At TGI Fridays today I chose the Grilled Norwegian Salmon with Langostino Lobster (5 net carbs) with fresh broccoli (5 net carbs) and sauteed spinach w/mushrooms & parmesan (6 net carbs). Thatโs a total of 16 net carbs for a beautiful meal!
Above you can see the breakdown of the macros and nutrition facts for that meal. As usual, I double checked my MyFitnessPal entry by TGI Fridayโs Nutrition Facts on their website. I didnโt use the butter, by the way (it seemed too salty) but I did dip my broccoli in the sour cream you see on the side there in the picture. Yum!
I was actually surprised at the carb count for this meal, but I only ate about half of it, and brought the other half home. Itโs amazing how much lighter my appetite is in ketosis! Of course, the low carb diet is a natural appetite suppressant. Youโll find it very hard to overeat. In fact, my total calories for the day were under 1300.
Breakfast was a picnic at the park. It was a gorgeous sunny Spring day and I enjoyed take-out with my great dane, my stepdaughter and her two sweet babies. ๐
We picked up a late breakfast at a little local place and I had 3 pieces of grilled tenderloin with scrambled eggs:
The eggs werenโt that great, so I just ate the pork tenderloin. ๐
It was a late breakfast and an early dinner, so I had the T.G.I. Fridayโs leftovers for a later dinner tonight. Easy day! I do love being able to eat healthy, and stick to a low carb diet, without ever stepping foot in the kitchenโฆ ๐ lol.
Weโre 11 days into the Spring Low Carb Challenge now, and I started at 163.6 pounds. Iโve lost a total of 5 pounds so far (down to 158.6). Iโm typically a slow loser, which is fine by me, but I should weight less than that by now. You see, just prior to the new challenge kicking off I decided to โtake a day offโโฆ
Thereโs a lot of discussion about โcheat daysโ in the challenge groupโฆ so Iโll tell you MY experience. That day off cost me 4.4 pounds. And it took me more than 10 days to get back where I was. One day of eating carbs (not even binging!) and a week and a half to undo it. ๐ Not smart. !
I know this, and I know how quickly I put weight back on just โeating normalโ, so why in the world I would ever do that โ well, who knows. Regret? A big fat YES (literally, lol). Besides the unnecessary weight gain, I felt physically ill for several days. So not worth it.
(Iโve lost a total of 15.2 pounds since the New Year started.)
Iโve been back on track now for 11 days now and Iโm feeling AWESOME! The challenge really keeps me motivated, as does the pinch of my jeans. ๐
I feel like I ate fairly light today, but it was all very satisfying.
Iโve missed sharing my low carb food journals with you, so stay tuned for lots more updates โ with plenty of easy low carb meal ideas!
What about you โ what are you eating??
Best,
Lynn Terry, aka Low Carb Traveler
p.s. Need help getting started with a healthy low carb diet? Click hereโฆ
I started a week late as I couldnโt imagine how to do this diet and serve my family an Easter dinner. Iโm JUST starting to figure out how to put meals together with this new way of eating so cheat days seem like a step backward to me. I will say that meal planning is sure different than the way Iโve always eaten so I love seeing your food choices and meal ideas as I always learn something from it. I donโt think Iโm ready to eat out in a restaurant yet but your sharing also helps me feel like I can do that once Iโm a little further along in the plan.
Thanks for taking the lead in โdefattingโ me Lynn! Your support, along with the support of the group, is a huge help to keeping me on track.
To the success of the whole group. We CAN do this!
Youโll get the hang of it in no time, Leigha! ๐ And yes, cheat days are a major setback. Unfortunately they are often recommended as a way to break a weight loss stall. That NEVER works for me. It sets me back at least one week, and usually most of two weeks. ๐
Easter Dinner is probably one of the easiest for those eating low carb: ham, deviled eggs, green veggies, etc. ๐
I started a month ago and finally lost more weight than from exercising alone with low-carb/no carb. I eat more protein, more fruits and vegetables and walk more than I than did before. I have protein shakes for breakfast, a small salad, fruit and salty and sweet nut bar and three bottles of water, 1 cup of coffee and no soda. At night I eat a protein meal of either chicken, steak or fish and follow up with tea, water or almond milk. I feel great, lighter, and have more energy in the morning throughout the evening. I love this low-carb challenge for it allowed me to stick to a plan without over doing it and starving myself.
Congrats, Roxanne! ๐ How are you tracking though? I ask because we donโt eat fruit on a ketogenic (low carb) diet โ unless itโs berries, which are not technically fruit. And the salty & sweet nut bar โ how many carbs are in those? The only ones Iโve seen are very high carb (full of sugar)โฆ
Hmmmm. Youโve got me thinking about trying low carb again Lynn. Last time, I was in Ketosis for 5 weeks and didnโt lose anything! But Iโve had lots going on with my health and I feel like Iโm at a point now where my body actually might respond. I live pretty much on a paleo diet anyway, but the food I miss the most is fruit! Giving up the fruit is hardโฆ Iโll have to work on getting my head in the right place ๐
After the first week you wonโt miss it at all โ youโre tastebuds totally change. ๐ But you CAN replace the fruit with berries. Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc are great in moderation (within your total carb count). Obviously you want to get the majority of your carbs from high fiber (mostly green) vegetables.
I went through an almost 2 month period at the beginning of the year where my scales would hardly budge, so I totally understand that frustration! But I stayed consistent with my macrosโฆ and the scales finally started moving, and the weight just started falling off. ๐ For me, I think it boiled down to stress level, as thatโs the ONLY thing that changed the first quarter.
I came across this WOE because of skin allergy issues and a recommendation from my dermatologist. I have been grain free โ sugar free โ โwhite stuff freeโ for 6 weeks and could not feel better! The added avocado and coconut oils to my diet have been incredible for my dry skin. As a bonus, I have lost 10 lbs, 8 oz. in 6 weeks (predominately in my chest, back & belly) and have dropped a whole pant size. Thank you for your K.I.S.S. approach, I LOVE your blog โ keep up he great work!!
Congrats, SC Susie! ๐ Iโm sure you feel tons better, too. Thatโs awesome! Itโs amazing really how big a difference our food choices make. Thank you for the kind words too โ very much appreciated!! ๐ *cheers*