Below are the entries
following the first two weeks where I didn’t quite do so well! I wanted to keep them on record though, as
it’s all part of the process and because there is some good stuff here.
For the last 8 weeks I've
been following the Blood Type Diet for Type O, which is almost identical to the
Paleolithic Diet or any other natural food, lower carb
nutritional plan. At first I doubted I could stick to it, but it turns out, I
can and it's actually quite fun! Of course, I have not been perfect, and have
even had some days where chocolate consumption was somewhere between excessive
and... obscene. On the whole, however, I am enjoying
it and want to record my progress here.
Apparently it takes about a year for the body to experience all the benefits of
a changed regime, but I'm going to take it in smaller bites, starting with 18
weeks, which is the amount of time that Bill
Phillips thinks is about right for a body transformation. At the same time
I'm focusing on becoming more active and increasing my fitness.
I am not going to weigh myself for the entire 18 weeks, just for the simple
reason that it wrecks my concentration when the scales do not consistently show
a smaller number (and they never do!). This is not about weight, although I'll
do a weigh in at the end just to make sure I'm not turning into a baby
elephant.
I have a few guidelines:
*Stick to the bloodtype diet as per http://www.dadamo.com/
*Also stick to the recommendations for arthritis (from the Blood Type Diet for
Arthritis book)
*Take my supplements (more about that later)
*Keep alcohol consumption to Friday nights only (hahahhaha!
what was that laughing sound??)
*Do something active every day, whether it be a TT
workout, wii-fit, power-shopping, slasa,
whatever. Aim for 2-3 cardio sessions a week.
*Keep calorie average at about 1700 a day
*Don't think too hard about any of it, just relax and
do it. Don't think about weight, don't talk about it, it's not interesting to
anyone to hear that I'm having a fat day. This is not about weight.
18 weeks
After that I will decide whether to keep recording or
not. If there's nothing more to say, then I'll quit blogging
about it!
For the record:
Starting weight is about 60kg, 29% bodyfat. That's
3kg less than when I started the fatloss laboratory.
It's not exciting, dramatic fatloss, but all in good
time. What's the rush? Enjoy the journey. ;)
My plan for this blog is just short, daily updates and hopefully by the end
of the first 18 weeks anyone reading will have a good idea how to go about
eating 'this way' and about making exercise happen. Longer rantings
will be over at sanaworld.
Today I just wasn't all
that hungry, mostly because my mind was occupied with a uni
assignment about Bicultural Perspectives in Psychology and so the 'I'm bored,
let's eat' program didn't spring into action. When it comes to meal timing, I
do have a sort of routine, although there are days when it goes out the window.
Generally I'll be eating around the following times:
12.30 lunch
3.00 snack
5.00 very small snack if I'm hungry
7.30 Dinner
If I'm up very late or feeeling hungry I might have
another small snack at around 9.30.
During the day I drink a lot of green tea and sabtu
tea, about 10 cups. Sabtu tea contains two 
herbs
which my Blood Type Diet for Arthritis book tells me are categorised
as super beneficial - Ginger and Nettle, both of which are strongly
anti-inflammatory. So says Dr D'adamo...
"stinging
nettle leaf and root (Urtica dioica)
appears to prevent overstimulation of
pro-inflammatory molecules called cytokines" p. 89. Cytokine imbalance is
implicated in a number of disorders, including obesity, allergies and cancer. Nettle, not just a stinging little bush.
Training today was a 30
min session with my increasingly evit wii-fit trainer and I focused on upper body and abs, adding
a bit of resistance to make it harder. This was squished in between finishing
my study and starting the next thing, about
Dinner tonight involved
orange roughy with a cream sauce. I'm not sure about creme fraiche, it may be an
'avoid' food and is not on the typebase or in my
book. The amount was small though and it added a lot of flavour
to the sauce as well as giving the meal that 'feeling full' factor. The wine
stayed in the supermarket, though it wanted so badly to come home with me.
Later on I had a sugar craving and munched on a few figs which are another superfood for type o's because it either blocks polyamine synthesis or
lowers indican levels. I'll have to read that
sentence again with a medical dictionary in hand.
