Full Fat, Full Flavor

I'm just going to leave this video of a lecture by Robert Lustig right here to hopefully end the sugar debate. This video is long, but only the first hour is lecture. The rest is a Q & A session.  It is well worth the watch and is the best explanation I've seen for why sugar is not healthy, nor good for the environment or the economy for that matter. Here's a hint: it has nothing to do with obesity. If you've bought into the "eat less, move more" philosophy, if you struggle to go even a couple days without processed sugary foods due to cravings, if you think you can't possibly give up sugar because food is about pleasure, or if you simply want to avoid type 2 diabetes and stay healthy, this is an excellent video to watch. It's not about dieting. It's about changing your diet to maintain health and save money on healthcare in the long run. As I have definitely had some debates with people about sugar in the past, I'd love to hear...

Following a ketogenic way of eating, I have been tempted to engage in unhealthy behaviors on both ends of the body image and diet spectrum. A lot of people do keto for weight loss, so sometimes I get discouraged that I don't have any impressive before and after pictures like a lot of people in the keto community do. But that is silly, because I am either wishing I were overweight to start with or wishing I could lose weight that I don't have to lose. Both of those are unhealthy thoughts, because health is as much about mental health as it is about physical health, if not more so. On the other hand, I've read some things about intuitive eating and how it must include all foods, even sugar. It can be tempting to think that I shouldn't be on a "diet" and that I should reintroduce the sugar and starch, even though those foods make me feel bad and are harmful to my long-term health. But this would also be unhealthy, because I would go back to being addicted to ...

I read a blog post a few weeks ago that was anti-dieting and I'm still thinking about it. It was great, except that keto was on the list of "diets" that were bashed. It was right up there along with the Whole30 and juice cleanses. Hmm. I don't think keto is necessarily a diet like that, even though some people have made it into one. I know that I said awhile back that I am no longer keto, but it's more that it doesn't define me, even though it is how I eat. Here are 10 reasons why the ketogenic diet is not a "diet": 1. Keto is not restrictive. It doesn't cut out foods, only processed food-like "products". Some foods are limited to special occasions and small amounts, but only because they have detrimental effects to health.  2. I can eat what I want and as much as I want, but I do try to eat mindfully and intuitively.  3. I have experienced some pretty dramatic results (not weight loss). It took time, but it was and is worth it...

"I could never do that diet. I like sweets too much." I can't tell you how many times I have heard that or a similar sentiment when people notice I am not eating a sugary dessert or bread. I usually say something about how it was hard at first, but that I got used to it. What I really want to say is that I am not on a diet. I don't believe in dieting, and have never been on a diet (well, except for Whole30, which was an elimination diet, but I don't think that counts). Dieting means restriction and deprivation, but there's none of that when eating low carb high fat. You see, diet technically means a way of eating. Consider for example a gluten-free diet. Would you say that someone who has eliminated gluten due to Celiac Disease is on a diet? Unfortunately, the weight-loss industry has taken that word and used it to mean a temporary, drastically restrictive way to eat to lose weight. I have changed my diet to be more healthy, but I am not "on a diet" ...

I read The Case Against Sugar  by Gary Taubes this past December and it probably gave me the best motivation for continuing to avoid sugar out of any book I have read on the subject. In the past, I would go off sugar for a 30-day challenge and then eat all the treats when I was done. Now that I know that there are legitimate health reasons to avoid sugar, thanks to Taubes' book, it has become much easier to say no. I know this is a tricky subject. People don't want to give up sugar. I've even seen articles arguing that sugar is a necessary part of a healthy diet, which is quite untrue. A lot of people, myself included, have a tendency to view sugary foods as treats that we don't want to miss out on. However, once I learned the science behind how our bodies handle (or do not handle) sugar, I learned to view it as poison. That may sound strong, but when you read this book, you will see just how bad sugar is for our health. If food is fuel, and I believe it is, why would...

If you know me, you know that I like to workout pretty regularly but I'm not a fitness buff or anything. But I have learned a few things in my reading on health and nutrition, as well as by personal experience, and I wanted to bust a few myths. Myth #1: Exercise is a good weight loss tool. I used to think this was true, even though I never used exercise as such. However, there is an excellent chapter in Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It  by Gary Taubes on this very subject. The whole calories in calories out hypothesis is totally flawed, Taubes explains, because weight maintenance has more to do with the hormone insulin and its fat-storing effects. It may be true that you can tone your muscles and look more fit by working out regularly, but it does not actually allow you to lose much, if any, fat. Along with the physiological facts about working out and weight management, I think it really messes with people psychologically to think this way. If you feel like you have to w...

I haven't come up with any new recipes lately, but I've come up with some meal ideas and I thought it might be helpful to show what a full day of eating keto (low carb high fat) looks like. A lot of people, when they hear that I eat low carb, ask me "What do you eat then?" I explained this in general terms in a previous post, but now I'm sharing some visuals and meal descriptions for you all. I could never go on a diet and eat plain grilled chicken breast, or egg whites and spinach. I add fat to everything, eat the whole egg, and my veggie of choice is actually broccoli, although spinach is good too. The keto lifestyle can be full of delicious meals, although it does take a little creativity at first. Hopefully I can give you some ideas with this post. Breakfast: cheesy scrambled eggs topped with a pesto-ricotta cheese mixture (no, I'm not one of those dairy-free keto people), bacon, broccoli with butter, and coffee with a splash of heavy whipping cream. ...