The time has come (the walrus said)

[Whydothis]

- to join LCHF. I joined HU when I signed up to C25K, 7 weeks ago - before that I didn't know it existed - and C25K is the reason for my username - nothing to do with food!

I soon joined Healthy Eating, because I have been interested for a long time, and the Gluten Free community, because I am a newish coeliac, but didn't come here because I have always rejected diets with names. After one or two of you "put me right" on Healthy Eating, I thought I had better look more closely at LCHF. I have been reading, and lurking here without joining, but as I say, the time has come to admit that even with a label, this way of eating does seem to make some sense!

I have for years advocated eating real food, and refused to buy reduced fat anything, I have avoided sugar for years, and I eat all the fresh veg I can lay my hands on - so I am not starting from too far away. I could not face the thought of giving up my breakfast oats though, which were all I had left of the high fibre diet I relied on before my coeliac diagnosis. Now I appear to be sensitive to oats as well, and have had to rethink breakfast, it is time to have a go at really reducing carbs and see how I get on.

I am apprehensive though, as I have been losing weight steadily since the New Year (one stone gone - more importantly 3 inches off my middle. I have kept my butter and mayo firmly at the back of the fridge for occasional treats, and eaten large quantities of veg with some carbs and protein - so I am worrying a bit about regaining the weight I have just lost if my appetite doesn't do as it should! I want to get rid of at least 2 more inches, as I am an extreme apple shape and concerned about long term health.

I won't be counting and measuring carbs though - I have never done so with calories and don't plan to start!

I have spent two days eating less carbs and more butter than usual while also using up what is in the fridge - I am not prepared to waste food! Any advice to start me off on the right path will be welcome.

[SewMore]

Hello Whydothis,

I’m following the free 2 week LCHF diet doctor plan - I started on Sunday. Feels ok so far....

No oats but many eggs 😉

I’m missing the principal of a cereal breakfast but I’m looking forward to see if it works when I weigh in next week. What’s good is the website has many recipes if you want to use up food first.

Cheers,

Sarah

[Hidden]

Try a few strawberries with Total 5% Greek yoghurt for breakfast or even egg, bacon etc.

[Whydothis]

Thank you both for your helpful comments!

[Sheperdess]

It’s great that you are open-minded and interested in trying low carb so think you will find it helpful. There is some good advice on here from people with a lot of experience on where to find helpful information to make this work. I started dieting with this site in January. Finding out about low carb on here I changed to this way of eating (WOE) in February, then tried a very low carb WOE in June and have been able to lose over 40lbs overall. My biggest shock has been that I never feel hungry, even now that I only eat lunch and dinner. You should be able to find a good replacement for your oatmeal. I wanted a very low carb bread 🍞 option and finally experimented this week - see link healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh... I wish you luck on your journey 🍀

[Whydothis in reply to Sheperdess]

Thank you - very encouraging!

I keep reading about people going without breakfast, and I can't imagine myself ever being able to do that! How long did it take? Did you push yourself into it, or did it just happen?

[Sheperdess in reply to Whydothis]

I always felt like I was eating breakfast because you were supposed to. After reading the article by Mark Mattson on intermittent fasting in the Dec2019 NEJM I felt it was something really healthy to attempt. I moved dinner earlier to 6pm and had healthy snacks to hand (nuts, raspberries, Greek style yoghurt) in case I was hungry before lunch. I was a little hungry to start with but after being on LCHF for a while I realised I didn’t need the snacks at all 😊

[Subtle_badger in reply to Whydothis]

I wrote a post about intermittent fasting

healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh...

However, I have since read that it might be more beneficial to skip dinner than breakfast. But dinner is a meal I enjoy, and skipping breakfast is natural to me (I ate it because I was told to)

I think it's a good policy to listen to your body, but I had stopped listening to mine a long time ago, so for me it was worth forcing my body for a while, and then see if she liked the change. She did!

[Whydothis in reply to Subtle_badger]

I have started eating earlier in the evening than I did, and I am back to starting my dinner at 5pm (it works for lockdown, perhaps not when I need to be a bit more sociable!) Today was the first time I managed to leave breakfast until 7am though, and that was only because rain was forecast - I am usually out for a walk or run by 7, and I need my breakfast first! Getting towards the 14 hours, slowly.

[Subtle_badger in reply to Whydothis]

If you never have, try exercising fasted. It has (alleged) benefits, and most people don't find it too hard.

[Whydothis in reply to Subtle_badger]

That feels like a challenge! 3 days a week I "run" for half an hour and then walk a further 2 or 3 miles, and I walk 6 or 7 miles on the other days, so I don't think I would cope with that on an empty stomach! Perhaps I will try running, then come home for breakfast, and then go for a walk a bit later!

[Whydothis in reply to Subtle_badger]

A quick update - I amazed myself by managing my run before breakfast this morning - so thank you for the suggestion. I didn't manage the 14 hours fasting though! I thought I had eaten fairly well yesterday, but when I went to bed I realised I was hungry and so had to get up and eat again, at 10.30 last night, as otherwise I wouldn't have slept. Then after running there was no way I could leave the next meal until noon, so breakfast was at 9.

Must do better - tomorrow is another day!

[Subtle_badger]

My favourite breakfast in the before-times was overnight oats. I have replaced it with chia and/or linseeds (aka flaxseeds) soaked in yogurt and served with a handful of berries. It's pretty good, and useful source of fibre. As you may see from my previous comment, it don't usually eat it first thing in the morning. In cooler weather, I even carry this in a small pot, in case find I need to break my fast it's nice to have something on my plan at hand.

