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.)

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; and thread 2: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/othe...hread-2-a.html.)

Carol Sue, congrats on being in Onederland again! I'm sorry to hear you have a cold! I hope you feel better real soon!

Mars, I'm glad you're back on track now! Avoiding the pumpkin treats has not been easy!

PrairieQueen, I hope so! I think I might take Carb Day tomorrow though, so my weight will go up after that for a few days.

Lost my post! Hi everyone! thanks Jacqui for the thread!

Carol You get to enjoy Onederland no matter how you get there, imo. I hope you feel better soon.

Jacqui Sending you One day at a time with your temptation gauntlet! You're doing fantastic. I'm really struggling with focusing on delayed gratification! When those treats pop into my view, all other thoughts fade except "I want it!" Only later will i remember I wanted to fit into my smaller clothes, or have a flatter stomach.

As I was posting, my sister called and said my Mom fell. She fell 2 days ago, too. She told the neighbors not to tell us. She is a strong vibrant woman who wants to keep every bit of her independence. She isn't injured, just very sore knee from first fall, which probably led to her 2nd fall.

Hope everyone is doing well. I had a few bites of something off program, but I've eaten a smaller dinner so feel like at least i'm reining things, if not perfect.

Mars, oh no, I hope your Mom's knee starts feeling better! That's scary. Does she know the reason for the original fall? I mean, did she trip, did she get up too fast and black out, was her foot asleep, etc.? My father broke 4 ribs back in February when he fell against his nightstand beside his bed. He tends to black out when he stands up too quickly because of the change in blood pressure. All he has to do is stand still for a few seconds to get his bearings before he starts to move. I just wondered if something like that could be going on with your mother. I understand completely on logic goes out the window when presented with treats! This week has not been easy! Even tonight I had an extra bowl of chili when I normally would not have. It will probably mean I'll be up on the scale tomorrow, but my reasoning was, "Hey, I'm going to be eating carbs tomorrow, so what's a little more food?" I cannot allow myself to think like that! That little extra bit here and there is what does me in! My advice is just do your very best to resist!

It's been a very busy day. My daughter and her friend came in today. My daughter's husband and his friend are coming in on Saturday. So I was cleaning bedrooms and bathrooms this morning, and I completely forgot to weigh myself before breakfast! I am going to make tomorrow my Carb Day. My daughter and her friend have this plan for us to try as many pumpkin foods as possible tomorrow. We tried this last year too and didn't get very far, but that's because we were each eating our own whole piece of whatever food it was. This year we are going to buy one piece of whatever foods and just take 1-2 bites each. Well except for the pumpkin pancakes. Those are so good, we each want our own, lol! I'm still skeptical. I think we are going to get full way too fast to eat as many different types of pumpkin foods as they want to eat, but we'll see!

Week 23: High 179.5, Low (175)
10/4--179.5
10/5--(177 w/pjs, which would have been 179 fully dressed)
10/6--(176.5 w/pjs, which would have been 178.5 fully dressed)
10/7--(175.5 w/pjs, which would have been 177.5 fully dressed))
10/8--(177 fully dressed)
10/9--(176 fully dressed)
10/10--(175 fully dressed) Carb Day

Week 24: High 177, Low 175
10/11--(177 fully dressed)
10/12--(176 fully dressed)
10/13--(175.5 fully dressed)
10/14--(175 fully dressed)
10/15--(174.5 fully dressed)
10/16--176
10/17--175 Carb Day

Week 25:
10/18--177.5
10/19--176.5
10/20--176.5
10/21--175.5
10/22--DNW
10/23--
10/24--

Today's Meals
Breakfast
2 fried eggs
2 slices of bacon
Fage Greek yogurt
Mio Water

Lunch:
Chili
Fage Greek yogurt with Mio
Mio water

Tea Time:

Dinner
Chili (2 bowls)
BBQ pork rinds
Mio water

Today's Exercise:
About an hour of walking downtown

PrairieQueen, I know how you feel about not being able to resist the shoe-string potatoes. After saying how I love sweet potatoes and don't really care for white potatoes I've gone back on my word. I few days ago I was really hungry for mashed potatoes. DH wanted to go out to eat and he said I could order just a side of mashed potatoes but I felt stupid doing that and ordered a whole meal to go along with it. Really just wanted the taters.

This week, we had some very long potatoes in our bin and DH made some really good steak fries with them. OMG they were so good! Yesterday, I was planning on buying some sour cream so I could have a baked potato but I forgot. Can't eat it without the sour cream. So I guess I still like white potatoes after all. LOL Not good!

Today we are going to the casino, so dinner will not include any carbs, but will have lots of protein! Steak, fish, shrimp! Yum!

