Let's Talk about FAT, Baby!

Yo, I don't think we should talk about this
Come on, why not?
People might misunderstand what we're tryin' to say, you know?
No, but that's a part of life

Come on

Let's talk about you and me.
Let's talk about all the good things and the bad things that may be,
Let's talk about FAT
Let's talk about FAT!
Please tell me you get my song reference...

Anywho, before we get to the big talk about f-a-t let's talk about the food first!

Yesterday (day 2) was a leftover's kinda day (There will be plenty of leftovers this week because I bought enough food for two people. I didn't realize the recipes were for two people, not one, so I have double of everything... ahh yup oops.  I need to pay better attention to detail.  I won't make that mistake next week)

Breakfast was the quiche and two smaller pieces of chicken.  I was really feeling nauseous on day 2, so I decided to add a piece of fruit. Sadly, the only fruit I had on hand was an orange (higher sugar content then I would have preferred).  The orange tasted absolutely delicious and I think it was exactly what my taste buds needed.

Lunch was leftover flank steak, veggies and a mixed green salad. Steak salad is so delicious (even without french fries).

Dinner was my first unplanned meal.  I needed something quick before I headed to volleyball and I just didn't want any leftovers.  So I whipped up a little omelet. Two eggs, a splash of water, salt and pepper, a large handful of spinach chopped up.  I then topped it with some fresh salsa. Yumz. I also ate a small (very small) spoonful of almond butter before heading out the door to play an hour of competitive volleyball. 

I was warned that the first few days might cause a lack of energy and slight dizziness during physical activities.  It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it might be, but I was a little light headed at certain points of exertion.  It was nothing to worry about, but I could tell that I wasn't 100% during the games.  When I got home from volleyball I felt pretty good.  I was tired, but not hungry.  Usually after volleyball I'm starving, so this seemed like a good sign to me!

Day 2 was probably the worst day when it came to how I felt.  I woke up feeling pretty terrible, but as the day went on it got better.  I know it's going to take a few days for my body to adjust to the low carb diet.  From what I've researched on the web, if your diet has consistently been a higher carb, lower fat diet, it takes a little bit of time for you body to adjust to the higher fat, lower carb diet.  Your body needs to transition from using carbs as energy to using fats as energy. 

So let's talk about fat!

Almost every diet I've ever done has been of the calorie restriction, low fat variety.  Ya know, eat the whole grains, lean meats, lean dairy, keep it low fat, lots of veggies and fruits, and some nuts.  The goal was to eat balanced with all food groups in mind.  I've had success on such diets.  I lost almost 25 lbs by counting calories, tracking my food, exercising and eating under 1200 calories a day.  It was really hard to do and I was basically always hungry.... and when I get hungry, I get angry.  Or, hangry, if you will.  Urban Dictionary defines hangry as:

hangry
	When someone becomes irritated, angry, or cranky when they haven't eaten and are hungry. Allen: I hate you and I want to punch you. Randy: Why are you so angry with me? Allen: I'm sorry, I haven't eaten since breakfast so I'm just hangry, bro

My poor family, friends and loved ones consistently had to deal with being hangry.  The low calorie diet worked but was very, very hard to maintain.  Eventually one cheat day would lead to a month of eating junk because it made me happy. So I've done the low calorie diet before, but maintaining said diet was almost impossible for a girl who loves to eat. That's one of the reasons I like this diet so far.... I haven't been hungry yet.  It's a nice feeling!  

So do you know why I haven't been hungry yet?  Because of protein and FAT.  Fat is our friend. 
Woahh, yup I just said it... fat is our friend!  Coming from the girl who has tried every fat free dressing, low fat cheese product, skim milk and low fat dessert, these words are practically sacrilegious!  

I've been doing research and reading up on low carb, higher protein diets like mad and I've found some interesting reads.  Obviously, I am not a health expert, so the more research the better, right?  One of the better (in my opinion) Paleo/Primal lifestyle websites is Mark's Daily Apple

He posted an article explaining the reasoning behind why a high fat diet is healthy. 

Top 7 Most Common Reactions to Your High Fat Diet (and How to Respond)

Take a few minutes and read this article. I think it provides some interesting points:

• "Dietary cholesterol does not affect total blood cholesterol. In fact, when we do eat cholesterol, our bodies make less of it to keep our blood levels in balance.”
• "Fat doesn’t make you fat."
• Eating a high-fat, low-carb diet is the easiest way to inadvertently eat less without sacrificing satiation or satisfaction. It also improves your ability to access stored body fat rather than lean mass, which is helpful for fat loss.
• “The most recent studies have concluded that saturated fat intake likely has no relation to heart disease, contrary to popular opinion.”
• “Fat is the body’s preferred and most reliable form of energy, which is why we store excess energy as fat on our bodies. Unless you think we accumulate body fat just to make pants fit tighter."
• “Certain fats, like egg yolks, palm oil, extra virgin olive oil, cod liver oil, and grass-fed butter, are some of the most nutritious foods in existence. And without fat in your meals, you often won’t absorb all the nutrients that are present in other foods like leafy greens, since many of them require fat for full absorption."

This points are backed up in the article with further explanation, along with a few more. Take a peak, let me know what you think.

So to sum this all up, here is a quote I pulled from page 105 of the  Practical Paleo book:

"Simply put, you need fat, and protein to feel full for a long period of time.  This feeling of fullness isn't about filling your stomach, though!  Don't be fooled by the silly notion that "bulk and fiber" are what fills you from a meal.  It is the nutrients that make you feel satisfied, and it is the protein and fat that pack the most powerful nutrient-rich punch.  The nutrients, in turn, allow your body to have a healthy hormonal response to your food.  Ultimately, it is this hormonal response that determines how full you will feel in an hour, two hours, three hours, and even longer after a meal"

I think the reason why I like the idea behind this lifestyle change is because it just makes sense to me.  The way I look at it, you don't know you're doing something wrong until you try something new and it works better. So I'm trying something new and hoping it works better. 

One final thing... a lovely picture of the skating rink and tree at PPG plaza.  I took this walking to my car after volleyball. Pretty!