Diet Update: 9/28/13 Follow the Bouncing Ball

The good news is that I finally broke through resistance to a new diet low; the bad news is it wasn't by the 2-3 pounds I needed to pass my initial target. It seems over the last 3 weeks or so I've been going through a series of weight bounces, which I might analogize as a ball bouncing down a staircase. Earlier this week I suddenly dropped over 2 pounds overnight and then the next 3 days I went back fractionally back up to my prior low and this morning seem to be on the way back down.

Clearly a net drop of only a pound over the past 2 weeks is slower than my prior pace of about 1.5-2 pounds weekly. I may need to rejigger my diet and exercise regimen. For the past few weeks, I've had a half hour or so late afternoon/early evening daily exercise session. I may need to double and/or vary the nature of my routine, e.g., up the anaerobic component.  Since my exercise had been inconsistent for months prior to restarting my diet in earnest over the summer, I didn't want to push myself, but now I've built up my endurance and am ready to step it up. On the diet side, I've been starting up my days over the past week with either a salmon or turkey burger on sprouted bread or thin whole grain/wheat. I've been wary of wheat, but on the other side I want to work fiber into the diet (meat contains no fiber). I've slacked off using meal replacements lately and may try to experiment over the coming week with doing them twice daily.

Nothing much new on the dietary front. Sam's Club posted new lower prices on fresh raspberries. I've had good experience in my past few purchases. Usually I have a handful of berries once daily (after eating an entree that has some protein--lately breakfast); they are so fragrant and delicious, and they are good for you:

Perhaps the most fascinating new areas of research on raspberries involve management of obesity and type 2 diabetes. In the case of obesity, two compounds in raspberries have received special focus: raspberry ketone (also called rheosmin) and a type of flavonoid called tiliroside. The rheosmin found in raspberries can increase metabolism in our fat cells by increasing enzyme activity, oxygen consumption, and heat production in certain types of fat cells.  In preliminary studies, tiliroside has been show to activate a special hormone called adiponectin that is produced by our fat cells. In obese persons with type 2 diabates, adiponectin is not produced in sufficient amounts or, if adequately produced, remains too inactive. This inadequacy of adiponectin in obese persons with type 2 diabetes is a key problem for regulation of their blood sugar and blood fats. By activating adiponectin, the tiliroside in raspberries can help improve insulin balance, blood sugar balance, and blood fat balance in obese persons with type 2 diabetes.

I remember seeing a senior lady of color with a multi-pound carton of Butterball-brand turkey burgers; I was puzzled because I hadn't seen them in the frozen burger or poultry sections. (My local Sam's Club has an irritating habit of reorganizing aisles.) I finally stumbled across them this week in one of those end-aisle glass display cases. They also sell bulk trays of  fresh turkey burger; I find the prepackaged burger patties more convenient to use in my Foreman grill and price-competitive. On the other hand, I find the fresh chicken breasts are reasonably priced at about $2/pound and am a regular purchaser.

Diet Update: 9/20/13 Dead Cat Bounces and Whooshes

I'm currently going through an experience most dieters have experienced. On Sept. 12, I reached a diet low--within 3 pounds of breaking a psychologically important target barrier. Then through Sept. 17, although my diet and exercise regimen was consistent, I watched my daily weight increase daily for a total of about 4.5 lbs. and over 3 lbs. week-over-week on Sept. 17.  Even though I've been through this before, it was demoralizing seeing a gain back of about 3 weeks of diet loss in less than a week--and I was dreading my Sept. 18 weigh-in. Would the bounce continue? How much higher could it go? To my relief, I lost a half-pound and by this morning had whooshed down another 3 pounds, so I'm now down to a  plus-pound week over week. I would hope that the whoosh would continue through the weekend and break through the resistance to a new low, but I know that I had 2 minor bounces before reaching my last new low. Hopefully I'll break through that target barrier by my next update.

I went back to Safeway today; some staples: sardines in hot sauce, chicken livers and gizzards, chicken breasts, round steak, grass-fed hamburger, hot salsa/picante sauce, unsweetened almond milk, and cage-free eggs on sale. They only had cinnamon-raisin Ezekiel bread loaves, but I discovered that they had several Flatout flatbread packages in the same frozen section, so I stocked up. I found one package remaining of Arnold's whole wheat sandwich thins at a good price. Another example of opportunistic buying: they had 1 lb. of packaged Alaska salmon burgers on sale for $5, buy-two-and-get-one free: between salmon and sardines, I'm eating several servings of cold-water, oily fish a week. (In the past, they've also carried economical canned mackerel, although I haven't found them recently. Hint for the interested dieter: Amazon carries a wide variety of cases of canned fish--you name it, mackerel, herring, sardines, tuna, salmon, many of which you can find packed in your favorite liquid, e.g., water, olive oil, or my favorites, hot sauce or mustard. With its $25 shopping total free shipping policy, you can get a good price on cases or bundles.) I usually go through the frozen veggies section and bought Green Giant packages of Brussels sprouts, green beans, and broccoli on sale. I also added cans of spicy tomatoes and beans; beans, as is the case for oats, berries, and other foods, are a good source of soluble fiber, a heart-healthy nutrient that, among other things, can help stabilize blood sugar.

