I’ve been reading up quite a bit on fats in my diet. I can’t be the only one confused by fats and all the different kinds, shapes, sizes, names and.. Saturated, transfats, fatty acids.. and on and on. I don’t want to be come fat phobic in my quest to lose weight and eat a low fat diet. I do know that a body needs certain fats to stay healthy. But which fats and how?

Bad Fats

Saturated fat? They raise total blood cholesterol as well as LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol). Bad.

Transfats? Trans fatty acids are found in many commercially packaged goods such as cookies and crackers, commercially fried food such as French Fries from some fast food chains, other packaged snacks such as microwaved popcorn as well as in vegetable shortening and hard stick margarine. Bad.

Good Fats

Monounsaturated Fats? Monounsaturated fats lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol) and increase the HDL cholesterol (the good cholesterol). Nut, canola and olive oils are high in monounsaturated fats. Good.

Polyunsaturated Fats? Polyunsaturated fats also lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. Seafood like salmon and fish oil, as well as corn, soy, safflower and sunflower oils are high in polyunsaturated fats. Omega 3 fatty acids belong to this group. Good.

In my meal planning, I’ve tried to keep a good eye on what types of fats we are ingesting - and making sure we have the daily requirement of fats that we need - - instead of completely avoiding fats, altogether, I have come to terms that some fats are GOOD, and even necessary.

This week, I added a supplement to my diet: Flax Seed Oil. Some facts I found about Flax Seed Oil:

• Flax Seed Oil contains omega-6 and omega-9 essential fatty acids, B vitamins, potassium, lecithin, magnesium, fiber, protein, and zinc and also provides approximately 50% more omega-3 oils than what you could get from taking fish oil, minus that horrible “fishy” after taste
• Studies show that Omega-3 fatty acids help lower cholesterol and blood triglycerides, and prevent clots in arteries, which may result in strokes, heart attacks and thromboses
• Shortens recovery time for fatigued muscles after exertion.
• Eases weight loss in people afflicted with obesity.
• Stimulates brown fat cells and increases the metabolic rate making it easier to burn off fat.
• Can relieve the side effects and stop development of many forms of cancer. Can relieve the symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis. It can relieve the symptoms of Diabetes Mellitus. Helps prevent Atherosclerosis (the accumulation of fatty deposits inside the blood vessels, especially the large and medium-sized arteries, that many people experience during the aging process).
• our current diets do not come close to meeting our daily EFA (essential fatty acids) requirements. The richest sources of EFAs such as flax seeds, cold-water fish, and soy and canola oils are rarely found in our regular meals. In addition, more typical foods like red meats and egg yolks can actually encourage the body’s production of bad prostaglandins. Flax Seed oil can help restore the body’s natural balance of good and bad prostaglandins.
• It is a safe, natural, gentle laxative and promotes the absorption of toxins and works as a gentle colonic

During my 15+ year career as a Registered Nurse - I remember many of my home-bound patients using Flax Seed Oil as a part of their daily supplements, along with a multivitamin. I had quite a few patients suffering from such ailments and diseases as heart disease, multiple sclerosis and cancers who reported to me that their MD’s recommended Flax Seed Oil as a daily supplement, and felt their symptoms improved making their disease process and treatments easier to handle on a daily basis.

Thankfully, I’m very healthy at this point in my life. But I’ve recognized the benefits of the Omega-3 EFA in my diet, and have started the supplement in hopes that I am giving my body what it needs from a fat standpoint.

I found a nice, organic Flax Seed Oil in the health food section of my local grocery store. Make sure, if you purchase it — that you buy it refridgerated in a brown-colored bottle. Flax Seed Oil’s number one problem is rancidity - so it needs to remain refridgerated and unexposed to air and light. I purchased one bottle and take 2TBS per day. The one bottle is enough for 2 weeks of daily supplements. If you allow Flax Seed Oil to go rancid - it is actually quite bad for you. After two weeks, even if refridgerated - - toss it out and get some new stuff. But, if you take it every day - one bottle is enough for 2 full weeks.

Imagine. I start out trying to decrease my fat intake on this diet — and end up actually ingesting a daily portion of fat as a supplement. Go figure. I’m making it a regular, daily supplement and will see how this affects the way I feel and function. Plus - I have my annual physical coming up in 3 months.. maybe I’ll surprise my Doc with a lower cholesteral level than my usual!

