Why We Eat (Too Much) thread 6

[TheLeadbetterLife]

Whoops, we let thread 5 get away from us a bit there...

I'm going to boringly copy-paste the previous thread opener, because it's too hot to be imaginative.

Welcome to thread 6 of discussion, encouragement and advice inspired by the book Why We Eat (Too Much), by Dr Andrew Jenkinson.

The basic principles of this "diet" (it's not one in the traditional sense, as it's meant to be a permanent set of changes), are as follows:

Cut out ultra-processed food

Massively reduce sugar, carbs, refined flours and wheat

Eat a wide variety of vegetables, whole grains and fruit

Eat full fat dairy and other healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil

Improve the ratio of omega 3 to 6 by eating greens, fish, eggs and grass-fed meat, and cutting out ultra-refined seed oils

Important lifestyle changes include getting plenty of rest, relaxation and sleep, as well as taking a moderate amount of exercise (or more, if you like that sort of thing).

You don't need to count calories (in fact, you shouldn't), though it may help to count carbs or glycemic load, at least to begin with, until you get the hang of it.

Some of us share recipes by following each other on Copy Me That - www.copymethat.com/recipebox/the-leadbetter-life/6661160/

As well as the book mentioned in the title, the principles are similar to those espoused by the likes of Rangan Chatterjee, Robert Lustig, Tim Spector and Michael Mosley.

There are many successes on this thread, and the main thing is that we are aiming to make permanent, sustainable changes to adjust our weight set-points downwards.

Join us!

I tested coffee with my cgm and did not get a blood sugar spike so the impacts are probably quite personal. Having said that I am a bit weird with coffee in general as it lowers my heart rate rather than raises it!

I only have two cups a day, in the morning. I’m not giving it up.

That's interesting @Bubbles254. I honestly don't think I get a spike either- I can tell when it's happening.

I really should cut back a bit though.

Weight drifting up again.

This podcast is well worth listening to if you need scientific evidence to justify your coffee drinking habit!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2rCl0PjBsMUwruKiJPWw2b?si=tXu0s7A-RcG9T0Fv7Cz9nw

Layne Norton debunks a lot of nutritional theories, in 4 minutes he debunks the theory or coffee spiking cortisol and increasing body fat (it does increase cortisol a little BUT)e

Morning all, new follower here!
I've got about three hours to go of the audiobook, planned to listen on the train to work today and then forgot my earphones so finished this thread instead
I'm a complete bread addict, happy to have it for all three meals so cold turkey is necessary. I also love Pepsi max but gleaned from this thread that sweeteners aren't ok so that's a pain, I don't drink coffee but might need to start!
I'm 44 and 11 stone/5'3". I would like to get down to 9st/9st 7 range. I can get there by calorie counting and IF but it always creeps back up so it's reassuring to learn about set points.

Just delurking to say how useful these threads have been. Thank you! They introduced me to the book, and I gave up sugar a month ago. I am really surprised by how easy I have found it, and it has made me realise how bad sugar was making me feel. Haven't really lost any weight yet as have been on holiday and eating loads of bread but I am delighted to have kicked sugar to the kerb: this feels like a permanent change.

Can anyone recommend a good app for pre diabetics? I need info on recipes and some way to measure my boood sugar .

Welcome @unfor , @Writingonthewalls and @Wrapunzel 

Glad the threads are helpful!

Interesting video there @samthebordercollie - thank you!

Can't help re app for pre diabetes but maybe someone else can?

Not sure about an app but the zoe nutrition and glucose goddess Facebook groups are very supportive and often share recipies. Regarding measurement you could buy a cgm, the Abbott website sells the libre2 for around £40.

@Words Layne Norton has done videos calling out Tim Spector, Giles Yeo and lots of others, they are all very interesting!

Morning all,

I wanted to thank everyone for these fantastic threads! I’ve just worked my way through all 6 of them and they have been so helpful. They have also provided a lovely kind of escapism - I drift off to Portugal with @TheLeadbetterLife , France with @samthebordercollie , the US with @Aria999 and hillwalking with @Words! I’ve also found all the thoughts, recipes, links to articles/podcasts/books and general feedback immensely helpful.

