A Bit of Whining
MyriiStorm
Posts: 609 Member
So. . . I went through an incredibly stressful few months, home life completely disrupted, and no access to a kitchen. I started out trying to maintain healthy eating, but it became more and more difficult as time went on. Eventually I not only gave up on trying to stay LCHF, but I actually started bingeing on sugar again. I ate more cake, cookies, ice cream and peanut M&Ms in one month than I had in the past year. 
Surprisingly, I only gained 3 pounds during this time.
It's been almost a month now since the disruptions ceased and I've had my home and kitchen back. I love being able to cook for myself again, and have been doing so daily. Since I had to start from scratch with what to put in the fridge and pantry there is absolutely no junk food in the house - no bread, pasta, chips, sugary treats, potatoes, etc. Just meat, veggies, dairy, eggs, nuts and apples (limited to 1 a day).
Work is another story. I've got two high-visibility projects on top of my regular work, which are stretching me professionally (a good thing), but stressing me out about successfully completing the projects. I take my LCHF lunch to work, and nuts for an afternoon snack. Mid-afternoon I get hungry, and to be honest, I'm not always sure whether it is "real" hunger or "stress" hunger. I try to tough it out with just the nuts, but some days I dive into the candy bin (which is always full, thanks to my co-workers).
During the super-stressful months I managed to gain only 3 pounds, but now that the stress at home has abated, I've put on another 3 pounds in only 3 weeks! This trend has got to stop. Any advice or encouragement will be appreciated.
Surprisingly, I only gained 3 pounds during this time.It's been almost a month now since the disruptions ceased and I've had my home and kitchen back. I love being able to cook for myself again, and have been doing so daily. Since I had to start from scratch with what to put in the fridge and pantry there is absolutely no junk food in the house - no bread, pasta, chips, sugary treats, potatoes, etc. Just meat, veggies, dairy, eggs, nuts and apples (limited to 1 a day).
Work is another story. I've got two high-visibility projects on top of my regular work, which are stretching me professionally (a good thing), but stressing me out about successfully completing the projects. I take my LCHF lunch to work, and nuts for an afternoon snack. Mid-afternoon I get hungry, and to be honest, I'm not always sure whether it is "real" hunger or "stress" hunger. I try to tough it out with just the nuts, but some days I dive into the candy bin (which is always full, thanks to my co-workers).
During the super-stressful months I managed to gain only 3 pounds, but now that the stress at home has abated, I've put on another 3 pounds in only 3 weeks! This trend has got to stop. Any advice or encouragement will be appreciated.
0
Replies
-
With your kitchen reno, is there a change you were more physically active during those months thus burning more calories than you currently are (I'm assuming) perched at a desk?
Do you track calories? And if not, is there a chance that you are eating more candy than your think in addition to your LC/HF meals? The re-focus on HF while continuing to have high carb (candy) may not be helping in and of itself.
Perhaps the kitchen reno was less stressful that your current workload that is now supplemented with 2 high stress projects and your sleep is less peaceful and your cortisol is up-neither of which is beneficial to weight/management.
I am not IR, PCOS, diabetic etc but if you are perhaps those who also walk that walk have insights that may pertain to you2 -
I've been making lchf peanut butter cups (4 tbsp Coconut oil, 4 tbsp organic peanut butter crunchy and 2 tbsp dark cocoa powder...no Stevia or anything). It takes me 1min 10 sec to nuke these ingredients in the microwave, then once in muffin moulds take only 30 min in the freezer to set.
I've been taking 3 of these a day to work in a cooler bag and enjoy them when stress hunger sets in, about 2.30pm. Hope this works for you xxx3 -
@missjosefina, thanks for that recipe! I would love to indulge! I'm a little phobic, not to say mistrustful of the carb count in peanut butter, but since reading three different reports on the carb/calorie count in nuts (namely almonds, walnuts and pistachios) being wildly inaccurate (on the negative side) I'm more optimistic as to their benefits!2
-
I've gone overboard and when I went back on track, one thing I tried in order to get that "full" feeling and stay keto was to drink a mug of broth or boullion with a pat of butter and/or cream in it. I also notice myself feeling more chilly even on spring days now that I've dropped 40 lbs from keto, so I love the warmth it offers, too. Hot tea or coffee (with some cream in either one) are great ways to give me a brain boost if I feel a bit foggy or just want to keep up with work but it's not time for a meal.3
-
Thanks for the helpful feedback.
@kpk54 I know I'm eating too much candy. Once I put that first bite in my mouth, I keep going back and going back for more. The good news is that I got a standing desk about a month ago, so no more sitting on my *kitten* all day.
I just need to stop the sweets! As for tracking calories, I used to. But when I cook, I seldom use recipes. I just throw in a bunch of this and some of that and a bit of the other, so it is difficult to try to calculate and log/track my meals. I need to get better about that.
@missjosefina I will have to try that recipe. It sounds yummy even without sweetener!
@bjwoodzy I like your idea for a pick-me-up in the afternoon. Coffee would keep me awake all night, but I think tea would be okay. Even the kind with caffeine has much less than coffee does.
You guys rock!3 -
You got this, lady. Keep on doing it and you'll be fine.1
-
MyriiStorm wrote: »I just need to stop the sweets! As for tracking calories, I used to. But when I cook, I seldom use recipes. I just throw in a bunch of this and some of that and a bit of the other, so it is difficult to try to calculate and log/track my meals. I need to get better about that.
The candy is certainly part of the problem, but you already know that. Accurately, measuring, weighing, tracking and logging the food you make at home for yourself in your kitchen is the other part of the problem. You've already admitted that you don't do this or aren't good at doing this so you are likely eating more than you think there too and as we all know, even eating LCHF-friendly foodstuffs, it is still possible to gain weight.
That's great that you got yourself a standing desk though!!2 -
So true! I could drink bulletproof coffee all day, but at 200 calories each that would not leave room in my day for any other food if I'm hoping to stick close to 1400/day. So those are limited to one per day. I'm looking forward to the Meativore May challenge, as it is harder for me to overeat meat than other foods.MyriiStorm wrote: »I just need to stop the sweets! As for tracking calories, I used to. But when I cook, I seldom use recipes. I just throw in a bunch of this and some of that and a bit of the other, so it is difficult to try to calculate and log/track my meals. I need to get better about that.
The candy is certainly part of the problem, but you already know that. Accurately, measuring, weighing, tracking and logging the food you make at home for yourself in your kitchen is the other part of the problem. You've already admitted that you don't do this or aren't good at doing this so you are likely eating more than you think there too and as we all know, even eating LCHF-friendly foodstuffs, it is still possible to gain weight.
That's great that you got yourself a standing desk though!!
I've successfully gone three days with zero refined sugar now. I ran my keto-meatloaf recipe through my nutrient calculator, so now I can log it. I'm curious what the scale will say this weekend!
3
This discussion has been closed.