Weight loss, health improvement stories?

[TWINSET]

@nowinaminute - YouTube's great for learning cooking techniques, whether it's butterflying prawns or getting the membrane off a monkfish fillet. I do the majority of our cooking now and love it.

Tonight we got monkfish curry, tomorrow night haddock and cod kedgeree, Sunday night BBQ pulled pork with steamed leeks and broccoli.
If you can't get fresh veg often enough, go for frozen over tinned, we always got broad beans, peas and sweetcorn in, just in case - With frozen you don't have to use it all up once it's opened

Also, check out www.bbcgoodfood.com for recipes, they have a handy filter for calorie limits - Search for 'chicken' for instance and you'll see a bunch of filters down the left
Most of the low-cal dishes don't have too many ingredients, so you can start simple - Stir-fries and curries are dead easy and once you bought the spices, they'll keep you going for months

This one's dead easy; https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1167651/chicken-and-chorizo-jambalaya

This https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2469648/chicken-with-mushrooms

goes great with

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1664/horseradish-mash

Another minimum effort job (tinned pinto beans is probably the only tinned food I buy now)
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/12757/cajun-chicken-and-chunky-bean-salsa
 

They're all under 600 cals per serving, but worth trying - when I started 5:2 goodfood.com was a great resource

I also find planning meals as far in advance as you can helps as you're not then forced into a takeaway or 'something and chips' - I'll usually shop Sun-Wed then Thu-Sat - 4 days is ok for most fresh veg, although onions get a bit lively after that

 

 

[nowinaminute]

2 hours ago, TWINSET said:

@nowinaminute - YouTube's great for learning cooking techniques, whether it's butterflying prawns or getting the membrane off a monkfish fillet. I do the majority of our cooking now and love it.

Tonight we got monkfish curry, tomorrow night haddock and cod kedgeree, Sunday night BBQ pulled pork with steamed leeks and broccoli.
If you can't get fresh veg often enough, go for frozen over tinned, we always got broad beans, peas and sweetcorn in, just in case - With frozen you don't have to use it all up once it's opened

Also, check out www.bbcgoodfood.com for recipes, they have a handy filter for calorie limits - Search for 'chicken' for instance and you'll see a bunch of filters down the left
Most of the low-cal dishes don't have too many ingredients, so you can start simple - Stir-fries and curries are dead easy and once you bought the spices, they'll keep you going for months

This one's dead easy; https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1167651/chicken-and-chorizo-jambalaya

This https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2469648/chicken-with-mushrooms

goes great with

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1664/horseradish-mash

Another minimum effort job (tinned pinto beans is probably the only tinned food I buy now)
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/12757/cajun-chicken-and-chunky-bean-salsa
 

They're all under 600 cals per serving, but worth trying - when I started 5:2 goodfood.com was a great resource

I also find planning meals as far in advance as you can helps as you're not then forced into a takeaway or 'something and chips' - I'll usually shop Sun-Wed then Thu-Sat - 4 days is ok for most fresh veg, although onions get a bit lively after that

 

 

Thanks for the info! I took a quick look at the BBC site, the calorie thing is very helpful. It's also handy to see they have things catered towards people only cooking for one (although a lot of stuff can be frozen into batches anyway)

I would love to cut back to takeaway once a month or maybe bi-monthly. Besides being better for my weight and wallet it would actually be like a treat again.

I need to make lunch for work at home too. Even good old fashioned sandwiches would be an improvement. All to often I go round the spar next door and end up with pasties or sausage rolls etc. Too much temptation. Plus it all adds up once you add crisps and a drink etc. Even if I only bought sammiches from Spar it would cost 5x what it would cost to make at home.

I'm going to try and gradually get some kind of routine going. Even if I replace two "something and chips" nights with stuff as simple as a decent soup and beans on toast it would be two nights that are easy/healitheir/cheaper.

I did make a sausage curry once years ago, just followed an online recipe and it came out pretty nice. I tried to make a beef one in the slow cooker once too and it came out more like a casserole but was also nice. I'll have to give it a go again!

[Juggular]

@nowinaminute, I never smoked, but when I get the gummy bear craving, it's absolutely maddening.  So if you could cut out smoking from your life, you can do it.  I can't even quit gummy bears!   

It seems like there are two different kinds of minds.  One is thinking part, and the other is doing part.  The more I think about things, the less I seem to do:  my Pajero project has all the parts, I wanted a driver, I wanted LED lights, I wanted a clear windshield... all that thinking seems to prevent me from actually doing it.  I should start with just taking it out of the box and inspecting it.  Then it tends to happen.  

One thing Clint Eastwood does not do is yelling "Action!"  He would quietly say, "roll."  Actors smoothly ease into acting.  I feel people who do lose weight, does things without getting all pumped up about losing weight.  They just do it slowly, without setting up the bar high, one step at a time.  

When I started to fast, I only vaguely thought "I might fast this weekend, so I'll eat veggies this week."  I could have started on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.  I just did it when it felt right.  It wasn't like somebody told me to do it, or I thought I must do it.  It kinda happened.  (I only know it was March 1st, and... looking up, it was a Thursday).  

I had felt the same sluggishness you described.  It was really keeping me down.  Compared to my younger years, I was sleepy and tired all the time.  Because I was so tired, my wife often took out the garbage.  

If you haven't seen it, you could check out "Eat Fast and Live Longer." (of the 5:2 diet fame)  Of course, what motivated me, won't necessarily motivate anybody else.  Twinset and I have seen the same documentary, but Twinset went with 5:2 diet, and I went with fasting and intermittent fasting.  You joining in the discussion sounds like you are about to take charge.  Losing weight only works if it's on your terms.  So you would have to look into which method would fit you best.  There are a lot of things on youtube.  You will end up clicking on the videos that make sense to you.  

I tried only smaller increments.  No sugary drinks and coffee for a week.  Then shrinking meal sizes for a few days.  Eating veggies.  And eventually fasting.  Check things out and take your time.  If you want it, it will happen.  But don't wait years, because most people wish they had lost weight sooner.  My dad was worried that I might get diabetes.  Luckily I didn't.  Neither did you.  It's better to improve health when you are healthier.  

