Lessons Learned Thus Far.....

As previously mentioned my 'lifestyle change programme' is based around the Protein Power Plan.

Despite what many may say, this is not a high protein diet, such as the Atkins Plan, but rather, it is an adequate protein diet.

Each participant calculates their 'minimum' protein requirement;  for me, this is 65g of protein per day.  This is the minimum amount of protein I need, based on my lean body weight. 

Then, the 'maximum' carbohydrate allowance in calculated.  In Phase I of the programme, this is 40g per day.  You can eat what you like in the way of carbohydrate, but it's most beneficial if you choose your carbs from such things as broccoli, lettuce, spinach, etc. - the green leafy veggies are best.  You can have bread, potatoes, and so forth if you so desire, but as each slice of bread is worth 13 - 20g of carbs, it doesn't take much to reach the 40g mark. 


So, if you reach your minimum protein amount and your maximum carbohydrate amount, and you're feeling hungry (which, by the way, is a rare thing), you are allowed to then snack on such things as a boiled egg, small amount of cheese, or even possibly some almonds or other nuts (but see my note below).


Very rarely do I feel hungry or in need of a sugar hit - but, it does happen on occasion.  I've found this time, I have a good attitude for when I slip up - just pretty much say, 'oops', then pick myself up and continue on.

Things I've learned thus far:

DUMP the Atkins bars! For about a week and a half, my weight didn't move. When I re-evaluated my eating habits, I discovered that the only thing I'd changed was to add in an Atkins Bar each day. After some good-old Google research, I discovered that, while they say 'net carbs' are 2, the ACTUAL carbs are more like 22 - too many for phase 1 of the Protein Power Plan. I ditched the bars, and the weight loss started again after a couple of days.

DRINK heaps of water - see water as your best friend, and drink at least a couple of litres a day.

POTASSIUM TABLETS are a must in the initial phase. Because you're losing so much water, potassium levels are depleted, which can lead to side-effects, such as if you'd just had an overdose of coffee - a thumping heart, feeling hyper, etc. Potassium tablets help with this, and also stopped me getting those horrible migraines that I always seemed to get when starting on the low-carb diet.

WALKING - I started off with a heel spur, so my only exercise was on the exercise bike. However, after only 5kgs of weight loss, my foot had improved so much that I was able to use the treadmill. Nothing beats walking as a form of exercise. 

DO NOT OVERDO THE EXERCISE - There is such a thing as 'too much' exercise.  Too much, without increasing the protein in your diet, can make the body switch into 'starvation mode' - and then, instead of increasing your metabolism,  you'll actually slow it down, which can therefore cause the weight loss to stop.  I've found 20-30 minutes in the morning, and 30 minutes at night to be ideal.



NUTS -  Technically, nuts are OK - in moderation, of course.  It 'should' be fine to include a small amount of nuts (especially almonds or walnuts) in the diet.  However, whenever I do, the weight loss stops.   And, I did read somewhere that this is a common thing - so, for now at least, nuts are off the menu.






OK.  So, what does my daily diet look like?


Breakfast:  eggs - boiled, scrambled, or fried. Sometimes I have bacon or add a few other things to make an omelette.

Lunch:  Tuna with some sort of green salad, or boiled with broccoli and carrot.



Dinner:  Meat (Beef, chicken or fish) with salad or vegies.  


And, that would be pretty much it.  I have, on occasion, snacked on celery and peanut butter - but one does need to be careful with making that only a small amount.  And, I sometimes add a slice of cheese to my tuna and salad.




So, let's talk.....  CHOCOLATE.  You know, it's really not as evil as some would have us believe.  As with most things, the secret is moderation.  In the case of the Protein Power Plan, it's about counting carbs.  I've found the easiest way to do this is to have the small, packaged, wrapped chocolates on hand, for when 'that' urge just won't subside.  Right now, I have a small packet of Dove Dark Chocolate at the ready - with each piece individually wrapped.  I know that each piece is worth 4.3 grams of carbs, so, each and every piece is included in that daily carbohydrate allowance.


I've also learned that it's very easy to slip, and not so easy to get back up again.  The ideal would be to get on the diet, and STAY on it, without messing up  - but hey, we're only human.

