Friday, January 22, 2010
Yoga Day
Yoga Day is tomorrow. I have been practicing yoga informally for about 3 years now. I try to get in at least 2-3 workouts each week. They really work well as a long cool down after a jog or as a way to treat insomnia. I use Netflix and get my yoga dvds that way. I use YogaToday.com They are a wonderful resource for free yoga. Sarah Kline is my favorite instructor. I like Shiva Rae and Rodney Yee. Working with yoga has improved my posture, flexibility, the alignment of my spine, and the strength in my core. It has helped me deal with intense emotions and given me a place where I can feel at peace even when the world around me is a scary thing. It has helped restore my body from a car accident. Twenty years later, and I still have scar tissue to work on. I highly recommend this form of martial arts practice for all. Namaste.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Carbs are a condiment
Think of your pasta, rice, rolls, breads, or any other carbohydrate as a condiment. I just had this idea. There may be others who think this way. Its not that you will never have that kind of food. This way of eating shifts everything around. Now my focus is on fats, then protein, then vegetables and if there is room for a condiment like a spoon of brown rice pasta, I might have that in a meal immediately following a cardio workout. In my last blog I addressed my concerns regards not exercising so I will not rehash that here.
For the life of me, I can't understand why anybody would worry about having a low carb, high healthy fat meal. I just don't get it. What about a stir fry with plenty of vegetables like bok choi, mushrooms, and a beautiful oil like walnut drizzled on top ( go ahead be luxurious) is a problem? Why is this so foreign to the mass media? How can a piece of pork be so dangerous? That nonsense about food being stuck in your gut for like 10 years because its protein based just makes no sense either. If you ate your vegetables and had a visit to the restroom, guess what, its not in there (points to tummy) anymore. Ok, enough ranty ranty ranty.
For the life of me, I can't understand why anybody would worry about having a low carb, high healthy fat meal. I just don't get it. What about a stir fry with plenty of vegetables like bok choi, mushrooms, and a beautiful oil like walnut drizzled on top ( go ahead be luxurious) is a problem? Why is this so foreign to the mass media? How can a piece of pork be so dangerous? That nonsense about food being stuck in your gut for like 10 years because its protein based just makes no sense either. If you ate your vegetables and had a visit to the restroom, guess what, its not in there (points to tummy) anymore. Ok, enough ranty ranty ranty.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Jimmy Moore
Over at Livin La Vida Low Carb things are exciting because Jimmy's new book 21 Life Lessons has been released. I bought a copy just now at carbsmart.com I really enjoy his podcast, it has been a great help to me in my low carb lifestyle. I don't feel like such an alien listening to that podcast on my morning jog.
There are some people who have been on his show that do not advocate the use of cardiovascular exercise. I have to offer my opinion on this. I was insulin resistant and borderline PCOS with significant symptoms about 3 years ago. I also had depression at the time. I discovered that cardiovascular exercise greatly improves my response to the insulin in my body and elevates my mood. I try to get in at least 30 minutes of time in my THR most days of the week. I aim for 6 days a week but settle for 5 when life or my sore butt gets in the way. Sometimes, I've overdone it on those killer hills outside my front door and I can't walk for a few days. I highly recommend some cardiovascular exercise if you can do it. If not, don't. That may seem simplistic, but it isn't. You may find that immediately following a cardio workout its easier to digest and metabolize your food, as I have found. Just because someone says its ok to give up exercise consider how your body feels and what the optimal amount of activity is for your body, not someone else's.
I meant to keep my daily menus up here, but I've been uber busy.
So here is today's
Breakfast: Millet (low carb and gluten free, awesome!) coconut cream, coconut milk, 2 eggs and butter
pistachios (snack)
Lunch: Huge turkey salad with olives, olive oil, and fresh cauliflower.
PB and 1/4 an apple- I know its not really low carb but because of the serving size it was within bounds.
I'm not hungry at all btw. I will probably have hot tea for dinner cause I'm full.
