April challenge support
gsp90x
Posts: 416 Member
So... this may be too much posting about the april challenge....but I guess not if you chose to read this. I just wanted to share with people who would likely "get it", cause nobody IRL here gets it.
So, yesterday was my first scarry day of "eat-all-you-want-as-long-as-you're-under-carbs". Whew.
I tell ya, near the end of the day I was emotionally a little uncomfortable. I went over my general calories by about 200. I just generally tried to eat what I felt like eating. That turned out to be a lot of cheese. I tried steak but, does any one else have this problem, I find it hard to swallow. Yes, I chew it enough, but it just kinda gets stuck. It actually is uncomfortable. And it makes my teeth hurt.
But enough of my bodily defects...
I was surprised how nervous I was about this. I can feel an emotional battle inside me. One that is desperately afraid to gain any of the weight back. The other that believes that if I do, it's to try and regulate metabolism and it will eventually even out and come back down. (I believe the science on that).
In any case, I did try and drink more water with salt. I have already noticed that I need to be very conscious of sodium or my blood pressure tanks in the afternoon. So I add salt to all my beverages. (coffee/water) I know if I don't, the scale will register up to 4 pounds lower. (a false positive).
So. I made sure to get water and salt and this morning I was still down!
Now I agree, one day does not a trend make and a few more glasses of water and it could have went the other way, but psychological reinforcement and encouragement none the less.
How did everyone else find their first day?
So, yesterday was my first scarry day of "eat-all-you-want-as-long-as-you're-under-carbs". Whew.
I tell ya, near the end of the day I was emotionally a little uncomfortable. I went over my general calories by about 200. I just generally tried to eat what I felt like eating. That turned out to be a lot of cheese. I tried steak but, does any one else have this problem, I find it hard to swallow. Yes, I chew it enough, but it just kinda gets stuck. It actually is uncomfortable. And it makes my teeth hurt.
But enough of my bodily defects...
I was surprised how nervous I was about this. I can feel an emotional battle inside me. One that is desperately afraid to gain any of the weight back. The other that believes that if I do, it's to try and regulate metabolism and it will eventually even out and come back down. (I believe the science on that).
In any case, I did try and drink more water with salt. I have already noticed that I need to be very conscious of sodium or my blood pressure tanks in the afternoon. So I add salt to all my beverages. (coffee/water) I know if I don't, the scale will register up to 4 pounds lower. (a false positive).
So. I made sure to get water and salt and this morning I was still down!
Now I agree, one day does not a trend make and a few more glasses of water and it could have went the other way, but psychological reinforcement and encouragement none the less.
How did everyone else find their first day?
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It was a little weird after the obsessing over so many variables at once for so long. But liberating. So nice to only log a few things. Sometimes it takes me forever to log everything. I was a little worried here and there, but eventually was like "Screw it. Trust the process. You know you don't binge non-carby foods. You know what full is now. You'll be fine." So when I got hungry before bed, instead of going to bed with a growly belly, I ATE HAM AND MAYO. IT WAS GLORIOUS. And I slept so much better. How can I not like this?
I mentioned this in the check-in thread, but my goal is to at least maintain if not lose, because I don't want to have to count calories like a fiend forever and ever. I'm hoping to lose, of course, and I think I will, but if I can pull off a maintain, that is valuable info for me as well. I'll know exactly what to do in maintenance to keep the weight off for life. A win in my book.0 -
my experience was similar - a feeling of liberation and also a bit of "whoa - no safety net! hope i am not blowing calories out of the water!"
but honestly, nothing i have eaten has been all that different. i am actually craving LESS carbs. it did feel good to eat a bunch of steak i was hungry for, and not worry about measuring the portion. and to eat fat to satiety, not to round out a macro.
i feel good about it. it's only a month. i trust my body.
i am also glad i only weigh once per month - cos i could see myself getting waaaaaayyy to analytical about it if i were weighing more often. for me, part of the purpose of this is to reduce my stress around food. i know that added stress about anything rachets up my cortisol ans jacks up my metabolism.
thanks for checking in, guys. keep on keepin' on!0 -
Thanks for starting this thread gsp. I never, ever, ever go over my carbs but guess what? Today I have. Well, I usually try for under 15 but allow up to 20. I pledged under 15 for this challenge but I've eaten 19! Possibly a little higher in truth. We had a prawn curry for our main meal, which hubby cooked, so it had 'cauliflower rice' and onion. I can only guess at the quantity of cauliflower because he mixed it all in together so I didn't get the chance to weigh it, but he's always heavy handed with everything. At least I stopped him adding peas
Other than that I'm amazed at how peaceful I've felt with it all. I know that when I remove the 'hide calories' script next month I'll be able to look back and see what I did eat and I find that comforting LOL
Good luck with Day Three and beyond everyone!0 -
I tried steak but, does any one else have this problem, I find it hard to swallow. Yes, I chew it enough, but it just kinda gets stuck. It actually is uncomfortable. And it makes my teeth hurt.
