I woke up freakishly fat yesterday. It just happens sometimes. Surely you’ve had a “fat day” yourself, yes? Of course I stepped straight on the scales and it was confirmed. I was weighing close to five pounds over normal. Lovely. 😐
I’ve been hitting the gym like a mad woman, but I’ll confess that I haven’t been eating well. Apparently those two don’t balance out like you think they would (lol), but hey – at least I *have* been working out consistently!
(To be fair, I am not really in the “fat” range. More like a few pounds overweight. Curvy. Voluptuous maybe? lol.)
As you probably recall, I had major surgery in February that put me on bed rest and had me ridiculously ill for a couple of months: all of February, March and even into April. I tried to go back to my low carb diet in the middle of all that, but it just didn’t work out. I was entirely too sick to eat anything but crackers and oatmeal most days.
I finally started feeling better the first week or so of April, and fortunately hadn’t gained any weight while I was down. I immediately started eating low carb again, and of course by the end of that week I was in Ketosis. I was edgy, getting leg cramps, restless with bouts of insomnia, and having headaches. Otherwise known as “The Atkins Flu” which is very common when your body is going through the dramatic change that causes it to burn fat for energy (instead of carbs).
I couldn’t handle it. I had *just* gotten over being incredibly sick for two long months, and the last thing I wanted was to feel bad again – in any way. So I decided to just eat whatever and focus on getting back to full workouts at the gym, which is what I did.
It’s been about a month or maybe five weeks since then, and I’m feeling MUCH better. The gym has helped me get my strength back up, and while I’m still a bit more tired than usual I am feeling more like “normal” (or my crazy version of it, heh) than I have in ages.
And then, like I said, out of the blue I woke up FAT yesterday, and I just knew it was time to get back to my healthy “meat & greens” low carb lifestyle.
It was just one of those weird days. I am literally three full pounds lighter this morning than I was 24 hours ago. Strange. But it definitely got my attention and made me want to eat healthy again! 😛
Of course, in usual style, I got up and went for takeout. I’m not much for cooking, which I’m sure you’ve already figured out by now. 😉 We have a great little locally owned restaurant that makes a mean breakfast, so I picked up two scrambled eggs with cheese and three slices of grilled tenderloin:
Interestingly, I tend to eat less food when I eat low carb, than when I don’t. I’m not sure why that is exactly, but being less hungry and not having the urge to “binge” is really nice! I ate the eggs for breakfast and had the tenderloin for lunch.
For dinner I had a Hardee’s Low Carb Burger (basically a burger wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun) with a bag of mixed nuts:
I usually stick to Almonds, but this bag of Frito Lay mixed nuts is only about 6 net carbs (for the whole bag, not just per serving).
I got a decent workout in at the gym last night too. Not my best as I was really tired for some reason, but I did a solid 45 minutes and broke a good sweat. And I broke my “fat day” 😀 . Who knows why I was so bloated/fat yesterday. It could have been something I ate on Monday, a full moon perhaps, or maybe just my body’s way of getting my attention and getting me back on track…
Looking back it doesn’t really seem like I ate much yesterday, but it was enough. Oh, and I had a Breyer’s CarbSmart ice cream bar last night before I went to bed. YUM – those are *so* good!!
Today I’m going to eat a beautiful chicken & spinach salad at my favorite little coffee shop. I’m bad for sticking to meat, nuts & eggs if I’m not careful (being on the go so much) so I make an effort to get the “greens” into my diet.
What about you – what’s going on with you? We haven’t caught up in quite awhile now! I would love to hear what you’re eating, whether you’ve been working out, or how things are going with your “get healthy!” goals…
Hi Lynn,
Nice to see you posting here again! Glad you are back to the workouts and back with low carb. It’s good that you didn’t gain any weight while you were down. I had wondered about that. Good for you! 🙂
I have been on Nutrisystem since March 11th, and have lost a total of 18 pounds. I know, it’s slow!!! Guess it’s the menopause 😉 lol I lost 6 pounds the first week, however, you always lose the most your first week with any diet plan! I’ll be doing a blog post either this morning or tomorrow about my NS journey. You can look for it on the grandparenting blog . Keep at it Lynn, you’re doing awesome! =)
Oh, I eat almonds every day, it’s one of my power fuels on NS. Love them!