There are some people who have been on his show that do not advocate the use of cardiovascular exercise. I have to offer my opinion on this. I was insulin resistant and borderline PCOS with significant symptoms about 3 years ago. I also had depression at the time. I discovered that cardiovascular exercise greatly improves my response to the insulin in my body and elevates my mood. I try to get in at least 30 minutes of time in my THR most days of the week. I aim for 6 days a week but settle for 5 when life or my sore butt gets in the way. Sometimes, I've overdone it on those killer hills outside my front door and I can't walk for a few days. I highly recommend some cardiovascular exercise if you can do it. If not, don't. That may seem simplistic, but it isn't. You may find that immediately following a cardio workout its easier to digest and metabolize your food, as I have found. Just because someone says its ok to give up exercise consider how your body feels and what the optimal amount of activity is for your body, not someone else's.
I meant to keep my daily menus up here, but I've been uber busy.
So here is today's
Breakfast: Millet (low carb and gluten free, awesome!) coconut cream, coconut milk, 2 eggs and butter
pistachios (snack)
Lunch: Huge turkey salad with olives, olive oil, and fresh cauliflower.
PB and 1/4 an apple- I know its not really low carb but because of the serving size it was within bounds.
I'm not hungry at all btw. I will probably have hot tea for dinner cause I'm full.
Almond Custard
Pre heat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Just take 4 eggs, 1/2 c. of cream or coconut milk, some vanilla, 1 cup of almond meal, wack it in a bowl.
Add a pinch of salt, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, a squeeze of meyer lemon juice, 1/4 c. of sugar, splenda, stevia or small amount of agave nectar, 1-2 tbsp of coconut oil or . Stir it all together.
Put the custard into a buttered 9 inch cake pan.
Bake for about 20 minutes.
It will be a bit soft.
Serves about 4-8 people.
Just take 4 eggs, 1/2 c. of cream or coconut milk, some vanilla, 1 cup of almond meal, wack it in a bowl.
Add a pinch of salt, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, a squeeze of meyer lemon juice, 1/4 c. of sugar, splenda, stevia or small amount of agave nectar, 1-2 tbsp of coconut oil or . Stir it all together.
Put the custard into a buttered 9 inch cake pan.
Bake for about 20 minutes.
It will be a bit soft.
Serves about 4-8 people.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
7 low carb breakfasts
Many people have a hard time dealing with breakfast on a low carb diet. I eat low carb to improve my insulin resistance and PCOS symptoms. Sandra Ahten has suggested, in her podcast, using 7 different breakfasts in a week. For some unknown reason, this seems to help kick start the body into fat loss mode. I think that the body needs a variety of nutrients and when it gets a variety of nutrients through different foods it has the opportunity to relax and lower its out put of stress hormones. Thats just a guess on my part, I do not have any research to back up my idea. Most people associate breakfast with certain foods, there is nothing wrong with having atypical food for breakfast.
Here are 7 good, low carb, and clean breakfasts to try while on a low carb diet. These are not induction recipes:
1. Roasted turkey with eggplant: In other words, use the left overs! Just heat and eat.
2. Nitrate/nitrite free bacon with eggs. This is quick if you cook the bacon in the microwave on low for 3.5 minutes. I have a handy little device that cooks eggs in the microwave in 2 minutes. I love it.
3. Beefsteak tomatoes sliced in half, salted, drizzle with olive oil and roasted in the oven. You can add cheese if you eat dairy.
4. Mushroom Omelet with a variety of mushrooms, I like criminis, shitake, and button. Cheese is not required. Fluff the egg, you can add cream or coconut cream to make it rich.
5. Saute spinach with cream cheese and almonds. Serve it with parmesan crackers (bake parmesan in a hot oven just a couple of minutes and watch closely, you don't want them to burn.
6. Mexican style stir fry: Stir fry beef strips or tofu ( I don't do the soy but some do.) with bok choy and some pre-shredded cole slaw mix, add in a small amount of either pico de gallo or salsa. I also add hot sauce to taste. For extra protein you can add a scrambled egg at the end of the cooking.
Regards salsa: Choose one without MSG, it is thought to induce insulin resistance and thus make you hungrier and also retain fat in your body.
7. Coconut milk and protein powder, I prefer the whey powder from the Sacramento Co-op. Its really clean. But, this won't help you lose weight so watch out for that.
Here are 7 good, low carb, and clean breakfasts to try while on a low carb diet. These are not induction recipes:
1. Roasted turkey with eggplant: In other words, use the left overs! Just heat and eat.
2. Nitrate/nitrite free bacon with eggs. This is quick if you cook the bacon in the microwave on low for 3.5 minutes. I have a handy little device that cooks eggs in the microwave in 2 minutes. I love it.
3. Beefsteak tomatoes sliced in half, salted, drizzle with olive oil and roasted in the oven. You can add cheese if you eat dairy.
4. Mushroom Omelet with a variety of mushrooms, I like criminis, shitake, and button. Cheese is not required. Fluff the egg, you can add cream or coconut cream to make it rich.
5. Saute spinach with cream cheese and almonds. Serve it with parmesan crackers (bake parmesan in a hot oven just a couple of minutes and watch closely, you don't want them to burn.
6. Mexican style stir fry: Stir fry beef strips or tofu ( I don't do the soy but some do.) with bok choy and some pre-shredded cole slaw mix, add in a small amount of either pico de gallo or salsa. I also add hot sauce to taste. For extra protein you can add a scrambled egg at the end of the cooking.
Regards salsa: Choose one without MSG, it is thought to induce insulin resistance and thus make you hungrier and also retain fat in your body.
7. Coconut milk and protein powder, I prefer the whey powder from the Sacramento Co-op. Its really clean. But, this won't help you lose weight so watch out for that.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
The beginning of a new year and daily menus
My intent is to eat and move in a manner that produces 53 pounds of fat loss. So far this year, I've lost 1.4 pounds. I'm sticking to my general plan.
Gluten free and now mostly dairy free. I do have 2/3 of a pint of Stoneyfield After Dark ice cream left, that is to expensive to just through away. 1/4 of a cup per week should be ok post workout.
Low carb/clean eats: 30-60 g. of carb/day. I do allow myself a gluten free treat on the high days post cardio workout and on regular days I do have a very low carb cereal called puffed Millet from Arrowhead. I do have 1/2 c. of plain yogurt left and some fresh blueberries. Also, I tried the Trader Joe's nitrite/nitrate free bacon but I'm retaining water so I'm probably not going to buy that again even though it was very tasty.
Caffeine free, completely or very close to that. I discovered a while ago, that I get headaches from caffiene, even a little bit. I quit drinking all sodas several years ago, but I gave up caffeine last year. I stopped drinking teas with caffeine. As it turns out, I read online that caffeine retards your liver's ability to dispose of the estrogen in your system. Well, I'm estrogen dominant, that is what caused my PCO symptoms. As the estrogen is built up in the body, if it doesn't find an estrogen receptor it is converted via enzymes into testosterone. The testosterone is what then causes the symptoms including hirsuitism, cysts on the ovaries, weight gain, brittle bones that break, hardening of the arteries and ultimately death via heart attack between the age of 40 and 45. Caffeine also induces insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is also known as pre-diabetes. Insulin resistance is what is thought to cause the PCOS symptoms. Insulin, that is not properly absorbed due to overly abused receptors and a high carbohydrate, low fat diet, is converted into testosterone. As noted before, it then causes tremendous problems in the female body. As a result, I am now considering giving up chocolate as soon as I blast through the chocolate stores I have in the pantry (there isn't much.) I usually only have a small square on my high calorie day. But if the caffeine is as bad a culprit as it appears to be at this point, it may need to go.
Calorie cycle 2 low calorie days followed by one high calorie day
Low cycle: 1200-1500 calories
High cycle: 1800-2000 calories
Daily food/activity journaling: Its easy with Fitday.com to track everything. Also, I intend to post my low carb meals here.
Weigh/measure my eats. I got a brand new digital food scale for this, no reason to leave it in the drawer! Also, I bought an extra set of measuring cups/spoons at the dollar store, I love a bargain.
Diet break down
Low day: Pre workout: 2 eggs poached in microwave with a tablespoon of coconut fat 20 min before workout.
