Why We Get Fat And What To Do About It - Book Review

As many of my readers know, I came about the low carb lifestyle through my doctor.  I had gained too much over too short a period of time for her comfort that she suggested it.  Over a 14 month period, I lost 50 lbs.  I had needed to lose 22 lbs., but the lifestyle was so easy, I just continued and achieved a healthy, normal weight for my frame.

For many years, my days and my goals were mainly mandated by someone else's schedule.  It's called working, or for many people, overworking.  During the last several months, I've been enjoying my schedule since I stepped back from the corporate life.  I have after 18 years, two kids, too many mortgage refinances to count, finally have the chance to actually read something not related to a corporations goals, but related to mine.

One of my low carb coaching participants who has a great thirst for knowledge on all things low carb shared a great book with me written by Gary Taubes, called Why We Get Fat And What To Do About It.  Gary writes about the science of diet, shares the history of how we have gotten to our recommended food pyramid and why it's difficult for the medical community to whole heartily recommend the low carb lifestyle when they certainly should be.

If you are a history buff, you will enjoy the background he provides on the very first low carb diets. The shorthand version is that the low carb lifestyle is not a fad, it's been around for a very long time. Bursting the myths of not eating fat and calories in: calories out balance will make you thinner is something that should be taught in elementary school.  Anyone who believes in these two core areas of thinking, should read the book.

What is evidently stressed is that SUGAR is bad and starch should be avoided.  He has direct ties back to the core epidemics plaguing world health today - obesity and diabetes.   Hmmm, the two things I was on the brink of being before I started my low carb lifestyle change.  

The author shares results of testings conducted by universities, namely Stanford and Duke.   Stanford who compared the low carb diet to several low calorie and vegetarian diets and found that low carb had the best results and the most sustained results.  Duke came to such a resoundingly successful findings on the benefit of low carb that they have their own list of foods and guidelines for getting started on a no sugar, no starch diet.

My key benefit was reaffirmation that I am indeed, heading in the right direction.

Happy Carb Counting!

Waste Not....and Frozen Lemonade Yogurt Pops

Frozen Lemonade Yogurt Pops

I am on a bend to not waste anything.  I am ultra conserving.  It drives my kids wacky that I'm doing this, but I'm trying to teach them that we can get ahead in many ways in life if we just pay attention to all the details.

One of the biggest areas I needed to pay attention to was just how much food I bought and how much I threw away. When I was able to finally focus on what I was buying and preparing, I uncovered a pretty huge savings.  My first month of this experiment was this last fall.  I set out to not spend more than $500 on groceries that month.  I did my best effort to clip coupons and try to buy sale items. At the end of the month I had spent $900.


I tightened in again.  $500 for the next month.  I refused to buy boxes, I write The Carbometer, I shouldn't be cooking with the help of a box anyway!  This new rule would help get all those refined sugars and grains out of our diet.  Result that month $650.  I'm not one to give up too easily.  I set out again.  No grocery stores the next month.  Result that month $420.   For January, I've brought the grocery total to $360 and I believe I can get it to $250 for February.

No boxes, no grocery stores - except for 1/2 priced meat specials, lots of meal planning all help make the goal.  Now I make one trip to Costco a month and pick up milk at a big box grocery outlet during the month if I can't get back to Costco and I pick up my fresh spinach from the farmers market.

The problem with shopping bulk is that you sometimes have things which are leftover and you don't know what to do with them.  This month is was plain yogurt.  I had used about a serving of the tub and it was going to expire the next day.  I would literally need to make a lot of something.   I searched the internet and found yogurt pops.  Though it's not hot yet, I thought, nice treat for the kids, but do I have enough of the stuff to make them.  I certainly didn't want to throw in a lot of honey or sugar to make the pops taste good.  It's one thing to save something, but another if it would still go to waste if no one would eat it.

There on the counter was my last container of Country Time Lemonade....I wonder what those pops would taste like with that.  I made a small sample of a cup of yogurt with a tablespoon of Country Time Lemonade.  I had both kids taste it and my husband.  My son and my husband both wanted a bowl of it right away...2 cups down.  My daughter said she'd eat it as a frozen pop.  With the remainder I made 8 frozen pops and 6 two-ounce cups.

