Day 1 Food Log

Day 1...March 28, 2020:

Black coffee, seltzer throughput the day.

4:26 PM...2 poached eggs.
7:22 PM...3 tablespoons proprietary arginine mix.
8:36 PM...3 tablespoons tuna salad (I was making tuna salad and I had to taste it.)
10:15 PM..Approximately 1 lb. ground beef (pre-cooked) and four slices of American Cheese, approximately two tablespoons mayonnaise.

Day 1 Weight Log

Day Minus 6...March 22, 2020...224 lb.
Day 1...March 28, 2020...220 lb.
Note; I seem to have lost 4 lb. leading up to the diet. Mindset/placebo? Routine fluctuation? Both?

Still Three or Four Days Until Start of Diet

Eating leftover corned beef, potatoes and cabbage, and birthday cake. Turkey soup on the menu tomorrow (Sunday.) I am hoping Tuesday will be the start of a weight-loss extravaganza.

In the meantime, I am expanding my cultural horizons. It's not that I dislike Burger King brawls but for some reason, McDonald's fights are so much more entertaining. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our first-ever BK brawl (in this case a news summary of the melee.

For Old Time Sake: McDonalds Fights Compilation

Oh, the joy of yesteryear when this dieter discovered a treasure trove of Golden Arches pugilistic events and shared them with readers of this blog.

Some things never change. Hungry McDonalds patrons are as surly as ever. Don't stand between a McCustomer and an order of fries.

PERHAPS IT IS BETTER THAT THEY DON'T SERVE ALCOHOL

Y'All Ready For A Diet?

I am ready to diet once more. Current weight is about 225 and that includes 10 or so lb. that I packed on in the past couple of months.

2019 was not a good year. Trying to focus on only those matters germane to diet, health and weight loss, I will discuss my two heart ablations that seem to have cured (at least for now) my atrial fibrillation.

The first procedure, performed in March 2019 was a failure. My doctor stated that ablation fails about 5-10 percent of the time and this event fell into that category. I had a second procedure in October and have had zero episodes five months later. More details to follow.

Let me update. On May 19, 2017, I weighed 212 Lb. I lost 24 pounds in 30 days and started piecing together an ebook with the imaginative title: "How I Lost 24 Pound in 30 Days (And You Can Too)."

On June 18, 2017, I weighed 225 pounds. The adlib diet was cruel once more.

There would be several efforts to restart weight loss, but they would all be terminated shortly after onset.The big story was atrial fibrillation. Eliminating this dreaded affliction became an obsession as I obsessed on not obsessing on the matter. Despite that inner voice saying "Don't worry, be happy" I had an episode about every ten days. Each of these attacks would last eight to twelve hours and then I would feel tired afterward.

I eliminated most nutritional supplements on the off chance that one or more might be contributing to my affliction. Then I tried to detect a food consumption that might hqave preceded each episode. The ongoing trial and error exercise preempted any consistent or formal diet. Interestingly, the one substance that seemed to return my heart to a normal rhythm was caffeine. That seemed to work about twenty to thirty percent of the time. More about that later.

In the Summer of 2018 I started the One Meal A Day diet (OMAD.) I had seen ads about the benefits of intermittent fasting and then I ran into a coworker I rarely saw who was now on the OMAD program. I started OMAD the next day and I still practice this habit five to seven times per week.

There will be plenty to say about OMAD but for now, let me say that OMAD by itself is not an effective weight strategy for me. My friend and coworker lost thirty or so pounds but that was not the way it worked for me. I weighed about 230 pounds when I started the diet and maintained that weight until the Spring of 2019 when I shed eighteen pounds.

OMAD is not a failure by any means. For a couple of decades, I have learned how to lose weight and I have learned how to gain weight, but I could not tell you how to maintain a steady poundage for days on end. It was always a pendulum. OMAD helped my reading to flatline for months on end.

I mentioned that I lost 18 pounds in Spring, 2018 and you might ask how I did that. My dietary focus had gone beyond weight loss and was zeroed in on promoting optimum health. Dr. Steve Gundry caught my attention and I read "The Plant Paradox" and "The Longevity Paradox." If you are not familiar with the ideas promoted in these books, let me say that they will probably shake your core beliefs.

