Carb-Sensitive Dieting (Thread 4)
 

This thread is for carb-sensitive dieters who are following various low-, slow- or moderate-carb diet plans. Come join us, posting as much or as little as you like, as we share our diet plans, menus, recipes, exercise, daily progress, and healthy tips, and chat, inspire, motivate, and encourage each other! Please let us know what carb-conscious plan you are following, even if it's your own individual plan, and we will do our best to support you!

As for me, I am doing a modified version of Tim Ferriss's Slow Carb Diet. I like it because I never feel "starved" (as I always have while dieting in the past) and that's because I no longer experience daily blood sugar spikes and drops due to quick-burning, high glycemic index carbs. I also never feel deprived because this diet includes one day each week when I can eat ANY foods I want. And although exercise is recommended, it is not required. I'm not much of an exerciser, although I am getting better, but I try at least to walk for 20-30 minutes each day. The Slow Carb Diet is not for everyone though. Everybody's different!

The gist of the actual Tim Ferriss Slow Carb Diet is: For 6 days of the week, eat lean, preferably organic meats and fish/seafood, eggs, legumes, and non-starchy veggies. (Sugar-free Jello, 16 oz. of diet soda per day, and 1-2 glasses of red wine per day are also allowed.) On these 6 days, avoid breads/grains, dairy (except for cottage cheese), pasta, fruits (except for tomatoes and avocados), sweets, and starchy vegetables. The 7th day of the week (you choose the day) is a "cheat day," when you can eat anything at all as much as you want, including anything on the forbidden list. The cheat day is recommended to keep you from feeling deprived so you'll stay on the diet and to shake up your metabolism each week to keep it from stalling. Ferriss recommends eating 20 grams of protein with each meal, eating 30-60 minutes within waking up in the morning, eating the same meals over and over, having five low-carb days before taking a cheat day, and some other fine details, which I don't really know because I haven't read his book, The Four Hour Body, nor do I intend to. I'm happy with my own version of the diet!

I am a big believer in doing what works for you (as long as it DOES work), so I have tweaked the Slow Carb Diet, and my personalized plan looks like this:

For 6 days of the week, I eat
--meat (not necessarily lean or organic)
--fish
--legumes (including baked beans)
--eggs
--non-potato veggies
--veggie-like fruits (like tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, etc.)
--nuts and seeds in moderation (a handful)
--peanut butter in moderation (not natural, just regular Jif)
--yogurt
--cottage cheese
--other dairy in moderation
--black and green olives
--condiments and sauces (including ketchup and honey bbq sauce)
--full-fat salad dressings (usually ranch)
--breaded convenience/fast food meats like chicken tenders (It's too much trouble to try to peel the breading off, so I just allow it since I don't eat these foods very often.)
--protein bars on occasion (for convenience--I've found I have to eat these sparingly because they can trigger my hunger)
--fibrous fruit and berries in moderation (I didn't add this until I reached my goal of a normal BMI. So far it's working for me without a problem, but I don't overdo it)

and I drink
--Water, often flavored with Mio Liquid Water Enhancer (I try to drink a half oz of water for every lb I weigh, daily)
--Diet Dr. Pepper (I'm addicted to this and I'm trying to stay away from it, but I still don't want to remove it from my list!)
--Green tea, sweetened with Splenda

For these 6 days, I avoid
--breads, cereals, and grains (including corn)
--pasta
--fruits (except veggie-like fruits)
--potatoes
--sweets

I count no calories. I count no carbs. I count no grams. I don't eat within 30-60 minutes of waking up. I don't eat every 4 hours. I don't pay attention to numbers at all. I don't necessarily eat the same meals over and over. (If I do, it's simply because I like those foods!) I eat when I'm hungry. I stop when I'm full, and I try not to eat late at night, although if I'm hungry, I will.

