Mars, if it happens again, I will set a timer. I can keep my hypoglycemia in control as long as I don't forget to eat. That really is the trigger for it to go off track for me, whereas my daughter is very sensitive and if she doesn't eat every few hours or if she eats quick carbs without eating protein first, her blood sugar drops way low. But I can keep mine in check as long as I don't skip meals. The problem is if I continue to forget, it will go out of control and then I'll have to regulate it like my daughter does until it settles back down, which can take weeks. I know it's really ridiculous to forget to eat, but sometimes I just get busy and lose track of time, and unless I feel hungry, I don't think of it. I get mad at myself because it's inexcusable and it's embarrassing to say I forgot to eat. (Who does that?!) But I do want to admit what I'm doing wrong on here. Skipping meals is not part of my plan, ever!
Oh, and at the gym, I walked very, very slowly, so I wasn't burning a whole lot of calories or anything. I wasn't even sweating because I went slow enough to not have to breathe out of my mouth because of trying to avoid dry socket. But we were there for an hour and a half, so I walked four miles.
And believe me, if I had had to eat a Snickers Bar to get my blood sugar back up quickly, I would have made that "sacrifiice" but eating Jif worked and I do allow it on my modified version of the diet. I agree with you, though: When it comes to medical issues, do what you have to do!
Jacqui, I think it's great that you can forget about food, not at all ridiculous. Just the practicality of it is an issue because of reactive hypoglycemia. Maybe once you have more miles on Slow Carb, your body will more reliably let you know when it needs food. And how great to lose yourself in EXERCISE! If that's your idea of taking it easy, I can't wait to see what you do when you're past the dental precaution! I would not be at all embarrassed to forget a meal, quite the opposite!
Location: Home of the Pirates, Steelers and Penguins
Posts: 13,431
S/C/G: 217/176/142
Height: 5'2
Chickadee, DH is the nature lover in this house. He feeds everything! He is always calling me over to the window to look at this bird or that bird. To me, it's just a bird. LOL When we start to get too many groundhogs or racoons lurking around our yard he sets out his box trap, catches them, and relocates them to the woods down the road. The nature things that effect me are pretty skies when the sun sets and riding down a snowy road in the winter and seeing the ice on the trees.
Jacqui, the fact that exercise drops your blood sugar adds to the fact that you forgot to eat lunch. Even if your exercise was not strenuous. One thing I was told as a diabetic was to test blood sugar before exercise. If it is below 100, eat a snack before exercising. Having reactive hypoglycemia is almost like having diabetes...your blood sugar responses are not normal. Maybe you need to get into the habit of having something handy to eat before exercise, like a protein bar, or a Slim Jim, something like that. It doesn't have to be an actual meal, but just something to create a blood sugar response.
I too never forget to eat, even when I'm sick. LOL I "want" to eat as soon as I get out of bed in the morning, but I am in the habit of postponing it for a few hours because once I start eating I want more and more.
I'm confused about the 4 hour part of this plan. Are we supposed to make sure we eat every 4 hours, or never sooner than every 4 hours. I know that a diabetic is supposed to allow 4 hours between meals to allow their blood sugar to go back down before eating again. That is a big problem for me. I eat too soon after the last meal.
I doubt if I will ever pig out on Carb Day. For me, it s just a day that I'm allowed to eat whatever carbs I'm hungry for. But I would never be eating lots of carbs just because I'm supposed to. Part of that is because 7 years of being diabetic has me constantly on a carb alert. My sweet eating is almost non-existant. Once in a while when DH is eating a donut I will have him break off a one-bite piece and I will eat it. I can't imagine eating a whole donut, ever. So if stuffing yourself with carbs is supposed to help on this plan, I am at a disadvantage. Right now I just want a plate of spaghetti. It has been one of my favorite foods all my life. I eat it with just a tiny bit of sauce and 8 meatballs. I tell myself that the protein in the meatballs is preventing the blood sugar spike from the pasta. Oh, and lots of parmesan cheese. When I eat pasta in a restaurant and they bring that little shaker of cheese, I just unscrew the top and dump it on. LOL It would take me a half hour of shaking it to get the amount of cheese I want. I already have it planned that we are having spaghetti on Thursday. LOL
Mars, weight gain involves so much more than just what we ate and drank. No one will ever explain it to me. I don't understand why you gained so much after carb day and we didn't.
My weight stayed the same today. Still at 200. I did eat an awful lot of food yesterday but it was low carb. We went to the casino and ate the buffet. My whole plate was meat. Both trips! LOL I can't remember what I had for lunch. I think I didn't have lunch because breakfast was around 10 and then I knew we would be eating the buffet so I wanted to be hungry. We ate the buffet around 3:30.
