I'm back!!

I'm back! After almost a year I've decided it’s time to come back. I've been busy having a baby so I'm not sure where I'm going to find the time to blog again but I've been itching to write. I'll need to find the time somewhere!

Our gorgeous baby boy is 6 months old and he is my little ray of sunshine. He's so funny and curious and easy to be a mum to, I'm very lucky.

So, it may be that my future posts are about more than just food, since I can't not write about this amazing little creature but we'll see how it goes. Since having baby boy, I had almost 2 stone to lose. I've been 'dieting' since September, not even 3 months since I had him and it made me pretty miserable to be honest. I was calorie counting and although it worked when I stuck to it I was always hungry and felt deprived which meant it was pretty hard to stick to.

I've recently come across the low carb/high fat (LCHF) way of eating. The idea is that the fat fills you up and you can't overeat. I was really reluctant at first, I've been reading about it since November and I've only just seriously started giving it a go. For me, its working so far. 

What is LCHF?

"An LCHF diet means you eat less carbohydrates and a higher proportion of fat. Most importantly you minimize your intake of sugar and starches" (Diet Doctor). There is huge debate right now about sugar vs fat and whether carbs are really bad for you. There are also lots of different views on what LCHF means. For some it’s eating pounds and pounds of butter with minimal carbs for others it’s a bit more moderate. For me it’s no sugar and no grains. I get my carbs (because this is ‘low’ not ‘no’ carb) from lots of vegetables and some dairy. Alongside this a large part of my diet consists of good fats especially eggs, olive oil, coconut oil, nuts, avocado, meat and chicken with skin! Generally, 65% of my calories come from fat, 25% from protein and 10% from carbs. A typical week could look like this;

-          Slow cooked beef stew with broccoli / savoy cabbage

-          Crustless Quiche with salad

-          Burgers with cheese and red onions, gherkins and salad (no bun!)

-          Curry and cauliflower rice

-          Grilled chicken thighs with salad

-          Steak salad

-          Bolognese with ‘courgetti’ or cabbage

Citizen Chef

This way of eating works for me because I no longer have cravings and I only eat when I'm hungry. This is a huge shift for me, before LCHF I was either severely restricting calories to lose weight or I was existing on junk food (takeaways, chocolates, sweets etc.). I just couldn't do ‘moderation’, it was all or nothing, one extreme or the other. Now although it's still not easy, I have a much healthier attitude towards food, I eat when I'm hungry and I eat until I'm full. Calories still count but I eat enough to sustain me and to lose weight. I've only got about 6-8lbs to lose now and I know that not only will I achieve that but more importantly I'll be able to maintain it without developing an unhealthy attitude towards food. I can still enjoy all of my favourite foods without binging.

A little part of me is sad that I've restricted / cut out whole food groups but I haven’t been able to find an alternative. When I reach goal I will increase my carb intake so I've got to find a way of doing this without ending up where I started. 

So my food posts will look a bit different and I hope they're still interesting enough for you to stick around!