Lose weight (I did!) with keto diet and calorie restricting food swaps for BBQ and pulled pork

Hi I'm mar and I'm a BBQ ribs and pulled pork addict! I was also very overweight and needed to lose weight. So I wrote calorie restricting 1200 calorie diet food swap recipes to satisfy my BBQ addiction. Here's how I lost 100 pounds (without gastric bypass) while still enjoying pulled pork, BBQ ribs and other smoked meat favorites! Oh, and these antioxidant rich fat burning food swaps boost metabolism, help prevent obesity and are keto diet friendly, too. You not only could, but should, eat these BBQ entrees for weight loss! 

First a little background. I follow the gastric bypass weight loss show "My 600-lb Life." The overweight participants on "My 600-lb Life" are shown, before (and sometimes after) gastric bypass, eating very non-calorie restricting foods. And though "My 600-lb Life" shows very extreme examples of obesity, they are nevertheless, not uncommon. 

About 75 percent of Americans are overweight. Obesity is a problem in others countries that eat the "western diet." The foods "My 600-lb Life" folks crave are the same foods that have led so many of us to obesity, so that's where I've begun with my calorie restricting 1200 calorie diet food swaps. And BBQ ribs and pulled pork are major favorites. But happily, these foods aid can be made to aid keto weight loss with antioxidant metabolism boosters, fat burning fruits and high protein meat.  

Begin with leaner cuts of meat to lose weight. I actually prefer pulled chicken to pulled pork. But if you want pulled pork, use pork loin. If you crave BBQ ribs, trim as much fat as possible and stew them in a slow cooker to "melt off" fat. Yes, keto encourages fat, so if you're hardcore keto, skip this step. If you're calorie restricting (how I lost 100 pounds), this alone will lower calories and make them more 1200 calorie diet friendly. 

Next, make sugarless BBQ or pulled pork sauce with erythritol or monkfruit sweetener instead of sugar. Erythritol is actually keto-approved. But my preferred way is to skip erythritol or any sweetener and sweeten BBQ sauce with fruit, to get fat burning, metabolism boosting antioxidant goodness. I've used all kinds of fruits in BBQ sauce: berries, peaches, mangoes, apples, pineapple, lemons, limes, even grapefruit! I chop fruit and add a little chopped bell pepper (rainbow preferred), simmer in water, add Worcestershire sauce, a dash of molasses, smoky chipotle (or liquid smoke), garlic powder, onion powder, celery seed and coriander. 

Braise ribs or simmer pork or chicken in sauce. Enjoy (and lose weight!) These diet food swaps are how I lost 100 pounds and am still keeping it off, seven years later! 

How I lost 100 pounds eating out: Weight loss tips for restaurants

In yesterday's post on how I lost 100 pounds eating out, I got sidetracked on salads and didn't address the many other diet pitfalls at restaurants. The gastric bypass reality TV show "My 600-lb Life" demonstrates the link between obesity and dining out, especially on fast food. It's difficult to find diet food swaps and a lot of menu items actually create the cravings that make us overweight. But you can dine out and still lose weight if you follow these 25 weight loss tips for restaurants. Part of how I lost 100 pounds (without gastric bypass) was learning to navigate such calorie restricting unfriendly situations with diet food swaps. 

1) This step is crucial for restaurants in particular and fighting obesity in general. Order water with your meal. Not drinking enough plain water is a big part how we get overweight. You can see the results of this on "My 600-lb Life." The morbidly overweight participants are always drinking soda or other sugary beverages. And water is an appetite suppressant because it fills the stomach. 

2) Ask for lemon with your water. Lemon is a good salt substitute, fat burner, system cleanse and antioxidant metabolism booster. It will help your food digest better and prevents dehydration which, believe it or not, you can get from drinking too much water without electrolytes. (Learned that in my recent bout of Covid 19). 

