Saturday, July 07, 2007

Weigh In week 18

No loss this week, which is actually a 1 pound loss, due to using a different scale.



Last week I bought a digital scale, which weighs about 1 pound heavier than my old one. It's also, I suspect a bit more accurate. Anyway my weight this week, on the digital scale, is the same as it was last week on the old scale.

As mentioned last week, I've been trying to keep my carbs as low as possible and increasing my protein intake. This past week I have averaged 124g fat, 38g carb and 139g protein. That calculates out to, in percentages, 61% calories from fat, 6% from carbs and 32% protein.

I use Fitday PC for recording everything and noticed today, when I recorded my weight, that I have lost:
6 pounds in the last month,
12 pounds in the last 2 months,
28 pounds in the last 4 months, and
41 pounds in the past year!!


Went to see my GI doc on Friday. Routine check up, no big deal, I like this doc a lot. This guy is 100% in favor of me going low carb, and has mentioned in the past that he'd used low carb when he was younger to loose weight. He's been very encouraging as I've lost weight, and this appointment he was happy to see that I've gone down another 25# since my last appointment.

Anyway, he noted that he needs to loose weight, but said he has trouble sticking with it for more than a few days. (LOL) He asked me about what plan I was using, and I told him Protein Power and mentioned the The 30 Day Low Carb Solution as a great place to start. I also recommended that he make a commitment to stick with it for at least 2 weeks, no matter how hard it is! He actually wrote down the name of the book and the authors! I also noted that Dr Mike has a great blog that had all kinds of great information.

Then he told me that many of the cardiologist he knew, from the local (major, nationally known) medical center, were themselves using low carb and actually recommending it to their patients!!! Of course they're only suggesting it for the short term, but hey, it's a start!!

This, of course, lead to a discussion about cholesterol levels, and I noted that mine have dramatically improved on low carb. Prior to low carb my triglycerides were "too high to count" (over 700 per my MD), my total was over 400 and my LDL couldn't be calculated due to the high triglycerides. With those numbers I was put on Lipitor, which brought my total down to the 150s, didn't change my triglycerides much (under 700, but still very high) and dropped my HDL even lower than it had been. I stopped the Lipitor due to severe reactions (depression, memory problems, joint and muscle aches and pains, to name a few) and saw my total go back up to over 350. My last test my total was 240, and my triglycerides were 142....both BIG improvements (if you believe the cholesterol = heart disease theory that is).


Something I've been noticing lately.....is it me? or are women not even trying to hold in their belly today? I'm a child of the 50s and I can remember being told to hold my belly in as it looks much more attractive. You can actually appear thinner by simply holding in your belly. But lately, I've noticed that women don't seem to care anymore. Even thin women seem to be walking around with it all hanging out. Granted they don't have as much hanging out, but the rounded belly seems to be more common than in the past.


I've been reading a lot of posts and articles about Alli lately too. As many of you know, this is the drug that was recently approved for over the counter use for weight loss.

Here are some comments from users (and critics) from an article on MSNBC.
It took me three months to lose 10 lbs. I started Alli two weeks ago and since starting it I have lost 6 lbs. -- in two weeks!!! I didn't change the way I was eating and other than a little gas, have no side effects, no "Alli oops".
I suspect this person has done more than just start taking Alli. Six pounds in ` week is a lot...especially for a drug that only claims modest results!
This sounds like something from an episode of South Park.
I couldn't agree more!
You have got to be kidding me...
Anyone who is ok with greasy orange goop slipping out of their butt and smelling like poo all day should be seeing a shrink.

Yep.
Let's see -- the instructions recommend limiting fat intake to 42 grams per day. Each gram of fat contains about 9 calories, so that's 378 calories per day of fat. And they say that Alli blocks the absorption of about 1/4 of that, which is about 95 calories per day. Even without the side effects, how can 95 calories per day make a noticable difference???
Hmmmm, yea, the math doesn't add up does it?

And this one is probably the grossest and most disturbing:
“(Y)a know how when you start moving around in the morning ya pass a little gas. Well, I did and then went into the bathroom and to my horror I had an orange river of grease running down my leg.”
Gross gross gross!!! No one mentions the smell that comes with the "orange river of grease", but I find it hard to believe there isn't a pretty strong smell!!

And, of course, this woman has no idea:
Alli is not only causing me to eat healthier, it has also cause my breast to enlarge. I went from a 34B to a 38B in less than a month.
Ummmm, sweetie? 34 to 38 simply means your band size has gotten bigger!! The 34 and 38 measurements is the size of your chest, under your breasts. So this increase means that either your rib cage got bigger (unlikely) or you actually gained weight (maybe) or your old bras were stretched out to the larger size and you never noticed (most likely in my opinion).

Dr Mike posted a while ago about Alli...take a look. Of course Dr Mike posted as a warning for low carbers, who tend to have a higher fat intake. He also mentions a possible legitimate use for Alli and Orlistat.

What bothers me about Alli? Well a couple of things.

First off, many people today are deficient in several vitamins that are fat soluble (Like A, D and E) and this is just going to make things worse. If you don't absorb the fat, you also won't absorb the vitamins that require fat to be absorbed and used.