Mars, I hope your mother is OK. I have a terrible fear of falling, because I trip a lot. Sometimes it's as if I trip over a piece of lint...nothing's there. And I worry about the cellar steps, especially since the dog likes to go down with me, but won't go all the way down until I do. I don't want to trip over him. The floor at the bottom of the steps is cement. Ouch! I make myself go up and down those stairs, though, so I don't get to the point of not being able to do stairs. Eventually, I might need a stair lift, but so far I'm still doing them.

Jacqui, a couple years ago I went to get out of bed, got dizzy, passed out and crashed into the closet door. I came to right away and DH came and helped me up, but I was dizzy and nauseated the rest of the day. Had a waste basket at my side to throw up in. LOL Ever since that day, I seem to get dizzy when I first lie down, or when I get up. I get up and put my feet over the bed, but lean back until the room stops going around before continuing to get up. I don't want a repeat, plus I don't want to land on top of the dog, who sleeps on the floor next to the bed. He would not live to tell about it.

Thank-you Carol. How was the casino buffet? I think I could be absolutely happy at a protein buffet! I hope you didn't get the potato trigger from me, lol! Sometimes reading what other people are eating (esp sweets) triggers me.

I too would be nervous going down stairs with a dog or cat around my feet. Hopefully Rusty will get used to the cellar and go down ahead of you. Or maybe you could encourage him by throwing a treat, ahead of you? Your strategy is what I also am trying to do, to keep doing things and maximize mobility as I add years. My Mom used to walk with her friend for 2 miles every morning, and I think that is why she is as strong as she is now at 89.

Jacqui Hope you are having a blast!

I'm limping re eating.
B cabbage omelet, whey shake
L salad, chicken, evoo
S this is crazy--i agreed to work OT, then realized i was tired but already committed so I ate a big salad in the cafeteria, with kidney beans, evoo, and a LOT of crumbled blue cheese.
D turkey chili, and ate more than usual. Also roasted cabbage w evoo.

WI 169.8. Still taking Alleve, so I can tell myself it's just water lol.

Rennie, SeeMy Feet, chickadeee, WildBlueYonder, Bewildered & everyone else, hope y'all are doing well!

So sorry I didn't make it on yesterday! After all the walking around town and the pumpkin carb-fest day, I was exhausted and sleepy, and fell asleep!

Mars, ok, here goes the list of foods we ate yesterday, but to anyone reading this who might being triggered by food porn, look away! The 3 things that we each ate whole were: a pumpkin doughnut, a pumpkin pancake, and a scoop of pumpkin ice cream. Everything else we each took a bite or two of. Some things we finished off. Some things went straight into the trash after we tried it. And some things were offered as samples so we didn't have to buy the whole thing! We didn't get to everything so the girls are going to continue today but we did get to the following: pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin burger, pumpkin chili, pumpkin fudge, pumpkin waffle, roasted pumpkin seeds (yum, I want to buy more of these today since I can eat them), pumpkin bread, pumpkin chocolate candy, pumpkin and cream cheese roll, pumpkin cookie, pumpkin cake, pumpkin coney dog, pumpkin soup, pumpkin kettle corn, pumpkin hot chocolate and latte (I had the hot chocolate, they had the latte since I don't drink coffee), pumpkin shredded chicken, pumpkin croissant, pumpkin muffin, pumpkin cornbread, pumpkin cupcake, pumpkin no bakes, pumpkin jelly beans, and pumpkin peanut brittle. They still have 9 things on their list that they want to try: pumpkin brownie, pumpkin funnel cake, pumpkin cream puff, pumpkin onion bloom, pumpkin beer (they might have sampled that when they went back out last night, I'll have to ask them when they wake up, lol), pumpkin pretzels, pumpkin wings (I can eat those with them today), deep fried pumpkin pie, pumpkin cannoli, and pumpkin nachos. It was amazing how it holds true that we you eat carbs, you crave carbs, because just when I thought I couldn't eat anything else, I'd be ready to eat again. We never felt sick since we were walking a lot, spacing it out, taking sips of water, and only eating bites of each thing. It was lots of fun, but I was definitely pumpkined out, sugared out, and tuckered out by the time I came home yesterday, lol! I hope your mother is well on her way to mending! I can understand why you would be wary of her home projects, wow!

Carol Sue, oh my goodness, is your dizziness due to a drop in blood pressure? I'm glad you are careful with it. My dad is getting good at standing still after he stands up before taking off walking now, but I still worry about him.

Hi PrairieQueen, Rennie, Chickadeee, SeeMyFeet, WildBlueYonder, and FinallyFree, and come back Bewildered!

I am dreading getting on the scale this morning, lol! Yesterday morning, I was already up to 177 (too much chili the night before), so I have no doubt I'll be back up into the 180's today!

