FIRST MONTH REVIEW OF CARBNITE SOLUTIONS

Need for discipline. Carbs are a hard thing to get rid of, in fact, they are in almost everything you eat -besides animal products. Cutting down on carbs was a process for me. Some people can go “cold turkey”, but that is just not for me. Whatever does work for you, be patient and know that it takes time and patience to stop bad habits and create good ones.

-Still no sign on abs. Well that’s extreme, but what I mean is none of my measurements have changed. Inches in my hips, thighs, waist are all the same. Jeans fit the same. Weight is the same too (which I don’t care about). People have suggested that maybe if you aren’t seeing progress, you are going too crazy on your “carbnites”. I am going to make some tweaks for next month to see if it will help!

DETAILS

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Here is a sample of my food journal. I highlighted the carb column in blue and fiber column in orange so it’s easier to look at. Net Carbs is what we want to look at, which is Carbs-Fiber=Net Carbs. Typically, a ketogenic diet has you in the range of 20-30 net carbs per day – but it should also be based on the percentages of your total calories, so my goal was to be at or below 10% carbs, 60-75% fat, and 15-30% protein. Below you can see my net carbs is 35-13 = 22.

You can see if you have reached ketosis with Ketosticks. They are about $15 at the local pharmacy. Some people say they aren’t reliable 100% of the time once you are keto-adapted, but I love seeing the test strip turn pink! Maybe I’m weird, but I think it’s fun. Haha :P Here is what testing with Ketosticks look like:

TWEAKS I’M MAKING FOR THIS MONTH (September)

-No alcohol. This has been a huge issue for me. I’ve cut way back over the year, but I still think it is effecting my goals. It gives me headaches, stomach aches, leaves me tired and emotional. Plus I regret buying it for my precious dollar bills… and empty calories. If I had the willpower to stop buying and eating my beloved sugary cereals (cinnamon toast crunch is a tasty devil), I can muster up the willpower to stop drinking alcohol!

-Standing Desk! I created my own DIY standing desk at work with cheap drawers and a tablecloth. So now I am not sitting for over 12 hours a day. I should have really done this sooner!

-Cleaner carbnite. When I re-feed with carbs, I will stick to whole foods like potato, rice, “paleo treats”, and try to stay mostly gluten-free as much as I can. (Previously my carbnites would include cookies, ice cream, and lots of alcohol). I also am concerned that I am eating too much in general on my CarbNites, so maybe keeping that in mind.

-More veggies and be more picky about meat sources. I have found that on my days when I eat more veggies, I feel better. Makes sense, but I have to keep carbs in mind – so the key is sticking to the low-carb greens. I’ve found spinach, broccoli, asparagus to be my favorite options. Why less protein? Well in general, less animal products. Good, clean animal products are not always easy to find. I buy grass-fed/organic/non-gmo/etc. when I can. When eating lower-quality animal products, the toxins mostly hang out in the fat, so when you aren’t sure if it’s good quality or not, order lean. When you know it’s some good-eating, order that fat!

-More effective workouts. Previously, I was doing a little too much running and not enough weights, so I am switching my priorities. I am now doing sprint intervals and strength/resistance training 3 times per week. And a light workout on weekends just to keep active. This could mean walking, biking, some body resistance, etc.

THAT’S A WRAP!

I will post some new reviews about my second month experimenting with ketosis and CarbNite at the end of this month!

Here at The beautyandskincrave, all of my recipes use whole foods full of nutrients and many of them are low-carb! Like some of my favorites: