Welcome


My name is Gina and I would like to welcome you to my blog!

On this blog, I not only share the dietary and lifestyle approach which reversed my metabolic disease and achieved my weight loss, but I also debunk many misconceptions surrounding obesity and its treatment.

I am 5'5" and was weighing 300 lbs., at my heaviest. I lost a total of 180 lbs. I went through several phases of low carbohydrate dieting, until I found what worked best and that is what I share on this blog. Once on a carbohydrate restricted diet, along with intermittent fasting, I dropped all of the weight in a little over two years time.

My weight loss was achieved without any kind of surgery, bariatric or cosmetic. I also did not take any weight loss medications or supplements. I did not use any weight loss program. This weight loss was solely the result of a very low carbohydrate, whole foods based diet, along with daily intermittent fasting and exercise.

I allow discussions in the comments section of each post, but be advised that any inappropriate or off-topic comment will not be approved.

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May 6, 2019

Six common beliefs addressed, Part 19

1. I don't get enough greens, but I don't like eating them.

If you don't like them, don't eat them. No where has it ever been proven that greens are needed. I understand that many hundreds of years ago people wanted to sell their crops and came up with the whole "you need your greens" mantra, but don't let agricultural marketing ploys control what's on your plate today. The only thing you need is to breathe. If you prefer a diet without greens, then eat only animal products.

2. Stable blood glucose is not important, because diabetes is a disease of insulin.

Diabetes is a disease of poor blood glucose regulation which eventually affects insulin release, function and expression (insulin resistance). Therefore, stabilizing blood glucose is extremely important to correct diabetes, because these erratic blood glucose fluctuations continue driving the insulin resistance. Everything else that occurs is always downstream from poor blood glucose regulation. 

Stabilizing blood glucose, in the context of pharmaceutical medications, is a fool's errand. Diabetes is a chronic and progressive disease, because the medications that "treat" it, only work to lower blood glucose, not to properly regulate it. This is why these medications do not "cure" diabetes, since they never reverse insulin resistance. 

3. Is taking magnesium and potassium enough to correct an electrolyte imbalance?

There are seven important electrolytes, which the body requires, and all of them work in unison - sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, chloride, phosphorus and sulfur.

If only one of them is too low or too high, it can affect how all of the others work. For this reason, concentrating on only sodium, magnesium or potassium is not enough to correct electrolyte imbalances. Consuming salt in isolation can also cause more dehydration,  furthering electrolyte imbalances. Salt needs to accompany the correct amount of fluid.

You need to replenish and balance electrolytes with a good quality electrolyte supplementation. These supplements can be found in health food stores or vitamin shops. Make sure the product you choose does not contain sugar. Also avoid products that are labeled electrolytes but contain other vitamins, minerals and "antioxidants" as fillers. You want electrolytes, not anything else. 

Discuss electrolyte concerns with your healthcare provider, so you can get the appropriate testing required to have a better understanding of what might be going on. This is especially true if you are symptomatic.

4. Since low carb diets will always work, I can just go back to them after binging and cheating.

No. 

Yo-yo dieting has extremely negative effects on metabolism and can eventually dysregulate leptin function, thyroid function, stress hormones, etc. This is because with yo-yo dieting you end up disrupting blood glucose even more, over time. 

Poor leptin expression can cause the inability to lose weight, unless extreme measures are taken. The more extreme, the less sustainable and the higher the failure rate. This is why a diet that worked once, might not work a second time.

This is why practicing a consistent dietary, fasting and exercise protocol is so important. You have to stick with it, so you can develop a healthy circadian rhythm, that your body will respond to. You do not want to stress your metabolism into no longer responding to anything.

5. I was told sugar is bad, but fructose is fine, since it does not raise my blood glucose.

Fructose does not raise blood glucose, because it is metabolized in the liver like alcohol, and becomes liver fat. Liver fat only perpetuates metabolic dysfunction further. 

The sweet taste of fructose interferes with incretin hormones, insulin and hypothalamic function. 

For this reason, you have to stay way from fructose as it is particularly obesogenic. 

6. Is coconut water good for electrolyte imbalances?

Coconut water contains all of the electrolytes needed, but if you are symptomatic, this is not enough. The more fluids you intake, the more you urinate and this causes more electrolyte loss. Electrolyte supplementation will be your best course of action, not drinking more.

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