Jacqui Food porn indeed! I was going to list the pumpkin things I would have tried, but there were too many! Pumpkin chili was on top of the list, followed by sweet things. What was your fave? It sounds like a perfect Carb Day--getting to have everything you wanted but the walking & spacing it out & water kept you feeling great. I totally agree, carb eating simply makes me want more more more! That said, maybe a carb saturation is a good way to ensure plenty of serotonin for our brains--that's my story & I'm stickin' to it!

I'm sure your body knows the way back down really well by now The scale is simply the call back to what it's used to...I was gonna say like a shepherd's horn but maybe it's more like an Australian sheepdog, nipping at our heels to get us back on the path

Thanks for asking, my Mom seems to be feeling better. That's a good thing that you Dad stands still upon rising. I've encountered many patients or anecdotes about people who fall, and the fall itself is not indicative of anything serious. But the injuries from falling range from skull fracture to all sorts of painful bruises, fractures, etc. So it really is worth the precaution to prevent them! It's ironic that as kids, we learn to get up and move on, but as adults it's a whole different game.

Yesterday's menu...

Break - McD's sausage burrito w/hot sauce and Coke Life
Lunch - Amy's organic cheese/bean burrito
Snack - Skinny popcorn
Dinner - homemade meat calzone
Drinks - 3 lite beers

I'm going to try some slow-cooker oats Monday morning to try and get out of this breakfast rut. I'm going to make some sort of Apple topping/applesauce for it.

I still have loads of apples to process, so I made four Dutch Apple pies today and put three in freezer. I don't know how long I'll be able to resist a piece of the one I just got out of oven though.

Mars, Rusty doesn't get excited over treats, so throwing a treat down the steps wouldn't help. He won't go all the way down, because he's afraid I won't go all the way down. He wants to make sure I'm coming. He is so attached to me it isn't funny. He's funny about treats. We can put a piece of steak on the floor and he will look at it for a while, walk over and sniff it, and then eat it.

I had a great dinner at the buffet but it ended up not being carb free. They had baked mac and cheese and I had some. It tasted like my home-made that I haven't made for about a year. It was delicious, and I don't feel any guilt over it. I ate it, enjoyed it and moved on. LOL

This is a really funny story from the casino. They were giving away umbrellas with their logo on it. You had to earn 300 points to get one. It takes a whole lot of money to earn 300 points and we have more umbrellas than we ever need, but DH asked me about 3 times if we were going to get an umbrella, every time they announced it. Finally he understood that we were not getting one. Then, right before we left, he said "It must be raining. All these people are carrying umbrellas." LOL I thought "And they are all the same!" LOL That's when I said "They're giving away umbrellas here!!" He had forgotten all about it.

Jacqui, way too much pumpkin for me!!

I don't know what my dizziness is from, but it's only when I lie down, or sit up from lying down. The first time it happened I mentioned it to my PCP and he wanted to do a brain MRI. I thought that was a little extreme and I refused. It's not all the time, just occasionally, and it could be from my blood pressure. I'm not worried about it now that I know to expect it, and I know it only happens getting in or out of bed. I sing "The walls of the room go round and round, round and round, round and round."

Are we the only ones who know there's a new thread?

Carol Sue, I don't know where everyone is. I put a link to this thread and invited everyone to check in, but maybe it's just a busy week for our chickies. Lol on hubby and the umbrellas! I'm glad you know to watch out for that dizziness!

PrairieQueen, yum! Those Dutch apple pies sound delicious!

Mars, I'm glad your mom is better! My pumpkin faves in order are pumpkin doughnut, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin cream cheese roll, pumpkin ice cream, and pumpkin shredded chicken. Actually I'm not sure if the shredded chicken is as wonderful as it tasted or if I was just so sick of sugary things by the time we ate it, lol!

Believe it or not, I gained just 1 lb since yesterday! I thought for sure I'd be above 180! But I was only 178! On Wednesday my sister and I are going to Boston MA to visit our cousins, so with all the traveling and the festival this month, I don't know if I'll make my "Chicks Up for a Challenge" goal of 174 this month, but I'll be thrilled if I can just stay in the 170's this month! I didn't buy my pumpkin seeds or go eat wings with the girls today. I was pleasantly distracted by my 3-year-old grandson here today!

Week 23: High 179.5, Low (175)
10/4--179.5
10/5--(177 w/pjs, which would have been 179 fully dressed)
10/6--(176.5 w/pjs, which would have been 178.5 fully dressed)
10/7--(175.5 w/pjs, which would have been 177.5 fully dressed))
10/8--(177 fully dressed)
10/9--(176 fully dressed)
10/10--(175 fully dressed) Carb Day

Week 24: High 177, Low 175
10/11--(177 fully dressed)
10/12--(176 fully dressed)
10/13--(175.5 fully dressed)
10/14--(175 fully dressed)
10/15--(174.5 fully dressed)
10/16--176
10/17--175 Carb Day

Week 25: (High 178, Low 175.5)
10/18--177.5
10/19--176.5
10/20--176.5
10/21--175.5
10/22--DNW
10/23--177 Carb Day
10/24--178

Today's Meals:
Breakfast:
2 fried eggs
1 slice of ham
Mio Water

Lunch:
Fage Greek yogurt with Mio
Mio water

Tea Time:

Dinner:
Chili
Fage Greek yogurt with Mio
Mio water

Today's Exercise:
About an hour of walking downtown

Jacqui, DH was scanning through the TV channels and we came upon the Buckeye's game. You know, they COULD let the other team score a few points! LOL DH doesn't watch college.

