Mrs. Hillbilly asked me if she could write a blog post once a week as a way to help keep her accountable on her road to lose 36 pounds this year. I said yes, because I feel she needs YOUR encouragement {and she’s tired of listening to my ideas}. I will be featuring her blog posts each Thursday during the month of January, and then tagging them on to my Goals for 2020 posts after that so we can all keep up with her.
Facts Over Wishful Thinking:
- Starting Weight: 186 pounds
- Current weight: 182 pounds
- Starting Belly Button Circumference 41 inches
- Current Belly Button Circumference 40.5 inches
Having been on {as I am sure many of you have} so many diet fads over my soon to be 54 years, I am so fed up with them. Don’t eat fat because fat is bad, Carb load you can burn it off, eat 5 mini meals a day {I found that very hard}. THIS diet, I could name at least ten off the top of my head, is THE one that will make it all happen for you! Plus, not to mention all the tidbits and advice from family and friends.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I worked hard to provide you a healthy meal after work, clean your plate there are starving kids in China, waste not want not. All these things, I admit, I have said to my own children. 🙁
There is so much guilt around food. I used to clean my plate then clean the kids as well. There was just something about throwing perfectly GOOD food away I couldn’t deal with. And that was a big hurdle to get over. I wanted to list ALL the diets I have been on over the years, but I know I wouldn’t remember them all. So, I am not going to even try.
So why intermittent fasting and why now? The now has to do with the state of my health but the why has to do more with science. And that my friend IS the key. As I mentioned I am prediabetic. So why would I want to keep myself in a constant state of glucose high? Eating constantly never will allow my body to recover and use the sugars and fats within by blood and hence body. If you don’t use the energy, that is sugar, it will turn in to fat. Duh. That’s a real simpleton’s way of explaining but it makes sooo much sense.
Fate do you believe in it? As fate would have it, today I was listening to Michael Medved. He is local talk radio personality, and guess who he had on as a guest? Dr. Jason Fung. Many of you have mentioned him in my last post. I had never heard of him so I listened and what do you know ??????? He was talking about intermittent fasting! I could not believe it. So soon after my decision and you mentioning him. Fate! The New England Journal of Medicine article {as well as his website} explains what he was talking about and why I believe this will be the last modification of my diet journey.
I am now for sure going to watch the you tube videos someone mentioned on Dr.Fung. I do have to share a somewhat creepy happening that happened after my blog post last week. Several of you mentioned the NOOM program, I received NOOM ads on all of my social media stuff. I hate to say it but I am staying away for that one! I don’t even know how it is pronounced, but in my mind it’s Nome. Sorry if I offended anyone. Forgive me.
Having just said that, I do not want to disparage anyone doing something else for their health and weight loss if it is working for them.
For me though, no counting, no weighing, no extra costs.
I am believing in fate,
~Mrs Hillbilly
More in this series:
Deborah says
Way to go, Mrs HB. You are off to a good start. Keep up the great work.
Tamara says
Congrats on your progress!
Too long of a story to repeat here but I was convinced re intermittent fasting after an 8 day hospital stay; before that I read The Obesity Code but had not put the info into practice. In the hospital you can’t eat anytime you feel like it, or are bored, and I was never hungry, very sick but not hungry. I am diabetic. I think of my grandparents, who SELDOM snacked and made it through the day just fine. While all my snacks were healthy foods I seemed to be eating all the time. Now I do not do that and I am not hungry.
My meal portions are smaller by choice, not force, and my glucose numbers are good. My PA has cut my diabetes medicine in half and I am losing weight.
Hang in there, Mrs. HB, you’ve got this!
Diane says
Good going! Your plan has been endorsed by some prominent biologists, and nobody is monetizing it. It’s nice to hear from you—I’ve missed reading about your adventures with Mavis
Barbara says
Mrs. HB – you are on your way to weight loss! I think the slower you lose weight the easier it will be to keep off.
Laura says
Yay! You are seeing results – even with the boot setback! Based on my personal research (strong family history of diabetes), you are on the right track! I am 51 and realize that I have to work harder now for good health. Without the benefit of youth, I am going to have to rely on my wisdom and maturity to now to optimize my health because one of these years there could be grand babies! I plan to be hiking and camping with them! Seems like you might be in a similar place mentally.
On a side note I would like to tell you about my son. He has been racing bicycles since he was 10. He has a weird landing on some local jumps (just out having fun that day). Bad landing resulted in a bucket handle tear to meniscus. So badly damaged that surgeon said worth trying a repair. Repair surgery required zero weight bearing for 6 months. So…6 months on crutches for my 16 year old son. He did not waste that time! He focused on his diet, trimmed down and his senior year won the state mountain bike championship! I am not sure he would have won without that setback. He was forced to become disciplined.
