Well, I was feeling pretty good about the 15 pounds I’d lost since mid-September on a low carb diet I’ve been trying to do.
I promised myself that I was only going to go off the diet on the US Thanksgiving day holiday itself. Well, you know how that went…
A few weeks ago, Dr. Davis quoted me at his HeartScanBlog to the effect that as long as I kept my consumption of carbohydrates down and stayed wheat free, I didn’t really feel hungry. And that’s true.
But in going off the diet on the holiday, I found it difficult to climb back into the diet saddle the following days. And now, of course, I’m staring wide-eyed at the December holiday season just around the corner. I was hoping to lose another 10 pounds by the time the New Year started. Now I’ll have to do 15 to meet that goal.
(image courtesy of Stanford University)
Ok. I am resolved to DO. THIS. THING! In two days I can be back in the groove.
But then I need to have a better plan of action for the December holidays.
What I’m thinking is this… I’ll get myself on over to Jimmy Moore’s “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb” blog and search around for some holiday menu and food ideas. I’ve found that his blog has a lot of good inspiration, information, and other links. And with my wife being as good as she has been about helping me to make it happen, perhaps we can come up with a better plan for December.
I know, I know… Jimmy is less concerned about saturated fat than I probably should be but he’s still got a lot of great ideas. Frankly, I’m pretty confused at this point about what a good diet is for coronary artery disease. I was reviewing Dr. Sally McCormick’s literature review article on Lp(a) that I referenced in my last post and came across this gem.
Lp(a) levels are generally very resistant to changes in diet, although there is evidence that dietary fat lowers Lp(a) levels. Hornstra et al. documented a lowering of plasma Lp(a) levels in individuals placed on diets rich in saturated fat. In keeping with this, Ginsberg et al. reported an increase in Lp(a) levels in individuals after they reduced their saturated fat intake. Monosaturated fats also seem to reduce Lp(a) levels, as shown by a recent study that reported a significant decrease in Lp(a) levels in individuals whose diets were supplemented with almonds.
I’m not saying I’m going to go load up on beef, but golly, could the question of what one should eat if you’re concerned about heart disease be any more confusing?
More generally, I’m thinking I need to come up with some kind of “Get Back Into the Diet Saddle Checklist” that I can turn to after a day like Thanksgiving day. It’s not the single day like Thanksgiving that is really the problem. It’s the difficulty of getting back on track that is the problem. If I have a clear set of food menu steps to follow for more easily getting back on track, then, getting off track now and then wouldn’t be such a big deal.
Anyone have tips about what that checklist might look like?
November 28th, 2007 at 6:22 pm
Actually, I find Thanksgiving to be the easiest holiday for low carbers like myself. I usually have plenty of the turkey, make low-carb cornbread stuffing and sugar-free cranberry sauce, half of a baked sweet potato with butter, and low carb pumpkin pie with homemade whipped cream. Just pass up anything made with sugar or starches and Christmas should be easy too!
November 29th, 2007 at 3:29 am
Thanks for the tips Sharon!