Low-carb diets support thread

daska

I know I'm spending more, but there are several reasons for that. Firstly I think our protein intake was way too low. So where we would eat a lot of pasta and rice and seek protein from lentils and beans I'm now having to buy more fish and meat. Secondly I used to bulk buy from approved food so those calories were cheaper than if I'd gone to the supermarket - and approved food really doesn't do much other than carbs. Thirdly I've discovered that a small amount of alcohol (maybe one large shot of vodka a day) is more effective, more pleasurable and has fewer side effects than any of the pain meds the GP has tried me on. So, whilst I'm eating less and buying less 'luxury' snack foods, what I am buying is far more expensive. We're also constrained in that we have to drive to another town if we want to shop anywhere other than the co-op.

confused76

daska wrote: »

confused76 - There are two basic kinds of kefir: milk and water. They look very different but the principle is the same: each is a Scoby (Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast) which you feed with sugared liquid to create a fermented beverage. Milk kefir looks a bit like cottage cheese and is slimy, with the result being akin to skinny yoghurt. Whereas water kefir looks more like stewed apple and gives a tart, fizzy 'almost lemonade without the sugar' result.

Obviously milk comes with it's own sugars, water you add sugar to. (Not honey, the anti-bacterial properties can mess with the scoby.) But they are really simple to keep, they just need minerals to grow and sugar to eat.

Personally I didn't get on with milk kefir but I liked water kefir and love my GBP - which is essentially a refined water kefir. I'd recommend getting it from Jim at http://gingerbeerplant.net/

Edwardia - if you want a starter so you can make your own you could do worse than ask on your local freecycle/freegle.

Thanks for the info about kefir Daska! :T:T:A

he knows what damage the sugar is doing him and he knows how addictive etc it is but he feels just now he is trying to do his best with dealing with the alcohol cravings and not smoking etc so he doesnt feel his head is in the right place to deal with the sugar ... he also freely admits that he has replaced the alcohol addiction with a sugar one

Oh dear Elantan, i know exactly how you feel on this one My brother is an alcoholic, stopped drinking 4 years ago and replaced it straight away with food. He's currently 24 stone. It's so hard to watch him doing this and feeling helpless. He's having therapy at the moment which is a good thing but nothing has changed yet. I know the change has to come from within him and i can't do it for him but it's still hard. I hope your OH finds the strength one day to give it a go xxx

Edwardia

My husband has PTSD and instead of getting help he used alcohol as a crutch until the point where that was a bigger problem than the PTSD. Having gotten to an untenable position as far as I was concerned, I insisted he quit drinking and sought help and he's been seeing a psychologist. It seems to be doing some good, thankfully. He's much more relaxed and affectionate, isn't stuffing food instead and has kept off the booze.

If someone has issues, it's all very well telling them that they should stop drugs, booze and overeating, but the black hole needs to be filled with something non-addictive too.

Edwardia

Going back to the expense..I'm not buying the Dreamfields pasta, Atkins bars, low carb bread, soya flour, almond flour, protein powder, whey, sweeteners, stevia etc either.

Padstow

Edwardia wrote: »

I just don't see how it is more expensive, if you're making changes.

Examples.. instead of dried and fresh pastas, growing basil, tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, Parmesan, tinned ravioli and macaroni cheese I buy no dried or fresh pasta at all..Parmesan, tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, growing basil less often, tinned ravioli and macaroni cheese for OH when he wants them as a change from packed lunches.

Instead of Corn Flakes, Cheerios, Rice Krispies, Special K, Weetabix, Shredded Wheat, Scott's Porage Oats.. just Weetabix (summer) and porridge (winter) for OH.

Instead of Muller Lite and Total Greek yogurts, plus occasional Marron'suis and Jello instant chocolate pudding only buy Yeo Valley organic natural yogurt.

I won't bore you with it all but am buying less food overall though buying more fats, fish, cream and eggs.

D - as we didn't get to go shopping. OH nipped round Tesco Express and got Birds Eye Original beef burgers (no additives listed) which seem to have shrunk since I was a kid.

Padstow - my favourite kippers are Co-op ones or Young's. Which ones did you try ?

Its probably because my net income has taken a nosedive, and it's now I should be eating a jacket potato which I rarely did before if I fancied it, certainly not out of neccessity.

I've never eaten cereals and pasta maybe twice a year, though I did love creamed potato with my cod baked in lemon and herbs. The only time I had carbs in the cupboard was when daughter came to stay and she'd take the remains home with her.
Looking back I ate very well without much thought as to what things cost, as good food was my priority. I'd buy five packs of the best smoked salmon at a time. If anyone called round, they'd get a nice plateful with lemon and black pepper. It's difficult to adjust. God knows how single people on JSA manage to eat properly.

I used to buy Craster kippers from Waitrose fish counter.
These yesterday were dyed bright orange in a boil in the bag from Morrisons. I also bought some fillets from there, not BITB, but they are still dyed! Not sure I can face them now. Surely it must cost more to dye something so why is dyed smoked haddock and kippers cheaper than natural?
Good quality fish is pricey. One portion of line caught cod loin is nearly £4, a dressed crab the same. So my fish at present is frozen salmon from Waitrose, 4 for a fiver I think. Tried Aldi's but prefer my usual.

If I wasn't low carbing, I wouldn't skimp on quality but change the ingredient or dish, say from crab salad to puy lentil salad, or make chilli with veg mince.

