I managed a morning of work while fasting, and returned home for the lovely brunch DD prepared. She kept it low carb for me, and it was delicious. A north African inspired dish, a little spicy, with meat and tomatoes in a creamy sauce, all hot through, then you break eggs into it and they poach in the sauce. Usually served over rice or couscous, she made me cauliflower rice for it!.

I am going to a nice walk in the spring sunshine, and will do a little gardening today.

My best wishes to all the mamas of every kind.

madeleine

Trish, I never bought Obesity Code because Dr Fung said that it's the same information that is on his blog but in a more organized form, so I just read the IDM blog. I did buy the Complete Guide to Fasting and that book is excellent. I read it over and over. I feel the same way about Diabetes Code.....what could he possibly say that he hasn't already said in his blog? I think it's amazing that he gives out so much free information, especially since this is how he makes his living. He does offer a paid plan online, but never really pushes you to sign up for it, just lets it be known that it's available. I wish I had the money to participate.

I'm sorry you didn't feel good. You probably did have a fever and really needed that sleep. You are going through a lot right now with you Dad so there's more important things to worry about than your weight, but you health IS important. I hope you Dad starts to accept that this is really what's best for him. His life will change, but not necessarily in a bad way. He needs daily care that he would never have in his apartment. It's hard to know you're giving up your home. I know he's afraid of what might lie ahead. You can eventually make him see that it will be OK.

The only thing I buy low fat is milk because we don't like full fat milk. I don't buy anything else low fat or light. I buy full fat greek yogurt and use butter regularly. I cook a lot with butter and put it on my veggies. I eat eggs daily and they are high fat. What I don't do is eat the fat that's hanging off a steak, (YUK) or add fat just for the sake of adding fat. I prefer pork shoulder to pork loin and dark meat chicken to white meat, both of which are higher fat. I will have to look at MFP one of these days and see what my fat % is. I can't remember where I read this recently, but this one guy said "If your body is high fat, then all you need is low carb." I also heard that if you eat fat, your body will burn that instead of burning the fat from your body. I know of a lot of people who don't eat high fat and have lost weight well, controlled blood sugar, and have healthy lab numbers. Not eating high fat isn't the same as eating low fat. We all have our own opinions and that's mine.

Hellmans mayo lists 0 sugar on the nutrition label, but in the ingredients it lists sugar, so I think it's a miniscule amount. I wouldn't worry about it. I think Duke's is the only mayo that has 0 sugar but we don't like Duke's.

I have not been weighing all week because I didn't want to see the number, but I forced myself to do it today and my weight stayed the same, at 193, and that was after having a few cups of coffee AND breakfast. So I dodged a bullet. It's not because I stayed on plan.

Mad, I hope you will be able to stick to a plan that will help with your fatty liver. I have never been checked for fatty liver. My liver tests come back within range and my AST is actually a little below normal, but I'm heard that those tests can come back normal and you can still have fatty liver disease. With my past eating habits I don't know how I could avoid it.

Are you planning on doing long term fasts or just IF with an eating window?

My lab values are fine Carol: knowing is an incidental finding from all the ultrasounds and CT scans I had. I also found out I had gall stones, but have never had symptoms of gallbladder disease.
However, 75 percent or more of diabetics have fatty liver, (most obese people do, eventually) and Dr. Fung explains about it in the diabetes book. Its a method for the liver to store extra glucose, so basically I have to get rid of the extra glucose, through fasting and low carb diet. So called liver cleanses don't work (I already knew that) and problems don't show up on labs until cirrhosis sets it.
I think I knew some of this, but not causes. But I find it scary. I am not currently having too much difficulty, but I will be working and getting ready for my trip away for the next 10-11 days, so there will be more challenges. I have a doctors appointment in there too. SO hoping that I will be able to stay on plan. But hope needs actions to make it happen, like planning meals and having enough food made to take with me when needed while I work.

I hope you can keep losing, you are in onederland now and should stay there.


Trish, hope you feel better soon.
And a big hello to lurkers and other friends, have a good spring.

We have a critter in our house. It ran across the living room right before my company came yesterday. Looked like a mouse or chipmunk. We lived here 37 years and this is a first for us. It ran under the refrigerator and we haven't see it since. DH set mouse traps but nothing, so far. It gives me the creeps. As far as I know there is no food he can get into except the dog's food dish, so maybe we should put that up somewhere during the night. I sure hope it wasn't a pregnant mama or part of a family!!!

