progress update time, part 1

More than half a year has flown by, since i started writing here.  Whereas i haven't made much linear PROGRESS in losing weight, the scale hasn't been stuck anywhere ... and i feel i'm significantly wiser about the whole subject.

In January, i began the Personal Paleo Code program, which was an eye-opening experience.  Whether a person wants to lose weight or not -- i firmly believe it's in EVERYBODY'S best interests to go through a strict elimination diet and slowly add back every other ordinarily-eaten food, just to see what causes problems that were never even SUSPECTED before.  I understand the Whole 30 is pretty much the same thing, and there are others out there, too, which offer a description and how to go about it without spoiling the results ... but i really think people who care about their health need to check it out.

I discovered that i have issues with nightshades, which i never suspected before.  Industrial seed oils seem to give me zits, especially when i'm not getting enough zinc.  Milk products (even fermented) seem to contribute to tremors (like any overdose of carbs) -- could high insulin the be the cause?  Cream SOMETIMES contributes to an unhappy gut, but butter, never -- could have something to do with carrageenan in the former....

Wheat doesn't give me overt gut symptoms, but it really brings on the knee pain ...AND hip, and shoulder.  Oats (even soaked) do the same, to a lesser degree.  An occasional (rare!) bowl of porridge will stay in my future, but it's gotta be the unsteamed kind, and it has to be soaked overnight with whey.  I allowed myself so little of the true-sourdough ("salt rising") rye/rice bread, i don't know if it causes much trouble -- further tests are in order.

Home-cooked food (by me) is the highroad to health and weight control.  I've eliminated dozens of products i used to use with confidence because SO many of the things we buy are adulterated -- you have to be careful even buying tuna in "water" because it ISN'T -- it's a soy-laced broth.  "With olive oil" in the commercial world doesn't mean OF olive oil; i make my own mayo and dressings anymore.  The caveat above, "by me" is important -- my husband is sympathetic but not thoroughly aware.  And as for other people?  Absolutely, completely, incomprehensibly BLIND.  Obviously, most people think that if it doesn't kill you SOON, it doesn't have a negative impact on health (face-palm...).  Think CIGARETTES, kids....

I've learned a bit about alcohol, too.  The "cleanest" drink i can have is warm sake; a small amount satisfies and it's easy to stop there.  Even cold (filtered) sake is more ... moreish!  And other things also contribute to a low-grade headache while sake doesn't.  My low-carb cocktails come next, then tepid wine -- which is to say, reds.  White and/or chilled, and the "food reward" thing kicks in -- wonder if the "good doctor" can explain that one?

A very nice lady who went by the screenname "H" made the next big impact on my dietary adventures; she introduced me to "Strong Medicine," Dr. Blake Donaldson's retrospective on how he learned to treat allergy and weight loss, in the early part of the 20th century.  This book, and my subsequent reading, have revolutionized my view of limiting carbs.  H did her good deed, then kinda disappeared like The Shadow.  OOOOhhhh.  ;-)

This, as the title suggests, is going to have to be just the first report, because i realized after i started that the ground i've covered so far this year is going to take longer than i thought.  ;-)  I do hope this isn't just an exercise in self-absorption, but a useful record....