When it comes to dieting…I have tried it all. I have done it all.
I was even…vegan. Feel free to check it out:
Most of my life I have eaten clean, worked out and counted my calories. I have always known how to stay lean and have been blessed with a pretty great metabolism. So when I suddenly felt those pounds creep on…I knew I had to hit the gym like a maniac, jump on a 1200 calorie diet and watch those pounds melt away.
The technique worked..but eventually I would get very sick of counting my calories.
I knew that carbs were the enemy. I never had an issue avoiding them…especially the ones that are processed, they simply were not in my diet vocabulary.
I ate low carbs…low fat and mostly protein and veggies. LEAN protein and veggies. See ya’ later bacon.
But…I was hungry. OMG was I hungry!!!
I was always hungry. I ate 6 small meals a day which is not only extremely time consuming but it left me HUNGRY. I was always waiting for my next meal.
But I thought that was how it was…I thought that was what I needed to do to be thin and healthy. After all those small meals rev up the metabolism right?
Wrong. Oh how wrong I was.
My Low Carb High Fat Way of Life
In August of 2018, I stumbled upon a podcast from Vinnie Tortorich. Because I am a total food nerd and love anything and everything that has to do with food, diets and eating habits, I listened to about 20 of his podcasts in a few days. Vinnie, spoke to me and his words encouraged me to go full on with a low carb way of life. I have been low carb naturally for the most part of my life but chose to indulge on the weekends or holidays. Vinnie convinced me to give his way style of eating a try and for four months I have never looked back. I thrive on this way of life and because I have enjoyed the benefits of this way of life, I have encouraged many of my clients to do the same.
Oh by the way…Vinnie also featured me on his Podcast. Give it a listen here, I am not going to lie…I don’t hold back. I never do 🙂
Fitness Confidential: Mila Furman. Failed CICO and Veganism
So what do I eat?
- Meat: I eat all meat, poultry and fish. My favorite part of course is I eat the skin on my roasted chicken. I also eat bacon, almost daily, either for dinner, as a snack or in a salad. It always makes everything a whole lotta delicious (check out my tutorial on how to cook bacon without all the splatters.)
- Vegetables: I eat all vegetables except the highly starchy ones such as potatoes, sweet potatoes and most squashes. On occasion of course I will allow a potato, but for the most part my diet is free of it. I eat lots of salads because I can dress them in homemade full fat dressings. Mostly I eat a lot of cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts and any and all greens. I also eat tomatoes and cucumbers! Oh and the almighty avocado is a frequent guest in my belly.
- Dairy and Eggs: I eat full fat dairy and eggs. Whole eggs with the yolk and the whites. And the best part of course it I get to cook my eggs in butter. One of the best flavors in the world of course is buttery eggs. My body handles dairy quite well so I eat full fat dairy. My coffee has heavy creamy in it…I mean how much am I struggling? I eat full fat cheeses, unsweetened full fat yogurts, sour cream, cream cheese and grass-fed butter. I do NOT have milk because milk has a higher content of sugar that fat.
- Fruits:I am a fruitaholic. That was the toughest for me…but I eat low glycemic index fruit such as all berries, cherries and on a very rare occasion apples and citrus. And honestly I am super satisfied.
- Nuts and Seeds: I eat pumpkin seeds as a snack if I really want to. Or I have a few macadamia nuts or some almonds. I am not a huge nut freak so I truly only eat them when I am on the run and need some food.
Why do you ask? Because I wanted to FEEL better. Did I want to lose a few pounds, absolutely. But in reality the real reason is because I just wanted to feel energized and not hungry all the time.
As you can tell…I am truly energized always…so I never struggled from that sluggish feeling, I owe that to the fact that my diet WAS in fact clean.
But I was hungry…I WAS SO HUNGRY.
Currently, I eat 2x a day sometimes 3. I am very rarely hungry and because I eat high fat I am satiated rather quickly and very rarely overeat. My cravings have completely gone away. I used to crave food like it was my last meal of the year. Now I have my breakfast at 9am which is typically just coffee with heavy cream and I do not feel the need to eat until 1 or 2pm. Considering I am always on the run with clients or meetings, this proves to be an incredible way of life for me because I am not thinking that I need to eat 5-6x a day.
My Results
- I have lost some weight. But I have a lost A WHOLE LOT MORE INCHES. I went from a size 6 to a 2 or 4. Now I can go to the gym and get back those muscles I lost over my last pregnancy.
- My energy is through the roof. I am up at about 7 every day and on the run until 11pm. I have energy galore.
