#The Keto Crumb too good to go

[girlsdads]

tagged by @annebd for WIP wednesday friday... instead of a WIP snippet have something that i don't really know what else to do with but i didn't hate so :-)

Max’s phone lights up with Daniel’s name while he’s sitting in hospitality the morning of race day. It’s face-up on the arm of the sofa—Max watches as it catches the eye of Lawson next to him. Possessiveness rises like bile in his throat. He snatches the phone as quickly as he can, cradles it to his chest like that would erase the letters of Daniel’s name from Lawson’s memory.

“Whatever, mate,” Lawson quips, rolling his eyes. Like anyone was talking to him, anyway. Like Max gives a fuck if he’s here or not. Like they’re mates, and he’s not someone Max is contractually obligated to be cordial to.

“Clean up your crumbs, when you are finished,” Max says as he stands, sweeping his gaze pointedly over the spray of chocolate chip muffin debris covering Lawson’s lap and the sofa cushion beside him. He doesn’t wait for Lawson’s response before stalking from the room. He thinks about the stacks of keto-friendly protein bars going stale back in his motorhome and hates Lawson that much more.

Max waits until he’s closed the motorhome door behind him to open Daniel’s text.

It’s stupid, he knows, to want to do this in private. Everyone knows he talks to Daniel still, probably no one would think it strange or pathetic for Max to be texting him now. Daniel had said—Max had known he wouldn’t be here, this weekend, or any weekend. Max understands, in his own way, despite how bereft he always feels, during.

But. It is a race day and Daniel is texting him. Daniel hasn’t texted on a race weekend since, well—since. He had facetimed the day after Brazil, relaxed and happy and congratulating Max from New York. They keep a running conversation during off weeks, Daniel sending picture after picture of himself with arms around his friends, some Max knows, some he doesn’t. Max saves the photos to a hidden folder on his phone, crops them all so it’s only Daniel. Sometimes it leaves him missing an arm, or two, but he can’t stand to see Daniel with all these people who aren’t Max. In turn, Max sends him videos of the cats, memes he hopes will make Daniel laugh, updates on the funny-looking bird that has been building a nest on Max’s balcony.

(That’s my—what’s the little animal friend that witches have—my familiar, Maximus! I sent him to watch over you, obviously. Be nice to him.) That message had gone into the secret folder, too.

Race weekends are radio silence. Max has come to terms with that, knows it isn’t personal, that it’s an open wound Daniel is nursing. So for Daniel to reach out, today of all days, Max can’t help the stab of yearning in his belly. It could be an important day, for Max, maybe Daniel decided—maybe he’s said he’s hopped a plane, he’s driving out from LA, he’ll be here before the chequered flag—

Max couldn’t bear it if anyone else were around, if that’s not what Daniel’s message says. Even alone, he feels like a hermit crab that’s outgrown its shell, hope leaving him soft-bellied and vulnerable.

He swipes open his and Daniel’s message chain.

Daniel’s not coming to Vegas. At least, that’s not what he’s texted.

The text is a picture. Max’s eyes are drawn immediately to Daniel, though he’s only in about one quarter of the frame. If he was trying to take a selfie, he did not do such a good job--it's mostly a shot of the dusty-red ground, Daniel's beautiful face peeking in from the top corner. He’s wearing his dirt biking clothes, sweat darkening the pits of his long sleeves where his arm is lifted to make a thumbs-up. His pinky still doesn't quite fold in next to the rest of his fingers. Max wants to kiss the careful bend of his knuckle.

It's a few long moments before Max even registers what's etched into the earth behind Daniel. It is very obvious, then, why Daniel is sending this now. There in the California dirt, Daniel has used a stick or maybe even one of his long, lovely fingers to write 3 + 1 = 4. A wobbly heart is drawn around the whole thing.

Max is infinitely grateful for the lack of prying eyes as he sinks slowly to the floor. He draws his knees up to his chest and cradles the phone in cupped hands, as if the message will be sucked back into the ether if he grips too tightly. He lightly taps to full-screen the image, zooms in on Daniel's face. The soft, almost awkward smile is the same one Max has only ever seen directed at him. He knows this, because he's spent years cataloguing Daniel's interactions with others, longing and longing. Daniel never makes that face at anyone else.

