Carb Sensitivity, Sugar Intolerance & The #Keto Solution #Health #HealthyEating #LCHF #LowCarb #CleanEating #SugarFree

Earlier this year, I took a long hard look at my health and realised I had to get serious. After all, I'm long past the age of youth when my body forgave my bad eating habits. One of the things I came to discover, was my intolerance to sugar. Yes, we all know sugar is bad for our bodies and our brain but, yet, we remain snared by the sugary hooks of temptation. 

I've mentioned before that I'm a huge fan of water-only fasting and I try to look after my body as best as I can, but still, I had a very unhealthy relationship with sugar. I was hooked! Just couldn't break that addiction, no matter how hard I tried. So, I got serious—mainly because I don't like anything controlling me—and decided to cut out sugar. I'd love to say that was the end of the matter—no more sugar. Sadly, that wasn't the result. I did well for a couple of weeks, then one of the kids had a birthday and the sugar addiction gripped me again. After I recovered from the sugar coma, I realised I needed a better strategy than simply giving up sweet treats and chocolate. While I'd avoided sugar, I was still eating high carb foods, which was doing me no favours since I'm also carb sensitive.  

So, I decided to try the Ketogenic diet again. The last time I was on keto, I didn't count my macros or added salt, or really took it seriously. As a result, I started to have heart palpitations every day. Then the leg cramps set in and I ditched the diet faster than you can say caramel cheesecake. Had I done keto properly, none of this would have happened. Live and learn, right? Anyway, fast forward to the present. I'm back on Keto—properly—and I feel amazing for it. All of my joint aches and muscle pains are gone. The brain fog is lifting. The irritability is gone and I no longer need a baby nap in the afternoon. Now, if I have a sugar craving, I find that 50-100g of berries with a couple of tbsp of double cream is the perfect treat for me. I don't believe I'd ever really kick the sugar habit. I imagine this is what it must be like to be a recovering addict. You have to take each day at a time and make wise decisions as you go.

Not everyone is sensitive or intolerant to sugar and carbs but if you are, you'll know by monitoring your body’s reaction before and after you consume sugar. Do you love sugar so much that you eat sugar-laden foods even when you’re not hungry? This was one of my signs. The other was chronic fatigue. I didn't have the energy—nor the motivation—to do anything. 

Other Signs and Symptoms of Carb & Sugar Sensitivity

• Unstable blood sugar
• Voracious craving for sweet treats and refined carbohydrates
• Mood disturbances/Mood swings
• Stomach Bloating
• Irritable Bowel
• Diarrhea
• Joint and muscle pain
• Skin break-outs
• Brittle nails
• Unhealthy hair and hair loss
• Lethargy and fatigue
• Poor memory/Brain fog
• Irritability
• Severe PMS symptoms in women
• Struggle with weight 
• Tired, tetchy and sleepy (or what I call the afternoon sleepy-weepies).

I'm not saying Keto solves all problems for everyone, but, for me, it certainly has. I'm now full of energy, I can eat tons of fat—did I mention how much I LOVE fat??—and I can sit in front of my laptop and be productive. The fact that I haven't put out a book in a couple of years has something to do with my chronic lethargy as well as the fact that I've been focusing on targeting Harlequin. I live in perpetual anticipation of the day I get The Call, but I digress. 

I've found that doing Keto correctly has been my life-saver. If like me, you suffer from sugar and carbohydrate intolerance, perhaps you might like to look into the Ketogenic diet. It's brilliant! AND a super-fast way to drop unwanted, stored fat!! I've found the Diet Doctor site amazing for information. You might like to check them out.  

And if you're not sold on Keto and you're looking for a way to crush the sugar demons, I invite you to check out one of my books—you might enjoy my Pleasure Flights series. 

Did you know you get the same high from reading a good book as you would from eating sugary treats? The bonus is you get all the pleasure without the unwanted calories! Who wouldn't want that, right?

Here is a taster of Book #1 in the Pleasure Flights series.

ADAM: Her Deal Maker

Making a sexy deal with the deal-maker 

Flying sightseers over California is part of helicopter pilot Lacey Sanders' job. The other part is denying her attraction for hot-bod fellow pilot Adam Swank. A painful experience has taught Lacey never to date her co-workers. So regardless of how sizzling the sparks are, she will never go there again. But when they team up to close a business deal, Lacey can no longer resist Adam’s steamy kisses or sensuous lovemaking under stars on the beach of a private island.

