1. Major foot problems and major surgery last September which has taken about a year to get 90% recovery and to be able to start walking a mile to two each day.
2. High cholesterol levels and a push by my Family doc to go on his recommended diet of high complex carbs and minimal meat.
I went from walking at least a mile a day to minimal walking. In 6-8 months, I gained over 40 pounds and didn't feel good, and I was hungry most of the day.
Then, I started reading the medical literature and talking to others, who had been where I had been and was. Those who went on a paleo diet or a modified Atkins diet lost weight and kept it off. Over the decades everyone we know who have been on the expensive diet plans or on their own have been on weight gain/loss see saws. Usually in a couple years, they have regained their original weight loss and a lot more. Plus they are/were miserable and hungry most of the time.
In July, I started a modified Paleo diet with good meat, smoked sockeye salmon for breakfast and ocean sockeye or king salmon for dinner with a protein from chicken, beef or pork for lunch.
One of our younger relatives is a great bow hunter, and he has kept us supplied with elk, deer and wild/feral pig. These meats are very satisfying and 5-6 ounces make a very satisfying meal.
I charcoal a 1# pork tenderloin about once a week, and we eat a lamb chop about ever 2 weeks. Salmon is still our main protein with chicken a couple a times a week. We have elk/deer/wild pig a couple of times a week, If possible, I charcoal our meats, game,fish, chicken and vegetables. If I can't my wife fixes a combo veggie/meat or fish tray in her convection oven.
My wife has a good mini garden, we have a wonderful SE Asian family that sells fresh fruits, berries and veggies. I eat their produce several times a day.
Bread with the 20-50 ingredients has been eliminated. I eat about two whole grain thin buns a day.
I eliminated my 1-2 micro beers a day and replaced it with about 4-6 ounces of local red wine. That and not eating the great tasting local breads were the toughest challenges at first. Now it isn't a problem, and we keep good micro beer in our frig for relatives and friends who like a good beer.
Oleo was replaced by real butter. I eat 4-6 local farm raised eggs a week. Sometimes my wife will hard boil some eggs, and they become an afternoon snack, if I want a snack.
For desert we have a 80 to 90% dark chocolate 1-2 oz mini bar and of course the wonderful fruit, and a small bowl of ice cream about 2 every two weeks.
I gave up Cheerios, granola bars and other carbs that were supposedly healthy. I now eat the excellent local corn 3-6 times a week and if no corn, small new potatoes, again from a local grower. The corn sugar replacements are avoided like a plague.
After the second week, I have never been hungry enough that a handful of walnuts with a small serving of yogurt or a hard boiled egg didn't tide me over. I, also, buy local made jerky for the days pre or post honey dos.
In two weeks I had dropped twenty pounds and got back to walking again. A couple of weeks after walking again, I lost another 10 pounds. The weight loss has helped me to walk with minimal if any discomfort. I'm increasing my walking distance each week and adding more hill climbing each week.
After two months of this routine, my weight loss is slower now. I'm still losing 1-2 #’s per week, and I have lost the 40# gained pre and post foot surgery.
This August, I had a complete lab workup. Most levels of fat measurement are down 30 to 50%. This was after about a month of my diet and exercise programs.
My C-Reactive Protein, a cardiac event predictor was down to .16. The C-Reactive Protein test measures the levels of inflammation in our blood. High levels of inflammation are probably better predictors of a heart attack than the so call high levels of fats.
My heart rate was down from the mid to high 80s to 70 with a good bp.
I also had an Echo Cardiogram. Last year I had a new murmur, and my new cardiologist wanted an Echo again in a year.
He couldn't find the murmur with the new results. He was at a loss to explain. Now instead of a new Echogram each year, I will get one in two years. He will see me in a year, and if I continue with my trend that will go to every two years. He tried to sell me on a statin and failed.
I will be 76 in a few months, and I feel better than I have in over a decade.
With the exception of a serious reduction of carbs, my diet is what my RN wife calls, one of moderation.
My goal is to eat more like folks did in the 50s - include fats, don’t worry about meat, and reduce portions to amounts that keep me functioning until it is time to eat again.
I find eliminating most of the breads and pasta and sugars works well for reducing cravings. My weight is down, my pant sizes are down, I’m running further and not getting headaches. My blood pressure has dropped to a lower level than I got using 160 mg of Micardis.
I don’t worry about eating carbs, but I limit my portions to much smaller than typical of Americans. I eat any meat or veggies I want, with a pat of butter on my veggies. The number of calories I take in has gone down without the headaches and cravings I had before.
If this is ‘bad’, so be it! Why would we be shocked that the US Government has gotten it wrong?