Max's phone buzzes as another text comes through. Daniel's hands reaching through the wire to squeeze Max's heart until it leaks out between his fingers.

Always cheering for you, Max. Give 'em hell for me.

[travelinglowcarb]

Happy Friday! 👋 I've been quiet lately because I haven't felt well and I'm resting a lot. I'm happy and good though, and when I'm up I've been focusing on doing "things that matter" or make me smile. 😊

I'm eating well, healthy and low carb, drinking plenty of water, resting lots, and sitting in the sunshine when it's out. 🌞

All the things!

I tanked a few weeks ago, spending November in a relapse so far, all my longcovid symptoms in a full-on flare-up. 😳 My heart rate is spiking higher again (170+ bpm this morning) 📈 the abdominal distension is almost constant and quite uncomfortable 🤰 deep muscle pain and aching joints have me moving slow. 🐌

But I'm sleeping great, in a good happy mood, and patiently waiting out this phase - and just doing easy "happy tasks" when I'm awake. 💯❣ I've been (slowly) organizing and decluttering my spaces to good music which feels really great. 😊 And pacing myself through creative work projects a little at a time, when my mind will work. That brain fog thing is serious! 😜🤦‍♀️

I ordered myself some new leggings & hoodies, comfort wear!, and some new books. 📚 I also just discovered Walmart will deliver Enlightened Keto cheesecake & ice cream to my front door. 🍰🍦😍‼️ I'm about to warm up a cinnamon crumb muffin from JustMadeKeto too. 😋

Life is as good or as bad as you allow it to be. I choose to be happy and patient... and grateful for all the positives. 🙏 Good things like brand new fluffy pillows at 40% off I found on Amazon 🥰 that make me smile every time I lay down - which is a lot. 😅

I feel pretty good so far today so just wanted to say hi! 👋 I hope you're doing well and feeling happy & excited about life - too! 💯❣ I'm all excited about winter projects I've started. I have my next Dr appt early next week, and this weekend I'm just going to do a happy free-flow of whatever. 💕 xo *cheers*

[softbiker]

Born to Run - Chapter 14

Warnings: cursing, little editing, brief descriptions of violence

Word count: 2.6k

A/N: AND WE’RE BACK SURPRISE!! Seriously though, I feel horrible that I haven’t been able to update in so long - I was doing so well at first with the weekly updates and then it just kind of...stopped. Things got difficult. Sorry. But here we are, keeping things going with this fic! I’m excited! As always, feedback is appreciated! 

There’s something heavy across her waist when she wakes up.

She shimmies, trying to dislodge it, but the firm pressure only tightens when she does. Something warm snuffled at the back of her neck, the feel of soft whiskers scratching, and it’s - oh.

Bucky.

A little thrill shot down her spine - still does, even after these last few weeks. He’s only spent the night a couple of times - and the two of them remain somewhat clothed - but still. Her heartbeat picked up as he sighed again, breath coming hot along her neck.

She couldn’t shake this feeling, this nagging little notion, that she’d gone zero to 60 the moment she met him; in spite of the fact that they were taking things slow, something her trust issues and his gentleman’s upbringing insisted on, her brain felt like she was on a high-speed roller coaster, white-knuckling as she hurtled along the tracks awaiting the inevitable corkscrews and hairpin turns that would make her stomach drop.

Of course, with roller coasters, it helped if you had someone’s hand to hold.

She wiggled again in Bucky’s grip, trying to turn and face him, but he groaned in protest and tightened his spooning position. She rolled her eyes a little, patting his hand where it rested on her stomach.

“Such a baby,” she sighed, morning voice little more than a croak.

Bucky groaned again.

“‘S too early,” he grumbled, the sound muffled into the space between her hair and her pillow.

“Maybe for you,” Y/N huffed. “Some of us have jobs, you know.”

“I have a job,” he snorted.

“Oh yeah? Besides being a sexy biker?”

