Tag Archives: low-carb

April 14, 2022 · 11:27 am

ALMOST to Pre-Pandemic…

IndiaMART

I have .8 lbs to lose before I reach my pre-pandemic weight! I’m eager to crash through that, and break ‘new territory’ in my efforts to lose the lard.

My low-carb eating plan seems to be getting the attention of the scales. This is WEEK 3 of my serious efforts to eat right and exercise more. I’ve lost almost 6 lbs. (5.8) since I began the latest push, so I’m really pleased that I am making progress finally. I’m planning what I’m going to eat, logging everything on MyFitnessPal.com in the morning, making SURE I’m meeting my carbs, macros, and calories goals for the day. There is also a place to log in how much water I’m drinking, make notes on food, plus add my exercise for the day. If what I’m planning has problems, I can tweak it BEFORE I mess up – a really nice thing, building confidence.

I’m working on WEEK 1 on a month-long online video exercise program by MoreLifeHealthSeniors.com. The instructor is Mike from Australia. He’s very encouraging. The videos are short so I can work them in throughout the day, if I can’t do them all at once. Today’s schedule is a warm-up video and a stretching video, plus 10 minutes of my choice of activity. (Mine will be 10 minutes on my elliptical trainer.) I will also add one of the weights videos, plus a half hour of yoga stretching to the schedule.

I was beginning to despair on ever getting back to my pre-pandemic weight, OR actually breaking through that and moving to my SECOND weight goal, OR getting into a routine I can keep up on exercises, since I truly don’t enjoy exercising. The fact that I’m almost there on two of the three already is really encouraging. My husband is also cooperating. He eats his no-no’s when I’m in the other room, doesn’t bring me ice cream before bed now, or popcorn, or encourage me to eat other things or COOK other things I shouldn’t. That helps a LOT. :0)

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October 26, 2017 · 4:17 pm

Folding Myself into a Paper Airplane – Take 13

The Awesome Daily

I told you that I did something mysterious and hurt my back. I have no clue what I did, but I was in real agony for about a month, unable to do much except gripe, groan an try to sleep while my husband tried to keep things afloat and take care of me. I’m really not interested in repeating this experience, so I have CAUTIOUSLY begun my yoga for old ladies stretching again, plus CAREFULLY starting up my sessions on the elliptical trainer.

I have to put Amber on the porch because getting on the floor is an invitation for 65 pounds + of dog to sit on you, mouth open, with too many teeth available.  I’m doing stretching on my own on my mat, rather than trying to do a lesson from my “Gentle Yoga” DVD set. I’m up to 10 minutes again on the elliptical – pretty pathetic, except I don’t know what I did to trigger my problem. I’m treated myself kind of like a time bomb at this point, hoping to ease into more and more.

Since I’ve been walking and playing with Amber several times each day, plus working in the yard, I’m still getting a reasonable amount of exercise.

Now – If I can JUST be a good little girl and eat my low-carb stuff, my world will be complete.

taolife.com

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October 5, 2017 · 12:43 pm

New Recipes

I have found that trying to combine eating low-carb and feeding my diabetic husband to be a bit of a challenge. I fell into a trap of my own making several months ago, opting to eat what HE ate. NOT GOOD! Mostly now, I can fix low carb meals and then add extra things he can also eat into the mix.

I have found that getting a husband to try new foods, substitutions, and new recipes is a character-building exercise. For example, the substitutions of spaghetti squash for pasta and riced cauliflower for rice just won’t work for him. He’s like a little kid, making faces and being quite dramatic.  Happily, though, he is very supportive of my trying new recipes.

I tried one for chicken thighs in the crock pot last night. You’re supposed to thicken the juices with xanthan for use as a gravy. I made rice for him and I ate spaghetti squash. I like anything with a gravy-like sauce, so I thought it was pretty good. He praised the tenderness of the chicken, and he liked the rice, but the sauce, not so much.

