The subject of this Retrospective came to mind after
reading a post on an online forum the day after Thanksgiving 2012. A “newbie”
wrote about eating just a smidgen of this and a taste of that from the bounty of
the table.
Another poster responded rather harshly, coming
down hard on the newbie. He lectured her about “commitment,” albeit ending with
a smiley face emoji. My take on this was in the context of someone who had been
doing Very Low Carb for over 10 years. I too had been exposed yearly to a
bountiful Thanksgiving table. That year I had a fasting blood glucose the
morning after of 82mg/dL. Who better than the self-righteous to express sanctimonious
indignation at people who enjoy small indulgences on such special occasions as
holiday dinners with family?
Upon being diagnosed a Pre-diabetic or Type 2, many
low carbers try in the beginning to go halfway instead of “all in.” This is
understandable because you begin with the idea that eating Low Carb involves
denial and deprivation.
This approach is also the advice given by the
vast majority of physicians and diabetes educators. They believe that
compliance with major dietary change is difficult. This is true even for the
enlightened who know that a “balanced” diet, containing far, far too many carbs, is “bad medicine” for anyone who has a
degree of Insulin Resistance and can no longer tolerate carbohydrates. But the
harm of diabetes is very slow in coming and invisible for many years.
Besides, in the medical community most physicians
and diabetes educations recommend that Type 2 diabetics continue to eat a “balanced” diet. They say Type 2 diabetes
is a “progressive disease,” which it will
be if you follow their dietary advice. It will be treated with
progressively more medications and eventually injected insulin. And that comes
along with the Microvascular complications: retinopathy, neuropathy, ED and
end-stage kidney disease (with dialysis). That is, unless you die first
from one of the Macrovascular complications like heart disease or stroke.
Denial and deprivation, however, are still
powerful forces, and going halfway instead of all-in serves as comfort in the
sense that you were “good” but still allowed yourself an indulgence. It’s
“virtue signaling” to yourself and others. But it leaves you vulnerable. It
shows that you are on the fence. You’re wavering. You lack commitment.
Besides, you’re going to take yourself out of
“fat burning” status and stall any weight loss you had been working on. If you
need to lose weight, as most Pre-diabetics and Type 2s do, it doesn’t get you
there. You need to commit “all-in” to Low Carb eating to get to the point where
you are not “craving” sugar (all forms of carbohydrate, both simple sugars and
complex carbohydrates). They all
becomes glucose in your blood. And as long as you are a “sugar burner,” you
will be “hungry” at times, and you will continue to feel like you are being
denied and deprived.
At our family Thanksgiving dinner that year, before
dinner I had nuts and cheese (no crackers) and wine both before and with the
meal. At the table I had a big plate of
dark meat turkey (no gravy), and cauliflower and Brussels sprouts roasted in
olive oil. That was a feast meal indeed! After all that I was no longer hungry, and dessert held no interest for me.
Anyway, I wasn’t even offered any of the homemade pecan or apple pies that were
served.
That wasn’t always the case. My wife or my host
always used to ask if I wanted dessert. They know not to ask now, and I no
longer have to politely decline. I have reached the point where they and I can
say I have “commitment.” I like to think they respect me, and I myself, for my
commitment. Compare this with the perception of “waffling” and “half in.” When
you think of it that way, I hope I can inspire you to feel “commitment” and
self-respect too.
I feel pretty secure
that I am “there” now, but we’ll see. The days after Thanksgiving are the cookie
baking season in our house. There are ten pounds of flour on the counter and
five pounds of butter in the freezer. Soon the smell of some of my favorite
cookies will be wafting through the house. I have never before been 100%
successful in avoiding the feeling of being denied and deprived when it comes
to my wife’s home-baked cookies. My mother’s recipe for peanut butter cookies
is my favorite. This will truly be a test of my self-respect and commitment.
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