You can't always believe everything you've been taught...

You can't always believe everything you've been taught... 

....(or the things you just "absorbed" into your brain by osmosis or whatever.)

Just because you've always believed it, doesn't mean it's true.

I hate to say this, but just because your mother believes it, doesn't make it true.

Just because you learned it in school, doesn't make it true.

Just because your best friend or spouse believes it, doesn't make it true. 

Just because you read it on the Internet or in a best selling book or hear it on TV doesn't make it true.

Every adult has the responsibility to evaluate ideas (beliefs, ways of doing things, etc) themselves.  Yeah, it can be a bit of work, but do you really want to just be a sheep... and blindly follow, or do you want to determine your own path?   (okay.. yeah... I'm specifically talking about diet, but this applies to all aspects of life, a subject much too large for this blog and my current energy level.)

This is a lazy post.. the information is from a link that was just shared with me by my friend, Carb Tripper. It's too good not to pass on.
 
The 11 Most Destructive Nutrition Lies Ever Told:

• Eggs are unhealthy - WRONG
• Saturated fat is bad for you. - WRONG
• Everyone should eat grains. - WRONG
• Eating a lot of protein is bad for your bones and kidneys. - WRONG
• Low fat foods are good for you. - WRONG
• It's good to eat many small meals instead of 2-3 larger ones. - WRONG
• Carbs should be your main source of calories. - WRONG
• High Omega 6 seed and vegetable oils are good for you.  - WRONG
• Low Carb diets are dangerous. - WRONG
• Sugar is bad because it contains "empty calories". - WRONG (there are many worse reasons) 
• High fat foods will make you fat. - WRONG  

  Please go to the original source to read more details.

I'm betting that you will see at least one thing on that list that you may wonder about, maybe many. I found one.  I thought that eating many small meals (or snacking often) was better than eating 2-3 larger meals per day.  I am re-evaluating that now.

 The 11 Most Destructive Nutritional Lies Ever Told

Maybe it's time to re-examine the road map in your head?

Side note... I have done (and still do) a lot of research in determining my eating preferences.  I usually can remember WHAT I have decided is good (or best, or worth a try), but UNFORTUNATELY I'm horrible at retaining and conveying the reasons why I decided it.

The way I figure it... my brain can only hold a certain amount of information... so when I am done with the little details, I just discard them and keep the conclusion... I don't want to overload my brain and besides I need room for new info if it comes my way.  I wish I could retain more... but.. oh well.

Actually, it just occurred to me that I probably haven't discarded anything, I just archive it.. compress it and stash it in some corner of my brain that I'm unaware of.   Kind of like my desk.... and file cabinets.  I have file cabinets full of folders of  information that I have saved, but trying to locate a specific thing can be a challenge.  I keep the MOST important stuff easily accessible... (my conclusions) the rest would just clutter up my desk (or brain). 

(And.. In spite of the file cabinets, at times my desk gets soooo cluttered that for my sanity I just shove it ALL into a box and move it out of sight!  I rationalize that someday (haha), I will sort and file it... sorry, another side track.)

HOWEVER, it's a bit of a drag when I try to share my conclusions and can't back them up.. well, I could back them up if I took the time to locate my "reasons" or did the research all over again...   but I have sooo many other more important things to do and thoughts to think..  

Besides... 
Just because I believe it, doesn't make it true.  

Everyone has to do their own research and choose their own path.

The Way I Eat... most of the time

The Way I Eat... most of the time

I should have started this earlier in the morning instead of watching last nights episode of The Bachelor....  oops.

Anyhow (hoping I can find my brain), I want to tell you about the way I eat currently which is for basic health, and not to actually lose weight, but not to gain it either.  I'm pretty sure that my current eating plan may cause some people to LOSE weight though if it is a drastic change in their diet.

The Way I Figure It.... the best way to eat is the simplest way...

Meat, Fish, Eggs, Cheese, Fresh Veggies (steamed or raw), Fresh fruit, Lots of Healthy Fats (will explain that one later) and lots of water.. and yeah, coffee with heavy cream...

When I say simple, I mean how hard is it to broil or grill (on an indoor contact grill) a steak, pork chip, or burger patty... and steam some veggies to go with it?  Or throw together a mixed green, kale, or spinach salad?

How hard is it to scramble some eggs, add whatever else is handy...  bell peppers, spinach, onions (YUMMM lots of onions, always) etc... then make a bunch... eat some, save some to heat up another day?

Or make a big batch of tuna mixed with hard boiled eggs, celery, onions, peppers, cukes, or whatever.. and MAYO (NOT miracle whip which has BAD BAD SUGAR in it.)  Mayo is okay (my opinion) although I buy the olive oil kind most of the time.  Miracle Whip is not.. that's a hard pill for some to swallow.. but hey, I made the switch a LONG time ago when I got serious about melting off some pregnancy fat.  The big ol batch of tuna can be dinner, lunch, or a snack.. add some sliced tomatoes on the side.. eat it for several days..  I do.