The 7th day of the week (I've chosen Saturday, although I'll move it for a special occasion) is what Tim Ferriss calls Cheat Day but what I call Carb Day. (It's not cheating on the plan but rather an actual part of the plan!) I can eat WHATEVER I want as much as I want on Carb Day, but again, I eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full. Plus, I do try to be mindful that the more quick carbs I eat, the more I am going to crave them, so I try not to go "all out" (although occasionally I will). I do gain between .5 and 2.5 lbs the day after Carb Day, but it's just water weight and it usually falls back off in the next couple of days while I continue to lose fat. It's all figured into the plan, so I don't worry about it.

So that's what I'm doing! What are you doing? If you are carb-conscious, feel free to join us!

(If you'd like to see what the other "regulars" on this thread are doing, here is a link to thread 1: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/othe...-dieting.html;, thread 2: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/othe...hread-2-a.html), and thread 3: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/othe...hread-3-a.html.

Jacqui, I'm back .... It's consecration time at church. Once again no rice, bread, pasta, sweets, soda, junk food and only protein powder since I have decided to do smoothies for the first ten days. Then I will add in fish and eggs for ten days. And I forgot what will be added the last fifteen days. I am back down to my ticker weight as of today. Work has slowed down thank goodness so back to normal hours. I joined a gym on Monday. I haven't been yet to workout but I wanted to get in on their on going holiday special. Ok all updated on me. I need to catch up on you all :hug:

Rennie, thank you for the heads up on the threads! :hug: Yay! I'm so glad you're back! :hug: Woohoo on the ticker weight and joining a gym! Fantastic! :trampo:

SeeMyFeet, oh yeah, moving the ticker is the best! :flow2:

Trish, good for you on incorporating parts from diet plans that work best for you! :cp: I think we all have the most success when we put our own personal touches on what we're doing! :yes:

Carol Sue, go get some Vitamin B6! Wouldn't it be great if that helped your psoriasis? :crossed:

Today I weighed 170. I'm still staying busy and eating too much in the evenings. I did drink sips of water between bites for breakfast and that helped me fill up really full, but I was on the run for lunch and didn't do that. :shrug: As long as I'm staying around 170, I'm not too worried...yet! :lol:

Thanks everyone for thinking of bro. I know I ramble on about him, but I'm just so thankful. He will be going to a rehab facility on Friday, since he's going to have to have some type of swallowing therapy. The neurologist hadn't been in yet to discuss the problem so I don't know any details.

Today's menu...

Break - two sausage links and gravy, half a bun, ice tea w/stevia
Lunch - chicken/cheese burrito, white grapes
Dinner - two chicken cutlets w/lemon mushroom sauce over angel hair pasta
Snack - maybe a skinny margarita since I have plenty of calories left for the day :)

Well, I confidently put my load of pants into the dryer...kno whut I meen?

yesterday's menu (not great--relying on leftovers):

B: oatmeal, no raisins; coffee w/ hh
L: 1C black eye peas; orange; few chunks pineapple
D: 3/4 C cornbread stuffing
S: ~40-50 pistachios

960cal; 138total carb; 32g fat; 38g protein; salt all the way up to ~1600mg.....too many carbs

SMF, that didn't help with my new jeans. They are still a little too loose for me. Need to get out the sewing machine. If buy something and it just fits, guaranteed it will shrink. If it's too big, guaranteed it will NOT shrink.

Last night I ate a small portion of DH's oatmeal before bed and surprisingly it didn't spike my blood sugar, unless it came back down by morning.

Good to see you joining us again Rennie!

Jacqui, I have a bottle of Vit B6. I can't remember why I started taking it but I mught have read about the skin issues before. I had quit taking it, probably didn't notice a difference. I might not have taken it long enough, so I started taking it again this morning. At least this time I know for sure that I am deficient.

PQ, I think bro really needs that rehab. They are educated to know what he needs to help with his problem. Things are really looking up for him!


I am not usually one to post my meals, but I've done so good so far I think I will.

B - 2 scrambled eggs 2 pieces of crust from DH's french toast- 2 slices of bacon
L - steamed kale with sauteed onion and garlic, topped with Feta Cheese
and a gala apple sprinkled with cinnamon for blood sugar
D - Will be leftover stuffed cabbage rolls

If I have a snack it will probably be in the evening, after dinner, as we will probably be eating around 4PM.

