Getting Organized for a LCHF Lifestyle – Part 5, So Far, So Good

April 2, 2017 by Shannon Fennell 1 Comment

There was a lot to do and changes to make when I was switching over to a Low Carb High Fat way of life.  And it is a way of life, not a diet.

Aside from getting my blood sugar under control and the weight loss, my other issue of joint pain due to osteoarthritis has disappeared.  My knees used to give out on me every now and then, but no episodes since I cut out high carbohydrate food and sugar.  And my blood pressure is completely normal too.

In these five posts I tell you how I got my kitchen, and myself, organized to fit my new LCHF lifestyle.

Part 5 – So Far, So Good

So, these five posts cover my transition to a LCHF lifestyle.  Initially there was a noticeable cost due to the purge and restocking, but that has all leveled off now.  I usually shop once every week to ten days and it is mostly for fresh items – cream, eggs and vegetables.  I don’t eat a lot of frozen vegetables, just as there is so much choice of fresh.  If I didn’t have the fresh options I would use frozen.

Once I got all the food out of the house that I wasn’t able to eat it has been very easy to manage.  If it is here, it is safe to eat and I don’t have to second guess what I am doing.

There are a couple things I didn’t need to buy – like the spiralizer.  That is one of those gadgets that sounds like an interesting idea but in reality it is a pain to use and clean.  So I took it to Goodwill recently – don’t need it taking up space.

It is still a work in progress and always will be I imagine.  Trying new things, experimenting to see what my system can handle without causing a blood sugar spike, and the inevitable disasters.

The switch to Low Carbohydrate High Fat lifestyle 15 months ago has made a massive improvement to my health and life.  My diabetes is controlled – my last A1C was 5.2 and my fasting numbers are now in the 4-5 range daily.  I’ve lost 70 lbs since switching to LCHF (and in total 200 lbs since 2000!)  I’m now at what is considered a healthy weight.  I go to the gym three times a week and things don’t hurt anymore!

While I found it relatively easy to cut out sugar, the carbs took a bit of time to give up on.  I wouldn’t say I craved them but I missed them.  Still do, particularly when I smell fresh bread baking or they bring in warm donuts at work!  But I have not the least desire to go off the the rails and “cheat” as I have had such excellent results and have my diabetes under control.  Living without major health problems is much more important than eating a donut.

I do need to mention that my version of LCHF is not textbook: I categorically refuse to even consider “bulletproof coffee” – the thought of it makes me gag; I am not on the coconut oil bandwagon – if a recipe calls for coconut oil I use butter (I have tried coconut oil but only once so far); I don’t track or count carbs as I don’t particularly care – I only buy foods that are low in carbs so why bother; I don’t load on more fat on top of fats which some plans say to do – like adding pan drippings on top of salads, or using butter to cook in and THEN drizzling olive oil on top of something that already contains fat.  I do eat more fat than I used to and add more to things, using high fat options like whipping cream in my coffee, I leave the fat on meats, even adding fat to leaner meats.  But I am not going to eat fat straight up or add it to my coffee other than in the form of whipping cream!

My way is working for me so I’ll stick to it.

My other posts about food

Go to Part 1 of this series