8 weeks in, doing good but

(Carolyn) #1

I’m about 8 weeks in. I’ve been keeping net carbs below 18g a day and I’m losing about a pound a week or so, so it seems all should be good.
But there are a few things that are difficult for me.

First a little background. I’m not severely overweight, but I have a lot of belly fat and extra around my waist that make me uncomfortable. I think I gained all this extra weight mostly from boredom eating combined with reduced activity. I’m 72 and have postpolio syndrome that causes weakness and makes me fatigue very quickly. On bad days a walk from one room to another wears me out. I haven’t been able to do a lot of the things I always loved to do, or can only do them briefly and occasionally. Hence the boredom.

Here’s where I could use a little advice. I read that it’s better to eat few meals and no snacks, but I can’t go more than 4 or 5 hours without getting hungry. And when I say hungry, I mean REALLY HUNGRY! Stomach growling hungry, ravenously hungry. And when I get hungry I get hungry quickly. I go from, “I’m ok, I can wait awhile to eat” to “FEED ME NOW!” In minutes. I’ve always been this way.

I’ve tried to simply eat more at meals, but even if I eat until I’m uncomfortably full, I still can not last more than 4 or 5 hours, and sometimes less.

If I keep my carbs down, eat a moderate amount of protein and about 65-70% of my calories from fat but stretch it out over 3 meals and 2 snacks will I still be able to truly get fat adapted?

(mole person) #2

Yes. You will still become fat adapted. For this to happen you only need to keep carbs low. The benefit of extended windows without food is in getting insulin lower and increasing the speed of fat metabolism.

If you are losing fat with your current eating habits then I’d say just continue as you are for now. You’re still in the early days and will likely still find that your satiety will change in the next few months. I kept noticing appetite changes for well over a year.

You taught me something new. I’d never heard of post polio syndrome before and had to look it up.

(Carolyn) #3

Good to know, thanks. I probably worry too much about “doing it wrong”.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #4

You are not doing it wrong. Stop that!

First, you’re losing a pound a week, which is terrific. You’ll lose 52 pounds in twelve months and without having to worry about loose skin. Second, listen to your body. If you need to eat, eat. When you stop being hungry, stop eating. As long as we keep our carbohydrate low, most of us can trust our body to tell us when to stop. You might need a bit more protein or a bit more fat if you’re getting really hungry, however.

#5

Perhaps as a result of my current weight being below my body’s desired set point, I have occasional periods where I am ravenously hungry. When this happens, I eat huge amounts of LC veggies, with minimal protein or fat. The objective is to use the massive volume of food to fill me up while keeping the calories low, 100-200 per pound of food.

Sometimes I snack on them raw. I have eaten a whole bag of celery. I’ve eaten 2 or 3 zucchini in one sitting.

Sometimes I make a salad. A enormous bed of lettuce, arugula, spinach, or other greens with mushrooms, cucumbers, tomato, bell pepper, etc. Topped with a homemade lemon/ACV/vinaigrette dressing.

Sometimes I steam them. I’ve eaten a whole head of cabbage. A pound of broccoli. Or cauliflower.

Sometimes I make a soup. A heaping bowl of boiled collard/mustard/turnip greens.

Although all of these foods are all carbs, I’ve found they do not significantly effect my blood glucose or weight loss efforts. This is not the case when I over consume protein or fat.

(Banting & Yudkin & Atkins & Eadeses & Cordain & Taubes & Volek & Naiman & Bikman ) #6

Yes. If you are hungry, Yiddishe Mama is right, you should eat. As you progress, you should get less hungry, but it is entirely possible to do this successfully with three meals and three snacks a day so long as you keep carbs down.