3) Skip the alcohol and caffeine before or with meals, or if you do, order red wine. I lost 100 pounds and drank red wine (in moderation) throughout the process. I just factored it into my calorie restricting 1200 calorie diet. Red wine has resveratrol, an antioxidant fat burner which increases metabolism. It's also, however, an appetite stimulant like caffeine so drink very sparingly. Green tea, an appetite suppressant, is the exception. Drink coffee or tea after meals because they do increase metabolism. 

4) Eat out at restaurants where meals are served in courses. Fill up on soup and salad to lose weight. Most friendly to the keto diet, calorie restricting, 1200 calorie diet and even intermittent fasting. 

5) Ask for salad dressing served on the side and use less. Learn from "My 600-lb Life" Penny Seager, who drowned her salads in dressing then wondered why she failed weight loss after gastric bypass. Yes, keto advises eating fatty foods, but balanced with fiber, fatty acids and protein. Eating too much saturated fat and transfat was how many of us got overweight (diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol) in the first place.  

6) Choose vinegar and oil dressing instead of creamy dressings to lose weight and hypertension.

7) Choose broth soup or consommé over heavy creamy soups and chowders for weight loss. 

7) Order grilled, baked or broiled entrees instead of sauteed, fried or deep-fried options. Along with sugar, fried foods are a direct cause of diabetes

8) Choose vegetables or baked potato instead of French fries, mashed potatoes, scalloped or hash browns. Ask for light butter on the side. Baked potatoes make pretty good diet food swaps. They aid weight loss by filling you up and providing electrolytes.  

9) Skip bread or rolls if served with the meal. Ask to swap a serving of veggies like cooked broccoli which is high in antioxidant electrolytes. 

10) Try vegetarian or vegan food swaps. Eggplant Parmesan is just as good, if not better than Veal Parmesan. 

11) Trade mayo based salads for vegetable salads. 

12) Pick keto preferred parmesan cheese instead of cheddar or saturated fat cheeses on your salad. 

13) Skip croutons on salads. 

14) Go easy on sauces, dips, condiments and spreads to lose obesity and diabetes. Skip the sour cream on a baked potato. 

15) Use lemon or malt vinegar for fish instead of tartar sauce. Lemon can actually reduce hypertension by simulating a salty flavor in a healthy way. 

16) Choose broiled instead of deep-fried fish. Diet food swaps # 15 and #16 can can cut calories by 80 percent alone. 

17) Trade high saturated fat ranch and sugary BBQ sauce dips for mustard or marinara sauce dipping sauce. 

18) Use lemon as a salt substitute. 

19) Opt for Splenda or keto approved erythritol for iced tea or coffee.  

20) Eat slowly. Do not rush through the meal. This will help you feel fuller. 

21) Order from the ala carte menu instead of the full dinner menu; portions tend to be very large in restaurants and it's harder to stay on that 1200 calorie diet. 

22) Choose restaurants which post nutrition data on the menu. 

23) Vegetarian fish and seafood are sometimes better for weight loss but not as filling. Better grilled fish choices are: marlin, swordfish, grilled yellow-fin tuna and baked salmon. 

24) Order sorbet, sherbet or fruit with non-dairy topping for dessert. 

25) Choose fresh fruit from the salad bar for dessert! 

For more on how I lost 100 pounds, stay tuned! 

How I lost 100 pounds with a fat flush liver cleanse: weight loss protein shake recipe

Good morning, class! Today we're going to talk about a yucky, but very effective way to lose weight (without a weight loss drug or gastric bypass).This method is also good for managing diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure) and LDL cholesterol. So what is this magic obesity cure? Part of how I lost 100 pounds was using an antioxidant fat flush liver cleanse. I'll get to the recipe soon, but first some background. 

So I think we all get that the western diet (supersize portions of junk food, fast food, over-processed food with little nutritional value) is largely responsible for so many of us being overweight. We don't need a show like "My 600-lb Life" to prove that obesity is rampant. The gastric bypass patients on "My 600-lb Life" are extreme, but not uncommon, examples. And thanks to "My 600-lb Life" we can see the disastrous results of overeating the western diet. 

