I’ve been lax in reporting on my ketosis but there really hasn’t been anything to report until now.
I’ve reached a comfortable point where I understand and enjoy my new diet. I am slowly branching out to new things like Frappuccino. I have never been a coffee drinker but I recently had one with dark chocolate at a small coffee shop and enjoyed it. I went looking for something off the shelf that isn’t loaded with sugar and I had no luck. So yesterday I brewed my own coffee and blending it into ice, cream, dark chocolate and a few packages of stevia. It was delicious and I soon had a coffee buzz. This will be a nice treat comes hot, hot summer time.
I just got back from a trip to Boise Idaho where I helped my daughter move out of her dorm and into a rental place. She is going through a lot of growth right now including school, jobs, friends and family changes. She’s doing well and I’m proud of her. However, traveling while on a ketogenic diet sucks huge, hairy, unmentionable donkey parts. I do have the following tips:
#1 If possible, don’t eat while traveling. I ate a normal dinner Wednesday, drove to DFW, stayed at a hotel, got up early for my flight Thursday, made my connection, arrived in Boise, met my daughter and by the time we sat down to dinner I’d had a nice 24 hour fast with just a couple bottles of water. I felt great and didn’t screw up my diet that day.
#2 Pack simple protein & fat snacks. I got some small packages of jerky and nuts for the return trip (they love to add sugar to nuts read the labels!) I did this primarily because I had been eating carbs all week and figured it would be easier if I could snack on the return trip. I didn’t need to snack on the return trip because I had discipline, but I also had a nice alternative.
I did indulge in some ridiculous carbs. I ate a huge calzone, I at some pasta, I ate bread, and I drank about 18 beers over the course of 6 days (Boise is loaded with wonderful breweries) but I also figured out some cool things about eating a keto-friendly restaurant diet.
The big enchilada (or rather burrito):
Lots of pseudo-Mexican food places make huge burritos packed with avocado, beef, chicken, onion, cilantro, etc and wrapped in just one thin, flour tortilla. Don’t eat the chips and enjoy the best carbohydrate based protein delivery system you are going to find in a chain restaurant. Also, I think it’s a good idea to break down every now and then and eat some black beans (avoid the light colored sweeter beans). This is what Tim Ferriss refers to as “slow carbs”
Mongolian BBQ :
You pick what goes into the bowl and thus, what they cook. Not a lot of fat but a good place for meat and veggies or several types. Lamb and pork are staples of most Mongolian BBQ places as well as bean sprouts and peppers. In fact the hardest place to avoid the simple carbs here is in the sauces. Just accept that you will get a little sugar, flour or rice and dump a tasty sauce on your bowl of goodies. It’s also inexpensive.
I Seafood and I eat it:
Seafood places are good as long as you avoid the breaded deep fried crap. Look for fatty salmon with veggies or eat your weight in shrimp like a bearded seal. Once again, avoid the tempting bread (unless you go to San Francisco and then you are a moron if you don’t eat some real sour dough bread with your seafood)
Steak out:
I consider steak to be the original comfort food. Screw ice cream. I feel good and sleep like a baby with a pound or so of red meat slowly digesting inside me. I bet it’s an evolutionary thing. Get grilled veggies instead of a potato and enjoy the same feeling your ancestors had when they knew they’d eaten enough to (probably) survive for another week.
Finally:
There is nothing keto friendly to eat at an Italian food place. Maybe the salad but what kind of heathen goes to an Italian food place and only eats salad? You go out for Italian food because someone you love asks you to go. Just have some freaking linguini and enjoy a cheat day. Same goes for a pizza place. Quit being a pussy and eat the stupid crust.
I have developed a theory about eating at a burger joint like Five Guys. It seems like you could get the big double meat burger, no fries and just eat the delicious fatty patty and cheese but I’ve got to say after eating coconut and olive oil for so long that greasy burger just seems unhealthy. Also, a lot of burger places add grain based filler to their patties so you can try to avoid the carbs and still get them.
OK, this doesn’t make up for missing 4 weeks but I’m getting back on track.