That makes sense. My short ribs braised with low-carb beer - that I thought would prevent binges - was just a prelude.
Probably need to avoid sauces as well — anything “delicious.”
That makes sense. My short ribs braised with low-carb beer - that I thought would prevent binges - was just a prelude.
Probably need to avoid sauces as well — anything “delicious.”
I wish. I gag if the coconut oil rises to the top of my bulletproof hot cocoa😂
But I’m willing to try your method.
Sure, the process is pretty simple.
At some point, YOU REALIZE you “Oopsed”. In fact PLAN 1-2 of these as part of practicing the protocol to make sure you have the MUSCLE for it.
GOAL: Prevent you from turning an Oops into an Aw-Fck (3 month regain of 90% or worse).
Purpose: To get back to the weight you were BEFORE the oops happened, and help it stick.
Basic Protocol: On Friday, you slip up, have a beer, it triggers a nibble of a dessert, the next thing you know. You’ve BINGED, or got carried away. Ordered the fries, whatever.
On saturday, you wake up, you acknowledge what you did. That you ARE HUMAN, and still fighting an addiction that you will NOT LET WIN. You weigh yourself. You gained 6lbs!!! OMG… Don’t Panic. This is why we have to be ready for this.
My basic protocol DEMANDS I fast until I take off the 6lbs I put on, and then ONE MORE DAY to lock it in. This is CRITICIAL. Because every Oops should make you STRONGER and BETTER at recovering. BTW, Touch crap to your social engagements. If you have your daughters wedding, MAKE THAT your Oops day, and schedule the recovery after! (I found social engagements an extra entanglement, and a way to self-sabotage by oopsing 2 days before Christmas! It took 2 weeks to deal with a 2 day issue).
Okay, so then I start fasting. Water and Black Coffee. Electrolytes (Salt, Magnesium, Potassium… NOT drink mixes!)
And if I did a LOT of damage, I also start walking. I shoot for 5 miles/day WHILE fasting. This really helps the BLOOD numbers, but not the weight loss. LOL.
And I stick to it. Usually in 2-3 days the weight is off (At or below my morning weight before the oops). I fast one more day to “Lock it in”. That will put me BELOW that weight.
At that point, I am back on the wagon, and my head is straight.
==
One adjustment. I have taken vacations, come back +18lbs after 9 days (Jut recently).
[I stayed Keto, but ate EVERY day, less control over food].
Because of this, or if I CARBED OUT (like Thanksgiving, last year), I can suffer with Hunger for 3 days, while fasting. It makes fasting HARDER, believe it or not! LOL.
So, I will allow myself 1-3 days of FAT fasting. To quelch my hunger and get back into the Keto Way (Carnivore for me). I am finishing my 3rd day right now, actually. Eating 2,500 calories of sausage patties. (Stick to ONE food to help become bored with it. I am clearing out leftovers, LOL).
Tomorrow I will fast. I have already lost 2.2 lbs. This time is different because I actually got sick on the 12hr flight home, it hit me hard the next day, and I am still recovering.
That’s the basics of the protocol. DEVELOP YOUR OWN. you need:
This is designed to allow for the occasional Feast that is followed by Famine.
It’s supposed to be easy enough that you can JUST do it!
HTH
That’s an awesome protocol, and simple.
Easy to follow.
It addresses the REAL issue. How to QUICKLY get back on the wagon?
I had some group sessions when I first started. I was SHOCKED at how many people went on vacation, and never came back to keto. In MONTHS they regained all the weight they lost, and they had to start over. One of them was mid-journey on recovery, and said “It’s a LOT harder this time, like my body is half adapted… I wish I had nipped this in the bud earlier”… And I thought: “Note to self. DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN. EVER!” LOL.
Honestly, every month 1/2 of the people on the call were dealing with getting back on the wagon. Many re-introduced bread (just a little, once a week), etc. And were now out of control.
So, I treat food as a drug. And my food issues as an ADDICTION. One I cannot abstain from (for long, anyways).
I know that my maintenance will be a 36 month process… Simply based on how quickly I regain weight eating ONLY KETO (without fasting 3-4 days/week).
But I love your protocol… I hope EVERYONE develops one that works for them!
My pattern as a carb-burner was to fill up to the point of virtually bursting and still be hungry. Now, on keto, I stop being hungry long before my stomach is anywhere near full. There’s plenty of room for more, but I just can’t eat more, because I really don’t want it.
It’s a very weird feeling, but I have learned to enjoy it. The interesting thing, too, is that this sense of satiety has grown even stronger over the past twelve months. As I posted before, I still have sugar/carb cravings, but satiety has taught me the difference between those cravings and actual hunger. I never understood the difference, as a carb-burner, but it’s very noticeable, now, and knowing the difference gives me freedom from having to obey the cravings.
I fully hope and expect that the sugar/carb cravings will eventually go away, just as the alcohol cravings eventually went away after I stopped drinking. But the latter was a years’ long process, so I expect the former to be, as well.
@CaptainKirk … I LOVE THIS!!! Pretty much how I’d been handling my Oops-es, without calling it a protocol. This works EXTREMELY well for the short-term fasts (48-72 hours).
@Westieholic … I was bulimic for 17 years, so totally understand the binging thing. Its awful.
My own experience with either binging or just a bit of a screw-up- has led me down the same path of fasting until the craving has been purged from my system. MCT oil is now my preferred method for coping with the growling stomach while at work. The oil slick that floats across the top of the coffee is a little off-putting, so, I use a stick blender and blast it into the coffee with a little HWC. Then, ya can’t see it anymore- even though its there.