AM Post workout: 1 c. puffed millet, 1/3 c. Enviro kids, 1/4 c. coconut cream, 1/2 c. So Delicious unsweetened coconut milk
Noon: 2 cups salad greens, protein, and olive oil drizzled on top.
High Day: it just adds a fourth meal.
Dinner: 1 cup. vegetables, protein, and olive oil drizzled on top.
I drink 8 cups of water and two cups of decaf tea, usually herbal.
The other components: cardio, yoga, journaling, and podcasts. Currently, my cardio rotation is dependent on the weather. I can't run/jog in the rain. I won't do either with a mountain lion in tow. We had one for six weeks in the neighborhood. I live in a rural area. I use my yoga practice as my over all body conditioning. My job requires significant upper body work that produces doms in that area anyway. I get lower body doms from running hills, step aerobics, and MMA videos. I don't do real fighting, I'm not interested in
My current rotation, break down:
AM
Sunday: Jog, yoga
Monday: off
Tuesday: Jog, yoga advanced
Wednesday: Step Steady state
Thursday: HIIT/dance toning workout
Friday: Step Intervals, Easy yoga
Saturday: MMA
Gluten free and now mostly dairy free. I do have 2/3 of a pint of Stoneyfield After Dark ice cream left, that is to expensive to just through away. 1/4 of a cup per week should be ok post workout.
Low carb/clean eats: 30-60 g. of carb/day. I do allow myself a gluten free treat on the high days post cardio workout and on regular days I do have a very low carb cereal called puffed Millet from Arrowhead. I do have 1/2 c. of plain yogurt left and some fresh blueberries. Also, I tried the Trader Joe's nitrite/nitrate free bacon but I'm retaining water so I'm probably not going to buy that again even though it was very tasty.
Caffeine free, completely or very close to that. I discovered a while ago, that I get headaches from caffiene, even a little bit. I quit drinking all sodas several years ago, but I gave up caffeine last year. I stopped drinking teas with caffeine. As it turns out, I read online that caffeine retards your liver's ability to dispose of the estrogen in your system. Well, I'm estrogen dominant, that is what caused my PCO symptoms. As the estrogen is built up in the body, if it doesn't find an estrogen receptor it is converted via enzymes into testosterone. The testosterone is what then causes the symptoms including hirsuitism, cysts on the ovaries, weight gain, brittle bones that break, hardening of the arteries and ultimately death via heart attack between the age of 40 and 45. Caffeine also induces insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is also known as pre-diabetes. Insulin resistance is what is thought to cause the PCOS symptoms. Insulin, that is not properly absorbed due to overly abused receptors and a high carbohydrate, low fat diet, is converted into testosterone. As noted before, it then causes tremendous problems in the female body. As a result, I am now considering giving up chocolate as soon as I blast through the chocolate stores I have in the pantry (there isn't much.) I usually only have a small square on my high calorie day. But if the caffeine is as bad a culprit as it appears to be at this point, it may need to go.
Calorie cycle 2 low calorie days followed by one high calorie day
Low cycle: 1200-1500 calories
High cycle: 1800-2000 calories
Daily food/activity journaling: Its easy with Fitday.com to track everything. Also, I intend to post my low carb meals here.
Weigh/measure my eats. I got a brand new digital food scale for this, no reason to leave it in the drawer! Also, I bought an extra set of measuring cups/spoons at the dollar store, I love a bargain.
Diet break down
Low day: Pre workout: 2 eggs poached in microwave with a tablespoon of coconut fat 20 min before workout.
AM Post workout: 1 c. puffed millet, 1/3 c. Enviro kids, 1/4 c. coconut cream, 1/2 c. So Delicious unsweetened coconut milk
Noon: 2 cups salad greens, protein, and olive oil drizzled on top.
High Day: it just adds a fourth meal.
Dinner: 1 cup. vegetables, protein, and olive oil drizzled on top.
I drink 8 cups of water and two cups of decaf tea, usually herbal.