 

 

[Wooders28]

5 hours ago, nowinaminute said:

I did the same thing once, it's truly revolting and takes ages for the taste to go away. Also it amazes me how much you notice the smell on other people and in their homes etc. Even stuff I buy on ebay sometimes and it's reeking of it!

Try DA-ing (is that a known saying? Draining it?) half a cig, on a night out with work mates,after a few beers!?! 🤢 

After being a heavy smoker for years (hence name) , I thought I'd be fine! 

With regards to buying smoke smelling RC , I put mine in a sealed storage box, with a dusting of washing powder in the bottom and leave for a few days.

[TWINSET]

Smoked haddock and smoked cod kedgeree - penalty-free on Slimming World 😀

40mins of chopping, simmering, grilling and boiling 😎

 

Proper diet food👍

 

[Juggular]

That looks gorgeous, but 40 minutes?  Then again, I suppose I need to change the preconception of meals being prepared quickly.  A proper meal should take that long.  

I didn't fast last weekend.  I was going to go keto, but I actually added more carb.  My weight still lingers on 165 pounds. 

I need oatmeal.  My family had a colon cancer scare last year (everybody is good now).  On my wife's side too, uncle Roger's mom and brother both died in their early 50's, of colon cancer.  Uncle Roger feared his fate would be the same, so he refused to get checked up.  But he had a lower back problem and ended up doing a complete check-up.  His internals were as clean as a polished chrome tail pipe of a motorcycle, to exaggerate.  His secret weapon?  Oatmeal for breakfast every day!  I like to think of oatmeal as steel-wool for the gut.  (It's figurative--actually swallowing steel wool will have dire consequences, especially at the end)  

With smaller meals and less carb, my "mobility" was reduced to once in 3 days.  We tried to have a load of veggies at least once a week for fiber, but it wasn't easy (written as "not easy" but read as "too lazy").  Now that I'm back on oatmeal, I'm back to once a day.  Losing weight is good, but I figure I should also be careful about certain types of cancer in the family. 

 

[TWINSET]

40 mins from start to eat is quick, I find it a great way to wind down after work and the drive home - Some junk TV on the tablet and a load of sharp knives; just what I need.
I often spend 45 mins to an hour with prep and cooking - my wife is a awesome cook but she likes to wind-down in the greenhouse or just vegging, so the situation suits me fine.

I've found I'm a lot less picky now I'm cooking stuff (as opposed to opening the pack and popping the contents in the oven) - If a recipe calls for courgette, leeks, asparagus or even grated pickled carrot I just go with it now
2 years ago I wouldn't have had fish if it wasn't wrapped in batter, now I'm as happy with smoked mackerel, cajun salmon or prawn and squid stew as I am with a lump of steak (although there's more steak in the freezer than fish, just in case).
I used to regard food as fuel - just eat when I needed to and whatever I fancied without any real pattern. If I didn't feel like breakfast or lunch I wouldn't have them. Now I always have breakfast, still don't have lunch very often but always have a decent meal of an evening.
I still have a drink whenever I fancy it, although have had to lay off the JD as I was knocking it back like a pint.

If you have a Waitrose close by, take a look at their free recipe cards - the recipes are usually pretty healthy and dead easy to prepare

This was one of theirs we had last night; Sauteed pork with leeks and Beans with steamed veg - it's got a load of Dijon mustard in it to give you a good kick in the throat - takes 20-40 minutes, depending on knife skill

 

[Jonathon Gillham]

I'm a bit late to this party which is mostly because I have been on my tablet (you can tell by all the typos) and was waiting til I had some time on my laptop.  Usually I have that every day but its school holidays here, so I'm juggling work and looking after my son, so time on my laptop is work.  Anyway, my story is sounding pretty similar to many on here.  Basically I was at AIG in the mid-2000s with an expense account and apartment in the city.  Whats not to like right?  Big lunches and afterwork drinks and entertaining and being able to walk so no fear of drinking and driving?  Weight ballooned to 85kg when I should be about 72kg, I know its not massively overweight but I felt awful.  I have always been fit so it was as worry when I couldn't manage an easy 5km run at 28. 

That also lead to really bad indigestion (family history of it so chicken and egg) which meant taking omaprezole daily.  That meant I could carry on, but then after a couple of years you begin to wonder about what you're putting in your body and it can't be right to take a pill to cancel out the bad diet etc.  I tried fixing the diet to fix the indigestion and it helped but one curry could affect me for days, even with the pills.  Eventually I had the surgery to fix it, I think its a gastrophic nissin fundiplication (thats really phonetic spelling rather than 3 typos in a row, I couldn't be bothered looking it up for the right spelling). 

That meant for 6 months I couldn't eat full meals, which lead to me eating protein and veges (as in broccoli, spinach, mushrooms etc) and limiting carbs as carbs filled me up too fast and I wanted to get the right mix of nutrients.  It turns out I stumbled upon a great weight loss diet and subsequently read as much and my weight started to plummet.  At the same time I was living with annoying flatmate so was looking for something to do to get out of the house, and started running again.  At first it was a struggle to run 3km without stopping, but that lead to a marathon 18 months later.  Well, I entered and trained but then got sick in the week leading up to it so never got to the start line, but I was all set to run 42.2km.  I was gutted I missed it after all that work, and found out later than its really common to get sick in the taper (last 3 weeks before the race you ease off so the body can recover, and when the body relaxes its common to pick up a cold or flu which ruins the race).  I've done 2 marathons since then though, and signed up for one this year too so it wasn't a passing fancy. 

As people have already pointed out, it was a lifestyle change rather than a diet that did it for me.

I'm a lot more interested in food now too.  It used to be something to line the stomach so you could have more beer.  Now I make my own pasta and experiment with different dishes, light the charcoal bbq every opportunity, grow my own veges and shop at 2 different butcher shops to get different type of meat.  I also involve my son with all this in the hope that he will take an interest in what he's eating and how food is made too.

