Every day I share my own low carb meals with you here to give you easy ideas and a live example of how simple it can be to live a low carb lifestyle.
I try to include helpful tips & resources in each post too, like the USDA National Nutrient Database link I gave you the other day. Thatโs my go-to for looking up foods without labels!
Below is my Low Carb Food Diary for Day 10 of the Summer Low Carb Mini-Challenge so you can see what I ate yesterday, and how the macros work out.
Jump right in anytime! Even if weโre in the middle of a challenge you can get signed up to stay in the loop. ๐ Itโs free and fun, and Iโll be kicking off a NEW challenge on August 1st โ so plan to join us!
Today, a quick note on weight fluctuations, and some helpful tips for thatโฆ
When Your Weight Fluctuates & Drives You Bonkers!
Itโs actually very normal for your weight to fluctuate. First, you should only weigh yourself first thing in the morning right after you pee. Thatโs the only โtrue weight.โ
Your weight will fluctuate up to 5 pounds throughout a single day!
If you weigh daily, first thing in the morning only, you may still see fluctuations on a daily basis. For example my weight on Wednesday morning was 140.8, then on Thursday 141.4, and this morning (Friday): 142.2 pounds.
This is the kind of thing that will drive you mad if you let it.
Itโs not always something you did right or wrong.
Fluctuations are totally normal. This is why itโs recommended that you weigh once a week instead of daily. I prefer to weigh daily though, and I know most people do. ๐
Itโs good to keep an eye on your foods and macros though, to see if certain things are common culprits for you. This is why meal tracking is so beneficial.
Hereโs a Helpful Video Tutorial For Low Carb Tracking.
Itโs also normal to experience a brief โholdโ and slight fluctuations during week 2 or 3 when you first start, or first start back (get into ketosis). Thatโs just your body adjusting to the initial weight loss. It happens to everyone! ๐ The key is to know it is NOT โa stallโ and to keep doing what obviously worked so well the first week or so.
See: Mysterious Weight Gain or Stalls too.
Sometimes itโs as simple as sleep quality, medications, muscle recovery from workouts, or if youโre sick โ even a head cold will put things โon hold.โ
As for MY fluctuations this week, Iโve discovered those are totally normal as part of my usual flow. I stick it out, stay consistent, and in the long run Iโm still losing weight consistently at a rate of about a pound a week on average. Which is great considering Iโm so close to a goal weight at this point!
Donโt let a 1/2 pound or even a 3 pound fluctuation tank your mood or affect your dedication. Itโs not worth it! If you lose 15 pounds and gain ONE, that is not a reason to quit. ๐ Play the long game! Eat for your health, and let your body adjust and lose at itโs own paceโฆ because it WILL.
Sometimes it helps me to look back at older photos. THAT is inspiring!
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Day 10: Thursdayโs Low Carb Meals
I had my favorite low carb breakfast, yes AGAIN. ๐ (lol) Itโs 1/2 cup crushed pecans, 1/4 cup Daisy brand cottage cheese, 4 small diced strawberries, 1/8 cup (17.5 grams) of blueberries. It came to 6 net carbs and 85% healthy fats.
I had to work until a little after noon, then I threw on some shorts and packed up to head out for our big caving fitness adventure. ๐
I hadnโt had lunch yet, so we stopped by Hardeeโs on the way out of town and I got a Low Carb Frisco Burger. Itโs just the Frisco Burger with a lettuce wrap instead of the bread.
If you have a Hardeeโs or Carlโs Jr fast food restaurant in your area, theyโll make ANY sandwich low carb. They have a โmake low carbโ button on the register!
See: Seedrah.com (Hardeeโs spelled backward). ๐
After our big 3-hour caving adventure I was famished! Fortunately I brought some low carb snacks with me on the trip (which is almost an hour from where I live), so we ate at the base of Lost Creek Falls while winding down from the crazy cave hike.
I brought pecans, almonds and cheeses โ all high fat low carb foods, for fast refueling. Theyโre also easy to pack, no prep and no fuss. ๐
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Hereโs My MyFitnessPal Diary for Thursday:
How To Get Net Carbs in MyFitnessPal
Calories: 1559
Net Carbs: 18
Total Carbs: 31
Protein: 74 Grams
77% Fat, 19% Protein
Exercise: Hiking & Rock Climbing
FitBit Steps: 5,915
Water: 56 ounces
I always find the โfloorsโ metric on my Fitbit interesting when I go hiking or rock climbing.