Mrs HB says
I am loving the recumbent bike and reading while I do it . So glad you son recovered well and healthy to boot !!
Michelle says
Sounds like you are on a great path.
On your path of fasting and keeping your glucose levels down I heard a great podcast the other day and afterwards picked up the book to read. Book is South Asian Health Solution by Ronesh Sinha MD. I feel it’s geared to everyone. He explains insulin resistance in a way that anyone can understand. He doesn’t focus on weight but waist circumference is a big one along with some other numbers (BP, triglycerides, blood sugar, etc). He provides info that is easy to implement.
Weight loss is a slow and steady process. Best of luck to you and all others on this journey. Make sure to drink enough water.
Mrs HB says
Thanks for the suggestion.
Semantha says
Good for you on going for healthier life. I waited to long to avoid diabetes and now 52. As for “diets” go for what works for you. I used parts from different ones and 120 pounds lighter because I didn’t try to stick to one plan. Doctor Oz recently came up with a fasting plan and no breakfast. I quit breakfast because it always made me hungry so yeah validation lol. I also use the lose it! App and a wonderful tool. Just keep it up
Diana in Ireland says
I’m so glad that there is someone else Semantha who doesn’t do breakfast and for me it’s a case of never liking eating first thing in the morning.if I have been staying overnight and breakfast is on the table I’m too polite to refuse it but I spend the day looking for snacks. Good luck Mrs H.B.
Lisa says
It’s not sugar that is the real cause of diabetes. When you have sugar that needs to be dealt with, your pancreas released insulin, but if you also have a lot of fat in your diet, the fat will block the insulin from getting where it needs to go, which will cause the insulin to release more insulin and this is known as insulin resistance, which is the precursor of diabetes.
I’m not a doctor, but this guy is:
“Studies dating back nearly a century noted a striking finding. If you take young, healthy people and split them up into two groups, half on a fat-rich diet, and the other half on a carb-rich diet, within just two days, this is what happens. The glucose intolerance skyrockets in the fatty diet group. In response to the same sugar water challenge, the group that had been shoveling in fat ended up with twice the blood sugar. As the amount of fat in the diet goes up, one’s blood sugar spikes. It would take scientists nearly seven decades to unravel this mystery, but it would end up holding the key to our current understanding of the cause of type 2 diabetes.
When athletes carb-load before a race, they’re trying to build up the fuel supply within their muscles. They break down the starch into glucose in their digestive tract. It circulates as blood glucose—blood sugar—and is taken up by our muscles, to be stored and burned for energy.
Blood sugar, though, is like a vampire. It needs an invitation to come into our cells. And, that invitation is insulin. Here’s a muscle cell. Here’s some blood sugar outside, waiting patiently to come in. Insulin is the key that unlocks the door to let sugar in our blood enter the muscle cell. When insulin attaches to the insulin receptor, it activates an enzyme, which activates another enzyme, which activates two more enzymes, which finally activate glucose transport, which acts as a gateway for glucose to enter the cell. So, insulin is the key that unlocks the door into our muscle cells.
What if there was no insulin, though? Well, blood sugar would be stuck out in the bloodstream, banging on the door to our muscles, and not able to get inside. And so, with nowhere to go, sugar levels would rise and rise.
That’s what happens in type 1 diabetes; the cells in the pancreas that make insulin get destroyed, and without insulin, sugar in the blood can’t get out of the blood into the muscles, and blood sugar rises.
But, there’s a second way we could end up with high blood sugar. What if there’s enough insulin, but the insulin doesn’t work? The key is there, but something’s gummed up the lock. This is called insulin resistance. Our muscle cells become resistant to the effect of insulin. What’s gumming up the door locks on our muscle cells, preventing insulin from letting sugar in? Fat. What’s called intramyocellular lipid, or fat inside our muscle cells.
Fat in the bloodstream can build up inside the muscle cells, create toxic fatty breakdown products and free radicals that can block the signaling pathway process. So, no matter how much insulin we have out in our blood, it’s not able to open the glucose gates, and blood sugar levels build up in the blood.
This mechanism, by which fat (specifically saturated fat) induces insulin resistance, wasn’t known until fancy MRI techniques were developed to see what was happening inside people’s muscles as fat was infused into their bloodstream. And, that’s how scientists found that elevation of fat levels in the blood “causes insulin resistance by inhibition of glucose transport” into the muscles.
And, this can happen within just three hours. One hit of fat can start causing insulin resistance, inhibiting glucose uptake after just 160 minutes.
Same thing happens to adolescents. You infuse fat into their bloodstream. It builds up in their muscles, and decreases their insulin sensitivity—showing that increased fat in the blood can be an important contributor to insulin resistance.
