As always, all the good names are taken. At any rate…..
Day 8 went alright. We were not out long enough to eat the packed lunch I made first thing in the morning but we ate it at home. Here is what I packed:
Then for lunch the salad (we each had our own) with avocado again and a Tanka Bar. Now Tanka isn't on the approved Whole 30 as far as I know. Its a nitrate free jerky and free of sugars and is gluten free. The buffalo meat is free range. Its a from a traditional Native American pemmican recipe and the company is a tribal one so I like to support them.
Dinner was a leg of lamb with potato and carrots and spinach salad again. We are working on eating more greens as my husband is now low on magnesium and taking a huge amount of supplements for it so we are trying to also make sure he eats more food sources of the mineral. I need it too-as we all do.
Yesterday I read some Paleo lifestyle horror stories regarding how people have gotten very sick on the diet. I am not sure how that works-it doesn't seem to be a healthy diet to me at the outset either but I am not eating such a low carb version of that diet. I was warned by my doctor simply not to gorge on fruits because I am working on controling a sweet tooth and that is fair enough. But fruits are not forbidden.
I tended not to eat that much fruit before actually and thought I was doing okay with sugar but I had noticed that the maple syrup we tapped and had the Amish process had a huge impact on my blood sugar-much more so than processed sugar which I only ate if I bought a commercial product that use it. I guess I just didn't feel a need to eat fruit under those conditions and now I am very happy to enjoy it though I am not gorging.
I still don't think that very low carb is healthy for a person but I repeat-I am not eating low carb in the sense of no carb-plenty of complex carbs but no processed ones and no grains is not really low carb is it? I mean that as more than rhetorical-what do you think?
I really miss popcorn this morning. There is nothing quite like it in the vegetable kingdom. lol.
That Tanka bar sounds interesting, and that plate of salad looks delicious! Real food. Yum!
ReplyDeleteI've heard horror stories on Paleo diets too, but here's what I've also read in response. Each person's body is different and they all bring something different to the diet. Just because some people have a horror story, doesn't mean the diet was the culprit. Anyone who comes to Paleo is often struggling with a physical problem they hope the Paleo way of eating will address. If the underlying problem (ie: undiagnosed eating disorder, mental disorder or physical ailment) isn't addressed, then people will think the diet was the cause. My experience with Paleo is that it enables the body to function more efficiently. So if you have a pre-existing condition, Paleo may well accelerate it.
When I was on Paleo, I gained my health back, but it also accelerated my mental health issues by giving me clarity of all things, lol. Having a clear mind, with pre-existing concerns which I didn't realise were bugging me, came as quite a shock! I imagine if you're a person who uses food to gain control over emotions (generaly speaking, that is) then Paleo could well lead to an eating disorder and sickness. Paleo can also relieve the symptoms of physical ailments, such as undiagnosed adrenal or organ problems, but it doesn't remove them. Whatever deficiency is pre-existing in the body, will be accelerated if its not addressed.
Some may then consider Paleo a dangerous diet, but in context (or at least my experience with it) the diet allows you to be more receptive with what's happening to you both physically, and mentally, so you stand a greater chance of identifying the underlying problems. Paleo, like any diet, can become extreme if the person utilising it doesn't understand its a tool to be used, not a miracle cure. If someone finds themselves sick on the Paleo diet, did they really investigate the underlying causes or just blame the diet? When I stopped eating Paleo I felt "better" too, but only temporarily. What felt good was the sugar rush and high blood sugars, which numbed my receptors to my underlying problems. So they didn't go away, I just couldn't feel them.
I only think of Paleo as a guide anyway. Like any diet, its a tool to be used according to personal circumstance and resources. I can't flaw the foods suggested, as they are really healthy. I can find flaw with eating more chemically treated fruits and vegetables though, or unethically produced meat which may be devoid of disease, only through antibiotics and being chemically treated afterwards. That could be a real problem with the diet, if those are the only resources to be found. For most people in the developed world, buying or growing your own organic food isn't always an option.
I don't mind the length of your comments because you know what you are saying:) thanks!
DeleteI agree regarding underlying issues. I remember long ago I read a page full of horror stories regarding veganism on a traditional foods org site and I actually laughed out loud because these were first person accounts of people who had issues and blamed it on their diet, i.e. calling veganism an eating disorder when it was the persons psychological mind set to begin with.
Its interesting what you are saying about mental clarity-I am wondering if I am reading it right-you found clarity on issues that were troublesome on a subconcious level? I have found simple clarity on a spiritual one for some reason-things are not perfect in life but I'm inclined to let things go now where before I thought every problem needed to be solved or the world was rising up against me. I think that is about sugar!
