Lo carb living

Well, I think the lo carb thing is working. I have been purposefully avoiding the scale, but all other signs are pointing to success. My face is thinner. My pants fit more loosely. My wife says there seems to be less of me. And, most importantly to me, I no longer have to gasp for breath when I tie my shoes (God, that is demoralizing).

Interestingly, while I have been avoiding the carbs, I have been basically not exercising. This was not part of a plan, just a combination of craziness at work and laziness at home. According to Gary Taubes exercise is not important to losing weight. But, for me, it is important for feeling good. I exercised yesterday and it felt great to break a sweat. I am going to be doing it again today.

Thinking more about this lo carb thing, it is interesting. I have been putting on weight for the last decade. But, not necessarily all at once. I think I was about 205 at 30 and about 245 at 42. In particular, I think I put on about 15 of that in the last year or two. I have, during that time, done nothing out of the ordinary. I exercised regularly for a while and then did not; same as usual. I ate about the same stuff as I have been for a while. But, for some reason, I was putting on weight, mostly in the form of an especially attractive gut. Now that I have gone lo carb, the process seems to be reversing.

I want to be honest here. I was not just a little bit into carbs. I loved carbs. My wife used to bake high quality bread for a local health food store. She still whips up a nice loaf every now and then. I never met a cinnamon roll I did not love. And if one was good, four or five was great. Seriously! No kidding! A dozen Krispy Kreme donuts was not a challenge (but not necessarily a regular occurrence). The point is, I could eat carbs in the form of potatoes and bread without getting filled up.

Now that I have quit the carbs, I do not get as hungry between meals. I have gotten weak and skakey all my life if I went a few minutes too long without eating. That is not the case anymore. I experience hunger as a stomach feeling now, not as an all over body feeling. I no longer get hit at 2:00 PM with an overwhelming feeling of exhaustion.

I could make the case that the weight loss is based on the fact that I have cut calories since I am no longer eating so much bread, etc. But, I have been enjoying nice helpings of meat, eggs, nuts and cheese. I eat till I am full. And, ultimately, it does not matter to me what is causing the weight loss. I am actually happier about not feeling jittery when I go too long without eating and the fact that my energy level does not fluctuate as drastically.