How my body (and mind) has changed with the change in fuel (food)

It has now been 3 months since I came out of the cardiologists rooms clutching Diet Sheet1 and the receipt for the $250 it cost me (so I had incentive to try it!).  In fact I need to pay my last $127 this arvo, so good advice isn't cheap.

I've lost about 8 kg over say 12 weeks.  But the most important things are the feel of the body, less fat, more muscle, harder feel across stomach, more resilient.  Fitness work has gone ahead quite successfully with not too much trouble, so the fuel seems very adequate.  This is despite the hassles and loss of sleep associated with the scabies outbreak and massive itching etc.  The digestion has changed, for one thing my poo now floats (I remember this seemed to be very important years ago with things like the Pritikin diet, not sure if it really matters but it is quite noticeable).  Farting went through an initial upsurge, but has settled unless I have heaps of baked beans, chickpeas etc in a particular day.  In the first fortnight I seemed to have some bloating but now that has gone.

Mentally I seem to have changed my attitude to food much more fundamentally than with a diet.  I don't need to keep losing weight at this stage but am in no hurry to add more than 4 or 5 serves of bread, cereals, rice etc a week to my diet (weight is steady now).  I look forward to them eg a serve of brown rice is great with tomato-based pasta sauce; Bakers Delite capeseed loaf 3 toast slices spread with vegemite is good bushwalking lunch.  But no urge at all to break into cakes, slices , muffins etc like before.  I have to make sure to add a bit of oil to things rather than in past always having too much (I now use olive oil and if no cooking involved, like salads, use cold pressed flaxseed oil).  I'd gone off chocolate for a year or 2 but now the odd small block of sugar free, high cocoa, maybe some added berry is nice but not setting me off on a sugar frenzy.  I like my vegies and fruits.  I love fat free yoghurt, coffee bag coffee with soy milk, tea with skim milk.

Take yesterday, I came home from milking, had a bowl of potato and leek soup that I had made before milking (just potatoes, water, massell chicken style stock powder, leeks lightly fried in some olive oil, potatoes blended in their cooking water before added to leeks) ; went for a run in the last of the daylight and then wanted dinner.  The fire was going so the oven was hot, put 3 flat mushrooms in baking dish on baking paper with some olive oil under and inside each plus an over spray of olive oil.  Got a bunch fresh asparagus and steamed on stove top.  Microwaved a pack of ready to heat Peking Duck from supermarket.  Chopped 2 tomatoes on dinner plate, added mushies, asparagus, duck and its fat free sauce, drizzled on a little sweet soy suace and a bit of BBQ sauce.  A dinner to die for.

Then while watching The Mentalist, baked 8 granny smith apples on baking paper in oven with cores out and a few golden raisins in each plus a sprinkle of cinnamon.  Result : plenty of cooked apples ready to have one warmed in microwave this morning with 200g Tamar Valley fat free yoghurt, and a drizzle honey and a splash soy milk.  Perfect breakfast with the cup of tea to keep me going from 5.30 am till I get home from milking 10.30 am.  Got home from milking, made cup of tea with skim milk, had plate with 2 just-ripe sliced bananas with drizzle honey.  Did some jobs around place etc, made cup coffee with coffee bag, soy milky lite soy milk and a sprinlkle equal.  Had with my MABCs ie 4 almonds, 4 cashews, 2 brazil nuts and 4 macadamia nuts.  Can crave the nuts, sometimes have quite a few more.

Now been for short run (to paint the start and finish lines for hill section and stride section, 6.16 km in 1:03) so heating last of leek and potato soup for lunch.  Will probably make pumpkin soup for tea to have with some capeseed bread after our run with Harriers.

Pumpkin soup is a good sized Jap pumpkin, peeled and boiled in about 8 litres water, massell chicken style stock powder, a couple of onions, a couple of potatoes, blended up when cooked.  Bok choy and tofu soup is great hot or cold, bunch of bok choy, pack of tofu chopped, massell chicken stock powder and its great.  Addition of a can baked beans or chickpeas works well.

It all tastes great and fresh and varied.  Baked veggies like turnips and onions and tomatoes are wonderful, never seem to run out of ideas.  Hardly ever have to rersort to baked bean standbys now, but still like them if needed.

Partner eats the soups, many of the veggies, but has a steak or chicken snit or pork chops etc as the "hearty" component.  He is immune to weight gain and fat.  Can eat anything.  Likes fried food and white bread rolls.  Saved by naturally light appetite.