Headaches, Stalled Weight Loss, Terrible Sleep -- But Keeping the Faith

I've had this dull headache on and off for 8 days (today is the morning of the 9th day so I'm not counting it as a full day). I first attributed it to my body adjusting to zero caffeine -- I gave up caffeine and soda in 2014 but in the last 6 months have been having soda on and off). I now believe it's an adjustment to going back to Paleo.

First, what you all want to know: I've lost 6.6 lbs (a couple of days ago I had lost 7 but I gained some back). I pretty much stagnated on day 4-6 (~5lbs lost), drop 2 lbs on day 7 and have maintained again. I was hoping for the 14lb loss in 2 weeks that I experienced in 2014 but no such luck. Fun fact, though -- in 1998 I first did the Atkins lifestyle and I weighed myself every day at the gym. The scale was not budging. One day I went into the gym and the scale was 10lbs lighter. I kid you not. I thought it was a fluke -- water weight or something -- but sure enough it stayed 10lbs lighter and continued to drop slowly after that. I am hoping for this miracle again.

Second, let me tell you what Paleo means to me:

• I err on the side of caution and avoid food I think might be in any of these categories. For me, simple is easier and I am blessed with being content with the same food over and over.
• No sugar AT ALL -- no yogurt, frozen yogurt, artificial sweetener, any processed foods with sugar, etc. It's EVERYWHERE.
• Very few processed foods. This is the hardest because anything you buy that's cooked for you is bound to have some processed ingredients from the flavoring. I buy Market Basket buffalo wings and I'm willing to bet the buffalo sauce has preservatives. Even spice blends have preservatives! Look on your bottle! I actually have made my own taco and chicken wing seasonings since 2014 because they are preservative free (and taste bananas). 
• Speaking of bananas, I don't eat fruit because of the sugar content. At some point, when my weight is under control I will add back fruit. I do love me some fruit smoothies. 
• No starch or anything with a high glycemic index, such as white potatoes. For now sweet potatoes are also off the list too, although once weight goals are achieved I may add them back (I only eat them once in awhile anyway). 
• No legumes, grains or dairy because they can cause autoimmune problems (inflammation inside the body) without you even realizing it (gut problems, metabolic issues, skin problems like psoriasis). Even if I am not affected I am taking no chances because it's just not hard for me to give them up.

So if you google headaches and paleo you will see a lot of results that cite the "low carb flu" as the culprit. I didn't dig in too much but it makes sense and since I can't ever be sure of the cause I'm going with it. Apparently as you go cold turkey off carbs your body has to re-regulate metabolically and during this re-regulation you can get extra tired and with a side of headaches.

It's true -- I am extra tired and have had a dull headache every day, usually in the morning or during the night. Also apparently I can ease the headaches by drinking more water. It's true -- I have been drinking only about 2 liters a day. I probably need 3 liters. As far as being tired, I can't be sure this is the switch to strict paleo as I have 3 cats who take turns waking me up all night long. I imagine it's like having a baby that never grows up. I haven't had a good night's sleep at home in about 8 years (I've had them 16 years but they weren't always jerks).

So it all sounds like crap, doesn't it? I mean, WHY am I doing this if I am experiencing headaches and am so sleepy all the time? Well, because I've done it before and I know it works for me. Also, because I very rarely crave junk food like frozen yogurt or chips or diet soda. In fact, only once have I craved any junk and I pulled into the parking lot and sat in my car debating the merits of going in and buying it. I decided against it. There were so many cons and in the past the one pro (because I WANT it!) would have won out. But this time, it didn't. I was freakin' proud of myself! And later I was grateful because I really didn't even want it in retrospect.

I was just bored. And how many of us eat or drink crap as entertainment? 

Paleo Reboot with Fast-5 Fasting

Something Had to Change to Prepare me

Three days ago I began another 30 day Paleo challenge. This time I'm upping my game to include Fast-5 Fasting. I completed my previous 30 day Paleo challenge in January of 2014 with amazing results. I lost 15lbs, yes, but the most miraculous thing was that my aching joints no longer ached -- this, without exercising regularly. I was floored. And then I blew it and started eating ice cream again. Frozen yogurt actually. Kemps to be exact.