The other components: cardio, yoga, journaling, and podcasts. Currently, my cardio rotation is dependent on the weather. I can't run/jog in the rain. I won't do either with a mountain lion in tow. We had one for six weeks in the neighborhood. I live in a rural area. I use my yoga practice as my over all body conditioning. My job requires significant upper body work that produces doms in that area anyway. I get lower body doms from running hills, step aerobics, and MMA videos. I don't do real fighting, I'm not interested in
My current rotation, break down:
AM
Sunday: Jog, yoga
Monday: off
Tuesday: Jog, yoga advanced
Wednesday: Step Steady state
Thursday: HIIT/dance toning workout
Friday: Step Intervals, Easy yoga
Saturday: MMA
Sunday, December 27, 2009
A year of stagnation
Its time to refocus on the weight loss. I will weigh in one week. I'm working up to it by cleaning up my eats this week. I'm ready to go low carb again. I tried it last year and ended up with a high protein diet which back fired and resulted in a kidney/bladder infection. This year I will be going high fat. I am embracing the high healthy fat lifestyle, aka Atkins. I won't be going as low in carb as the induction. I will be keeping it between 30-60 g. of carbs and I will continue to calorie cycle. I need to be mindful of my PCOS and eating a low carb diet is well known to assist with the root cause of our disorder, insulin resistance. I am happy to report my fasting blood glucose was a cool 81 the last time I was tested. I do need to lose about 50 more pounds and I need to start being more vigilant. I am experiencing a carb craving first thing in the morning. I need to stay mindful of my eating at all times of the day, even when its most challenging. I have reduced the number of my meals to 2-3 a day because it really seems to help my IBS.
My eating plan is relatively loose, but here it is broken down. I'm using broad categories because I really like these kinds of meals. This is not true atkins. Do not be confused. I have arrived at my diet through much experimentation. I need some berries for my exercise performance. The protein is from either whey or rice powder. I do not add sweetener to my frozen blueberries. I just blend it with a little lemon juice. I add protein as I need it in the form of chicken, pork or beef.
TTSat Low calorie
Breakfast: Coconut milk/cream, 2 eggs, 1 pat of butter, and gluten free millet cereal,
Lunch: Vegetable soup with healthy dose of coconut fat
MWF: High calorie
Breakfast: Coconut milk/cream, 2 eggs, 1 pat of butter, and gluten free millet cereal,
Lunch: Vegetable soup with healthy dose of coconut fat
Dinner: Stir Fry with olive oil, blueberrie smoothie with protein powder
Sunday: (Not a low Carb) Refuel:
Breakfast: Gluten free waffles, plain yogurt, berries
Lunch: Gluten free Mac/cheese
Dinner: Roast chicken, wild rice or 1/2 baked potato (see not low carb there.) vegetables with lots of butter,
Dessert: 1 low carb cookie. (relax its just 1/2 or 1/3 a serving)
The idea being I refuel my ability to exercise at top performance throughout the week but I don't beat my insulin receptors into insulin resistance throughout the week, make sense? I think so.
This week is 4DS or 4 day split for those who don't know Cathe Friedrich. Next week? Next month? I don't really know right now. Lets look at my calendar. There are two challenge days, one tomorrow and one in two weeks. I can manage that. Both are just day trips. I've been really happy to discover that Fresh Choice has gluten free options on their menu. How awesome is that? So, I can stop and eat there and be ok. yippee! My workout days off will need to be on Mondays. Thats easy to accommodate too. I'm guessing that its safe to go back on the road soon. No one has seen the mountain lion in a couple of weeks. I will take my cel phone and baton for safety. I will not run in the dark at all.