I’ll cut up the leftover chicken tonight, combining it with cream of chicken/mushroom soup that he particularly likes, and serve it over rice for him and cauli-rice for me. It’s not quite as low-carb with the soup, but I can work around it to make my day come out under my limits.

Meanwhile, I’m glad we’ve found some substitutes for things he loves so he doesn’t feel deprived and walk around looking hangdog:

  • Arizona Zero Peach Tea
  • Alpine Sugar-Free Apple Cider Mix
  • A&W Sugar-Free Soda
  • Sweet Freedom Blue Bunny Ice Cream Sandwiches
  • Sweet Freedom Blue Bunny Ice Cream Cones
  • Jello Sugar-Free Cups

Now I just have to practice NOT feeling deprived MYSELF when he eats without having to worry about carbs…. (I’ll try to make a list of good things I have found that make eating low-carb much easier and post them for those who might be interested.)

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February 1, 2017 · 11:51 am

Getting the Lard Off Progress Report 2/1/2017

funnypicture.org

funnypicture.org

I told you last week that for some unknown reason, I can eat a week’s worth of carbs and calories after dinner.  Part of the reason is that we’re staying up late. My husband has trouble sleeping. We used to go to bed and read until we were sleepy. He read that he would sleep better if we quit doing that, so we’re downstairs until we’re sleepy now – leaving about 5 hours or so after dinner when we’re close to the kitchen.

Yesterday I put my foot down hard – telling myself I was finished gorging myself and would look forward to my orange dream bar after dinner and THAT WAS IT! Last night was the first night in ages I’ve actually done it. My scale even noticed the difference. So – I’m starting day TWO of acting like an adult on my eating.

Since I’ve been shoving everything in the house into my mouth, my weight and measurements have fluctuated. I’m determined to get back on track, eating low carb and as little sugar as possible. I’m trying to stay under 40 carbs of carbohydrates per day and under 1200 calories. AND I’m trying to exercise regularly. To date I’ve lost 34 lbs and 19″.

I’m doing better on my exercising than my eating. For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been doing yoga three days a week, the elliptical twice a week, and upper and lower body strength exercises. My poor old body has had sore muscles to show for my efforts, but I’m feeling better overall, and I feel that I’m working my body from head to toe, in different ways so my body doesn’t get used to anything.

Now that I’m finally on track on my after dinner eating, I’m hopeful I can continue to report actual progress to you.

 

taolife.com

taolife.com

 

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December 28, 2016 · 4:23 pm

Concentrating on Shutting My Mouth…

Huffington Post

Huffington Post

There are lots of good reasons for trying to keep my mouth shut.

Most of the time it’s a good idea to keep me out of trouble for saying the wrong thing in the wrong company. This time – keeping the other in mind – my efforts are focused on not eating after dinner time. I made it last night for the first time in a LONG time.

I followed that with an hour long session of yoga this afternoon emphasizing “Joint Mobility” and “Overall Flow.”  I had a talk with my husband about helping me carve out an hour either in the morning or in the afternoon for my yoga practice. He is seeing how much better it makes me feel, and was encouraging about my efforts today.

 

Michelle Cazares

Michelle Cazares

 

I’m re-reading The Shift by Tory Johnson

shift

the book that initially got me excited about trying to get the lard off and get in better shape. I’m happy to say that it’s beginning to do its magic on me again, motivating me to stick to my guns and start impressing the scales and my tape measure again. I’m about half way to where I think I would like to be weight-wise. If I’m successful enough to get there, I’ll decide if more is needed or if that’s enough. (I’m trying for the middle of a healthy BMI weight range for my height.)

Our low carb lifestyle and our new low or no sugar emphasis should help both my husband and me feel better.

*2 new finds! –

  • Swiss Miss Sensible Sweets Light Hot Cocoa Mix. (It’s 25 calories, 4 grams carbs and 2 grams of sugar per serving.)  My husband really loves hot chocolate and he says he cannot tell the difference between the awful mixes he WAS using and this. Hooray!”
  • Arizona Zero Peach Tea – My husband used to drink already sweetened iced tea mix, drinking several LARGE glasses per day. This is 0 calories, < 1 gram sugar, <  1 gram carbs. It’s delicious and we both drink it.