The bigger challenge for me is doing an extended fast. The tribe of big and small humans living in my home require some serious planning, so cooking is done at a minimum. I have to look at the calendar, and figure out during which time frame the least number of people will be at home, and really just “schedule” a longer fast to help with autophagy. So, like next week, my hubby will be out of town for 8 days-so, that’s one down. Of the three who either live here or nearby, two work full-time, and one is only 14 but can cook pretty well on their own. So, that particular week, I won’t really have to do a whole lot of cooking - so that becomes the extended fasting week.
Working up to that, concentrating the food intake to include mostly fat helps incredibly with quashing any cravings that might occur. I’ve done this before, and its much, much easier to fast successfully if you’ve been taking in mostly fats prior to starting. I did a spontaneous 5 day last year, and it was crazy! Just went cold-turkey- after eating all kinds of carb-laden foods. The first couple days were pretty darn wicked, compared to doing a 5 day fast after eating Keto for a few months. Hardly any kind of craving. It was like night and day.
That’s my own personal experience, and it varies with everyone- so you really just have to experiment and find a formula or method that brings you into your own Keto groove. For me, its the MCT in the coffee, and a nibble of Kerrygold butter. If taking in the MCT oil or coconut oil is tough, do try the stick blender method to coax it into your coffee, so it is palatable. Hope something there helps ya! Hang in there!!!
Thank you so much!!!
The realization is the thing!! My mind takes me on long journeys where I think it’s what I want, the Keto person is not “the real me,” etc.
@PaulL weirdly, for me, it’s like a light switch. Post fat fast, carbs hold no appeal. But after an accidental stumble (like I had with sugar free ketchup six months ago) its like I’ve been kidnapped. I don’t even have real motivation to come back. SCARY
Day three water whoosh, y’all!!!
And slept an extra 90 minutes this morning:heart_eyes:
I can be pretty so strict to temptations most days, but man! The other day I was in a class and the teacher brought in coffee cakes and muffins and at the end of class, I grabbed TWO of the coffee cakes!!! what is wrong with me??? I had to fast today for 22 hours and this will be my one and only meal today.
Wow. If this happens again, you should ask her “would you bring a bottle of bourbon to wave under the nose of an alcoholic coworker?” Then tell her every time she offers you food again, you’re complaining to the Human Resources department about her harassment.
What you describe is a good example of the way I can binge as well. You aren’t alone. I also was a young child when it started, and I also was very strong and slim for most of my life. I had extremely active jobs, which I know is the only reason I stayed so fit.
My shopping is based on two things: no/low carb, and cheap. If you have more to spend, I highly recommend grass-fed, cage-free, natural and organic. That siad, I look for fatty meats on sale or clearance. That determines my meat purchases. I buy meaty looking bacon once a month or so. Eggs. At least two types of cheese for variety in flavor. Leafy greens, esp kale and spinach. Cauliflower, occasionally broccoli. European grass-fed butter, Olive oil, heavy whipping cream, cram cheese, sour cream, avocado mayo, coconut oil and butter, apple cider vinegar. Canned asparagus, mushrooms, green beans and tomatoes. Canned salmon, oysters, smoked kippers and herring. Peanut or almond butter. Shade grown coffee. I take my coffee seriously.
Heh, I don’t buy all that at one time, obviously. I try to aim for one week’s worth at a time.
I study all labels. No seed oils, few artificial sweeteners (although so far they don’t seem to negatively affect me). No grains. If I want something I can’t find, I look at Amazon. I have nothing carby in my home that I can binge on.
I use a leak proof to go coffee cup and shake vigorously before each sip, no matter what weird supplements I’ve added. Keeps it smooth and mixed
I need deets on the coffee cup. My fake yeti is no good for this.
Thanks for the grocery list. Is canned asparagus good?
I was a natural intermittent faster… so interested in running outside I never came home for meals. Later, so picky that I would only eat one meal a day.
I only packed on lbs when I started driving!!!
@diygurl19 - you haven’t lived until you’ve eaten Trader Joe’s cinnamon cake by tearing off hunks… in the car!!
Let’s see…ok, my coffee cup is from Aladdin. The canned asparagus is yucky, so I mix it into pesto or bury it with cheeses.
I forgot to list avocado!
I had drifted toward the “20 g carb” and away from adding fat.
Adding fat always worked.
@BuckRimfire - she’s gotten the message over the past two days. I think my saying no and then yes fed in to her offering stuff.
@CaptainKirk - what ketone tester do you use? I need a recommendation.
@David_Stilley thanks for that link. Dr. Fung:heart_eyes:
I’m lucky in one respect. I can only eat so much before my body loses interest and that’s always been true even of that “second stomach” that delicious carby foods give one.
So for me even a complete multi month long fall off the wagon might amount to eating a single chocolate bar a day over my regular good diet. I can only do so much damage. I had this happen this last holiday season. About 60 days of Mars Bars . But at the end of it I still didn’t have any more weight they I’d get from a 3 day cheat. Considering my issues with my will and cravings I’m ridiculously lucky about my strong satiety signaling.
I hit a brand new low weight this morning on my protocol. 104 lbs even (my past one was actually a half pound more). But now I’m super torn. A part of me wants to continue the protocol and see where it goes. Right now I’m eating fatty beef + salt to complete satiety once a day and still having two cups of creamed coffee earlier in the day. It’s actually a dead easy protocol and I dearly would like to know what my body’s final set point doing it would be. But I’m past my goal now. But damn I’m curious. This idea of many set points depending on protocol fascinates me, and I want to know what my body does when I pull the various levers (love this metaphor, btw).
Thoughts, anyone? Is it really a big deal to get a bit skinny if one isn’t even hungry? I’d end up going back in time, I always do eventually.
I like your protocol!!
I know that salty beef would not be enough to get me the right number of calories. I love the idea of adding 2 fatty drinks per day. That would let me stop obsessing over meal prep.