My 6-Month Experiment

Note-Oct 28, 2015
Beginning with the "Introduction" below, you will note that this was initially a 30-day experiment that began on Aug.13 when I weighed approximately 250 lbs. I say approximately, because my weight at this time was fluctuating regularly between 247-250 lbs. Just a few months prior to this I was in the 260 range, but through LC in July/early Aug I had managed to drop about 10 lbs. My wife was very concerned about my decision to exclude all except animal products and water from my diet for 30-days. I told her that it would be just for 30-days, and humans can survive for much longer than 30-days fasting, so what harm could it do. After feeling the incredible effects of this WOE, I decided to continue a modified version of this WOE for a full 6-months, at which time I will have a full physical with a full panel of blood work to see how this has affected my health. The modification that was added at the end of the 30-days is the inclusion of a small amount of low-carb vegetables (which I confess are not much more than a vehicle to carry my butter...). These include broccoli and cauliflower. I notice that when I am home and have unlimited access to my raw Jersey milk, my weight loss stalls, but that's a small price to pay for this delicious drink. So...pressing on for 6 months.


Introduction
What follows will be a week-by-week account of my introduction to the ZC or VLC way of life. I am going to refer to this as ZC, although I know that I am typically eating 10-30g of carbs each day. I am embarking on a 30-day test of this eating plan. I didn't start this blog until 10-days into the experiment because, like most people, I have a long and illustrious history of starting something with great excitement and vigor...and then fizzling out when the hunger/boredom/craving hits. I was frankly worried this would be the same sad story. Happily, despite 10 full days of ZC, I am more excited than ever about this discovery. Since the first 10-days have come and gone, I'm going to try to catch up in this intro with a reminder that there are 4 goals to this program.

#1. Weight Loss. I started at 250 lbs on Aug.13, 2015 My highest weight (lifetime) is 265 lbs that I reached in mid-2014. I am 6'2"

#2. Discipline of my appetite. Especially when I travel, I have been shocked at how out-of-control my eating can become...and I'm afraid that unless I make a major change, I am headed for trouble. Weight gain and the associated health problems will undoubtedly be the result if I don't rein in my sugar/carb-addicted appetite. I frequently see "road warriors" as I travel...typically men in the 40-60 age range...and the results of this lifestyle are typically very noticeable. Heavy...heavy...and an overall unhealthy appearance. Travel is very stressful on the body and this lifestyle can be best handled by keeping weight in check, and blood sugar stable. In seeing these poor creatures struggle, red-faced while rushing to cross an airport terminal to catch a flight, I thought two things: heart attack, and in a few years, this could be me!

#3. Fight Cancer. My experience with Basal Cell Skin Cancer has driven me to study what feeds cancer and the common denominator seems in many cases to be...(no surprise) SUGAR. There is no better eating plan to reduce sugar than ZC. I have active skin cancer on my face that I monitor, and I'm interested to see how those areas respond on this way of eating.

#4. Continue the healing process from a serious case of Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Ehrlichiosis. These three illnesses were received concurrently from a particular nasty group of Virginia ticks that I encountered in May of 2014. More on this experience can be found in the page entitled, "The Past". Thankfully, my recovery has gone smoothly and with the exception of a very minor lingering issue, I feel great and my energy level has returned to normal.

My start date is Aug.13, 2015 and I will be eating meat, eggs, small amounts of cheese, and raw Jersey milk and kefir. I have access to raw, high-fat Jersey milk and I have enjoyed it immensely for the past few years. I will be limiting myself to 8 oz of fluid or 6 oz of kefir each day. The kefir is lower in carbs than the raw fluid milk and has a very attractive nutrient profile including probiotic content. I will drink black coffee in the morning, typically 8-12 oz. and water.

I plan to eat as much as I feel I want, which is a rather scary decision because I tend to eat a large quantity of food. I will eat until full and will do no exercise for these 30-days. My reports will be week-by-week as there is little variation day-to-day, and I have an app (Lose It) that makes weekly averages for nutrient values a breeze.

Week 1-Aug 13-19, 2015

I ate beef steaks, pork loin, a small amount of ground beef, bacon, some butter, coffee, and small amounts of milk and kefir. While I was not consciously checking calories, I will give you the daily average for the week, as well as the nutrient breakdown. I note that the fluid milk really boosts the carbs, but if you subtract the fluid milk carbs, result is near zero. (Can't give up that delicious milk!)