Second...OK so you believe that fat makes you fat. In my opinion it's better to naturally cut back on fat than it is to take a pill to prevent it from being absorbed. And what about Fish oil? won't this fat also be blocked? It sure will!!

And lastly, watch for increasing blood sugars, blood pressure, and all the other "side effects" of eating a low fat high carb diet!!! As people cut fat intake, and they will cut it once they have an episode or two of loose and greasy stools, they will make up the calories in carbs. Not protein, as we all know that protein is almost as bad as fat, but carbs. And higher carb intake means you're more likely to have higher blood sugar and blood insulin levels, higher BP, higher triglycerides, and of course more visceral fat deposits!! (No to mention the stress of constantly worrying about pooping your pants!)

Click here for a rather comical, but gross commercial that Dr Mike posted.

Blog roll.
Some interesting posts over the past week or so:

Regina Wilshire posted on stress and it's influence on weight gain. She's also asking for input from people that have successfully lost weight and maintained it, as well as those that can't seem to maintain.

Sparky's Girl has posted excellent advice for a newbie. And, while you're there, check out her new photography site!

Emily's back!! Yay!! She's back on track with a new blog. Stop by and give her some encouragement!

For those of you that don't know it yet, Dr Mary Dan Eades has a new blog.

Dr Mike has again posted on a complicated issue and made it seem so simple. This time the topic is dietary protein and why it's important.


Dumb, dumb, DUMB!!! I just decided to give my dogs baths and strained my back!! I can't believe I did this!! My lower back and my entire pelvis is hurting...bad!!

10 comments:

Amy Dungan said...

Congrats on the loss... that isn't being counted on the new scale. :0)

Hope your back is well soon! You'll be in my prayers for healing!

. said...

Ouch! ><

I hope its getting better now!

Great news about your doc and good stuff on your weight loss, the last 4 months look very steady!

Alcinda (Cindy) Moore said...

Thanks for the encouragement!!

Anonymous said...

Cindy,
You're doing just fine--you're just in it now, that's all.
Watch that back, will ya?
Hang in there!
Adam;-)

Unknown said...

Cindy--you are doing great keep it up. Take care of the back too. That's nothing to play around with.

Alcinda (Cindy) Moore said...

Thanks!! I'm trying to stick with the plan...and actually it's been fairly easy! For me, the better I stick to my plan the easier it is!! It's the carbs that do me in!! If I watch them, I do fine.

Back is much better today! I even went into the office! 2 days of muscle relaxants, Aleve and ice packs did the trick!

Unknown said...

In all fairness to Alli (which I am NOT taking), the minimum required fat for good health is 30g a day. As long as you are eating more than 30g a day on Alli, and not taking it with your vitamins (another things Alli recommend against), you won't have any nutritional deficiency. Just take the vitamins 2-4 hours off from the Alli.

My issue with Alli is that a lot of people won't follow these basic rules and wind up with the problems you mentioned.

Second, a low-fat diet usually is - but does not HAVE to be - high-carb. I'm currently using NutriSystem right now to lose weight - a basic low-fat diet. However, I pick my meals carefully, sub out fruit for veggies, and probably eat around 100g net carbs per day - certainly not "high" by any means, and my protein is even higher than that.

Alcinda (Cindy) Moore said...

Victoria, I've not read the 30g a day requirement. Doesn't sound like enough to me. Also, I doubt that people taking Alli, or on a low fat diet are eating the right kinds of fat. Most people that I know that eat low fat have little or no animal fat and get most of their fat calories from processed foods. When they do add fat it's usually one of the industrial oils (soy, corn and canola). I know of no one who is under the age of 50 that takes fish oil supplement or even flax oil supplement. Most low fatters feel that the lower the fat intake the better. True there are exceptions, but really, if you were worried about the side effects from too much fat, wouldn't you want to cut fat as low as possible?

From what I've been reading there is a lot of vitamin deficiency in this country. Many of the fat soluble vitamins are lower than they should be....and many other things, like calcium, that to some degree depend on fat and/or fat soluble vitamins are also deficient. Look at the levels of osteoporosis and osteopenia we're seeing today! And most of these women (and men!) take calcium supplements. But they don't have the other things that make the calcium work properly.

Unknown said...

Personally--I get >70% fat in my diet daily

nutrisystem is ok---but come on it is processed food---I'll just stick to real food---sure it takes more time---and planning---but hey I'm worth it....

and Alli--you can not---repeat can not get your fat soluable vitamins unless eaten with fat---period--pop all the vitamins you want but if you don't have fat with them---you "ain't gonna get em"

Alcinda (Cindy) Moore said...

I'm concentrating on the protein, and adding fat as needed to make it palatable. I certainly don't watch my fat intake, and always at least cook meats with the fat on. Depending on how the fat is after cooking, I may or may not eat it. Nice and crispy, yep..."fatty" and not cooked enough, usually not. I also add cream to most of my shakes to make them richer tasting.

I agree that you need fat to get and use your vitamins. I cannot tell you how many women I know that are loosing bone density, but take calcium and do all the "right" things. Some are even taking D! But mostly it's D2.

Regina Wilshire did a post a while ago showing how the AHA's low fat diet was deficient in many micro nutrients. And, I believe, that was deficient by the current RDA standards, which many feel are too low. And, even if they get 100% RDA or more, they can't absorb and/or use it!