Dukan Attack Day 3 -- First Weight Loss!

Weight:  167.7 (-1.3 pounds!)
Mood & Energy:
Exercise:
Food: 



Lately I've been listening to the audio book of Gary Taube's Why We Get Fat.  It's an interesting read for anyone who is using a low carbohydrate diet to lose weight  because it provides some of the science behind the approach as well as an extensive history of low carbohydrate diets.  The Dukan diet is a part of a centuries old French tradition of reduction diets based on meat.  It's pretty glamorous to think of this experiment as a 19th century French one:

Empress Josephine

Taube's book lays out a convincing argument that carbs (and the hormonal processes they trigger) make us fat. While I am not convinced that easily digested carbohydrates are bad for everyone, I know I am a mess when I eat them.  In particular, I learned that if I ate them alone (say, a blueberry muffin for breakfast), my entire day would be one of overeating and mood and energy swings.  Taube's writes that there is an insulin reaction just from thinking about eating carbohydrate rich foods.  This is a little bit terrifying to think about: or rather, its terrifying to think about not thinking about eating these foods.  Even just writing about thinking about not thinking about them makes me think about them.

I do know that if I eat a small dessert as a part of a larger and varied meal, I don't have such an intense reaction to the carbs.   As well, I learned it is advisable to skip the carbs during the day and eat them in the evening, after my work is done. I did, however, learn from Sunday's feasting that one thing eating carbs (or maybe sugar? grains?) will do -- even if it doesn't make me feel immediately bad -- is swell up my hands, feet, and face!  I am still recovering from Sunday's Mother Day feasting and even regretting it a little. In my more skeptical moments, I imagine all I will do in this Attack phase is get back to the weight I was before the holiday.

Taube's book is convincing me that in order to both lose the weight I want to lose and keep it off, I am looking at a life time of carbohydrate restriction.  Because it seems a little depressing to think of saying no forever, I am thinking that once I have reached my goal weight the best approach might be to save sugar and grains for special occasions:  Birthdays, Weddings, and the holidays like Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter -- even Halloween, Valentine's Day, and Mother's Day.  If I eat a small amount of these foods on these days, I will probably suffer a little from symptoms, but I can't imagine it would be as damaging as the way of life in which sugar, potatoes, and processed grains are a daily part of my existence. 

I'm not the only one who thinks that a lifetime free from the effects of fast-carbs might be the way to go for the long term.  This is Marshall Brain's comment from the comment box of an update on his success with the Dukan diet: 

Get in to Phase 2 of the Dukan diet and promise yourself that, during the rest of your life, you are not going to eat carbs again. Simply stay in Phase 2. This looks like what I am going to end up doing. Every single time I eat carbs, I regret it. Eating any carb-rich food seems to flip a switch in my brain and I end up eating more. No matter how much “conscious” control I try to apply, it doesn’t seem to work very well. I am much better off when I put a big fence around carbs and do not allow them in my life.

Right now, of course, I just have to get through the attack phase.  I took a walk last night and was so tired (from either the diet or the heat) that I was practically immobile by 8 p.m.  When I did the "true weight" calculation on the Dukan site, I did it twice, and once it said to do attack for 3 days, the second time the site recommended a four day attack.  I don't know which to do, so this might either be my last day of Attack or my second to last day of it.  Frankly, it is too hot around here to be hungry, even for vegetables, and so it is pretty much the perfect time to be going through the most restrictive phase of this diet. 

Preparing for the Dukan Attack Phase

My experience with low carb diets

Determined to lose weight by the time I start my new job at the end of the summer, I'd been eating a low carb, high fat diet (Atkin's induction) for almost two weeks, but I found the fat made me feel pretty awful.  Although I'd gone into ketosis by the second day, I didn't lose tremendous amounts of weight as promised. My skin  began to break out all over my body, my nails broke, and I was eating too much cheese, cream, and fatty meats to feel healthy, but for some reason, mostly my total love for cheese, I couldn't limit myself.  I could barely keep up with my normal exercise routine. I missed eating Greek yogurt, and I also missed eating vegetables.

On the other hand, I love eating low carb, and really feel like sugar, wheat, corn, and starchy vegetables are quite bad for my overall health.  I have diabetes in my family, poor skin, and super-sensitive reactions to eating carbs, which leads me to believe I have some of the problems related to insulin resistance. I started searching for a healthier, lower fat low carb diet without the fatty cheeses, and that's when I came across the Dukan diet.  I eagerly read the book, and decided that I would begin the diet on the day after Mother's Day, which also coincides with the end of my semester (I am a college instructor).

My plan 

Since I am already in ketosis, I am anticipating that the Attack Phase won't be too difficult for me.  My main challenge will be giving up the cheese, but I love Greek yogurt so much that I think this will make up for it.

I do plan to treat myself a little on Mother's Day, but will try to stay as low-carb as reasonable while not missing out any fun with my daughter.  One of my mother's day plans is also to take my daughter on a long walk through the park, preferably after our big meal.

My plan is to stay in Attack for only a few days and then move to the Cruise phase. 

I am the sort of person who loves to track data, so I will continue to count calories and look at macronutrient ratios just to see how this diet stacks up to regular calorie reduction diets.  I find that looking at charts and graphs is a great motivator for me overall.  I will also weigh myself each morning and take my measurements each Monday.

Every day I want to track not only my weight, but also my overall health, the condition of my skin, my hunger levels, energy levels, and my moods.  I think it is important that any eating plan not only takes into consideration weight loss, but overall well being.

Exercise

My hope is that I can handle vigorous workouts on my vegetable and protein days, and have my protein only days be my "light exercise" days on which I mostly walk.  I did read on the Dukan site that a person can add more carbs before an intense workout (for example, a glass of orange juice).   I will start with timing my vegetables before workouts, and then see if I need to add extra carbs to reach my full performance levels.  If I do add these carbs, they will probably just be berries, which I love to eat.

Planned Variations

I am considering two planned variations to the diet.  Instead of oat bran, I will use ground flax seeds in small amounts.  This will help me stay away from gluten and keep up my levels of healthy fats, while still getting some of the benefits of fiber.   As well, I am going to allow myself small amounts of unsweetened chocolate or cocoa (usually mixed with a tiny bit of stevia).  If these changes seem to stall my progress, I will reconsider them as I move through the program.