Newbie Tip #3: More Tracking
It's a rare person who starts out tracking their intake. It's a rare person who reaches their weight loss goals... and never does.
Yeah, I know. We're too busy. The tracking program is too confusing. We read labels so we know the carb count. We multiply the stupid tiny serving size, then subtract the fiber if we are doing net carbs... and that other label said the carb count was zero!
Fact is, if we aren't tracking, we don't know. If we don't know, we can't tweak. And if we don't tweak, we can get stuck. If we get stuck, we give up and gain all the weight back.
So let's start demolishing those excuses:
It's too much trouble. Hey, if you are here, reading this, there's yellow text on the toolbar, above on the right, that reads: My P.L.A.N. That's the site's tracking software. Free. Easy.
You might prefer something like a phone or iTouch app (I use CarbsControl) because it's always with you. I used My P.L.A.N. to figure out recipes, and CarbsControl to enter them as servings; and I input a typical meal in less than a minute! But whatever you use, it's like anything else: the more we use it, the easier it is.
Yes, there's a learning curve, and there's a certain amount of time involved in adding our favorite recipes and meals. But since we tend to eat our favorites over and over, it gets easier and easier. Within a week, we'll have it down to a few minutes out of our day. And it's a skill we always need, isn't it?
But don't I need to just count carbs? Sure, we all start out that way. But the information we get back from tracking can be incredibly valuable in so many ways. In the early days, it gave me information I hadn't realized; like balsamic vinegar is much higher in carbs than the red wine type. And just how much higher in carbs those cashews (really a legume) were, compared to my current fave, almonds (a true nut. Like me.)
But it also reassured skeptical relatives and concerned friends that yes, I was getting all my vitamins (and I was, except D. So I started supplementing.) It let me know that 80% fat seemed to work well for me, and that led me into more Primal eating patterns. Other people find that tracking tells them they actually drop weight better by increasing their carbs a bit.
I know what I'm eating. We're pretty sure that was one third of an avocado. What do you mean, was it a Haas avocado? That guacamole I picked up on the way home... is it really that different from the kind I make at home? Do I really have to bother looking it up online?
Let me tell you; somehow, nobody overestimates the carbs they are taking in, or what's in a meal, or what happens to your takeout dinner when you start taking parts off. These questions may not matter when we are cruising along in Induction or dropping at a steady rate. But the instant we stall, we're going to want to know what to do about it.
I'll just ask the board for help. We're glad to, but we can't help you if we don't know what you're doing. Often the first callout says "I don't get it I'm doing everything right" and we have to pry a typical day's meal from the person we really want to help.
But this doesn't indicate sizes (not too big is not a helpful indicator) and we still don't know the all important ratios.
Are you 70% fat? Are you 25% protein? The first is pretty good, the second, maybe not. You can be under the 20 carbs a day induction limit, or think you are, but if your fat is not high enough, or your protein is too high for your body and activity level; you will stall.
That is because: Guessing is not knowing.
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