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Originally Posted by KrisR
Does anyone have any good/not so good experiences to share on this WOE yet?
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Guess I'm the oldie on this list - I began March 9, so yesterday marked the end of my 5th week.
My observations so far: I began by eating too much protein, not understanding that I had to base the formula on my
ideal weight, not my weight
goal. It took me two weeks to figure out what was going on, during which time I initially got bloated and gained about five pounds of water weight. When I corrected that, I discovered I'd
only lost 1/2 pound.
However, after a two-year weight stall, that was enough to make me understand that if I didn't kid myself and lowered my protein a LOT, and upped my fat a LOT, this WOE would work for me. At the very least I could see for myself, and not just read the experiences of others: that despite eating many,
many more calories above my BMR I hadn't
gained an ounce of body fat. And since I also decided to stop exercising during this 'break-in' period, as far as I'm concerned it puts the end to any further idiocy about calories in vs. calories out. Or that high fat calories only works if you don't eat dairy. Or drink coffee. Or eat cheese or nuts. Or it only works for guys. Or that it only works for young people. Or not for pre-menopausal women, or not for post-m . . . well you get the drift.
But as I've now learned, all weeks are not created equal. I began this journey because 'traditional' LC had failed me. That's right, it failed
me. I did not fail it. I was scrupulously vigilant with my carbs, sometimes going to zero - to no avail. From Feb. 8th to March 8th I ate LC but only 1200 calories a day. For a month. I lost not a single ounce. Nada.
Somehow my metabolism had simply stopped responding to the way I was eating. Yet I was not ready (nor will I ever be) to go back to eating a low fat, calorie restricted diet. So when I read the new studies that some people have a metabolic problem with protein in the face of eating a high fat diet (and let's face it,
all LC is by definition high fat) I knew those studies were talking about me. And they were right.
In the last three weeks, I've lost another three pounds. I have more energy than ever. Starting a week or so ago, my blood pressure dropped. Plummeted. And it's stayed low, incredibly so. Tonight it was 107/53. The half-moons on my fingernails (always tiny) have begun to grow. Bizarre, but true. I feel . . . lighter, since my stomach no longer struggles to deal with excess protein.
And the effects seem to be accelerating. I lost another nearly .5 pounds in the last two days. I'm beginning to suspect that after being abused with what I'll call "protein poisoning" for so many years, my metabolism is just
beginning to recover. For those of you who have said "I'll give this two weeks" I urge you to reconsider and go at least two months. You didn't get stalled in two weeks, and you probably won't unstall in two weeks. Your body needs to heal, and that takes time. And it doesn't usally follow a straight line.
When I read some of the posts about bloat gain, funny tastes in mouth, heartburn, etc. - it reminds me a lot of the complaints others have voiced when trying to rid their bodies of candida. Die-off flu, they call it. It's the same here. Our body's bad elements do not go down without a fight, especially when they've ruled so long. I'm telling you that if you stick with it honestly -- like eating the
lower protein levels for month two if you're going to eat the
higher fat levels for month two, and eating the number of carbs you need to eat even if it's difficult -- you will come out the other side and wonder how you ever ate differently. I will
never go back.
And it's getting easier. I no longer have to measure and weigh every single thing - I can now eyeball 3 ounces of anything within 2 grams.
And my body seems to have fallen into a rhythm of knowing exactly what to eat and how much. I seem to consume about 1700 calories a day. 46-50g protein (and yes, vegetables DO matter). I'm composing a post about that and other questions I hope to get up this weekend. But just on the logic, it makes sense to count them. Dr. K knew nothing about BPAA forty years ago, or that people suffer from it, or that to their bodies, a protein is a protein is a protein. If I eat too many I'm going to pay the price, whether they come from beans, strawberries or steak. I also eat about 145g fat, and 35-50 net carbs. Somehow, at the end of the day, that's what I've eaten, no matter how varied the foods, or whether I've had 2 meals, 3 meals or 4 meals. Some days it's more (nearly 1900 today), some days it's less (1500 the day before yesterday). It averages it out.
One problem: sleep. My mind gets tired, but my body wants to keep going and going and going. Till 2 in the morning. Oddly though, I keep waking up at about the same time, so I'm getting by with less sleep though not feeling bothered by it as I would have in the past. I'm hoping this is a phase as my body gets used to the extra fat/energy and that I'll go back to normal in a few more weeks.
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On the not-so-positive, I have more heartburn than I did before. In the past I've gotten heartburn from cream, which I tried to include the last couple days so I'm hopeful that by discontinuing the cream, I'll get rid of the heartburn.
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Might be the cream, but it might be the time of day you're eating it. I purposely try to eat most of my fat in the morning and afternoon, with a little protein. At night I reverse that and eat most of my protein and only a little fat. You might give that a try (if you don't already) and see how it goes.
Lisa