Over the holidays (November-December), I did a lot of baking and dessert making. It was a ton of fun, and my kids really enjoyed it too. All of it was vegan of course, but around Christmas, I realized that despite my best efforts to keep a moderate approach to my indulgent behavior, I was feeling kinda icky and had gained 5ish pounds. They were happy pounds, associated with eating good food with friends and family, but nonetheless they were pounds that I didn’t (and my skinny jeans didn’t either) want to have stick around for very long.
Fortunately, if there’s one thing I know, it’s weight loss. I’m a semi-pro weight loser, thanks to the four kids in 5 years thing. I nearly have it down to a science. I’ve tried many approaches (all vegan), but hands down the easiest is the calorie density approach. Also known as Dr. McDougall’s Maximum Weight Loss (MWL), similar to volumetrics (although volumetrics isn’t in and of itself vegan, but can be). The essence of it is so simple, it makes me laugh with joy–scale your calorie density down to an average of 400 calories (or less)/per pound of of food you have a day, and you will lose weight. This means eating a high volume of lower calorie foods–lots of green leafies and other vegetables, fruits with some higher calorie foods such as starches. Severely restrict or eliminate higher calorie foods like nuts, seeds, ect. Works like charm. No hunger, no deprivation, no counting calories. And the weight melts off.
I should say though, that it takes a little trial and error to figure out. Jeff Novick, R.D., says it’s similar to learning how to ride a bike. It’s a process, but once you get the principle, losing and then maintaining becomes uncomplicated.
Also, I want to dedicate a whole other post to this, but I will mention a bit about this next topic. Which is, I’ve recently cut wheat out of my diet, almost 2 weeks ago. It’s incredible the difference I feel. I have so much more energy. I sleep 2 hours less a night and I don’t have to take naps. This in combination with the MWL, and I don’t have all the blood sugar spikes and crashes that I was experiencing during the holidays with all my treat making (and of course, eating!). The elimination of wheat is something I’ve flirted with over the years for a number of reasons, the primary one being that I just had a feeling that it was the cause of a general feeling of “blah” after eating it.
I noticed that wheat tends to feed my sugar cravings. But I’ve never had the courage to let it go. Until my 11 month old baby broke out in a severe rash (eczema) because of the wheat in her diet (you know, cheerios, crackers, all “easy” baby food we give our kids that have wheat/gluten). Once we cut out the wheat, her eczema has cleared up too. As I made that connection, I realized I should do the same, since I’m still nursing her, and I didn’t want my wheat consumption to affect the milk she is getting from me. In doing so, I realized that I too, must have a wheat sensitivity since I feel so much better without it.
I know what you’re thinking, no dairy, no meat, no oil, and now, no wheat?! What do you eat girl?! Good question, one that I will answer next post.
For now, have a blissful day!
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