I looked it up and this is what I found on their site: Your tracker registers one floor when you climb about ten feet at one time. It does not register floors when you go down.
I did A LOT of climbing up AND down yesterday while caving and rock climbing, plus the hike in and out, lol. But that means 32 โfloorsโ would be 320 feet of climbing UP alone, not including climbing down โ which in many cases yesterday was just as strenuous and crazy. ๐
There are times I climb up somewhere only to question how the heck Iโm going to get back DOWN, haha. This picture is blurry, but it gives you a good idea how Iโm getting in such great shape lately:
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I have never before in my entire adult life had the upper body strength to do the things I am doing now. THAT is inspiring, and feels absolutely amazing! So I just laugh back at my scales when they fluctuate up, because I know how I FEELโฆ and how much healthier and stronger my body is now. ๐
Thatโs called an NSV (Non Scale Victory).
The caving adventure yesterday was AWESOME, and a serious workout. I have tons of cool photos & video to share with you, because we DID find the waterfall hiding deep in the dark depths of that cave! ๐
Stay tuned, Iโll share a photo tour with you. I think youโll really enjoy itโฆ
How are things going on your end?
Itโs day 11 today โ did you exercise this week? What kind of low carb meals are YOU eating? Are you experiencing any challenges or struggles with your goals?
I always look forward to hearing from you! ๐
Best,
Lynn Terry,
aka @LowCarbTraveler
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Discount Code: LOWCARBTRAVELER
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My weight moves VERY slowly, so Iโm big on non-scale victories, like your size 8 shorts. ๐ My latest one is funny. I was getting dressed and my husband walks over and grabs the waist of my underpants and yanks it up over my boobs. He just looked at me and said, โTime for some new ones, dontcha think?โ He told me they were falling down to mid-thigh in the back, too. I donโt see things like this so he keeps my head on as straight as it can be. Yes, I got some new ones. LOL Canโt wait to see your caving pics! Thank you for teaching and inspiring, Lynn. You got me turned around in the right direction again.
LOL Carla! LOL, that is too funny.
haha โ I got a visual, and literally laughed out LOUD ๐ ๐ Too funny!!
Lynn you were exactly right, I am down 2lbs this morning LOL. The 2lbs I gained as you said was probably water retention, I donโt know, but I appreciate the topic this morning and tips for weight fluctuation. So Iโm down 6lbs in 10 days!
And wow what an experience you had rock climbing and cave exploring, thatโs fantastic that you can do that now. It is a lot more exciting than my treadmill LOL. I canโt wait to see the waterfall.
Thanks so much for your support and inspiration.
Just a note or question OT :), I check the box saying โnotify me of followup comments via e-mail, but I never get notifications? No biggie, just wondering why.
Youโre doing great, Roye! My follow-ups come in my spam folder no matter what I do. ugh
Thanks Carla and thanks for the heads up about spamโฆโฆBingo! They were there.
Try this โ whitelist my email address in your email account. First do a search for it in your inbox and see if you find it there: travelinglowcarb (that should bring it up, but if not, itโs ATgmail.com).
Are you getting the daily updates though, in your inbox?
Anyway, for Outlook, here are the instructions: https://www.extendoffice.com/documents/outlook/1129-outlook-add-safe-senders-list.html
For Hotmail, here are the instructions:
1. Sign in to your account. Go to inbox.
2. Click Options located at the upper-right side of the page.
3. Select More Options.
4. Under Preventing junk email, click Safe and blocked senders.
5. Click Safe Senders.
6. In the text box, type in the email address or domain youโd like to always receive email from, and then click Add to list
Yes I do get the daily updates, and thanks so much for all that good information, if you read my reply to Carla I found the replies in my spam folder? I didnโt think to check there.
Great, Iโm glad you got it sorted! ๐
Kudos on the 6 pound loss, Roye! ๐ I find that sauerkraut often does that to me, but only for a day or two. I wonder if itโs because itโs fermented. Because thereโs โthe alcohol stallโ when you drink beer or liquor (even low/no carb) because it metabolizes slowerโฆ
Thank you Lynn. And that is strange, I never would have thought sauerkraut would stall you, so that is very discouraging knowing that it is like โthe alcohol stallโ means I can never again enjoy a glass (or 2) of wine every evening. Iโd be in a permanent stall. sighhhhhhh.