I then began working at a job I loved and that simultaneously took over my life. I was solely responsible for all of our customers and I worked 14-16 hour days and several hours each weekend. There were times I pulled all-nighters to finish projects because I didn't have time during the day while constantly interacting with customers. I got used to it. It became normal for me. But it was at the expense of everything else, including my health.

Something had to change. Ultimately I left my job and started my own coaching business which freed up time and energy to take notice of my life and make some changes. I made several attempts, backed by great motivational energy, only to watch each fizzle quickly. I tried being accountable and muscled through my commitments only to backslide immediately. "Why was I doing this to myself?" I wondered.

It was only when I began working on healing myself through a modality called Somatic Experiencing that I began to feel an internal shift. It wasn't miraculously causing me not to overeat or choose poorly -- that had become a habit -- but it gave me the strength and energy I needed to change that habit. I felt like a sculpture, where pieces of my protective, but outdated self, were dropping off and I began feeling more alive. It sparked hope that I could not only control my actions but actually transform who I was so I no longer sabotaged my health. I was so moved by this that I immediately signed up for a 3-year certification in Somatic Experiencing and now use it extensively in my coaching, but that's a different story and you can read more about that on my website (launching soon - I will retroactively update this post).

The reason I bring this backstory up is because food was actually serving and protecting me, and I was trying to get rid of it. That's why I was failing. Deep down I didn't want to be rid of it. Food had become my coping mechanism and I wasn't respecting the work it was doing for me. With the healing I had begun and continue to do, I am now ready to remove it as a coping strategy. This is important. If anyone reads this and gets a burst of motivation to do this challenge it's important you know what your body reaches for when it feels unsafe, stressed, threatened, angry, lonely, anxious, tired, overworked, excited, etc. If it's food and you don't have an alternate, you may not be ready to complete this challenge. And that's okay.

I feel able to complete this challenge because of the healing I've already done and will continue to do, a rediscovery of reading for fun -- one of my new coping mechanisms -- and watching a lot of TV shows. I look at the three of those things and realize that last one is not healthy for me, but I also am wise enough to know I still need it. Maybe a future challenge, when I'm ready, will be to give up TV for a month. Whoops, my chest just got tight at the thought...

Now, let's get into the details...

My Plan

I know myself -- I am most successful in completing something if I'm curious and strict. I like knowing that I have yet to learn what I will notice when doing a strict challenge. I like challenges to be black and white. No wiggle room. No cheat days. No "close enough". If I have wiggle room, it will cause me to spiral down. A cheat day will turn into a cheat year. Wiggle room taints the results for me. 

My plan is to be strictly paleo and to eat within one 5-hour window each day and go to bed at 10pm (asleep by 10:30). I am combining paleo with a program called Fast-5 Fasting. This is the only area where I'm giving myself some leeway. I will aim for 3pm - 8pm but know that social engagements may dictate I start earlier. In each case, I will keep it to 5 hours. 

I may make mistakes. I imagine there may be times when I revert back to using food as a way to quell anxiety. I may give in and have breakfast. I may go out with friends and stay out until, gulp, 11pm! I will forgive these mistakes and move on. Any correlations will be included as part of my findings as I did in 2014. This time in addition to weight, I am tracking mood and skin. I may also dabble in measuring my body but that just feels like work so probably not.

Why Blog?

A lot of people will set out on a health journey and blog to be accountable. I have found that being accountable to other people doesn't work for me. It actually just adds to my stress and shame and ultimately makes me more prone to fail. However, I love data analysis and am thrilled when I can help someone else be inspired. I get excited when I think about sharing my results at the end of this 30 days and that is why I'm publishing a blog. Keeping a blog helps me keep my reasons at the forefront. I may write daily, I may write weekly or something in between. I hope you enjoy!

What I've noticed so far

As I said, today is the morning of day 3.

