Frustrated

My weight doesn't seem to be going down anymore, which surprises me givn how low carb I'm eating. It did go down temporarily to 15 stone 6.75, but it crept back up to 15 stone 8.75 again today. This might not seem a lot but it takes ages for it to go down at all, so seeing it go back up is very frustrating indeed, especially when I have been 100% paleo for a month now. I think it may be due to lack of exercise - I've spent the last month indoors writing my chapter and haven't even done much in the way of walking. I spent an hour walking today and plan to do so every day to see how that works. It should help me become more sensitive to insulin. I've been feeling light headed again recently, and the last couple of days I seem to need to eat all to often. Doing any form of exercise always makes me feel hungry again, even if I ate just before starting. I assume this is due to the insulin resistance and my body is still looking for the easy carbs for fuel and it struggling with accessing the fat. Theoretically I should be able to last months on the stores I have right now, so why should I feel the need to eat at all?!

Yesterday I tried some of the Primal Blueprint Fitness exercises. I managed 15 wall push ups before hurting my wrist, 20 squats and I only managed to hold the plank position for 6 seconds before collapsing (3 times). I have to work on these for them to improve, but I feel very unfit. Especially after watching all the amazing dancers at the University dance show this evening - they were all beautiful, had fantastic figures and danced all evening. It was amazing to watch, I did enjoy it very much, but I was painful aware of being overweight and struggling to just walk up the hill. I'd love to be able to run again. I used to run for 40 minutes on a treadmill at the gym and loved the feeling. I'd like to be able to run through the countryside and not have to stop after 10 seconds because I can't breathe. I shall start with the walking.

Meatier and Meatier

Hello!

So, diet-wise, I was finding that my weight loss had slowed down considerably (was at 15 stone 6.75 as of Saturday 19th March although I haven't weighed myself since as the stress can apparently hinder weight loss), so I have cut down my carbohydrate intake a bit more woth the aim of going into ketosis for a bit. I shall try to put off weighing myself for as long as possible and hope for a significant drop :) I have found that I can go for longer without eating and eat less when I do, which is a sign that I'm becoming increasingly sensitive to insulin. I hope to improve my sensitivity further by actually soing some exercise - I haven't even been out for a walk recently, so I need to get back into that and start some resistance exercises, as per the Primal Blueprint Fitness routine.

One side effect of this way of eating is that my favourite trousers are now embarassingly loose, in that I had to keep pulling them up whilst walking around the supermarket. I hope that I notice when they are so loose that they don't eve sit on my hips anymore before I leave the house. I have some next size down trousers waiting in the wardrobe for me. Another side effect is, ahem, libido. Or should I say, LIBIDO. It's nice. Although I have no one to share it with at the moment, which can be rather frustrating.

Work, Work, Work

Hello World, sorry I've neglected you recently. I'm getting faster at making food and have come up with some good, quick recipes of my own. Today I put some beef brisket in a casserole pot with some beef stock, onions, coriander, chilli powder and garlic and slow roasted it for 3 hours at 150 degrees C. It was utterly delicious and the meat was very tender. Slow roasting results in gorgeous melt in the mouth meat every time.

It occurred to me the other day that I no longer have any cravings, which is quite amazing. I don't miss any foods and I love the things I do eat, developing appreciation for a new paleo food every day.

My weight has been all over the place the last few days, due to my monthlies. Hopefully the line graph will start heading downhill again this week. Today I weighed in at 15 stone 8.75.

Jerky Consumption on an Industrial Scale

I've eaten so much jerky that my teeth and gums ache from all the chewing! It's very nice and rather addictive. Having tried a variety of spices and seasonings, I have concluded that the best one is a little salt on its own. I shall be buying more beef for further jerky making soon.

I lost another half a lb yesterday but went back up to 15 stone 9.75 today, most probably because my monthlies have just started, so I'm hoping for a few lbs off once they're over. I added a new plot of weight against time to the right hand side of the page, as suggested by Rachel (a most welcome commenter). I also took the liberty of adding some Amazon links to the blog, so if you are interested in buying one of the books, please do use these links.

I visited the lovely butchers again today and indulged in some more meaty goodness. I'm going to go to bed now as I feel quite battered from a long day of writing about genes and maths.

