In part one of this series I suggested the following strategies:
- Eliminate sugar/flour containing foods.
- Do not snack.
- Eat three meals, 5 – 6 hours apart throughout the day.
- Eat real food (unprocessed).
- Fast for 12 hours over night.
I could practically hear your eyes rolling as you slammed your laptop shut.
Yeah right. Just don’t snack. Just eat real food – as in prepare and cook three meals a day for my picky-eater kids and pizza loving partner. I am walking the tightrope of life – balancing career and family. Have you seen my schedule? And fast for 12 hours. Might as well add train for an ironman triathlon to the mix. BAH!
Insanity.
Yeah, I thought so too.
Until I experienced the brain clarity and incredible energy producing impact of those changes. Our brain loves the glucose-induced-dopamine rush that sugar and flour so efficiently provide. It is addicted to the dopamine rush, the brains neurotransmitter default feel-better-now-solution-to-everything. Sugar for more energy. Sugar to console. Sugar to celebrate. Sugar to deflect stress.
But a sugar fueled brain is a sluggish brain. A sugar fueled body is a sluggish body.
But once fat adapted? Your body on ketones? And your brain on ketones?
Revved and respectively, totally revved. VROOM! VROOM!
But how? Here are some strategies for the strategies…..
- Just one percent better, every day. Start small, and keep building. You are likely already doing an 8 – 10 hours fast, assuming you are not eating right before bed and do not get up and chow down in the middle of the night. Extend it one hour at night… then, delay eating for one hour in the morning…. BOOM! 10 – 12 hours fast. Then give up you after supper snack…. BOOM 12 – 14 hour fast. Done.
- Hunger is never an emergency. Don’t feed that hunger pang. Wait a bit, it will pass. Let your body chew on some body fat for a few hours. When you feel that mid-morning pang of hunger, tell yourself, “Oh… I think I am hungry. It will pass, hunger is never an emergency. Go chew on some body fat.” When that pang of hunger subsides, rest assured, you have started to burn body fat. Imagine a virtual troop of mini-cellular-engineers (complete with hard hats and pick axes) mining energy from your body fat stores.
- Eat to nourish, not console. Food is the most abused anti-depressant and anxiolytic. And it only provides transient relief at best. Using food to relieve stress or anxiety is like throwing a fire extinguisher to a drowning person. It is the wrong solution to the problem. All sorts of stressors (both positive and negative) trigger cravings. A craving is an abnormal, urgent desire, that is easily triggered. No wonder we sabotage ourselves so readily. If hunger is not the problem, food is not the solution. Imagine that! When a craving keeps tripping you up, ask yourself “Hmmmm…. What’s going on here? How can I deal with this without eating?” Know your triggers in advance. Solve for them in advance.
- Prioritize your self care. Give yourself permission to look after yourself. What truly gives your life meaning? Ask yourself “Does this choice (whatever it is) help me move a little closer to the vibrant and meaningful life I desire?” If yes, proceed. If no, then ask yourself, what is one small step in a positive direction I can take right now?”
- Love your reason behind any decision, and eliminate regrets. Go ahead eat a piece of chocolate velvet birthday cake with creamy fudge icing and a side of ice cream because your daughter is celebrating her 18th birthday. Do not eat a piece of birthday cake, because it is quick and easy to grab, eat and run.
- Learn how to self-coach and master how you speak to yourself. Herein lies the secret to success – if not the universe. (https://karenbackwaymd.com/2019/01/18/mind-your-mind-master-the-way-you-speak-to-yourself/ ) You can tell yourself weight loss is impossible or you can believe it is well within your grasp. You get to choose – so awesome.
Sugar addicted fat hoarder to badass fat burner – it is utterly possible! Believe it!
Buff it up, my friends
Dr Karen
Are you ready to Buff Up Your Brain? Ready to, lose weight, increase your mental clarity and polish up your thoughts? Let’s chat.
Email: DrKaren@karenbackwaymd.com