I threw the halloumi away from Aldi as it was far too salty, even though I soaked it first. I love it too with a lime, caper, coriander and garlic dressing. I was so looking forward to it.
I daren't make hummus as I know I'll scoff the lot.
I have a treat to look forward to later, avocado and prawns. I also made cream of cauliflower soup with some grated cheddar on top.

Having said all that, I'm not cheating at all, it's just difficult to find good food in my reduced circumstances.

Padstow

Edwardia wrote: »

Lidl sells whole smoked mackerel as well as smoked mackerel fillets and smoked trout fillets.

Personally I'm convinced that we're spending less.

We're eating more fish and therefore less meat. No ready meals. Buying less fruit, fewer cereals, no instant coffee, no diet Pepsi, fewer fruit juices, less bread, no cakes and sweets and biscuits only for OH when he wants them.

Bottom line though, even if it does pan out that we spend more, that's fine. In this household good food is more important than clothes, vacations, huge flatscreen TV, boat, whatever..

You've listed all the things I didn't buy anyway as I don't have a sweet tooth, but you probably stocked them for others as well and I don't have anyone else to consider.
I love smoked trout, unfortunately Lidl is 20 miles away!

elantan

Edwardia wrote: »

My husband has PTSD and instead of getting help he used alcohol as a crutch until the point where that was a bigger problem than the PTSD. Having gotten to an untenable position as far as I was concerned, I insisted he quit drinking and sought help and he's been seeing a psychologist. It seems to be doing some good, thankfully. He's much more relaxed and affectionate, isn't stuffing food instead and has kept off the booze.

If someone has issues, it's all very well telling them that they should stop drugs, booze and overeating, but the black hole needs to be filled with something non-addictive too.

for my husband it was a culmination of things ... digging roads with only a shovel in all weathers constantly being in pain, working in extreme conditions weather, company wise childhood issues, depression, and the feelings he got when drunk ...


he has been going for counselling for over a year now and it really seems to have helped ... and he isnt trying to *fill* any hole anymore ... he has ALWAYS had a great appetite and is one amazingly incredible cook ... however just now he is eating alot of sugar ... he is aware of this and is aware of the weight he has put on ( approx half a stone in a few years) he has dealt with so much in the last year and is still standing ( had a total mental break down culminating in 7.5 months off of work ) tablet issues etc .. the list really goes on

i just hope that when we come home he will tackle his sugar addiction

just now he is making a lovely butter chicken which i am tempted to try

Minihauk

elantan wrote: »

he is aware of this and is aware of the weight he has put on ( approx half a stone in a few years) he has dealt with so much in the last year and is still standing ( had a total mental break down culminating in 7.5 months off of work ) tablet issues etc .. the list really goes on

i just hope that when we come home he will tackle his sugar addiction

just now he is making a lovely butter chicken which i am tempted to try

<<hugs>> elantan. It will all work out. Enjoy your holiday and concentrate on the other stuff when you get back. There is time enough to sort through it all later. Stay strong and stick with it.

Padstow

elantan wrote: »

for my husband it was a culmination of things ... digging roads with only a shovel in all weathers constantly being in pain, working in extreme conditions weather, company wise childhood issues, depression, and the feelings he got when drunk ...


he has been going for counselling for over a year now and it really seems to have helped ... and he isnt trying to *fill* any hole anymore ... he has ALWAYS had a great appetite and is one amazingly incredible cook ... however just now he is eating alot of sugar ... he is aware of this and is aware of the weight he has put on ( approx half a stone in a few years) he has dealt with so much in the last year and is still standing ( had a total mental break down culminating in 7.5 months off of work ) tablet issues etc .. the list really goes on

i just hope that when we come home he will tackle his sugar addiction

just now he is making a lovely butter chicken which i am tempted to try

Arh you, hope he appreciates your support, you sound like a gooden. Why not have the butter chicken and it will please him. (Hope it was good.)
Half a stone in years is nothing that can't be done away with by rowing or similar. Better the choc bars than alcohol.

I've just looked at the SW thread. How do they eat all that and lose weight, or am I missing something?

Frankly if I could, I'd have an Indian tonight, complete with almond paste naan as I hate the food in the house, even the prawns and avocado. I need prepared food as my appetite's gone.
I'm going to buy two Lincolnshire new potatoes from the farm shop tomorrow and have them with home made coleslaw and salmon. I once so low carbed that I couldn't even remember family names and then I saw an article linking low carbs with short term memory loss. Ate some toasted wholemeal and was fine again.
I'm also going back to a thin slice of wholemeal toast every morning, sometimes with marmite or fresh grilled tomatoes. It didn't make any difference to my weight loss and ignites the fat burning fire as it were. Get past no breakfast and I don't eat. One bowl of cauli soup today so far.
Toast, then weight machine from tomorrow. There must be a reason for feeling so down.
I've lost 10 lbs but I can't see it and nor can anyone else, even when prompted!

5 foot 8 and 11st 4 so not an elephant, but need a full 10 inches off my waist to fit clothes in my wardrobe. Only rowing can achieve that.

SHEILA54

Padstow - I made a great curry yesterday and finished it off today. Chicken, carrot, cauliflower, onion, garlic, tomatoes (tin), celery and courgettes with curry spices. It really is very nice and my family enjoyed it as well, with some rice. There is also this recipe for butter chicken from mazzers on the first page
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=21018899&postcount=1241

I admit that some carbs are too high but there is a lot that can be adapted to suit. What are your favourite meals, if you don't cut carbs?