Yogurt officially saved!  Will I buy more Country Time Lemonade?  I have to think about that...  technically it's not a box.

Yogurt pops:

7 servings of plain yogurt - 133 carbs
8 tablespoons of Country Time Lemonade mix - 128 carbs
Total carbs: 261 carbs

Mix well and place in pop containers and freeze - This made 8 - 3 oz pops and 7 - 2 oz pops
Approx.  13.7 carbs for 2 oz pops and 20.6 carbs for 3 oz pops.

Happy Carb Counting!

Gratitudes of My Low Carb Lifestyle

Aug 2014 - 45 lb loss

Feb 2013 before low carb

GRATITUDES

I have been reading a lot of gratitudes lately of my friends.  I've been asked to participate in gratitude chain letter like activities.  I never was one for chain letters, so it's always hard for me to get to started.   Gratitudes though are a reminder to us all to be grateful and humble for whatever aspect of our life has turned out better than it likely could have. 

I have had the great fortune of finding a way to control my weight in the last year and half.   In a country where most people are actually overweight and obese.  Of those over age 20; 69% of the population according to the Center for Disease Control fall in the overweight and obese category.

I'd like to personally congratulate the 31% who aren't, including myself for making it, because I am sure at one point or another, many were on the other side of this equation.  Guess what, I'm not good at math so I'll stop there with the data.   Short story...a lot of people should be trying to do whatever they can to not be overweight and obese.  I know there are many reasons, medically and emotionally for weight gain and loss.  I know there are many different ways to take it off and keep it off.   This is just my personal success and I'm trying to help all those out there who haven't yet decided which route they want to go to see my example through this blog.

So, my gratitudes of a low carb lifestyle are:

1. I'm grateful, I made changes to my lifestyle and didn't go on a diet.

2. I love being in control of what I eat, when I eat and how I eat.

3. I'm very happy that my ankles no longer swell at night!

4. It's amazing to me that I have broken my sweet tooth.  I can't even walk into a traditional grocery store without being overwhelmed by the smell of processed sugars, needless to say walking by a candy store prompts immediate nausea. - Quadruple Gratitude!

5. I am extremely happy that I didn't invest a lot in diet trends and pre-packaged foods, or supplements though I did try one and it failed miserably...oh marketing.

6. I'm proud of myself for not doing anything extreme.  I never fasted, or only drank things or just did a soup.  I did it with real food, over real time and I kept to realistic exercise which for me is hiking (very grateful for Pine Mountain)

, walking, the occasional aqua - aerobics class.  I am a believer of +10,000 steps a day.

7. I'm doubly grateful to see and know I can keep up this lifestyle and enjoy food, enjoy making food for others and sharing and helping others who want to make a lifestyle change too.

8. I am grateful for the looks on my friends and families faces when they see me after a long time.  For the comments of my children, that they too are still in wonder at how and where did my shape go?

9. I'm still excited by the day the doctor updated my health file from overweight to normal.  I still remember the nurses question:  "Is this right, was this the right weight?"  "Were you trying to lose weight?"  YES!  "Well, Congratulations, it doesn't happen very often."

10. I'm grateful for YOU, that you read this.  That maybe it will help you or help you, help others.

Happy Carb Counting!

Cold Water, Hot Water, Lemon Water or Drinking Enough Water in Winter

Having some hot tea on a cold day!

It's cold outside and the last thing I want to do on some of these cold mornings is hike.  Quite frankly, the last thing I want to do is....anything.  Sometimes when it's super cold, all I want to do is sleep.  My nickname from my cousin is ClaireBear.  It actually has a lot of different reasons why she gave me that nickname, but it does play true in winter, I certainly want to act like one and sleep winter away.

Another thing that I do in winter is drink WAY too much coffee.  Between my husband and I, we drink at least 10 cups a day.   I'm sure I'm good for 5 of those if not more.  Too much of anything is not good.  I have no reason to drink so much coffee.  Other than to get myself to WAKE UP!