Some recommended reading on Good Fats vs. Bad Fats:

I’m losing track of what week I’m in! Oh yea - week 6. It’s all a blur, seriously! I skipped my weekly Monday weigh in and measuring this week because I’ve my period. Try as I may to avoid that water retention during this time, I inevitably show a weight gain during this time - so forget it! I don’t need the discouragement at this point!

6 weeks into this - here’s a few things I’ve learned along the way -

• I can eat LOTS - my body will burn it. Prior to the challenege, my eating habits were really really bad. I definitley did not eat three meals a day, at all. I would snack throughout the day at my computer while I worked — drink lots of coffee, and then when it came time for dinner, most often we’d do take out. I wasn’t consuming the calories I needed, by a long shot - - and the calories I was consuming was made up of mostly sugars and saturated fats.
• Another thing about food - the thought of my coveted double bacon cheeseburger from Wendy’s just doesn’t appeal to me anymore. I think about it and all I envision is a lump of dripping fat and lard between a sugar loaded bun. Seriously, it makes me ill to even think about taking one bite. My palette has changed!
• Cooking good food is fun. And it gives me a warm fuzzy to know that my family is also getting the benefits of all that good food. Now, my teenagers sometimes turn their noses up at some of the things I prepare (they don’t like brussell sprouts and are SICK to death of turkey) - but for the most part, they eat what I eat and they don’t even notice I’m using Splenda instead of sugar, or Olive oil instead of vegetable oil, etc, etc. Even my 15 year old daughter lost 10 lbs because she started emmulating my habit of drinking tons of water in a day. Plus - her acne cleared up almost immediately! Yay her!
• My endurance has increased with my cardio. When I first started this - I could stand about 20 minutes on the treadmill at about 2.5 mph with no incline. Today I’m doing about 40 minutes at 3.0 mph on a 7-10% incline. W00t!
• My strength has increased. With my weight training, I’ve noticed that the amount of weights I started with just don’t ‘do it’ for me anymore and I had to increase them. Then I increased the number of reps I’m doing just so I could get that good ‘burrrrrrrrrrrrrrn’ feeling, know what I mean? Just yesterday, I upped the weights on my Ab workout on the Bowflex by 5 more lbs, and increased the reps of that exercise by another 10. I’m feeling it this morning, let me tell ya - but it’s a good pain.
• This challenge has made me take a look at foods I never would have looked at before, and I’ve found some really yummy stuff! Instead of regular french fries fried up in the deep fryer, I tried sweet potatoe french fries baked in the oven. Sweet goodness, they are! And combinations of foods - - like Jennio’s italian seasoned turkey burgers grilled on my George Foreman grill.. then crumbled into my Egg beaters omlets tastes just like sausage with my eggs and is actually really quite good!
• I’ve traded pounds for inches. Last week I found out that I could not lose anythng but maybe a 1/2 a pound at the most - - but I still lost 3.5 inches, even though I barely lost a pound! To me, it’s the inches that matter. Heck - I put on my favorite pair of CK jeans yesterday that I haven’t been able to wear in well over a year! THAT alone motivated me to push myself just a little bit more everyday
• Aside from the weight loss and the inch loss - - I feel good. I haven’t felt this good in a very very long time. I used to struggle with many different things - most noteably insomnia. Prior to this challenge I was going through one of the WORST cases of insomnia that I ever had in my adult life. At one point, I was a full 72 hours without sleep. It’s just not healthy. I had my days and nights mixed up, the whole bit. I don’t know if it’s my new eating and exercise habits that have changed that - but these days, I’m sleeping like a baby. I get tired around 11pm or so and am usually asleep by midnight - - then I’m up at 6am. This has been pretty consistent for the last few weeks. If it’s my new habits that have changed this for me - it’s a frickin miracle!
• Lastly - people are noticing! That is most awesome when that happens. I had to spent quite a bit of time with my folks this past weekend, due to some health problems my mother was having. I walked into the house and took off my jacket and my Dad says “Lisa! Have you been working out or something?” So, of course I have to gloat, right? Right! He says “It shows! Wow - you look really great!” If that’s not enough to re-affirm that my efforts are worth it and are working, I don’t know what is!

So, this wraps up my 6th week - well almost. I am doing my official weigh-in on Friday of this week, and it will probably then be Fridays thereafter. Chris made a deal with me. He’s out of town on business this week and I’m picking him up at the airport on Friday. There is a restaurant close to the airport that we both love called “Fourth Base”. If I’ve lost 4lbs OR 4 inches since my last weigh in/measurements of two weeks ago - - he’ll treat me to my favorite meal there on Friday night. I snuck on the scale today and noted that I was only 3lbs down from what I was two weeks ago - - so I’m hoping the last of this water retention drops off before Friday, or that my measurements will be nice to me this week!

Ok - so whoever it who told me that exercise during your period will help ease the pain of cramps.. LIED! Seriously. I want to find that person. Whoever they are.

Hmmph!

My official weigh-in/measurment day today brought me this:

Weight Loss: 2lbs
Inches lost: 4 inches

There just is nothing more statisfying than to see that kind of progress as payoff for all the hard work and planning I’ve been doing. Thus far, my total loss on my Body for LIFE challenge has been: ……..drumroll……….

15 total pounds
20.5 total inches

I could stop now and be completely thrilled with my results. Seriously. But, I still have that 150lb mark to hit - and I’m going to hit it by my wedding on 6/24.

Over the last few weeks, I was kinda getting tired of weighing in and seeing a .5 lbs loss.. or no loss at all. So, this week I changed things around a bit. Changed my cardio schedule by increasing another day a week and increasing the rate at which I walk, including a small change in the incline on my treadmill.

For my foods - I played around there, too. I had gotten into a rut of eating some of the same foods over and over because it’s easy to make large quantities of it - - then refridgerate portions for lunches and meals later in the week. I was doing LOTS of tuna and tilapia…asparagus and broccoli. This week, I threw in some lean red meat for a few meals and have been eating lots of baby spinach and fruit - - black grapes, raspberries, blueberries.

In additiona, I added that Flax Seed Oil supplement to my diet a little over a week ago.

Plus - I haven’t had my sinful ‘cheat’ for two weeks. Yesterday, I had to take my daughter over to the sports store to get her a new swimsuit for gym class. (she ripped hers in a MOST unflattering way on the diving board in class yesterday. Poor kid!) On our way, she wanted to stop at Starbucks because she LOVES their caramel apple cider drink. She felt that she’s been really good and lost 10lbs herself - - she deserves a treat.

I wasn’t going to - because I am WEAK when face to face with a caramel machiatto, seriously. But, as we were driving, there was this cop behind me - - and no matter what, I hate driving with cops behind me and realized if I made a left towards Starbucks, we’d ditch the cop, right? Guilty conscience or something - or at the very least, a weak justification.

So, through the drive-thru we went. Now, I have tried and tried and tried - but I just cannot drink my latte with skim milk. I just can’t do it. I’ve tried over a dozen and a half times and I just let it sit and get cold - and at $4 a cup at Starbucks, that some expensive garbage. I can drink it with 1%, however Starbucks does regular milk two ways: Whole or skim - no in between.

So, I’ve become one of those annoying Starbucks customers whose order is 15 gazillion words long. “Hi - I’d like a grande caramel apple cider… and a Triple Grande, Half Skim Latte with 2 Splendas please”

I realize that 1/2 skim and 1/2 whole milk gives me approximately 1% milk for my latte and the whole drink comes out to about 120 calories total - compared to the 310 calorie drink that makes up my favorite machiatto!

The girl looks at me like I’m from planent Mars.. “What, no machiatto today, Lisa??” (How embarassing is it that the Barista knows me by name AND drink??).. I say “No, I’m trying to watch those calories, ya know - have you ever LOOKED at the nutritional info on those machiattos? Woosh!”

So, she tells me that she can’t stand skim milk for her latte’s either - - BUT… she tried a skim milk latte once with honey, instead of splenda… and she says she LOVES them and now that is all she drinks. Something about the honey and the milk together makes it totally tasty.

I’m skeptical. But I’ll try it next time because I’m game and always looking to drop a few of those empty calories out of my regular diet. I’ll let ya know how it goes!