Adam The Deal-Maker has the gift of persuasion. Except when it comes to Lacey. For five years they’ve been dancing around a fiery attraction. Now he has her right where he wants her—in his arms—but can he persuade thrill seeking Lacey to accept his deal and take a chance on an office romance?

ADAM: Her Deal Maker

Pleasure Flights series #1

Copyright © Monique DeVere 2017

Crystal Swan Publications

All Rights Reserved

Snagged around the waist, Lacey found herself swept off her feet. "Adam, put me down!” 

His free hand closed on the doorknob to the stationery cupboard next to them. “We need to talk,” he repeated. A second later he had them shut inside the dimly lit cupboard, her back pressed to his chest, his arm branding her, his body heat reminding her of how hot his naked skin had been against hers. Her stomach fluttered with a warmth that meandered through the rest of her. 

“We have nothing to talk about.” She squirmed and pushed at his arm around her waist, no match for his easy strength. 

“Keep doing that, and we’re going to have an embarrassing problem, Lacey.” His voice dropped to the same seductive husk he’d used that night in Washington. “You must know when you wriggle your butt against my groin like that, it’s going to react.” 

She stilled, frozen in midair as a sudden blast of desire slammed her. She drew in a sharp breath, angry with herself for responding to his words, his touch. 

He put her down, dipped his head so his lips brushed her ear, sending a delicious buzz through her. 

“We do need to talk.” He let his hand slide across her abdomen, making her muscles quiver as he released her. “And I’m done pussyfooting around the issue.” 

“What issue?” The confined space felt too closed-in, too intimate. Too much like the perfect place for lovers to grab a stolen moment.

“You and I.” His fresh, spicy clean scent distracted her as it always did.

She put a step between them, scraped back the lock of her hair that had come loose, her breathing ragged with temper and—she hated to admit—excitement. “There is no you and I—me—I.” He made her so mad she forgot her grammar. 

“All I’m asking for is thirty seconds to say I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Was he really attempting to apologize for the way he’d treated her? 

“For what happened in D.C.”

Or was he simply poking at her wound? “I already know that. You made it clear, so no need to press the point home.”

Adam heaved a frustrated breath, rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m saying sorry for the way I reacted after we made love.”

“Will you keep your voice down?” Her whisper came out a little harsher than she intended. “I’m not anxious to broadcast that stupid mistake to everyone in this place.”

In the gloom, she sensed more than saw him tense, as though she’d landed a direct blow and she experienced a moment of remorse. 

“Why does everything with you have to be so difficult, Lacey? Why can’t we just get along?”

And wasn’t that just the question she’d been asking herself for months? “Maybe we should stay out of each other’s way.”

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon Ca | Amazon Au

I Lost 10 lbs in 1 Week: Cut The #Sugar add the #HealthyFats #WeightLoss

It feels like I've been away forever, yet it's only been a little over two months. At the end of October, I decided to take a break from social media, and writing, in order to focus concentrated effort on Bible studies. That subject is a whole different post! For now, I want to tell you about my weight loss journey, which saw 10 lbs fall off me in a week without me dieting.

I don't know about you, but I HATE diets. Yes, I know hate is a strong word, which would tell you how much I dislike the restricted plans other people come up with that always consists of the foods I either dislike or am allergic to.

So, here was my deal. Over this last year, I found myself slowly putting on weight. As an author, I spend far too many hours at my desk in front of my laptop, which translates to a very sedentary life. Up to mid last year, I walked three and a bit miles per day. Then I ended up starting my work day before my walk, and the walk got forgotten most days until I realised one day I'd actually stopped my daily walks in favour of writing. 

In December it hit me that I was starting to look like a proper Romance writer--no offense! Over the year I'd managed to creep up to UK size 14/16 US 10/12!! This is bad news for a 47-year-old, I can tell you. I used to put my weight on around my hips, now all of a sudden it's on my hips AND belly! I knew I had to do something about it, but I was so hooked on sugar I couldn't make diets stick. Last year, I went on the LCHF--Low Card High Fat--eating plan and dropped 22 lbs in no time, but I felt like I was going to die! I started getting leg cramps and feeling lightheaded ALL THE TIME! Even my right eye began to twitch almost nonstop. I lasted a month before I dropped the diet. Then, of course, my sugar addiction saw me putting that weight back on plus a bit more. 