I forgot about Cream Cheese Pumpkin Roll. I do like that, but it's so rich I can only eat a very small slice. DH loves it. You should see the pieces he cuts. LOL

I'm thinking about going to the doctor about this cold. It starts to go away and then comes back. I don't know if it's something worse. I feel a little like I did when I had pneumonia. I have a lot of chest congestion that I keep coughing up, and I'm blowing my nose. I get really tired and have to take a nap for a few hours. I get freezing cold, then hot. I don't have a fever, that's what's different. I got a pneumonia shot this year but I know there are various strains. The last time I had it, I had it a couple weeks before they reached the proper diagnosis. I hate to go to him because my doctor is one who goes for worst case scenario and runs a barrage of tests. I hate going through all that. I'm starting to think he gets a kickback for every test he orders. Can they do that?

Today I took a nap. Around 5 DH came in and asked if I wanted something to eat and I said no, but then I got curious to see what he had. He had gone to the store and bought a rotisserie chicken, then made mashed potatoes and green beans. So I ate. I didn't even hear the garage door when he left and came back. I must have really been zonked out. I guess that nap is why I'm still up at 11:20. LOL

Yesterday's menu

Break - 2 pieces bacon, slice if baguette w/butter and pear butter, Coke Life
Lunch/dinner - skillet jambalaya, no rice
Snack - Skinny popcorn
Drinks at and after a show - 3 Lite beers......I need to stop that

Carol Sue, Ohio State did finally let them score, lol! I love pumpkin roll, but I agree with you. It IS rich! Oh my, your symptoms sound miserable! I don't know if doctors get a kickback for tests or not, but it does make you wonder if someone ever threatened to sue him. It sounds like he covers all his bases just in case. I definitely think you should set up a appointment though and the sooner the better. You could have walking pneumonia. My Dad had that once and he thought he just had a cold. It's often mistaken for cold/flu, but it lingers like yours has lingered. I do hope you'll go to the doctor!

PrairieQueen, it is so easy to get into a habit of going out and having fun and forgetting about your weight loss efforts for the night! DH and I like going out with our friends each week, and I'd love to have a burger and fries and a couple of Redd's Apple Ales, but I know I'd regret it when I stepped on the scale the next day! I don't know why we never seem to go out on my Carb Day, lol!

Carol I like to think they put a stop to doctors getting kickbacks from ordering things! You can check pretty easily to see who owns the lab. Nowadays, it's more likely the doc would get dinged by the health insurer--they discourage anything that incurs them a cost. Hopefully he's just an 'err on the side of caution' guy. I hope you feel better soon! Bronchitis can knock it out of you too.
Because you are savvy about your body, and health matters in general, seems like a good idea to check it out if it feels pneumonia did last time. It's good you have an appetite, and the things you're eating sound good & healthy. Including the Mac n Cheese! I think you are tapping into a nice WOE because you are enjoying things & they don't trigger binges.

Yay for just a tiny uptick Jacqui! Sounds like you enjoyed everything you wanted without going overboard. That's an accomplishment when there are all the visual cues, and i imagine some lovely aromas! Imho it's more important to enjoy things & not be so strict as to cause a rebound down the road. I know we can't get complacent, but also not too vigilant either. Are you flying to Boston? That sounds so fun, especially in this season.

I went to Costco to return something, right in the front of the store. I know to stay away from the back of the store where the food samples are, except on Carb Day. But yesterday, I was broadsided right inside the entrance by a "Sonoma Food Festival" with many delicious samples!!!! Normally those tiny sample cups are carefully watched & you always have to wait & wait while the staffer heats or cuts up more. But these samples were offered by smiling welcoming people who kept saying "have another"! So I did. Yummmm! I didn't binge though (logistically difficult with bite-sized samples, lol). As soon as I left, it was all over, and I ate just a little the rest of the day instead of using it as an excuse to write off the day & binge. I think I was channeling Carol-thanks!

Yesterday
B cabbage omelet, whey shake/coffee
L B-up bar
S Costco
S/D chicken breast, broccoli, cabbage, potatoes (tiny ones), bites of turkey chili
2 l herb tea, no exercise
WI 167.4 (tomorrow will likely reflect Costco)