Then, you can do the opposite experiment. Lower the level of fat in people’s blood, and the insulin resistance comes right down. Clear the fat out of the blood, and you can clear the sugar out of the blood. So, that explains this finding. On the high-fat diet, the ketogenic diet, insulin doesn’t work as well. Our bodies are insulin-resistant.
But, as the amount of fat in our diet gets lower and lower, insulin works better and better. This is a clear demonstration that the sugar tolerance of even healthy individuals can be “impaired by administering a low-carb, high-fat diet.” But, we can decrease insulin resistance—the cause of prediabetes, the cause of type 2 diabetes—by decreasing saturated fat intake.”
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/what-causes-insulin-resistance/
Karen says
Thank you for this explanation.
Let’s also do more home cooking instead of eating factory food which is full of sugar, fat, and salt.
Mrs HB says
What a great explanation! Thank you for your knowledge and sharing it with us . It all comes down to science and how our bodies are reacting to what we do to and with it !
Mary says
Good for you! You are off to a good start. I agree with you. Lifestyle change is what is needed, not a dad “diet”. Cutting out entire food groups can’t be done long-term and once you add back what you’ve been cutting out, the weight comes back. Every time. I’m trying to eat less and walk every day to take off about 15 lbs. I may listen to the videos you talked about and see if I too can fast. I’ve never tried that. Have a wonderful rest of your week!
Mrs. HB says
It’s working for me ! And I feel soooo much better already !
suzanne says
GO Mrs Hillbilly! Dr. Fung has helped so many. When you start with his podcasts you will find many other like minded Dr’s as well. Westman, Berry, Noakes just to name a few.
Dr. Fung doesn’t push a Keto/low carb diet in his practice but agrees it makes skipping a meal easy as cravings are gone but it is not necessary. If you go that route It will kick a sugar addiction. Also if you go keto you MUST replace electrolytes. You’ve gotta replace the salt your body will be dumping or you might get leg cramps and fogginess. Take a magnesium capsule before bed as well. You will hear about the keto flu and these minerals will help avoid that issue. Magnesium will also keep you “regular” like nobody’s business.
Sorry for to much info I’m just so excited for you. You’ve got this!
Mrs Hb says
I do agree totally about remembering to drink . After I first read your post , I made a point to drink extra water . Thanks
JulieP says
Well done Mrs HB good progress! It’s working for you and really that’s all that matters.
Marla says
Make sure you stay hydrated. It’s easy to forget to drink enough when you’re going long periods without eating.
Carol @ Lake Tapps says
Hey Mrs HB – I am in the same boat as you. Close to your age, weight and I’m also pre-diabetic. I had my yearly gyn exam last week and my doc suggested I look into intermittent fasting – I plan to watch Dr. Fung’s videos.
As with you, 2020 is the year to take back my health. I’m looking forward to following your journey! We’ve got this!
MRS HB says
Yay!!!
Jennifer says
Dh had a stroke in June of 2017. A week in the hospital and we found out we were BOTH diabetic. I was put on Metformin, 500 mg, which I think is a pretty low dosage. I was close to 300 and a true couch potato. Something had to change. I started cooking every meal at home – no eating out, which was a challenge. Breakfast was an 3 egg white omelet, with mushrooms and spinach. Lunch was a sandwich
on multi-grain bread and a side salad. Dinner was usually a soup/stew made with just meat and veggies. My snack and only guilty pleasure was a microwave bag of cheese popcorn. Fwiw, dh would have blueberries and walnuts. Exercise was more PT at the rehab place for dh, but I did do some walking at WM to get my stamina up. Most of what we did was from a place of fear so for 8 months we never varied, except we added in a single meal out – no limits. After 3 months, I lost 20# and dh lost 30#. It wasn’t easy,but it wasn’t hard when we looked at the health aspect of it. I am happy to share anything so If you have a question, Mavis has permission to share my info.
Mrs. HB says
Keep it up !!!! Diabetes , high blood pressure silent killers . We don’t know we have them until we do and offer it’s too late . Happy they found yours and you and you HB are doing something about it . 🙂
pattiCinCO says
You are doing great! I started IF many months ago and when DH works out of town I skip dinner, worked ok. But now that he is home I am skipping my 8am snack and waiting until 10am for breakfast and I am done eating as close to 6pm as possibly. My largest meal is lunch. There is no right or wrong way because you have to do what fits your lifestyle and needs
Cenith says
Congratulations! I’ve been intermittent fasting for about a year and a half. I lost that twenty pounds so quickly. And it stayed off. I was never a breakfast eater. But when I did eat breakfast I was ravenous the rest of the day and craved carbs. Everyone needs to get to know their body and how it reacts to the foods they eat. Since I am eating in an 8 hour window I have a better idea what caused the heartburn or bloating. Snacking has become a thing of the past. I don’t think about it. Stay encouraged! If I can do it at 68 you can certainly do it at your tender age!