I have learned so much during this time and am always learning and interested in finding out more.  I don't have a strict diet but generally work on cooking every meal and using as many fresh ingredients as possible (ie buy mince and make burger patties rather than buying the burger patties from the frozen section of the supermarket).  My weight has stayed around 72kg - 76kg which I'm happy with, the fluctuation is caused by exercise.  If I'm in a marathon build up then my weight progressively drops as you can't eat enough to make up for a long run (~3,000 calories for a 30km run, so you need ~5,000 calories that day).  One thing that helps is half a doz beers that day, takes the edge off the hunger pangs!

Everything is also related, like eating right, sleeping well, exercise.  If you eat well then you crave good food and pass the lollies and fast food by and also sleep better as your body isn't affected by all the sugar, caffiene etc, if you sleep well then you have more energy and cooking isn't a chore so you eat better, if you exercise you sleep better and have more energy and crave better food to fuel the exercise.  At least this works for me.  I can reset myself by setting an early alarm and getting out, whether for a run or just walking the dog.  Then eat well for the day, then I'm tired at the end and get to bed early and sleep well, and thats pretty much a reset.

That fasting that @Juggular talks about is really interesting, will need to look into that.  I like the idea of growth hormones and eating brain plaque.

[Juggular]

Omeprazole is the common theme here.  I eased off on that and then started to pop PepidAC (non-prescription famotidine). Come to think of it, I don't need that after fasting.  

I think Jonathon's weight range was similar to mine.  I was about 85kg (186lbs, actually), now down to about 75kg (165lbs).  I would like to get to 72.5kg (160lbs).  I still leave my wife to walk the dog.  I probably cannot jog 0.5km.  Last year, I had a case of "frozen shoulders."  If your arms are too weak, it can happen.  It took a long time to get that fixed.  My friend's mom who is about 80 years old, she told me about DMSO.  Dab it on and the pain literally melts into your body.  Anything on your skin like soap and lotion gets carried in, so you are supposed to use it on clean skin.  When I told my doctor I'm using DMSO, she said, "we use that to carry organs in!"   

Having had an old people's affliction, I can't fathom what it takes to run 42km non-stop.  You know, that Greek soldier died doing that.  You'd think humans would say, "In honor of him, let's be sensible and never do that again."  Instead, what do people do?  They try it themselves!  Just because some guy died doing it!  Humans are very strange, I tell you.  At least the Greek soldier had a purpose of heralding the victory.  I had a classmate who wanted to run a marathon.  Of course, I said, "OMG, how do you do that?"  She said what Jonathon said, "little by little, you increase the distance."  I wonder if she actually did it... Anyway, hats off to people who could do that.  If you can do anything I can't do, you've got my respect.  Except for biting toenails.  One of my oldest friends of 25 years still bites his toenails!  "They are clean!" he'd say.  I'm sure... if you suck on them every day...            But I digress. 

If you just want human growth hormone, you don't need to fast for long.  Just eat during a 6 hour window, and don't eat anything for 18 hours.  You'll get 3 times the normal human growth hormone just by starving the body for 18-20 hours.  This means, you can lift same as others, but will have twice the growth (realistically speaking). 

Below is my gym.  Do I lift the potted plant?  No, although, that's not a bad idea.  The 5 pound weights is the gym.  The wimpy band was to stretch my frozen shoulders.  I dug out those two discs from the backyard.  I scrubbed the rust off with a ball of aluminum foil (because my wife forbade me from using the steel wool. That's for pots and pans).  I then spray painted them bronze (we buy cheap furniture and spray paint or stain them to make them look better).  The drawers you see downstairs were pitch black, and I spray painted them brown, and dusted it with bronze spray, using my "gay sensibility" according to my wife. 

I'll take "gay sense" over her "lumberjack sense."  She'd plant two flower bushes on either side of the door of the garden fence.  I'd be saying, "that totally looks like some door into a cemetery!"  She knows I'm right, that's why she says my design sense is "gay."  I'm not gay, to be clear.  I was one of those people who'd wear a brown sock and a black sock and won't really care.  Real gay probably can't tolerate that.  I started to sketch from 2014, and I started to see things in terms of what looks good.  We've got fantastic photographers in TC.  They'll understand.  Okay, the first doodles weren't stellar examples of artistic achievements, but I got better, I promise! 

My mom said, "your 5 year old niece could probably draw better with her toes!"  She is a very encouraging mom.  To be fair, my niece does draw better than this, using her hands. There is no reason for her to use her toes, is there?  That was just my mom being silly.  She's only 69, but she asked my brother to buy a funeral insurance.  My brother freaked out, asking me "what's going with mom?"  I told him to chill for a week.  And I convinced my parents to fast.  After fasting for 45 hours, she got her energy back.  Even her neck looked 1 inch thinner.  I asked her, "so... remember the funeral insurance? Do you still want it?"  She laughed and said, "you are not getting rid of me any time soon."  

When you fast for days, arteries get cleaned up safely in a real hurry.  And the immune system gets a clean up too, because the lymphatic system gets a total workout carrying fats to the liver.  Old white cells gets recycled, replaced by a fresh army of white cells.  As collagen gets used up, extra skin shrinks down.  And the liver gets rid of fat around it too.  Some liver diseases can reverse.  Aging stops temporarily, the brain gets new connections, and the hormone level jumps.  Dr. Longo in USC gerontology said, "you show me any medicine that improves health this much in days!"  He's the guy who discovered starved mice becomes super-mice and just won't die on a lethal dose of drugs.  

Anyway, after losing 10kg, I looked like a kid wearing his parent's clothes.  Above "gym photo" was taken on June 15th, that's the day I started to work out.  My arms were literally shaking under the massive weights of 5 pounds.  After 1 month of working out every other day, my wife says that my jackets don't look so big now because my deltoids are filling them halfway.  I had to buy 10 pound dumbells 2 weeks ago.  I'm already getting used to 3 sets of 12 reps straight up for delts.  15 pounds is too heavy yet.  I've only worked out about 17 times in over a month.  But even a nerdy doodler like me can fill up a shirt, thanks to the extra growth hormone (in the middle of my 40's).  I got a leather punch, and all the belts got 3-4 more holes.  I've been folding the waist in pleats to hide the extra girth.  I really need to buy smaller clothes.  I just hate any shopping that's not related to RC. 