I decided to go back to eating kale. The reason I stopped is because I am the only one who eats it and it goes bad before I can finish it. I got an idea that I'm going to try. It comes already cut up in a big 16 oz bag. Probably around 4 servings. I used my Food Saver. You put it in bags and it sucks all the air out of the bag and seals it. Now I have to find out if it will keep that way in the refrigerator, or if I should freeze it. I'll google. When I was eating it before I noticed that my nails grew faster and stronger and I didn't get as much back/hip pain. It was probably doing some other things that I didn't realize.

Rennie Hi Rennie. Glad to see you here.

SMF I decided to have oatmeal for breakfast this morning. I do love the health benefits of oatmeal. My Mama's family had high cholesterol so she used it to protect herself from having it. It actually worked, but she didn't like fruits and veggies and ended up with cancer. So I add berries to mine.

I've had 3 days now of 3 miles in 25 minutes on my recumbent bike. Hopefully it will become a habit.

My Plan today

B - oatmeal with yogurt, blueberries and walnuts. Coffee with Stevia and hh
L - salad w/EVOO and ACV, steak and broccoli
D - 3 eggs, 3 sl bacon, shredded cheddar/Monterey Jack cheese and kale

Wow, I weigh 169 today and that's pretty amazing considering how much I ate last night! I ate all the right foods but just a lot of them! :moo: My scale may go up tomorrow, but for today, I'm thrilled! :cloud9:

SeeMyFeet, are you vegetarian/vegan? (I can't remember). I'm asking because it's best to surround your carbs with protein. There is protein in your oatmeal, your black-eyed peas, and your pistachios, but that 3/4 cup of cornbread stuffing as a meal by itself is not going to do good things for you. If you are not vegetarian/vegan, you could eat some meat or yogurt or cheese with that to help offset a spike in blood sugar, or if you are vegetarian/vegan, it would help to eat some green veggies with it, like spinach or even green beans to get some protein. Maybe even drink some almond milk with it. Or just eat some of those pistachios with the dinner and then some as a snack. I do think there's a link between carbs and RA. My joints are always worse after one of my Carb Days (although you'll notice that doesn't stop me from taking Carb Days, lol). If you can just eat a bite of protein before and/or after a bite of carbs, it can help. (Notice I didn't say anything about the number of calories!) :lol:

PrairieQueen, you're not rambling on, and besides, if you didn't keep us updated, we'd just ask, so it all works out! :D One strange coincidence, you mentioned your brother is named Mark and SeeMyFeet recently commented that her brother was also named Mark, and believe it or not, my brother too was named Mark. (I have four brothers, but it was my brother Mark who passed in September.) I think that's just bizarre. :shrug: Needless to say, I really want your brother Mark to pull through with flying colors! I'm continuing to pray for him each day. I hope therapy helps him quickly and he'll be off the feeding tube very soon! :crossed:

Carol Sue, yum on your menu! :hungry: Yes, I agree you should start taking the B6 again since you know now that you are deficient, but I hope you do notice a difference this time! Like you said, it may just take a while. I wonder about the kale and how it made you feel better. It may have been just what you needed! From what I've read about it, it's supposed to be a good source of vitamin B6! :yes:

Rennie, I meant to mention I am so glad your work schedule has slowed down! :cp: And I know you are going to do so well during consecration! :yes: I'm so glad you're back! Now if only Mars' schedule will slow down and we can get her back posting with us here! :yes: I'm afraid we may have lost Chickadeee for a while. Since she stopped posting with us, I haven't seen her posting anywhere else on 3FC, so she may be taking a long break. :dunno:

Trish, your menu looks wonderful! :spin: And great job on the recumbent bike! :bravo:

Where are my ruby red slippers when I need them? I need to go to the gym, I need to go to the gym, I need to go to the gym! Ugh. I just do not feel motivated to go! :kickcan:

Week 34:
1/3--169.5
1/4--169.5
1/5--170.5
1/6--170
1/7--169
1/8--
1/9--

Today's Meals:
Breakfast:
Protein bar
Fage yogurt with Mio
Mio water

Lunch:
Chicken salad
Veggies and ranch dressing
Mio water

Tea Time:

Dinner:
Chuck roast
Steamed broccoli
Mio water

Today's Exercise:

Hi all and Jacqui that is bizarre. We've always called my bro Mark or Marky even though it's his middle name...my dad decided right away that he looked more like a Mark and not a Tim.i have another younger brother and we are all Ts....T-cubed :)

Today's menu.....