Tina Parham says
Talk about FATE, my son-in-law introduced me to Intermittent Fasting and Dr. Fung just over two months ago and here it is on a blog I’ve been following for a couple of years. I switched over to this way of eating just over a month ago and have not felt better in a long while, not to mention lost 10 pounds. At almost 53 years old, diagnosed with Graves Disease at 29 and been overweight since my late 30’s I too have tried every other diet on the market and some that weren’t..lol. But intermittent fasting is the only one I can eat whatever I want, within moderation of course, and still feel better than I have in a very long time. Going out for dinner or social encounters aren’t so stressful for me anymore either. I just adjust my time to eat and enjoy! Here’s to you success!!!
Jennifer says
I love this! Do what you need to do at this moment. So wonderful to see progress and your positive attitude to get yourself healthy. Keep strong even in the weak moments!
Tracy says
Awesome start Mrs. HB! Keep up the good work!
Barbara, R.N. says
Here’s another reason you are doing yourself a huge favor By losing weight: women over 50 are much more at risk for breast cancer if they are overweight. Then add gall bladder disease, and of course diabetes, as has already been brought up. I spent a year in treatment for breast cancer, sitting with many other women week after week, getting our chemo, and we were all overweight. The biggest deterrent, as well as the biggest aid in losing weight, is exercise. Walk, walk, walk. Get a dog that requires it. Whatever it takes, losing weight is much easier if you have a good exercise program. You do not have to run. That’s harder on your joints and spine. Just take a pleasant walk. It doesn’t have to be miles and miles. It does great things for your circulation, your heart, and your brain.
Barbara, R.N says
I meant to say the biggest deterrent to gaining weight is exercise.
Nancy says
Great job Ms. HB, I hope the foot is healing well also.
Gina says
Mrs. HB…
YES! YES! YES!
I was one of the readers who suggested Dr. Jason Fung’s videos bc ALL MY ADULT LIFE NOTHING WORKED! After hearing him, EVERYTHING CLICKED. It just made sense. And it has been EASY! I lose 2 pounds per week. I’m down 37 pounds…more to go. I am your same age. I am your cheerleader. Just know that I am on this journey with you! I will leave comments with my progress, too! You’ve got this!!!
Mrs HB says
Thank you !!! I am watching his video TODAY !
Linda Harper says
My husband and I have been doing intermittent fasting, very low carb since the end of October. We do intermittent fasting and are getting results and feel so much better off of all sugar and eat real food. I’m type 2 Diabetic and my blood sugars have decreased 100 points and into the normal range all of the time. I’m currently reading Dr. Fung’s, The Diabetes Code and believe that I can eventually get away from meds! It took me a while to start losing weight because of insulin resistance but it’s coming. I’ve lost ten pounds so far and my hubby has lost 30! I think we can make this a lifestyle change and it’s something we can live with.
Keep it up!
Heidi P says
Way to Go Mrs HB! Sounds like you’re off to a great start.
I’m a Dr Fung lover as well. I’ve been fasting since Feb 19 of 2019. I was diagnosed as diabetic on Feb 18th, had read Dr Fung’s book The Obesity Code the month before and several things rang true with me, “Food is the cause of many of our diseases” and “Food and medicine are the cheapest form of medicine”. Doc’s wanted to put me on medicine and I said, “no”, diet and exercise. They gave me 3 months to get my numbers down and I accomplished my goal in 6 weeks. My A1C is 5.0 right now. Yippee!
I know you can do this. One day at a time, one step at a time and before you know it you will reach your goals.
Sharon says
I am currently on IF for maintenance… after using IF for a 38# loss. I just turned 55 December 28… I understand! The science is what turned me on to it. The inches melting off ( more than the weight) is what kept me going. It cheap, easy, flexible. My only suggestion is to be sure that your meal before the fast window be fat, fiber and proteins. It helps, IMO. Best of luck!
Joely says
Yay Mrs. HB!!! You’ve got this!
Eileen says
Keep up the great work. I started intermittent fasting in May 19 and have lost 13 pounds. Slow and steady is the answer. You can do this, I promise.
Annie says
Dr. Jason Fung is amazing! If you put on weight and are pre-diabetic, it’s not rocket science, just reduce the bad carbs. No sugar, stay away from grains and eat low carb fruit rarely, veggies regularly, healthy fats and proteins. Some nuts and seeds are good too. Whole real foods, and lowering the carbs, and you will lose weight. Good luck!