B Eggs and sausage
L ?
D casino buffet...steak, chicken, fish, sausage, bit of green beans
S scrambled eggs at bedtime
We had a storm and power outage right at bedtime. I had to go to sleep without my CPap. I'm surprised I was able to fall asleep. I am so dependent on it. The power came on around 1 and I put my CPap on right after I reset the time on my clock.
205 lbs today. Wrong direction, scale, lol! That will teach me to skip a meal! I probably didn't eat enough calories (or drink as much water since I always drink water with meals) and my metabolism is saving me from starvation, lol! Hopefully, things will start moving in the right direction soon. I'm in the "June Weight Loss Challenge" under "Chicks Up for a Challenge," and I've set my goal for this month at 200 lbs. Of course, reaching that goal will require my scale's cooperation!
Week 5: High 206.5, Low 204.5
5/31--(202.5) 206 Carb Day
6/1--(203) 206.5
6/2--(202.5) 206
6/3--(202) 205.5
6/4--(201) 204.5
6/5--204.5
6/6--205.5 Carb Day Week 6: High 206.5, Low 204.5
6/7--206
6/8--206.5
6/9--205.5
6/10--206.5
6/11--205.5
6/12--204.5
6/13--204.5 Carb Day Week 7:
6/14--204.5
6/15--205
6/16--
6/17--
6/18--
6/19--
6/20--
Today's Meals: Breakfast:
2 fried eggs
3 link sausages
Mio water
Lunch:
Leftover Manwich hamburger with leftover steamed broccoli and cauliflower mixed in
Mio water
Snack:
Dinner:
Grilled BBQ skinless chicken breast
Green beans
Water
Today's Exercise:
2.5 mile walk around the track and 3 sets of 10 reps each on 8 arm and chest machines
Mars, lol! I doubt when I am over my tooth issue, I will exercise any more than that. I do hope to add in some weights though.
Carol Sue, you are so right about the exercise contributing to the hypoglycemic reaction. Having a snack handy is a great idea. Years ago, I used to take string cheese with me to the gym for that very reason. I might just have to add that to my list of allowed foods now! I am not exactly sure what Tim Ferriss is advising with the 4-hour recommendation, but I thought he was simply saying eat every four hours, not earlier, not later, but I'm not positive about that. And I agree with you on pigging out on quick carbs just for the sake of doing it. I don't think that's a good idea at all and downright dangerous for people with insulin issues. As far as I'm concerned, Carb Day is just a day to eat some favorite foods that you can't have otherwise so you won't feel deprived and fall off the wagon and to boost your calories once a week to keep your metabolism running efficiently.
Good morning! I think the reason the scale went up, and still hasn't come all the way down, is that I did eat a ton of fast carbs 'just for the sake of it.' And that was at the end of the day after eating of lot of everything else. Let's just say I tested the outer limits. I weighed in at 170 today, not at all surprised it's not back to baseline yet. I really do believe in this plan--plan to be in it for the long haul--so this is just a blip that was worth the info it yielded: there IS a limit for Carb Day! I'm relieved in a way because, like Carol Sue, I don't beleive I can regularly revert to old habits without veering off.
Carol Sue No doubt you've tried the pasta substitutes? What's your take on spaghetti squash and those soy pastas that have almost zero cals--forget the name? I was spared the craving for pasta, so for me these things work pretty well as vehicles for sauce, parmesan, etc.
Jacqui Keep workin' it girl! I'm so impressed with your exercise.
Chickadee I'm still thinking about those trees!
Rennie
Today's food will be about the same as last week:
B omelet with mushroom, onion, asparagus & whey shake/coffee
L salad with chicken & pinto beans, evoo (& last of the Walden Farms 1000 Island).
D chicken, avocado slices on a bed of shredded cabbage, carrots, scallion, evoo
S BBQ soynuts & a little whey shake in my coffee. I love that stuff! It will be the last artificially sweetened food to go.
Water will be infused with Republic of Tea cardamon/cinnamon/turmeric. I don't much care for it but already made it.
Im going to use stairs today: 4 flights at work. Some ab curls, number to be determined as i always start out overdoing it. Maybe 10.
