Hi everybody. With school over I have had a lot of time to focus on my D. My numbers have been really great and I owe most of that to power walking and low carbing. As I have mentioned on here, meat has been raising my sugars so I was trying to get my portions of protein under control...sometimes it is hard to tell how many calories and grams of protein i am consuming. I feel as if my weight has been stuck for the past few years primarily because I have only been counting carbs and maybe been ignoring the amount of calories. Meaning that although I am very strict low carb...my diet seems pretty calorie dense, and I feel that I am eating too much too often.
I think that following a very structured plan for a couple of weeks would really be a good thing for me. I recently heard about plan that is mostly shakes. I saw a few shake powders at wholefoods which are very low carb (2 - 5 g per scoop) and they are meal replacements. I am wondering if anyone has done strictly shakes...or shakes plus some other foods just to keep a rigid calorie count temporarily. I know i am definitely overfeeding myself and would love to lose that habit.
Also wondering will this form of protein raise my sugars in the same way that meat does? And also, I have never taken a protein shake before...i know they are generally used for gaining weight and muscle, right? That is not what i am looking for.
Thanks!
Protein shakes are often used as supplements. Athletes use them as a source of just good focused dietaryt protein. They are also used in various diet protocols. Most of these mainstream diet plans are based on shakes that are essentially meal replacements, these are not protein shakes. And bodybuilders use shakes for "muscle gain," often those shakes have 50-100 g carbs, you definitely don't want those. But there are many low carb protein shakes out there, I recommend those based on whey and casein. Whey protein is absorbed more quickly and casein takes longer. If you had to choose one, I would go with whey (even if you are lactose intolerant, whey should be ok). I buy mine at Costco in a 6lb bag. I have never done strictly shakes and I actually wouldn't really advise it. There is a diet called the Velocity Diet that uses that protocol, but I don't really recommend it.
If you want to try using protein shakes as a meal replacement, I would recommend a 1/4 c heavy cream, 1 c water and a serving of protein powder per directions. I have a couple of shakers, just dump it in, shake and down the gullet. Most protein shakes are 25g protein per serving, thus this replacement shakes perhaps 400 calories. The protein and fat will keep you from getting hungry. You will still have a blood sugar rise from protein, I figure about half the protein converts to blood sugar, so bolus for 12g carb equivalent and use an extended bolus or bolus after the meal.
ps. And I still would suggest you try Intermittent Fasting if you haven't already.
I am so interested in trying Intermittent Fasting. Would love some more feedback on that....I have heard great success with people using the Fast 5 method which is only 5 hour eating window. Wondering what the best times are for eating.
