What Do You Do With All that Sugar You're Not Eating?

Well, ladies and gentlemen,
there is some argument that you should smush it on your face and rub 'til your skin is shiny and new.  No one EVER said your skin care regimen had to be LCHF, now did they??!!

Check out these recipes from this great website that I found:

• Cleanse Your Skin with Milk and Honey!,
• Remove Your Makeup with Honey (here and here),
• Fruity Skin Scrub,
• Honey, Wine and Chocolate Face Mask,
• Egg, Lemon and Honey Face Mask,
• Homemade Sugar Scrub

And hey, if you've already cleaned out your pantry of all of the above sweet carby stuff, have no fear, because you can make beauty booty out of LCHF ingredients you probably have lying around, including coconut products and various oils that are likely in your cabinet.

I confess to trying this sweetly au naturel way to keep my face fresh.  I just started washing my face with honey in the morning and using the oil cleansing method to cleanse it at night.  Will keep you posted ;)

Diabetes? Type 1, Type 2, or [Type] None?

Last night, I received a phone call from my MD at home.  The results of my fasting glucose and insulin tests from last Friday came in.  My fasting blood glucose was 118 mg/dl, and my fasting insulin was 10.  Apparently, the blood glucose was elevated, but the insulin was well within the normal range (the max normal is 17).  The fasting blood glucose result seemed strange in light of the prior post-prandial glucose test I took at the lab, which resulted in a reading of 95 mg/dl.

But...I expected a higher than normal fasting blood glucose.  I have read a number of blog entries and posts from low-carbers out there who have had the same results:
http://www.livinlowcarbdiscussion.com/showthread.php?tid=1381
http://high-fat-nutrition.blogspot.com/search/label/Physiological%20insulin%20resistance%20%281%29

My doctor is concerned that I may be diabetic.  According to her, I should do a glucose tolerance test, and get my HbA1c tested.  I told her that I was worried about getting a false positive from a GTT because of my low carb diet.  As observed by Dr. Atkins: 

"Note: The GTT results are not considered accurate unless you are consuming at least 150 grams of carbs a day for at least four days before you take the test. Therefore, doing it after you start Atkins would mean you'd have to go back temporarily to eating a high carbohydrate diet (and almost certainly regain some of the pounds you have just successfully lost)."  Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution, p.113 (2002 ed.). 

This recommendation seems to be pretty mainstream:

"Those taking the OGTT to diagnose diabetes or prediabetes who are not pregnant should eat a normal, balanced diet the week before taking the test. Experts recommend that this diet include at least 150 to 200 grams of carbohydrates per day. Patients must fast for at least 8 to 12 hours before having the test."  http://diabetes.about.com/od/symptomsdiagnosis/a/ogtt.htm; see also, http://www.ehow.com/how_2077817_take-pregnancy-glucose-tolerance-test.html (recommending 150g for 3 days prior to GTT).

I know I'm getting about 20-30 grams of carbs a day, which is confirmed by my carb counting and daily ketosis testing.  I'm leery about guzzling all of that sugary stuff for the GTT, about high-carbing it for 3-4 days prior, and about sticking around a blood lab for 2 hours to get the GTT done (I have to work, people)!! 

So, we're compromising.  I'm going to do another fasting glucose and the HbA1c tomorrow morning before work.  I'm going to start monitoring my blood sugars three times per day with a home glucometer, which I have to pick up this afternoon from the pharmacy (yay, insurance paid for the glucometer and lancets – no copay!).  Then we'll see if we need to do the GTT after those results come in.  Hopefully, the HbA1c will look good enough so that I don't have to do the GTT.

I have read that exercising at night, and eating a good, low carb snack before bed, can help with fasting blood glucose.  Guess that means that yours truly is hittin' the gym tonight.

I hope I'm not diabetic.  Type 1 and Type 2 are both in my family.  Type 2 I can deal with, as it is likely to resolve itself once I've got my health and weight under control.  Type 1 is pretty scary stuff. Shudder.  My maternal grandfather and first cousin once removed have Type 1.  But I make insulin…  and I have PCOS, which is related to insulin resistance (I make too much insulin).  I don't know how you can have symptoms of insulin resistance and have Type 1 diabetes, because having insulin resistance implies that you are producing a lot of insulin and your cells just aren't responding to it.

I'm going to start keeping track of my blood glucose levels on this blog.  Hopefully, it will provide some insight and result in a healthier me.