I re-read the book a few weeks ago and started this WOE properly after my holiday a couple of weeks ago. I have done versions of this previously - cutting out wheat and sugar has always been very effective - but life always gets in the way and I end up not sleeping properly and living on caffeine, sugar and refined carbs. I had reached a very happy weight just before Covid and really wish I had read the book and been able to implement it then instead of gaining 2 stone over lockdown!! Since then I have just gained and lost proportions of that repeatedly. I’m 45 now and definitely perimenopausal. I have noticed a huge change in various symptoms with this WOE particularly aching joints, but I feel like my appetite is being driven hormonally and weight loss is very hard to manage. I put on lots of weight during puberty and pregnancy, which I’m sure was hormonally linked. I’m trying to decide about HRT.

I’ve been managing fine for the last few weeks, actively enjoying it really, nothing off plan, then had a slice of cake at a bbq on Saturday and I was shocked how much it changed my (almost subconscious) food choices. I ended up having a banana with greek yoghurt (Tim’s Dairy do a fantastic greek style kefir btw) which then kept up the sugar cravings, had another slice of chocolate cake yesterday (only 6 ingredients but still) and then was starving all yesterday. Ended up having 2 bowls of raw oats, milk and a drizzle of honey last night. Have woken up feeling so puffy and bloated, as if I’d had a full on bread/cake/chocolate blow out - so annoying and unfair!! I know I should avoid oats but my brain tricked me and persuaded me they were on plan. Keep thinking of @Words saying “sugar calls to sugar”… so true.

Anyway, I am annoyed because I think I’m probably eating too much even if it’s all on plan - I was hoping portion control would be easier/unnecessary on this WOE but can see from the threads sadly not. I have tried various forms of fasting over the years but the best I can do is 8am - 6pm as I find missing breakfast (latte) too hard and have really busy evenings and just get so tired/grumpy if I stop eating at 4pm!

Sorry for the huge essay! I really hope this thread keeps going so am hoping to contribute as much as possible!!

Welcome to all the new people / de-lurkers, nice to see new names. Sorry for being rubbish at checking in lately.

I'm doing pretty well at the moment. I'm quite active as I've been working on a lot of heavy-duty renovations of our house over the Summer - I've learned to lay bricks and cast concrete! It's buggering up my hands (carpel tunnel), but it's keeping me toned and fit.

We finally seem to be past the insane heatwaves and the weather is gorgeous at the moment, so I've been walking more, and doing a bit of yoga every day to try to keep my joints and muscles from seizing up due to all the heavy lifting.

I haven't been especially disciplined with the eating, but seem to have fallen into a decent pattern where I'm on plan about 80% of the time, and avoiding UPFs and nasty oils 99% of the time. I find that as long as I keep the exercise up the weight stays off, which may be to do with blood sugar regulation, as I also do 16:8 fasting and some of the Glucose Goddess things, like drinking vinegar. I've also cut out my daily oats and replaced with chia yoghurt pudding.

I'm sleeping better, after being prescribed trazodone, which I take at a low dose. I know it's better to sleep without medication, but I just can't, and surely it's better to actually sleep?

I'm a bit hit and miss with the gut health, because it's hard to find time to think about or cook a variety of things at the moment. We fall back on omelettes, or tinned fish with salad most evenings. I'm getting plenty of fibre and kefir etc, just not enough variety in the plant matter.

Not bad going overall though.

Hi @Sunlightonthewater welcome! All 6 threads is a long read!

You may find you don't exactly need portion control if you are able to fill up on fat and protein - because it fills you up more you may just naturally eat less.

(Snack on 🧀 when hungry, yay!)

Hi @TheLeadbetterLife I am awed by your builderlike prowess! Good luck!

Thanks @Aria999 I definitely share your mindset on cheese!

It’s the carbs really that send me off track, I think you said you are similar with oats, but fine with rice, whereas rice is a disaster for me. I did the Zoe blood glucose monitoring and it was the only thing that sent my blood sugar sky high, even when eaten with curry (so high fat/protein). Wheat also sends me off plan very quickly and makes me feel bloated and jittery when combined with sugar but weirdly doesn’t spike my blood sugar if eaten with fat/protein. It’s all a bit of a mystery and I keep coming back to the fact that food effects vary wildly between individuals!