But enough of my bodily defects...
YES! The only time in my whole life that I have ever enjoyed steak is when I was pregnant with my daughter and that still had to be in some sort of steak sauce. Even fajitas made with steak I have trouble with unless it is paired with a couple strips of peppers or onions at the same time. I chew it and then I am like, ok self, lets do this swallow thing, come on, you can do it, just do it now....
Ugh. Everyone raves about steak and I just cant get there. You are not alone
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I was not only over on calories yesterday but I was over on my carb goal, thanks to trying the cheesecake recipe after already having a fathead pizza.
I was not hungry, but this was for SCIENCE (right?).
But yesterday was the first time I ever made my sodium goal without adding a cup of broth in, so that's sort of a triumph.
Today I'm far from hungry, and I feel bloated from the xylitol in the cheesecake still, so I don't think yesterday is going to be typical (except there's still 10 servings of cake left..)0 -
I find that I'm more in tune with my hunger.
I'm not tracking either calories or carbs, but on vacation, I've been a little naughty in terms of both.
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Yesterday was same 'ol same 'ol for me. What I was really craving was beef, so I had my fill of a very rare beef bottom round roast. I'm still weighing/measuring, but only paying attention to carbs. After my fill of yummy roast w/ aus jus and horseradish (went back for seconds), I still came in around my usual number calorie wise and was under on carbs. I was pleased. :-)0
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Urrrrrrrmuhgerd. It's Duuuuurrrrnuts!
I could eat 2 of those. Down, carb-beast, down!0 -
O........M.........G!!!!!!!!! And I don't even like donuts! lol
Voodoo was very fun to go into, even though I'm not much of a partaker in the product they sell . My kids insisted on making a stop since we were driving past Portland on a road trip to the Oregon Coast. We stood in a line that wrapped around the block on a freezing day in November just to get in. Now I can say that I've been there, done that, and only tried a nibble of what the kids bought. That Memphis Mafia thing, though, they didn't have THAT when I was there. lol0 -
oh now that looks good!
i went into a mexican bakery today to buy pan dulce for my students today. i have to say, aside from a brief moment of wanting to fall face - first into a piece of pastel de tres leches (and honestly, it was mostly about the cream!), i felt fine!
it felt like a real triumph to walk out wit a big box of pastry and not have the slightest inclination to sneak even a bite.
same thing with the easter basket my landlords dropped off for the kiddo yesterday. gave her one piece of chocolate, put the rest up in the cupboard, and moved on with my day!
feels so good - cos a month ago that would def. not have been the case!!!!0 -
oh - and i am kicking myself for not stopping in to the mexican market next door to the panadería for some chicharrones!0
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I haven't been logging for months now, but I've also just been maintaining. I still have 30 more pounds to lose to get to my initial goal. I've been ok with that, my "self improvement" focuses have been on some other very important things to me, and I stretched myself pretty thin for a little while. But I've gotten lazy, been eating out way too much (which overall isn't a huge problem but I've been doing it at places where I know I'll overeat consistently). I've also allowed myself to binge a bit... finishing that bag of macadamia nuts in one day instead of one week, the whole bag of pork rinds disappearing in one sitting, etc.
And how awesome is keto? I'm doing all of those things, and maintaining my weight, not gaining like crazy.
So I'm using this challenge because I *know* I'm capable of losing weight without logging (I hate logging, I have tons of success when I do it but its a huge drain), and I think all I need to get back on track is a little accountability to cook at home a little more and eat out a little less.
So far so good, we'll see how the weekend goes after I've been "good" for a few days in a row and have a weekend filled with tedious things like working on invoices and finishing up taxes, etc.0 -
I'm a donut fiend, so the fact that that image does not look at all appetizing to me is a triumph unto itself. Just give me the bacon and I'm happy.
As for steak -- marinade it in an olive oil and vinegar based marinade for 4-24 hours, then grill to no more than medium. Should be quite a bit more tender and good in general (though admittedly, steak in general, regardless of cut tends to be on the chewy side). The oil and vinegar break down the things that make steak really chewy, and the lighter cooking keeps it from turning into shoe leather.
Yes, I'm a steak snob. Why do you ask?
