The 4-Hour Body / Slow-Carb Diet

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  • eponai
    eponai Posts: 38 Member
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    it's the Grand Moff Tarkin of domino foods.

    absolutely!

    and here i am on cheat day, having a morning protein shake, and wondering if i should cheat at all. week 2 has me up 4 pounds and and an inch from last cheat day morning. meaning, i never lost the cheat weight completely.

    perhaps i should just have a cheat dinner?
  • mcferg
    mcferg Posts: 142 Member
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    and here i am on cheat day, having a morning protein shake, and wondering if i should cheat at all. week 2 has me up 4 pounds and and an inch from last cheat day morning. meaning, i never lost the cheat weight completely.

    perhaps i should just have a cheat dinner?

    It's a tough call. I haven't dealt with that YET, but I've had several weeks that I didn't lose all of the cheat weight until the morning of cheat day, and even then, I just broke even. My cheat day is Sunday...as of today, I'm still up 0.3 lbs. I do expect (fingers crossed) to get back to last week's pre-cheat day weight tomorrow morning. If I DO, I will do some amount of cheating. If I DON'T, then I will probably not cheat.

    I kind of have this deal with myself that I will never cheat unless I am at or under my cheat morning weight from the previous week. I know it will happen at some point. If it does, I'll stay on plan until I'm under cheat weight, then cheat that day, even if it's midweek.
  • sbracken
    sbracken Posts: 79
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    My cheat day was supposed to be today......but I was way hungover this morning so I switched it to tomorrow. I'm down 2.2 lbs from pre-cheat last week!!!! It feels like the weight is literally just melting off now. I had a bit of a slow start on this plan, but it seems to be picking up now in weeks 5 and 6.
  • circadianswing
    circadianswing Posts: 55 Member
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    a whopping 7lb gain after cheat day... this is tough game to play. however, the fish n' chips and all the other stuff I consumed was well worth the mental satisfaction!
  • mcferg
    mcferg Posts: 142 Member
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    Well, I guess I jinxed myself by saying that I expect to be down to last week's pre-cheat-day weight by today (cheat day). Yesterday, I was 0.3 lbs up from that weight. Today, I'm 0.8 lbs up from that weight. Oh well.

    I'm not cheating today. If I miraculously dump weight the next couple of days, I may allow myself a midweek cheat meal, but really, I don't feel much like cheating. My parents are in town, and we already have meals planned for today that are SCD-friendly, so it would almost be a waste to cheat.

    Anyway - I actually think it will be nice not see that scale up so much Monday morning. That said - this IS about the long haul, so I'm trying not to be short sighted. I have no intention of eliminating the cheat meal from the plan. I do feel, though, like I need a mental break from worrying if/when that cheat day weight is going to come off.
  • bluebird321
    bluebird321 Posts: 732 Member
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    I'm working my way through this thread and finding some great info here -- thanks for taking the time to post everybody. Finally, a forum that seems to be taking this diet seriously. I've been on another "weight watchers" website -- they have this topic also, but it seems to be a bit controversial for the average dieter.

    I'm starting my fourth week on the diet and have been satisfied with the results so far.
  • violynist
    violynist Posts: 61
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    hey everyone,

    i just thought i'd share some stuff i've been trying...& give a progress report.

