I wanted to talk about why the Slow-Carb Diet is so successful for
anyone who tries it. Essentially, it forces your body into Ketosis. Here is a
brief, paraphrased version of what Ketosis actually is: Sugar and carbs are the
body’s main source of energy. When glycogen (sugar) is low, the body has to get
creative in order to convert fats and proteins into useable energy. Since the body is metabolizing fats instead of sugar, the liver releases
ketones, which are detectable via urine and blood.
As you can expect, I do spend a lot of time reading other diet/fitness blogs. In
case you’d like a science explanation of how Ketosis actually works, I
included a link to another blog that clarifies it far better than I ever could.
I purchased these test strips from Walmart for about $7 to
occasionally track the presence of ketones in my system. You have to ask the
pharmacist to get them but you don’t need a prescription or anything.
It comes with this nifty little color chart! After my cheat
day, my test result is always negative. By Wednesday or Thursday, I’m starting
to see results between the “trace” and “small” categories. Usually dry mouth is
a symptom of Ketosis so by mid-week, I’m usually experiencing some degree of
unquenchable thirst.
I used to test my system regularly, but now I can accurately
sense my ketone levels in my system without the strips. I get a numb headache
and sometimes my vision gets slightly blurry – a minor annoyance but nothing
severe. As I’ve mentioned before, you’re not being starved on this diet, but
your body is trying to process all the food energy in a completely different
way than it was originally used to.
On a somewhat unrelated note, I AM OF SICK EGGS AND BEANS! As
in, I will probably never look at them again for the rest of my life as soon as
this diet is over. Okay, so maybe I’m being a little too over-dramatic. It is
really not the bland taste that I have an issue with, because anything can be
pepped up with spice. But the texture, oy vey, the texture is what kills me!
My weight loss is slowing down drastically. I’ve decreased
to a maximum weight loss of ½ pound per week, whereas last month, it was easy for
me to lose 1 ½ to 2 pounds per week. However, I’m finally starting to hover
around the weight I’m supposed to be
for my height and age. =)
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