DoingTheCaveman

The day after

Yep, I'm suffering today.  I feel really sick and struggled to stay awake at work, despite having slept for 8 hours.  I certainly can't eat anything and I feel hungover, except I don't drink.

Well this was an unplanned experiment but eating paleo is definitely having an effect - my body likes it!  Binging wouldn't have had this effect before; I guess my system had given up giving out warning signs it was far too busy dealing with the overload, or maybe I'd just become numb to them.  Maybe I was walking around as dopey as this all the time.

This post binge feeling makes me recall the time I was initially diagnosed with diabetes, I did have one symptom (exhaustion). I was communting through London and would arrive home at around 7 pm, then would fall asleep the moment I relaxed - I could nod off anywhere.  Anyway I began to associate this as a 'normal', but as soon as I started treatment I felt immediately better.  It was as if feeling tired had become so normal I'd never actually read the signs of becoming unwell.

At this time I allowed many friendships to slip as I simply didn't have the energy to maintain them.

Oh well - 6 more days to go.

Sabotaged

Oh No, whatever happened today!  I've totally blown it, 2 1/2 months of doing so well and suddenly plunged into a deep dark mood and managed to work my way through a 150 gm bar of chocolate.  I don't usually allow myself to fall prey to depression, or at least I usually have strategies to lift myself out of it, today they don't seem to be work. I think though I can account for this set back; I've lost my precious weekend and have to work.  The prospect of another 7 days after a full week is really dragging my mood down (12 days straight).  Probably PMT too! 

I suppose one good thing is that I feel deservedly really sick.  Previously if I'd had a binge like this it wouldn't have had an effect, but I do actually feel quite nauseous and ill.  I guess after the respect I've given my system recently this is its way of shrieking at me.

Blind faith

Yes, as you probably gathered I was irritated in my post regarding gaining weight and excuses, particularly the excuse of gaining weight as a result of illness. 

I've watched this clip several times now and it's evoked a particularly poignant memory for me.  I'll save the details for another post but two years ago I almost became one of the misdiagnosed statistics referred to in this clip - for ten days was told I simply had a 'vicious virus'.  I wasn't asked if I'd had foreigh travel and ended up in hospital septic and on oxygen being investigated for a tropical illness!

Most Astonishing Health Disaster of the 20th Century

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPI7zdGdqo4

The illness was a  major factor for the last 2 stone (12.7 kilo) I gained as it took 6 months to recuperate, exercise was out of the equation, actually it was several weeks before I could even tackle a flight of stairs.

In relation to the link between medicine, pharmacy companies and poor health my comment on this is that I was a medical secretary for 12 years; the first point of contact for persistent drug representatives and gatekeeper to the doctors diaries, hence our stationary cupboard overflowed with postit notes and novelty pens.

Anyway, I lost a great deal of trust in the medical profession during the year 2005, but I balance this out with the fact that my mother's still here 6 years post ovarian cancer thanks to the quick response of her Consultant. 

Colouring in the changes

I should be having my Hb A1c done pretty soon but meanwhile I've coloured in the changes to my domicillary blood testing.  Gosh, just by looking at the colours illustrates the difference dietary changes have had on my readings from the moment I started eating paelo., hopefully this will reflect in the Hb A1c when I have it done. 

If you check it out scroll down as the improvement is seen on the lower half of the page.      

Download colouring_the_changes.xls

FREAKY HIGH
MORE THAN NORMAL
NORMAL RANGE (5 - 10)
LESS THAN NORMAL

A note of encouragement

I thought I'd share a little e-mail that found when I returned to my desk at work today - it really lifted my spirits. 

Hi Jen 

You just walked by me, wanted to say you're looking good!  Keep up the good work! 

Sarah  x

You'll like it when you grow up

I was thinking about my previous post and remembered that as a child my food preferences were quite refined.    There were some things I would not eat, but they were not what you might think.  My mother loves to remind me how I used to cry for cucumber.  Yes of course I liked sweets, but I refused shop bought cakes or biscuits because of the artifical flavour, and pastry simply made me sick (this is may have been because my sister once put salt dough in the oven when I was poorly and the smell of pastry subsequently gave me a sickness association).  I liked fish as a young child, but am now almost phobic eating it unless it's cod and battered.  Unusually, for a child I also with a passion absolutely hated ICECREAM!