End of Week 10 - weigh in (a day late)

I weighed in yesterday, on April 3rd, at 215.5, which is one more pound lost from last week.  I also lost about 3/4 of an inch from around my waist.  Last week was a tough one.  I had not been feeling well - the week was plagued with headaches, moodiness... you name it.  I seem to have a headache all of the time, and ibuprofen and tylenol do little to help.  I'm not sure if this is the result of my new meds, or if it is the start of allergy season, and I have some kind of sinus thing going on.  I am going to call the MD who prescribed the new meds, and see what she says.  Hormones are serious stuff. 

I was hoping to pen a new post this week, entitled, "high energy... I love Mondays!"  That is not going to happen.  I'm still tired, moody, and headachey.  I hope I can get some resolution from the MD.

Cheers, and here's to feeling better in every way!!  :)

Get thee to the doctor!

I've been doing a lot of research on PCOS and "estrogen dominance" and "progesterone deficiency".  Turns out having PCOS causes you to have a lot of estrogen running around in your body.  Too much estrogen and not enough progesterone tends to make you fat around the midsection, hairy, moody, headachey, etc.  As if these symptoms weren't bad enough, having such an estrogen imbalance can apparently increase your likelihood of heart disease and breast cancer.  (And, let me be the first to tell you, having PCOS can make you infertile).  If these symptoms sound familiar, consider getting yourself to your MD for a check up, and have them run some blood tests on you. 

Hey - I'm not a doctor, but I believe that if you feel like crap you should get yourself to the MD and find out what's going on. 

I know a lot of people who prefer to stick their heads in the sand and just live with their symptoms.  An example: I have an Aunt Pam.  She is one of my mother's sisters.  After my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer (for the second time) in 2008, she had genetic testing performed to determine whether she had a gene abnormality on BRCA1 or BRCA2 (these are human tumor suppressor genes - women and MEN who have an abnormality in these genes are much more likely to get breast, ovarian, and other types of cancer than the general population).  Mom had a deletion on her BRCA 2 gene - she had hereditary breast cancer.  With the exception of my Aunt Pam, my mom's children and her brothers and sisters all were tested.  We were all negative, thank God.  My Aunt Pam didn't show up for her appointment, she didn't reschedule, and she has never been tested, to this day.  Aunt Pam has two biological children, each of whom would also have benefitted from knowing whether their mom carried such a gene abnormality (because that would mean they have a 50% chance of having the same gene abnormality...the same elevated risks). 

My mom died last August, at age 54.  If she had had the benefit of a "heads up" ten years earlier, maybe she would still be alive today.  (Case in point: Christina Applegate).  To squander the opportunity to learn more about your own health, when it could provoke action that could save, extend and/or improve your life (and the lives of your loved ones), is tragic!

We only have this one life and this one body.  We should take care of them the best we can.  You're never too old to start taking care of yourself for the first time in your life.  Hey, I'm 31.  I'm obese and not that healthy at the moment.  But, I'm working on it, and my life is improving as a result.  There is no shame in being a work in progress.  There is no shame in investing in YOU!

3/25/11: Daily Weighing is Dangerous and I Need Fiber

So, I weighed myself yesterday, and again today. I can feel myself slip-sliding back into a daily weighing pattern. I have learned the hard way that daily weighing is dangerous and can crush your spirits! Plus, most of us yo-yo back and forth most days 1-2 pounds, and daily weighing isn't necessarily representative of your actual weight loss, your metabolic activity, or how hard you are working on your diet and exercise. But... when you start to feel that things are going well, it is soooo tempting to toe up to that scale. "I wonder if I lost even more today," is my thought. I know that I shouldn't, because I will be disappointed if I have put that 2.5 pounds back on, but I don't care. I've got a feeling I've had a "woosh" weight loss moment, and I want to know right NOW...I don't want to wait until weigh-in on Sunday!!!

Today, same as yesterday, just as I was having those thoughts, something fell out of my cabinet, landed on the electronic scale and turned it on. Yesterday it was my hairbrush. Today, my makeup bag. Am I just sloppy and my cabinet messy and overfull? Or is it divine intervention telling me, "do it Kate, weigh yourself now!" (Funny, that divine voice sounds just like my own, pound-obsessed voice). Is it a friendly, weight-conscious spirit? Are we having earthquakes or tremors in Connecticut? Is my butt so generously proportioned that I make the room shake when I walk?

