2024 Decision – How Issues Are Going (Month Two!)

Now right here’s the longer model for many who need extra particulars. 😀 The “no sugar” New 12 months’s decision has turn out to be very simple. I’m actually not even tempted to eat sugary treats anymore. I’m going out to eat with my mother and brother each Sunday after church, and on Sunday every week in the past, my brother ordered a strawberry shortcake. Most of final 12 months, we’d order that and all three of us would share it. The restaurant the place we go (Longhorn Steakhouse) has THE BEST strawberry shortcake I’ve ever had. However every week in the past when he ordered it, and he and my mother shared it, I wasn’t even tempted by it, and I didn’t really feel disadvantaged within the least.

So I’ve had no sugar for 2 months! And for me, that’s a reasonably large deal. (For the main points on what I imply by “no sugar”, I explained that here.) I’m nonetheless satisfied that what has helped me essentially the most is specializing in consuming extra protein (most Individuals, particularly ladies, aren’t consuming sufficient protein as we become older), and maintaining a healthy diet fat (animal fat, olive oil, avocado oil, however NO SEED OILS!!!) These two issues hold me satiated in order that I’m not all the time desirous about meals and craving sweets.

In different well being information, I learn a guide that I extremely advocate for everybody to learn. It’s known as The Salt Fix: What The Experts Got Wrong, And How Eating More Might Save Your Life (affiliate hyperlink). The thesis of the guide is that the majority of us aren’t getting sufficient salt in our diets. I do know that sounds surprising contemplating that we’ve all been conditioned to be afraid of an excessive amount of salt. There are three issues that we’ve been conditioned over the past three or so many years to consider are going to kill us — saturated fat, ldl cholesterol, and salt — when in actuality, these three issues have been blamed for the injury that sugar, processed carbs, and seed oils are doing to our our bodies. The guide is fascinating, however let me share with you ways I even got here to learn it.

On the finish of January, I began seeing adverts on Instagram and Fb for an electrolyte drink known as LMNT. It was a no-sugar-added electrolyte drink, and I’m all the time in search of a superb, low- or no-sugar electrolyte drink for Matt. So I ordered a number of packing containers to check out the flavors. When it got here, Matt and I each began ingesting it. It’s, fingers down, THE BEST electrolyte drink I’ve ever tasted in my life. Most electrolyte drinks attempt to cowl up the salty style by including a lot candy taste, which suggests you’re both getting manner an excessive amount of sugar (like with Gatorade or Liquid IV), or it’s stuffed with sugar options which have that overpowering faux sweetener style (like Dr. Berg’s electrolyte drink). Bleh on all of these.

So the LMNT was a bit totally different. They don’t attempt to cowl up the salty taste. They only add a touch of fruit taste and a little bit of stevia, however nothing overpowering. So the primary sip I took was a bit surprising, so my preliminary response was, “Ugh, I don’t suppose I like this!” However then after a second, I used to be like, “Wait. That’s truly actually good!” It simply wasn’t what I used to be anticipating. I used to be anticipating that faux, overpowering candy taste, in order that first salty sip was surprising to me. However after I readjusted my expectations, I spotted how a lot I cherished it. And now, it’s my favourite drink. I adore it greater than my valuable unsweet tea, and anybody who is aware of how a lot tea I drink is aware of how surprising it’s that I might love one thing greater than unsweet iced tea.

Again to my story. We received our first LMNT on the finish of January, and I began ingesting one (okay, perhaps two) a day. First, I seen that I wasn’t getting hungry as typically. That made sense to me as a result of I bear in mind being in keto Fb teams the place individuals had been typically doing intermittent and long-term fasting, and when individuals would complain about being too hungry to proceed, the recommendation was all the time to place some salt underneath your tongue as a result of salt retains starvation and cravings in verify. In order that made sense to me. The extra salt I used to be ingesting, the much less starvation I skilled, and the less cravings I had, so I wasn’t regularly eager to rummage by way of the fridge to seek out snacks all through the day. In truth, the considered meals was now not consuming my thoughts. After lunch, I wouldn’t even give meals one other thought on most days (with Wednesdays being the exception).

