Notes

1. I bought some shoes. They are open toe. I have ugly feet. This should be interesting. I guess this will be my New Year resolution, to get my feet in decent shape. Thanks to the PCOS, I have terrible skin and paper thin nails that peel if I even look at them funny.

Here are the shoes. They are cute. Also on sale and I had a gift card from Christmas.
Then I found a pair of Ugg boots. Finally. Same deal, on sale and Christmas gift card. I have been looking for something affordable and comfortable for months. This was a major score for me.




Mostly, what I'm saying with all this shoe talk is I got out of the house and went shopping and felt GREAT and had a GREAT time even though my blood pressure was a bajillon over a million, but whatever I was SHOPPING without feeling like I was going to pass out! Wheeeeeee! We even went out to lunch which I haven't done since forever.

I also got a swim suit for the toddler as Grandma bought her some swimming lessons for Xmas. I was very buzzed with the joy of shopping and just being normal for once.

Here's the swim suit (like you care, I know, but the amount of writing I'm doing on this little shopping trip is in direct proportion to how happy I was about it, humor me). The toddler loves it and has been doing ballet performances in it since I brought it home.



2.A relative sat next to a head honcho from a major diet company (think W and W) on the flight home and, due to their visit with me, they knew to ask about low carb. And the head honcho said everything was going low carb.

Yeah, but like I told my relative they aren't ever going to call it low carb because low carb has such bad press. They'll develop their marketing from the low sugar angle. When people don't lose weight because they still eat too many carbs--because it's not just about sugar--the major diet companies can still blame the victim and pimp the next latest and greatest ponzi diet scheme. Very nice marketing cycle they've developed for themselves!

Also, the more mainstream low carb science endorses a low fat paradigm which is not what the good low carb science supports. So it's only partial progress.

But still progress. Another 100 years of murky science and Big Ag food politics and we may all finally agree.

3.Said relative kept marveling at the food I made over the holiday.

"This is low carb?"

What did they think I ate? Baby poop? Dog hair? Insects?

People are funny.

Upon further questioning, I was told "your cooking has improved immensely."

That's good. I think.

Post Game Analysis

Yesterday was okay. Maybe a little too active for me as I hit the wall around 5pm, but some salt and sugar perked me up pretty quickly.

Beyond that, I can fit into the next size down of jeans. They are a smidge tight in the thighs and just a teeny bit tight in the waist. The thigh situation means they are not terribly flattering. Not sure how much more weight I need to lose. Probably 10lbs but 5lbs might do it.

Maybe.

I think I'll wear them around the house to remind me of what the priority is (i.e. not carbs!).

So close, yet so far. The really odd thing is the size above is hanging on me. I'm about 5lbs away from losing my pants if I lift my hands over my head. They've become hip huggers and sag so much, I have to wear heels with them or the cuffs drag on the floor.

The toddler has boogies. Again. Sigh. Is this how it goes in your house? Just a constant merry go round of sick? Or is it really the case that she has my immune system, which kind of functions like that of a gnat without a spleen.

Stupid sick.

On a happier note, I also perfected a recipe for a gluten free low carb pumpkin cranberry muffin. Delish, perfect for this time of year and only 10g of carbs. Gobble Gobble.


And now I'm off to live day 2 of 4mg.

From Good to Better with Hope of Pumpkin Festivals

Last night?

ZERO asthma.

NADA.

Yay!

Did the toddler sleep through the night?

Nope.

Boo hiss!

I could really use some good, restorative sleep.

I did exercise though. I hate not exercising, it has been hard to just sit around and not do much other than feel like my fat was getting fatter. So my thought was to exercise until I taper, then do nothing for about 48 hours until I'm sure my body has adjusted. Then exercise, lightly, until the next taper. Rinse and repeat.

Sounds like a plan to me.

In other good news, this Saturday is looking super gorgeous and the pumpkin patch is still going strong. Since the hubby and toddler got rained out the last time and I was too sick to go, it looks like we are getting a second chance at my favorite Fall activity.

This week is looking very happy. I could get used to this.

I am wracking my brain trying to find a way to do the mummy thing I mentioned yesterday too. There has to be a way. We'll see how I feel with the taper down to 4mg.

OH! And I finally bought a scale and I have lost another 5lbs. How I don't know because there's been zero exercise and I've been eating more--I have prednisone appetite and there was a lot of cake over the weekend. Total carb binge so I know I'm retaining a buttload of water.