Finally, I don't like to discuss politics in this blog (for interested readers, I have a flagship libertarian-conservative blog where I post almost daily). But a few topics I wanted to briefly touch on:

• Paul van der Velpen, head of Amsterdam's health service, wants to see sugar with tobacco-comparable warnings and taxed and regulated as an addictive product.  (Yes, this comes from a country with a very liberal tolerance of marijuana.) Now as a low-carb dieter who wants to maintain steady blood sugar, I generally shun the "white foods", especially sugar; however, people at a healthy weight and normal metabolism without special health-related dietary concerns (e.g., diabetes), sugar in moderation isn't a problem. As a libertarian, I believe diet experts should persuade people and not rely on force (government). On my two longest successful diets (over 75 pounds each time), I started not because my family, friends or doctor read me the riot act, but on my own initiative. (I will admit my doctor ragged about my weight earlier this year, but I had already started to lose weight before my first visit.) What made me start? Among other things, it's a hassle buying reasonably priced clothes, women are generally not attracted to fat guys (at least the ones without a bulging back pocket), it's a hassle sitting in public transit or on planes, etc.
• Chipolte, the Mexican convenience food chain, is on a non-GMO food kick. Let me be blunt: I am less than convinced that there is a net marginal benefit to organic/non-GMO foods, and for the most part, anti-GMO policies are used as a protectionist strategy to discriminate against, e.g., American food producers. As Dr. Sicherer points out, "There is broad scientific consensus that GM foods on the market pose no greater risk than their normal counterparts, although there are skeptics and critics. Nonetheless, there are no documented ill effects." Every reader is entitled to make his own decision, but if Chipolte thinks selling more expensive food will grow its customer base, the management is not aware of the fundamental laws of economics and making a strategic error. I have no problem with them opening a premium-priced menu line aimed at higher-earning yuppies...
• The "diabetes warrior" blogger Steve Cooksey, represented by one of my favorite libertarian organizations, the Institute for Justice, won a case as a North Carolina dietetics board tried to shut him down, a classic anti-competitive tactic. The district court sustained the licensing board but was overturned on appeal. I am very impressed by some pieces I've seen on the blog; these people take food very seriously. For example, in one case a dieter discussed when he experienced a blood sugar rut, he shifted into a ketogenic (higher-fat, medium protein) diet mode and experienced success.

Diet Update: 9/07/13

I'm not sure that this post will attract many readers, because to date my last update hasn't attracted much notice. I don't watch The Biggest Loser (I have a niece whom is very active and loves the show), but I know the highlight of the episodes is the big reveal of weight loss between episodes. I don't intend my updates to be simply a chronology of weight loss; I'll probably jot down a few miscellaneous shopping tips and notes over the interim.

I did lose another 2 pounds over the past week which basically tops 30 pounds since a first doctor's visit about 7 months back earlier this year. I'm actually a half-pound up over my weekly/annual low about 4 days back. I'm now maintaining a daily spreadsheet; one of the reasons I'm doing this is a matter of discipline: I am less likely to cheat, knowing it may show up on my next weigh-in. Quite often the weight chart is more a downside zigzag: after plateauing for about a week, you weigh yourself and find you've dropped 2-3 pounds. I've even seen this drop continue for 2-3 days. But then you get the demoralizing dead cat bounce in water gain (say, 2 or 3 pounds) as your body resets your equilibrium. That's why many diet gurus advise against weighing yourself daily. But I have 2 math degrees and have done some applied statistical research:  I love numbers. Even now, I'm interested in comparing against my last sustained diet a decade ago. I realize now that I'm older, my metabolism has slowed somewhat.

I was shopping in Sam's Club today, mostly for some produce, but my latest thing has been scrambling eggs and some veggies in olive oil (which is high in monounsaturated fats); I just found on a website cooking eggs in olive oil has been a staple in the Mediterranean region for years. Over the past week, I also came across a health email that extolled the virtues of other oils, particularly sunflower and safflower. Sam's Club sells a number of olive oils, which I was scanning when I ran across an oil blend called LifeOil, a blend of the 3 above-cited oils. I do almost no frying (beyond burgers in my Foreman grill), but I'm willing to test the blend.

Another item I unexpectedly came across: a 2-dozen pack of cage-free Amish eggs. Warning: these are pricier than your typical eggs; in part, I want to see if the taste lives up to the hype. (Generally, I'm a skeptic when it comes to organic, non-GMO, and/or other natural foods, i.e., I'm not sure that the purported health benefit is worth the extra costs.) I consider eggs such a nutritional powerhouse, they're in my daily diet and the cage-free bundle is worth a try.

Another tip: Sam's Club sells a big bag mix of fresh broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. (I could do without the carrots; the other two are low-carb staples.) I often purchase low-calorie Walden Farms salad dressings to dip the veggies; right now I'm enjoying their chipotle ranch flavor. Among other Internet vendors, Netrition carries a variety of Walden Farms and other low-carb brands at competitive prices and reasonable shipping charges.