I mostly don't count and weigh, but when I am thinking of introducing a new food I typically google "carbs in <food>", and then decide if it's green, amber or red light (I don't really use those terms). For instance, I have been eating little fruit since December, but the summer fruits have been calling my name. I have found out that on a typical low carb day, I can add a nectarine, a fig or even a couple of apricots to a salad without going too high on carbs. And roasted radishes are firmly on my table come the cooler weather, delicious and low carb.

[Whydothis in reply to Subtle_badger]

I was soaking my oats, linseed and chia seeds overnight and then making them into hot porridge in the morning. I have tried chia several times, sometimes with buckwheat or quinoa (given them up for now!) My current favourite breakfast, even before deciding to go more seriously LCHF, has been stir fried onion and cabbage with a large duck egg - so I am continuing with this for the moment. I still miss my real porridge though, but no doubt I will get used to it!

Yes, although I refuse to count what I eat, I have started checking the carbs in each item before deciding which to eat, and I am trying to be really careful.

Roasted radishes? That's a new idea - I have only eaten them raw in salads! I will now try adding them to my roasted mixed veg.

Thank you for all your suggestions!

[NikonikoFred]

Take a look at Dr Jason Fung “The Obesity Code”. He’s a nephrologist who treats obese and diabetic patients. Also look on U-tube at Dr David Unwin a GP who has treated people successfully without meds for some seven years now. In fact saving his practice around £50k per annum by bringing people off meds.

You’re on the right path.

I am living proof.

[Whydothis in reply to NikonikoFred]

Yes - Dr Unwin's website and information was one of the things that brought me here, and you were one of the people who mentioned looking at it - so thank you! I was obese once, but that is now some years ago - now I am a healthy weight according to BMI but way too big according to my waist measurement, and making good progress. I am probably unusual, in that I have arrived here with "only" another half a stone to lose - I made some excellent lifestyle changes 15 ish years ago which got me down to a sensible BMI and kept me there - now I am making another change to get to an even better weight and size and stay there for ever!

Thank you for the encouragement!

[TheAwfulToad Ambassador]

First, well done for keeping an open mind and trying new things. There are so many people who simply refuse to contemplate anything except calorie-counting, and lock themselves into years of misery (sometimes for an entire lifetime).

As you said, it sounds as if you're not too far off LCHF anyway.

If you don't want to count carbs, then don't. It's fine. Do have a look at the dietdoctor.com visual guides, though, and make sure your select ingredients that guarantee very-low-carb meals during the first couple of weeks. You can then start introducing more "carby" ingredients until you're basically eating ordinary-looking meals minus the "white carbs".

You might reasonably ask: why can't I just go straight into the reduced-carb diet, and skip the first stage? The simple answer is that it won't work (well ... for some people it works, but it works a lot more reliably if you stick to the procedure). Those first two weeks resets your metabolism and your appetite; without it, your appetite is likely to malfunction and scream for more carbs, or more food, than you actually need.

Eating fat doesn't make you fat. We're all living proof of that! Get the butter out. You don't need to add protein; just consume whatever comes along with the fat (the two often go together).

You may well find that standard LCHF helps your coeliac symptoms.

[Whydothis in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Thank you - and yes - I have seen the damage that counting calories and eating low fat does to people.

I have always had an "eat natural" attitude - hence eating full fat everything, and no sugar in the house (other than an emergency supply to put in tea and coffee for visitors). My diet for some years has been as much veg (including fruit) as I can eat, with smaller amounts of everything else, and it kept me where I was. Since the beginning of this year, I have been on an "even more veg and fewer carbs than before" diet, but still avoiding too much butter, and have lost a stone - but this has involved feeling more hungry than I would like, and so will not be sustainable - so another change is needed!

Yes - I have been tempted by the thought of just reducing the carbs further, without putting myself through the first two weeks. It is what I have been doing this week, with the excuse that I have food to use up (and there is only me in the house to use it!). I have been looking up the carb levels in everything, and using this information to make choices. It sounds as though I do need to be prepared to dive in properly though. I still feel apprehensive about allowing my appetite free rein with the fat for a fortnight! Should I expect to gain a bit, stay the same, or continue to slowly lose weight in that 2 weeks? If everybody gains a bit before losing, I will try not to worry!

[NikonikoFred in reply to Whydothis]

Hi, I would say again. Read Dr Jason Fung “The Obesity Code” It explains exactly how carbs affect you. What happens when you ingest them. This knowledge frees you from needing recipes or diet plans. Because it enables you to understand what’s going on. This enables you to consume whatever you want in the right proportion. Because actually it’s the “dose which is the poison”. Also I would recommend a read of “The Complete Guide to Fasting”. Also by Dr Jason Fung.

Stay safe and well playmate.

[Whydothis in reply to NikonikoFred]

I have read several sites giving the science background, and followed up links to studies - I wouldn't be here otherwise, but I will take your advice and read this one as well. I do begin to worry that since lockdown I have become a bit too obsessed with my health and fitness, so I am trying to move back towards other interests as well as researching this! I appreciate your advice.

[Whydothis in reply to NikonikoFred]

Update - I haven't found the book yet, but I watched a talk by Jason Fung this morning - very good.

[Hidden]

Only dropping in to say The Walrus and the Carpenter and all the Alice in Wonderland and Through the Lookkng Glass poems were my absolute favourite as a child. 😊

[Whydothis]

I'm glad it's not just me! I started with "The time has come" and the rest popped into my head so I couldn't resist putting it in! I have wonderful memories of my father reading these books to me as soon as I was old enough for them, and he was brilliant at reading the poems.

[Hidden in reply to Whydothis]

You are old, Father William, is my favourite. So funny, quite modern, Pythonesque.

[Whydothis in reply to Hidden]

Yes, I love it, and enjoy thinking up personal verses! I did one for my Dad last summer, where the first verse had "and yet you persistently think for yourself, do you think, at your age, that is right?"

[Hidden in reply to Whydothis]

😂