    1. ghee - this is really rich. but good. i have used it a couple times to fry or scramble eggs in. you don't need much, just a little bit.
    2. macadamia nut oil - i haven't tried this on eggs yet, but i sauteed garlic in it. it does smell like nut oil, but not bad. we'll see if i can indeed do eggs in it.
    3. garlic - i decided to do fresh garlic, one clove/day as i'm concerned about garlic losing its potency and effectiveness when processed. i sauteed it, which was good. i also make a kick-*kitten* salad dressing (soy sauce, olive oil, shredded ginger & garlic, 1 fresh lemon) that i can get a whole clove in without it being yucky.
    4. d3 - have started this along with saurkraut. we'll see how it goes. not sure if it will help muscles or not, but i'm giving it a try.
    5. l carnitine - i just got this randomly, have only tried one dose. any body-builders out there used this? thought i would try this & perhaps a bottle of lysine just for kicks.
    6. hemp protein - i bought this, haven't tried it yet, but will report if it's not good. the protein drinks from melaleuca have corn syrup solids in them, so i am trying to slow my use of them & switch to others.
    7. macro greens - i am using this in protein drinks in the morning when i use them. it's cheap & non-intrusive.
    8. air squats - do not work for me regularly. my legs bulked up in one week so my scale skirt didn't fit anymore.
    9. scale clothes - having met my first 2 goals, i am on to my favorite gray news-reporter-type suit, and my sexy favorite red dress as next goals.
    10. ketosis - this is the most interesting one for me, as tim did not mention it in the book, but i definitely hit it a couple weeks in...i think i'm over it now...but it is like the elephant in the room that he did not call out by name, to my recollection.

    i had my first super fantastic cheat day. everything was satisfying, i wasn't scarfing down food like i was crazy, and i totally enjoyed the entire day without feeling sick. that was refreshing, because i have experienced the same trouble other people have posted about, with cheat day being either disappointing, with feeling nasty from the foods i ate, or just feeling like i just can't get no, satisfaction...
  • circadianswing
    circadianswing Posts: 55 Member
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    @bluebird321, welcome to the board topic, great to have you, feel free to chime in with questions and any tweaks you may have found that work.

    @violynist - I have been doing the macadamia nut oil instead of butter for eggs, it seems fine, hardly noticeable.

    a question for the group, a friend of mine just started and he says he chews sugar free gum, and wanted to know what the rule on that one is... anyone have any thoughts???
  • violynist
    violynist Posts: 61
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    a question for the group, a friend of mine just started and he says he chews sugar free gum, and wanted to know what the rule on that one is... anyone have any thoughts???

    i have stopped using sugarless gum completely due to side effects. i won't go into detail. :blushing: googling will yield more information, but this is one example...

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/334306-xylitol-gum-side-effects/

    as to "rule", i don't recall any...but i might have missed it.
  • mcferg
    mcferg Posts: 142 Member
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    @violynist - I don't think Tim mentions ketosis, because I think that, for most people, the amount of carbs afforded you by the legumes will keep you out of ketosis. I've been on low-carb diets before, to the point where I even tested my urine for ketones, so I have a pretty good idea when I am and am not in ketosis. You can get the urine-test sticks pretty cheaply online if you want to test for sure - but everyone is different. Diets like Atkins require you, really, to determine how many carbs you can eat and still stay in ketosis...it might be worth considering how many you must eat to keep yourself out of it, since it makes you feel badly.

    So - my week 9 cheat day came and went, and I didn't cheat. In fact I was very good all weekend, but check out the scale (cheat day is Sunday):

    Week 8 Sunday: 180.5 lbs
    Week 9 Saturday: 180.8 lbs
    Week 9 Sunday: 181.5 lbs
    Week 9 Monday: 181.9 lbs

    I didn't do anything to change my eating any of these days, and all my meals were strict SCD meals. What I'm starting to realize is that, really, my 3 lbs loss last week was a mirage. It happened as a result of water weight below what I call my "balance of water". So now that my water has reached equilibrium (or I hope it has), I should start to lose again. We shall see. The way I look at it, though, is that even at 181.9 lbs, I'm still down 1.5 lbs over the last 2 weeks, and that's just fine. But getting so close to 180 was a big tease.
  • sbracken
    sbracken Posts: 79
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    I don't recall a rule on the sugarfree gum. I chew it daily....maybe as much as 5 pieces a day....and I have yet to experience any crazy side effects from it. Looks like the stomach discomfort hits around 30g...which would be 15 pieces at a time! I don't think I could fit 15 pieces in my mouth at a time, let alone actually want to do that.