Calories: 1600
Discoveries: Creme fraiche
sauce. mmmm. Must put that recipe on Sana Direct.
Ginger and Nettle in my sabtu tea
Figs are good for me, although I'm not 100% sure why.
Today I was really super incredibly busy and tempted to
skip training, but I didn't. Come
Eating was fine today, oh... I did pop in to see my sister around 5.30 and of
course she offered me a glass of wine and it would have been rude to resist.
Red wine is allowed 'in moderation' on the type 0 diet, but Dr A does emphasise not every
day. I'm aiming for two glasses a week. Wish me luck!
Tonight for dinner I made a mince with garlic, spinach and mushrooms which
worked pretty nicely on top of a baked kumara (sweet potato for you non-kiwis).
As tomatoes are a nightshade and
therefore not allowed on the arthritis diet, I wasn't sure how the mince would
turn out without them, but it was not a disaster. I sprinkled tumeric in there (turmeric is an anti-inflammatory spice)
and the effect was tasty and filling. That was my second 'something on a baked
kumara' meal of the day. Lunch was some leftover chicken on a kumara with a raw
carrot on the side.
Calories are low today, but I'll be sure to make up for it tomorrow as it's FRIDAY which is my traditional day of gluttony. I'm
going out to dinner at Valentino's.
I'm telling you now that eating out in a potato-free and wheat-free manner is
no picnic. Usually I have to embarrass the whole table by requesting some menu
changes, but it has to be done. Tune in tomorrow for the
Calories: 1450
* Turmeric - anti-inflammatory
*Good quick meal - stuff on baked sweet potato
*Training - once you get going, you don't want to stop
I was worried about the
restaurant dinner, having perused the online menu and concluded that everything
contained either potatoes, wheat or tomatoes (tomatoes
and potatoes are nightshades (ooooo) and therefore something I am avoiding on
behalf of my creaky joints).
Once I got to Valentinos, however, I saw that the
fish of the day (pan fried Gurnard) looked quite ok, apart from the roasted
cherry tomatoes. I pounced on the waitress, told her I was allergic to tomatoes
and asked if it could be made without them. It most certainly could. I ordered
a side of veges, left 99% of the accompanying risotto
on the plate and had maybe three glasses of wine. On the type O diet, I am not
eating cauliflower so I had to dissect my veges
into the eats and the eat nots but it wasn't too
difficult. All up, I'd say a successful evening. The interesting thing is that
I've been off desserts for so long that I didn't even want one.
Training today was a wii-fit session which focussed on lower body. The lunges are killer. I did 90 on
each leg, bodyweight only. I think I'll be feeling that tomorrow, even without any
added weight.
Calories: 2000
* I can make it work in any situation if I am assertive
Well.... thank goodness
it's only day four!
Today was a challenge and I did rather fall off the rails for the first time in
8 weeks!I was invited out for dinner at my sisters
house and although they tried really hard to accomodate
my dietary needs, the main course was pork (not allowed on the blood type diet)
crumbed (in breadcrumbs) and fried. I then settled down to shoot the breeze
with my grandparents, inadvertently consuming far too many wines, a fact which
I didn't really notice until I got up and the floor sort of shifted. mmm.
Once I got home at about
Last night I did not really get a good sleep. I was awake at
Today:
Calories: don't even want to think about it. Probably 3000 or around abouts
Training: missed it
* Alcohol - it will only turn bad.
* Don't let a bad day turn into a bad eating
day
* Keep on top of calorie averages
Tomorrow:
Calorie limit: 1700
Training: 20 mins HIIT Cardio + 15 mins yoga 11am
Getting back on track
after a slip up always feels a bit strange. I had to remind myself often today
that 99% the battle is in the mind and that allowing 'fat thoughts' was only
going to lead to more 'fat behaviour' ;)
I had a little sleep in (ugh, how many wines was that I had last night) then
got my butt onto the exercycle before my brain could
protest. I did my 20 mins interval training, made
myself a 'green', spinach boosted, omlette
for breakfast/lunch and then got into some serious housework. I'm de-cluttering
my life and it's helping to keep me focused. If my house in in
order then I don't always feel like there's 'something I should be doing' when
it's time to exercise.