Thank you Tammy! And congrats on the 18 pounds lost!! Way to go. 😉 I’m not familiar with Nutrisystem myself, but I know it’s been around for ages. Is it something you plan to stick with long-term – as a lifestyle change – or is it more of a “diet”? I look forward to hearing how it goes for you!
If I remember correctly they have meal plans. The thing I love most about Low Carb is that I can eat out, get fast food, eat on the go, etc – and it’s super simple.
No, it’s not going to be long term for me, the plan I chose is $250.00 per month!! lol 😮 It’s taught me a whole lifestyle change for myself. I have a couple of months to go with it yet and then will still eat small portions and still eat my veggies and fruits throughout the day. I also have been working out and drinking tons and tons of water. 🙂 Thank you!
Ouch! 😯 lol – but it will be worth it I suppose if it teaches you discipline and new eating habits. The goal for me at 40+ is to have a healthier overall lifestyle (long term), and I like the way Low Carb fits into that so nicely.
Yes! I know that’s a hefty fee each month, however, you know what? I have stuck with it to a T, and the price is a big reason to stick with it…other than an occasional sprite here and there. Love soda! I don’t like the diet sodas, they are bad for you anyway. 😉
I have a niece and a good friend who have tried the low-no wheat…may try this in a few months down the road, or I still may give the low carb a go.
I do have a review posted already on the grandparenting blog with my own pics and all. I didn’t leave anything out. It was a very honest review. I even shared my before pics =)
Hi Lynn,
Welcome back! Glad you’re back in the routine and contrats on the workouts!
“Fat days” can be discouraging or motivating, but often the result of a lot of sodium the day before which increases water retention. The good news, it drops pretty fast too, especially if you drop the salt for a while–which is a good idea for most Americans. Living in So Cal with every other restaurant being Mexican food, I love guacamole and it’s ok on low carb, yeh. Love those Bryers Low Carb ice cream bars too.
Never heard of the “Atkins flu” but makes sense, but seems the diet is too extreme if it makes you feel so rotten. I am losing slowing with low carb and now exercising more, but not to the “work up a sweat” stage, since my hip was re-replaced (2nd time around), but lost slowly when exercise was out of the question due to pain. Found staying under 20 net carb grams too rigid for me, but overall low carb easy to live on. Lost 40 since last August and still going, slowly.
Looked at NutriSystem but I’m allergic to soy and lots of their protein foods are soy based or soy supplemented. Angie Newton had a food program on her site a while ago that had a low carb option for the foods and looked pretty good, but a little pricey.
It’s not that the diet is too extreme – it’s that it completely changes your body’s chemical make-up, and the way you burn fat. Once you go through that initial “Induction Phase” and get your body into a state of Ketosis (burning fat for fuel) it all pans out. Which is usually a great motivator for me to NOT fall off the wagon and start all over again! 😛 lol
Congrats on your achievements, Boots! When I first started back to the gym I got on the treadmill and did stretches and slow walks – without even turning the machine on. I was determined to “start moving” again (with my doctor’s approval) so I know what it’s like to ease back into it.
My “fat” days = Eating LOTS OF FAT! ah ha ah! 😉
LOL GiGi ! 😀
New to your site but I woke up after the holidays up 5 lbs. You did not mention water in this article but after reading a post on FB 90 Day Low Carb Challenge, all about water and how much we need. I am increasing my water and hopefully get back on track. The man wrote that we should have half our weight in ounces of water. Perhaps I need to come up with a clever way to track my water.
Eleanor
Hi Eleanor,
I don’t agree with that method of determining how much water to drink. They are many myths floating around on that topic. In fact, it’s the next topic I’m going to address here at TLC, so feel free to subscribe by email if you want to make sure you get notification when it goes live.
Your urine should be pale yellow. That is the only true indicator. If it is darker, you need to drink more water. If it is lighter, or clear, you are drinking too much water. You want to be cautious about Water Intoxication! 😉