    I had a very satisfying cheat day yesterday! Breakfast with the family for eggs, bacon, wheat toast with butter and jelly, and pancakes!!!! Lunch was Taco Bell (Chalupa and Nacho Bellgrande and Mt. Dew) after hitting Target and the grocery store. Then dinner was pizza with DH and FIL!!!! I ended up feeling sick after the Taco Bell. Crazy cause that's no where sclose to what I would have eaten back in the day. I had to stop after 2 slices of pizza so I didn't over stuff myself again. Normally I would have polished off at least 4 pieces! DH kept commenting all day how if looked like I was just eating a ton of food, but if he thought about it, he realized I used to eat a lot more of the junk food. By the end of the day he was actually teasing me for my stomach shrinking and not being able to stomach a 3rd piece of pizza. I even bought a small container of chocolate ice cream to have, and just couldn't manage it.

    I'm up 2 lbs this morning. Not too bad considering all the crap and sodium I took in.
  • mcferg
    mcferg Posts: 142 Member
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    I don't recall a rule on the sugarfree gum.

    It's not one of the main rules, but he definitely recommends avoiding artificial sweeteners....speaking of which...

    As a new coffee drinker, I'm looking for ways to get rid of the coffee breath. I'm thinking probably the best thing to do is just brush my teeth, but if there's something more convenient you've come up with, lemme know.
  • Christin09
    Christin09 Posts: 143 Member
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    As far as the coffee breath goes I find that if I continuously drink water with my coffee and then chug like 8 oz when I am done it takes away any coffee breath I may have. I haven't taken a poll from my friends regarding the smell of my breath but my mouth seems to taste better.

    I agree with the artificial sweetener thing, I had to quit gum when I started this because of that rule, I would say sugar free gum isn't part of this diet.

    What do you guys think of pork rinds? Are they ok for this diet? I would think so just because its nothing but pork skin but I want to confirm with you guys cause the crunchiness like a chip is throwing me off...
  • mcferg
    mcferg Posts: 142 Member
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    What do you guys think of pork rinds? Are they ok for this diet? I would think so just because its nothing but pork skin but I want to confirm with you guys cause the crunchiness like a chip is throwing me off...

    So long as you stay away from ones with sugar (i.e. BBQ flavor), they probably can technically be considered "OK", because they are, all after all, primarily pork...however... I stay away from them for the following reasons:

    1. While they are pork, they are just pork skin, which is primarily fat. The spirit of the SCD meal is to choose a "protein", and while pork rinds do contain some protein, the ratio of fat to protein is significantly higher than if you were eating actual meat.

    2. They are calorie dense, yet contain very little nutritional value. I.e. - they are empty calories.

    All of that said, you might be okay if you limit the amount you eat to only a few, but I would think that anything chip-like in nature could very easily become a domino food. It's much easier for me to abandon the entire idea of eating chips, than to try to limit myself to things that are not chips, but satisfy the same cravings, but, as always YMMV.
  • mcferg
    mcferg Posts: 142 Member
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    Scrapple, err I mean: Lentils, anyone?

    It's unbelievable to me that I've been on this diet for 9 weeks, and I have, until now, completely forgotten about this recipe. This is actually the only recipe that I can take credit for as my own creation (aside from a couple of marinades that I use regularly). I grew up outside of Philly (Wilmington, DE to be precise), and if you've spent any time in diners there, you know the glory that is scrapple. Scrapple is a breakfast meet made of pig scraps ground up with spices and corn meal. It's formed into loaves, then sliced and, most frequently, deep fried. The result is a magnificent crispy on the outside, mushy on the inside breakfast meat.

    Awhile back, when experimenting with a vegetarian diet, I stumbled upon a horrendous recipe for vegetarian scrapple. It tasted awful, but, strangely, the texture was pretty close to the real thing. So, I took that, and combined it with a number of recipes I found for pork scrapple to concoct what I consider to be a pretty darn good vegetarian scrapple. Since the bulk of it is lentils, this may help some of you that have trouble with your legumes in the morning.