She heard his low growl rumbling before he quickly rolled to put his weight on top of her, his fingers wiggling into the soft flesh at her sides. She squealed and bucked under him, trying to escape, but he was too heavy to dislodge and she was way too ticklish to let him keep torturing her.

“Okay! Uncle! Uncle!” she cried, breathless. His fingers stilled, but his hands maintained their grip on her waist, the weight of his chest holding her down as he smiled, his face a few inches above hers.

“Hi,” he stage-whispered. His bed-head was in full disarray after his tickle attack, random strands fluffed out in different directions and hanging in front of his eyes. She blew a puff of breath past her lips, amused at the way he wrinkled his nose as the wayward hairs waved back in his face.

Good morning,” she smiled back, still catching her breath from the assault.

He leaned down for a kiss - a morning kiss, soft and tender, a small taste to break the night-long fast. The tip of his nose traced the length of hers.

“Still too early,” he hummed, lips working their way across her cheeks and nose and eyelids.

“Mm?” she hummed back, eyes closed.

“You know it’s Saturday, right?” he half-chuckled, nuzzling down into her neck. “Don’t have anywhere to be for a while.”

She peeked one eye open, a suspicious smile tilting up one corner of her mouth.

“I know that voice,” she bit her lip. He didn’t answer, leaving his face in its hiding place at her neck. “What are you planning, Barnes?”

“Somethin’ you’ll like,” he grinned, hands sliding down to the hem of her t-shirt.

“More like ‘something that’ll get you past second base’?” she teased. No matter how she played coy, though, her body couldn’t repress a shiver at his touch, fingers slowly climbing the skin under her shirt.

“Don’t threaten me with a good time, honey.”

His head popped up and he gave her a sly wink. Surprised laughter sputtered from her lips, soon cut off by a firm kiss, his own laugh pressed into her mouth.

They didn’t get out of bed for a while that morning.

**********

Natasha dug in her pocket for an elusive piece of bubblegum she knew she had stashed there. It was becoming frustrating - the pocket was only so big. Maybe she put it on the other side?

The diner she was waiting in - Lakeview family restaurant - was the only decent place to eat in the next town over. A cup of black coffee, half-finished, sat on the table in front of her; she’s had two refills already and knows she should stop -

There it is.

Fingers grasped the missing bubblegum and wiggled it out from her jacket pocket. She popped it in her mouth with no hesitation, crinkling the wrapper and letting it fall to the table.

Another glance at her watch. She’s never known him to be late.

She had been disappointed, but not surprised, when Y/N didn’t take the deal. In fact, she acted like their conversation never happened - diving headfirst into this fling with Barnes, the two of them apparently believing this could somehow...happen at all. A happy ending, a real life? The secrets were stacked against them, Natasha knew. Barnes knew, too, but she suspected he was thinking somewhere lower than his brain in all this. He had been from the moment the good doctor moved in across the street. And the rest of the gang seemed all too happy to welcome her into the fold, ignoring the very inconvenient facts about their real identities, their jobs, their presence in this town. It could’ve gotten her killed. Almost did.

Which was why Nat only trusted one head in the group - the one on her shoulders.

She was doing this for them. They’d understand, maybe not at first, but eventually. And even if they didn’t, she could live with their anger. Better than their blood.

It’s taken a few weeks to get things in order, but she had finally made the call. Clearly, extraction was the best case scenario for the team now. The longer they lingered on this job, got comfortable with Hydra’s silence after Rumlow’s death? She didn’t want to play those odds.

A bell dinged above the diner door. She didn’t turn, refolding the gum wrapper in her hand as the booted footsteps approached slowly, quiet on the tile floor. She didn’t even look up when he wrapped his knuckles once against the table, before sliding into the booth across from her.

“Romanoff.”

“Fury.”

“Been a while,” Nick Fury raised his good brow as he leaned forward to prop his elbows on the table.

“Well, you know how it is, Nick. Busy with work,” she smirked drily.

The waitress returned, pen at the ready, and Fury requested a coffee and whatever fresh pie they had that day. Whipped cream on the side, please.

