Clean Run - April 2013 - 20

Cleaning Up My Act
After deciding that I was tired of feeling tired, I cleaned up my
act and made a few changes that resulted in a huge overall difference. My goal was not to lose weight, but to feel better both
mentally and physically by stabilizing my blood sugar and avoiding blood sugar/insulin spikes and crashes.
The first change I made was to add more protein to my diet.
Since protein doesn’t cause an insulin spike (it can be used as
an energy source and provides the same calories per gram as
carbs), I wanted to replace some of my carb intake with protein. My goal is now to eat at least 20 grams of protein a meal.
Here’s my typical breakfast:
Fat

Protein

Carbs

Calories

140

1/2 slice American cheese

2.5

Fage Greek yogurt

2.5

130

Total Breakfast

305

2 eggs

After eating this breakfast, I feel energized like I drank a couple
cups of coffee. (As a side note, I also gave up Diet Coke when I
started eating better. The food I eat gives me a lot of sustained
energy, so I found that I didn’t need to drink so much caffeine
to get going in the morning.)
For lunch I usually have a similar high protein meal. For example, an easy lunch is 3 ounces of sliced deli turkey rolled up
around a piece of American cheese. Depending on what I have
in the fridge or how hungry I am, I may have another Fage
Greek yogurt, a side salad, or a handful of cashews to go with it.
Fat

Protein

Carbs

Calories

3 oz. turkey

1 slice American cheese

3 Tbsp. cashews

170

Total Lunch

324

I usually have dinner around 7 pm, so I find that I need a snack
to help me through the afternoon. I like to have a protein bar
around 4 pm. I have two that I like. One is an off-the-shelf bar
called Pure Protein. I prefer this brand because it uses mostly
whey protein instead of soy (another topic!). It has 200 calories, 6 grams fat, 20 grams protein, and 16 grams carbs.
Another easy snack I like is two hard-boiled eggs. Sometimes
I will just eat them as is, while other times I scoop out the yolk
and put in a few tablespoons of hummus like deviled eggs.
Tasty! This snack has 190 calories, 7 grams fat, 12 grams protein, and 19 grams carbs.

Dinner usually consists of a meal that provides a similar ratio
where the amount of carbs is not more than the protein (but
with more total calories). I usually have a salad or veggies with
meat.
You will notice in the breakfast and lunch breakdown that
there is a significant amount of fat. Fat is needed to turn off
your hunger reflex. You can eat all the low-fat stuff you want,
but it won’t make you feel satisfied. The result is that you keep
eating and end up eating more calories than you would if there
was some fat in the meal. So by adding some foods that have
good fats in them, I am able to feel satisfied throughout the day
and not have hunger cravings. I’ve reduced the empty calories
from high carb foods, allowing me to eat fats while still keeping
an eye on the total calories a day. The goal here is food choices
that make you feel good, not worse by starving you!
The amount of fat you consume is an individual thing, I have
found. My husband and I eat about the same amount of protein and carbs. But he can eat more fat. If I eat as much fat as
he does, I start to gain weight. This isn’t too surprising considering he weighs about 60 pounds more than I do. So you may
have to adjust your fat intake to suit your lifestyle and energy
demands. If you find that you are hungry, you may have to add
a little more fat. If you start to gain weight, you may have to cut
back a bit.
A few months after changing my eating habits, I had energy all
day and was not hungry. I felt better than I have in years. Two
years later my energy level has skyrocketed. I can get so much
more done in a day than I could before. I have found that I feel
better when judging as well. My feet still get sore from standing
all day, but my mental focus stays strong throughout the day.
Occasionally, I will have something that doesn’t fit into my new
way of eating. I’m a sucker for cake and ice cream. I usually
indulge when I take my daughter to birthday parties. But I’m
always amazed how I can feel the ensuing sugar crash about a
half hour after I’ve eaten the cake. I’m sleepy and groggy and
regret it. It is a good reminder that keeping my sugar and carbs
low really does help me feel better.
This article is not intended to provide medical advice but rather to share my experiences about the effect of my food choices.
I hope that by sharing my story, I can help people to feel better
by eating better. If you are interested in changing your eating
habits, I encourage you to do your own research about the effect of carbs, fat, and protein. I have listed some websites and a
book below that have been useful resources:

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www.proteinpower.com
www.marksdailyapple.com
www.livestrong.com/article/227162-can-you-eat-too-many-eggs
Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes

Allison Bryant, her husband, and their daughter Perry share their north Georgia sheep and cattle farm with multiple Australian Shepherds and a mixed-breed terrier.
Her dogs have earned four ASCA ATCHs as well as titles in AKC, USDAA, and NADAC. In addition, she competes in stock, obedience, and versatility events. Her interest in
better living through healthier eating led her to start a grass-fed meat business from the animals she raises on her farm.
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Clean Run | April 13

http://www.proteinpower.com http://www.marksdailyapple.com http://www.livestrong.com/article/227162-can-you-eat-too-many-eggs

Clean Run - April 2013

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