I was dubious about both the theory and practice of The Gundry Diet. Years ago, I had tried to become a vegetarian and it was a disaster. What was supposed to bring superior health and boundless energy left me tired and miserable.  Now Gundry was advocating an even narrower plant-based diet. Dubious but intriguing.

Initial research led me to experiement with Gundry's principles. If I felt weak and spent my life on the toilet then I would just have to say good bye to another healthy lifestyle. The initial Gundry dabbling was surprisingly surprising.

Surprise Number 1: I learned to like sweet potatoes.

Surprise Number 2: A diet consisting of leaves, cruciferous vegetables, tree nuts, tubers, and avocado did not leave me craving protein.

Surprise Number 3: I lost eighteen pounds in a few months just experimenting with the Gundry Diet. Compliance was not great. I was not sold on the diet and certainly not committed to its adherence. I just wanted to see if I could stomach and enjoy the recommended foods. The deflab and normal energy piqued my interest.

Surprise Number 4: The Gundry Diet is probably costlier than the Atkins Diet. Protein is expensive but produce is even pricier. By weight, tree nuts are as expensive as seafood and Spring Mix costs more than most meats.

I might have committed to the Gundry Diet and never looked back but unfortunately, it did not eliminate my atrial fibrillation. I had my first ablation on March 18, 2018 and as mentioned, it was deemed a failure. A partial success would have been more accurate. I went from having an episode roughly every ten days to not quite monthly. On the flip side, the new episodes were sometimes more intense and seemed to last longer. At any rate, I drifted away from Dr. Gundry. Sort of.

Dr. Gundry would play a part in a 10-pound weight gain in the Winter of 2020. For about six months, my weight ranged from 214 to 218. I enjoyed the holidays and maintained this comfortable homeostasis loosely following Gundry principles (sometimes) and practicing OMAD most of the time. I read through Gundry once more and TING! Gundry said we can have red wine.
ated. Roughly two to three glasses a night and two months later I put on 10 pounds. In early January, my weight swung between 214 and 218. In early March, my weight ranged from 224 to 228. Wines are on the way out.

So here is the new diet: High protein with one meal per day. I will eat a fleshy dinner every night at around 9:30 PM. I will continue this diet until I cease losing weight and I experience that nasty plateau you have heard about so much. I will try to exercise 3-5 days/week.

The only thing holding up the show now is my consuming all the high carb foods that I already purchased. You don't think I am just going to throw those sweet potatoes in the trash, do you?

Diet launch date is probably three days away.

Am I Losing My Taste For Meat?

I prepared a 4 lb. lamb roast last night. I overcooked it a little bit but still a pretty tasty proposition was placed on the table.

One reason I overcooked the lamb is because I was distracted with the roasted sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips, celery, pecans, mushrooms, broccoli and string beans. A big challenge that some cooks never master is ensuring that everything, all food items, are done at the same time. To lodge an excuse, I am still trying to figure out how much time is needed to roast each of the aforementioned foods.

Nonetheless, the lamb was still tasty and there was a time when I would have eaten one to two pounds of that wondrous animal flesh. One of the biggest surprises of the One Meal A Day Plan is that when I do settle down to eat, my appetite disappears. When I eat my first meal at 8 PM, I consume fewer calories than I would had I eaten breakfast and lunch.

I ate about four oz. lamb and a plate of roasted vegetables. Despite being the first meal of the day, I could barely finish it. The lamb was the hardest thing to get down. Maybe I should rejoice that my appetite has decreased but I am already starting to miss my old friends.

The Diet Daredevil Has Retruned! Or He Will Be Returning Shortly. We Hope

Last Post was 9/23/17.

What happened weightwise?
What happened dietwise/
What happened healthwise?

Let's start with the health because I believe it affected the other two more than vice versa squared. Or something like that.

I interrupted my weight loss efforts because atrial fibrillation eclipsed all else. For a couple of years I tried to figure out the root cause as well as any possible triggers for a-fib. Double failure.

As I have stated before, I do not believe gradual weight loss is effective for most people most of the time. This viewpoint challenges conventional wisdom but conventional wisdom is often more the former than the latter. Yes, I know of people who dropped 20 lb. by "just giving up soda" or some other glaringly bad habit. But if one no longer has a bad dietary habit to shed and their weight either flatlines or increases, what then?