This next month exercise rotation is designed to learn all of my new STS Cardio discs and to get my cardio back up:
Wk Dec. 27- Jan 2: 4DS
Wk Jan 3-9
Sunday: Yoga,
Monday: off
Tuesday: 4DS HIS
Wednesday: 4DS BC
Thursday: 4DS LIS
Friday: 4DS KB
Saturday: off
Wk Jan 10-16
Sunday: HIIT 1, Yoga
Monday: off (travel to Palo Alto to Stanford)
Tuesday: Cardio Core Circuit
Wednesday: Jog Steady State 30 min. Yoga
Thursday: MMA Kick Box
Friday: Jog Steady State 30 min. Yoga
Saturday: Step Athletic
Wk Jan 17-22
Sunday: HIIT 2, Yoga
Monday: off
Tuesday: Circuit Blast
Wednesday: Jog Steady State 45 min. Yoga
Thursday: MMA Boxing
Friday: Jog Steady State 45 min. Yoga
Saturday: Step Rhythmic
Wk Jan 24-30:
Sunday: HIIT 3, Yoga
Monday: off
Tuesday: Cardio Core Circuit
Wednesday: jog Steady State 60 min. Yoga
Thursday: MMA Fusion
Friday: Jog Steady State 60 min. Yoga
Saturday: Step Athletic
My eating plan is relatively loose, but here it is broken down. I'm using broad categories because I really like these kinds of meals. This is not true atkins. Do not be confused. I have arrived at my diet through much experimentation. I need some berries for my exercise performance. The protein is from either whey or rice powder. I do not add sweetener to my frozen blueberries. I just blend it with a little lemon juice. I add protein as I need it in the form of chicken, pork or beef.
TTSat Low calorie
Breakfast: Coconut milk/cream, 2 eggs, 1 pat of butter, and gluten free millet cereal,
Lunch: Vegetable soup with healthy dose of coconut fat
MWF: High calorie
Breakfast: Coconut milk/cream, 2 eggs, 1 pat of butter, and gluten free millet cereal,
Lunch: Vegetable soup with healthy dose of coconut fat
Dinner: Stir Fry with olive oil, blueberrie smoothie with protein powder
Sunday: (Not a low Carb) Refuel:
Breakfast: Gluten free waffles, plain yogurt, berries
Lunch: Gluten free Mac/cheese
Dinner: Roast chicken, wild rice or 1/2 baked potato (see not low carb there.) vegetables with lots of butter,
Dessert: 1 low carb cookie. (relax its just 1/2 or 1/3 a serving)
The idea being I refuel my ability to exercise at top performance throughout the week but I don't beat my insulin receptors into insulin resistance throughout the week, make sense? I think so.
This week is 4DS or 4 day split for those who don't know Cathe Friedrich. Next week? Next month? I don't really know right now. Lets look at my calendar. There are two challenge days, one tomorrow and one in two weeks. I can manage that. Both are just day trips. I've been really happy to discover that Fresh Choice has gluten free options on their menu. How awesome is that? So, I can stop and eat there and be ok. yippee! My workout days off will need to be on Mondays. Thats easy to accommodate too. I'm guessing that its safe to go back on the road soon. No one has seen the mountain lion in a couple of weeks. I will take my cel phone and baton for safety. I will not run in the dark at all.
This next month exercise rotation is designed to learn all of my new STS Cardio discs and to get my cardio back up:
Wk Dec. 27- Jan 2: 4DS
Wk Jan 3-9
Sunday: Yoga,
Monday: off
Tuesday: 4DS HIS
Wednesday: 4DS BC
Thursday: 4DS LIS
Friday: 4DS KB
Saturday: off
Wk Jan 10-16
Sunday: HIIT 1, Yoga
Monday: off (travel to Palo Alto to Stanford)
Tuesday: Cardio Core Circuit
Wednesday: Jog Steady State 30 min. Yoga
Thursday: MMA Kick Box
Friday: Jog Steady State 30 min. Yoga
Saturday: Step Athletic
Wk Jan 17-22
Sunday: HIIT 2, Yoga
Monday: off
Tuesday: Circuit Blast
Wednesday: Jog Steady State 45 min. Yoga
Thursday: MMA Boxing
Friday: Jog Steady State 45 min. Yoga
Saturday: Step Rhythmic
Wk Jan 24-30:
Sunday: HIIT 3, Yoga
Monday: off
Tuesday: Cardio Core Circuit
Wednesday: jog Steady State 60 min. Yoga
Thursday: MMA Fusion
Friday: Jog Steady State 60 min. Yoga
Saturday: Step Athletic
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