In a little over a year I have lost 40 lbs. and 23+ inches. Albeit slowly, I AM making progress on being as healthy as I can be. I look forward to seeing what 2017 brings!

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December 27, 2016 · 3:35 pm

Goals

weight

GrowingBolder.com

My goals to eat right, lose weight, gain flexibility and strength have a beginning date – August 22, 2015 – but they will have no end.  I’ve made some progress, losing 40 lbs and 23+ inches thus far, eating low carb and trying to move more. I’m about half way to where I would like to be.

Right now I’m concentrating on jump-starting my motivation, which left about the time my husband was diagnosed with Type II diabetes. I dove in, once HE was convinced that he was showing symptoms that were quite bothersome, and could be controlled by cutting out sugar. The symptoms were feet, especially toes, hurting badly; double vision; lots of indigestion, dizzy spells, etc.

He’s done a wonderful job of trying to cut out his sugar. Our doctor is really pleased with his efforts, and we’re hoping that the A1C blood test he gets in February will reflect the same results as we’re showing at home.

In the quest for sugar-free and other things that would take the place of what he was missing most, I lost my motivation to

taolife.com

taolife.com

I used our more complicated eating situation to slide on my own discipline. I’ve discovered that my low carb diet is really good for my husband, too. Watching our sugar is good for both of us, and should be no problem.

I’ve also discovered that folding myself into a paper airplane doing yoga stretches is very helpful. I found a 2-DVD set called, “Gentle Yoga” which is geared to old women like me who have never done yoga before and are a bit intimidated. I have discovered for myself that doing the stretches when I’m sore HELPS. Amazing!

Bajiroo.com

Bajiroo.com

So, if I KNOW what I’m supposed to eat, and I’m DOING yoga most days, what is my problem?

I do fine on my eating until after dinner. We’re eating at about 7pm, but don’t go to bed until about midnight. And then, sometimes, we end up downstairs in the middle of the night, not able to sleep, again providing an opportunity to stuff my face.

I’ve tried moving my ‘dessert’ (sugar-free chocolate pudding) later, to bridge the 5 hours before we go to sleep. That has helped a bit, but even with low carb snacks, I’m craving salty stuff. It calls to me from the kitchen. Incessantly.

I really that I’m engaging in a ‘whine and cheese’ party here, and that I have no REAL reason for stuffing my face after dinner. I realize I’m not really hungry. I have no good excuses. BAH. HUMBUG.

I’ll make a point of

  • re-reading the parts of low carb books that helped me lose the 40 lbs.
  • I’ll be religious about doing my two sections of the yoga DVDs daily,
  • I’ll start drinking more water, as I should have been doing
  • I’ll start trying to have projects to do after dinner that will keep me busy.

Hopefully, by the middle of NEXT week, I can report to you that I’m back on track…

Please cross your fingers for me!

 

 

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November 15, 2016 · 8:52 pm

Help!

Ryan Fitness Professional - WordPress.com

Ryan Fitness Professional – WordPress.com

For two days in a row I’ve been really, REALLY good – eating what I’m supposed to eat, and NOT eating what I’m not supposed to eat. I’ve done two sections on my yoga DVDS for two days in a row – the first day was “Joints Mobility” and “Overall.” Yesterday was “Head, Neck & Shoulders” and “Overall.” Today my day got away from me and I didn’t do my yoga.

My scales are laughing at me.

Clipartix

Clipartix

I realize that the scales may be showing water weight, increased muscle, etc., but right at the moment, it seems I’m making excuses for myself.  I’m going to be sure to get my yoga for the rest of the week, but it would be SO NICE if the scale would at least PRETEND to be impressed….

By the way, I tried a nice low carb recipe for chicken, broccoli and pimento cheese that we liked. I’m going to tweak it a bit before I present it here, but this will definitely be a keeper!

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