So, here I am again, setting up yet another blog. I have a history of setting up blogs and then abandoning them, but I really want to try keeping this one up, daily. So, what’s this all about?
A couple of months back I was having a phone consultation with our dietician, Lisa. Previously Bruce and I had been interested in the liquid diet so I mentioned it to Lisa to get her take on things. I’m a type 2 diabetic taking insulin with an A1C that really needs to come down. After some discussion though, we felt that the liquid diet probably wasn’t going to be the best choice. That’s when she mentioned keto. I’d asked her about that about a year ago but I suspect at that time it just kind of got lost in the shuffle of other things so I didn’t pursue it any further.
So, when Lisa mentioned it, I kind of jumped on it. Bruce and I are carnivores, and the thought of going to more vegetables was a huge struggle for both of us overall. With keto, there are lots of things we’re giving up – pasta, rice, potatoes and breads. We both absolutely love all these things, but this is really where the problem comes in. Some people have said that these diet things aren’t really all that good, and that moderation is a better way of doing things. That’s worked for me in the past, and I previously lost close to 50 pounds doing this, and I’ve even managed to keep that weight off. But, we both need to do more. Although both of us will be doing this, this blog is going to focus primarily on me because I feel that if Bruce wants to share things, it’s his right to do that in his own space, not mine.
We spent a lot of time discussing keto. We talked about all the pros and cons and did some research. Medical News Today says, in part:
A ketogenic diet may help some people with type 2 diabetes because it allows the body to maintain glucose levels at a low but healthy level.
The lower intake of carbohydrates in the diet can help to eliminate large spikes in blood sugar, reducing the need for insulin.
Depending on where you look, there are statistics that show significant decreases in blood sugar levels in type 2 diabetics. Lisa said that it might make it possible for me to get off my insulin, which definitely wouldn’t be a bad thing at all.
So, after doing a lot of research, discussion, and everything else, we decided to start keto. Bruce and I talked to Lisa together, and we decided on September 7, 2020 as our start date. We figured it would give us time to prepare, and to read up on things. And now, tomorrow is that day.
I found several web sites who say they’ll calculate your keto plan for you and provide you with meal plans and other things. I chose to go with Keto Custom Plan for a few reasons. First, they were offering me a great price. Second, they weren’t asking for ongoing payment. You pick your duration, and you get your meal plans for that time frame. Third, I have the option of canceling at any time, and get to keep the materials I received. I entered in my height, weight, age, and a few other things, and it did all the number crunching for me. I’m not into the numbers thing, and still use my fingers for most counting, so decided that relying on my very poor math skills probably wasn’t a good idea. Every twenty-eight days I’ll receive a new meal plan with adjustments made as I enter in weight loss and other things. I purchased a scale that I’ve paired to my watch, so will be able to keep track of the losses and make note of them.
So, we got our plan. Bruce kept talking about the things that we were going to miss. In response, I found the Wholesome Yum Blog. All I can say about this resource is wow! If you ever doubted that you’d have to give up the foods you love, just spend a few minutes on this site. My few minutes turned into hours over the past few weeks as I got drawn into all sorts of different kinds of recipes. I’ve also found some other recipe book resources, but I just can’t say enough about Maya Krampf’s site.
My idea for this blog is to journal daily the way I’m feeling, what I’ve had to eat, any changes that I’d make if I made a certain recipe again, and just a general update to talk about my numbers and other statistics. I’m doing this partly for myself, but also because, as a beginner to keto, I’d love to have a resource like this as I’m getting started. And yes, I can’t be the first one to do this, but I’m the first one to do it with my style. 😊🐱💻
At this time I have no plans to post actual recipes, but I will post links to them sometimes. I don’t want to get into any copyright situations, so I think that’s probably the best way to proceed.
Going into this is exciting and scary and all sorts of other things. I wonder how I’m going to do giving up so many of the things I like, yet I know from research that I don’t have to give it up, just change the content of things. Substituting riced cauliflower for rice, for instance. They call keto a lifestyle, and that’s what it has to become, I think, if it’s really going to work. I have some goals I want to meet, and I’m hoping that this blog will also hold me accountable to those goals.
- A target weight of 130 pounds, with benchmarks at 175, 150, and 140 pounds
- A much lower A1C level, although I don’t know at the moment what my doctor would like that to be yet
- To feel better overall
- Hopefully to have less joint pain and be able to move a bit easier
- To maybe be able to decrease or get off of some of my diabetes medications
There may be more things as I go along, but these are the things I can think of right now. So, thanks for coming on this journey with me. I know it’s not always going to be fun or easy, but I really do hope that it will make a difference for me, and maybe even help someone else in the process.