Week 1 average caloric intake: 1900k

Nutrient daily average for week 1:

• Fat-109g or 58%
• Cholesterol = 869mg
• Sodium = 1921mg
• Carbohydrate = 25.7 or 6%
• Fiber = 1.2g
• Sugars = 19.5g
• Protein = 150g or 36%

Goal 1-Weight Loss = 5 lbs

Goal 2- Appetite is very stable with no cravings

Week 1 Summary: I feel reluctant to share this because I know that some people have really suffered through adaptation to this WOE. I did not suffer any headaches, no severe carb/sugar cravings, and really felt fantastic throughout the week. Mealtime was psychologically challenging because my family was eating our regular diet. My wife is supportive of this (only for 30-days) although she is primarily vegetarian and rarely touches meat. So, this is a bit extreme for her. However, she has been increasingly concerned about my weight and desires to see me get control in that area. The weight loss was fantastic, but I believe the greatest discovery for me this week was the difference a stable blood sugar level makes. I simply felt good and was not constantly distracted by hunger, thoughts of what to eat next, or weakness because I had skipped a meal. I did not eat 3 meals a day, not because I was consciously trying to skip meals, but I just wasn't hungry. I might have a couple eggs with bacon or sausage in the morning, followed by steak at dinner. Sometimes I would just have a glass of kefir in the morning, and be good all day. I would begin to feel very hungry around 3-4pm, make my evening steak/bacon/milk dinner....and I was fine throughout the evening, and sometimes throughout the entire next day. This is unheard of for me. I would typically be ravenous if I skipped breakfast and so distracted by hunger that I could hardly work. I feel guilty saying this, but I really have suffered no adaptation symptoms. 

Finally, because I know one of the things that people often want to ask about, but typically can't...how did you manage to eliminate your waste if you only averaged about a gram of fiber per day? Well...to be truthful, I wondered how this was going to work too. The answer (and feel free to quit reading here if you don't want a description of my bathroom results. To keep from getting too descriptive, let's use a 1-10 numbering system for this part. The first number will indicate size 1-small through 10-huge. The second number indicate consistency with 1=water through 10-hard as rock.

Day1 and 2- no activity, but also no bloating or discomfort, or gas

Day 3- Size=2, Consist=9

Day 4-no activity

Day 5-Size=9, Consist=9

Day 7-Size=7, Consist=4

Final notes: Sex drive normal, appetite for food is strong when I'm really actually in need of nutrients, otherwise, the rest of the day I don't really think much about food because I am satisfied.

Interesting...Fresh sour cream donuts were passed around at work today and I had no desire...and no difficulty resisting the temptation. Extremely vivid dreams (thus the name of this blog). Not especially weird dreams, but very vivid...the kind that leave you wondering upon waking, "Did that really happen?"

Week 2 Summary Aug.20-26

I am feeling great, seeing changes in my level of body fat, and with just 14 days under my belt (literally), I can say that this has been a very smooth transition. A couple of issues that are puzzling, but in researching the experiences of others, not uncommon. 

1. An occasional sore throat. This has come and gone a couple of times and it feels exactly like the beginning of an illness, except that it goes away quickly with no lingering effects. The first time this happened there was a new illness (common cold) making the rounds in the house and I was in the midst of a very stressful and exhausting weekend of work. I was sure I was getting the illness, but nothing developed. I have had this sore throat symptom about 3 times over the first 14 days and it lingers for maybe half a day and then is gone. Nothing develops so I expect this is somehow related to my diet. This is in no way a serious sore throat, just noticeable, and then it disappears. 
2. Very vivid dreams. I have never been much of a dreamer but these two weeks have been bizarre. Not that the dreams are disturbing or violent, or sexual, but these are just very vivid and seemingly long dreams that involve what you might consider fairly normal things. E.g. Last night I was walking on the shores of Georgian Bay (my favorite place on earth) and I found a strange rock. I had in my possession a hammer and chisel and so I set about to chisel this large stone. I can still see the strange shape/structure of this rock and for what seemed like a long time, I worked on chiseling this rock into some sort of keepsake. I had interactions with a few people who were also walking among the rocks. The water was crystal clear and it felt like I was actually there. I awoke and I have no idea what prompted this dream...but on this WOE I have had more vivid dreams than I can ever recall.
3. I have two troublesome spots on my face (probably Basal Cell Skin Cancer) and these have turned a brighter shade of red than usual. One is on my upper lip and has been there for months. It almost looks like a cold sore is coming on, but it isn't a cold sore. It is a sore that won't heal and for me that typically means it is likely another spot of cancer. Another spot is on the bridge of my nose. This is also a brighter shade of red than is typical. Not sure if this is related to this WOE or perhaps it is just a progression of the cancer cells. If it is cancer, those guys are going to be hungry because they haven't had any sugar in two full weeks now...HA! I'm watching these spots and a few others to see how they respond. If they don't improve at all over the next few months, and, if they grow in size, I know what the result will be. More carving on my face...and I really would prefer not to experience more of that.

