When I left you last, I was headed back to my naturopathic doctor. (Part 1 was published on February 17 - sorry it took so long to post the follow-up!)
By day, I studied what I was allowed to eat. I made forays into different stores. I felt like an intrepid explorer hunting down exotic and unusual foods... never mind that 'exotic and unusual' meant 'unprocessed and natural' :-) I tried to choose organic fruits and vegetables. I was inordinately thrilled to find an acceptable fruit/nut bar at a local gas station :-) Gluten free sometimes works for me, but GRAIN free (wheat, oat, corn & barley) is what I really need to do. Rice and quinoa are fine, thank goodness.
I HAD to (I thought) buy 'regular' food (like chips:-) for my husband and teens but for myself, I ate pretty well by day.
But at night, I was a creature possessed! Anything loose was fair game. I tried and tried but nights were the WORST. Why is it that as soon as dinner was over, I was on the prowl in the pantry looking for something to MUNCH on?
But that is exactly what I was doing! It was just before Thanksgiving... we were coming up on the "eating-est" season of the year.. and I had just put on 5 pounds in 2 weeks! I was scared to death... I had worked really hard to lose weight - and harder yet to maintain it.. and here I was... trying to get healthy but gaining weight.
I KNEW what was happening but didn't know what to do about it. Seems easy, doesn't it? Just stop the night eating. But if you are like me, you know that it is not that easy!
But then I also WORRIED! Would I be getting enough protein? How on earth could I eat enough MEAT when I wasn't accustomed to even thinking about it? Was there life without cheese? What about the food I used to eat that was still in my pantry / fridge?
Why is it that we have this "all or nothing" mindset? This mindset is exactly what sent me reeling! All I really want is to eat like a normal person... i.e. NOT be obsessed with FOOD and have my weight be normal too.
Anyway, back I went... and found some more solutions that have definitely worked for me.
First, it took me more than two weeks to feel the difference that good food can make. It took FOUR. So the first piece of advice is HANG IN THERE!
Second piece of advice, RELAX! If you are worried about wasting the food you already have, then by all means, eat it or give it away or whatever you feel it necessary to do. (I am talking about good healthy food, mind you... junk is junk.. get rid of the over-processed junk) In other words, I used up my Laughing Cow cheese but got the aspartame (Nutrasweet) out of my house.
Third, my protein requirements. I have become a pretty active person and I was worried about having the strength and energy to keep it up. I used to manage it with whey protein powder and yogurt. We agreed on a daily protein amount (about 55-60 grams) and I now get about 1/3 of it from the animal sources (meat and eggs). That is about a 3-ounce (fist-size) serving of chicken. The balance can come from nuts and beans.
Fourth, to address the night binging - which I still have trouble with some nights. Several factors come into play.
Are you really hungry? Often I WAS! I found that foods that are not optimal for me (bread of any sort other than live sprouted) or foods that are empty of nutrition (doughnuts), leave me hungry. I don't care HOW MANY doughnuts I eat, I need a meal afterwards because they do not nourish me. Period. The solution? Eat better food earlier in the day. If I am hungry late and MUST have something, vegetables work! If I don't want vegetables, then I am not feeding hunger... something else is going on.
Are you feeding your taste buds or your body? It has been necessary for me to make this distinction. Too often, my taste buds were in charge.
Are you tired? I fall asleep early and easily. I found that I sometimes eat to stay awake with my teens and nightowl husband. So I gave myself permission to go ahead and fall asleep. I still wake around the same time but have found that I am better rested. Apparently this is what MY body needs even if the bodies of my family do not.
And one more thing that doesn't seem related.. but really seems to make a real difference.. NO MEDIA for a couple of hours before bed... no television, no computer, no electronic games. This little bit of 'media fasting' seems to help me stay calmer in those post-dinner, pre-bedtime hours. It also helps tremendously with the quality of rest I get.
Where I am today- 5 months later - for the most part, I eat well. Less of the 'required' junk food for my family is entering the house :-) The night time rituals are working pretty well except on my late night dance nights.... but IF I eat on those nights, it is a nourishing snack as fuel. The electronic fasting works most nights. I use an hour before bed for reading quietly - but usually watch television while I crochet for the hour before that.
But I feel great! I have energy for any activity I want to participate in.
I don't miss cheese or yogurt very much....
I use my crockpot for easy soups, meats and stews.
I always pack food to take with me so I have healthy options. (I almost always have a bag of almonds in my purse) One of my weight loss techniques that still seems to work well for me is to NEVER be hungry away from home when I don't know what is going to be available to eat.
My family now has TWO vegetable options at meals instead of ONE and I don't seem to mind fixing them things I "can't" eat.... because I know that I "can" eat them if I want to - but that they will make me feel sluggish or uncomfortable the next day. MY CHOICE... somehow that makes a difference!
I feel more at peace with food than I have in a long time. I could still stand to lose a few pounds but my weight is stable. Eating more or less on a given day does not show on the scale any more.
So - of my initial complaints - depression, lack of energy & hair loss - these are solved :-) The cholesterol is the next issue and I am going back for a re-check on that this morning. We'll see if diet change has helped me in that department. I'll be sure to report back!
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