So what does that have to do with a liver cleanse for weight loss? Well, much of what makes us overweight (and gives us diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol and liver problems) is stored fat from that western diet. A gastric bypass can slow overeating but it won't lose weight alone. That's where the liver/colon cleanse comes in. 

Earlier, I said this was the yucky part of the weight loss show. That's because "fat flush" and "liver cleanse" are sanitized versions (pun intended LOL) for diuretic. What cleansing does is to "power wash" your innards of all that stored fat. And what goes in must come out. A liver or colon cleanse literally makes you poop and pee out the stored fat. It also uses antioxidants to cleanse toxins. 

My homemade fat flush recipe doesn't have lots of fancy ingredients and no chemical diuretic. It relies on fat-burning, fiber-based, antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables. This recipe acts not only as a colon and liver and colon cleanse but also a kidney cleanse which is important to lose weight. It helps control blood sugar and prevent obesity, diabetes, hypertension and cholesterol problems. 

Here's my weight loss cleanse recipe: (some ingredients I take as supplements and some I mix into a protein shake). 

keto MCT coconut oil supplements 

apple cider vinegar supplements

green tea with lemon ( I drink this all day)

keto seed and protein bread (I used the Aldi keto protein bread which has tons of fiber from seeds)

Protein shake of plant protein powder, spinach or red cabbage, berries (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, lemon--rind and all, grapefruit and water). This fat-burning protein shake acts as a natural diuretic. It regulates blood sugar too and actually makes me feel happy after I drink it!  Drinking one a day is part of how I lost 100 pounds! 

 

How I lost 100 pounds with keto diet fruits for weight loss

I know, this title "how I lost 100 pounds with keto diet fruits" is going to cause a lot of keto-ers consternation. That's because a lot of folks mistakenly think that fruit, AKA carbs, are verboten on the keto diet. Well, they're not all because fruits aren't all created equal. Some, like berries, are low calorie, low on the glycemic index (GI) --ergo low sugar PLUS have lots of fat burning fiber which lowers net carbs and aids weight loss. So that's great if you're following the keto diet but also if you're just doing a 1200 calorie diet like "My 600-lb Life" Dr. Now's for gastric bypass. 

And really, it matters less to me what this or that diet approves of, if it helps me lose weight. When I started working at weight loss, the keto diet wasn't en vogue yet. Even if it had, I'd still have followed Al-Anon wisdom to "take what you like and leave the rest." Part of how I lost 100 pounds was to create my own eating plan using elements of intermittent fasting, a 1200 calorie diet, other calorie restricting techniques plus my Al-Anon type "Mind over Platter" tricks. 

People on "My 600-lb Life" preparing for gastric bypass, have to follow that special 1200 calorie diet because their obesity is so out of control. The "My 600-lb Life" anti-obesity meal plan is basically a low GI diet with emphasis on fiber and protein. The neat thing about low GI diet fruits is that the fiber cancels out many of the carbs (sugars) to give much fewer net carbs. Fiber has antioxidant and metabolism boosting, fat burning properties which are so important to heal and prevent obesity. 

Here's my list of fat burning antioxidant rich, metabolism boosting fruits for weight loss

Grapefruit. The keto diet doesn't allow grapefruit, but I use it in protein shakes (with all the membrane, seeds and even some rind) and it helped me lose weight big time. Plus it has tons of vitamin C and vitamin A plus lycopene. Grapefruit, with low net carbs, is also low GI diet friendly and good to heal diabetes. And the membrane acts as a fat flushing liver cleanse. Win-win-win! 

Tomatoes. Another keto no-no, I use tomatoes, which their antioxidant rich seeds and lycopene goodness to lose weight

Apples. Loaded with fat burning fiber and antioxidant goodness, apples were part of how I lost 100 pounds.