Its a bit hard to eat the quality of the foods suggested but people are eating them on or off this diet regardless. I think that just by giving the chemicals in junk food on any diet a person is already ahead of the game. Seems like eggs are a main thing for me so buying local and organic is cheap but as far as animal flesh-thats proving challenging. We are thinking of buying a share of a cow again which is the most cost effective way. As for fowl we have a bird flu outbreak in our area but we are getting duck from a hunter who froze it awhile before the outbreak. Its not a struggle for us but it takes some planning and horse trading.
We can buy a side of beef which works out cheaper per kilo, but we'd still be looking at close to $1000! That's where "planning" comes in for us too - having the freezer space put aside and then making sure we plan out the meals so it goes the distance. When we start to think outside the box of supermarkets, it gets more complicated but also potentially more beneficial. One step at a time. :)
DeleteThat pricing is crazy! Can you find farmers who will allow you to buy a share? The last time we bought a side of beef we didn't have freezer space so we rented a space at the butchers-a meat locker. And the beef cost around 400. Yes, one step at a time is the way to go.
DeleteThere is probably a word limit, so decided to write another post on low carb diets. First of all, every single food - even the ones on the Paleo diet, contain some carbs. All food is processed into energy and a carbohydrate is how we measure it. When I was first diagnosed with diabetes, carbs became the bane of my existence, lol. I was meant to have a set amount, as recommended for my age and activity level, to balance the amount of insulin I was taking.
ReplyDeleteThe approach I was taught is, eat a moderate amount of food and take the according amount of insulin. If my blood sugar levels were higher, then it was advised to take slightly more insulin. It was rarely advised to cut back the amount of food (carbs) I was eating. When you've had diabetes for long enough, you can develop something called insulin resistance, so you actually have to take even more insulin to counter it. What I thank the Paleo diet for, was challenging that whole philosophy of how we measure food and how much of what, we should be eating.
If it wasn't for Paleo, I never would have discovered how to tackle my insulin resistance, and would probably be double or triple the amount of insulin I'm presently taking. I've actually been able to reduce how much, when the medical standard is expecting insulin will increase with age. Do I think people should make low carb a way of eating for life? Well, only if it works for their situation. I'm a living example that if I lived my diabetes treatment, according to the medical standards advised, I'd be taking more insulin than I am today. So I'd never advise everyone eat the same as me. People with high metabolisms, need more energy supplies and low carb may not be as suitable.
What I think we really need to learn, is how to read our bodies. In my experience, I've learned that low carbs mean a more stabilised blood sugar overall. But then I guess I've had the inadvertent advantage of being able to monitor the effects of food and insulin, with my blood glucose meter. Not everyone can see that as clearly, when they're learning to read their own bodies. Still it can be done via energy levels. My husband can tell, without the aide of a glucose meter, when he's eaten gluten or sugar, because he'll get into a physical lethargy about an hour or two afterwards. You learn to read how different foods effect you, for better or worse. I think you have been practising this for a while now too.
Regarding the maple syrup, I wonder if its because its more of a fructose than a glucose, as sugar is? The body is less able to process fructose than glucose.
Anyway, sorry for the long posts - its just so hard to talk about food in quick soundbites. ;)
Again, no worries about longer comments as they are substantially informative!
DeleteI remember going for counseling for my mom who has Type 2 diabetes and she was told the same as you were told so of course its been a struggle for her as well.
I can tell if I have had too much sugar the day before by the hypoglycemia attacks I get the next day and sometimes the day after. It literally takes that long for my body to calm down-not that I don't ward off the attacks but I will get multiple ones for a couple of days. I am not diabetic myself.
I have also learned that tension is higher if I don't eat alot of protein and yet after cancer I came to fear protein. Think about it-its not suggested that bowel cancer people eat beef (unless its grassfed according to European studies) but soy is out and this and that are out. So I erred on the side of being hungry and got used to be hungry as a norm which is one reason my body hung on to its weight (thyroid is another). Infact all this hunger may well have caused the thyroid to go out of wack in the first place.
My point is that, yes, I do monitor my body. I think women in general tend to-I mean we feel our hormonal changes so regularly that its easy to be in tune.
Interesting regarding the maple syrup-I don't know but I will find out. Thanks for pointing it out!
I think I told you my mum was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes recently too. That new learning curve comes as a shock to everyone. Its full on! Food suddenly gets more complicated and its all on the individual to get it right. The older you are, I reckon the harder it is to adapt. Not impossible, just harder after developing a lifetime of eating habits.
DeleteMy mum made a point to do more daily activity and changed her meals slightly, and two of her official blood tests (through pathology) has come back that she doesn't have diabetes any more. Sweet! So maybe you want to pass that onto your mum. It is possible to reverse type 2 diabetes. :)
My moms life is stressful and until she and dad get a grip on that they won't change their eating or other lifestyle habits but I am very happy for you mom!
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