“You know, my doctor tried to convince me to try going keto,” he said conversationally as they waited. “Something about keeping my blood sugar steady.” He shrugged. “Decided I didn’t hate myself enough to do that.”

Nat rolled her eyes a little, unable to hide her small smile. She had missed Nick. But this, the chit-chat, the minutiae, was never what they were good at. People like them were rarely good at small talk.

“So.” He turned the skewered bite of apple on his fork, gliding it through the whipped cream before taking a slow bite. “I understand you have a proposition for me.”

“I do.”

He pursed his lips, nodded, never lifting his eyes from his plate.

“Then let’s hear it.”

**********

They were slipping.

Rogers. Barnes. The Avengers.

From what they can tell, the self-righteous pricks are too far up their own asses to see what’s been going on. No one saw his men tailing them on every run. No one noticed their movement in the shadows of the town, the palms they greased, the eyes that looked the other way. Nobody was looking when their numbers doubled in size, weapons making their way through with the new men. It all hummed under the surface, dry winter air nearly crackling with the static.

Any day now, any moment - all it would take was some friction, a spark, to light the whole thing up. Burn the fucking Avengers to the ground.

Which is why he was very careful to avoid such friction. No contact - that was the rule. Keep your head down, mouth shut, do what you’re told, and don’t start shit. All the men knew, and they were scared shitless of the boss, so they obeyed. But they were restless, he knew. Itching, jumpy, knuckles cracking. They wanted a fight, and he wouldn’t hold them back much longer.

No, not much longer now.

He knew an old friend of the boss would be passing through today - on to the next town over. Better head that way if he was gonna get to the rendezvous point on time.

**********

“I put together this team, you know.”

“They were already a unit when they were deployed in Afghanistan-”

“Yeah, yeah but I hand picked them all for this assignment,” Fury waved her off. “And now you’re telling me I made the wrong call?”

Nat sighed through her nose.

“I’m not saying they’re wrong for the job, but they’ve been out here for a long time and…” she glanced out the window at they highway just beyond the gravel parking lot. “To be frank, Barnes is compromised and the rest are content to let it happen. They need to be pulled out of the field to regroup. Period.”

“Mm.” Nick sipped his coffee. “And this has nothing to do with your...history with Barnes?”

“Don’t patronize me, Nick. I’m a damn professional, not a child. You know that better than anyone.”

“Yeah, yeah I do.”

They stared at each other across the table for a moment - Nat with her arms crossed, a deep line between her brows. Nick seemed content with a hand wrapped around his coffee cup, empty plate scraped clean of crumbs and whipped cream pushed away from him on the table.

“I trust your judgment, Romanoff,” Nick finally sighed, draining his coffee. “So what’s the move here?”

“Simple. Call it in, move on the evidence we have to clear Hydra off the streets, and send the team home for debrief,” she shrugged. “We’ve got more than enough to keep these guys put away for a little while - long enough that we can come up with a long-term plan and pump them for more intel on Hydra’s shadier business deals. Gotta be a weak link in there somewhere.”

“You gonna get ‘em to talk?”

“Somebody always talks.”

“Okay,” Nick nodded. “It’s far from the worst idea you’ve ever had. But I’m gonna have to make some pretty important phone calls. Probably have to go all the way to Pierce on this one.”

“Trust me, it’ll be worth it.” Nat tilted her head to one side. “You can salvage this whole operation before it goes south - now tell me that’s not worth a little bit of groveling to your boss.”

“Easy for you to say, you’re not the one having to do it.”

“I don’t beg, Nick,” she smirked. “You know that.”

He huffed, shaking his head.

“Oh, I know.” He rolled his good eye as he started to shuffle out of the booth. Natasha stood up too, readjusting the jacket around her shoulders. The sun was just starting to slip beneath the horizon, casting long shadows across the parking lot outside the window. Her bike sat next to his sleek black SUV, the only visible vehicles parked on this side of the building.

