I consciously try to fill up with more fat (butter) rather than more protein. And cutting out cheese for the moment, makes my options a bit more bland, although veggies are still

This is not a diet, this is a lifestyle.

I don't want to lose a lot of weight, but while I am still not quite at my goal, I am removing dairy from my daily intake, and using it as a treat; as with nuts and fruit. So technically it's moved to my personal orange list - occasional treat. My thought-penny is thus that if you don't lose weight as you expected, look at what you are eating and why you are eating. These questions are important and may highlight where the blockage in you weight loss is.

Also, don't let your weight loss expectation overshadow how good it is to eat like this. Real FOOD, no gimmicks from people who like to get in on the money. Buy the basics and let your mind fly. Be creative - it is fun and keeps you from snacking.

PS: I've even converted my bread recipe to a non-diary version. Recipe to follow.

Worth a good listen - Prof Ken Sikaris on cholesterol et al

In my ongoing quest to learn more and better understand the science of LCHF dieting, I have become quite the YouTube fan as well. So many conferences are being held that we are not able to attend and now we don't have an excuse anymore. I am fine with not always understanding the technicalities of all the medical stuff, but some things I am trying to internalize quite well in order to be sure I can discuss these things logically when challenged by my GP. The information is out there.

Although I got the basic understanding re the cholesterol issue, mostly from my readings thus far, I still felt a bit "iffy" on the how to discuss this with my GPs. I am still being told by my GPnthat my total cholesterol is dangerous and too high. What I have learnt, and please listen to this video, is that the tests and interpretation thereof is out of date. I now know what to test for, and what it means! I have always had "high" total cholesterol, but have never taken drugs, my gut has always been that there are too many conflicting discussions without conclusion. I have learnt, that doctors are just humans and few of them question what they were taught. I have no qualms about my beliefs. LCHF is the right way to go for me - apart from my medical history, I also think it is glaringly the better way to live. No sugar for me thanks. Bring on the eggs and butter.

One-A-Day Project

“I am blind and limited. I would be a fool think myself wise. And so, not knowing what the universe means, I can only try to be responsible with the knowledge, the strength, and the time given to me. I must be true to my heart.” ― Jim Butcher, Death Masks

About two weeks ago I decided to make sure I don't just go through a day without consciously (and actively) doing at least one thing I enjoy everyday. Management is such a grown-up job, and it comes with stresses and strains and tasks that is not even remotely enjoyable; but it is more than that. I think we are so busy (I know I am) with stuff, that sometimes reflection is lost in the rushing.

So I have to think about things that I enjoy doing - probably related to these campaigns one see on Facebook where someone writes down what they are grateful for and post it daily. It is thus sort of my version of a gratitude journal thingy. First things first: I wrote the a message to myself on a pink Post It note; a pink speech-bubble Post It note, yes I know! Very grown-up of me, but I like Post It notes and I like pink. So sue me.

Do one thing you enjoy everyday!

Perhaps not very eloquent either, but I had a space limitation and the point is clear enough. The Post It is stuck to my computer screen at work, making sure I remind myself everyday to think about this. Maybe some people are lucky enough not to need the reminder, but I for sure need to be reminded.

Not that my entire day is horrible, but sometimes I forget to identify the things I enjoy doing. I am therefore trying to in the moment "acknowledge and experience".




In the very, very eloquent words of Mr Jim Butcher (as the wonderful Harry Dresden):
"I am trying to be true to my heart."

And sometimes, I just stop working for 5 minutes and drink my coffee whilst staring off into space and I quote from my hero again:

"It isn't good to hold on too hard to the past. You can't spend your whole life looking back. Not even when you can't see what lies ahead. All you can do is keep on keeping on, and try to believe that tomorrow will be what it should be—even if it isn't what you expected.” ― Jim Butcher, Death Masks