Anyway, I decided to go with divine intervention, and stepped up to the scale. "Get out of town," I said aloud. Down another 1.5 pounds from the same time yesterday morning. That's four pounds since last Sunday. All this from a girl stuck in a plateau for-freaking-ever, who hasn't been to the gym since Sunday??!! Is my body listening? Is God listening? Are you there God? Its me, Kate.

216.5 - lightest I've been since I went to law school in 2002, nine years ago!!

Proof that God exists and loves us? I'm going to have to start my new branch of philosophy, y'all.

On another note, I need more fiber. I'm out of psyllium husk supplements, and I'm getting uncomfortable. I get so much dietary fiber that I can't believe that 2 caplets a day of this stuff makes a difference... but it undeniably does.

End of week eight - weigh in 3/20/11

I so wanted to hit 217 pounds today.  That is the number I’ve been looking for, for
WEEKS!  Instead, my weight remains unchanged, though my measurements continue to shrink.  Am I building LBM and losing fat simultaneously?  This is a possibility.   I am ready for a 4 pound weight loss.  Ugh!!  I can’t get out of the 220s, and it is really getting on my nerves!  From last week, I lost .25 inches around my neck, .5 inches from my bust, .5 inches from my waist, and .5 inches from my hips.  My clothes fit better.  Slow and steady… too slow and steady!!   All that I can say is…thank God I’ve been doing the measurements.  I would be so disappointed by this point without them showing, at least, some fat loss every week.  Maybe I need to get a device that measures BMI.  Some calipers?  Ugh!!

What's the deal?  I'm in ketosis all the time.  I eat low carb.  I exercise regularly.  My only folly is that I have the occasional glass or two of wine when I go out.  Is that enough to mess with my weight loss? 

This week, alcohol free for me.

Low carb pizza?

Check out this recipe from this great low carb blog i found today! **update** I made this for dinner last night and it was ridiculously good. My husband and daughter ate it, too, and we had no leftovers. I topped it with vodka sauce, pepperoni,, chicken italian sausage, mozz and parm. Oh, and I followed a suggestion on the foregoing blog and added 1/4 cup parm To the crust. Will make again!!

Weigh In, 3/6/11, end of week 6

The end of week 6 is nigh! 

Weigh In: well, I finally hit my 220 milestone.  It is good news :)  My measurements didn't change so dramatically this week, which is kind of a bummer. Maybe it is one of those things.... lose weight or lose inches, but not both at the same time?  Who knows?  Anyway, I'm glad for the weight reduction.

This weekend: was fun, and a little wild.  Saturday started off soooo healthy.  First thing in the morning, I hit the gym, did week 1 day 1 of the race training program and the full weight training circuit.  To the grocery store for some healthy food items, home to prepare a bunch of low carb stuff for the week.  Later, however, I went out with the girls for my aunt's birthday.  We did dinner and went to a club for dancing and a show.  The food was good....shrimp cocktail, strip steak, asparagus, oh my.  Delicious.  However, I did drink alcohol: 2 glasses of cabernet sauvignon and 2 vodka martinis with extra lime.  Sinfully good.  I danced all night.  I'm definitely feeling it today, with my tired, old lady knees (holy crap they hurt), my scratchy man voice, and a good dose of cottonmouth.

I will post more later, after the hangover dissipates.  Ugh.

Saturday 3/5/11 - gym, cookery, goin' out!

So, this morning I got up and went to the gym.  I did week 1, day 1 of the race training and boy, was it hard.  Its not my cardio, either - jogging is physically uncomfortable!  My feet hurt.  What's that all about?  Maybe I need to get some new sneaks, or put in some arch supports.  I'm going to go to the runner's shoe store near me and see what they say about it.  Hope they're open on a Sunday.  I'll hit it on my way to the office tomorrow.

I spent a lot of the day cooking.  I did cupcake-sized mini quiches with bacon, broccoli and cheddar for breakfast this week.  The recipe made 12 quiches, which I froze.  I also made some bigos - polish "hunter's style" sauerkraut with pork, kielbasa and bacon.  It is so good, and sooo perfect for a low carb diet, but you gotta like cabbage (and I do!!).  I've also got some of my controversial chili, which I defrosted and will incorporate into my diet this week.  I would have left it alone, but my dad had a hankering for a chili dog, and I could only defrost the entire thing of chili, not bits at a time, so there you go...