Fury gave her a long look as he patted down his pockets, leaving a sizable tip for the waitress tucked under his coffee cup. Nat refused to meet his gaze, standing with her arms crossed, green eyes scanning the room. The other patrons at the cafe paid them no attention, as they slowly walked to the door side-by-side, Nat’s boots clicking softly on the tile floor.

“You don’t need to worry about this, Romanoff,” Nick sighed, pushing through the door first. The little bell above the door announced their departure. “I’ll take care of everything.”

“I’m not worried.”

He stopped at the door of his car, good eye sliding sideways for a glance at her. She was already straddling her bike.

“You’ll be hearing from me soon,” he waved, almost drowned out by the roar of her bike starting. He laughed under his breath, humorless, nostalgic, as she revved the engine a moment before throwing up gravel under the tires as she peeled away from the diner. He tried not to be irritated about the paint job on his car - already streaked with mud from these unfamiliar roads.

The highway was nearly deserted, nearly dark, as he started the long drive back to the city. Romanoff might not be worried - though he suspected otherwise - but Nick certainly was. It wasn’t like her to pull a stunt like this, and it wasn’t like his hand-picked team of Avengers to get sloppy on the job. And then there was the sudden silence from Hydra in the last weeks since their ringleader’s death; his team, and his higher ups at the agency, had always known there was someone else, a hidden hand pulling strings, but could never quite get the bastard to show their face. And now, when they all could feel something building like a wave, about to crest, Nat wants to pull the team out.

He shook his head. Too much to think about and a long drive ahead. His hand reached for the radio dial, searching past country stations and bluegrass stations and the lonely pop station - he settled on gospel, surprising himself. But it made him think of his mother, so he left it there. Flicked on the headlights, and then the high beams, showing him nothing in the darkening night besides the road stretching ahead and the now-empty fields, nearly flooded from last week’s rain.

After a while - could’ve been an hour, could’ve been 20 minutes - he heard them in the distance, that distinct roar of engines. His ears pricked; they were coming from behind him, the direction of town. Maybe Natasha changed her mind? Maybe the rest of the team was offended he didn’t drop by and they were going to haul him back to the compound for a barbecue.

Maybe he’s become one of those goddamn idiots who’s dumb enough to believe in luck.

When their headlights came around a curve a quarter mile behind him, he was nearly blinded by the sheer number. The noise was nearly deafening, and he flattened his foot against the accelerator, mentally calculating the miles between towns. Too far in either direction.

That was when he saw the group coming towards him, too.

With a steady stream of curses under his breath, he dialed Natasha’s phone number. The phone rang, twice, three times - he glanced over and saw that two of the bikes had pulled alongside him, riders covered head to toe in black leather, white skulls painted on their helmets.

“Motherfuckers,” he hissed. A jerk of his steering wheel, just a threat, and they braked a little, backing off. But there were three more directly behind him, not to mention the ones further back and up ahead.

“Come on, Romanoff-”

“Nick?”

“Natasha - we made a mistake, they’re moving now-”

“Nick, what are you talking about? What’s going on?”

The two bikers had pulled alongside him again, speeding up and slowing down to stay just out of his reach. One of them reached over to his hip, raising an arm right at the car-

The pop of the gun and his front tire were almost simultaneous; the car went squealing and swerving across the road, black marks burned into the pavement, before a wild swing of the wheel sent it flipping into the deep ditch next to the highway, where it landed upside down and creaking.

“Nick what the hell just happened?”

“Nick are you there?”

“Nick?”

[kelleyish]

Well it took a couple false starts, but I am now on day three of sticking to my diet. Today was the first day I even tried to count calories, and it wasn’t super low, but that’s okay. I’m just proud that I’ve stuck with it this long. I even had to go run a couple errands today and didn’t pick up anything illicit while I was out.

Unfortunately I’m being punished for being good this evening with nausea. Something in my salad must have disagreed with me, I’m not sure what. It was the first time I’ve had spinach in a while, or it could be the honey mustard dressing I made. Either way, I really hate being nauseous.

On the first day I went on about a mile walk, but yesterday and today I was too busy with cooking and yard work and used up all my energy on those instead. Still more movement than I’ve gotten recently.

