This interested me because for one, I've never read a "diet" or "lifestyle" book. And secondly, from what I heard, this is a really good laid out plan of how to eat well for a diabetic...for life. It's not something where you get to your goal weight, you go back to the dangerous habits you had before and gain all your weight back. It's a way of pairing the right types of foods at the right time, and eating that way for the rest of your life. Something that becomes second nature and you don't even have to think about. It tells you to eat protein, fat & carbs.
I got my book last Saturday and have read most of it. A huge chunk of it is all different kinds of recipes, broken up in to "S" (satisfying), "E" (energizing), "FP" (fuel pulls) & Crossovers. This is not low carb but rather "controlled carbs". It eliminates bad/starchy/simple carbs/sugar for the most part, and encourages you to use the complex carbs for your "E" meals...up to 45g per "E" meal. Sugar is a big no-no and gives you alternatives to use such as stevia extract, xylitol, etc. This is a big thing in the life of a diabetic. I, personally, have been using Stevia in place of sugar for about 5 years, so it's no big deal to me. I have never used Xylitol, but hear from the facebook group that the chocolate recipes/desserts taste much better with Xylitol instead of Stevia...something I'm looking forward to trying.
Basically, your body's fuel comes from 2 sources....fat and healthy carbs. The idea is to not eat both in large amounts at the same time, because your body can only efficiently burn one type of fuel at a time...and the other gets stored in your fat cells. Pretty basic concept. So it's just learning to pair the right foods and eat them at the right time. You go 3 hours inbetween switching fuel sources. So if you have an "S" meal for breakfast (fat is the main fuel), then go 3 hours before you eat an "E" meal (carbs are the main fuel). Protein is to be eaten with both "S" & "E" meals.
There is no counting calories, which is one of the biggest reasons I'm interested. As I said in my last post, I am just completely burned out on that process and can't see myself counting another one as long as I live. I'd rather stay fat (not really....well kinda').
I will say that common sense needs to be used. When you are having an "S" meal like I had for breakfast this morning, it probably wouldn't be wise to eat 6 eggs and 3 porkchops and expect any weight to fall off. You are eating the right foods together, but if your portion sizes are ridiculous, then don't expect amazing results, if any.
My breakfast was 2 eggs scrambled in butter & mixed with sautéed mushrooms, onions, orange pepper w/ diced tomato on top. I also had a leftover pan-fried pork chop (coconut oil) from last night's dinner. The fuel source being burned here is fat, obviously....the butter and coconut oil. I got my protein in with the 2 eggs and porkchop. You can have between 6-10 net carbs w/ an "S" meal, but I didn't feel like working any in. Since it's not the fuel source you're trying to burn, then it doesn't matter that I left it out. Also, it was a pat or 2 or butter that the veggies & eggs were cooked in.....not a half a stick. I cooked 6 pork chops last night in a couple of TBSP of coconut oil....I did not DEEP FRY them in a gallon of oil. This is what I mean by common sense. The book probably gives a guideline on the fat amount for an "S" meal but I don't remember what it is off the top of my head...I'm still absorbing the info.
Here's a pic of my "S" breakfast:
I have not jumped in full fledge yet. Yesterday I started playing around w/ pairing the right foods together. I have not tried any recipes out of the book yet....I may do that today. But the truth is, you don't have to use a single one of their recipes if you don't want to. They're just suggestions to show you what foods to pair together. There are several fabulous-sounding things in the recipe section and I plan on experimenting to see what I like and what I don't. But for right now I'm just eating what I would normally eat...but in the right way.
I also had an "E" meal yesterday, which allows up to 45g of healthy carbs, some proten, and a small amount of fat (I think it's 5g or under...still learning). The fat has to stay small in this meal because it's not the mail fuel source you're trying to burn in an "E" meal...the carbs are. I had a medium sized baked sweet potato w/ 1 pat of butter & 3 lettuce wraps w/ green leaf lettuce, a couple oz of Boar's Head natural ham (no nitrates), pickles slices & spicy mustard on each one. I didn't use the lite mayo I would normally use because I already used the pat of butter for my small amount of fat.
So it's just learning and getting used to pairing the right foods together at the right time. There is a learning curve...it takes a little time. But that's ok. I'm going to follow the plan loosely over the next couple of weeks, test some recipes, etc. I noted that my weight was 227 yesterday morning so when I weigh-in on Sat morn I will note if even following it loosely made any difference.
This is not set up for fast weight loss. It's set up for getting your body to a healthy state through burning fuels more efficiently and healing yourself from the inside out w/ healthy foods. I have full faith from all that I read that it is going to be a great lifestyle for a diabetic, and that's really what matters to me. If I treat my body properly, my labs will start coming into normal range, and the weight will fall off naturally.
One last thing. This book is Bible-based. The two sisters that wrote it are Christians, as I am, and I appreciated all the Biblical references/verses they provided for the way people ate in the earliest of times. They are not doctors/nutritionists themselves, but provide plenty of scientific references as well to support their ideas on the right way to eat for optimum health.
I'll be back to report on Saturday for a short report whether there's any weight loss or not. I'll try to have more food photos to demonstrate what the "S" and "E" meals look like in real life. There are also "Fuel Pull" meals for stubborn weight loss (not recommended in the beginning) and Crossover meals for when you get to maintenance and don't want to lose anymore. I'm not concentrating on either of those right now. I'll concentrate on them when the time comes. :)