That's startling Carol, but usually harmless. Putting food up high isn't much help, they can get everywhere. When I lived in the country, mice were just a given. Everyone had them.

Did well today, but feeling snackish this evening. So I will head to bed early.
I am very tired for some reason. I hope it is because my liver is releasing a lot of glucose and I am processing it out of my cell.

I think the main points are in the obesity code and the other books build on it. And yes, I think you can get most of the info from the blogs and websites.

I found the diabetes code fairly medical, not sure if I would have understood it all without my midwifery and nursing background.

I am knowledgeable to think it makes sense, but not enough to poke holes in the theory. But truly, I don't think the system will be harmful. Its always a matter of being able to stick to something. So I will have another glass of water and head to bed without any snacks.

Best wishes friends.
Carol, I hope you guests didn't see any critters and you had a good visit.

Mad, my guests knew we had the critter, because DH had them stop and buy some mouse traps on their way. Still no sign of it. We had them often when I was a kid. We didn't live in the country but our houses were very close together and if one house had them, they all had them. But it's been years since I had to deal with this and it really creeps me out. Not a real big deal, I guess. DH still thinks it might be a chipmunk. We see them often going under our front steps. Don't know if we see the same one over and over or if there's more than one. DH was going in and out the front door that day and one might have slipped in.

Sometimes the things Dr Fung says get a little too technical for me, but mostly he explains things well. I read what he had to say about fatty liver on his blog and that was a little beyond my understanding but I got the gist of it. It seems that if you are overweight and/or have diabetes, you have fatty liver.

I remember a woman on MFP corrected her fatty liver by VLC. I don't remember if she fasted or not. It has been a few years ago when she told me about it. I don't talk to her any more.

Things are going as well as it can with Daddy. We are planning to have everything out of his apartment by the end of the month. DS got the paperwork done so the Healthcare facility can file for Medicare for Daddy. Daddy is beginning to adjust, but he really has no choice. I don't think he will have a roommate any time soon because I noticed that there are a lot of empty beds/rooms, but of course I could be wrong.

I felt pretty good until I ate breakfast this morning. However, I didn't go to bed until late although I did sleep in my chair for a while. I then went to bed and got up in time to watch the opening of US Embassy in Israel although I slept through some of it. I think it may be dehydration. I'm keeping carbs moderate. I get so dry mouth during the night. I decided last night not to take the mild diuretic that I take. I noticed when I started drinking water this morning that I felt better so I think I'm not drinking enough water.

I wasn't sure I would feel like going to see Daddy but I decided to go any way as we needed to go to the store to get a few groceries. Plus I wanted to go by Bush's chicken and get Daddy an order of chicken gizzards. I'm glad I did. He thoroughly enjoyed them. In fact, pan fried chicken livers and gizzards are what I had for breakfast. I thought chicken liver and gizzard had some carbs in them, but I was surprised when I put it in MFP that they don't.

You know I thought you had to go as low as 20 g of carbs to get the flu like feelings. However, I read to be low carb you need to keep them below 60 g. I'm wondering if you keep your carbs a little higher between 70 g to 100 g which is sort of the middle of the moderate range if you still experience the flu like feelings while your body adjusts. Also adding the fat into the plan, does that cause some reactions like this as the body adjusts to burning real fat instead of body fat? I'm not sure. I just hope the added water will help me start feeling better.

Trish, I read so much on the Low Carb forums and some of them really push eating fat, adding fat to as much as they can. I think it helps for some, but not for others. But there is one woman who sticks to Atkins Induction all the time. Never adds carbs. She said she lost weight twice before but when she started to add carbs they triggered her to go back to her old way of eating and she gained everything back, twice. So this time she decided not to add carbs back but stay on induction. She started out at 299 with a goal of 130, but got down to 114 and has stayed there for 3 years so far. She eats OMAD. Throughout her losing, she ate only boneless skinless chicken breast and salad. She seldom varies, but occasionally will eat tuna instead of the chicken. The only fat she eats is mayo occasionally and she makes her own dressing for her salad with no sugar or carbs. Most people tell her they would not be able to eat the same thing day after day but she says she is determined not to regain her weight. I know she is so obsessive about this, but she is an example of someone who did very well without eating high fat. She might have gone off plan now and then, but if she did, she never mentions it.

