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Do you have a day off from LCHF?

C

Craigk93

Member
Messages
13
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Does anyone on lchf ever have a day off the diet? Was just wondering if it would have any effects
 
Craigk93 said:
Does anyone on lchf ever have a day off the diet? Was just wondering if it would have any effects
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Hi Craigk93,

For me not really. Since soon after diagnosis i've been on a moderate carb intake of around 150g per day. If I have a plate of pasta then I cut down somewhere else.
 
Yeah I do. You have to live a little. Just use ur correct ratios when u do
 
Nope, I don't want to feel dizzy and digestive biscuits aren't that exciting..
 
Six days a week I stick to my eating plan - which is working - and on the seventh a Chinese meal and ice cream. Red wine to help lower the sugar levels, purely medicinal. Blood sugars went from 8.3 when diagnosed last March down to 5.7 this March. Having a weekly treat means it is easier to stick to my plan. Today I get the Chinese meal.
 
I haven't yet...because I worry that restarting will be harder...but really, although only really been doing it a couple of months it's already become a way of life so can't imagine one day is going to make too much difference
 
I don't have days off, although over time, I have been more accepting of "best of the bunch" choices if eating out, or at dinner parties where I have no menu control. For T2s, like me, on no medication, the impact can be meaningful, in terms of how we feel and what happens to our blood scores.

As a T1, I would have thought the choice would be yours, provided you could adjust your insulin usage to reflect the increased carbs. Great big spikes, then the reactive/corrected lows aren't pleasant, I believe.
 
AndBreathe said:
I don't have days off, although over time, I have been more accepting of "best of the bunch" choices if eating out, or at dinner parties where I have no menu control. For T2s, like me, on no medication, the impact can be meaningful, in terms of how we feel and what happens to our blood scores.
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Same, as diet controlled T2 with no meds the effects of raised BG and associated risks aren't worth having a regular 'day off' from LCHF as my diabetes doesn't take the day off with me. Though I do have a 'meal off' at Christmas and my birthday which I factor in by ensuring I have very low carb and plenty of exercise during the days before and after.


Is there a reason you want a "day off"? Is it to make it easier eating out or are you looking for a tasty or easy meal at weekend? There are lots of yummy treat foods which are still LCHF.
 
I have an incredibly sweet tooth so have missed the sweets lol had one cupcake today as a treat at work but feel guilty!
 
Craigk93 said:
I have an incredibly sweet tooth so have missed the sweets lol had one cupcake today as a treat at work but feel guilty!
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Thats an easy problem to solve!! there are loads of cake, biscuit and pudding recipes on the forum. http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/low-carb-recipes.4871/


I searched on the forum and found lots I wanted to try, I now have a cookbook (did my own in word and then printed it out) with lots of tasty treats including chocolate cakes, biscotti etc . they aren't low calories but they are low carb. Few of my favourites are below but if you search the forum you will find low carb versions of your favourites

Chocolate cake - cream cheese based
Ingredients:
4 eggs
200g cream cheese/Philadelphia
100g butter
100g dark chocolate (70%)
Flaked almonds or any nuts
(1 tsp vanilla flavoring)
Preheat the oven to 200C/180 fan.
Grease a springform with a little butter.
Melt butter, break chocolate into pieces and stir until melted, dont overheat or else you get a grainy mixture. Beat eggs until fluffy, add the cream cheese, a little at a time, beating well after each addition.
Using a spatula stir in the chocolate butter mix, stir well.
Pour batter into springform tin and sprinkle with nuts.
Bake on the middle shelf for 15 - 20 minutes.


Blueberry muffins (ground almonds and yoghurt)
250g ground almonds
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
a squeeze of lemon juice
150g unsalted butter , softened
10g of sweetener
2 large eggs
200ml greek yogurt
120g blueberries
combine the ingredients, divide mixture between 12 muffin cases and cook for about 25 mins on 180C/160 Fan


Chocolate mousse (avocado)
1 ripe avocado
2 tbl spoon cocoa
1/3 cup milk or few tablespoon yoghurt

Sift cocoa powder through sieve into large blender jug or processor.
Blend cocoa powder and milk or yoghurt into smooth paste, half avocado and scoop out flesh, mash add to cocoa mix and blend till smooth. Refrigerate - 45mis to 2 hours

Gingerbread Biscotti
3 ounces (75 g) butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
2 cups (5 dl) almond flour
1 cup (2 dl) coconut flour
1/2 cup (1 dl) shredded coconut
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves

1. The butter should be at room temperature.
2. Whip the butter with a mixer and stir in vanilla.
3. Add the eggs one at a time during whipping.
4. Mix together almond flour, coconut flour, shredded coconut, gingerbread spices and baking powder and stir into the batter.
5. Form two lengths and place on parchment paper on a baking tray.
6. Bake in the lower part of the oven for about 20–30 minutes at 400°F (200°C).
7. Remove the baking tray and let cool for a while, then cut crosswise and put back on the baking tray (cut surface facing up).
8. Set the oven to 250°F (120°C) and continue baking until the cookies are dry, about 1–2 hours…
 
When you low carb, your body makes quite a few adjustments.
It learns to reduce the amount of insulin that is needed (the amount of insulin ready for release is dictated by what you ate over the last few days)
It shifts its enzyme production to suit the low carb
And your insulin resistance drops.