On the one hand, I've felt really negative about my weight especially with the lack of exercise. On the other, I noticed my bracelet was just hanging on my wrist and my ring had become capable of just slipping off. So the scale helped me sort all that out and shut down some of the self-abuse.

I'm now back to low carbing and hopefully I'll drop another 20 lbs asap. At that point, I'll be in the home stretch to the current goal weight.

Food Pyramid Not Supported by Science

I swear, I'm going to take a nap after this, but this is an interesting study. Critical of mainstream nutritional thought which always gets my attention.

Here's the abstract from the The International Journal of Applied and Basic Nutritional Sciences.

"Concerns that were raised with the first dietary recommendations 30 y ago have yet to be adequately addressed. The initial Dietary Goals for Americans (1977) proposed increases in carbohydrate intake and decreases in fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and salt consumption that are carried further in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) Report. Important aspects of these recommendations remain unproven, yet a dietary shift in this direction has already taken place even as overweight/obesity and diabetes have increased.

Although appealing to an evidence-based methodology, the DGAC Report demonstrates several critical weaknesses, including use of an incomplete body of relevant science; inaccurately representing, interpreting, or summarizing the literature; and drawing conclusions and/or making recommendations that do not reflect the limitations or controversies in the science.

An objective assessment of evidence in the DGAC Report does not suggest a conclusive proscription against low-carbohydrate diets. The DGAC Report does not provide sufficient evidence to conclude that increases in whole grain and fiber and decreases in dietary saturated fat, salt, and animal protein will lead to positive health outcomes.

Lack of supporting evidence limits the value of the proposed recommendations as guidance for consumers or as the basis for public health policy. It is time to reexamine how US dietary guidelines are created and ask whether the current process is still appropriate for our needs."

Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

We wonder why people are fatter than ever? Because they keep listening to the experts who tell them to eat carbs and cut fat.

Then doctors smack the obese around with the old 'personal responsibility' stick to their face during appointments and on their blogs, as the general public cheers them on.

When history looks back on this time period, it will not have good things to say about how medicine interpreted or implemented nutritional science. Nor about how the obese were treated.

Data on Saturated Fat and Low Carb Diets

This was an interesting article. Thought I would pass it on.

Think saturated fat contributes to heart disease? Think again.

The short of it: Saturated fat is really not the problem, carbohydrates are. Low carb diets are good.

And this sentence really highlights the problem with modern nutrition advice: "'Carbohydrate intake has been intimately linked to metabolic syndrome, which is a combination of risk factors that can increase CVD risk."

Answer this question. What foods primarily comprise the recommended low fat diet? Packaged carbs--pasta, cereal, rice etc... Even fruit is a problem, if you eat enough (I used to eat way too much thinking I was being super healthy in doing so. Like 8-10 servings a day which I could justify because they were low calorie, low fat and they prevented cancer/heart disease).

So, to review: Low fat diets = High carb eating = Obesity/Metabolic Syndrome.

Some salient quotes:

"....replacing saturated fat with mono-unsaturated fat yielded uncertain effects on CVD risk, while replacing saturated fat with carbohydrates was found to be ineffective and even harmful especially when refined carbohydrates such as starches or sugars were used in place of fat . Replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat gave a small reduction in CVD risk, but even with optimal replacement the magnitude of the benefit was very small. According to Mozaffarian it would be far better to focus on dietary factors giving much larger benefits for CVD health, such as increasing intake of seafood/omega-3 fatty acids, whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and decreasing intake of trans fats and sodium."

And

''Carbohydrate intake has been intimately linked to metabolic syndrome, which is a combination of risk factors that can increase CVD risk,'' said Jeff Volek, PhD, RD, Department of Kinesiology, University of Connecticut. His research showed that very low carbohydrate diets can favorably impact a broad spectrum of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk factors, even in the presence of high saturated fat intake and in the absence of weight loss

.

Kiran Musunuru, MD, PhD, MPH. Cardiovascular Research Center and Center for Human Genetic Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, focused on the role of carbohydrates and fats on atherogenic dyslipidemia - a new marker for CVD risk often seen in patients with obesity, metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. He showed that low-carbohydrate diets appear to have beneficial lipoprotein effects in individuals with atherogenic dyslipidemia, compared to high-carbohydrate diets, whereas the content of saturated fat in the diet has no significant effect."

Violating the Laws of Fatness

My pants are tight.

But I've lost 7 lbs.

I was not exactly thrilled about having a doctor's appointment right after a vacation that featured cherry pie nightcaps. With whipped cream.

