My Dieting Success Tricks

I have been "dieting." *Gasp* Don't judge me and try to tell me about how I need to fix my lifestyle or whatever... unless you are perfect enough to live in a glass house because then you can judge all you want. I was fat and I needed to lose weight and like most Americans I am impatient as hell.  Just as a disclaimer this is what worked for me and not everyone is the same and I am not a doctor so don't go quoting me because I have no clue what I am doing.  I have loosely based my success on The Dukan Diet by Dr. Pierre Dukan, the book can be found on Amazon (very informative) and more information at their US website.  If you are planning to do this diet then research it and read the book.  Don't just take my words for it.

Being hungry makes me angry.  I like food too much to not eat.  Along with that eating food that doesn't taste the way I want it to makes me angry, too.  In the past I have been a huge carb eater: bread, pasta, rice, potatoes... you name it.  I tried to do protein diets like Atkins once and that just made me angry.  When my husband told me about this diet though it sounded better... different.  The best part is it is in phases and you gradually add foods back in after you have lost the weight... like a reward of sorts.

I have been on the diet for 4 weeks.  I have lost 11 pounds.  I have had three slip ups: 1 Taco Bell SNAFU, 1 Pizza Hut End of School Celebration and 1 Teacher End of the Year Party.  Being that I am NOT a dieter I can honestly say this has been easy.  I have some go to foods that have been getting me through.  They taste good, are on the 100 food list (see the book/website for this info) and keep me full.  With the exception of the first week or so when I was detoxing from sugar I have not been hungry... and I have not been angry.

My Go To Foods:

• Eggs
• Scrambled, poached, baked, boiled and fried (no butter)
• Plain Yogurt, 0% Fat (Lowest Sugar Content possible - Milk has natural sugar in it so there will be a little sugar)
• This can be used in many recipes including the Dukan Gallette, which is a versatile pancake that replaces bread nicely.
• Mix in Splenda, Vanilla and Cinnamon for a nice treat. (If you like Lemon add a little Lemon Extract, too.)
• Mix in Maxwell House Sugar Free Suisse Mocha for a mocha yogurt. NUM!
• Fluids (The diet calls for a minimum of 48 oz.):
• Coffee
• No creamers, but non-fat milk or a scoop of Maxwell House Sugar Free Suisse Mocha works well.  Also, adding a sprinkle of cinnamon on the grounds before brewing is nummy.
• Crystal Light (has 5 calories per serving and is not on the allowed list)
• This stuff tastes good and is so refreshing.  At school, I kept a Quart bottle on my desk and refilled my cup as needed.
• Diet Root Beer
• I hate diet soda but root beers seem to taste the closest to the real thing.  IBC and A&W are two great brands.
• Fresca
• The Un-Diet Sugar Free soda.  Damn refreshing, too.
• Water
• Snow Cones
• If you have a food processor grind up some ice and add some Sugar Free Kool-Aid made at extra extra strength.
• It satisfies the urge to crunch and is surprisingly filling.
• Lean Meats
• Tuna
• Chicken
• Ham (lowest sodium possible)
• Taking ham deli meat and putting it under the broiler makes it all crispy and tastes like bacon.
• Oat Bran
• This is a big part of the Dukan Diet and it feels like cheating since it is fiber.  Don't skip out on this else you will have issues.  Plus, Dr. Dukan claims it helps flush out calories.
• I like to make porridge with it by covering 2 Tbs Oat Bran with nonfat milk and microwaving for 90 seconds, then letting it soak up the milk for a minute.  Add Maxwell House Sugar Free Suisse Mocha or Cinnamon, Vanilla and Splenda to flavor it.

Google Dukan Diet Recipes for many other ideas.  Be careful because some are not very good at following the diet.  If you decide to follow this and have any questions, I am not the best person to answer them, but we can commiserate.  I will keep you updated on my progress.