Talking about RC stuff, I "won" this vintage for $53 this morning.  It's got broken arms.  I have a Hotshot (2 shocks), Fox (3 shocks), and Bigwig (4 shocks), so I don't know why I bought another 3-shocker.  Ah, but Fox isn't 4x4!  I can't deny Jonathon's influence on this.  All proper Tamiya vintage fans must have a Boomerang!  Especially if you are down under (I'm not though, I lack the lingo!).  A new body will cost about $30.  Maybe another $30-40 worth of parts could get this back to working order.   

At any rate, if anybody wants more human growth hormone, along with testosterone, increased libido, etc, fasting for 18 hours a day could give you that.  In my experience, 20 hours feels twice as potent as 18 hours.  If I finish dinner at 7PM, not eating until 3PM the next day would get me 20 hours.  That feeling isn't just a feeling.  It's more hormones too.  Your body is so grateful for some food every 20 hours, it will give you your youth back.  Is it bad?  Only if you don't get enough nutrients.  If you get the nutrients, smaller portions make you live longer.  This happens to every living thing.  Even fungus and lichen live longer if you feed them little.  Who knew the fountain of youth was within our grasp.  Or rather, not having anything in our grasp (to eat) was the fountain of youth.  

 

 

[Juggular]

2 weeks ago, I was  75kg (165lbs).  Today, I weigh 73kg (161.4lb).  

It took another weekend fasting and 6 days of no carb.  You'd think for somebody who is used to fasting, cutting carb is easier.  But yesterday was hard.  I was weak and light-headed on day 4 and day 5.  It was as if I was fasting for the first time.  But I was eating cheese cake (no crust), pecan, cod fillet, cheese and eggs.  

My wife was mercilessly eating like 3 pounds of watermelon, 2 dozen cherries last night, plus 3 pieces of See's candies (chocolate bonbons from Washington state -- our next door lady, Suzy, got us a box for taking care of her mail for 5 days while she went to see her daughter in Seattle).  That was the moment of truth; my wife clearly had a deviant intention of throwing me off the keto. I had to stay my resolve.  I won. My wife had an instant karma of having to go to the bathroom twice for eating too much cold food.  (we are so juvenile...)  

Today is the 6th day on keto.  A fistful of pecan halves at 3PM was my breakfast.  Despite eating so little, I'm full of energy. I heard that people function better on keto.  I totally believe it.  It was worth persevering through my wife's watermelon torture. (cherries are very sweat this summer, but fruits are carbs!)  

@Kingfisher, are you keeping up with keto after losing weight?  Are you doing keto sporadically, or are you not on keto, now that you are fit?  Even though I like feeling energetic, I don't think I'm strong enough to withstand my wife forever.  

 

[jonboy1]

I have a huge amount of respect for anyone who takes positive action to improve their health through diet changes or exercise. I salute you all! 

Personally - I won't go into lots of detail on this as it's somewhat opposite to what you guys are doing - about 5 years ago I was 73.5kg and not very fit. I did the usual thing most of us do by buying some plastic weights from Argos and after a mishap where I ended up with 30kg of plates in my face, I was convinced by my wife to join a gym for safety's sake  

Since then I've done lots of weight training, rowing, running and cycling and now weigh 102kg. I'm by no means in the best of health - I have high blood pressure and cholesterol (both genetic unfortunately) so take a tonne of meds for that, suffer from severe depression and anxiety so take meds for that and managed to detach my bicep (google distal bicep rupture if you want to be grossed out) and had a long recovery from that, but despite that I'm in the best fitness and state of mind ever. My body/fat ratio is lower than it was when I was 74kg and I have gone from deadlifting 70kg badly to 270kg with perfect form. I can also cycle and run a lot further than I ever have before.

I think it's great to see other guys here encouraging one another to improve their health and diet 

 

[Juggular]

15 hours ago, jonboy1 said:

I have high blood pressure and cholesterol (both genetic unfortunately) so take a tonne of meds for that, suffer from severe depression and anxiety so take meds for that and managed to detach my bicep (google distal bicep rupture if you want to be grossed out) and had a long recovery from that, but despite that I'm in the best fitness and state of mind ever.    

 

 

Good thing you are doing well. 

I'd say depression is far worse than a pot belly.  

Being overweight is just the body.  Depression hits where it hurts -- your soul.  Anxiety is no better.  If you squint/shut left eye for 6-8 years, that's a proof that I probably needed to see somebody for it.  Instead, I decided to take natural things. I forgot a few things I tried, side effect made me stop taking them.  But omega-3 helped a bit, and I'm still taking it.  

There was a Russian doctor, who was treating a patient who was so depressed, he refused to eat.  The doctor let him starve.  After 5 days, he opened his eyes, after 10 days he started to walk, after 15 days, he started to drink apple juice.  We are talking about serious cases of people who cannot function at all.  They WANT to stay in bed forever and never wake up.  The cure happened to be what the patients wanted to do.  Not eating for a long time, like 25 to 30 days.  About 45% of the people stay free of depression even after 6 years, some for life.  3 day fast felt good, I could see how it could be better if the fasting went on for longer (but not to death).  

At minute 13, they describe what they did in Russia.  I would never do this as my first try.  The first several times were hard enough.  If you don't have enough minerals in your body, you could die.  My wife was so deficient in calcium, she used to get headaches.  Apparently, tiny bit of calcium is needed to move iron.  Without iron in red blood cells, her brain was not getting enough oxygen.  Hence the headaches.  If she fasted for a week, she won't get what little calcium she gets from food, and she'd die.  I've heard that "calcium orotate" is absorbed much better than other types, and she no longer gets the headaches.  I've got enough calcium, but I still load up on minerals for 2-3 weeks and I fast only for 2 days.  Eventually, I want to fast for a week to see how I feel.  But probably not longer than that on my own.  I doubt that anybody in TC is crazy enough to do this on their own.  Don't do it.  If anybody really wants to do it, go to a place with proper medical supervision.  

 

[Kingfisher]

On 8/1/2018 at 3:58 PM, Juggular said:

@Kingfisher, are you keeping up with keto after losing weight?  Are you doing keto sporadically, or are you not on keto, now that you are fit?  Even though I like feeling energetic, I don't think I'm strong enough to withstand my wife forever.  