Location: Home of the Pirates, Steelers and Penguins
Posts: 13,431
S/C/G: 217/176/142
Height: 5'2
I have a question that I'm hoping someone can answer, or lead me in the right direction. This morning I was reading something about Slow Carb and it mentioned sauerkraut and kimchi, and said read more about this in "Damage Control" but I didn't see a section called "Damage Control" What's this all about? There are times when I could really use some damage control. We all could. LOL Back when I was thinking about this plan I got the book from the library but don't remember much of what I read. That book is just so darn big and full of what I consider useless information (for me) that I hate the thought of checking it out again. Just carrying it to the car counts as a work out!
EDITED: I found the answer to my question, sort of. It is part of what I call the useless information in the book. Not exactly useless, but far out, and enough to turn someone off from doing this plan. The food suggestions I can deal with, but exercising at mealtimes? I guess he's saying that this is supposed to limit the damage done on Carb Day. But doesn't that change the reason behind having Carb Day in the first place?
http://www.4hourlife.com/2011/03/09/...y-cheat-sheet/
Mars, I have eaten spaghetti squash and also spiral zucchini from my Vegetti. I like it with Pesto sauce the best. But it will not substitute for real pasta. I buy angel hair, and I have read that the glycemic index for angel hair is comparable to wheat pasta. I have tried Dreamfields, but saw an article online about them being fined for false advertising regarding the carb content. It was ok, but not worth the extra cost. I eat it a couple times a month and am learning how to limit my serving, so I would rather do that than have a substitute that is less satisfying. I have the same attitude toward low fat products. I want the read deal, and will do my best to fit it into my food plan in a way that works. Many of these things could be why I'm not a good loser, but it's me.
Jacqui, you are making me feel so guilty about my lack of exercise. I know how much it helps me, but somehow I just can't get myself back to it.
Last edited by Wannabehealthy; 06-15-2015 at 11:17 AM.
Location: Home of the Pirates, Steelers and Penguins
Posts: 13,431
S/C/G: 217/176/142
Height: 5'2
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jacqui_D
. And I agree with you on pigging out on quick carbs just for the sake of doing it. I don't think that's a good idea at all and downright dangerous for people with insulin issues. As far as I'm concerned, Carb Day is just a day to eat some favorite foods that you can't have otherwise so you won't feel deprived and fall off the wagon and to boost your calories once a week to keep your metabolism running efficiently.
I agree with this 100% and this is why it bothers me that Tim says to eat until you make yourself sick. That is never a healthy recommendation.
One bad thing about posting together on different threads is forgetting what was said on which thread. I think you mentioned being more aware of what you're eating with diabetes. There are many, many people who get a diagnosis of diabetes and continue eating the same way, expecting the meds to correct it all. That's not how it works, IMO. My elderly neighbors are in bad shape because of this. She has lost her eyesight and he has lost toes, but they still have their pie and cake regularly, just keep shooting up the insulin. It would never enter their mind not to eat those baked goods.
Location: Home of the Pirates, Steelers and Penguins
Posts: 13,431
S/C/G: 217/176/142
Height: 5'2
I'm excessively chatty today! I keep forgetting that we are supposed to eat beans every day. I love them, but forget to include them. I don't understand why they are considered to be good because even if you deduct the fiber, they are still very high carb. There's a lot said about the fact that they are digested differently than other high carb foods. Looking back, I think I was including lentils during those 3 days that I lost those 3 lbs.
Carol Sue, from the snippets of the book I've read online, I agree the book is extreme. Just like the whole pig-out-till-you-feel-sick suggestion on "cheat day." That's way too extreme for me. I had forgotten that he wants you to start cheating after the breakfast meal. He wants you to eat slow carb at breakfast and eat 30 grams of protein. I sometimes eat a slow carb breakfast on cheat day, but only because I like eggs and bacon and sausage for breakfast. No, I decided from the start I wasn't following that rule, because I may want cereal or toast or waffles for breakfast. Somewhere along the line I did read something about what you are referring to, exercising during meals, haha! That's not happening! And I did read about the sauerkraut and kimchee once also, and I think it had to do with fermented foods containing healthy bacteria. I believe he eats those foods each day. I like Activia yogurt, which is fermented but it's dairy and sweetened, so I don't eat it on slow carb-only days. He's also a big fan of beans everyday, and while I'm glad they are allowed on our diet, I'm not going to make a point of eating them everyday. To me they are just another choice of foods on the allowed list. (And thanks for the link to the recipe!) Like I said in the first post of this thread (which Rennie posted), I haven't read his book and I'm not doing his book version of the diet. I'm doing my own modified version of it that I know I'll stick to and which works for me!
