THE DIET IS WORKING!!!!
Got on the scale this morning and it was at a number I haven’t seen in over a year!
I’ve tried all sorts of diets, eating plans, lifestyle changes, etc for over 20 years, but of course they never worked consistently. I’d always feel deprived, painfully hungry, and miserable. In 1988, I was around 160. By 1991, I was about 200. And in 1998 I was around 240. By 2004 it was 280 and then for the last 2-3 years, it’s been around 330. So you can see how discouraged I’ve become over the years and how frustrated I’ve been with myself as well as the societal pressures to be thinner. Then a few months ago, my doctor said I was prediabetic and needed to start checking my blood sugar. Well, of course the guilt came pouring in. My family was no help either. In fact, my dad even said, “Well, that’s what you get…” as in “That’s what you get when you are fat,” despite the fact that his weight has been no better over the years.
However, checking my blood sugar and doing research has led to a couple key discoveries. 1. My high blood sugar may not have been a result of overeating. In fact, it may have been the other way around - my inability to process sugars/carbs properly may have led to overeating and fat cell storage causing me to be fat, way before it could be detected on a blood sugar test. (see reference at Blood Sugar 101) 2. By checking my blood sugar, I was able to get immediate feedback and adjust my diet accordingly. I ate somewhat low carb and it helped my sugar levels immensely. Didn’t loose much weight, though and was pretty consistently miserable and wanting to jump off the wagon.
Then a few weeks ago, I made another discovery. Throughout this testing process, my morning sugars had consistently been high, no matter what I ate at night. Then suddenly one morning, the first morning test was within the normal range. I thought, “ok, what happened that was different?” The only thing was that I had forgotten to take my vitamins the night before. So that led to researching vitamins and the discovery that vitamin B3 can actually cause blood sugar to rise. And guess what I had started taking just before the 1st out of spec test about 18 months ago? A B-complex vitamin on top of my multivitamin. Great for energy, not great for blood sugar. So I switched to just a B12 supplement and now my sugars are completely normal, despite what I eat. Great for peace of mind, but still not so great for the losing weight
So here’s the latest discovery. Last week I was on vacation. I was having so much fun just doing what I wanted when I wanted that I forgot to eat! That never happened before! When I did get hungry enough to eat something, I didn’t feel like making a whole meal or going out. So I just ate a piece of fruit, or a granola bar, or a Lean Pocket or something. And I wasn’t miserably hungry. That had never happened before either! Before, when I was hungry, I was ravenous. It physically hurt to be hungry and I would crave lots of carbs and sugars. But since I’ve cut down so drastically on simple carbs (not given them up completely, though), I haven’t had a lot of that same painful hunger. Which is why I think that during my vacation, eating didn’t become a priority. Which led to the thought that I don’t have to have traditional meals in order to be comfortable, happy and nourished.
Which leads (finally, right?) to this week’s plan. For breakfast, I have a Lean Pocket (protien, veg, whole grain crust) and yogurt. At lunch, I get out of the office and have something from the Chinese deli at the supermarket (protein, veg, brown rice). I usually have a bit of chocolate too, but don’t NEED it like I have in the past. At supper, I’ll have a piece of fruit, or maybe some cheese, or a veggie, but not a traditional meal of any sort. Lots of water (I never do drink much else) and no snacks unless I’m really desperate. Granted, this is not set in stone - I had a breakfast sandwich and juice from BK on Monday instead and one night I indulged in a bowl of ice cream. But the bottom line is I haven’t feel desperately hungry or deprived or bored of eating the same thing and my weight is now at 327, lower than it’s been for years! In fact I’m looking forward to eating the same plan next week! How cool it that!