I'm still doing everything I listed in Round 2 of my post. Olive oil, eggs, sardines, fish and vegetables. I still avoid beer, bread, pasta, and rice. Once a week, I ramp up the carbs (BBQ sweet potato has become my current favorite for the last 3 weeks). I'm still sitting at 148, though it does fluctuate to 150 depending on what time of day I weigh myself. I have noticed that I have increased my meal size in portions that don't have carbs, such as the amount of fish I eat in one meal. I need to back off, because I am eating to the point that I really feel full afterwards, and that's just going to point me down the wrong path where I get hungry more often.

My latest irresistible craving is deviled eggs. Up until recently, I had never made them before. Probably only ever had them once or twice in my life. I found a recipe and have been experimenting with modifying that recipe and creating the perfect deviled eggs all the way down to choice of eggs. Sounds silly, but I ate 9 of them throughout the day today. And, I think part of that was because of what I said above about finding myself eating more fish. I eat the eggs between meals, and am going to have to force myself to stop making them. 

Some days I barely go over 30 carbs. I've been working a lot of hours and just throw together a piece of fish, some spinach and diced tomatoes. I'll eat that twice throughout the day with sardines in between and that's about it. If I am coming off of working nights, i'll have a couple eggs before going to bed. On the lower carb intake days, I will add 1 small square bite of chocolate which is another 10 carbs. I've also been using the chocolate to regulate an "on command" daily bathroom cycle to take place before I leave for work.

Nice job avoiding your wife's carb filled temptations. 

[Juggular]

I'm relieved: you can load up on carb once a week.  I'm not really clear on why loading up is necessary.  But all the people on keto say that they need to carb up once in a while.  When I hit the target weight, either I keep the calories low or stay on keto like you.  I don't think I can do keto for long, so I'll have to go with the low calorie option.  

I fell off the wagon big time today.  My neighbor across the street walked in this evening, we ended up drinking.  5 hours later, we had 10 bottles of empty beer bottles.  That's 600 calories.  Beer calories are probably like sugar calories... but sometimes it's awkward not to drink when people come over.  

I'll be back to low carb tomorrow again.  I've got frozen cod fillets.  It's got a thin batter.  One fillet has about 20 grams of carb.  If I eat 3 fillets, I'm already at the 60 gram limit.  And the Dutch market (I wonder if they are the Amish people like the 1985 movie "witness?") sells awesome cheesecakes.  Cheesecakes also have few grams of carb, even if I don't eat the crust.  I might be going over a dozen grams of carb.  So I'm not sure if I'm strictly on keto. 

But I'm also not eating for 18-20 hours (it used to be 16 hours, but I'm going warrior).  Learning that my need for calories has shrunken was a big revelation.  Now I eat 1 meal plus a snack (my wife too--like every other day, when she's not overeating just to taunt me).  Even as I work out 45 minutes every 2 days, 2 meals a day was a bit more than I needed.  4 months ago, I would have said, "eat half and work out on top of that?"  But slowly, that's how it turned out. 

Even my wife lost 5 pounds during the past month or two.  She has more energy to go out and pull crabgrass and whatever else she does out there.  Which is a problem.  Her middle name is CLWEA ("can't-leave-well-enough-alone").  This is the result. 

She made me mow the lawn every week.  When it became almost immaculate, she decided that spending $45 on a big bag of "Plague-for-your-Lawn" is a brilliant idea.  Without telling me, she hauls it all by herself, in her own covert operation.  She sprays it happily, dreaming of a fantasy lawn until the dusk.  I wake up the next morning.  I get a cup of tea.  I look out to admire my work of mowing-art.  And this abomination presents itself for my viewing pleasure.  Any sane person would have spewed their tea onto the window pane and screamed "WHAT T F??!"  But sane people don't live with my wife... I do.  After 18 years, no need to blink twice.  I calmly finish my tea and let it be.  In about half a day, she'll want to tell me all about how she accomplished this feat, even if I don't ask.  

It looks like a dozen zombies died on our lawn and infected it with their black blood. (their bodies mysteriously melted away with morning sun... no clothes remain? Maybe they were naked zombies...)  This isn't the first time either.  I told her that repeating things expecting a different result is not normal (to put it diplomatically).  The universe is telling her 'don't rain death and destruction on your lawn, leave it to your man-servant (yours truly here)' but she's not picking up the clue.  She says, "ugh! only the good grass die off! And then more weed grows on that spot too!"  I had to ask, "how do you know that?"  "Because that's what happened before."  "Now you remember you did this before?"  "Oh yeah!  But this time, I've come clean. I told you what I did."  "Yes, after nuking the lawn."  "But at least telling you is an improvement...?"  I don't think telling me after zombifying the lawn would have made any difference.  But I guess I can rest assured that there aren't any zombies causing havoc.  It's just my wife.  

When she has energy, she diligently creates problems. Or creatively comes up with non-existing problems.  This morning we had to go to the vet.  She was watching some TV shows about vets.  She got herself all paranoid about how our 4-pound dog who never really goes out, got himself a heartworm.  After spending over $100 and 3 hours, it was negative.  Just as I knew he'd be.  Now that the vet has confirmed it, everything is fine, right?  No.  She says, "what if the vet didn't really do the exam, but just said she did?"  "OMG, if you think like that, can you really be sure you live on this solar system?"  I forgot how wound-up she gets when she has the energy. 

I guess it's better to lose weight and gain energy, than to gain weight and lose energy.  We are in the middle of our 40's and the things she does, remind me of a toddler on a leash.  I've decided that reining her in takes a lot of energy, and that's a good thing for my weight loss (or hair loss--which thankfully hasn't happened yet).  All is good, I think.  

 

[Nitomor]

Just to say what a great thread, I've digested page 1 pardon the pun, and will come back for page 2 when I have the time.

Thanks folks, great stuff...my family are on the 5/2 at the moment, I've yet to fall in but need to do something...

[Jonathon Gillham]

@Juggular is that 600 calories for 5 bottles of beer or 10? And are they the US style beers where yoy get low carb options etc, or proper beer? Where do I find this information? Its important to me as since my marathon program started this week I'm needing 3,000 - 6,000 extra calories per week depending on distance since I don't want to lose weight. Beer is a great way to add calories.

