Monday was the one-week mark, and I was hoping to see a little more loss, but my scale had other plans and told me I had gained 2.5 lbs. in one day! I didn't believe it, so I got off the scale and stepped back on. Still 179.5, a gain of 2.5 lbs. I refused to believe it, drank some water, and went back to bed. Later when I got back up, I went to the bathroom and weighed again. I had lost a pound back! Haha. That made me feel a little better at least. Then later on Monday, I came across some information online that really made sense to me. I had always had a bit of a problem in the back of my mind with the "eliminating most or all bread" part of the low-carb diet, thinking of the fact that the Lord Jesus Himself multiplied bread to feed the multitude, not to mention that it was used at the Lord's Supper, so how could it be bad, right? I even prayed about it, asking God to give me wisdom. Well the information I came across explained that it isn't the "bread" that's the problem, it's the "type" of bread. Modern day bread, at least in the United States, is made differently than it was back in the old days. So it recommended that sprouted or spelt bread be used, such as this: http://www.foodforlife.com/ It seems they offer buns, pasta, tortillas, and muffins, too, which is great news. I did try the Ezekiel 4:9 bread a couple of years ago and the taste was so different that I had a difficult time with it, but this time around I think I will give it more time to get used to the taste. My taste buds are "Americanized," after all. Maybe since I've been off all bread for awhile, I will have an easier time adjusting this time.
Other things recommended in the information were to avoid all sugar and high fructose corn syrup (except from fruit, of course) as well as all processed foods, and to stick with whole foods in their natural state, like unprocessed meat, fish and seafood, and fruits and vegetables, avoiding the starchier ones like white potatoes and using sweet potatoes instead, and that hydrogenated oils should be avoided (such as those found in margarine and "fake" butter, as well as vegetable oils and canola oil) and that olive oil, coconut oil, and real butter should be used, as they were good fats that were actually necessary for promoting fat loss. Whole eggs were also recommended, as it is a "good fat" as well ~ I read somewhere else awhile back that the cholesterol in the yolks off eggs acts differently in the bloodstream and does not clog arteries. Beans and brown rice are also okay, but not whole wheat pasta, unless it is made from sprouted wheat or spelt. As for dairy, I don't remember if that was mentioned, but I would guess that it is best in its most natural state: whole cheese (not processed), whole milk, plain whole milk yogurt, full-fat cottage cheese, etc. I don't think the processing they use for milk we normally buy in stores in the refrigerated section is the kind that's harmful, and I would guess that not processing it would be worse (risk of bacteria).
There was a time when I thought it would be nearly impossible to live without processed foods since they are so available, so cheap, and so convenient. But taking another look, I think it can be done with only a few minor changes. There are a lot of healthier options out there that don't take much time to prepare. For portable snacks, there is various dried fruit (the kind with nothing else added), which can be mixed with nuts and seeds to make homemade trail mix. For cereal, there is the kind made with sprouted grain and spelt, or oatmeal made with old-fashioned oats (whole milk can be used instead of water, then you can add regular fruit or dried fruit and maybe a little stevia). There's natural peanut butter, that can be spread on Ezekiel bread for peanut butter toast or a peanut butter sandwich. The list goes on.
Also talked about in the information I came across is that calorie-counting is not necessary when you stick with whole, unprocessed foods (limiting starchier vegetables). Of course, you do want to stick to reasonable portions, but starving yourself is certainly not necessary.
I began implementing the new plan right away, except that I haven't bought any Ezekiel bread yet. (I will get that on my next shopping trip.In the meantime, I have just been avoiding bread altogether). It must have made a difference, because yesterday morning (Tuesday) I had lost another pound, bringing me back down to 177.5. Then this morning, I lost the remaining half pound back, bringing me back to my original weight loss of 4 lbs.! The week isn't over yet, either. I can't wait to see how well I will do after implementing the new plan, which isn't a whole lot different from what I was doing before, just that I will allow the "good" bread (sprouted and/or spelt), will allow whole butter, and will allow ALL fruits now instead of avoiding the higher carb ones such as bananas and oranges and other citrus type fruits. I will also now avoid all processed foods like the plague. I have still been eating processed ham and processed cheese this week, only because I wanted to use it up, but next shopping trip I will have to find a good alternative for both.
I am thinking it might be good to also allow myself to "cheat" a little now and then and have some of my favorite foods, like frozen yogurt or a regular Pepsi (the kind made with regular sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, which is available in some convenience stores where I live). The key is to make sure it's only a once-in-awhile thing. The last thing I want to do is start the sugar addiction cycle again.
As for exercise, on Monday I did Week 1, Workout 3 of the Couch to 5K program and it went well, though my lower back didn't like it a whole lot. Today my back has felt better, though. My knee did hurt for the first part of the walk/run, but I pushed through and eventually it stopped and hasn't bothered me since. Yesterday I decided to rest instead of doing the Jillian 30-Day Shred workout, and today I'll be running again, doing Week 2, Workout 1. I'll be upping my running intervals from sixty seconds to ninety seconds, with two minutes of walking in-between, for a total of twenty minutes. We'll see how it goes.
No comments:
Post a Comment