At about 2.30 I ate one of my homemade protein bars, same again at 4.30 (with a
little 85% chocolate) and then dinner at 8pm was a lamb roast with lots of veges - carrot, sweet potato mash, curly kale. Curly kale
and Kumara are beneficial foods on the type 0 diet. I'm making an effort to eat
more veges,
the vege-quest is on. In support of this I
prepped a few extra veges - roast pumpkin and kumara
mash, some of which is in the freezer ready when needed.
About 9.30 I ate some more kumara mash with agave
syrup on it. This sounds odd, but it's really delicious. I have found that carbs at night are needed to help me sleep. A low carb dinner generally doesn't work for me. I also had a
couple of figs.
Today I was drinking ginger tea which was made with fresh, grated ginger. It's
a pretty intense flavour and certainly feels like
it's doing something! A good day.
Calories: 1350
Training: 20 mins HIIT on the stat. bike
* Ginger tea with fresh ginger.. intense
* Exercise helps get the brain on line for success
Tomorrow:
Calorie limit: 2050(1700 plus what was left from today)
Training: Upper body workout
Today was a very moody day. That sort of day where I felt
a little bit tense all day, for no particular big reason, just lots of little
pressures. When I feel like that there is a distinct danger of comfort eating,
or at least encountering that strange headspace where I continually think about
the next meal.
So, it was a bit like that today, but I kept myself on track by focusing on
tasks at hand and pumping my brain full of relaxing and uplifting music. Being relaxed just helps in so many ways.
Today I made my weekly pilgramage to land of liver
consumption. I usually only eat food that I really like, but
liver is sooo, sooo good
for the body. It's got all sorts of vitamins and minerals in it that can
be hard to get from other foods. I don't know if I'm liking
it more as time goes on or not. Today I tried chicken liver because it's the
only organic liver I could find. I sauteed it with
garlic and spinach, sprinkled some turmeric and salt
on it and it was ... ok. That was lunch.
Chocolate (85% rapunzel) consumption was creeping up
a little in the mid afternoon, probably due to the moodiness but the salmon and
veges dinner kept calories quite decent for the day.
Training was an upper body workout with weights and I threw in some 90 minute
planks just for 'fun'.
Later, about
Calories: 1800
*Moody days happen
Tomorrow
Calorie limit: 1950
Training: Cardio, 20 mins HIIT,
Today I was mentally much
more onto it, I think primarily because I had an earlier appointment and had to
get up and onto it, no time for futzing around. Before I left I had a pb (my homemade protein bar), which consists of:
________________________________________
100g protein (rice protein, soy protein or whey protein )
100g almond nut butter
60g agave syrup
2 dsp flax meal
1 egg
3 eggwhites
50g prunes, mushed or chopped finely
mush together, bake for exactly 12 minutes in a silicon loaf tin. It looks
underdone, but once it's cooled down, it's just right.
This makes 8 servings at 225cals each.
___________________________________
On the way home from my appointment I was getting
really hungry and toyed with the idea of going to a cafe and trying to find
something suitable. Instead I went home and had some leftover lamb with veges, about half an hour after that I was still hungry and
had some nut butter on pumpernickel bread. Mid afternoon I once again got stuck
into the dark chocolate, about 30g. Dinner was a family restaurant meal and I
went for a steak, skipped the chips and ordered a side of steamed veges. I palmed off my potatoes on other willing diners.
OH, one little glass of red wine.... ;/
After dinner I was considering having a snack when I got home, but I've decided
that it's time now to deal with my snacking habit. I think it's ok to snack if
you're hungry, but generally I'm snacking because I just feel like it and think
I can fit it into my calories. I think it's kind of infantile to be so hung up
on eating and I want to break the habit. My idea is to focus on other things,
involve myself in life and let my hunger tell me when to eat, let's see how
that goes. In any case, I'm pleased with progress in other ways.