I don't think I have ever had the low carb flu. Maybe because I have eaten low carb for so long that my body does not notice it, or maybe I have never really been low enough on carbs to get the flu feelings. I watch obvious carbs like bread, pasta, rice etc, but I don't worry about carbs like breading on chicken or bread crumbs in meat loaf. They are things I rarely eat, anyway. I have my carbs on MFP set at 49 but usually go over, the highest being 100. And sometimes my carbs are lower than 49. Yesterday I had spaghetti. I did not enter my food yet, but I know that will be a high carb day. I am more concerned about my blood sugar than my weight, although I do want to lose more.

I love sauteed chicken livers, but I don't think I could eat the gizzard. Isn't that the rubbery part? I do cook that, but I chop it up and feed it to the dog. I don't think any organ meat has carbs and if they do they are very slight. Not enough to matter. For years we were told not to eat organ meat but I grew up eating liver and kidneys. I love kidneys, but you can't buy them anymore, and I wouldn't know how to cook them.

I think your Dad will probably go back and forth on his feelings until he adjusts to his new life situation. If he gets a room mate, maybe it will be someone he likes, who knows? The important thing is he needs to have the day to day care that he is getting there. He might tell you not to visit so much but actually looks forward to it. He is just trying to make you feel that you are not obligated. I think going a couple times a week is fine if he is happy with that and it still allows you time to live your life. If you and your sister alternate he will have a visitor most days and you can call him on the other days. It sounds like taking things he likes boosts his spirits.

Carol Sue I think you are right about Daddy going back and forth as he adjusts to his situation. In fact, I didn't get to call him as soon as I usually do and he asked DS why I hadn't called yet. Actually I was busy calling the cardiologist's nurse to get a letter stating he has to break his apartment lease for medical disability reasons. DS daughter called the state to find out if there was a law concerning breaking a lease due to disability and there is. Supposedly by state law they cannot charge him penalties for breaking it so that should save him some money there.

I looked up Dr. Jason Fung on line to read his info and I ended up joining it on FB. If y'all do FB, you can go on FB and join the Obesity Code and get all the information that you need without buying the book. I started reading about fasting for beginners. I'm going to read everyday until I get all the information I need.

I don't think I will continue doing CAD. I know I go back and forth with it, but I eat 1/2 avocado with my breakfast eggs and just read on the FB CAD group that avocado can only be eaten during RM. I can't save all the healthy/carbs/fat foods until RM. When I put all that food into 1 meal it makes me too lethargic. I think it would be better to spread them out throughout my eating hours and just do IF.

I had dropped the Berberine thinking it wasn't doing anything. Evidently it was doing more than I thought it was because now that it is out of my system my fbs is hanging around 183 to 185 all of a sudden. I went on Amazon today and ordered 2 more bottles of it. I paid to get it within 1 to 5 work days and hope it is less than 5. I will do my best to keep bs down while waiting to get the order.

I don't think I'm going any where tomorrow. Thursday DS and I have to go to CHF clinic with Daddy and then we will probably have our Hubbies meet us for dinner and then go to Daddy's apartment to get things we want to save back for Daddy etc. There pastor's wife is coming to get the furniture and things she wants and she will probably sale it in garage sale. Then the last Saturday of the month, we are going to have all the grandkids come in and get whatever they want. We plan to be out of there on the 31st.

I hate doing all this, however, since we have no choice but do it, I will be glad when it is done with.

I hope everyone has a good evening.

Trish, I will look on Facebook for the Obesity Code Group, but I still believe that most of the Obesity Code Info is on IDM in the blog. I would think the Diabetes Code info is there too. I really have a problem with Facebook. I think the info is hard to follow, unless I'm doing something wrong.

Cleaning out your Dad's apartment is difficult, but it would be worse if you had to do it because he passed away but you would still have to do it. This way you are in a better frame of mind.

I follow along the CAD thread on the low carb forum. It seems that most people doing it don't eat all their carbs at the RM but only eat 1 carb choice at their RM and just vary it from day to day. I think if you are going to have more than 1 carb choice then you should spread them out through the day. I don't pay much attention to when I eat my carbs, but it just turns out that it's usually at dinner. When I eat my eggs I occasionally have toast with them, but normally it's a carb free meal. I think eggs do have a slight amount of carb, but it's normally considered to be protein and fat.