Jerky Making on an Industrial Scale

I have just sliced up a rather large amount of partially frozen beef chunks (freezing them a little makes them easier to slice thinly), salted them and put them in the dehydrator. I took some some photos so I can catalogue the whole process at a later date. I also soaked some nuts and seeds in wamr salty water, having been convinced by numerous sources such as this, that it removes the harmful elements and increases many vitamins. They are also in the dehydrator.

Food has been good today and I took some coconut and celery with me to eat while I wasaway from home. It sustained me for most of the time but I was pretty hungry by the time I got back home. I have also eaten today: scrambled eggs, avacado, pork belly slice, thai chicken curry with coconut milk, thai style salmon in coconut milk. Amazingly I'm not hungry now, I'm pleasantly surprised by how little I can get away with eating these days - more time for life!

I weighed in at 15 stone 9 this morning, which gives me a total loss of 7.5lbs.

Dodgy Fish

I think I ate some dodgy fish. It tasted a bit off but I decided to eat it anyway as i was hungry and didn't want more meat, but I'm experiencing the first digestive discomfort since going primal. It's only mild and I'm sure I'll live, but I have learned to trust my instincts and not eat food that tastes wrong. Especially fish.

I went to the butcher again today and had a different man serve me this time. He was also very nice - they're very friendly and polite there, and the meat last time was fantastic. I'm still enjoting what I eat and am loving the fact I don't have to eat so much as it means I can get on with things. Yesterday I had my first ever taste of cocnut milk and oh my god, it was like 1/2 of an orgasm. I don't know if it would have tasted sweet to me before going primal, but it was the sweetest, most delicious thing I've had this fortnight. Possibly for a long time. Coconuts are pretty cheap too, I bought mine for 69p from Ocado! I've been eating the meat as a snack too, so it's the best 69p I've ever spent and will be buying more of those.

I was relieved to see the scales down at 15 stone 9.25 today, so I'm back on a losing streak. I don't feel any different yet, as is expected after only 12 days.

Please Say Hello!

Hello blog readers. I'm a bit lonely out here with no comments, so it feels as though I'm talking to the ether at the moment! Anyway, I'm happy to report NO light-headedness today, but less happy to report a 1.5lb gain back up to 15 stone 11. I have consoled myself with the fact that my monthlies are approaching and I usually put on 3lbs just before, so it's probably just that, and it serves me right for weighing myself every day. I told myself this morning (in my head, not actually out loud else I scare the cat) that I won't weigh myself for another week, then I'll almost certainly see a loss, but right now I'm thinking sod that, I want to see a loss tomorrow. Is that bad, ether? Probably.

I realised I haven't been including what I've been eating, so here's the list for today: Scrambled eggs made with butter, streaky bacon, celery, romaine lettuce, cucumber, spring onions, olive oil, lamb curry made with lamk shank, cocunut milk, beef stock, carrots, onion, other veg, spices, herbs, (was amazing), mackerel, pork spare ribs.

I'm really enjoying my food now. Before going primal eating was a chore and I got quite fed up with it because I had to eat so often. Now I eat less frequently and less of it when I do, and it tastes so much better, the flavour really comes out when the food isn't processed or accompanied by uneatables.

Jerky

The jerky turned out great! I've had to stop myself from eating the lot as it's ideal for taking with me when I'm away from the house and need portable, quick food. I did treat myself to one piece though. I shall definitely be getting some more good quality beef and making some more, plus I may experiment with other meats, perhaps venison if it's not wildly expensive. I also rediscovered macadamia nuts today - ideal for a primal diet, they're bloody lovely and kept me going for quite a while too. It's always a relief to discover handy, portable snacks!

I've not felt light headed at all today, so I reckon the L-Glutamine is really helping. I'll stop taking it when I feel I'm through the transition period and then my body can support its own brain! I have been particularly thirsty again the last couple of days though, and it's not due to salt. I experienced the same problem whilst doing Atkins and it never went away (after 5 months), so I'm worried I may end up drinking water like its going out of fashion for the rest of my life...

On the plus side, I lost another lb! So that down 6.75lbs in total, from 16 stone 2.5 to 15 stone 9.75. It's been quite easy so far, apart from one wobbly moment today when I saw a box of chocolates in a promotional email from Tesco. I'm sure they taste disgusting.