I took the ZC plunge last Monday and so I guess it's time to start a journal.
I'm keeping this first post brief because I want to use it to update my stats because I'm not gonna lie I'm doing this for optimal health which at over 200 lbs includes losing excess fat.
231-April 2008 (first diagnosed type 2) cut out sugar and starch
218-Nov 2008 (started EFGT)
211-April 20, 2009 (first day ZC)
205-April 26, 2009 (6th day ZC)
196-July 20, 2009 (3 months ZC)
A1C 7.9 April 2008
A1C 6.5 Nov 2008
A1C 6.0 April 2009
I
this place. Thank you so much Charles for giving us a place to congregate and share and learn and get healthy.
So because I like things handy I'm going to quote from Charles' blog to help me remember what ZC is exactly:
SEVEN SIMPLE RULES FOR THE HUMAN CARNIVORE
1) Eat only from the animal world (eggs, fish, red meat and fowl and some dairy are all animal sourced foods, i.e.: meat).
2) Eat nothing from the vegetable world whatsoever. (Very small amounts of flavourings such as garlic/chillies/spices/herbs which may be added are not ‘food’).
3) On diary: avoid milk and yoghurt (heavy carbs- lactose), use only pure (not ‘thickened’- heavy) cream (read the label), cheese and unsalted butter.
4) Don’t cook your meat very much- just a little bit on the outside- for flavour- blood-rare or bleu. For this reason I advise against eating pork.
5) Eat liver and brains only very infrequently- they are full of carbs.
6) Be sure to have plenty of fat of animal origin at each meal and eat mostly of the fat until you feel you have had enough- you can eat more lean at this point if you like- calories are not important, nor is the number of meals/day. Vegetable oils are not good food.
7) You do not need any supplements of any kind. Drink a lot of water and do not add salt to anything.
So here I am. I’ve been lurking and reading since February and I finally took the ZC plunge last Monday. I started by reading the FAQ and a couple of weeks ago I started to read the journals. It was amazing to find that so many of you are just like me. It was encouraging to read of your success as well as your struggles. So since this is my journal here is a bit about me.
I’m 47, married and the mother of 2, a 19 yr old son and an 11 yr old daughter. I have been overweight all my life. My first diet was WW at 16 where I lost enough weight to go through high school chubby rather than fat. I gained it all back and then some in college. I had 2 or 3 more goes at WW the last of which was 2 years ago and I stopped after a near death bout with pancreatitis. I have often wondered if it was in some way caused by the low fat diet messing with my gall bladder which in turn messed with my pancreas. 90ish % of cases of pancreatitis are caused by excessive alcohol consumption or gall bladder issues and since I don’t drink at all, well I’ll never eat a low fat diet again so it’s not an issue. I’ve had a go at Jenny Craig. I shudder to remember how much dough I dropped to eat their processed pre-packaged food. I never made it to goal due to a sudden drop in income. After I gained that back I went to a diet clinic which was low fat and low carb. I dropped weight like crazy but was eating between 500-600 cals per day. That place was more expensive than Jenny Craig and didn’t provide the food. Just 3xs weekly B shots. I got into the 170’s there but quit for financial reasons, plus I had started to cheat. It did turn me on to LC and I read Protein Power and followed that for quite a while with no success mostly due to my introduction to LCF and the recipe section. No need to say more. I have baked my last oopsie/LC cheesecake/cheesecake muffin etc. I simply cannot lose weight eating that stuff. I can look at my own past and see that this is very true. I didn’t mention all the other crazy diets I tried on my own through the years. Namely starvation, banana/skim milk, soup diet to name a few.
Last April I was diagnosed as type 2 diabetic with AIC of 7.9. I immediately cut out sugar and flour and of course anything with either of the culprits in them. I immediately went for 231 to 218 lb which was terrific and my A1C’s are down to 6.5. 6 is the high end of normal and I’m hoping to be there when I get my blood work done next month. After the initial weight loss I discovered that I can eat LC treats and still keep my blood sugar down and so started a bad 6 or 8 months of eating homemade frankenfoods and LC ice cream with me at the end of the day scratching my head and wondering why the scale was stuck. Doh. Late last year I was turned on to Dr Barry Groves and his EFGT program which I started and a bit more weight came off. I really enjoyed eating more fat. It kept me fuller and with fewer cravings. However I was still skarfing down the LC ice cream and cheesecakes and such. As time went by I found myself eating less and less fruit and veggies until I found that the only plant matter I was eating was my nightly bowl of raspberries with cream. I was pretty much VLC.
So in February I followed a link and found myself here, reading my head off. April 1st I thought I started ZC. But I kept coffee and artificial sweeteners in my plan. AS’s in the form of Equal, Crystal light and SF candies. This clearly wasn’t working for me. I was hungry/snacky and I didn’t lose any weight. What to do? I was reading in the ZC thread at LCF and I think it was Tooter who left a one liner that really stuck with me. I don’t have the quote but basically she said that ZC=not eating any plant matter. And zing, the light bulb went on in my head. That was it, my moment of true awakening. Last weekend I made my first batch of pemmican, my second batch is in the dehydrator right now. On Monday April 20th I cut out everything except beef, fat and water. I have lost 1 lb per day since. Can you say halleluiah? I am home baby. Bring it on.
I can’t say I don’t miss my coffee. Man, I really miss the morning one which I usually sip quietly on my own before I wake up the house. Now I swish CO instead and I just carry on.
I have been extremely tired this week. I have fallen asleep on the couch every evening after dinner for at least an hour. I am also falling asleep faster at night. Yeah.
Well that’s enough blathering for now.
Oh yes, I live in Ontario, Canada. Sorta sandwiched between Suzanne and Margot.
Cheers
awww i wish you so much good health and strong will! you will do great!
ill say halleluiah with you! a guy i work with was just diagnosed as type 2 and if i could only get him to understand what it seems like you do!!!
WELCOME! I know you've been around this forum for awhile so I am glad you started a journal. The only thing I noticed that may not be accurate is you do not need to drink a lot of water at all. ONLY drink when you are thirsty. Drinking water in excess is really not a good think.
Congrats on the weight loss! You are doing fantastic. Big hugs to Tooter as well for writing the line that brought it all together for you!
Thanks for the welcome Mal and Darcy.
Darcy, I just love drinking to thirst. No more peeing 3 times a night. No more dashing from my desk at work and barely making it. I used to put 4 bottles of water on my desk every morning and then make myself drink them before end of day but I'm free from that now and I only drink when thirsty.
(04-26-2009 01:49 PM)Pebbles Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks for the welcome Mal and Darcy.
Darcy, I just love drinking to thirst. No more peeing 3 times a night. No more dashing from my desk at work and barely making it. I used to put 4 bottles of water on my desk every morning and then make myself drink them before end of day but I'm free from that now and I only drink when thirsty.
I see LOTS of people at my office do this. It's like a chore for them. So many overweight people just punish themselves with FORCING themselves to work out daily (not out of enjoyment but strictly to lose weight) and FORCE themselves to drink all this water and FORCE themselves NOT to eat certain foods they crave. It's all so sad.
Welcome to our forum, Pebbles and thanks for the kind words. You are off and running and I'm so happy to see that. I'll be checking in to see this incredible progress. Glad to have you here with us!
Welcome pebbles! Another Canadian too!
I am on day 2 of no coffee and I was the same way, sitting in the silence before I got the rest of the house up.
I can't wait to read more!
Welcome pebbles!
Going ZC is the best thing for controlling diabetes and it seems you're off to a great start!