When I do the long runs (20 - 35km) I can either have an extra meal and 6 beers, or be hungry for a few days.

I also need to work out how much extra I need to feed my dog since she is doing it with me. The training, not the marathon, and she won't come on the long runs, she'll top out about 12km. I'm wondering if she will reach the point she will hide when she sees me get my running shoes.

[Juggular]

I used to drink stout and stuff, but recently, I drink "light" beers.  They are about 100-120 calories a bottle.  5 of them would give you less than 600 calories.  "Regular" beers have about 150-170 calories per bottle (or a can).  That's not too much for runners.  My wife's uncle is a builder.  He buys an empty lot, and builds a foundation, walls, plumbing, wires, windows, roof, etc, in one year all by himself.  He drinks beer all the time as he works.  It seems he discovered what you discovered: beer hydrates you and gives you some calories.  Seems like a good idea. 

I've seen a documentary on the keto diet.  And there was a mountain runner.  I've forgotten what it's called, but they do up-hill marathons, basically.  One guy changed to all-fat diet like @Kingfisher did.  Very skinny guy, but he had to eat a lot.  And also had to take a dump every few hours.  Then he switched to all fat and now he doesn't have to.  It makes sense because fat gives you 9 calories per gram, instead of 4 from carbs.  You need less than half the volume.  One avocado can give you 322 calories plus 975mg of potassium.  One banana gives you 100 calories and 400mg of potassium.  Obviously, 3 bananas can get you uncomfortably full, especially when running.  

One problem is that the liver must be adapted to burn fat.  We are talking about a week of fat diet (or about 30 hours of fasting in my case).  You eat carb, your liver goes right back to burning sugar, because human body prefers sugar.  People have more energy on keto.  Some say that's because with the same amount of oxygen, you get more energy from fat.  I've heard of a regular guy holding his breath for 4 minutes after keto when he could do only 2 before.   

Maybe you could prepare for the run by sharing bacon, cheese, cheesecake, coconut oil, and eggs with your dog?  My dog loves all that, and all he does is running up and down the stairs.  Maybe running on fat, your dog will run all the way with you instead of quitting at 12km.  That's so cute.  There is nothing to be gained for her by running.  But she runs because she wants to be in your company!  Gotta love dogs.  Frankly, dogs are better animals than humans.  I play a computer game where a space ninja kills zombie crewmen on spaceships.  But can you imagine dogs sitting around simulating killing other dogs?  That'd be super creepy.  Yet, it's normal for humans.  We are probably the creepiest creatures on earth that way.  Anyhow, going back to running, yeah, she may oblige very happily, unless you get her too fat for too long.  Then she won't run at all.  For dog's metabolism, it might take only 3 days.  

I'd be careful about the amount though.  I made a mistake of eating as much as I would with carbs, and that ended up twice as many calories.  On keto, you only need 1 + 1/2 meals a day.  It certainly takes a lot of adjustment.  I would not try keto running right before a big race or anything.  

[oh, I found the guy, the "Ultra" 100-mile runner.  At 6:15 he talks about why he went keto]

 

[Kingfisher]

On 8/5/2018 at 4:42 AM, Juggular said:

I'm relieved: you can load up on carb once a week.  I'm not really clear on why loading up is necessary.  But all the people on keto say that they need to carb up once in a while. 

 

This is how I have always interpreted it. When you're trying to lose weight and have weight to spare, your body will get used to the lack of carbs and you'll plateau out. You'll stop losing weight. You change that by bringing in a bunch of carbs and your body has to adjust for the amount of energy going into it by processing all of those carbs you ate. The next day when you're back on keto, your body will be expecting lots of carbs like the day before, but they won't be coming in, so it'll go back to burning fat for energy. Just gotta jump start the cycle sometimes. If I eat a large amount of carbs on a "carb day", I sometimes wake up hot with a heavy heart beat because my body is trying to process all of those carbs while I sleep. 

On 8/5/2018 at 4:42 AM, Juggular said:

I fell off the wagon big time today.  My neighbor across the street walked in this evening, we ended up drinking.  5 hours later, we had 10 bottles of empty beer bottles.  That's 600 calories.  Beer calories are probably like sugar calories... but sometimes it's awkward not to drink when people come over.  

I'll be back to low carb tomorrow again.  I've got frozen cod fillets.  It's got a thin batter.  One fillet has about 20 grams of carb.  If I eat 3 fillets, I'm already at the 60 gram limit.  And the Dutch market (I wonder if they are the Amish people like the 1985 movie "witness?") sells awesome cheesecakes.  Cheesecakes also have few grams of carb, even if I don't eat the crust.  I might be going over a dozen grams of carb.  So I'm not sure if I'm strictly on keto. 

 

Beer is bad. If you don't start dropping weight for a few days, it'll because of the beer. Try Seagrams Lime Gin or Hendricks Gin and Diet Mountain dew. Alcohol + Caffeine and no carbs. I don't even bother with calories. My opinion is that calorie counting is a marketing trick to keep you buying foods labeled as "low calorie". Also, there's a batter you can make that uses Almond Flour with much less carbs. I've also made three pizza's so far using almond flour to make the crust in a 9" pie pan. They were great.

I like cheese cake on a carb day. It means that I can eat the crust. 

On 8/5/2018 at 4:42 AM, Juggular said:

She has more energy to go out and pull crabgrass and whatever else she does out there.  Which is a problem.  Her middle name is CLWEA ("can't-leave-well-enough-alone").  This is the result. 

Please send her to my house. My girlfriend isn't allowed to touch my lawn mower any more. She tries to mow everything. Sticks, rocks, bricks, the street curb, and a tree stump.

If your crabgrass is anything like ours, pulling it up is a waste of time. I've got a spot in my yard that won't die. I've pulled it out, dug up the dirt and put new dirt down and it came back. I tried killing it with herbicide and a month later it sprouted again in the very same spot. I'm considering burning that spot.