    So here's what you do:

    1. Mix 1 1/2 cup lentils (I use brown) with 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes. Blend them in a blender until they form a powder. I use the magic bullet for this. Works great.

    2. Mix 4 cups of water with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce.

    3. Chop about 1 cup of onions (I don't measure, but about 1 small onion chopped) and 4 cloves of garlic and saute them in a teaspoon or two of vegetable oil.

    4. Take the onions/garlic and some of the water/soy sauce mixture and blend it until it's a liquid. Again, I use the magic bullet for this. It doesn't matter how much of the liquid you use, so long as it's enough to liquify the onions/garlic - it's all going in the same place.

    5. Bring the remaining liquid to a boil. Once it's boiling, put in the following:

    1 teaspoon ground black pepper
    1/4 teaspoon mace
    1/2 teaspoon sage
    1 Tablespoon salt
    2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast

    Once you've added the spices, whisk them in and let it boil for about 30 seconds.

    6. Gradually whisk in the powdered lentils. Keep whisking until it's thick and pops. It happens fast - usually just a very short time after you get the entire mixture whisked in.

    7. Put the mixture into a loaf pan, let it cool to room temperature, then put in the fridge overnight. I use an Emile Henry loaf pan that I liberally spray with PAM, and the loaf pops right out the next day.

    You can actually eat it as is (like pate), but to prepare like scrapple, cut into slices about 1/2" thick and pan fry it. You can do this using PAM, which works fine (though, again, I recommend being fairly liberal with it), but it works a little better with some oil.

    Very, very low fat...mostly lentils, and IMO, delicious. It works great w/ eggs, but also fine with just about anything, and super-convenient.
  • Christin09
    Christin09 Posts: 143 Member
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    @mcferg I agree with the pork rinds I will keep them to a minimum but they are a nice salty crunch when needed.

    Thanks for the recipe I was just thinking about how I was going to have filling enough breakfasts on the no meat days during Lent. Can't wait to try it!
  • violynist
    violynist Posts: 61
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    As a new coffee drinker, I'm looking for ways to get rid of the coffee breath. I'm thinking probably the best thing to do is just brush my teeth, but if there's something more convenient you've come up with, lemme know.

    this isn't what you asked but just to make you feel better...i've never noticed coffee breath on a guy i dated, ever. garlic, yes. smoking, yes. morning breath, yes, but coffee, never.

    in fact, if i did, i would consider it kinda sexy. but never a problem like some of the other stuff.

    maybe you don't like the taste of coffee so much? if so, try rinsing out with water afterward, that might help...
  • Christin09
    Christin09 Posts: 143 Member
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    Does anyone have some ideas what I could do with crawfish? Since its fat Tuesday I really want to make something with crawfish in it for dinner but I want to have it be SCD friendly... I could have just straight up crawfish sauteed in some oil but if anyone has any ideas I would greatly appreciate it :smile:
  • mcferg
    mcferg Posts: 142 Member
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    @violynist - I'm developing a taste for coffee, but my coffee breath concerns are based more on stuff I smelled on other people prior to being a coffee drinker. There's a pretty big distinction between the smell of coffee and coffee breath. I've always LOVED the smell of coffee, but found the smell of coffee breath particularly heinous.

    In other "news", after not cheating on cheat day for the first time, my weight is back to the prior cheat-day's weight. I guess I just needed one more day. I have to say - I think that cheat day is important, but I really didn't miss this one, I'm not craving anything, and I'm happy to just stick to plan this week. It's kind of nice being pre-cheat-day weight on Monday, too, but I'm going to go back to cheating next week, regardless of what happens between now and then.
  • umd78
    umd78 Posts: 9
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    Hey all!

    I just started the SCD yesterday. I will say I'm confused by one thing. I remember getting the impression from the book that one shouldn't measure their food. I do know that a majority of your calories come from beans. I'm not the biggest fan of beans so I've been downing a beef chili with various veggies added for variety each day.

    My question is, should I be measuring out my food before consuming or just eat as much as I want within the SCD rules?

    Thanks!

    Steve

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