Berries. Raspberries, strawberries and blackberries, with their high fiber seeds, work as fat flushing liver cleanses. Blueberries are good too, but I just don't like them as much LOL. 

Watermelon. This is a great fiber fat flushing liver cleanse properties and is full of lycopene. 

How I lost 100 pounds by drinking more: fat burner beverages for weight loss

Hi guys! Yep, you read that title correctly: how I lost 100 pounds by drinking more, and yes, even alcohol (in moderation).  Not drinking enough of right things (water) and too much of the wrong things (sugary drinks) leads to obesity. But reverse that and watch the weight loss! Here's how to drink right and why you should. 

Let's start with drinking wrong. I have to shake my head when gastric bypass patients on "My 600-lb Life" blame "water weight" or water retention when they fail to lose weight. Like water weight is different than just being overweight? And it's weird because they never drink water and over-consume sugary beverages. But the "My 600-lb Life" folks might be right about one thing: they probably do have water retention. 

Overeating, under-drinking good fluids and over-drinking bad ones is an obesity trifecta as "My 600-lb Life" shows. First, food cannot digest without liquid (welcome stored fat) however some liquids actually obstruct digestion (more stored fat). And while not drinking enough leads to dehydration and water retention, so does drinking too much of the wrong ones. Because...

Alcohol, sugary drinks, soda (even diet), caffeinated beverages and fruit juice dry you out but don't flush you out. They make you thirsty without quenching thirst. Your body retains fluid to keep hydrated. But that toxifies when you don't pee it out. You get UTI's from trapped bacteria. You drink more, gain weight, still feel thirsty, lather, rinse, repeat. 

Even plain water can dehydrate, weirdly, as I found when I had Covid 19. Plain water lacks electrolytes (calcium, sodium, magnesium, potassium mineral salts) which help the body process water. Yes, too much salt dehydrates but some is necessary for absorption. To lose weight and stay hydrated, I drink bottled water with electrolytes, Emergen'C and green tea with lemon and lime. 

Oh, and another problem with alcohol, sugary drinks and fruit juice is that they cause insulin spikes. Your liver can't produce insulin fast enough to process the sugar so it stores it as fat. Your metabolism slows and you get insulin resistance (metabolic syndrome) and overweight.  Fighting obesity is about drinking enough water with electrolytes and avoiding the sugary bevvies. 

The jury is still out on some aspects of caffeine and wine for weight loss. Certain caffeinated beverages are antioxidant appetite suppressants. Drinking coffee and green tea helped me lose weight by curbing hunger. Caffeine also boosts metabolism and helps flush fat but it dehydrates and can make you hungrier. Red wine is an antioxidant but not an appetite suppressant. It also loaded with sugar and calories and causes dehydration. Whatever you drink, make sure you're peeing enough. And watch the color of your urine. More on that later. 

Cheers! 

Weight loss recipe of the day: Superfood salmon with char-grilled lemons

We all know fish is brain food, right? But what makes it so. Grilled fish loaded with linolenic acids (omega-3, 6, etc.) These fatty acids burn fat while boosting mental functioning. Add in some antioxidant superfoods and you've got a ketogenic calorie-forward meal that aids weight loss. Here's a recipe to hit all those. Folks on special diets for diabetes, high blood pressure, religious fasting, vegetarian, lactose-free, gluten free, lowfat cholesterol control--will love.

Parmesan salmon with char-grilled lemons

Place salmon skin side down and spritz lightly with olive oil and drizzle with fresh lemon. Season with Kirkland's or Spike salt-free seasoning blend. Place lemons on baking sheet and grill on 400 till fish is tender and lemons are charred. Grate fresh parmesan (a high protein, low lactose "superfood" cheese) on fish when done and top with black pepper, spirulina blue-green grass powder, a dash of Bragg's liquid amino, Greek yogurt and dried lentils, pumpkin seeds and/or chia seeds. Serve on a bed of spinach with assorted fresh veggies.  All these superfood ingredients combine to fill you up and curb hunger, boost metabolism and