For type 1s, I imagine that it is a matter of knowing how much insulin to use.
For type 2s, it gets more complicated.
Suddenly introducing carbs to a body that has adjusted to low carb can produce surprising, sometimes shocking high BG levels.
Your body has down sized its insulin production, enzymes are different, and gearing up to higher carbs is like taking the cover off the caravan and spring cleaning it for a summer of touring.

This re-adjustment can take anywhere from 3 days to several weeks to ramp up enough to cope*. (They recommend 'normal carbs' for several days before an oral glucose tolerance test, for this reason).

The last time I tried to come off low carbs was on a week's holiday 2 years ago. My BG levels remained astronomically high for 7 days, with only slight signs of readjustment on day 8. If I ever need another OGTT I will have to let my body adjust for at least 2 weeks.

So, take a day off if that floats your boat.
But bear in mind that your BG will be higher, for longer, and during the transition period, your body is taking more damage that it would if you ate moderate carbs on a daily basis.

* this happens to even non-diabetics who come off a LC diet.
 
urbanracer said:
Hi Craigk93,

For me not really. Since soon after diagnosis i've been on a moderate carb intake of around 150g per day. If I have a plate of pasta then I cut down somewhere else.
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But then you aren't on LCHF, right?
 
I eat what I fancy on Sundays but I'm very easy to please carb wise. I might have bread, for example, a slice of toast or fried bread, or hash. Possibly a biscuit in the afternoon if there happen to be one in the house and I want it. I don't have pasta and I don't stuff my face with chocolate or cake. I might have a bag of crisps though occasionally.

I need Sunday to be special and unlike the rest of the week.
 
No, in short. But I occasionally have 3 to 4 new potatoes with a LOT of butter in a meal containing other fats, or a little grated raw carrot in a salad. I had a teaspoonful of cold brown rice in a salad the other night just to use it up, and felt guilty. My BS rose to 6.6 after 2 hours, then fell again to my normal mid-5s.
I had a piece of carrot cake this week during a long walk, and found a good steep hill to go up afterwards, and at home an hour later my BS was normal. It's happened before so I wasn't too apprehensive.
I need to be very watchful.
But we should each do what we feel is right for us, and other people's experiences are always helpful.
 
Only when rarely seeing friends for meals out.. I'm still selective about what foods I choose though due to stomach problems. However I will go OTT on icecream sundae sort of puds.. If restaurants do one for two people I will eat it all myself! I've been lower carbing the vast majority of 50 years but don't ever stop myself eating differently on meals out with friends. (Sometimes I feel guilty, as my friends will probably tell their friends or family that they know a diabetic who always has puudings- but two person puddings as well!-gives them totally the wrong idea of a diabetic lifestyle-oops!!).
 
No - I don't see any need to a day off in what is now a lifestyle choice. As a type 2, I'm eating a good, healthy, varied diet that I prefer, and I certainly don't see any point in possibly undoing all the effort I've already put into improving my diabetic situation for the sake of a day stuffing myself with starch or carbohydrates, :eek: when there are plenty of great low carb "treats" readily available for the scoffing, as @Scimama has posted for you.

Robbity
 
No, not really. I do allow myself 1-2 days per week of higher carbs, but they still come in under 50 grams, because I don't want to undo my hard work. The rest of the time, I eat 20-30 grams per day.

To me, it is easier to substitute my treats with lower carb versions than to eat the high carb version.
 
No, because a day off would undo a lot of good work I have painstakingly put into my way of eating. I do occasionally have a higher carb meal - when I have fruit, LC dessert or a small taste of something really carby like a birthday cake. Even then, I often find that a dish that I used to crave now tastes too sickeningly sweet. Still, I am aware that if I persisted with eating it I could develop a taste for sugar/carbs again, and I really, really don't want that!
 
Craigk93 said:
I have an incredibly sweet tooth so have missed the sweets lol had one cupcake today as a treat at work but feel guilty!
Click to expand...

LCHF really just needs a little careful thought regarding "sweet treats" and one doesn't necessarily exclude the other, so there's no need either to be a martyr to the cause and deny yourself something extra nice occasionally, or to take days off. Take a look at one of our own type 1 members' - Ewelina's - baking blog. As far as I've checked she appears to be using all low(er) carb ingredients for some really s delicious treats.

Robbity
 
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