I bought different bread this week. I just feel like switching from the sprouted grain. I know that they say it is healthier, but I don't know what it's supposed to do for me. It tastes good, but I don't see where it's benefitting me. I was going to get the Sara Lee bread for a change, but then I saw this other bread that is 35 calories per slice and the fiber brings it to 6.5 net carbs. It is white bread but has the more grainy texture that I like. So that will be my bread for a while. I keep it in the freezer and it lasts me a couple months.

We still haven't seen any signs of the critter. I figure he has to be eating something. Most of our dry goods are stored in the basement but we do have some cereal and pasta up here in the kitchen but there's no sign he's been into them or into anything in the basement. There has been nothing in the mouse traps we set. We used to get mice at work. People would have food in their desk drawers and the packages were always chewed open. We were told not to keep food in our desks, but you know how that goes! LOL

My flowers have died off on the lilac bushes so maybe my allergy symptoms will get better. I used to buy generic Clairitin but it didn't seem to be helping, so I switched to generic Zyrtec. I took the first one yesterday and already seem to notice a difference. Their ad says it works even better the second day, so we will see how it goes today. I was reading the package directions and it says anyone over age 65 should consult with a doctor before taking it. I might google and see WHY it says that, but if it works well for me, I'm taking it, at least through the worst of the allergy season.

EDIT I googled, and it said that people over the age of 65 often have impaired kidney function so should be cleared through their doctor before taking it. My doctor checks my kidney and liver function regularly and I have no problem, so far.

Carol Sue Hopefully your critter has found it's way out of the house. One can only hope.

Although I want to lose weight, I am working toward lowering bs and keeping it under control. I don't seem to be able to do that with CAD or going too low with carbs. I think I actually need a moderate amount of carbs in my eating plan.

I read on FB Obesity Code that some do as low as 12 hr fasts. I have decided that I will do between 14 to 16 hr fasts daily. I intended to have a 10 eating window today because I would like to have 5 or 6 hrs between breakfast and lunch and lunch and a snack, but I also don't want to eat if not hungry. I ended up not eating breakfast until after 11 am so it will only be 4 hrs between breakfast and lunch because DH will want to eat at 3. I can push to wait until 3:30 to get 4 hrs between so I will have a 9 hr eating window today. Not sure exactly how I will deal with tomorrow since Daddy has CHF clinic appointment at 2:30 and then I will either have to get DBIL come get DH and us go out to eat or I will have to come back out here to get DH and grab a bite before the 4 of us meet at Daddy's apartment. So it may be one of those days that I get 6 or 7 hrs between breakfast and next meal. That will work. I just notice that after 6 hrs I evidently get an automatic insulin surge because bs reading goes up.

I've decided to just do kind of a IE/IF Moderate carb way of eating. I'm back to my own plan.

The thing I don't like about CAD is that there are a lot of healthy foods that I want to eat, but I don't want to eat them all at RM because they don't fit CM. For example, I had a low carb homemade taquito today for breakfast. I made it with 1 low carb tortilla, 1/2 avocado, 1 egg and 2 slices of bacon and a bit of shredded cheddar cheese. That is a low carb meal for me, however, it is not a CAD low carb (CM) meal even if I had left off the tortilla.

I bought a buffalo steak a while back and I'm going to try it today with a salad, veggies and fruit for dessert. My carbs are less than 75 g at this time and calories less than 1200. I won't eat anything else unless I really, really get hungry and then I will make it a small protein snack.

fatmad I hope all is going well for you.

Thanks friends:
I had an appointment with my family doc today, as she will be prescribing the meds. She really felt the med the sleep doc suggested was not right for me, because of the weight gain issue. She said everyone really gains a lot on it, (as in she has never prescribed it and not had "huge" weight gain in her patient) and she didn't want that with me pre-diabetes.
So the plan is to change my evening med that helps me sleep from what I am currently using. The current one is ok, but has some side effects, and has a dangerous interaction with the antidepressant she wants me to be on, so I will reduce the trazedone and start the other med, and after a few weeks, see her again, and then start the antidepressant. Today I scored slightly lower on the depression scale, after having a couple of weeks of better sleep.
I appreciate that she has my back as far as the diabetes goes.
I am happy to have her to work through this with me.