In case of interest to anyone, I try to avoid wheat totally, also even rye and spelt when baked as a “normal” sourdough loaf don’t agree with me, but I seem to be able to tolerate this style of bread really well (see pic). They sell it in most supermarkets I think (sometime in the “free from” section). It is wheat and yeast free and this brand has various types with added ingredients - I really like the chia and flaxseed version for extra fibre/omega 3. I can’t eat it out of the packet as it’s quite an odd texture but toasted is delicious! Also hard to overeat as it’s very dense! It’s a great vehicle for cheese/pate etc and much better than oatcakes or rice cakes for me…

So many people say that rice massively spikes blood sugar, even brown rice. I've never tested it, but I can take or leave rice, so we never have it at home. If we go out for curry I prefer naan or paratha as a treat anyway.

I can't give up wheat, there are just too many fabulous things made from it. I don't care for rye or pumpernickel, I'd just rather not eat bread every day. We have really good wheat bread a couple of times a week with eggs or a cheeseburger. I could inhale Portuguese Alentejo bread, or paposeco rolls, all day long and, indeed, I used to. I also weighed 15kg more than I do now...

Hi @TheLeadbetterLife I’ve really enjoyed reading about your life in Portugal, it’s transported me into sunshine on many a gloomy day in the UK! I’m also very impressed to hear about your building work - maybe that’s where we’re going wrong and we should all take up bricklaying as well as yoga 🤔

Also very pleased to hear you are now getting some sleep. I firmly believe that there is a tipping point with medication, where the benefits outweigh everything else and sleep is so fundamentally important I think you are doing the right thing to prioritise it. (My eldest DS has ADHD and over the years it has been a sleep rollercoaster, with various meds in the mix, everything from sleeping way too little to way too much. He also really struggles to control his appetite and needs meds to help him do this.)

I’ve also started to experience insomnia this year, for the first time in my life. Probably peri-menopause related. I don’t struggle to get to sleep but if I wake in the night, which I do frequently (due to children/animals/next door’s cockerel who seems to have a faulty alarm clock) I really struggle to get back to sleep. One of my DSs has been waking me every night about half an hour after I’ve gone to sleep for the last couple of months and it has totally disrupted my sleep cycle - I just lie there furiously angry with the situation which doesn’t help! I was interested to read that you find CBT helpful in this situation, I really must look into it.

Agree about the delicious things made from wheat - even Tim Spector says he eats croissants when he’s in France!

CBT-i (for insomnia) is what you should look up @Sunlightonthewater. There's a good book by Colin Espie called Overcoming Insomnia and Sleep Problems, which will guide you through the process. There are also apps these days, though I don't really use them.

Thank you @TheLeadbetterLife that’s very helpful, I will read up on it.

@Sunlightonthewater that's really interesting about the blood sugar!

I adore dark rye bread (I acquired the taste long ago when visiting Germany on school exchange) but I don't think you can get it out here 😞

Thanks for the welcome!
I'm doing pretty well on day 2 and feel like this is going to work for me. I've still not finished the book though but have the main concepts sorted.
How bad is Pepsi max for insulin etc? It's my vice, is a can a day too much? I've been drinking three

It’s strange that you can’t get that kind of bread, or even oatcakes I think you said @Aria999 , in the US. Do you think it is generally much harder to eat healthily and find good quality whole foods compared to the UK? I’ve just finished listening to Ultra Processed People by Chris Van Tulleken and he did make it sound like the US was more of a food desert. You clearly are able to find good cheese though!

On the whole UPF thing, DS has just got back from Disney World and he brought back a donut which was honestly the diameter of his head! I took this photo of the ingredients list 😱… the thing is I’m pretty sure you could get something like this at a theme park in the UK now?

Yes much harder @Sunlightonthewater

Almost everything has sugar in it!

I mostly buy very expensive imported British, Irish and European cheese ($9 for a small block of Kerrygold cheddar and $16 for a reasonable size piece of gruyere)

There are artisan cheese and bread shops but I mostly don't have time to go to them (and the bread range is generally pretty limited)