Wonderful Day 6

Weight: up 1 pound
Blood Pressure: 166/94
Blood Sugar: 118 before a meal

I am calling this "Wonderful Day 6" because I have been looking forward to it. I have gone low carb before and experienced the changes that occur on day 6 a few times, so I knew they were coming. It makes you wonder how a person can know that, and still go off the program. My only excuse is that once you get to feeling good you forget how painful it was and begin to think you are invincible again meaning you can do anything and it won't hurt you. Not. And crazy too.

The thing that makes me a little more hopeful that I will stay on this one is their promise that they will soon re-introduce grain but not in the form of flour -- it will be whole grains and even fruit.This is not a "no-carb" program. This addition of whole grains should make it so that I don't crave carbs -- at least that is their promise. Perhaps with those additions, I will not be tempted to revert because I will have started eating moderate amounts of whole grains and beans that are very filling and do not cause blood sugar spikes. I am looking forward to seeing if the eating machine can be bypassed by this. Again, I am not going to beat myself up over the past, I shall simply look forward to the future, by making healthy choices today.

Day 6 is wonderful to me for the following three reasons:

1. The pain in my body was greatly reduced when I first stood up after laying in bed sleeping -- not entirely gone -- but reduced so much that it was only negligible. Thank you Lord! I will observe if it stays like this or comes back during the day, like it did yesterday.

2. Oddly, I slept through the whole night without waking -- that is really unusual for me -- This does occasionally happen, so I will be observing if it continues or was a fluke.

3. My ankles look nearly normal -- meaning they are not swollen -- I cannot see the bones in my feet, which is my own personal "marker of success," but the ankles appear normal. I do take a daily diuretic but eliminating the fast carbs from my diet, nearly always, reduces the swelling. I consider them to be "normal" when I can see the bones in my feet, so there is still a little ways to go, but they are looking very good.

I made the pitcher of green tea and had a cup yesterday afternoon, and one this morning. I was a little disappointed when I weighed myself and had gone up a pound, but I have to remind myself that this is not really a weight loss program, so I shall not be concerned over it. The program does not ask me to weigh myself, nor to check my blood pressure, nor blood sugar. I am doing that only to measure and record any changes for this blog. I just want some sort of measurable proof that I am improving and can report here -- and these are easy to do, myself.

In fact the authors claim there is no need to worry about any of these measurements because, as I continue incorporating the changes on the program, they should "right" themselves. If I follow the program, then I am supposed to end up with reversed diabetes, the side effect of weight loss, and a reduction in blood pressure, too. Looking forward to these improvements.

Dr. Rip (the nickname his patients have given him) says that monitoring your blood sugar does not help to regulate blood sugar or to eliminate the "side effects" or consequences of the disease -- such as blindness, amputations, heart attacks, etc. He has also provided proof from existing studies that regulating blood sugar with medications does not improve, and certainly does not eliminate, the "side effects" either. Just as many diabetics die of heart attack with or without blood sugar lowering medication. This is an eye opener. The thing is, medications that reduce blood sugar, do not actually change the disease -- you still have diabetes, even though your blood sugar is being "regulated." This was new news to me, but if you think about it, that is true. People tell you they "have" diabetes and take powerful drugs -- but that does not eliminate the diabetes or its complications.

Studies Dr Rip has provided as proof actually show that the only thing that really reverses diabetes (removing the possible horrific consequences) is life style modifications -- changing what you eat and how often you move, which is what this program is about. (They have not gotten to the exercise part yet, but have mentioned it.) The day-by-day, step-by-step program seems to be an easy and comfortable way to make the changes necessary to accomplish the task of reversing diabetes without going into a tizzy, or feeling the pressure of "I've got to lose weight." He even says that diabetes can be reversed and a person may remain over weight -- meaning that just because you are obese, does not mean, you have to have diabetes -- and I am living proof of this one. I have been obese for a very long time, but was only recently diagnosed with pre-diabetes.

That does not eliminate the other fact that doing a weight reduction program may, in fact, reverse diabetes in some people. Most of the testimonials from Dr Rip's successful patients do say they lost weight, and feel much better. It is just that you don't have to feel pressured and stuck trying to lose weight, when the actual goal is to reverse diabetes -- and any weight reduction or blood pressure normalization shall be a side effect of the reversal of diabetes through permanent life style changes. I'm in.

Well, it is day 6 and I do feel physically better. Wonderful!

Day 6 talks about eating a diabetes healing breakfast. Since we eliminated all the fast carbs yesterday, that leaves protein as the main staple of the breakfast domain. He calls it "eating your way to a better blood sugar" and gives suggestions on what to eat. From my own experience I find that eating spinach and eggs, or sauted zucchini and eggs is very filling -- "stick to the ribs" because it lasts a long time, too.  He suggests that the protein be "clean and lean" and describes what that means.

He also covers the current research about eggs which are not as bad as people used to think -- and are, in fact, very healthful, having no effect of raising cholesterol, as once believed. I never gave up on eggs, because I knew that God made them. When it comes to food, I think it is better to trust what God created, than to depend on what man manufactures. God loves us. Man is concerned with the bottom line.

I suggest you read the book (see link in title) which talks about butter and the real effects of saturated fat, which are actually good for us, in moderation. He has believable proof -- at least I think it is. He says protein gives strength and stabilizes blood sugar, so don't fear it. Even Dr. Atkins proved that one a long time ago. I already knew that if you want to lower your cholesterol stop eating starchy carbs. But who can eat only protein for any length of time? Not me -- and I know it -- I begin craving carbs. My problem was that when I added anything back to the protein, it was not vegetables and whole grains, I added fast carbs and really got me into trouble. So "meat and potatoes" is a problem, "meat and fresh raw vegetables" helps to keep the body balanced. I am so glad to be doing this program.

As evidence, let me relate what happened to me a long time ago that made me a believer in meat, again. During the 90's there was a program being advertised that I purchased and did for four years. It was called "The McDougal Program." This is a vegan diet that eliminates any and all animal products. During the course of doing it I lost quite a bit of weight, which was my goal.

Then when I moved to Stone Mountain, the folks I was living with, ate what appeared to me to be a typical American diet, although they were very salt conscious. I was getting frustrated because it was hard to sit down to a meat and potatoes meal when you are a vegan. The only thing you have to eat are a few green beans and a pile of mashed potatoes. I did not have the money to eat separate meals so I simply kept doing what I thought was the best I could do under the circumstances.

I had already hit a plateau before I got here. and was not losing any more weight even before I started doing this, so was looking around for more information and another way to lose weight. It just so happened that they had a health fair at work and I went and got my blood checked. I was flabbergasted to find out that my cholesterol was way up over 350. I had already noticed that my ankles were now swollen every night and I had to keep them elevated for most of the evening to get them back to normal in the morning. To make a long story short, after I moved to Georgia, and after I moved into my own place, I purchased the Atkins diet and after I began to eat meat, eliminating all carbs, my cholesterol went down to 211. That proved it to me that it was not the meat causing the bad blood numbers, it was the carbs!

The thing about this 30-day Diabetes Cure program is that it is more balanced and teaching me a better way to do "slow carb" but not "no carb." Still learning and testing.

Let me know your experience. What do you think about this program? Have you tried it? Did it work or not work for you? What happened?

See you soon,

--Marcia