On to the Week 2 Results:

Week 2 average caloric intake: 1980k

Nutrient daily average for week 2:

• Fat-125g or 63%
• Cholesterol = 828mg
• Sodium = 1877mg
• Carbohydrate = 20.7 or 5%
• Fiber = 0.9g
• Sugars = 18g
• Protein = 145g or 32%

Goal 1-Weight Loss = 4 lbs

Goal 2- Appetite is very stable with no cravings
Total Weight Loss = 9 lbs in 14 days

Week 2 Summary
This week had several challenges that were overcome, one in particular occurred on Saturday Aug.22 when we had a family over for dinner. My wife is an excellent cook and she prepared a lovely dinner that included Lasagna (ouch...I'm a hardcore pasta addict), caesar salad, some BBQ pork loin (ok for me except for the sugary BBQ sauce, fresh baked rolls (ouch...another addiction), double layer chocolate cake and blueberry crumble with ice cream. So...my wife and I were both concerned that this weird diet was going to be very awkward as people were sitting down to dinner. Thankfully, although I did cheat (I had a small portion of salad and a tiny piece of lasagna...and a bite of blueberry crumble), I avoided any real awkwardness and survived the dinner, almost intact. Although I was disappointed that I had "cheated", this is real life and I didn't want our guests to feel awkward, nor did I want to look like I didn't like my wife's cooking...which is fantastic. The next day (Sunday) it was right back up on the horse and now that the week is over, that minor bump in the road is no big deal. Notice that I did not lose quite as much weight this week, but I'm still thrilled at the stability of my mood, and the lack of cravings for carbs/sugars etc. The second challenge involved a kettle corn event at Liberty University where I cooked for 4-hrs in a very hot (95+ degrees F) trailer. Since my tick illnesses I have become even more sensitive to heat and for some reason my body seems to struggle to cool itself. I have always struggled in the heat/humidity of Virginia's summer, but since my illnesses, I find that I have more trouble regulating my body temperature. I sweat even worse than I used to and I absolutely must drink massive amounts of water, often with salt, to maintain the ability to work. Although this event was very uncomfortable for me, I found my energy level was stable and although sweating profusely for over 4-hrs, I was able to complete the job with no ill effects.
STOP HERE if you don't want to know about my bathroom experiences this week!

These week was again unremarkable in the bathroom, despite the fact that I averaged less than 1g of fiber each day. Based on the conventional wisdom, I should have had a completely non-functional excretory system by now. But...as I am finding out, conventional wisdom seems to be sadly lacking. My bathroom experiences this week:
(For the Bowel Movement Legend...see Week 1)
Day 8: No activity
Day 9: BM #4 (in 9 days) today. Size-4, Consistency 5 with a small amount of 1. I chalk this up to the extreme duress my body was under at the 4-hr kettle corn show where I was cooking in high heat.
Day 10:No activity
Day 11;BM#5 Size=5, Consist=7
Day 12: No activity
Day 13:BM#6 Size=8, Consist=9 (ideal...in my opinion)
Day 14:No activity

Overall, a very good week, despite the fact that there was a minor cheat. Feeling great, appetite stable, and feeling strong. Body changes are more visible...especially belly fat is dropping quickly. Although only 9 lbs are gone, it appears that they have all left the belly area. This is a very good thing.

Week 3 Summary- Aug 27-Sep 2

Weekly summary for Week 3 shows that Fat was 67% of calories, Carbs 8%, and protein 25%. Thus, fat was a little higher and carbs stayed under 10% of calories. Weight at beginning of this week was 233.6. At the end of the week it was 231.8 lbs. Weight loss slowed this week but on Monday I traveled to West Palm Beach to work and I was actually looking forward to being solo and eating "my way" with no pressure or temptations. Of course the temptations arrived almost immediately as the class I was teaching insisted upon bringing in treats (my favorites Cuban pastries). I resisted throughout the week, but several times almost gave in. Skipped lunch each day and had steady energy and good clear thinking all day, every day. I was hungry when I returned to the room each night and enjoyed a ribeye steak, approx 1 lb with some cheese and frozen heavy cream for a dessert treat. No sugar the entire week except for one gulp of Cuban coffee that I saw was black, but immediately upon taking a sip, the blast of sugar hit my mouth and that was the end of that. After almost 3 weeks of no sugar, this was intense...but I was able to dump the coffee and resist the sugar.