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so this is cool - today i just ate whatever i felt like, just keeping aware of carbs. then i logged it all just out of sheer curiosity - my macros were right on the money for my goals (5/15/80) and calories are under!
weird... maybe my body does know what the heck it's doing! gonna keep it going. (:0 -
Oddly enough, I haven't been very hungry the last couple days. I'll probably have a couple eggs and bacon for second dinner tonight. My first dinner was a small (for me) steak. It was maybe 8 oz or less? I also started the day with fewer eggs than normal. So, weird. But, I don't really question my hunger anymore. I'll eat what I want.
I am officially out of eggs after tonight. I might go shopping this weekend and get more eggs. I definitely need to get more meat this weekend or next. If I don't buy some this weekend, I'll be nearly out next weekend. I like keeping an extra week on hand.
Tomorrow I might go to a livestock auction. I am thinking of trying to buy a goat (for eating). Why? Because I'm Goat... why not eat some? LOL
If not a goat, we'll see if I can get a good price on a whole cow or a hog. I doubt I'll end up buying one though.0 -
wow. A whole goat or cow. I don't even know where you would do that around here. Not that my freezer is big enough anyway. Cool.0
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I have a deep freezer in the garage. It helps because I like to keep 20-40 pounds of meat on hand at a time. A whole cow would probably be too much. I would need to fill that and the fridge freezer. It's several hundred pounds of meat. The goat will probably be 30-50 pounds of meat (after processing), if even that.
Edit: As for being able to eat a whole cow, that's something I am positive about. But, I would need a REALLY good price. I prefer the cheaper fattier cuts anyway, so it's unlikely that a whole cow will meet my price point. It would need to go for like $1.40 a pound at auction or even lower (especially after processing costs--and you pay $1.40/lb live-weight, which is not as much meat as you get). The goat will likely be closer, especially since lamb/mutton is relatively costly and I love it.0 -
i wish i had a freezer. i'd totally buy a 1/2 cow at a time. my friends who do butcher give me their offal though, so that's fun. i have a freezer full of grass-fed liver, if anyone wants some. ;-)0
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So I blew the carb count on day two!! So not good!
I went for coffee with friends. The coffee wasn't too bad. But there was cake. And I caved. I took a huge slice of the cake!
And it was delicious - for the first half of it. Then it became far too sweet. And I couldn't finish it. I have always loved cake - this surprised the hell out of me.
I (semi) salvaged the day by eating a goat inspired menu for the rest of it. Yep, meat, meat and meat. I managed to still come in well under 100g of carbs - so technically low carb even if higher than I want.
I didn't finish the cake. Because I didn't want to!! That is a massive victory in my world. Which is weird because I only found that victory by failing at my goal!0 -
tmdalton849 wrote: »so this is cool - today i just ate whatever i felt like, just keeping aware of carbs. then i logged it all just out of sheer curiosity - my macros were right on the money for my goals (5/15/80) and calories are under!
weird... maybe my body does know what the heck it's doing! gonna keep it going. (:
Yeah, this is how I learned to trust it. I would make a note of what I ate all day, and only log the amounts when I was done eating for the day. After seeing that it averaged out to the right amounts (on a weekly basis), I realized that my body wasn't actually actively trying to be fat. It had just been trapped in a broken feedback loop.0 -
Tomorrow I might go to a livestock auction. I am thinking of trying to buy a goat (for eating). Why? Because I'm Goat... why not eat some? LOL
If not a goat, we'll see if I can get a good price on a whole cow or a hog. I doubt I'll end up buying one though.
If you want a fattier more flavorful goat look for one with some fat at its front flank area, that'll be a good fat goat. It's usually wanted leaner, in which case no fat. In CA steers have been going for 75 cents to 1.50 per pound, and lambs about 2.50, goats between 25 cents and a dollar. Not including cut and wrap, most boer goats will dress out to 30-70 lbs meat, lambs more 50-90, steers about 300-700. Not sure where you live.
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tmdalton849 wrote: »i wish i had a freezer. i'd totally buy a 1/2 cow at a time. my friends who do butcher give me their offal though, so that's fun. i have a freezer full of grass-fed liver, if anyone wants some. ;-)
Lucky you! I love liver fried in bacon grease. Lightly salted, yum.0 -
Not logging food is a much less stressful way to eat and live. It really is. All I'm thinking is:
Drink some water.
Am I hungry?
Don't forget the fat.
Watch the carbs.
That's it. I'm liking it.0 -
tmdalton849 wrote: »so this is cool - today i just ate whatever i felt like, just keeping aware of carbs. then i logged it all just out of sheer curiosity - my macros were right on the money for my goals (5/15/80) and calories are under!
weird... maybe my body does know what the heck it's doing! gonna keep it going. (:
I've been doing this off and on as well and I notice that my calories are staying between 1500-1800. A few months ago, before I jumped into LCHF full time, that would have been pure misery. Now its happening without trying.