On 8/5/2018 at 4:42 AM, Juggular said:

 When she has energy, she diligently creates problems. Or creatively comes up with non-existing problems.  This morning we had to go to the vet.  She was watching some TV shows about vets.  She got herself all paranoid about how our 4-pound dog who never really goes out, got himself a heartworm.  After spending over $100 and 3 hours, it was negative.  Just as I knew he'd be.  Now that the vet has confirmed it, everything is fine, right?  No.  She says, "what if the vet didn't really do the exam, but just said she did?"  "OMG, if you think like that, can you really be sure you live on this solar system?"  I forgot how wound-up she gets when she has the energy. 

I guess it's better to lose weight and gain energy, than to gain weight and lose energy.  We are in the middle of our 40's and the things she does, remind me of a toddler on a leash.  I've decided that reining her in takes a lot of energy, and that's a good thing for my weight loss (or hair loss--which thankfully hasn't happened yet).  All is good, I think.  

Wait. Don't send her to my house. One is enough. My girlfriend does the exact same thing. A new disease starts appearing all over the news caused by a fly native to a tiny town in some foreign country, and for weeks afterwards, I have to hear about how she has the same symptoms and thinks she's got it. This last time, her complaints carried on so much that I got her to go to a doctor. Bloodwork and everything was done. The doctor said there was nothing wrong with her. She didn't like that and immediately went to another doctor who also said there was nothing wrong, but gave her the suggestion of changing up her diet to see how she feels. That's the one thing I have been saying for years. She eats processed high carb TV dinners for lunch, and that's the one thing I have been trying to get her to stop buying. She told the doctor what she eats and the doctor told her those were bad. She then goes to the grocery store and comes home with twice the amount of TV dinners she normally gets, claiming it's one last hurrah before she quits. Currently, after this last doctor visit, and with the exception of the TV dinners that she has left, I've got her following the same pescatarian diet as me.

How long will it last? My guess is about 2 weeks then back to normal. The root of all of this is the news. If we can get them to stop watching the news, this wouldn't happen.

43 minutes ago, Juggular said:

I used to drink stout and stuff, but recently, I drink "light" beers.  They are about 100-120 calories a bottle.  5 of them would give you less than 600 calories.  "Regular" beers have about 150-170 calories per bottle (or a can).  That's not too much for runners.  My wife's uncle is a builder.  He buys an empty lot, and builds a foundation, walls, plumbing, wires, windows, roof, etc, in one year all by himself.  He drinks beer all the time as he works.  It seems he discovered what you discovered: beer hydrates you and gives you some calories.  Seems like a good idea. 

I knew someone like that. A small breakfast in the morning and beer throughout the day. It was like they never ate and were skinny as a twig. 

44 minutes ago, Juggular said:

I've seen a documentary on the keto diet.  And there was a mountain runner.  I've forgotten what it's called, but they do up-hill marathons, basically.  One guy changed to all-fat diet like @Kingfisher did.  Very skinny guy, but he had to eat a lot.  And also had to take a dump every few hours.  Then he switched to all fat and now he doesn't have to.

I aim for 1 a day within an hour of waking up. 3 a day does happen, and 2 in one day is a good day. I feel so much more energetic after each time.

47 minutes ago, Juggular said:

You eat carb, your liver goes right back to burning sugar, because human body prefers sugar. 

 

Quote

 

It works like this: when you eat something carb-heavy, the glucose (carbohydrate) in that food raises your blood sugar. But having high blood sugar all the time is dangerous, so when your body senses that you’ve eaten carbohydrates, your pancreas makes some insulin to take that glucose out of the bloodstream and store it somewhere safe (your fat cells) for later use.

This is all fine and good, and if you’re going to eat carbs, you want it to work exactly like that. If you eat carbs but can’t produce enough insulin (e.g. people with type 1 diabetes), you’ll be in very deep trouble. But the flip side of this is that if you want to reduce insulin production, you’ve got to lower carbs.

https://paleoleap.com/insulin-and-keto-what-you-need-to-know/

 

 

[Juggular]

34 minutes ago, Kingfisher said:

This is how I have always interpreted it. When you're trying to lose weight and have weight to spare, your body will get used to the lack of carbs and you'll plateau out. You'll stop losing weight. You change that by bringing in a bunch of carbs and your body has to adjust for the amount of energy going into it by processing all of those carbs you ate. The next day when you're back on keto, your body will be expecting lots of carbs like the day before, but they won't be coming in, so it'll go back to burning fat for energy. Just gotta jump start the cycle sometimes. If I eat a large amount of carbs on a "carb day", I sometimes wake up hot with a heavy heart beat because my body is trying to process all of those carbs while I sleep. 

2

Wow, you have no idea how much that helped. 

This means I could last quite a bit on keto.  I'll have gummy bear days!  No, seriously, I'm not going to binge on gummy bears.  

I am already forgetting what kind of carb cravings I had.  I guess that's a good thing.  Lack of variety was what was bugging me about keto.  Cheesecake alone was a huge boost to the variety.  I think I'll add coconut oil somehow.  

 

[Kingfisher]

1 hour ago, Juggular said:

Wow, you have no idea how much that helped. 

This means I could last quite a bit on keto.  I'll have gummy bear days!  No, seriously, I'm not going to binge on gummy bears.  

I am already forgetting what kind of carb cravings I had.  I guess that's a good thing.  Lack of variety was what was bugging me about keto.  Cheesecake alone was a huge boost to the variety.  I think I'll add coconut oil somehow.  

 

I wouldn't eat gummy bears the entire day, but a small bag or 2 wouldn't hurt. 

Also, if you have carb cravings, you can find dark chocolate that's got 10-18 carbs per serving. If you look at serving size, it's usually something like 4 squares of the bar. When you have a bad craving, have 1 square. That's only 2.5-4.5 carbs for that bite. Don't chew it and swallow it immediately. Let it sit on your tongue and melt. Taste it as long as you can. By the time it's gone, your craving will be as well because you just satisfied it.

Lack of variety? Not counting sardines, I run through a rotation of fish for each day. Salmon one day, Tilapia the next, and Catfish after that. Don't fall into the rut of only using one method to prepare something. I can cook those 3 fish so many different ways that I have yet to get bored. Don't even get me started on the BBQ pit.   I find recipes and save them to my phone planning my meals days in advance just waiting to try them. You should start reading recipes, experiment with different spices and seasonings. I stick with fish by personal choice. You still have the option of pork, steak, and chicken to play around with. 

