The impetus: My weight, high blood pressure, and hypothyroidism. And brain. I've just been reading too much about this whole thing lately to let it go anymore.
The inspiration: Primal/paleo, Zone, and "Good calories, Bad calories" (which is still a long read even as a summary and my eyes glazed over at times ingesting it all).
The backstory: I was very fit and trim (gah, I feel about 80 years old writing that) as a child and teen, up until I went to college...and honestly, I can attribute my massive (80 pound at this point?) weight gain from 18-37 years old to: Too big portions of carbs, sugar, and/or junk foods. It's pretty direct, for me. Sure, the thyroid doesn't help, and the drastic decrease in exercise. But my portions and content were way out of control for way long. Soooo, I figure why not see if we can reverse it? The trickle down to my kids and husband will be good, too, though tthe kids eat way better than many others I've seen already - the husband? Well let's just say we'll hope he sees some results too and hops on the bandwagon.
The plan: Do a 1-2 week "carb detox" where the carbs I'm getting are from veggies and limited (low carb) fruits, and then go to a point where I'm only having minimal, whole grain carbs/starches. Up the protein/fat to help with hunger, and test out the theories above. Whole foods, not processed foods. Allowing fast food maybe once a month instead of once a week. I'm going to be doing a hybrid of the paleo/zone/good-bad calories thing, because I don't want to do packaged foods and artificial sweeteners, and I also don't want to eliminate whole grains (oats/whole wheat)/dairy/beans. Initially it will be way restricted just to get over the addiction to carbs/sugar, but then I'll get them back in slowly and reasonably.
The concerns: How hard the carb detox is going to be. Finding acceptable subs for some foods since I don't want to get into packaged/prepared foods much. Sharing meals out with friends/family. Will this break the bank?
What is NOT happening: Low fat or packaged diet foods. Artificial sweeteners.
Now, please pardon me while I go boil up a dozen eggs for this week.
Congrats! Good for you :)
ReplyDeleteYou do realize "good calories, bad calories" isn't a diet book the way the paleo diet and the zone diet are, right? I mean... it's a diet book in the way that "pushed" is a pregnancy book... but it's not "HERE IS A DIET PLAN THAT YOU SHOULD DO" kind of book. I guess I'm saying it's not possible to "hyridize" it since it is more concerned with the history and the science :p
Jenna
Yeah, I realize it's not a plan, but the background behind other plans, but I still will refer to it as a guide throughout, you know?
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