- I have no hunger. I have never had this happen to me in my life! I am a chef! I am around food ALL THE TIME! And I can taste something as I need to when I am cooking and then move right along. Before I had to KEEP EATING. This is no longer the case. For me this is crucial…why? Because my problem has never been the quality of food…I have always eaten super clean…my problem has been the quantity. I am a bottomless pit and can eat as much as my buff 6 foot 1 husband. This is no longer the case. I am not suffering, I simply eat as much as I feel I need and I am done.
- My allergies have gotten better. I am assuming it is because I have reduced the inflammation in my body because of excess sugar.
- I have become a better chef: Having any sort of modifications done to food will always result in creativity. I refuse to eat bland food and so do my clients. So I have created seriously amazing recipes because I have given myself the freedom to explore all options of food and enjoy it!
- I no longer feel the need to cheat: Basically I eat low carb all the time because I enjoy it! Because it makes me happy. And because I feel great. And I am satisfied and full. I used to cheat every weekend but I rarely do anymore. I may have a bite of cake or a forkful of mashed potatoes or pasta but then I enjoy my own meal. Because I feel full and satisfied and not deprived I honestly never even miss those things. And the best part is if I do want some…I have it and the next day go right back to eating the way I normally do.
That’s it guys…that’s my lifestyle. I eat low-carb 98% of the time with plenty of whole fats and filling proteins and veggies. And on occasion I have myself some other treats. I feel great and I am pretty darn happy 🙂
INTERMITTENT FASTING AND THE REMOVAL OF ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS
Despite always having a pretty clean diet, I allowed myself artificial sweeteners. Because of course they were sugar and calorie free so they could not effect my results could they. So I allowed myself those little yellow packets…sometimes 10-15 PER DAY.
Even when I went Low Carb High Fat. I still allowed them.
It was not until I read the book [easyazon_link identifier=”1771641258″ locale=”US” tag=”ne0fc6-20″]The Obesity Code[/easyazon_link] that I decided to take them out of my life.
This book was life changing for me. Not only did it confirm my thoughts on the Low Carb High Fat way of life but it also taught me that fasting was a GOOD thing.
So I jumped on board and started doing Intermittent Fasting:
I do not eat for 16 hours a day. Meaning…I do not have breakfast and I eat a nice big lunch and dinner. Both of which are great sizes and satisfy me. I sometimes fast for extended periods when I feel I have reached a plateau or when I need to give my body a little boost after having a prolong cheat week or so! Vacation is a time to celebrate! And I enjoy it freely, but when I am done..I am done and I come back and fast. Feasting always needs to be combined with a period of fasting.
What I Learned
I have never been shy to talk about my anxiety. But I have been shy about my anxiety that I felt towards food. I always felt guilty when I did not eat “right”. I did not allow myself to enjoy the treat. Instead, I pretended that I did, but in reality I was mentally scolding myself.
Allowing myself steak, bacon, cheese, creams and all the other wonderful foods I have been depriving myself of opened a door for myself. A door that helped me define what eating well meant for me.
I first thought about it as a way to explain to my private cheffing clients. How would I explain to my clients that “hey, I DO eat pasta and risotto and dessert. But I also don’t eat it all the time. And I’m also usually High Fat Low Carb AND I intermittent fast!”
How would I do this without sounding like a hypocrite. How do I allow myself to indulge yet still live a super healthy lifestyle? And that is it is still Good Food. Done Right!
Simply like this.
Indulging occasionally IS part of Good Food. Done Right! It is part of life.
- Having cake at a wedding or a birthday party…IS part of life!
- Having pasta while on a once in a lifetime trip to Italy IS part of life!
- Enjoying a freshly made croissant at your friend’s bakery grand opening IS part of life!
- Taking your kids to get some killer ice cream at the new micro creamery IS part of life!
- Enjoying the risotto at the banging brand new restaurant in downtown IS part of life!
I realized that occasions happen just then…on occasion and we need to celebrate them and enjoy them! And once we are done… then we go back to low carb, high fat…healthy, natural living.
I thought…long and hard about how I can make this clear to everyone…my family, my readers and my clients. And It finally made sense.
I created a Foodamentals list.
This list, this Bill of Eating Rights is my way of allowing myself to enjoy food, life and everything in between. And all the while it helps me get back to my core.
My way of eating healthy is never dull or routine. It is simply a way for me to live a healthy energetic life with plenty of celebrations in between!
Don’t know how to start?
Go to my Foodamentals list and see how easy it is!!!!