• I've lost 5.1lbs or 18% of my total weight loss goal of 28 pounds. Weight loss always happens super quickly for me in the first 2 weeks of a strict program. 
• I've had a very faint headache on and off for the entire 3 days. I gave up caffeine in 2014, sort of. I almost never drink caffeinated coffee. I also gave up all beverages but water or soda water and only had soda when I went out to eat. But in the last 6 months or so I started drinking diet soda in bursts until there was a danger of it becoming a habit. Most soda has caffeine. I think I am going through withdrawal. It is not nearly as bad as what I went through in 2014. OMG!
• I was mellow and slightly moody on day 1. It also coincided with a somatic experiencing session I had where a lot of anger surfaced. Then I had to have about 10 conversations with myself about why I was not going to get a decaf coffee with sugar-free vanilla and cream from McDonald's. I finally was able to convince myself the rib-eye steaks and asparagus Bryan was cooking for us later would be my focus. It worked each of the 10 times I tried to justify having a coffee or the insides of the breakfast sandwich (no bread, but sausage is soooo processed). 
• On day 2 my mood was calm and good.
• I have noticed I'm tired at night. This is a good thing. 
• I am proud of myself. :) This is the best part so far and what I need most. 

15 Pounds in One Month

Not to give away the ending, but the title says it all. Despite gaining weight several times on this plan through no fault of the plan, I still lost a net weight of 15 pounds. Here's my progress below:

As you can see, weight loss is incredibly fast when you first start. My guess is that any drastic change in your eating habits from food that includes a portion of unhealthy items to a healthy diet will cause rapid weight loss in the first 2 weeks. No big surprise there, right? What was interesting and eye opening for me was how sensitive my body was to straying from healthy eating. Any time I ate more than I needed or the wrong foods (party!) I saw a pattern of regaining weight. I suspect, but will confirm in February and March that my lack of muscle mass increases my sensitivity to variables. In February I'll start rebuilding muscle mass that I've lost over the last year or two and in March I suspect my body will catch up to its new metabolism to test the sensitivity level.

Overall, I'm really happy with all of my results because I feel so much better. My body aches are completely gone, I sleep very well most nights and I'm far less susceptible to external forces dictating my mood or attitude. I also have found that I"m more social. For those of you who don't know, I'm an introverted personality which means I get my energy from recharging alone, unlike extroverts who recharge by being around people. Small talk can zap my energy, whereas deep conversations thrill me. I've noticed that my rate of depletion is much slower now.

My only disappointment is that when I got bronchitis Paleo didn't protect me from about 10 days of awful coughing. Boo! I realized later that I actually had sugar and preservatives every time I had cough medicine for those 9 days. Ooops.

Some of you who decide to try Paleo may find something else quite disappointing: You may lose your favorite treats forever, and not in a way you might think. Today is Feb 1 and it's my official cheat day but I found I didn't really want anything. Yet, I was curious so I did go and buy my favorite frozen yogurt: Kemps. I'll admit, I had 2 bowls today, but I really didn't enjoy them that much. They tasted odd and I thought "If I'm going to have a treat I want to love it and I'm just not loving this". Later I had a Sam Adams Boston Lager and it tasted really bitter. It reminded me of trying coffee for the first time and disliking it. I bet if I keep eating Kemps and keep drinking Sam Adams I'll like them again but why bother training my taste buds to like that crap again. I'm not saying I won't indulge but I think I'll be much choosier when I do. Nothing but quality for this gal!

See you in February.

Partying on Paleo

Hey Readers,

When I first started Paleo I knew I'd have an official cheat day on the 17th - Bryan's Holiday Party! His company throws a pretty good party with excellent pre-mixed drinks, open bar, fresh seafood, meats and cheese apps and for dinner, carving stations with sides. From the moment we walked in I had a manhattan-style drink in my hand and later finished up with Kentucky Bourbon beer. For those of you who have not tried this beer it's a must. Even beer-haters like this beer.

I'll get right to how much I cheated:

Alcohol: Check! I had 3 stiff, overpoured drinks and 2 beers. That's a lotta calories and a lot of lowered inhibitions.
Appetizers: I stuck to seafood and sliced meats mostly because not much else appealed to me.
Dinner: Roast beef and ham with some salad. The dressing is not paleo.
Dessert: Bryan made me do it.

Overall I don't feel like I overindulged with food. In fact, I got a bunch of little delicious dessert balls and didn't finish them. I walked right out with Bryan to go home and left perfectly good dessert balls on a plate, sitting on a bench! On the other hand, I definitely did with alcohol. At one point I was so happy about having cocktails that I thought it was a good idea to post that I might be hungover on Facebook. Dumb things we do when drinking. And yes, I was hungover (only a headache).

