The Diet Plan (Den)

There’s good news, and there’s bad news. I’m still down 7 pounds from my high weight mark (yay! I get to start my diet with a weight loss on the chart!), but I’m 11 pounds up from the last time I quit dieting back in November. But, more good news – gaining those 11 pounds so fast means they should be easier to lose, right? Some of it has to be water retention, so I should get a boost when I weigh next. Bad news – my scale battery has gone dead, and it wouldn’t even come on this morning! So, none of my numbers may be correct, because who knows if the silly scale still gives accurate readings on a low battery.

Bottom line, I am starting out assuming that I did not yo-yo all the way back up to where I was. I don’t want to get bogged down with that scale. Too often when I diet, I wind up getting on the scale every 10 minutes. Yes, I’m one of those people who poops big and jumps on the scale to see how much I lost. Notice, though, I didn’t go anywhere near the scale during the holidays!

I’ve made some decisions on how to proceed. I’m going back to the diet that I followed when I found out I had PCOS years ago. Tried and true, it produced results not just on the scale but on the bloodwork. I eat at least six times a day, every 2-3 hours, and each meal includes roughly 30 net carbs. I don’t count vegetables unless they are high starch like corn, peas, and carrots. This helps me level out my sugar intake, and it keeps me eating all the time. I also want 30 minutes of cardio at least 4 times a week.

I’m a vegetarian, but for this diet, I am trying to go vegan (basically, no dairy) during the weekdays. I’ve done six-week vegan fasts from time to time, so nothing new for me. Being vegan eliminates a lot of potentially risky foods, and when I’m with friends and say, “I’m vegan,” they are – curiously – less interested in offering me foods that don’t fit with my plan. Sadly, although friends mean well, they all know that “dieting” is a temporary, transitory thing. “A little bit won’t hurt you,” and “You have to do everything in moderation.” But when you are vegetarian or vegan, it’s a lifestyle and people will quite literally take food away from you! “That has chicken broth!” or “I made that with butter!” They help you diet without ever knowing that you are trying to lose weight. Bonus!