Hey folks! Nope, I didn't drop off the edge of the world. Sorry it's been, like, FOREVER since my last post. Right now, I'm feeling great. It was a roller coaster for a while. Mood swings, depression, out of control eating... the gamut. The good thing about coming out on the other side though, it reinforces that I do best when eating a lower carb diet. Sugar and higher amounts of carbs help me lose control (I won't say make me lose control, but they do not encourage healthy eating). I tend to binge when faced with highly sugared or highly carb-ed foods. Get me back on low carb, the cravings disappear and I'm back in control. Now, I just need to figure out how to maintain it. The problem in the past has been that I feel in control so I think "I can handle it". But I can't, and the switch flips. By the time I'm able to pull myself out of it I've put 10-15 lbs back on that I just worked so hard to take off. Round and round we go. Gaaaah!
So then comes the questions, "Now what?" & "How do I feel on lower carb?" The last one's easy... I feel great. I'm in control and I don't binge. The "Now what?", that's a bit more difficult. Right now I'm tweaking things and figuring out what works for me. I do fine with most vegetables, but sweet potatoes and squash (like pumpkin) tend to trigger cravings. Fruit in moderation is fine, but I do best if it's something that's in season and I eat some fat with it. I'm learning. Here's what my typical day of eating has been lately... mornings I eat a huge breakfast with lots of protein and veggies, lunch is more protein and a BAS (Big Ass Salad) with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and dinner is more protein and veggies. I tried breakfast without the veggies a couple times and found that it just doesn't hold me as long. I'm obsessed with sauteed cabbage right now. This morning I made cabbage, bell pepper, mushroom and kale....yummmm!!
I'm working on finding the joy in eating healthy, natural foods. The colors, textures, flavors. As I made my lunch yesterday I was thinking how pretty my salad was with all the colors (I almost texted a picture of it because it was so pretty). It tasted amazing too. As a bonus, I feel amazing when I eat this way. Hard to argue with that.
I've also been doing more strength training. I set up a gym area in my garage and I've been lifting 3x a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays. I do some sort of cardio on Mondays & Fridays. After doing some reading I've decided to do my workouts post dinner. It's been working well, it just means I have to plan dinner better than I have in the past (which is a good thing). The combo of working out and eating clean has been doing wonders for my psychological state. Shocking, I know!
The last change I've made recently is starting Dr. Jack Kruse's Cold Thermogenesis Protocol
If you didn't follow the link, the Cliff Notes version is that I'm attempting to make myself cold adapted. The theory behind it intrigues me so I figured why not? Testing it out for 30 days won't hurt anything. I am completely aware that this is not for everyone and some of you may be reading this, shaking your head and saying "She's gone off the deep end". It's a possibility lol.
So now you're up to date. I know I promised pictures in my last post (ages ago) but I chickened out. Why, I don't know. The idea of posting pictures in a bikini completely freaked me out. I would like to have pictures documenting the CT protocol though, so I'm going to have to suck it up I think.
As always...Keep Moving Forward!