Weight loss only works for me if I jump in face first. Record weight every day. Record every calorie consumed. Record all supplement consumption. Record steps and exercise routine. Record subtle and significant changes in health. Without this attention to detail, I seem to lose my way.

A-fib was (I hope I can speak of it in the past tense) more than a distraction. It consumed my attention more than I thought possible. Other people might have found a diet that eliminated the a-fib. I did not. Other people might have been able to continue to lose weight while enduring the unpredictability of atrial fibrillation. Not me. Bad health was a diet disruptor.

As I have mentioned elsewhere, I know how to gain weight and I have learned how to lose weight but I have a problem maintaining any given weight. If I eat like the people around me, and it does not seem to matter who those people might be, I will put on at least a pound per month, possibly more.

There is a positive development in this department, I am happy to report that I seem to have found a weight maintenance stratagem that is working for me. OMAD, aka One Meal A Day. Since July 2018 I only eat once a day.

Yes, I wanted to lose weight on the OMAD plan and my friend who sold me on the deal lost twenty to thirty pounds. Then again, he was not on heart meds with the dreaded weight gain side effect. Despite the stingy scale, OMAD has been worthwhile for a multitude of reason.

OMAD has taught me how to function on fewer calories and more importantly, with fewer meals.

OMAD has made me reconsider the merits of fasting.

OMAD might be helpful when combined with tactics that have worked for me in the past.

OMAD has become a habit. It is my norm and I usually comply 5-7 days a week.

One way I initially rationalized OMAD is by allowing myself anything at that one meal. One Meal A Day became One Feast A Day. Going on and off high calorie diets for over fifteen years left me with an avenging sweet tooth.

Understand, I did not miss sweets at all in my hipro days. Then in 2017 I lost 24 Pound In 30 Days and the agreement (with myself) was that I could eat anything I wanted at the conclusion of the diet. With the confidence that I could now lose weight whenever I needed to, I was reintroduced to dessert.

My old friend, Mr. Potato (not to be confused with Mr. Potato Head who had never been all that friendly to me)  returned and so did Mr. Barley. Rice and beans were off every diet that worked as were pizza and pasta and bread. They all returned like swallows to Capistrano.

With no restrictions beyond OMAD, My weight has stayed around 230 lb., give or take 5 lb., since last July. In preparation for THE NEXT DIET I have cut back on potatoes (a deadly nightshade, a subject I only recently approached) bread and desserts. Not one to throw food away, I intend to clean out my fridge by eating its contents prior to starting my next diet.Got a corned beef  and a lamb roast awaiting me. The only remaining sweet things are small amounts of chocolate. Pretzels, potato chips, corn chips, Fritos--the food group that I love ever so dearly--has been reduced to a half bag of potato chips. Chomp chomp chomp and then it is Diet On!

Two more ideas as to why I maintained instead of losing on OMAD. One, I drank my coffee with a small amount of Half-N-Half, possibly nullifying the benefits of intermittent fasting. I doubt if this was significant. Half-N-Half is low in sugar and I used it sparingly. Still, I will eliminate it on THE NEXT DIET.

Secondly, I sometimes drank caffeinated beverages that contained artificial sweeteners. I have always been put off by the technophobic/ pseudoscientific/Luddite/neopuritan/vast corporate conspiracy/ knee jerk reaction to all things Nutra-Sweet and her not so sweet cousins. If you really want to get on my bad side, please inform me that aspartame is a chemical. To which I reply "As opposed to what?"

Yes, most of the allegations were ridiculous but there are a couple of angles I did not consider. One, they tell me that artificial sweeteners can fool the body into thinking it is consuming something sweet and cause the body to react in much the same way as if it had consumed a Twinkie.

The reason why I rejected that is because aspartame does not taste sweet to me. It tastes like aspartame. More of a flavor mask than a flavor agent. It could make the unpallatable easy to swallow. Over time, I preferred Coke Zero to Coke but I never thought of Coke Zero as sweet.

Dr. Steven Gundry claims that artificial sweeteners destroy beneficial gut bacteria. I cannot dispute this and I have not heard anyone else dispute this so for now, I will take it as fact. Starting the new diet, I will find an alternative caffeine delivery system.

On March 18 I underwent a heart ablation. The staff told me that my heart might act worse before it starts acting better. They also said they needed six to eight weeks to gauge success. The new diet will commence at about the six week stage.

Stay tuned.