I liked what was good as a child and boycotted artifical foods.  Strangely, somewhere along the line I re-educated myself to like what was bad - whatever happened when I grew up!

Two simple words

By embarking on the Caveman diet, which I guess some may consider quite extreme or faddy, I've been exploring my feelings about food and its relationship to good health.  Leading to the realisation that possibly I was in some sort of denial about diabetes and it's time to accept that this diet is no short term measure. This time, however, I have the confidence that this is a diet that will work.  It's diet that feels natural rather than extreme and cutting out temptation has slit the throat of my inner little devil.   The Caveman diet has stopped the cravings PERIOD.

I have to admit it - I have always had a healthy appetite, and have sometimes satisfied it with the wrong types of food.  But we're surrounded by an overwhelming amount of choice and some, like myself, want to try it all. Hence, every time I spied a new product I'd have to try it.  Problem is the flow of these products is never ending and the extra calories start to mount up.  Then once we're hooked we're reeled in by the food industry, along with its food technicians who are employed with the purpose of creating ever more choice and indulgences.

The Caveman diet is contrary to most of the diets I've followed.  This is because it's restrictive and limits choice.  You do have to re-educate your taste in order to enjoy healthier food, however it's satisfying and far from tasteless. 

A major bonus is that being man's first diet the Caveman diet is not commercialised.  I believe that too much choice is where many other diets help us to fail.  Hence, I'm finding that limiting choice is a comfort.

Choice is taken to extremes by the diet industry.  If you've ever been to a diet club you will know how many diet products are promoted.   The diet industry simply reproduces a style of eating that we have become accustomed; it supplies foods that are similar to what we were previously eating, and (hooray) you can eat in almost unlimited quantities and they won't make you fat. Ha, if only!  I shouldn't forget to mention that with these miracle products up goes the price alongside the chemical content.

So now we have the low fat foods, low sugar foods and even the low carb diet industry gets in on the act.  We can reproduce the foods once enjoyed rather than tackling the fundamental problem - eating habits.  After all, if all else fails you can control your sugar with insulin or opt for gastric banding.

STOP and remember those two little words - 'No thanks' with practice they become much easier to say.

Something I've learned so far on the Caveman diet is that, if you can change you mindset, you will stop missing the foods you can't have and start to enjoy what you can. Re-educating taste to enjoy the simplicity and savour the flavour. Along the way is the loss of guilt feelings associated with food in the knowledge that everything consumed is nourishment.

I've certainly felt a loss of control along with my increasing waistline, which I'm sure other overweight people can relate to.  Now I'm starting to feel that I'm back in control.  I do think it's true that our taste buds have actually been re-trained by Cooperations who care very little for the few that end up with serious health problems, after all once we've been fattened up they have plenty of products to help us lose weight again.

Whoops, I'm starting to sound like a food nutter, I assure you I'm not, but I am enthused and relishing the sense of regaining control.

The point of this little rant is that at the end of the day if we should be enjoying a good quality of life and it does not need to revolve around food.  We should after all be eating to live NOT living to eat. 

The Caveman diet requires a change of attitude and acknowledgment of the serious consequences of overindulgence, a submission if you like, that this is a way of eating for life.  Returning to old eating habits after weight loss would mean a return to old habits and consequent weight gain.

Better fruit n veg please

Fruit and vegetables in the UK don't taste as good as they should.  In fact unless you buy organic, tomatoes in my opinion taste like fish.  I don't mean that I have never acquired a taste for fruit and vegetables, but I have grown up with organic vegetables and travelled enough to know the flavour that we should enjoy!

In the UK we have a reputation of eating absolutely anything. This is exploited in the supermarkets by providing inferior foods that our European neighbours wouldn't dream of consuming.  Even if you are opting for healthier foods they are half as good as the products available on the Continent.  I have it on good authority from Continental friends that even the better quality nuts sold here are often quite stale. 

