My LCHF lifestyle - week 14

14 weeks or 3 months has gone by and I am excited to show you more progress. I'm still keeping on LCHF, being strict on avoiding any carbohydrates and keeping the fat intake high. But last week was special and I'd like to share my experience with you before looking at the results.

Sure doesn't!

Last week, I went on a three day fast. In three days, I probably ate less than 1000 calories. This wasn't voluntary, but a consequence of some stomach aches that I've had. Thinking about the reasons, I have narrowed them down to either slight food poisoning (I had raw seafood last Sunday) or a virus. Anyway, I got over it and what I wanted to say was that this was the easiest fasting period I've ever experienced. Despite practically not eating, I had no issues with focus and energy during the day and I was able to work normally. The only thing I needed more than usual was sleep. As a probable bonus, I may have gone back to ketosis (but this time, starvational ketosis) which I kept going after my stomach aches were gone and as a result, my weight loss rate skyrocketed. But beware, this kind of dieting isn't something I would recommend and I don't plan to voluntarily repeat it myself. Overall, it is still much better to be able to eat normally, even if the weight loss rate is slightly slower.

I am also happy to say that I am fulling taking on the festive times of December. I don't recall ever being on so many parties, being surrounded with good food and plenty of booze. I am not holding myself back, but still I have managed to loose a good bit of weight in December. No hard feelings, regrets and self-pitying for me in January I suppose B-). Now, let's look at the numbers.

My weight and waistline progress in the past 14 weeks. In the past three months, I have lost over 10 kilograms. More than on any other diet ever! Click on the picture to see it in full size.

Today

(Dec 23th 2013)

2 weeks ago

(Dec 9th 2013)

Day 1

(Sep 20th 2013)

Difference

(2 weeks)

Difference

(since day 1)

Weight

101,2kg

102,4kg

112,0kg

-1,2kg

-11,8kg

Waistline

115,0cm

115,5cm

126cm

-0,5cm

-11cm

My big fat Christmas dinner


Christmas is coming and I plan to take a full go on the Christmas eve dinner. Here is my menu:

Apparently, even Santa is not safe from
sugar.

Cold starter
Light mousse of celery and green apple

Soup
Parsley soup cooked in strong home made beef stock

Main course
Veal loin filled with porcini and cottage cheese, topped with home made beef sauce with plenty of butter

Desert
Low carb orange cake

Doesn't look like an LCHF dinner? Well, it is. There will be double cream in the cold starter, butter and cream in the soup, plenty of butter in the main course sauce and the desert will be made with almond flour, which is full of fat. There are no starches, apart from a very small 50 gram potato that I intend to put into the parsley soup to improve its texture. That and a few grams of sugars coming from green apple and orange.

Very interestingly, all the dishes on my Christmas menu originate from traditional cooking, taking the basic ideas from Slovene, Italian and French cuisine. If you are wondering how is it possible to eat all this and still keep on losing weight, than you haven't read this blog carefully enough. Or, you haven't been paying attention to your grandmother! Remember, if you take on an LCHF journey yourself, that's the food you'll be able to eat all the time. Just stay away from carbohydrates, especially all kinds of sugar. And, instead of a Chrismas carol, imagine what Santa would look like if he signed his advertising contract with The Butter Company?

Thank you for following this blog. I plan on making another post this year in the Tips & Motivation section. Until then, I wish you a merry Christmas and lovely holidays!

My LCHF lifestyle - week 12

It's been 12 weeks since I made some major changes in my diet and these changes also affected my lifestyle. My motivation for making these changes was a decade of my life constantly gaining weight. In time, I developed metabolic syndrome and was knocking on the gates of obesity. Definitively not something that I would have on my "nice to have in life" list! At the same time, my motivation to write this blog emerged from literally shocking data about what really makes us fat and gives us metabolic syndrome. I am still amazed how the mainstream medicine and media promote all sorts of solutions that only short-term effective at best. I consider myself as one of the hundreds of millions of victims of this informational misdirection, and the purpose of this blog is to bust a few commonly known, but incorrect myths.

I also received e-mails and messages from some. Thank every single one of you for not only taking time to read my blog, but also to stand out at give me feedback. I am trying to reply to everyone as much as my schedule allows me to. You can contact me either by writing your message in the comments below, or reach me on Facebook.

In the past 12 weeks, I have already written a few posts about that and more are to come, but since this is my weekly progress update, here are my numbers.

My weight and waistline progress in the past 12 weeks. Weight is going down nicely, while waistline seems to be flat. In fact, my waistline is changing for the better, but I have noticed that I was doing my measurements wrong.

Today

(Dec 11th 2013)

2 weeks ago

(Nov 25th 2013)

Day 1

(Sep 20th 2013)

Changes

(2 weeks)

Changes

(since day 1)

Weight

102,4kg

104,7kg

112,0kg

-2,3kg

-9,6kg

Waistline

115,5cm

115,5cm

126cm

0,0cm

-10,5cm

Weight

After a few weeks of slow decline, my weight fell considerably in the past two weeks and it almost matched the rate of progress I had at the beginning. I am not really sure what I did differently in the past two weeks, other than slightly increasing green vegetables in my meals. One thing is for sure: persistence pays off! In the past two weeks, I never had serious drops of motivation, but looking at the -2,3kg figure still feels like a cherry on a top of a cake, if you catch my drift ;). Also, I'll soon need to increase the span on the graph. A 98kg mark on the bottom will sure look good.


Waistline

Basically, my waistline data for the last 3 weeks or so should be ignored due to a systematic measurement error that I was doing. I measure my waistline every morning immediately after waking up and recently I have noticed that I was too tight on the meter, making the result less than my waistline really was. So I decided to keep measuring my waistline, but keeping that 115,5cm value until I actually reach it. I am getting very close to it, so I expect that in the next two weeks, I will be able to post a smaller, while still realistic number.


Holidays are coming

Eating low carb - high fat doesn't mean no desserts. Most
of your favorite desserts can be made LCHF with only
minor modifications. I am a big fan of cheesecakes such
as the one on the picture. If you are interested in the recipe,
drop me a comment or contact me via Facebook.

December is time of celebrations, spending good times with friends, accompanied by good food and drinks. One of the great things of the LCHF lifestyle is that it allows you to fully enjoy this. LCHF does not restrict alcohol, as long as you stick to dry wine and/or non-sweetened spirits, such as whiskey, vodka, cognac, rum, grappa etc. You can enjoy plenty of foods, like salads with reach fatty dressings, juicy cuts of meat, eggs and all kinds of hams, sausages and such. Cheese, sour cream and mayo are also a yes. Just keep your fingers of bread, candy, potatos, rice and pasta. And if you really have a taste for a sweet, search out Google for LCHF desserts. There are plenty of recipes out there that will make your sweet day without raising your insulin and turning you into a fat storing monkey that you once was ;).

I wish you a nice, successful and healthy week!