February 26 Progress Report
Just to “weigh in” here…
I have been following the Paleo Diet more closely lately, and have thrown in a little bit of exercise here and there. While I still eat dairy, as I believe that it is not harmful, the Paleo diet has been gently putting my body back into balance. I am more alert, active, and happier. Not that I wasn’t happy before, but I was more moody than now. Case in point: my spouse and I have been arguing about how we wanted things to go on a certain project. Before, on the high carb diet, I would have bitten his head off. Now, I am listening to what he is actually saying, and we got the argument cleared up almost immediately. There was not the moodiness that was present before…protein and fat, baby!
So, here is my official weight loss report:
I am now at 268 pounds–down from 285 starting weight in December! That is a total weight loss so far of 17 pounds in a time period of 2 months!
I have lost about 2 inches off my waist, and my face is glowing with health. This is on a diet that our ancestors ate long ago, before the agricultural nutrition scam–the biggest scam in history!
February 16th Progress Report
While I have stayed on the Paleo diet, I have not exercised for the last 3 weeks. So, I have not gained any weight, but I have not lost any either.
And, with Valentine’s Day, I’ve had a little more candy than I needed, but then again, I don’t need any candy. 
My goal for the month is to lose 10 more pounds before I see my doctor. Which means that I need to start exercising more….
I will let you know more about how that turns out…
Carbs, Junk Food, Oh My!
So, I backslid a little this past weekend. I had pizza, pop, and a bit of junk food. And my weight went back up a few pounds. And…I got really cranky as a result. Apparently, there have been some studies done that shows how depression, violence, and suicide happens more in people who are eating large amounts of bran, soy foods, high carb diets, and/or are vegetarians. You can read more about it here.
The basics of the article states that:
- Carbohydrates are often recommended by nutritionists to be eaten at night, because of the sedative effects it has on your system. In someone who is already prone to depression, this could have disastrous and debilitating results! The article states that, “But with depression, if you are tired, you really don’t feel like doing anything: it’s an effort to get up, work, play, interact with people, get meals, and so on. And under these conditions, carbohydrate meals have exactly the opposite effect from what you might expect. They make you relaxed and slow your reaction times…“
- Low cholesterol can lead to suicide and violence.
- The simple solution is to get rid of the high carb diet, and eat more of a protein/fat diet.
It’s not a wonder I got really down and cranky, then…if grain based carbs, and a low-protein diet is to blame for depression, suicide and violence, then maybe it would be better for me to eat high protein and fat, and a low carb (no grains) diet. Worth a shot, eh?
January 31st Progress Report
Just to back up a little bit, I wanted to share with you where I was and where I am going in my weight loss journey. Two years ago, I lost a significant amount of weight–60 pounds, to be exact–by going Vegan, and then going back to being vegetarian, but avoiding sugar and by exercising. After a while, though, I got really tired and had low energy…got really cranky too. It wasn’t a pretty picture! I started eating meat again, but that didn’t start me gaining weight. Why I started gaining weight back again was because I began eating sugar products, grains (including refined), and fast food crap…
But now I’m back in the game, and actively working on researching the best way to lose weight for the long term, as well as fight off diseases and illnesses. I found the Paleo diet.
I have been following this for the last month–eating only meats, vegetables, and fruits. I changed my caffeine source from Mt. Dew to green and black tea. So, not only do I get the health benefits of the tea, I also don’t have all the sugar and corn syrup that causes weight gain. Grains are out, but I have found some great recipes for using nut flours and meals in baked goods…
For the month of January, I have lost a total of 15 pounds.
So, I have eaten some sugar products here and there. And in the past month, I have had pizza twice. So, while grains are not on the menu most of the time, I realize that it can be a little easier to transition slowly to a no-grain diet, since grains have been a part of my diet pretty much since I was born. And I know that is how many of us grew up. It doesn’t have to be hard to give all that up all at once, but the closer I get to a no grain diet, I know the better I will feel. Already, I have felt so much better when I do not eat grains.
Stay tuned for more of my progress…