Yesterday’s cooking involved two things. For whatever reason chicken patties have sounded good for a while - like fast food/school lunch chicken patties that are made of chopped up chicken pressed back into a patty. Anyway, all the recipes I’d seen involved bread crumbs, which are hard to come by on keto. I’ve been saving up the end-of-loaf slices from the loaves of bread I make, which took a while because usually the loaves either get finished off or get moldy first.

Finally I had enough, and found a recipe that sounded like it might be good. When I was about halfway through making it, I remembered a lot of the comments mentioned the patties not holding together, and boy did they not hold together. It was terrible. However, they did end up tasting pretty good, but it was rather a far cry from my chicken patty goal.

Secondly, I made a blackberry cobbler from the berries my plant produced this year. I wasn’t nice to the plant over last summer because I wasn’t there to water it, and also because I’ve decided I made a mistake planting it next to the fence I share with my neighbor and it’d probably be better it it went ahead and died. Well, blackberry bushes are pretty hardy and it didn’t die completely, so I got about four cups of berries from the new growth this year, enough for a cobbler. 

My father’s favorite dessert is blackberry cobbler. I used to not really like it growing up because of the seeds. I am still not a fan of the seeds, but I’m able to overlook them now because it tastes delicious. These days my favorite jam is seedless blackberry jam. Also, if I remember correctly, that dude I asked out last year, he also loved blackberry cobbler, but I’m trying not to think about him. So nevermind. Why did you even bring it up? Gosh!

Anyway, our family’s tradition has always been the pie crust type cobbler instead of the more cakey or drop batter style, so I had to make pie crust and cook the berries down and then assemble everything. It took a long time but it turned out pretty good, a good way to spend the blackberries you grew.

Finally an update on what I’m watching. Not a ton, because the last couple days I’ve been playing a computer game I downloaded for the sole purpose of getting paid $30 if you make it to a certain point in 7 days or less. I finished it today, and I feel like once again it’s going to take an email to customer service to get credited for it. I am tired of having to do that, this site is so sketchy but I can’t quite quit it. 

I did watch Bumblebee the other day, and it was definitely good for a Transformers movie. It was indeed Stiles’ voice for the first 10 minutes or so, before Bumblebee gets his vocal cords ripped out by the bad guys. It’s a very watchable movie though, currently streaming on both Hulu and Amazon Prime, if you’re interested.

Last night I ended up watching this super weird movie from last year I’d never heard of because it just came on the channel I was watching. It’s called Paradise Hills, and stars Emma Roberts as an upper class girl who gets sent to this retreat by her family to straighten her out so she will comply and marry a rich dude she doesn’t want to marry. It also has Milla Jovovich and Akwafina. SPOILERS if you’re ever interested in watching this movie: It turns out they aren’t fixing the girls, they’re literally replacing them with poor people who get plastic surgery done to look like the rich girls and get sent home in their place, because a rich life doing whatever the family wants is better than the poor life they had. 

THEN, it turns out that Milla Jovovich is actually some kind of lady made of plants that EATS the now superfluous girls. It was weird. In the end, Emma teams up with her double and escapes, and she/they get married to the bad guy, and then they murder him and the double stays to live that life and the original runs off to, I think, hook up with a fellow retreat girl that she kind of fell in love with. However, the real version of that girl was eaten by plant lady, so I guess she was running off to find the double? I don’t know, that part was unsatisfying.

[paleorecipecookbook]

33 Crave-Worthy Paleo Desserts

Going Paleo means kissing goodbye to gluten-filled grains, refined sugars, dairy, and countless other not-so-good-for-you ingredients typically found in popular desserts.

The good news? You don’t have to completely eliminate desserts from your life; just find ways to use whole food ingredients to create delectable, and, dare we say, better than the original, treats.

We’re talking homemade candies like white chocolate, keto-friendly truffles, Paleo peppermint patties, Girl Scout cookie-inspired truffles, and more.

More of a sweet bar fan? We’ve got several of those too, from simple almond butter blondies to chocolate chip blondies, salted caramel brownies, cheesecake bars, and raspberry crumb bars.

