Living Simply – the road less travelled

Banting

Alright, so everybody’s Banting (even me).  So let’s talk about Banting and why there are so many people who do not succeed on a LCHF (low carb high fat) diet.  It’s because people are reluctant to make a change – I mean a complete change ….. unravel …. simplify ….. get back to raw, basic and recognisable ingredients which require no labels.  People want to continue on a parallel path alongside the beaten track of that to which they have become accustomed (conventional wisdom).  We try to emulate the foods and recipes we have always used.  I did the same thing when I switched over from a low fat diet;  I spent hours adapting recipes to incorporate “Banting friendly” ingredients.  I would supplement wheat flour with almond flour, sugar with xylitol and margarine with butter – and it worked during the transition phase when I grappled with food choices and preparation.  Within the first few months it became apparent that baking should be kept to a minimum and reserved for special occasions.  This discovery provided relief in many areas of my physical and mental state – and jeez, not to mention the cost!

I couldn’t afford to eat this way!

Carb Flu – it’s real!

In the early stages of cutting carbs my condition declined as I suffered withdrawal symptoms, carb flu is well documented and I came to realise, first hand, that my body had been dependent on sugar.  I became skinny and gaunt – and boy did everybody mention it!  So I got dressed until it passed.   Every day I would get up and get dressed without looking in the mirror.  I knew I was on the track to better health and I did not doubt my decision once.    Will power is a separate matter – at times I still succumb to life’s temptations – but LCHF was the way forward for me and my family.  It was after a short three weeks that I started to notice improvements in my physique as I started to fill out again and become more muscular.

Food Prep

Preparing food is something to which I am well accustomed.  I have always been highly conscious of my health and have always made time to cook for my family.  Even so, the transition to LCHF was a difficult one and I found it challenging to keep up with all the food prep.  An example of this is that previously I would not have hesitated to throw in a tin of ready prepared tomatoes with herbs, now I will only consider using fresh tomatoes and fresh herbs.

What about my children?

I am puzzled by this question? And I get asked it a lot.  People’s perception is that children have different nutritional requirements to adults.  For me, my children have always been fed exactly the same foods that I have prepared for myself – if there’s one thing I do not have time for, it’s to prepare two separate meals at every meal time ….. and I’m damned if I am going to prepare a good wholesome meal for myself and then poison them with hotdogs because they’d rather eat them.

I care every bit as much about those precious little bodies as I do for my own.

So what? Some people eat junk every night and live until 100!

Yeah, some do.  For me it’s not about living for longer, it’s about living better.

“Die biting the throat” J Stanton

It’s about getting through life with good body composition and about being stronger and more useful.  It’s about making time for living and having fun.  It’s about living a life without medication and down time for illness.  It’s about making it through the Winter without a box of tissues.

“Strong people are harder to kill than weak people and more useful in general.” Mark Rippetoe.