The Ketogenic Diet.

I'm on day twelve of a new ketogenic meal plan. Without a doubt, eating this way produces results. I've dropped eight pounds since I started. Currently, I am clocking in at 267 pounds, the lowest I've ever weighed as an adult. In total, I've lost 76 pounds since I started my weight loss journey. The ketogenic plan is easy to follow (as long as you like meat) and my drive to continue is unwavering. It's a shame I didn't discover it sooner.

All that being said, the ketogenic method is kicking my ass.

What does it mean to eat a ketogenic diet? Well, it involves consuming a high amount of fat, a moderate amount of protein and few carbohydrates. By eating in this manner, the lessened amount of carbohydrates puts the body into a state of ketosis. During this metabolic state, the liver begins to break down stored fat in the body to create ketones. Since the body is starved of carbohydrates, the ketones are used as the primary source of energy for functioning. Hence, ketosis forces your body to burn your stored fat to survive. Right now, I'm eating less than 20 grams of carbs per day, and some days as few as 10 grams.

Obviously, that means I can't eat anything with a high amount of sugar, whether natural or processed. No fruits, starchy vegetables, breads or grains. Thankfully, I already cooked and ate in a healthy manner with real, unprocessed foods. Moving into the modified ketogenic meal plan wasn't too hard to do. I just had to cut out starches and fruit.

So, what am I eating? Lots of eggs, protein shakes, tuna fish, sardines, olives, pickles, green vegetables, chicken, pork and beef. Honestly, that's the best part about eating a ketogenic meal plan -- all the meat. I LOVE meat.  Don't get me wrong, I like vegetables and fruit, too. But, if I were a dinosaur, I'd definitely have been a carnivore.

"Feed Me!"

As I edge closer to completing my second week on the plan, I'm encountering the normal side effects of transitioning my body into ketosis -- general weakness, lethargy and some brain fog. It's to be expected, but will eventually pass as my body burns the last of my stored sugars. From that point on, my body will rely completely on stored fat reserves for energy.

Be advised -- the ketogenic meal plan isn't for everyone, especially people with diabetes. It takes a fair amount of research and dedication to make a ketogenic diet work. That being said, I'm glad to finally be in the in the 260's (haven't been here since middle school) and look forward to eclipsing 100 pounds of weight loss.

Further Information:

A Guide to the Keto Diet
Ketogenic Diet Plan

The Value of the Butcher.

In recent weeks, I have had the displeasure of opening two newly-purchased, but spoiled, packages of pork meat. It's an extremely odorous and sickening discovery, to say the least. The first package I opened came from a local Food Lion grocery. Upon tearing the package open, I immediately knew the pork was bad. It had a pungent, sour smell that can only be described as rotten. The package was returned the following morning for a refund. Thankfully, the employee I dealt with didn't give me a hard time.

This evening, I had the same event occur yet again. Earlier in the afternoon, I'd purchased a pack of boneless pork ribs from my local Lowe's Foods. My dinner tonight was to be a pork stir fry. Needless to say, that quickly became a chicken stir fry. The pork ribs looked and smelled fine upon removing them from the package. I discovered their true putrid nature once I started to slice them apart. The inner centers were dark brown and stunk terribly. It's a good thing I had some chicken in the freezer to complete the stir fry with.

I realize that this is an odd topic of discussion, but it highlights a steady trend in grocery stores. That trend? The lack of an on-sight butcher.

The Butcher's Shop by Annibale Carracci, circa 1580

Both of the grocery stores that I received spoiled meat from do not have an on-site butcher. They might have a closed-off butcher work area, but there's no actual butcher there doing work. Instead, stock boys are merely receiving and repackaging prepared meat portions that have been delivered to their location. This is troublesome, in my opinion. The value of a knowledgeable butcher goes without saying. They know how to prepare meat and what manner to store it. Most importantly, a butcher knows how to spot a problem with meat before it ever reaches the consumer.

This drift away from on-site butchers will only continue as consumers become farther and farther removed from their sources of food. Unfortunately, there's little the consumer can do to change this trend. Corporations will continually fine-tune and tweak their chains of production to maximize their profits. Removing the butcher from the local grocery is just another cog in the capitalist machine.