Break - chicken/cheese burrito, ice tea w/stevia
Lunch - leftover chicken cutlet, lemon mushroom sauce, angel hair pasta
Dinner - 1/3 rack of ribs, potatoes patties w/cheese, mixed greens salad

Jacqui, for a long time I couldn't lie on my right side without getting bad pain in my hip. I was ok on my left side. After I started eating the kale regularly I could lie on my right side without pain. I have no idea why. Other than that i noticed the my toenails were growing so fast! And my fingernails that were always weak and breaking off got stronger and grew out a little bit. One got so hard that I had a hard time filing it back. I figure if it's doing these things that I can see, it must also be doing things I can't see.

I asked about freezing the kale on a cooking forum and everyone said to blanch it all and then freeze in small bags. I chose not to do that. I think blanching them before freezing them will add water that will freeze in the bag. I portioned it in qt size bags, dry, pushing it down tight. I got 4 portions from the 16 oz bag. I vacuum sealed it with my Food Saver. It was amazing how small those portions became! I just put them in the refrigerator rather than freezing them. DH said they should keep well because it is airtight. We'll see. I figure I can afford to do an experiment on a $2.99 bag of kale. Maybe I will throw one of them in the freezer and see which process works the best. I will clean them and blanch them as I use them. Leaving the bits of water on the leaves helps with the cooking.

That's weird about the Marks. I think it has something to do with the fact that they are all in the same age group and that name was popular back then. We have friends who live on a street near to us. Three men died from that street in a year's time, all named John. They were all in their 60s, and the name John was very common in that era.

I hope SMF doesn't leave because you yelled at her. LOL

Carol Sue I've never frozen kale before, but I do spinach and I do not blanch even though they tell you to. I chop it first, then freeze. I use it later for dip recipes, or mixing with cheese to stuff chicken.

thanks Jacqui :hug: You are really doing well. I'm so happy for you :hug: Jacqui, in reading your comment to SMF ... I read that people who take the weekends off Sat and Sun to eat what they want tend to lose more weight. I immediately thought about you. I wonder if that would work for me after the consecration? It' a thought :) I'm thankful that our schedules have slowed down. I actually got off early yesterday and it was Rissa's 12th birthday so I got to do a little running around before she got home. I am doing well on the consecration (I resisted Rissa's cake, taco bell and Chinese food yesterday). I thought I had Mars cell but I don't. I'll have to see if I can get it the next time she's here :) I need those Ruby Red slippers to go to the gym also :)

PrairieQueen I don't know all that is going on with your brother but he, you and your family are definitely in my prayers :hug: PrairieQueen does the spinach hold up well? Keep it's firmness and color after being thawed?

SeeMyFeet, I have my things that I dry and the things that I don't for that very fearful reason ;) What eating plan are you following now?

LOL Carol Sue, that is the way the ball bounces with the clothes dryer, lol. I think I'm gonna start adding a small amount of uncooked oats to my smoothies. I read somewhere that it helps as a filler and the benefits are great also. :) You know I can't eat it cooked, makes me gag. But blended in a smoothie should be fine :) Glad to be back :) I'm adding Kale to my smoothies also :) Carol Sue do you always eat the kale cooked? If so I'd blanch them before freezing :) that's what I do to my mustard and turnip greens.

