One of the most problem reasons why people don't end up sticking to their diets is because they feel deprived and hungry! I know this personally because when I was doing carb-heavy calorie-restricting diets like Weight Watchers, I felt like I was starving to death every day. I would lose weight at first, and then when I was exhausted by the constant feeling of deprivation, I would say "SCREW IT!" and pig out, usually gaining all my weight back and resigning to the fact that I would always be fat.
It took me a long time to figure it out, but what I was doing by eating often and eating a diet rich in carbs, I was causing my blood sugar to rise and fall all throughout the day. My body would get a "hit" of glucose in the morning, spike my energy for a short period, and then crash in a couple hours and feel even hungrier than I did when I woke up that day. An average day of eating looked like this:
Morning: Coffee with sweetened creamer, a bagel or oatmeal with fruit
Afternoon: Sandwich, salad or wrap, again with fruit
Late afternoon: A packaged, processed snack like a granola bar or protein bar and an apple (holy crap with all the fruit)
Dinner: Protein (whatever meat I was cooking that day) rice and vegetables (not bad, but I was eating 2-3 servings of rice)
After dinner: I was usually hungry again after the kids were down so I would have some kind of treat like Halo Top (again, not the worst, but a bad habit, and my carbs for the day were well over 200g by this point!)
All throughout the day: more coffee and diet coke. I was SO tired and I was desperately dependent upon caffeine.
OK, so try not to focus on how poorly I ate, but instead hear me say this:
- I didn't lose weight this way. I was eating what would be considered a mainstream "healthy" diet, but at best, I would maintain and stay exactly the same, but I didn't (and couldn't) lose weight this way.
- I felt like crap eating this way. I couldn't really pinpoint why, because on paper, I was eating a lot of healthy food. I was told that we needed carbs and whole grains for energy, so I couldn't figure out why I was so tired and straight up lethargic all the time.
- My cravings were out of control. I was technically eating food with vitamins and minerals (fruit, and a bunch of it) but because of the blood sugar dips and trips my body was constantly sending me red flags to give it more sugar, and these were present every day. Furthermore, metabolisms are lazy, and they want quick fixes. So, I wasn't craving fruit and whole grains, I was craving ice cream and candy. Why? Sugar. Plain and simple.
Turns out, the reason why I was feeling so crummy is because I was basically sending my blood sugar on a roller coaster ride all throughout the day. My body was heavily dependent upon it's next "fix" of glucose to keep me functioning and without it I felt horrible and hungry. I would often times try to restrict how much and what type of carbs I ate, but it was frivolous because for me, the glucose dependence was hazardous to my well being (and no, I'm not even diabetic or pre-diabetic. I had myself tested multiple times while experiencing these symptoms because I thought that HAD to be the cause).
Here's the difference between life then and my life now;
- I no longer eat a diet rich in carbohydrates and processed sugar. I now eat foods that are dense in protein and healthy fats, so I stay full longer and my blood sugar does NOT rise and fall throughout the day.
- I no longer crave sugar. Sure, there are days when I could definitely go for a pizza or some sushi, but that's literally only because I like those things. I don't feel like I'm going to pass out if I don't get some. Often times, I'm so satisfied by my ketogenic diet that the thought of eating something sugary and processed is a little nauseating. Any time I have strayed from the ketogenic eating plan, I have quickly remembered how terrible I feel when I'm eating carbs and I promptly return to Keto.
My day of eating now:
Morning: Coffee with cream and splenda. No breakfast because (thanks to Ketosis) I'm not hungry yet this early in the day. This works well for me, because I take my thyroid medication in the morning.
Afternoon: I will finally start feeling hungry around 11 AM/Noon. At this point, I will usually eat some leftover meat from my fridge and cheese. I feel full from this usually until the late afternoon.
Late afternoon: Sometimes, I need a pick me up in the afternoon. At this point, I will have a Diet Coke and some macadamia nuts, a cheese stick, or an Atkins bar. This is the one weak point in my Ketogenic diet right now, honestly (hey, I didn't say I was perfect!): I am still pretty addicted to Diet Cokes. I am trying to cut back by no longer keeping them in my fridge and only drinking them when I'm out somewhere.
Dinner: Meat and green veggies.
All throughout the day: water, water, water! Drinking water is so important for weight loss in general, but particularly with keto which is a diuretic diet. Keto gets rid of your water weight and the excess water held onto by your fat cells. It is important to replenish your body's water supply to avoid dehydration and keep the weight loss going smoothly.
Aside from the obvious weight loss benefits associated with Keto, I wouldn't trade how great I feel for anything. Keto has been the key for me to regulate my blood sugar and finally get my cravings under control, and I believe it can be for you too.
Interested in starting Keto and reaping these benefits for yourself? Find out how with my new e-book or email me for more information.
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