How hard is it to snack on cheese and cut up veggies?  I LOVE red bell peppers.. they are super sweet and are great to munch on.. I just slice up a bunch and have them handy in the fridge.  Cukes are good too.  I try to limit fruit to once a day, kinda desertie... I steer clear of bananas for the most part, but pears, apples, kiwi, berries.. all make it into my tummy.

Some people like hard boiled eggs.. not me, but I keep them in the fridge for my son and husband to snack on.. easy-peasy.   Or maybe deviled eggs for something a bit fancier?  (and actually CHEAP protein too... even when the price of eggs gets "high".. it's still cheap protein.)

So that is just a brief description of my daily eating pattern when I am at home.  Notice that last part... when I am at home.  When we go out occasionally or have family gatherings, go to our camper on weekends or do whatever else that is out of the routine...   I eat WHATEVER... It keeps me sane.  I don't usually get too crazy, but sometimes I do... Cheetos?  yummy!  French Fries.. ummmmm... 

Now for the EAT-NOTS...  (this list too, is subject to the exceptions listed above as well as occasional times of weekness)... but generally speaking...

I stay away from:

• GRAIN
• SUGAR
• PROCESSED FOOD including all sorts of "quick meals" that come in boxes and frozen packages.

Well, that's it!  Not really so hard.

Less important, I can add that:

• I no longer GUZZLE milk but drink it occasionally.  (I love milk... especially on CEREAL, which of course I don't eat hardly ever!)
• Also, I try to use Stevia as my sweetner of choice on the rare times I need sweetener.  I revert to Splenda on occasion because Stevia just doesn't work in cole slaw and a couple other things that I can't remember right now.
• I rarely drink diet soda.. (or heaven forbid, REGULAR soda, which I have lost my taste for.  (Another day, another story on that one.)

 

As for Booze.. well.. that's for another day too, but there are choices in this department that can be acceptable too... maybe not exactly healthy, but not "fattening"...  I'm not a huge drinker, so it's not at the top of my list.. but I do like do partake every now and then when we're out with friends.

About Me and this Blog...

About me and this blog...

My intention (at this moment) is to make this blog about some of the ways that I have found the low-carb, high-fat way of eating to be beneficial to me AND some tips about how I have implemented it (or some variation of it) for most of my adult life.

Who knows what else I may toss in along the way.  As my friends and family know, when my fingers hit the keyboard, they can be uncontrollable and don't know when to stop.  My brain thinks it and before I know it, my fingers have typed it.

I took journalism all through school starting in the 7th grade.  I was a writer...(a good one)  not a proof reader.  I liked that and adopted it as a way of life.. I no longer have proof readers at my disposal, so I just forget that part... I write.  Period. I always loved grammar in school, but it interfers with my creative juices, so you will just have to overlook run-on sentences, .....'s, and other relatively minor stuff in the major scheme of life.

A little about me.... (for those who don't already know these fascinating details):

• I am 62 years old (last time I calculated it)
• I weigh about 147 pounds.  I am 5'8" tall.  145 is about perfect for me.  140 is too skinny and my face starts to look like an old hag.  150 is when I put the brakes on.  (That's where the low carb thing comes into play)
• I have been married to my husband (duh), Jay for all my life.  (Well, since age 19 however many years ago that was)
• We have 9 kids and yes, I gave birth to them all....  7 out of 9 were born at home including my twins.  Call me pioneer woman... haha..
• I don't work.  (Ask Jay, he will tell you.)  I just do "stuff" around the house including fulfilling my role as family secretary, counselor, loan officer, and maid.
• I let my hair go gray a few years back mostly because I was too lazy to do the upkeep on keeping it brown. Body maintenance...  so much to tend to!  (Especially since my eyebrows have moved to my upper lip and chin.)
• I have lost my brain somewhere along the way...  but I still have bursts of sanity fairly often.
• I like to "think out of the box" and find different and easier ways of doing things.
• I like to do research on a topic that interests me.  I usually remember my conclusion, but often forget all the details and reasons why. 
• We moved from San Diego (where I was born) to Small Town USA, (Fulton Missouri) in 1979 with a group of friends (and four young children, two dogs and two milk goats) to set up a Christian Community (sorta like a commune).  We left there a couple years later, but stayed in Fulton.
• Yes, we are still Christians, but we do not currently go to "church".

This concludes my first post on this blog.

My intention is to write many more in the days to come.  (I do not always carry out my intentions... so I rarely make promises...  to myself or anyone else...)

In future posts I will (probably) get back to my original intention to share more of how and why the low carb, high fat style of eating has been benificial to me over the years.  So if this part has bored you, please don't shut me out yet.

Thanksgiving 2013 - Me and my daughters. We call this "Boots" inspired by me buying my first pair of boots since I was 18 years old. We had intended to take a picture of all of our kids together, ..............but.... can you believe... we forgot!