Thursday, June 14, 2012

The fattest one in the photo

I'm restating something I stated in a comment:  I don't want to be the fattest family member in the photos.  I have, essentially, three families: my Dad's family, his wife's family, and my mother's family.  No matter how you stack it, I'm the largest family member, probably even outweighing all the men, except, perhaps, one uncle.

I believe in honesty - and I have to face it.  Sadly, I suspect I may always be the biggest family member, no matter how much I exercise and diet.  I hope I'm wrong, I really do, but I don't think my medication is any aid to my metabolism.

Last week I bought some herbal migraine preventers.   I had a few reasons:  I plan to re-induct, and always get migraines when I do.  Even if I wasn't going low carb, again, I'd want them because I detest migraines.

One thing I didn't buy: fat burners.  I get horrible manias on them, and they can ruin your liver.

I have a few problem foods.  One, peanuts.  My last migraine, after eating peanut butter, was so horrible I doubt I will eat peanuts for years.

Ron doesn't like to see me hurting, either.  It's impossible to hide a migraine, at least mine.

Worst case, I do have plenty of phenergan in tablet and suppository form.  I hope it doesn't get that bad, but it might.  

Last weekend I sat down and considered meal options.  I don't have a lot of energy unless I am manic.  The other night, I finally did the dishes.  I'm still playing catch-up on the clothes.  Some days all I can do are shower, work, and home.

A while back I admitted the truth: cooking is really out of the question on this medication "cocktail".  I have EXCELLENT symptom control, so I'm willing to accept the loss of energy.  Ron and I agree, quality is better than quantity.

Most easy-to-prepare foods come in a highly processed, carbohydrate laden form. That's fine for Ron, who's maybe 150 pounds.  He can eat a TV dinner.

Cookies don't "call" him.  He can walk right past a display of pastries.  He does like salty snacks, but prefers a "blazing hot" varieties that wouldn't tempt me if I were starving.

Recently, I've just been eating "heat and eat" items, but I need to go low-carb.  I thought about it for a while, and decided to work out a compromise.

I'd buy precooked meat items, low-carb, and warm them up for meals.  They'd take no more effort than a TV dinner.  I went to Walmart and discovered cooked meatballs and cooked chicken breast patties.  I can do a lot with them.

I also bought some raw, frozen, hamburger patties.  I plan to cook them all up one night when I'm manic, and re-freeze them.  I also have some eggs and ham.

Are the "perfect", low-carb items?  No, they are somewhat processed.  They have flavor enhancers.  The ham has a few carb's worth of sugar.

However, it's a heck of lot better than what I have been eating.  It will be easy to combine ham/chicken/meatball + tomato sauce or salsa + vegetables + cheese and have a wonderful meal.  I'll have plenty of variety.

The worst thing I do, with regard to food: I tend to eat the same thing every day, for weeks, until I abhor it.  I have a nice mix of items, I hope, to provide lots of variety.  I have to admit, I bought a lot of tomato sauce.  I love it.  The type I bought contains no added sugar.

I'll have a lot of fun eating them up.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Oh, I so hear you on so many levels!!

Congrats on starting your weight loss journey. I am just at the tail end of one (hopefully my final one of a few..), myself. I've got about 4 more lbs til goal, wohoo! But, for a while, it felt like I'd never get there. I lost over 30 lbs.

I'm the same with energy. I get home and often have to have a nap. "Dinner" is often a sandwich, soup, or cheese n'crackers. fruit or yogurt too. Not the best, but better than how I was before. Thankfully, my husband knows my condition and is very understanding. I also have issues with pernicious anemia (b12 deficiency) in addition to Bipolar, so that makes things extra fun! heheh.

I also hear you about being "the fattest one"...I'm from a family of small women. I'm average/small myself , and the women in my family are shorter than me and about the same weight/height ratio if not smaller. When I was larger, it really showed. We've all struggled with weight problems at one point, but that didn't help when I stood next to them and felt huge. :( You will get there!!!