Tonight I'm going out for my aunt's 40th birthday.  Yahoo. I went shopping yesterday, and bought myself a new skirt - size 16 regular.  That's down from an 18W, and its freaking fantastic.  I'm wearing it out tonight with some boots and a black tee.  I'll be very monochromatic.  Maybe even a little goth.  We're going to bar for a drag show, but before that, we're going to a totally normal restaurant for dinner...  so I can't go all out!!

Disclosure!  I plan on having 1-2 drinks tonight.  I will be very careful with what I eat, and I'll stick with low-carb drinks, too.  But there will be alcohol involved!

Sweet Sweet Friday

Things are going well.  I'm still in ketosis.  However, although I continue to follow the diet, I do so without thought.  So, I'm not really feeling like I'm dieting anymore. 

I am having some concerns about craving.  I am not really "craving" anything as in "I'm obsessing about it and I can't stop myself from bingeing", but I can't help but want to eat some sweets.  Oh, sweetie sweetie sweetie sweets, how I lust to imbibe you!  I now have a few low-carb things in the house that I made myself, which I could consume and technically not break I&N rules... like my low carb almond macaroons and my low carb individual cheesecakes.  But I am conflicted. 

I feel guilty and I want to be good!!  I want this WoE to work.  I&N don't limit your intake of cheese, cream, or nuts.  You can have sweets as long as they are low carb and don't contain a huge amount of sugar substitutes.  My sweet treats comply with I&N... but I've been following this Atkins forum online, and I've reread DANDR 2002, and Atkins induction restricts you to 4 oz. of cheese, 3 tbsp of cream, and no nuts, daily, on induction.  No peanut butter on Atkins - but on I&N peanut butter is allowed.  I am torn, because one of the things that makes me able to stick to I&N is that I don't feel deprived because I get to enjoy the foregoing items which are prohibited at this stage of Atkins.  The problem has been that I've followed I&N well, and though I'm losing inches, my official weekly weigh ins have remained static for a few weeks now.  So, I'm torn.  DANDR 2002 promises (but will it deliver?) greater results with only slightly more restriction.  I&N is easier for me to follow and still keeps me in ketosis.  I mean, if I'm in ketosis, and I'm exercising (which I will today, God help me, its been a nutso week), the fat should be melting and the weight should be dropping.  What about the Spanish Ketogenic Diet that produces liposuction-like results (and requires daily ingestion of red wine, which is prohibited on I&N and Atkins)?  I need to make a choice about which specific ketogenic WoE I am going to follow, or I think that I risk falling off the boat entirely.  My fear about falling off the boat is not because I am craving, or because my heart is not in it - I fear carelessness and inattention will lead me astray, and I'll find myself back to where I was 6 weeks ago - uncontrollably snacking at night, with one carby snack leading to another and to another...  So, I have choices to make.

Can I just say, holy crap, I can't believe that I am at the end of the 5th week of this diet, and according to I&N, my only cheats have alcohol-related (the champagne fiasco on V-Day, one glass of wine with Pete a couple of weeks ago, and 1 martini last Saturday).  I have to give myself mad props (is that term still cool with the kids?) for sticking with this for such a long time.  I have never, ever, been so good on a diet and lasted this long.  I think the credit goes to me - but not to the thinking part of me, or the "willpower" part of me (which I have not really had to exercise), but the endocrinological parts of me, which, if the ketosis experts are right, are no longer causing my brain to shoot out the message that I am in desperate need of fried chicken and chocolate cake NOW.  I do miss these things (and I will find an excellent low carb fried chicken recipe if it kills me), but I am not fiending after them like an addict.

When it comes to food, I am a different person than I used to be.  I feared for a long time (until very recently) that I had a food addiction or compulsion that I could barely control.  I had never really felt true "hunger" (like rumblings in my belly) but I always had the intense desire to eat, which I was often unable to ignore.  Indeed, to me, "hungry" or the need (not desire) to eat has only ever been manifested by a sudden bout of dissiness or nausea.  When I ate, I never felt satisfied with the food I ate.  There were two postprandial reactions for me: either I had deprived myself and was still hungry, or I had stuffed myself to the gills and was sick to my stomach.  I&N has changed everything: I haven't felt hungry since the first week of this WoE, and I certainly haven't felt stuffed to the gills either.  I am feeling satisfied with meals for the first time ever, and I don't get that intense desire to eat anymore. 

What does this mean?  Answer: this diet has challenged my well-established perceptions about myself, and as a result, I learned a great deal about me and my body, and I no longer criticize myself for my former “failings” in weight management and control.