Mars, sure! Why not test the limits?! It's not a race to lose weight, so definitely experiment and find what works best for you! Heck, I went carb crazy EVERY Carb Day the first time I did this diet, lol! I used to buy things just to save for Carb Day! And I'm not beyond doing that now, lol! But I never tried to eat till I felt sick. I can't imagine why anyone would want to do that. I always stopped when I felt full. That was my rule. And your being back down to 170 is wonderful! It always took me 2-3 days to get the weight back off. I remember my hope was always to be back where I was by Wednesday, to lose on Thursday and Friday, and to have another quick carb-laden day again on Saturday! But like I mentioned before, the longer I did that, the more cravings I felt the day after Carb Day. So for that reason, this time around, I'm trying to pace myself and not cram in as many quick carbs as I can on each Carb Day, lol!
Chickadeee and Rennie, I hope y'all are having a great day!
Oh my, DH went to the grocery last night and brought home chocolate frosted brownies from the bakery. I saw them on the counter when I went to make breakfast this morning. My weakness is chocolate and whenever I have cravings for it, I always want Texas sheet cake and these frosted brownies looked just like Texas sheet cake. My mouth immediately started watering when I saw them! I can't get upset with DH because he's not on the diet and shouldn't have to pass on foods he enjoys, but oh, it was a killer for me! Regardless, I knew there was no way I was going to sneak even the least little bit, but I also didn't want to be tortured by having them on the counter! So I got out my prettiest cut-glass covered cake plate, cut the brownies into squares, put them on the cake plate, washed the wonderfully gooey chocolate off my fingers (ohhh, the temptation!), put the lid over them, and moved them to the middle of the table. Now, I know they are in there, I can even see their color through the heavily patterned glass lid, but I can't see them clearly and that is so much better than looking at them in that plastic container they came in! Whew!
Oops, Carol Sue, I also wanted to address this point: I agree with you whole-heartedly that diabetics who continue to eat quick carb foods daily and just take more insulin to offset the effect are asking for trouble. That's way too hard on the body, and as you pointed out with your neighbors, causes serious damage to the organs and feet. Diabetes is a SERIOUS disease and people must change the way they eat when they are diagnosed with it.
So I ate a late breakfast again today, 10 am, and a few minutes ago, I went upstairs to discuss with DH what time he wanted to go to the Y, and it hit me, "What time is it?" It was 2:00, so I went right down to the kitchen and threw together a quick lunch! For some reason, I think of 2:00-2:30 as the latest possible lunch time, like anything past that is snack or dinnertime, lol! So yay, remembered lunch today! And I was pleasantly surprised by what I ate! We had some leftover Manwich hamburger from the other night and quite a bit of leftover steamed broccoli and cauliflower from last night, so I just mixed them together and stuck it in the microwave, and yum! Of course, if you don't like Manwich it would be gross, but I like Manwich, so it was really good! I'm thinking I should throw some steamed broccoli and cauliflower in spaghetti hamburger sauce and try it! What a great substitute for noodles! (I bet kidney beans would be good addition to these concoctions too.) And now that I've eaten, I am ready to exercise! Lol!
Location: Home of the Pirates, Steelers and Penguins
Posts: 13,431
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Height: 5'2
I like your throw-together recipe ideas, Jacqui!!
Here's my food for today.
B scrambled eggs
L 1/2 C lentils
S 1 oz cube of mozzarella 2 Tsp sunflower/pumpkin seeds
D pork and sauerkraut
Reading the excerpt from the book led me to want sauerkraut. Dinner is cooking as I type. I'm not sure what I'll have with it. DH will probably want some kind of potatoes. I hope it's not mashed, because I LOVE sauerkraut on mashed potatoes with ketchup. LOL I got that one from my Dad. DH says Yuk when I eat that.
I haven't had Manwich for a long time. I like it to a point, but I would prefer it with twice as much meat as it called for, so less sauce per serving. I can remember years ago, back in the 50s, my friend's mother used to make Sloppy Joes from scratch. That was before there was such a thing as Manwich.
When we were at Walmart this afternoon, DH bought a dozen donuts AND a box of Twinkies. And this is all for him. I don't touch the stuff. Actually, he will eat the donuts for 2 days and then throw the rest away. And the Twinkies have a sell-by date of Aug 3, so they're good for a while. LOL Lots and lots of preservatives.
There were times in my past when I would eat until I was sick almost every day. Part of the problem was that I ate too fast, so I didn't get the satisfaction message 20 min after beginning my meal. The other reason was because after eating my meal I would see something that looked good even though I was already full from eating my meal. I have since learned that I can put food away for another time. No one is going to grab it and take it away. And I learned that food tastes so much better when you're hungry. When I had my colostomy bag my surgeon told me I had to chew my food very thoroughly. When I started doing that I would get the satisfaction signal because it was forcing me to eat slower.