So, back to December...By the end of the month, I knew I had to do something or accept that I was going to be a fat, middle-aged woman. I don't think so! I don't look my age, I don't see why my body should. But, still, I couldn't seem to get my brain on board with my body's desire to get healthy again. Then I happened to be flicking through the health documentary films on Netflix and Amazon prime on the fire stick and happened upon That Sugar Film with Australian filmmaker Damon Gameau. This film served as a HUGE wake-up call for me. I knew sugar was bad for my body, but I never stopped to consider how detrimental it would be to my health. I watched the film on December 31st and started my new way of eating on January 1st. 

As of today Jan, 11th I've lost 12 lbs, 3 inches off my waist, and 2.5 off my hips without even trying. In case you haven't noticed, these results are for the last eleven days.

How did I do it?

First I'll tell you my Don'ts:

• I don't have anything that contains added sugar. (You don't understand the enormity of this statement for me). I LOVED sugar and could not drink a cup of tea without heaping 2 teaspoons of sugar into it. I usually had a lot of tea per day--10 or more cups! So, you understand how serious I must be to give it all up, just like that, when no matter how hard I'd tried previously, I couldn't even seem to cut down on the number of cups of milky, sugary tea per day. Now I have herbal teas without any sweetenings, and I have no idea what the big deal was before...oh, yes, I do. I was sugar addicted!
• I've cut out all processed foods.
• Drink no pop or fruit juices.
• And consume nothing that has added sugar or sweeteners. (I will go into this in a later post).
• I've ditched all fake food.

What I do now:

• I eat only when I'm hungry.
• Stop when I'm satisfied and only eat real food.
• I continue to drink my 2lts of water per day.
• Drink herbal teas, coffee or tea without any form of sweetening.
• I add loads of fat to my foods.
• I eat nuts.
• Lots of fruit (and still entered ketosis within the first two days of cutting sugar!)
• I intermittent fast for 16hrs per day--counted from the last meal(dinner).
• I've stopped thinking of my meals in terms of Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner, and now think in terms of my 1st meal, 2nd meal etc.
• I eat whatever I fancy as long as it's fresh, wholesome, and unprocessed. 
• I eat carbs: like rice, but not pasta since it's manmade. I don't know about you, but I've never seen a pasta tree or a pasta field. 
  
• My new rule of thumb is: if it can't be pulled, plucked, or picked, I'm not eating it. The only exception to this rule right now is grass-fed butter and double cream.
• I've always been a fan of the superfoods, so I continue to use them. 

Why is this time any different?

This is my own eating plan. I eat only when I'm hungry, I've cut out all sugar and processed foods. I eat whatever I want (I'll do a post about this), and I'm comfortable and happy with this. I'm not following what some so-called expert tells me I ought to eat. I eat what I want! By this I mean, I eat plenty of fruit as well as veg, even though some of these "experts" will try to tell us fruit is bad. I'm so looking forward to my post on fruit and fructose. 

With every other diet I've tried, something went wrong. On the T-Factor diet, my skin started to dry out so I ditched it. Weight Watchers made me develop an unhealthy relationship with food. Because of my sugar addiction, I used to weigh in at WW, then go to the donut shop right after my meeting and buy more donuts than I would ever eat, take them home and gorge on them. Then eat virtually nothing for the rest of the week so the WW scale didn't reveal my eating disorder at the next meeting. 

If I'm truthful, I'll admit that I really liked the LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) eating plan, but it made me too ill. I do believe we need plenty of healthy fat in our diet--the T-Factor taught me that. 

Looking back, most of the diets--except WW because they still encourage one's sugar addiction by substituting sugar for sweeteners--I had real success because the other diets made me cut the sugar. Sadly, they all had something that forced me to give them up. Dry skin on the T-Factor, and feeling too lightheaded to function on the LCHF.

Since I loved the LCHF, and I love fruit and rice. I've created my eating plan to give me high fat, fruit, meat, and healthy carbs. It has shocked me to discover that eating all of this still allows me to stay in ketosis. I haven't dropped out once.

And, finally, the reason I know this time I've nailed it is because I asked Yeshua for deliverance from sugar addiction! And He delivered me! Thank you, Abba Father! I love you!

Next time I'll talk about the benefits I've seen so far. And it's not just weight loss.