Sorry for the negativity! I need to stay postitive, Iโve lost 6lbs!! Yay! :).
Oh no โ I eat kraut and drink wine/beer or a rum & diet coke even on occasion. I just donโt weigh for a couple days afterward. ๐
People who drink a glass or two every night still lose weight. They just have to allow for it in their carb count. But if youโre trying to lose weight fast(er), alcohol is definitely a good cut.
p.s. Plus youโll be in maintenance one day!! ๐
Great to know, Thank you!! BIG HUG :).
Well I went to fix the pecan, berry, cottage cheese combo and I canโt believe I was out of berries. Pecans and cottage cheese in the bowl so I mixed 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon and a little Stevia and it was awesome. I like that we can tweak the recipes for something different or when you donโt have the ingredients you can adjust. Off to the store to get more berries ๐
Iโve used sugar free preserves in my โcerealโ before too. ๐ All kinds of variations! One time I was out of nuts AND berries and stirred in peanut butter & sugar free preserves. It was surprisingly good, lol.
Hi Lynn!
I recently found you on instagram and have been reading your blog. Your post today (and reading a couple of your older ones that you linked to) made me think that I am not as keto friendly as I thought I was. I think maybe Iโm eating too much protein?
My MFP โgoalsโ every day are 74g protein, 18g carbs, and 123g fat. I donโt usually quite hit the protein or fat goal. Anyway, I โrestartedโ my keto diet about 2 weeks ago (July 10) and have only lost 2 lbs since then. I did have the keto flu the first 2-3 days, but I have these test strips and according to them Iโm not in ketosis. That plus my โlow/slowโ weight loss make me question if Iโm doing keto all wrong. Any advice you have is greatly appreciated!
(Sorry for the ridiculously long comment!)
Hi Kate ๐
You canโt go by grams, so that may be whatโs tripping you up. The reason is because some proteins are also fats โ so you have to go by ratios/percentages. My goal is 20 net carbs max, 70% fat minimum.
The protein always works itself out in that, as youโll notice in my food diaries here I get more than adequate protein. Even on a standard diet, youโre only supposed to have 20-25% of your calories in protein.
Hereโs a simple explanation: http://www.travelinglowcarb.com/7006/macronutrients/
Eating high protein or too lean totally stalled my weight loss. It can also lead to things like gout, kidney issues, etc.
Shoot for 70-80% healthy fat every day and you should do much better! I like real food healthy fats that actually have nutritional value: pecans, walnuts, avocado, egg salad, tuna salad, salmon, real cheese (off the block), etc.
I can relate to the weight fluctuations so much. Itโs super frustrating when you go off plan and lose weight then you eat on plan to a T and gain weight!! Or when you weigh yourself daily and one day it says youโve gained 6 pounds over night. Lol wth! Thatโs why I try to stick to just weighing weekly because it will absolutely make me BONKERS!
My meals yesterday were:
B: bpc
L: nothing (I got busy and forgot to eat)
D: grilled chicken cesar salad Yummmmm!
S: 14 pepperoni chips (microwaved pepperoni) w/ 1oz colby jack cheese off the block, bbq pork rinds w/2tbl sour cream for a dip, sf vanilla iced coffee (made at home)
Net carbs were 12. Fat 85%, protein 12%, carbs 3%
Iโm glad Iโm not the only one that gets too busy to eat, or misses a meal without thinking too much about it. ๐ lol. And yes, those weight fluctuations are totally normal, but probably the biggest culprit in weight loss failure for people trying to diet. ๐
This challenge is just what I needed to get back on track. Iโve lost 10 lbs since we started! I donโt really think you realize how encouraging you are to all of us. Thanx for being our friend! Have a good weekend!
Thank you so much, Terry ๐ And Kudos โ thatโs amazing that youโve lost ten pounds already!! Congrats! I really love what I do here, but itโs notes like yours that totally make my dayโฆ and keep me going when I feel tired or discouraged. ๐ That DOES happen, lolโฆ *cheers*