Good for you on passing up the brownies, Jacqui.
Last edited by Wannabehealthy; 06-15-2015 at 04:11 PM.
Carol Sue and Chickadeee, great job on today's menus!
Maybe all you ladies on this thread with your natural and healthy eating and plain water-drinking are wearing off on me, but today I started taking a close look at some foods that are touted as very healthy and I've decided I'm going to try to make some changes. First, I'm going to try to give up Mio flavoring. I don't know why I could go 30 years drinking artificially sweetened Diet Dr. Pepper and it didn't bother me, but the artificial sweetener in Mio flavoring kind of freaks me out, especially since I seem to use so much of it. So I drank plain water with dinner and I'm going to try to go cold turkey and just drink plain water from now on. Secondly, I'm going to add yogurt to my diet, and not the sweetened, artificially flavored stuff that I love. I'm going to eat plain natural yogurt. It has natural probiotics that are so good for the body and I'll surely get used to the taste, right? Third, I want to start eating/cooking with coconut oil. I've read so many good things about it, and I've read that when you start consuming it, it does wonders for your skin, hair, and nails, and it has wonderful natural healing properties from the inside out, so it's a wonderful complement to natural probiotics. Finally, I want to start incorporating apple cider vinegar into my diet too. I've heard it's also wonderful for one's health with natural healing properties (what our grandmothers used). However, I also read that it's a blood thinner and until my tooth heals I'm going to have to lay off that. We'll see how this goes. Tonight I'm gungho about these changes and I've already purchased yogurt, coconut oil, and apple cider vinegar. Tomorrow may be a different story, lol!
but eating Jif worked and I do allow it on my modified version of the diet. I agree with you, though: When it comes to medical issues, do what you have to do! 
Wrong direction, scale, lol! That will teach me to skip a meal! I probably didn't eat enough calories (or drink as much water since I always drink water with meals) and my metabolism is saving me from starvation, lol! Hopefully, things will start moving in the right direction soon. I'm in the "June Weight Loss Challenge" under "Chicks Up for a Challenge," and I've set my goal for this month at 200 lbs. Of course, reaching that goal will require my scale's cooperation! 
I am not exactly sure what Tim Ferriss is advising with the 4-hour recommendation, but I thought he was simply saying eat every four hours, not earlier, not later, but I'm not positive about that. And I agree with you on pigging out on quick carbs just for the sake of doing it. I don't think that's a good idea at all and downright dangerous for people with insulin issues. As far as I'm concerned, Carb Day is just a day to eat some favorite foods that you can't have otherwise so you won't feel deprived and fall off the wagon and to boost your calories once a week to keep your metabolism running efficiently. 
I saw them on the counter when I went to make breakfast this morning. My weakness is chocolate and whenever I have cravings for it, I always want Texas sheet cake and these frosted brownies looked just like Texas sheet cake. My mouth immediately started watering when I saw them! I can't get upset with DH because he's not on the diet and shouldn't have to pass on foods he enjoys, but oh, it was a killer for me! Regardless, I knew there was no way I was going to sneak even the least little bit, but I also didn't want to be tortured by having them on the counter! So I got out my prettiest cut-glass covered cake plate, cut the brownies into squares, put them on the cake plate, washed the wonderfully gooey chocolate off my fingers (ohhh, the temptation!), put the lid over them, and moved them to the middle of the table. Now, I know they are in there, I can even see their color through the heavily patterned glass lid, but I can't see them clearly and that is so much better than looking at them in that plastic container they came in! Whew!
Lol!
Secondly, I'm going to add yogurt to my diet, and not the sweetened, artificially flavored stuff that I love. I'm going to eat plain natural yogurt. It has natural probiotics that are so good for the body and I'll surely get used to the taste, right? Third, I want to start eating/cooking with coconut oil. I've read so many good things about it, and I've read that when you start consuming it, it does wonders for your skin, hair, and nails, and it has wonderful natural healing properties from the inside out, so it's a wonderful complement to natural probiotics. Finally, I want to start incorporating apple cider vinegar into my diet too. I've heard it's also wonderful for one's health with natural healing properties (what our grandmothers used). However, I also read that it's a blood thinner and until my tooth heals I'm going to have to lay off that. We'll see how this goes. Tonight I'm gungho about these changes and I've already purchased yogurt, coconut oil, and apple cider vinegar. Tomorrow may be a different story, lol!