Good thing I have kids who have to go to school and low carb clients who expect me to be at the hiking trail and who expect me to get this blog out!!!

So today I've set my sights on water and trying to get that water up like it is in summer.  In summer, I drink a ton of water.  I'm constantly refilling my bottle.   Now, I notice I fill my bottle maybe once a day, not 4 times.  When I needed to lose those few pounds I'd gained over the holidays, it was slow going.   I still haven't lost all of them and though I'm at my goal weight, I wouldn't mind being back down to my lowest low.  So here are some of the times I'll try to get in that precious liquid;

1.  I've read that the asian cultures do a hot water cleanse in the morning and the evening.  The first thing they drink in the morning is hot water and the last thing they drink is hot water.    (2 cups)

2.  I have at least two cups of coffee by 9:30 a.m. before my hiking - (2 cups)

3.  Stop to drink 2 times on the hike (I haven't emptied my bottle yet in these cold months... (1 cup)

4. I noticed I haven't drank with lunch for awhile.  I'm now making lemon water or if I don't have lemons, weak lemonade out of Country Time Lemonade, I halve the suggested serving size and then double the water for an 8 carb drink and I drink it warm...(2 cups)

5. When I have to drive my daughter to dance I take my own water bottle and walk around town while she's in class. (1 cup)

6. Dinner, again, I'm not drinking....so I am now doing speciality tea, either peppermint or acai berry.  I try to have at least 2 cups.  (2 cups)

So that brings me to 11 cups.

I have just looked up how much water one should drink to help promote weight loss a day, paired with a healthy diet and exercise, of course.....13 cups.   Check it out yourself, they have some good tips at SFGate.

So, I'm still short...I have to add in 2 cups in there somewhere.   I guess it's going to have to be in the afternoon because I DO NOT like to get up in the middle of the night...remember, I'm part bear.

Happy Carb Counting!

Diets and New Year's Resolutions

The Magic Kingdom

Welcome to 2015!  What diet are you going to start?  How much did you gain over the holidays?  More than you wanted or desired?

I was on a trip of a lifetime for myself and my family.  A special trip I had planned for three years.  We went on the Disney holiday cruise to the Caribbean followed by 10 days in Disney World.   All in all, we were gone for 18 days.   18 days of eating out, being catered to on the ship and having all kinds of sweet things available almost 24/7.

I also had a theme for our trip while we were in Disney World.  I focused on visiting all the highly recommended themed dining experiences.   Guess what the highlight of our experience is, what we talk about the most....the ship and the food.   Very little about the rides or the shows.  We loved Epcot!  My son wants to eat in every single restaurant in every country.    We'll need to go back for an entire month in order to do that.

Awesome cod on lettuces with peppers and shrimp

 What I was most impressed with was that Disney does a great job of lower carb and calorie offering options.  There was a healthier option at the sit down dinners on the cruise, they labeled gluten free and no sugar added items.  I pretty much ate whatever I wanted, enjoying their specialty bread, one slice only, not several.  I ate dessert every night and enjoyed my wine, port and champagne, I even had two beers.  Every once in awhile I had an ice cream cone.  I didn't count one single carb.

I was full beyond comfort on several occasions.  There wasn't a scale for me to check on everyday so by the time we got off the cruise, I was hyper sensitive to make sure I walked a lot and I brought my steps up to at least 12 or 13K steps a day, one day I made it to 22K.

We arrived home and I weighed in yesterday.  I was up only 1.5 pounds.  Well within my acceptable weight range. When I think back on what I did well it was the walking and choosing the no sugar added desserts. I kept with lower carb sides, salads, mixed vegetables.  Steering clear of pasta, potatoes and rice and any type of starchy carb for breakfast.  No Mickey Mouse waffle for me.

Favorite breakfast - lox on cucumber!

I actually think, I could have lost weight on the trip if I actually had to.  If I had skipped the desserts and held off a bit on the port, beer and champagne.  When in Disney World, I exercised the split plate at many restaurants and took my tupperware everywhere.  We loved our trip and we loved our food.

