Testing Blood Ketones

There has been a trend lately  - Fat Fasts & Blood Ketones.  Being a trendy gal, I am following this protocol because I still have that stubborn "Last 10" to wrestle to the ground. (and perhaps an extra 5 lbs lingering in the wings.. HAHAHA... the wings!  Get it? (the dreaded bat wings) sigh... anway...

1.  Here is the book that started Low Carbers looking at Blood Ketones - The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance by  Jeff Volek and Stephen Phinney.

2.  Dr. Robert Atkins, the originator of the Fat Fast would certainly endorse my good friends at CarbSmart - Dana Carpender, Amy Dungan, and Andrew Dimino - Here is the $4.99 book -- LINK TO BOOK  Has a LOT of good information about the Fat Fast and measuring Blood Ketones.  The recipes are fantastic!

3.  My dear friend Jimmy Moore, always blunt and always honest - he has shown us the way.  Here is a link to JIMMY'S BLOG  Having started this phase of my diet it is very understandable why Jimmy was hesitant to post his food logs.  It is very strange to most people to eat a diet of 85-90% fat - butter, coconut oil, mct oil, avocados, etc.  I'm just thankful he made the public aware of this adjustment to our low carb lifestyle.

Recently I strenuously dieted for 2 weeks and dropped 4 pounds of what I had gained over Christmas.  Yay me!  THEN for Valentines I baked 2 dozen sugar-free, low carb cookies and ate 1 dozen.  Gained all 4 back in ONE day (and NOT  temporary gain.  It stayed for 4 days, until I started the Fat Fast).

So I ordered the meter.  I chose the Precision Max - Amazon Link to Meter

AND I ordered the pricey Blood Ketone Test Strips - Link to Amazon - Blood Ketone Test Strips

I searched high and low for the best prices on Blood Ketone strips (NOT the same as Blood Glucose strips).  They can run anywhere from $2 to $5 PER STRIP.

I bought one box of 10.  I figured that at least gives me 10 days to monitor my eating and see what tweaks might be needed.  For example, following Jimmy Moore's lead when he discovered that he was eating TOO much protein (not optimal for being "keto adapted").  

I have NEVER professed to being a perfect "low carber".  I have my moments just like regular folks with food addictions.  However, I am closer than I have EVER been to reaching my goal.  EVER!  So, the day before I tested my blood ketones I had a Girl Scout cookie - yep, just one - but sugar none the less.  (In case you didn't know it, I am a SEVERE sugar addict - even so far as having my own bakery for 3 years.)

I test in the mornings when I first get up, before I have my Bulletproof Coffee.

Day 1 - 0.1

Day 2 - 0.3

Day 3 - 0.6

(According to the book, optimal levels are 1.0 to 3.0 - expecting 1.0 in a day or two)

Ooooooooo.... this is exciting.  Even better than the stupid scale! hahaha  AND yes, 3 pounds gone in 3 days.  

So WHY do this?

High Blood Ketones (caused from a "High Fat / Moderate Protein / VERY low carb" diet) can put you in a state of being "keto adapted".  I am not scientific in thought, and always prefer the "Cliff Notes"! lol.  ONE thing I DO know about being "keto adapted" is that a person is NOT hungry, NOT craving, AND losing weight.  :D  There ya go - the Cliff Notes, or "Ketones for Dummies".

LESSONS FROM THE CRUISE and FAMILY SUPPORT

The cruise was great. The guests and the speakers were wonderful. I'm not so crazy about the Bahamas -- overcast, cold water, very little free access to the beach, no steel drums, etc. But our days at sea with the conferences were awesome! Words cannot express how enouraging and enlightening they are. I couldn't pick a favorite because each person brought something different to the table.

So ... came back from the cruise vowing to not let myself go on another cruise EVER again if I did not take control and lose weight. I've been sort of fluctuating with 15 pounds for over a year now. It is time to kick it over the hump and move on down the road. I am dedicating the rest of the year (until the NEXT cruise in 2011) to getting myself together. No weight "goal", but rather a "health" goal -- and the weight should follow!! lol (yeah... right... you KNOW I've got that perfect number in my head... lol..)

What has been really fun is that my sweet family has taken up the torch and we are all working on this together! My youngest son, on his own, lost over 30 pounds eating low carb and exercising 2x a day. He encouraged us all of us to join him. He is part of the "Pound for Pound" challenge through Biggest Loser, but I have to admit, I'm not exactly sure how that works.

We started out in mid March 2010 at a total weight of 1,234 pounds. We have a "secret" facebook group page and we post our recipes, menus, & challenges. As of today (4/19/10) we are at 1,157 pounds -- WE HAVE LOST A TOTAL OF 76.5 POUNDS! That is so cool. There is six of us -- my husband, my 2 sons, my daughter, my daughter-in-law, and of course, moi.

An interesting observation is that even when one of us doesn't lose one week, or even has a slight gain, the total weight keeps us motivated. It's the "team work" concept I suppose. It is almost as if we are working hard just in case we need to "be the pound" for someone else. lol.

Our goal is to lose 100 pounds by June. We will do it. And then, next cruise, I will be back in my "comfort" level weight wise.