The French Market came to town yesterday and the peaches I purchased there were half to triple the size of the peaches usually available, and so full of flavour!  So why, if they can be bought over for one day, aren't we enjoying this produce on a day-to-day basis?  Is it that the British just aren't fussy enough, or too passive so we live up to the reputation of eating anything.  It's little wonder that many in the UK don't acquire a taste for fruit and vegetables since what's currently provided in supermarkets doesn't represent the best in the taste.

Better than fig leaves

You may laugh but an article about why so many women avoid exercise caught my attention yesterday.

As much as I'm finding the caveman diet beneficial there are some advantages to living in the 21st Century, one of these being bra technology! An 'excuse' given to explain why many women don't don’t do more sport is due to breast pain or embarrassment during exercise. Apparently this has been found to be because most bras currently support side to side or up and down movements but the motion of exercise (from a light jog to sprint) produces a figure of eight motion that is uncomfortable and unsupported.

I can certainly relate to both the stated reasons and have certainly stopped certain activities due to discomfort, additionally my sister, who enjoys cross country running, often complains bitterly about this problem. Apparently it doesn't matter what size you are as the discomfort affects all women.

Most sports bras currently available are compression bras but the article states the research concludes the best bra is an encapsulation bra, with separate moulded cups.

For full article see:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article2425828.ece

Caveman diet or a toxic drug

Having had a couple of months to allow my complete boil over to come down to a gentle simmer, I need to talk about the hospital visit that was the trigger for finding and starting the Caveman diet, hopefully without going off into a complete rant. Until recently contemplating dieting after repeated failures has left me with feelings of complete hopelessness and lack of control, but the Caveman diet changed that.

As I mentioned in my first post I had been left in complete shock following a hospital consultation. I had been simply seeing my general practitioner regarding the management of my diabetes, which until the beginning of this year had been completely diet controlled. I enquired about Byetta (exanetide), a drug extracted from a lizard’s venom; reportedly it lessens appetite and also contributes to lowering raised blood sugar. However, unfortunately my GP was unable to prescribe this as was not yet licensed outside of hospitals in the UK and she referred me on.

So, I calmly went along to the appointment, expecting some discussion etc, but ended up being lectured at – this it was quite a shock as I am not a confrontational person and felt completely cornered into an argumentative defensive position. I was indeed quite insulted for anyone to make assumptions about my eating habits without even knowing me or of the efforts I’ve made. Gist was - 'you are overweight because you eat too much, don’t diet, don’t exercise' (despite me in the background saying ‘but I do diet’ and ‘I have exercised’). ‘The fact is we know that there is no metabolic problem other than overeating for weight gain’ and ‘you just want Byetta because you thinking it’s going to be miracle cure – you have to put in some effort too’. …. Blah de blah blah…

Actually ‘NO’, Byetta, as well as improving blood sugar levels,is known to reduce the appetite, which is why I wanted to go onto it.

Anyway just a month later when the GP told me the hospital (contrary to what they’d told me) had recommended Byetta, I was able to say that it was no longer of any interest to me. The fact is the Caveman diet has very quickly had the same effect without taking a toxic drug (doctor had warned me that essentially Byetta, coming from venom, was quite toxic drug). Now my domiciliary blood sugar readings so far are consistently improved and my appetite is reduced.

I’ve now had a chance to cool off and contemplate, I do feel the time is right to go right back in the past and explore my relationship with food - admittedly I have overeaten from time to time, but the ratio I would give to this would be 20% binging, and 80% watchful eating or on a weight reducing diet. The consultant did force the issue though and made me to consider my diet and weight, and having had time to reflect I do appreciate that. On the other hand, I wish that the medical professionals could try not to doubt their patients in the first instance. A small minority of patients may lie about diet but overall, if you go to the doctor stating you’re not losing weight despite dieting, surely that’s clinically significant, but not a lot of use if the doctor distrustful and thinks you’re telling porkies, and visa versa.

Sorry, that did indeed turn out to be a bit of a rant!