Cakes and cookies abound also, including ooey-gooey chocolate lava cake, and simple and quick almond butter cookies. If you’re looking for something more unique, you’ll find Paleo monkey bread and cinnamon roll apple pie.

Whatever sweet craving strikes your fancy, we bet there’s a recipe here for you.

Coconut Flour Caramel Apple Brownies

Cinnamon-infused apples stud every bite of these caramel apple brownies, while a date-based caramel makes everything gooey and delicious.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Coconut Flour Caramel Apple Brownies

Almond Butter Blondies

These chewy, nutrient-dense almond butter blondies are so yummy, you won’t believe they’re Paleo-friendly and vegan.

Recipe: Detoxinista | Almond Butter Blondies

White Chocolate Keto Truffles

These keto-friendly truffles could not be any easier to throw together: All you need is coconut butter, coconut cream, vanilla extract, monk fruit sweetener, and unsweetened coconut.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | White Chocolate Keto Truffles

Grain-Free Apple Crisp

This grain-free apple crisp harnesses the natural sweetness of apples to make this dessert totally free from added sugar.

Recipe: Living Well Mom | Grain-Free Apple Crisp

Coconut Maple Raisin Ice Cream

You’ll love how simple it is to make creamy, coconut-y ice cream at home with this recipe.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Coconut Maple Raisin Ice Cream

Paleo Samoa Truffles

Forget Girl Scout Cookies – you won’t be able to put the Paleo truffle version down!

Recipe: What Molly Made | Paleo Samoa Truffles

Utterly Deadly Chocolate Sweet Potato Pie

Luscious, thick and creamy sweet potato purée serves as the base in this rich, chocolate-heavy treat.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Utterly Deadly Chocolate Sweet Potato Pie

Strawberry Pudding Soufflés

These soufflés, made with whole food ingredients, are the definition of fluffy and sweet.

Recipe: Perry’s Plate | Strawberry Pudding Soufflés

Easy Bread Pudding with Fruit and Pecans

Bread pudding may sound like an impossible feat on the Paleo diet, but this Paleo-friendly version is every bit as warm, gooey, and satisfying as the original.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Easy Bread Pudding with Fruit and Pecans

Chocolate Covered Almond Butter Balls

Pop one of these chocolate-covered almond butter balls to satisfy a sweet craving. You won’t regret it.

Recipe: Isabel Eats | Chocolate Covered Almond Butter Balls

Hot Chocolate Floats with Hot Fudge and Coconut Ice Cream

You haven’t lived until you’ve devoured frosty coconut ice cream as it melts into a hot, fudge-laced mug of hot chocolate.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Hot Chocolate Floats with Hot Fudge and Coconut Ice Cream

Paleo Peppermint Patties

Craving candy? These Paleo-friendly peppermint patties boast just four wholesome ingredients: coconut butter, raw honey, peppermint, and chocolate.

Recipe: Empowered Sustenance | Paleo Peppermint Patties

Coconut Caramel Cashew Clusters

These coconut caramel cashew clusters are delicious on their own, but feel free to jazz things up by adding pomegranate arils, coconut flakes, orange zest, or a drizzle of almond butter.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Coconut Caramel Cashew Clusters

Paleo Chocolate Strawberry Coconut Butter Cups

These dark chocolate cups feature a strawberry coconut butter filling so creamy and luscious, you won’t be able to stop at just one.

Recipe: 40 Aprons | Paleo Chocolate Strawberry Coconut Butter Cups

Keto Eggnog Cheesecakes Made in a Muffin Tin

You may not believe it possible, but this recipe makes delectable individual cheesecakes that are totally Paleo and keto-friendly. Yum!

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Keto Eggnog Cheesecakes Made in a Muffin Tin

Paleo Tiramisu

How do you make this dairy-laden Italian classic Paleo-friendly? With some smart substitutions, like whipped coconut cream and a coconut flour-based cookie layer, you have a decadent but wholesome take on the Italian dessert.