I was driving my partners car today and remembered
that in March, when I drove it to Nelson, I'd been quite uncomfortable the
whole way because the structure of the seat put my arthritic hip in a bad
position. Today I wasn't even feeling it. I twisted my hip to the side, trying
to make it hurt, and it did at a certain point but I really had to press the
side of my knee into the spongy part of the seat. The arthritis is really
improved. It's no longer a 'maybe it is, maybe it isn't' thing, it's a
definite. Apart form the diet and the herbal teas, I'm
taking several grams of glucosamine sulphate, about 200mg hyaluronic
acid and a random amount of collagen hydrosylate
every day. I'm also taking somewhere between 2 and 6 grams of Omega 3, but I
was taking that even before I developed arthritis, so I can't say if that's
contributing or not. Somethings working, the diet,
the supplements, I can't really say... I can just keep going and hope that I
can get a complete regression.
Today
Calories: 1755 (note: if I'd just avoided the wine this would have been 1630,
every glass counts)
Training: oops... er...
*Getting up a little bit earlier and 'into it' helps my mood greatly
*Wine calories add up
*Stick at the arthritis diet, IT'S WORKING
*Start practicing filling 'that void' with non-food things. Eating is not
always the best entertainment. Grow up.
Tomorrow:
Calorie limit: 1895
Training: cardio&yoga
This morning, as promised
I got up and was on that exercycle
before I was awake. It's just the getting out of bed thing that's difficult;
once I'm moving I'm fine!
I've got a lot of projects on the go right now, which keeps me occupied but
sometimes I get to mid afternoon and I'm feeling mentally fatigued. That's when
I've been heading for the chocolate. Today I noticed that 'bleeeeh'
feeling coming on about
So, breakfast was a PB and then at lunchtime I made a vege packed omlette with
turmeric powder mixed into the eggs. About half an hour later I was still
hungry (same as yesterday) and had a piece of pumpernickel bread with almond
butter. Mid afternoon I had another pb,
with an apple, a fig and a little dark chocolate. While cooking dinner I
munched on a raw carrot. Dinner tonight was really worth the minimal effort
that it required. I had some organic chicken drumsticks which I marinated in
honey and grated ginger. Honey is a 'neutral' food for most type O's. I had two
drumsticks with some roasted pumpkin (very little oil), salad and brocolli. Later I had another drumstick and a raw carrot.
My goal for the next couple of days is to keep calories at about 1500 or even
less. That's because I have a party to go to on Saturday and want to indulge
myself a bit without blowing my calorie average out of control. To do this I
need LOV - Lots Of
Veges. Bring on the broccoli.
Today
Calories: 1570
Training: done a bit earlier than planned but it was done!
Tomorrow:
Calorie allowance: 2025 (but aiming for 1500)
Training: Lower body workout 9am
Hmmm.
Well. Another very bad day was
had eating-wise. I think that my self-imposed calorie limit without a real plan
and then the mid afternoon chocolate splurge then early evening red wine all
collapsed into some late night kumara chips and french loaf with butter. I even ate my veges and grilled fish while my
niece and partner had a big fry up for dinner. Yep, it was the wine that
lowered my resolve. When will I ever learn it?
This is my problem. When I'm doing very well and I'm beginning to feel quite
slinky and healthy, then my motivation goes out the window, which is kind of
dumb because this isn't about being slinky, it's about living as I want to
live. It's about longevity and health.
Well, I suspect a few slip-ups along the way are kind of inevitable but I don't
want to use this as an excuse to get all disordered and bingey.
Actually, this is not really bingeing. It's just overeating when I don't want
to and there is a difference. If I was bingeing I'd be eating those potato
chips and getting into the icecream and drinking the
rest of the bottle of wine. It would be 5000 calories and I'd hate myself. This
is just annoying, not devastating. I didn't have a plan, I wasn't prepared, I
drank on an empty stomach, I let my mind 'go there' in
terms of feeling like a fat failure.
I'd like to do a 'restart' and count again from day 1, but there's no point
because days like this will always happen until I sort my shit out. It's not
about willpower or commitment and there is no magic in 'starting again' when it
will be easier.
What I can do though is commit to the following for the next 21 days:
* Stay on track with my calorie limit (i.e. don't go into 'the red')
* Train on schedule
* Needless to say, eat in tune with the type o, diet and arthritis diet (I'm
already doing this, but it can't hurt to put it down).