Did I gain weight? HELL YES! Whoever invented cheat days should take it back. I don't believe in them! At least not when you're in the process of trying to lose weight and happen to also be out of shape. The weight did come on over the next two days so my conclusion (FOR ME) is that a cheat day will make me gain weight every time and slow down my progress. I gained 2lbs over the next 2 days and then started losing again. Now, you'll see this in the end when I chart my weight loss, but since I first slipped up and accidentally overate until I got back down to the same weight, it took 12 days. I slipped up twice and purposely cheated once. So yeah, I'm not going to say I can never cheat, but I sure do pay a price.

But wait! There's more!!

Here my caveat: I happen to know for a fact that if I am in great physical shape, meaning my muscle mass is high and I'm fit and strong, I can go weeks eating out of control without gaining or even seeing a difference. So the sensitivity to cheating on Paleo is, I believe, based on the fact that right now my bodyhas lower than normal muscle mass so I can't "absorb" irregularities in food intake. I'll prove that theory out in February (actually I'll start before then, but that's the official month's experiment - effects of exercise with Paleo).

Coming this February....Suzanne starts moving her bum.

Let the Weight Gain Begin!

Hey Readers,

Yes, it's been a few days. Writing daily is not quite working out with work (which has been CRAZY BUSY). When I last left you I was getting a migraine. Yup, it turns out it was a migraine. Now before y'all go blaming Paleo for that,  I have been the unhappy recipient of migraines since the 6th grade when I got one in Mrs. Graffum's class. However, here's something that's never happened before: I didn't get an aura warning me that I was getting a migraine. For me, auras are a signal to take Excedrin, get home, shut the blinds and wait to get through it. Since I thought it was from office lighting/air I didn't take anything until I'd been home for about 30 minutes. Well, that migraine was fairly miserable and lasted awhile because of that delay in getting meds.

Okay, back to Paleo - Thursday I read a review of the top X diets of 2013 and Paleo was last on the list. The summary was basically that, yes, it works, but so does any diet where you eat less calories. My first reaction was that I eat as much as I want! Then I calculated what I'd ate the night before: Probably about 8 ounces of pork tenderloin and 3 chicken thighs with zucchini, onions, tomatoes. Come to estimate that it's not really that many calories after all! This theory was further proved out Friday morning when I gained weight instead of losing. You see, I went out to dinner Thursday night and ordered chicken and broccoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts. I drank soda water. Everything is on the approved list, but what I did was allow an old mentality to creep in. I paid $14 for that chicken dish and so I ate more than I needed. I was full once I ate about half but I ended up eating about 3/4 or more. THEN I came home and wanted a treat so I ate a big slice of turkey ham. That didn't hit the spot so I had about 8 cashews (the same ones I said I wasn't going to eat anymore). The next night I had Boston Market and was full after eating the drumstick and a bit or two from the breast. I continued to eat because it was IN FRONT OF ME and because I PAID FOR IT!

Well I sure did pay for it. I went from losing 2lbs a day to gaining back about 1.5 lbs in two days. What's the lesson here? Well, actually it's a big win for me! I figured out a mentality that doesn't serve me well and I nipped it in 2 days because of how much more aware I am mentally and physically about how I am treating my body. WOO HOO! That's cause for celebration! I think I'll have a soda water with lime.

PS - I will post a timeline of my weight at the end of the 31 days.

9 Pounds in 8 Days! If I wasn't me, I wouldn't believe it either!

Hey Readers,

I'm back with a recap of the last couple of days. First, I lost 2 pounds a night for the last two nights. I wake up excited to get on that scale, I tell ya! But I have also learned something: Hot sauce doesn't sit well with me. I had it last night and I had it the night of the Tacos and the day that followed each, I had softer, lighter stool. I don't exactly love telling you all of this but I do it for science. After all if one of you decides to try this out, I want you to have the straight poop. See what I did there? :)

I think my caffeine headaches have gone away, but I do happen to have a whopper of a headache right now that started around 3pm at work. I blamed it on fluorescents and around 4:30 asked my boss to leave early and finish the day at home. I figured the ride home and freezing air would help. It didn't. Neither did Ibuprofen. And now I have to admit this feels just like it does when I have a mild migraine. I wonder if I'll throw up later. Fun!