BM#8 on Monday, size 9, consistency 6. Calorie count this week averaged about 1900 per day which is too few for me...but I really wasn't hungry and eating only a light breakfast, and a big dinner seemed to satisfy me. Once the 30-day trial is over I need to bump up the calories, probably to around 2300/day so that I keep burning the fat and don't lose too much muscle. For now, all is well, my mood is great and I have fantastic emotional stability, even with the stress of a week-long trip.
BM#9- size 8, consist 4/1 was on Thursday and also that day I recorded an interesting notation:

Last night, for the first time ever, I had to throw out part of a beautiful ribeye. It was about 18oz in size, beautiful like a ribeye should be, fatty and eaten very rare. It had some Kerrygold butter on it and I just "hit the wall" and couldn't eat another bite. I tossed about 2oz and that is a crime...but I was stuffed and my body simply said "NO MORE". I was very tempted for something sweet...still after 21 days, the sugar craving comes. Not as often nor as strong as in the beginning of the 30-day experiment, but last night I was fantasizing about the pack of M&M peanuts in the fridge. To kill the craving, I ate about 1.5 cups of frozen heavy cream...and that was too much fat. I was slightly nauseous during the evening and my BM this morning was size-8, consist 4 with some 1. I figure that is my bodies way of saying...Too much of a good thing. Live and learn. Studying about sugar right now and shocked (but not really) by the lies and deceptions that are actually killing people...all for $.

Summary

Week 3 average caloric intake: 1900k (too low...ideal is 2300 for me)

Nutrient daily average for week 3:

• Fat-127.5g or 67% (very near my new goal of 70% of calories from fat)
• Cholesterol = 838mg (down slightly from week 1)
• Sodium = 3212mg (almost double week 1)
• Carbohydrate = 32g or 8% (almost double week 2-5%, and also higher than week 1 (6%)
• Fiber = 2.4g
• Sugars = 14.2 (lower than week 1, and week 2)
• Protein = 107g or 25% of calories (lowest of the 3 week trial...typically around 125g)

Goal 1-Weight Loss = 1.8 lbs. (much lower weight loss than week 1- 5 lbs and week 2- 4 lbs.) However, still losing and no suffering, so all good as long at it keeps going down.

Goal 2- Appetite is very stable with no cravings.

With Week #3 in the books, the end of the 30-day trial is in sight, and I feel great. My belly fat is shrinking and my energy level is really good. My mood is very stable and I notice my thinking is very clear while I teach my technical classes each day. My blood sugar is very stable and that seems to produce many benefits. Apparently, according to my wife, I don't snore anymore, so that is a blessing for her. Lots more weight to lose to reach the goal, but I am making steady progress and feeling great.

Week 4 Summary- Sep 3-11 (Last Week of 30-day trial)

As I entered the home stretch this week, I looked back and realized that while the 30-day trial was a challenge, there was no suffering and I continue to enjoy this way of eating...and plan to continue beyond the 30-days. I will however experiment with adding some vegetables and see how that impacts my weight loss goal. I know I need to keep carbs below 10% of my calories. I will add a few calories to my goal target and see if I can consume around 2300-2500 daily. That has been a challenge on this WOE as most days I am right around the 2000 calorie mark. With such a reduction (from my "normal" 3500+) one would think I would be ravenous and feeling deprived. There is nothing further from the truth! My mood (according to my wife) has been much improved and much more stable. I have worked some very strenuous kettle corn events in very hot and humid conditions, and persevered well, with little or no ill effects. Drinking lots of water with some added salt has been beneficial. 

The weekly summary for the last week is as follows:

Week 4 average caloric intake: 2000 k (too low...ideal is 2300 for me)

Nutrient daily average for week 4:

• Fat-124g or 60% (very similar to week 3 but below my goal of 70% of calories from fat)
• Cholesterol = 835mg (very similar to week 3)
• Sodium = 1884mg (almost half of week 3)
• Carbohydrate = 46.8 g or 10% (much more than week 3 and at the very top limit that I set of 10%)
• Fiber = 5.5 g
• Sugars = 27.6 g(much higher than last week)
• Protein = 143g or 30% of calories (good level and up from last week)

Goal 1-Weight 231.4 Loss = .4 lbs. (obviously 10% carbs is about the highest level I can tolerate right now and still lose weight. Going forward I will shoot for 6-8% as a goal) However, still losing and no suffering, so all good as long at it keeps going down.

Goal 2- Appetite is very stable with no cravings. No more snoring, belly fat still shrinking, and mood very stable. A general feeling of optimism and wellness.