I've set up a penalty if I miss it on one day and I'll tell you what that is
when I get to the end of it, it's kind of embarrassing. Once I get past 21 days
(the habit forming time) I'll be humming.
So.. er.
Let's do it!
Today was a better day,
not perfect. Seeing as today and tomorrow are a whirl of family and birthday
parties, my plan is to just eat normally and start my 21 days 'FORMING THE
HABIT' self-challenge on Sunday. I'm well aware of the
importance of a 21 day discipline as a tool in starting a new habit and I'm
ready to put that to good use.
Today was ca-raaayzy, but eating was normal. I
discovered a new almond butter at Piko Wholefoods and picked up some essene bread, which is a superfood
for all blood types. My goal is to add a whole lot more veges
into my day and living foods like essene
bread. I have a vision in my head of how I want to eat but it's not yet
automatic, or any sort of -matic.
I probably won't post tomorrow as it's a family day with my Grandfathers 80th
birthday! I'm not making any promises for good behaviour,
but I've arranged a blood type diet compliant meal and I'll be back on day 12
ready to conquer.
As expected, yesterday was
quite indulgent and today I started out feeling quite squishy, but I've had a
good day. I had a long think about why I've been feeling progressively hungrier
and noticed that my fruit and vege consumption has
been dropping off. In fact I've fallen into the weightwatchers
habit of eating too many concentrated or empty calories (dark chocolate, nut
butter, red wine) and skipping on the veges and fibre. It's a bad idea to think that if it fits into the
calorie limit then it's ok. That's never going to work for long with foods that
are high cal/low volume. You can't fight real hunger for long. The hormones
will always win out and need to be pacified with lower cal/high nutrient foods.
What I'm going to do now is aim for just under half my
calories from fruit, veges or living foods (like essene bread) on a meal by meal basis. I tried that today
and was far less hungry. So, for example, instead of eating a PB, I'll eat half
a PB and an apple. That sort of thing. Fewer calories, more satisfaction. The main thing in my mind
is that I'm not 'on a diet'. What I'm doing is figuring out, finally, a
lifestyle that will keep my lean and healthy. It's a forever kind of deal, therefore I have to work on it until it's just 'what I
do'.
Today did not include any structured training, but I did run around a lot. A kids party, looking for a costume for next weeks 'winter
party', went to the Arts Market, Green Tea at Le Cafe.
Today was a day of
craziness from start to finish and I struggled with an insane urge to stuff my
face with crap or drink heaps of wine. At least I managed to understand that
this was because I was spending all my time doing 'things for other people'
when in fact I've got a massive backlog of tasks that I should be dealing to in
my own life. I had planned this morning to take my brother to the airport and
spend some time with him before he went, but just as I got home and settled
down to do some work and study, I got another phonecall
requesting my assistance with some tasks that would basically tie up my whole
afternoon.
As I was driving, I was seething, and wanting so badly to eat. Instead I made
some decisions. I'm having a problem with people thinking that because I work
at home I am always available. I love my family and have a problem saying no
because then I just feel terribly guilty. But at the same time, they have to
understand that if I spend my afternoon running around after them, then I may
have to stay up past
Because of all of the above I did not train today, but I did once again do a
lot of running around. I didn't count calories and was out for dinner but I did
my best. I think it would have been about 1900 calories. Tomorrow I'll get back
to it and finally start my 21 days HABITS challenge. I've been kind of wimpy
about committing properly to getting myself strongly on track but at the same
time I have been preparing myself for success, figuring out a few things, vege prep, mental attitude.
Therefore, seeing as it's my life and my body and quite possibly nobody reads this blog anyway, I'm going
to set a new date to start my 18 weeks and not mess it up this time.
Starting Wednesday. ;) Also, in order to deconfuse my newer readers I thought I'd remove all older
posts just to keep it nice and consistent.
BTW, does anyone know the calorie content of essene bread? I've read various estimates, from 400
to 130 calories per 100g.. Quite
confusing.
Here endeth the archived rantings.