 

Find recipes that use almond flour. Your variety gets even bigger. An example that I have had and would reccomend:

https://www.dietdoctor.com/recipes/keto-white-pizza-with-mushrooms-and-pesto

 

A coworker used that recipe for the crust. Then mixed a little bit of buffalo sauce and ranch dressing together to make the sauce. Then pulled apart some cooked chicken with a fork and layered that on and topped it with cheese. He brought a slice to work for me to try and it was excellent. He called it buffalo chicken pizza. 

 

Coconut oil is good for cooking. Real Olive oil goes on everything else. That's kinda the rule I follow with oils. Both oils are good for weight loss.

 I only buy 2 brands. California Olive Oil and Luccinni. Those are real and 100% olive oil.

 

Some reading on Olive Oil. 

Quote

 

An estimated 69% of all store-bought extra virgin olive oils in the US are probably fake, according to tests by the University of California. UC 

https://lifehacker.com/the-most-and-least-fake-extra-virgin-olive-oil-brands-1460894373

 

 

 

https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/seven-ways-to-tell-the-difference-between-real-and-fake-olive-oil-article

 

https://www.foodrenegade.com/how-tell-if-your-olive-oil-fake/

 

I've got another link somewhere that gives you a list of all of the real ones in the US. There aren't many. I'll see if I can find it later.

 

 

[Juggular]

hmmm...  never thought olive oil be fake.  

I gotta test ours.  Who knew Australia produces most trusted olive oils?  

That pizza looks good.  My wife had a plain pizza at the center city several years ago, and she still talks about it.  It was a tiny hole in the wall but man, did they make good pizza!  (Philadelphians call downtown "center-city" for some reason.  Each place has different ways of saying things, I guess.  People from other states pronounce Oregon like "Michigan" so Oregonians have bumper stickers that say "Orygun.")  Anyway, I should try that pizza recipe.  I only learned to smash guacamole a couple weeks ago.  My wife doesn't care if I cook Boomerang or not, but she might care about pizza (a lot).  I'm learning all sorts of things from TC!  (Thank you, Kingfisher!)

[Kingfisher]

1 hour ago, Juggular said:

hmmm...  never thought olive oil be fake.  

Oregonians have bumper stickers that say "Orygun."

By fake, the entire contents of the bottle aren't Olive Oil. Sure, it may say 100% Olive Oil on the label, and they may have used 100% Olive Oil to make it, but only 10% of the bottle is actually Olive Oil. The rest of it could be cottonseed oil or vegetable oil. It's like buying a good Scotch. You either get Single Malt, or you get the crap that's blended with cheap whiskey. Me? I'll have the Single Malt Olive Oil. 

Orygun? Sounds weird. How do they pronounce Oregano? Do they say Oryguno? There's an E in there, which makes an "eh" sound. So, I say Or-eh-gun. I would have to hear the Oregon / Michigan thing, because I don't see a difference in text. I say Mishagun. I'm also in Texas, and would probably be the one to go to Oregon and tell everyone that they're pronouncing their own state wrong. 

[Juggular]

That "y" in Ory-gun confused me too.  Because what people said was as you say, "Or-eh-gun."  

I hear that Oregon now allows you to pump your own gas, and that caused a major mayhem for a while.  It was illegal to pump your own gas in Oregon.  Which made no sense to me.  

Then again, in PA, you were not allowed to sell beer on Sundays.  That changed several years ago.  But you still cannot buy beer from a supermarket or a gas station.  If you want to sell liquor, you have to pay a lot of money to buy "liquor license" from Pennsylvania.  I think the whole thing was for religious reasons.  It's still illegal to sell beer before 11AM on Sunday, so you wouldn't be drinking beer at the unholy hour of 10AM.  

 

[Kingfisher]

22 hours ago, Juggular said:

It was illegal to pump your own gas in Oregon.  Which made no sense to me.  

What? That's insane. Did they think people were too stupid to pump gas? (youtube confirms this for a few). I don't like other people touching my cars and wouldn't be comfortable with someone else putting gas in my cars. 

22 hours ago, Juggular said:

Then again, in PA, you were not allowed to sell beer on Sundays.  That changed several years ago.  But you still cannot buy beer from a supermarket or a gas station.  If you want to sell liquor, you have to pay a lot of money to buy "liquor license" from Pennsylvania.  I think the whole thing was for religious reasons.  It's still illegal to sell beer before 11AM on Sunday, so you wouldn't be drinking beer at the unholy hour of 10AM.  

That all applies here too. No liquor stores open on Sunday, can't buy beer until after 11AM on Sunday. It's called Blue Laws. Our Blue Laws also prevent you from being able to buy a car on a Sunday. 

Quote

 

 the Transportation Code states that a person may not, on consecutive days of Saturday and Sunday, sell or offer for sale a motor vehicle. Thus, a car dealership must be closed for one day a weekend, either Saturday or Sunday.

http://coferlaw.com/6657/blue-laws-texas-alcohol-sale-sunday/

 

 

 

 

[Juggular]

lol, yep!  Youtube does confirm all kinds of amazing stupidity...

My wife lost a pound.  She drinks coffee in the morning.  She puts in stevia instead of sugar.  But she cannot give up milk.  And we got to the point where we don't eat anything until after work.  She's not on keto.  But she runs on few drops of milk in her coffee until dinner.  That's it for her.  

Dinner is my first meal.  A couple hours after dinner, I eat a bit more like 5-8 pieces of pecan halves or few slices of cheese.  This morning I was 161.8 pounds.  So I'm not losing weight.  But my waist has been shrinking a bit.  I've been working out, and I've been taking whey protein.  Not 200 grams like bodybuilders.  I take only 30 grams of whey if have cod fillets or other protein.  If there isn't much protein, I take 60 grams recommended by World Health Organization for every adult.  You wouldn't think that's enough protein to build muscle on, but it's enough to tone up.  

So we are on 1 meal + snack everyday.  It happened slowly over weeks, so we are not that hungry.