Well That Wasn't Good

So, I was all gungho to get on this diet and lose the weight quickly. Instead my self-control crumbled and I have basically been on a wild sugar binge for the last month and a half. I've put on a little weight.

It just wasn't working for me. I guess I'm a rebel... when I try to restrict myself so tightly, I end up rebelling against myself. I am a complicated person.

So, I have gone on to do a lot of research and have actually turned back to my Dr.'s original advice. I bought The Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung. He's actually located here in my home town. He works with patients that have advanced type 2 diabetes; specifically those with kidney damage. He has done a lot of research into the hormonal causes of obesity and has his patients use intermittent fasting (IF) as a way to take the weight off quickly and safely. It is in combination with a low carb diet. But there are no calorie restrictions.

If you're interested, you can find more information about intermittent fasting at the Diet Doctor website: https://www.dietdoctor.com/intermittent-fasting

There are 5 key components to getting healthy:

1. Stress management
2. Cardiovascular health
3. Rest
4. Fasting
5. Diet

1. Stress Management

If you've followed my story at all you know that anxiety has been a challenge for me. Ironically raised cortisol actually aids in weight gain. So being stressed all of the time can make you fat. I was on meds for my anxiety for a while. Now I'm doing much better and am off of them, but I do not do a very good job of managing stress. So, I will be adding meditation into my daily schedule. Each day I will get up 20 minutes earlier and meditate.

Adding exercise into my routine will help with this as well.

2. Cardiovascular Health

Type 2 diabietes affects heart health so it is vital that I get it under control. So, simply by losing weight and managing my blood sugar levels, I will be increasing my heart health. However, I want to do more than that. I need to add more exercise into my routine. So I am stating here for myself and all to see that I will commit to getting 10000 steps at a minimum of 5 days per week building up to 7 days per week.

3. Rest

This is pretty self-explanatory. I will commit to getting 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night.

4. Fasting

I will complete 3 23 hour fasting periods per week. This means that I finish eating by 7pm on day 1 and on Day 2 I break that fast at 6pm.

5. Diet

I will not be calorie counting. I will be taking an approach that is low carb and low sugar. I need to add in more green vegetables. I will also be taking a multi-vitamin and topping up my vitamin D and vitamin B.

So, that's the plan. I think the meditation and the exercise will be the toughest parts. I have tried meditating in the past and always feel a little weird about it. I find it tough to focus. I commit to giving it my best. The exercise is something very tough for me. I used to love the gym and lifting weights. My favourite cardio machine was the step machine - you know the one where you climb stairs (not the stair master).. I am so far from that person right now. I need to figure out how to work full time, be a mom and find time in my day to exercise.

I need to get this under control if I want any quality of life later on.

T2 Diagnosis and the 8 week blood sugar diet

I am changing the focus of my blog a little...I am still a Mom, and am still mid-40s (ish...creeping towards the big 50).  I still have little pieces of my brain and heart that would like to have another child...complete with nightly dreams of babies and pregnancy recently.  But, I am just too old at this point.

The focus of my blog is going to be more focussed on my health over the next little while.  Last year, I tipped the scales at 286 pounds. And shortly thereafter I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes.  I had gestational diabetes which can lead to full blown T2; if I was aware of that I am not sure it would have changed my eating habits.

My Dr told me about some research she had heard that Dr Jason Fung was doing around Intermittent Fasting as well as Dr Michael Mosley.  Well, I went right out and found Michael Mosley’s website, inhaled everything he said there and bought his book The 8 Week Blood Sugar Diet. https://thebloodsugardiet.com/

 It is a plan to eat approx 800 calories per day,following a low carb moderate fat Mediterranean approach to eating.  If you follow it, you will lose 10% of your body weight and it will reverse your T2.

I did it and I lost the 10%.  Then I started incorporating sugar and carbs back into my eating...then I went nuts over Christmas and in a few months gained a bunch if the weight back.

So now I am back on track.  I started back on the plan last week Wed. at 266.8lbs. I have modified it a bit.  I mentioned Dr Jason Fung earlier.  I am incorporating intermittent fasting into my approach.

I am eating between 800 and 1200 calories per day. No sugar, no processed carbs. I keep m6 carbs under 40gms per day.  I also follow the 16:8 IF...which means I don’t eat for 16 hours and eat all of my calories in an 8 hour window.

As of today, I am down 6.8lbs.  I feel full, have more energy, sleep better and have less pain in my joints. Th craziest thing is that my resting heart rate has dropped from 74 beats per minute to 66.

I gave seen from past attempts at losing weight I get so focussed on the hear and now if dieting that I forget to focus on the after part.  I will be exploring here how I will maintain my weightloss and renewed health once I hit my goals.