Last 20 lbs Series - Started 6/27/09 at 153 lbs (5' 6", age 48)

It all started with Helen. Helen and her partner (DB) started on this plan a few weeks ago. She has been writing about their experiences.

If you look under comments (of this posting) you will find the name of the book. It does not appear to 'catch' for searches under comments the same way that it would in this posting. I like to stay under the radar and not invite weird comments from search engines.

I am not big on d-i-e-t books. And actually this is the first one that I have ever bought. I like the books where it is the story of someone's experience - or a collection of experiences - but not so big on the how to's.

When I went to buy it - I had to ask for help - and that totally got to me. I did not want to be seen as one of the masses. I suppose that I would like to be seen as someone that could write the book - rather than someone needing to buy it.

(not writing any books - I am not a general audience appeal person/writer - and I know it - AND I could not stay EVEN, nor maintain with the amount of 'out there' that authors have to deal with - so don't even go there in comments - I write my blog - that is it.).

So I bought the book (bloggy friends call it Crack - I call it MACRO) on Friday, June 26th and started on the following morning.

My start weight was 153lbs in the middle of the day on Saturday - naked but full. I do not weigh in the morning. I do not weigh with the naked/empty feeling.

What is the idea behind this plan? Serious Carb down for 7 days - then slowly add carbs back over the next 7 weeks. There are 5-6 small meals each day and the schedule is very specific - protein/fat, protein/veggie/fat, protein/carb - directions for each meal, directions for each day. The first week all the days are the same - from then on - some days are the same and some days are different. Up to four different combinations of days per week.

I did something very similar to this in the VERY beginning. It taught me to: eat only at meal time, eat evenly from the food groups, only eat FOOD, eat portions. It got me over my food impulsive-ness problem. It taught me to stop looking ONLY at taste and to look at food as fuel - as a chemical thing within the body.

This plan is not much of a stretch for me. I am eating the same foods that I have eaten for 3+ years (my last year of losing and my two years of maintenance). Obviously this first week is different - because it is extreme carb down.

For my type of personality - this does not feel like deprivation. It feels like renewal and recommitment.

Do I recommend this plan for everyone? Nope. It is pretty hardcore. And I think that for some people it would be self sabotage. And I also think that if you have a body that is sensitive to blood sugar lows - it will bottom you out quickly. My husband for example - would be passing out, white as a ghost and have a headache. He could NOT do it.


PS - The book is cloudy (in my opinion) after reading it - the first thing that I wanted to do was re-write it so it was user friendly.