I know that one of the main new year's resolutions for many of us is to start a diet.  I was pleasantly surprised to see on US News & World Report cited the two diets I recommend in the top 3.  Mayo Clinic Diet and the TLC diet.  TLC just beating out Mayo Clinic.   TLC doesn't talk about carbs as much as the Mayo Clinic does but if you check their suggested meal plans their carb counts are in the 50s.   TLC is a great way to look at low carb if you have any heart and cholesterol issues and a wonderful maintenance plan.   Mayo Clinic diet is a good choice if adult on set of diabetes is an issue. Here are some quick links to both:

TLC

Mayo Clinic

One of the characteristics both of these diets mention is that they are ways of life...that to ultimately achieve your goals long term and get out of the danger of health issues, one must make a lifestyle change.   May your New Year's resolution be a lifestyle change and not just to go on a diet.

Happy New Year and Happy Carb Counting!

Community Course and Getting Back to Salads

Today I was super excited to see my Low Carb Coaching and Weight Loss Course added to the local community center guide of classes.   I'll start offering my classes in January!  I'm doing a bit more foot work to hang posters and promote the course but I certainly hope this is the start of something great!

Now that I'm maintaining my weight, I am having a little fruit and it's a great add to salads.
I created a Pear, Pecan, Chicken and Feta Spinach Salad with a red wine vinegar and olive oil dressing.  Total Carb Breakdown:

Pear, Pecan, Chicken and Feta Salad

1/4 cup diced fresh pear - 6.38 carbs / 1.3 fiber
1/8 cup pecans -whole - 2 carbs / 1 fiber
1/4 cup chicken - 0 carbs / 0 fiber
1/8 cup Feta - .77 carbs / 0 fiber
1/4 cup sliced black olives - 2 carbs / 1 fiber
2 cups Spinach  - 2.2 carbs / 1.4 fiber
Oil and Vinegar dressing - 0 carbs / 0 fiber

Total carb count: 12.2 carbs / 4.7 fiber

Looks great and tastes great too!

Here's a few things I am looking forward to trying in the coming months:
Cauliflower Tortillas and pizza crust!
Cauliflower and Egg scramble
Making my own salad dressings!
Enjoying some fruit, like apples and pears in salads
Marinating my own vegetables!
Making Coleslaw!
Making raspberry jam!
Building a garden and looking at getting chickens.

My pantry is almost completely empty of boxes!  I can't believe it.  I'm getting down to the true cost of making things without processed foods.  I'll start to develop a list of staples to have on hand that will allow someone to have a low carb diet and make a plethora of dishes throughout the month.

Happy Carb Counting these last few days of the year!  Enjoy your time with family and friends.

A Birthday Sleepover - A.K.A - A Carb Filled Weekend

Home Made Birthday Cake - No Box Cake Here!

My daughter turned 10 this week.  Crazy how time flies by.  We are still in the moment of wanting a birthday party and I'm at the moment in my life where I really don't want to plan one and I certainly don't want to pay for one.  I talk her into a sleep over at home for a few friends.  We custom make her invites, I decide to use only what's on hand for the celebration and outside of buying the birthday gift, we'll have down home home made birthday party.

Before I know it, I'm planning an overnight for 13 girls.  I tell myself, I'm okay with this.  We'll get through this and it won't be so bad.  Meanwhile, my husband makes arrangements to spend most of the evening in our room watching TV and my son, luckily scores a friends birthday invite party for the same night.

It's an early out day at school and it's raining, so even though we are only 4 houses away from school, we have to pick the girls up with the suburban. We have an early snack/dinner - Pizza!  I made the dough in my bread maker.  While the two large cheese pizzas are in the oven we start on the cake.  This is touted as one of the highlights of the party...making the cake, so sporadically in between hiding and seeking, the girls help me make the cake.  A chocolate fudge cake.  After the pizza and loads of dress up, two girls decide it's enough and they are done with the party and they want to go home.  This is before three other girls are yet to arrive and before the cake.   I don't know if these girls are going to miss something or are wise beyond their years.