We're considering buying half a cow and possibly a few pigs from a local-ish farm. We've been waiting for the weather to clear up as this farm is in a serious snow belt (seriously, they may not yet be completely unthawed) to go up and talk to them. On their website they list by the pound and cut of the meat, but I want to find out if they sell in bulk. I can't see why not. The beef and pork prices are right about where they would be in the stores. The eggs are super high priced but my daughter's 4H chickens are starting to produce a few more eggs now. I have this sneaking hunch that by the time she leaves for college (and leaves me with the chickens) in a few years we may not have to buy eggs much at all.0 -
wow. A whole goat or cow. I don't even know where you would do that around here. Not that my freezer is big enough anyway. Cool.
You shouldn't be too far from farm country where you're at. Start by looking for farmer's markets in your area.
But yeah, you need a chest freezer to get away with buying by the animal.I have a deep freezer in the garage. It helps because I like to keep 20-40 pounds of meat on hand at a time. A whole cow would probably be too much. I would need to fill that and the fridge freezer. It's several hundred pounds of meat. The goat will probably be 30-50 pounds of meat (after processing), if even that.
Edit: As for being able to eat a whole cow, that's something I am positive about. But, I would need a REALLY good price. I prefer the cheaper fattier cuts anyway, so it's unlikely that a whole cow will meet my price point. It would need to go for like $1.40 a pound at auction or even lower (especially after processing costs--and you pay $1.40/lb live-weight, which is not as much meat as you get). The goat will likely be closer, especially since lamb/mutton is relatively costly and I love it.
We have a couple farms selling goat around here. I haven't been brave enough to try it, yet. We're getting a 1/4 of a bison tomorrow. Works out to 80-90lb of meat the way most ranchers around here do it. Nom nom nom.0 -
wow. A whole goat or cow. I don't even know where you would do that around here. Not that my freezer is big enough anyway. Cool.
Just about anyone anywhere can find places to get a whole animal or 1/2 of an animal for pretty cheap. I live less than 45 minutes from Chicago and can find just about any animal you'd be ok eating at a low price from a butcher or auction. We raise our own pigs for butcher along with chickens/turkeys/ducks for eggs and butcher and my husbands cousin raises cows for butcher and we have a family friend who raises goats for butcher but I know of places to get turkey, cow, pig, etc from butcher shop for much cheaper than the store. Most of the time they are grass fed most of the year and no antibiotics and you can have the meat cut any way you want. So dont eat steaks? can get it all ground beef. Dont like those dry pork loins? Get the cut into pork chops. Dont like the lower half of a ham? Get it ground into sausage with a flavor of your choice, etc.
You do need a freezer tho. But it is so worth the cost when I can open my freezer and dinner sitting right there for pennies on the dollar compared to the grocery store and I know and can see how the animals have been raised.0 -
Just peeking in, hope it's OK. I'm too chicken to join the challenge yet, maybe next time we'll see. But I do buy most of my meat right from my farmers, and I would just like to encourage people who may be thinking about it, to just go and do it, you will likely be very happy about the decision.
Yes, you do need a freezer or freezers. I have 2 chest freezers and I need them ( I even have chickens "boarding" in my mother's freezer, since getting 24 chickens all at once takes a lot of space. Last year I bought 1/2 cow, 1/2 pig, 24 chickens and a turkey. I am lucky because if I buy 1/2 cow and 1/2 pig, I don't get them all at once.....I get that 1/2 cow in 4 deliveries throughout the year. I'm not sure if anyone else may be able to strike a deal like this, but it's worth a try to find out. 4 months throughout the year I get beef, 4 months I get pork, and 2 months in the fall I get poultry. I need my freezers to store everything, and as a result, I always have all types of meat available whenever I want it.
As for cost and type of meat as per preferences, I find that it all evens out. I love the cheaper cuts too, and I get those, but of course I also get the high end cuts as well. I never would have been able to afford T-bone or rib steak before purchasing meat this way...but I'm also thrilled to get flank steak, skirt steak, brisket etc, as well as soup bones, pork and chicken feet, organs, and any other parts I can get, as well as fat for rendering tallow and lard. Overall, it's very good value for my money and the quality of the meat is outstanding. I also find that since all customers don't want feet, hocks or heads, I can often get more than the 2 feet from my 1/2 pig for instance, for free. Very cool, and I love it.
OK, I'll tiptoe out again. Good luck everyone. It will be fun watching how you all do, from the outskirts...0 -
Oh, I forgot about the eggs, the free range farm eggs are totally worth it ! We get 6 doz/mo, but need to supplement with extra free run from the store, because I can't fit 12 dozen in my fridge at one time.0
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