Carb Plan

My dear blogging friends,

I have something I need to share and maybe by doing so I can encourage myself to stick to it.

Since having my five little Byrds, I have had a really hard time keeping weight off. Due to metabolic problems that are a part of life with Thyroid disease, I just can't seem to keep it off. However there are some things that seem to help.

I exercise everyday for at least 20 minutes and my calorie burn goal (set by my Dr) is 300 calories per day.

I also try to watch what I eat. We already use whole grains; honey, sucanat, and stevia instead of sugar; we also eat fresh fruits and vegetables and have a garden. Still weight is an issue for me. I have found though that a carbohydrate monitoring diet helps. I can't have a very low carb or no carb diet or I get sick because of hypoglycemia. That isn't fun and I get really grouchy.

A few years ago my SIL gave me a print out of a diabetic diet she was using and liked. I gave it a try and have loved it. When I use it, I lose weight, don't get hungry, and generally feel better.

So I am posting this carb plan PDF version of it HERE.

Please remember that I am NO Doctor and that you should consult your physician before starting any new diet or exercise plan.

This is just something that has worked for me.

Here is how it works. It breaks down the food you eat into Carbohydrate (carbs), Proteins (meats), and fats. All three are necessary for your body function.

One diabetic serving of Carbs is 15 grams of carbohydrates. Each meal and snack lists the number of carbs you can have. It also gives you a limited list of foods and the number of carbs they have.

The thing I love about this plan is that it educated me enough that I could start planning my own meals with things that I love in the amounts that I can have. The first thing I noticed was that some of the foods I had been eating were not so great for me. When I ate my carb quota of them, I was still starving.

I also learned that 1 cup of raw vegetables has 5 grams carbs so that meant that I can eat 3 cups of vegetables which equals 15 carbs or 1 Carb choice in the plan. Well that fills me up and I love them! That also usually left me 2 Carb choices for that meal that I could fill in with all kinds of things that I wanted to eat. I could even "afford" to have a cookie or small dessert now and then.

I grew with the plan and went to several websites to learn the "carb" amounts for ingredients I used often. That way I could tweak my own recipes so they were better for me and I could regulate the portions to comply with the diet.

I have also incorporated several South Beach Diet ideas into what I am fixing. Kalyn's Kitchen is a great place to get recipes and ideas for low carb recipes that work well in any diet.

Whew, that was a lot of typing. Can you tell I feel strongly about this?

Anyway my friends, I wanted to share this tool with you. Maybe it will help you in your quest for a healthier life style.

**Note**
This diet is set for a preganant or lactating woman. For my regular diet I just cut back on the fat and carbs some or have 3 cups of veggies be one of two carb choices at a meal. That gives you lots of food, lots of fiber, still has carbs for good blood sugar levels, fills me up .... etc.