We are missing just one party girl when it becomes obvious to most of the girls that the cake is almost done and they come into the kitchen to the smell of something chocolatey which of course must be good. The pressure is on for that cake.  I keep asking them to wait but it becomes apparent that will not be possible so we forge ahead with the cake and agree no present opening till our last guest arrives.

I cut the cake into two equal sections and decorate it quickly with whipped cream - 1 carb per tablespoon!  Quickly we put on recycled birthday candles, you know the ones you can't quite throw away from all the years past.  I put them on, we magically have 10.  We sing happy birthday and they literally dig into that cake.  It's gone...within minutes with a little brownie bite size left for our last guest.  Okay....that was good.    Our last guest arrives, has the rest of the cake and we are on with the rest of the party.

We play a little Pictionary, a little more dress up and make up and then we convince them we can watch a movie and I'll rent one from On Demand.   We chose "Blended" with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.  The kids loved it and watched it, the whole time.  Meanwhile we go through 10 bags of microwave popcorn.   As the movie comes to an end, I'm asked for vegetables, carrots or celery sticks with peanut butter.  We are out of the celery but have tons of carrots.  I do several and slice them up in thick julienne style pieces.  I'm proud of them for wanting something other than pizza!

They play some more, it's getting late.  I hear from some of the girls that a few have fallen asleep.   Others are making a video together, having a blast.   It's now almost 11 PM.  They are hungry again.  I have a few more pizza dough rounds left.  I offer pizza.  Pepperoni and Cheese this time.   It's ready by 11:30 and they settle into watching a free movie - The Tooth Fairy and have moved all the sleepover things into the living room and it's apparent to me this is where the sleep will occur.

I make it to the end of the movie and the teeth brushing for most...and back to the floor in the living room with the lights out and TV off and I fall asleep to the chatter of 1/2 the girls as the other 1/2 have managed to sleep.

In the morning, I wake up on my own.  It's 7 am.  My daughter wanted me to make beignets which I had just learned how to make last week, followed up by homemade doughnuts, which I've NEVER made, but the bread machine has a recipe for the dough so I'll try.

I decide to do the doughnut dough first and that was a good call because it will be an hour and half before it's done in the machine and then would need to rise for 40 minutes, be shaped and rise for another 40 before I can even fry them.  Most of the girls will likely be gone before I even start doing the doughnuts.  I make the beignets.  

They are so much quicker and relatively LOW CARB!  To me anything that is under 25 carbs for a meal is low carb on my maintenance plan.  When I'm trying to lose weight it's 12 carbs a meal or less staying under 50 carbs a day.  Most people eat 370 carbs a day so any reduction will help someone eat considerably less.  I've been doing a low carb lifestyle since Sept of 2013 and I've lost a total of 50 lbs.   There is only 1/2 cup of flour in the recipe.  The recipe makes 24 beignets.   Here is the carb break down:

1/2 cup flour - 46 carbs
2 tsp sugar - 8 carbs

2 eggs - 2 carbs
1 tsp vanilla extract - .5 carbs
1 tsp of powdered sugar - 2.5 (per three beignets)
Total Carbs - 59 / 3 per beignets - a serving of 3 beignets - 7.3 carbs!

I was greeted with various looks of "What is that!?" when I served them for breakfast.  I don't believe any of the girls had tried beignets.  But after the first first round they wanted more.  I made 3 batches of beignets in the time it took the doughnut dough to finish in the bread machine.

We did eventually do the doughnuts, with just 4 girls left, and they disappeared before I could take a picture.  I have a feeling I'll be making those more often, and maybe I'll make those into gifts - they looked pretty awesome.  I have to admit the experience of making the doughnuts and all the GREASE that they need to fry, I don't know if I'll ever have one again.  Well, maybe just one.  Carbs in one glazed doughnut is 22.  I'm actually able to have one.

All in all, it was a pretty awesome birthday party...something we likely should have been doing for birthdays all along.

In the new year, I'm going to start experimenting with low carb bread and dessert recipes as well as lots of one pot meals as I try to get my kids used to stews - with all the fresh, homemade bread I'll be making!