I was awash in carbs all last week. Good carbs, bad carbs, I left no carb uneaten. It was a fun break from my usual routine, albeit a bit painful as my digestive system went into shock at the onslaught of refined foods. My entire gut just ached for the first three days until it finally adjusted.

So I had my carb face on; that particular blimp bloat that comes with sugar in the morning, sugar in the evening, sugar all the time. That pic of me with the toddler a few posts back is what carb face, in its full glory, looks like.

Because I don't have a scale, I had no idea how much water I was retaining from the junk I ate, but I wasn't curious enough to be happy to get on the scale at the doctor's office, you know?

But that's what I did today.

Stepped on the scale and found out I lost 7 lbs*.

However, my pants won't fit until I get rid of all the water retention that comes with a carb binge.

And they say the universe doesn't have a sense of humor.

As for the doc appointment, it was fine because the asthma is fine. Very unexciting and uneventful. Too bad I can't become so dull as to not need these appointments at all! My diagnosis now is 'severe persistent asthma.' Prior to March it was 'moderate persistent asthma.'

*Since the last weigh in which was in...late May? I think. Meaning I'm losing like 2.33 lbs a month. Dismal. I'm telling ya, I can't eat the watermelon and corn (or anything I ate on vacation). I bet I would've lost twice that if I'd cut out those carbs. Although, I haven't finished losing all the water I've retained, so maybe the weight loss is more than I think it is.

I really need to get a scale, but that requires the toddler to become fully self-sufficient on the potty, which I estimate will take forever at the rate we're going. Right now I've got too much potty junk in there to fit in a scale.

Shape Up

I am getting bored with working out. I don't feel like it's helping me lose weight anymore.

Which I know, for me, exercise is not really the answer. But I had toned so much and had such great success in changing my body shape, I thought if I just did more and did it harder, I could continue to have dramatic positive results.

Also, I do like being physically active, but it is a time suck and a logistical challenge. I'm hitting the wall of 'do I really want to kill myself and move heaven and earth to find even more time to devote to squats?'  I mean, how many squats do I need to do?

The fact is, I have insulin resistance, a parting gift from prednisone. And if I am not eating a strict low carb diet, I am not going to lose weight. That's just the way it is.There aren't enough squats in the world to make me skinny.

I am low carbing, but not strictly. As in, I ate a plum yesterday and I will probably have corn-on-the-cob tonight. The other day, I had a small piece of french toast. I won't gain weight, but I won't lose weight. Little stuff matters even if every other thing I put in my mouth has zero carbs.

So I need to refocus on what I'm eating and stop thinking if I just work out more that will solve the problem. The carbs have got to go.

By the way, one of the workouts I've been doing is a 20 minute Shape 'body makeover' dvd. It's fast, hits hard, and never seems to get easy. The extra segments kind of suck--too much channeling of yoga, pilates, and Cirque du Soleil contortionist for me, but the main 20 minute workout is fantastic. Highly recommend.

The Accidental Anorexic

So I'm crashing today. With a major headache. Feel like absolute crap.

Then I eat and WOW, amazeballs, I feel soooo much better.

The wheels start turning. Hmmm. What have I eaten today?

1.Sugar free chocolate muffin for breakfast--200 calories if I'm lucky.

2.Another muffin for lunch with a 1/2 cup serving of cottage cheese (which I could not finish)--350 calories if I'm lucky.

3.Snack: Some Smarties since I'm feeling so crappy, chased down with Advil for the throbbing sinus headache.

4.Dinner is a bust--can't work up the appetite to eat the low carb taco salad I've made. So I have the only things that sound good to me; string cheese and 4 strawberries with 1/2 cup dark chocolate mousse (naturally low carb). Somewhere between 350 and 400 calories.

Suddenly I feel better. Imagine that, you gotta eat if you want to feel good. Who knew?

What is going on?

Ketosis can kill appetite pretty well, but there's no way I'm in ketosis--haven't been strict low carbing due to the blood sugar although I probably do come in below 100g of carb a day. Maybe I should check the ketostix just to be sure? Eh, screw that, they're expired.

I don't know what the deal is, but I think I need to pay more attention to what I'm eating and get above 1000 calories a day, whether I'm hungry or not. For some reason, I'm back to where nothing sounds good, which mucks up meal planning as I can't decide what to make because, in reality, I would rather not touch food ever again. It all sounds like vomitus to my stomach.

Worse, I'm oblivious to all of this. I'm not hungry. I just feel like crap, my body isn't even telling me to feed myself.

Why does every itty bitty little thing have to be such drama? For the millionth time, I just want my life back. Is that too much to ask?