However right here’s what actually shocked me. On one Wednesday — the day of the week after I exit out to eat with my mother and brother for lunch, after which my church group has our Wednesday evening gatherings that begin with dinner collectively — I ate horribly all day. I didn’t have sugar, however I ate each carbohydrate in sight, together with a number of items of garlic bread (proper up till bedtime!!), some hen spaghetti, potato salad, white bread. I imply, I used to be uncontrolled. Now typically on days like that, my weight shall be up about two or three kilos the following morning, particularly if I’m consuming proper up till bedtime, which I used to be on that day. So the following morning, I stepped on the dimensions anticipating simply that, however my weight hadn’t modified in any respect from the morning earlier than (i.e., the morning earlier than my carb fest).

That has NEVER HAPPENED in my complete grownup life. I used to be completely astounded, and questioned what the heck was occurring. Had I all of a sudden turn out to be a kind of fortunate individuals who might eat no matter I wished to, and by no means acquire one other pound? After which it dawned on me. Might or not it’s the salt?! That was the one factor I had not too long ago modified.

And that’s after I remembered listening to in regards to the guide The Salt Repair.

I questioned if, maybe, the reply to my query was in that guide, so I instantly purchased the audio model and listened that day as I labored. And certain sufficient! He answered my query, and gave me a lot useful, wonderful, and enlightening info that I’ve turn out to be an evangelist for this guide and for salt (particularly the wonderful tasting LMNT) for the final month. Proper within the very introduction of the guide, he talks about how salt may also help you get management of your weight. Eat salt, drop some pounds. That’s the very title of a piece of the introduction to the guide.

I’ve to confess that with this new info, and with a wholesome inventory of LMNT in my kitchen, I used to be not as disciplined with my consuming as I ought to have been in the course of the month of February. In truth, if I’m being utterly trustworthy with myself, it’s wonderful that I even managed to lose any weight in any respect within the month of February. Up to now, that kind of undisciplined method of approaching meals would have resulted in me gaining weight. So the truth that I misplaced any weight in any respect throughout February is sort of wonderful to me.

So in March, I’m going to perform a little experimenting. I’m going to stay with the LMNT and mix that with a far more disciplined strategy to wholesome consuming, and I’m going to be far more dedicated to my each day train. I didn’t do effectively on that, both, in the course of the month of February. I began off very sturdy, but once I saw the coyote in our back yard, my dedication to each day strolling and willpower to stay to an train routine took a success. So I’m excited to see how this month goes. No sugar, manner fewer processed carbohydrates, extra salt, extra disciplined wholesome consuming, and a dedication to each day train. I’ll report again on the finish of the month to let y’all know the way it goes.

EDIT: I utterly forgot to inform y’all this! I purchased myself a cute little outfit for Easter. It’s nothing terribly particular, and I’m not fairly able to spend cash on cute clothes. I’ll have to lose extra weight and really feel extra assured earlier than I spend cash on clothes. However for now, I simply wished a cute pair of pants, a colourful shirt, and a few new sneakers. So right here’s what I purchased…

As quickly as I noticed my favourite model of pants/demins (Judy Blue) on this fairly pink, I knew I needed to have them. The shirt is from one in every of my favourite on-line shops known as Mod Boutique. The sneakers are Madden Woman from Belk. Who is aware of if the climate will even cooperate. That is Texas, in any case. We is likely to be in the midst of a snow storm on March thirty first. 😀 If that occurs, I’ll want to change out the sneakers and throw on a coat.

However right here’s the kicker. I purchased the pants and the shirt one measurement smaller than what I put on proper now. 😀 And I’ve already flittered away the month of February with my undisciplined consuming and lack of train for the final two weeks of the month. So now it’s all the way down to crunch time. I actually don’t know if I can do it, but when I don’t make it, it gained’t be for lack of attempting or for lack of self-discipline in the course of the month of March. So I’ll let y’all know the way it goes! If I make it, I’ll even publish an image of me in my cute little Easter outfit. We’ll see. 🙂