Going back to the positive, I feel like I am not clenching my jaw as much or maybe not at all. I used to catch myself, fully awake, clenching. It was usually when I was concentrating or thinking about something. I haven't been catching myself doing that lately and I think it's due to giving up caffeine. I say this because I found this site where a whole bunch of people posted symptoms and one of them was muscle aches. I think the book I read on Paleo said something about muscle related pain going away. Oh, crap. I don't know where I read it, but I did! Honest!!

Okay, I have to go lay down now and hope this headache leaves me soon. Take care Readers.

Do You Recognize Your Poop?

Hey Cave Clan (too silly?)

I came home from work feeling so happy today! Let's review:

• I was stuck behind a slow car for most of the commute and as soon as it moved, I sped up for about 500 feet until a giant wide load trailer pulled out in front of me. The commute sucked.
• I walked into the office 10 minutes late to the wonderful aroma of coffee. Meh.
• I had 7 back to back meetings from 10 to 5 (I'm including lunch) so I stayed until about 7:30 to finish up some things. 
• I had to stop at the grocery store to grab some chicken to cook because I didn't plan ahead and defrost any. 
• My car didn't drive up to me like I wanted it to. When I left the building I had to walk to IT.

Most other days I'd be annoyed. Today I wasn't. I didn't even get home until 8:20 or so and still enjoyed cooking my dinner, telling Bryan about my day, eating my dinner, watching a little TV, and snuggling with Bryan. And now, I'm writing my blog. I'm in a great mood. Is it from eating Paleo? Who knows? I'll see if this becomes a trend. 

A few updates:

Food: We made tacos last night and they were SOOOO delicious. We used this recipe from The Fittest Fat Phat Girl's site to make the taco seasoning. What a great name. I wish I'd thought of it. Then we made homemade guacamole: Mash up two avocados and add homemade pico de gallo, sprinkle a little cumin and salt and YUM! Bryan makes the best pico by dicing red onions, tomatoes, jalapenos, garlic, lime juice and cumin. It is TO DIE FOR! We use it standalone, in the guac and to cook with eggs. Addictive, I tell you. Oh, but don't worry, we didn't use tacos, we used iceberg lettuce. With the first bite we noticed the lettuce overpowered it so we sprinkled hot sauce on it and BOOM (not BAM!) it made it perfect. 

Headache: I woke up with no headache so I was pretty psyched about that. Today was my first day back in the office since I started and I was looking forward to a headache free day. Well, it didn't last long. By 10ish I started to feel it and I had it all day. Excedrin rescued me. Hey, I know there's caffeine in it, but I gotta work! The good news is that it was much milder than the other days. I was chatting with a couple of my coworkers about Paleo and giving up caffeine and one of them told me it took his wife 3 weeks to get it completely out of her system. Strangely enough, that comforts me. 

Slept pretty well last night except for when Kitty woke me up at 5:45am. I went back to sleep until my alarm went off with no issues. I seem to be falling asleep faster because I don't really remember it. You know how you wake up and you're like "Oh! It's morning" rather than "Uh, I was up until 1am last night!"? It's nice. 

Poop: I took a picture to show you all. Just kidding. I did find this poop link though. Do you recognize YOUR poop? BTW, the inner workings do seem to be getting better but it's early yet. Taking probiotics and magnesium daily. 

Finally, my weight: I decided to go naked because ensuring the clothes are the same weight is not easy when you have to leave the house and go to work like an adult. The first 5 days I was pretty much wearing leggings and a t-shirt, which, btw, doubles as my pjs. Soon it will triple as workout gear. So I estimate I've lost 4-5lbs so far but can't be sure so we'll officially start counting down today: Since I DO have a goal weight I know that I Have 20.3lbs to go. Tomorrow I hope I land below 20lbs. Maybe I should start a betting pool.

PS: Sorry for the misleading title. I bet you looked though. ;-)

Time to get my quality sleep now. Night night Readers.