Hi Trish :hug: good to see you over here :) 3 miles in 25 minutes GO YOU! :cheer:

I'm doing good, despite all of the temptations that I face with a house full of children. When I start to crave something ... someone will say, "well you'd better make a smoothie :D!" They're so helpful (:(:mad::)) I have mixed emotions about that ;)

Bro update - doc thinks he may have had a stroke during his 2nd cardiac arrest. His right side is weaker than left and he's partially blind in his right eye. They have to do mri to be sure, which will direct his therapy. He can swallow and has been eating crackers and sips of water, but that's all he's been allowed. He def gets moved to great rehab facility Monday morning.

My gluttonous menu today...

Break - chicken/cheese burrito and t a
Lunch chicken w/lemon mushroom sauce (last of it!) and pasta
Dinner - too much takeout pizza, but it was so good and I got it out of my system

Yay! Back down to my low! :cp:

Haha, Carol Sue! Now I know I definitely didn't yell (I'm not a yeller), but you did make me look! :lol: It will be interesting to see how your kale turns out. My sister told me she just had fried kale at a friend's house and really liked it. Have you ever had it that way? It seems like it could make a pretty good crunchy snack. And yes, if you could tell that big of a difference in your hips and nails when you ate it before, I also wonder in what other ways it was benefiting you that you weren't aware of! :chin:

SeeMyFeet, I was not yelling at you, lol! :lol: I was offering suggestions, because you asked for help and because we have RA in common and I figure anything we can do to help each other with that is worth mentioning! :D

Rennie, the first time I ever heard about taking a weekly day off while dieting was years ago when I was watching a talk show (it might have even been Phil Donahue it was so long ago), and this one couple in the audience stood up and mentioned that they had lost a significant amount of weight and kept it off for 7 years using that method. I remember I was amazed by that. Taking a cheat day was such a foreign concept to me that I even couldn't imagine it, but I never forgot it. Years later, after so many tries at dieting and finally reaching the conclusion that I couldn't stick to a diet, I had resigned myself to being obese, until I read about the Slow Carb Diet. The concept of eating non-starchy/non-sugary carbs made sense to me, given my family history of diabetes, and the cheat day brought back the memory of that couple on that talk show and gave me hope that maybe this particular diet could work for me. I think the tricky part for you would be that because you're diabetic, unlimited carbs for one or two days each week could be troublesome for you. For a diabetic, it's all about balance. I don't think you want to eat too many carbs, too much protein, or too much fat on any given day, but rather a balance of all three. If "whatever you want to eat" happens to be balanced, then weekends off could work great for you! But if you lean toward starchy/sugary carbs, which would only serve to raise your blood sugar, it's possible you'd still need to watch it. I think it's definitely an idea worth discussing with your doctor or dietician to see what they think! They're the experts and I'm just guessing, lol! :D I'm so glad you are doing so wonderfully! :bravo:

PrairieQueen, my youngest brother''s name is Tim! :dizzy: I'm so glad your brother is eating even if it's not very much right now! :carrot: How scary that he might have suffered a stroke during a heart attack! Wow, he's been through so much! :yes: Sometimes you just have to get pizza (or chocolate) out of your system, lol! :D

Week 34:
1/3--169.5
1/4--169.5
1/5--170.5
1/6--170
1/7--169
1/8--167.5
1/9--

Today's Meals:
Breakfast:
2 fried eggs
2 slices of bacon
Fage yogurt with Mio
Mio water

Lunch:
Protein bar
Mio water

Snack:
Protein bar

Dinner: @ local pizza place with friends
Large salad w/ranch dressing
Water

Today's Exercise:

Ronnie the color stays good but I don't know about texture since I bake it as an ingredient in something else. It seems okay to me, but no leafy greens hold up well to processing like other veggies (peppers or brocolli for example). I always have a lot more garden spinach than I can use at once so I freeze it.....I hate to waste food :)

SMF you are doing a great job! And I know it is a job, a very tough one.

Jacqui that is awesome that you're back down even after splurging. Its funny how are bodies work, I know.

I thought I was going to get through this month's "visit" without any salty/fat cravings but last night I was tired and hungry ..... Didn't want to do homemade, so I sent hubs up to Donatos. I def overdid it and had a tummy ache a little later. "That'll learn me."

Hi Trish !