Trish, I am glad you feel you will get what you want from the facebook group. This guy is not in it for the money. The books were rather cheap as diet books go, and I like being about to look up as I go, and get the references. But I think it might be helpful

Atkins is similar, its meant to be high in good fats. Being low carb and low fat, means you will burn the protein into glucose, and while you will lose weight, you will not control the blood sugar and get rid of the fatty liver as well. But the IF part is really what you like.

best wishes friends

fatmad I love knowing I can trust my doctor to watch after me. I'm glad your doctor is the same.

I do like the IF part of my eating. I ended up with an 8 hr eating window so that means I should have at least a 16 hr fast when I have breakfast tomorrow maybe more. It is amazing to me that even with just a 4 hr fast between breakfast and our main meal, my bs reading before lunch was 119. I haven't been having those for a while on CAD. There is something about just a tad of low carb in the low carb tortilla. I don't know why I need the little bit of starchy carbs, but it works in lowering my bs and that is what I really want.

Trish, I know that you do better when you just do your own plan, but it doesn't hurt to try something else once in a while. When you see your weight/blood sugar go up you will end up going back to what works. But sometimes it's better to stick to one thing for a while to allow it to do it's job.

When I first woke up this morning I was really uncomfortable. We have a Sleep Number bed and I usually keep my side set at 70, which is pretty firm. I checked to see what number it was on and it was on 95!!! That makes the bed feel like a rock. LOL My dog goes under our bed and sometimes he pulls the plugs out on the pump. DH had to plug them back in abut a week ago and I think maybe I pumped my side up really high to make sure it was working and forgot to turn it back down. It can go down by itself if it's leaking air somewhere but it cannot go up higher by itself. After I got up around 6AM I took pain pills and went back to bed until 9AM. I feel much better now.

I have laundry to do today.

I think our critter went down to the basement. We see no signs up here that he's been eating anything. There is a hole behind the stove where the pipe comes through for the gas line and I think he went down that hole. So I might meet up with him while I'm doing laundry. LOL I wonder how long they can go without eating? I will have to ask Mr Google.

Carol: I think some critters find food we never knew was around, and use stuff for food we would never expect. I know we found matches with the heads eaten off, and soap with chew marks in it. And even the cleanest house have stuff they find. Its finding the scat that really lets you know there are there. So I am glad for you if there is no sign of it.

Trish, if you follow the Dr Fung plan, alternating fasting days and regular days (with the right kind of foods) you may find some odd values, and occasional highs. He explains that when you are getting rid of stored glucose in your liver it will temporarily raise your fasting levels. This is basically the Dawn effect, but used to "wring out" the excess stored stuff in our liver. The high fat is important to ensure we don't feel hungry, and it helps us feel more satisfied, but has no effect on our blood sugar. We all know low fat doesn't work, so use that fat to good effect, and restrict the carbs, and keep protein to normal levels. In reading Dr. Fung, one problem I have had is having too much protein when doing low carb. It turns into glucose in my body if I get too much, so I am reducing that.

I am doing well with the fasting, but the low carb will continue to be a challenge, as will keeping the calories to "normal" for the one or two meals I have in a day, and not eat up my calorie savings. I have lost two pounds on the scale since starting and will see how things go. Having the bran added to my smoothie is working, no constipation so far, but nothing too loose either. Maybe I have finally found my happy place with my bowels. Still occasional minor pain/discomfort, but I now know there are no dangers going on.
The results of the second CT scan are fine, and the issue seen on the first one has resolved, so no more tests, no more worries about that. My doc agrees that I probably had a stress related issue with irritable bowel disease, that I was able to heal with the low FODMAP diet, and that I should continue to restrict gluten, as this is not too restrictive a diet.
I didn't tell her about Intensive Dietary Management (Dr. Fung) for now, but will discuss it next month when I go back if I have been able to stick to plan.

I feel safe and normal talking about diet changes here, but I have stopped talking about it outside of this site, even very little to my family, other than telling them I am working to stick to lower carb. I feel embarrassed if I "fall off the wagon" and judged, so its just better to do it quietly and deal with it internally and get support here.

Have a good Thursday friends.