I've calculated my 'start date' as the 23rd of April.  In truth, I actually started properly on the 30th, however, thanks to a rather hectic couple of weeks, in which I had reduced my intake of bread and increased my water consumption, I lost 3kgs (which, due to excess water, is quite usual for week one).  So, I'm just 'saying' it was probably around the 23rd- and who's counting, anyway? (Oh, that's right - I am!  :) ) 


So, let's see.....   that's 10 weeks now.  Every time I work that out, I need to check it several times, because it feels like a LOT longer, but yep, that really is only 10 weeks, and as of today, I'm 14 kgs down.  I'm trying really hard to delight in that number, but I do have the habit of only focussing on how much I have to go - however, that pile of clothes in the hallway (the ones that are now too big for me) is growing, and yeh, it's a pretty good feeling.  :)



Oh, one final little secret - did I mention that my dear hubby bought me an Ipod Touch for Mother's Day?  It's amazing what can happen when you put on some great eighties music and 'zone out'.......

Yep, Mum has an Ipod!

Linda.

My week on Pain-Killers

Last Thursday, I went to see the dentist to have a tooth fixed.  After an examination, the dentist suggested that although he could fix it, there would be much more filling than tooth, leaving it weak and vulnerable to breaks, so he suggested having it pulled.  As it was a back tooth, this did not concern me too greatly, so, I ‘gritted my teeth’, and prepared myself for the procedure. 

The bleeding stopped within a few hours, and it seemed all was going according to plan.  For the next two days, I was somewhat sore, but it was tolerable.  However, on the third day, the pain became greater, and by the forth, I was positively in agony.  I wondered why this could be, and whisked out my laptop and the old ‘Google’ page to do some research. 

I discovered that there is a thing called ‘dry socket’.  This is, when the blood clot that is supposed to form over the extraction point is either dissolved or dislodged, leaving the bone and the socket open to the air, which can lead to an infection.   So, early on the morning of Day 5, I phoned the dentist and explained the situation.  They in turn slotted me into a late afternoon appointment. 

By the time the afternoon rolled around, I was still in severe pain.  The dentist took a look, and then asked if I had been drinking or smoking following the extraction.  When I answered in the negative, he seemed a little confused, stating that they were the two most common reasons a blood clot would come dislodged. 

After examining the site, he decided that the wound was healing, although it was ‘possible’ an infection had occurred within the wound.  He prescribed antibiotics, but insisted that normal Panadol would do the trick for the pain, and that I was not in need of stronger pain killers – for I should, after all, expect ‘some discomfort’ after an extraction.  ‘Some Discomfort’?  Of course, there should be ‘some discomfort’, I thought – but it’s not ‘some discomfort’ that keeps one awake all night, rocking back and forth in a chair, holing your face and groaning. 

I headed around to the chemist, picked up the antibiotics, but also picked up the strongest pain killers they could give me without a prescription.  And so my week of pain-killers began – often, I’d be sitting in the chair or on the edge of the bed, rocking back and forth in pain, or pacing the hallway, just waiting for the clock to tick over so that I could have the next dose of pain relief.  I was careful to take the maximum dosage, but no more, and once again, did lots of research online to find out what the maximum safe dosages were.  

During the week, I often found myself looking at the tablets and / or other painkillers, and fighting the temptation to take ‘just one more’. Usually, it took around 20-30 minutes for the pain killers to kick in, but they would then only last an hour or so, before wearing off and the excruciating pain returned.   I gained such an understanding and compassion for those people who overdose on painkillers, or become addicted to them – how easy it would be.  Yes, I had an infected tooth, but I knew this was a temporary thing – in a week or so, it should be mostly healed.  But what of those people who live in constant pain, with little chance of making a full recovery? 

After 2-3 days on the antibiotics, I finally felt the pain begin to lessen.  By this time, I had been on painkillers, every 4 hours, for a week, and the nausea had begun.  While the pain had started to decrease, I still was not sleeping, as now, whenever I lay down I wanted to throw up.  So, instead of 2 tablets every 4 hours, I tried taking 1 tablet every 2 hours, and then slowly increased the time period, so that I was dropping back the dosage as much as I could.

Over the next few days, I began to feel much better.  The pain is still there – but it is significantly reduced, and I am beginning to feel like a ‘normal’ person again.  I feel like I lost a whole week – I had so much planned, being the last week of the holidays – and the week slipped past me.  But, the main thing is that the socket is healing.  The antibiotics have certainly helped with the infection, and I hope that in another week or so, I can be off the pain killers entirely. 

The best thing about it all is that, the day before the tooth was removed, I had a lump cut and burnt off my arm.  I’ve not experienced any pain at all at the site – funny about that! - it’s healed up beautifully!

 

Please pray today for all those who live with constant pain and those who rely on pain killers full-time.  May God grant them strength, peace, and a good night’s sleep.

Linda.