Day 1:
Day 1 had its challenges, but I was able to handle it. In addition to the Keto Diet, I am also participating in Dry January and going caffeine free. The craving are real! But I am an all or nothing girl, and this approach works for me. I sent the few non-keto friendly items in my pantry home with my sister so I wouldn’t accidentally cook quinoa or rice one day.
My meals were:
Breakfast: Eggs Benedict over salmon cakes with bacon
Snack: Honey baked shrimp and broccoli with melted butter
Dinner: 2 egg muffins (recipe here)
Day 2:
Day 2 is the worst for me. I was absolutely starving! That is because my body is freaking out. Even though I am feeding it food (frequently I may add) it doesn’t recognize the fat as a fuel source yet. It is important during the first few days to not deprive yourself of foods. You don’t need to count calories. Your goal is to simply begin Ketosis. Once you have, you will find you actually need less food throughout the day because high fat, high calorie foods keep you full much longer than food made predominantly of carbohydrates. My cravings for sugar have been through the roof (thanks Christmas cookies) so that has been my main challenge today. I put all my sugary or carb heavy snacks in the work break room to get rid of temptation! My meals were:
Breakfast: 1 boiled eggs, 4 pieces of bacon
Snack: 1 sharp cheddar cheese stick
Lunch: Corn Beef and Cabbage with Okra
Snack: 1 sharp cheddar cheese stick
Dinner: Butternut squash noodles with chicken Alfredo (recipe here)
I have to admit my sugar cravings were through the roof. I was thankful that a friend came over so I could give her the rest of the wine left over from New Year’s Eve because I probably would have been tempted to drink it! Surprisingly, just giving it away was enough and I didn’t have trouble drinking my sparkling water instead.
Day 3:
Today I am trying Intermittent fasting (IF) (link here). I really enjoy IF but I work very long hours throughout the week which makes it difficult since I wake up so early and don’t get home until late. However, I thought I may try to do this four days each week. This week I am going to try for Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and my eating window will be between 11am-7pm. This morning, I started out with two cups of herbal tea.
Breaking Fast 11am:
Today I had four pieces of bacon and one boiled egg
Lunch: Corn Beef and Cabbage
Snack: Sargento Cheddar Cheese Stick
Dinner: Butternut Squash Noodles with chicken and homemade Alfredo sauce
I have no problem eating leftovers! They make my life so much easier
Day 4:
I intermittent fasted so my first meal was a breakfast salad. So many people think you can’t eat vegetables on Keto but they are wrong! You can and should. Keto is LOW carb not NO carb so just make sure you are choosing carbs with a lot of fiber (recipe here)
Snack: Zucchini and Parmesan fries with spicy brown mustard (recipe coming soon)
Last meal: Broccoli and cheddar soup (recipe here)
Today's IF was much easier, in part because I could sleep in a little later. I think I am getting the hang of this!
Day 5:
Today I woke up with a cold so I could not intermittent fast since I had to take medicine every 12 hours with food.
Breakfast: Breakfast salad (recipe coming soon)
Lunch: Taco Bowl (recipe here) but I added sour cream and substituted avocado for sugar free guacamole and I didn’t add rice. Guacamole is a great alternative to avocados just make sure it is sugar free
Dinner: Broccoli and Cheddar Soup
I felt really bad all day, thank you allergies!
Day 6:
Again, I was sick so not IF for me.
Breakfast: 1 Boiled egg, four pieces of bacon, a scoop of guacamole. I haven’t reached ketosis yet which I think must be a combination of adding honey to my tea (you can’t have any honey on Keto but I was sick and I thought it would help) and I thought maybe I was getting too much protein. By eating 1 boiled egg instead of 2 I think I will take care of the problem.
Lunch: Chicken Salad. I buy it pre-made in bulk at Sam’s Club and I love it!
Dinner: Venison Chili with sour cream. I was so proud I was able to pass up the corn bread!
Conclusion:
The first week is always the hardest, remember that! I couldn't exercise because I was sick but I do recommend exercise to help you reach ketosis faster. Intermittent Fasting has helped me realize what hunger actually is. For example, today starts week 2 and I ate breakfast, a snack, and haven't wanted lunch yet. I definitely recommend it.
Goal Check:
Keto Diet 7/7 days
Dry January: 5/7 days
Workout 3-4 Times: 0/7 Days
Caffeine Free 7/7 days
How are your New Year's Resolutions going?
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