Recipe: Eat Something Delicious | Paleo Tiramisu

Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake

Chocolate and sweet potato strike again with this ultra-rich cake, complete with a dark chocolate coconut cream frosting and fresh berries.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake

Maple Vanilla Bean Meringue Cookies

These gorgeous, crispy meringue cookies only look difficult to pull off, but they’re actually quite simple.

Recipe: Kit’s Coastal | Maple Vanilla Bean Meringue Cookies

Paleo Monkey Bread

Have you ever had monkey bread? The sticky, pull-apart treat is easily made Paleo in this recipe, which requires just 15 minutes of prep.

Recipe: The Banana Diaries | Paleo Monkey Bread

Chocolate Lava Cake

Dark chocolate and cacao powder make this lava cake ultra-rich, while almond butter lends a smooth, nutty flavor to the whole thing.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Chocolate Lava Cake

Coconut Flour Pumpkin Roll

Pumpkin packs in a ton of moisture and flavor in this pumpkin roll with an extra-creamy coconut cream center.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Coconut Flour Pumpkin Roll

Paleo Pumpkin Bars

Chewy, fudgy pumpkin bars get frosted with a thick layer of decadent maple frosting – amazing.

Recipe: What Molly Made | Paleo Pumpkin Bars

Coconut Flour Everything Cookies

Can’t decide which type of cookie to make? Try “everything” in this everything cookie recipe.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Coconut Flour Everything Cookies

Paleo Chocolate Chip Blondies

How do you ensure you get the best of both the brownie and blondie world? Make blondies, with chocolate.

Recipe: Bakerita | Paleo Chocolate Chip Blondies

Coconut Flour Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

These Pinterest-worthy coconut flour cookie ice cream sandwiches taste a lot better than anything you can get on an ice cream truck, with a much better nutritional profile, too.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Coconut Flour Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

Paleo Coconut Crack Bars

If you’re craving Mounds candies, these coconut crack bars are your Paleo-friendly fix.

Recipe: Sweet and Savory Meals | Paleo Coconut Crack Bars

Dreamy Paleo Salted Caramel Brownies

Soft and chewy, these salted caramel brownies come together in under an hour.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Dreamy Paleo Salted Caramel Brownies

Paleo Pecan Caramel Cheesecake Bars

How do you make cheesecake bars Paleo-friendly? Harness the magic of creamy cashews, of course.

Recipe: The Movement Menu | Paleo Pecan Caramel Cheesecake Bars

Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Topped with minty avocado-spinach ice cream (we swear, it tastes nothing like spinach), these chocolate cupcakes are the perfect dessert.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Paleo Almond Butter Cookies

On those nights when you need something sweet, whip up these almond butter cookies! They only require five ingredients and 20 minutes total.

Recipe: Tastes Lovely | Paleo Almond Butter Cookies

Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie

Which do you love more: apple pie or cinnamon rolls? With this decadent cinnamon roll apple pie, you don’t have to choose.

Recipe: PaleoHacks | Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie

Paleo Raspberry Crumb Bars

Fruity, sweet, nutty, and crisp, these raspberry crumb bars are essentially a raspberry pie in bar form.

Recipe: Wholesomelicious | Paleo Raspberry Crumb Bars

No-Bake Chocolate Almond Butter Bars

For those days you can’t be bothered to turn on the oven, whip up these easy, chocolate almond butter bars.

Recipe: Beaming Baker | No-Bake Chocolate Almond Butter Bars

(You’ll Also Love: The Best Paleo Desserts for Holidays – Grain-Free, Dairy-Free)

The post 33 Crave-Worthy Paleo Desserts appeared first on PaleoPlan.

Source: http://bit.ly/10qRbxJ

[beyondtheequatorfl]

The Definitive Guide To Low-Carb Flours

If you’re a devotee of a low-carb diet, you’ll know how hard it can be to find suitable low carb substitutes. If you can’t find a low-carb substitute for flour, it can mean missing out on all your favorite treats.

There are numerous options for low-carb flours, however finding the right one is not always so easy. To help, we have put together a guide of the leading low-carb flour options to help you decide on the best one for you. 

Why Go Low-Carb?

There are many health benefits to pursuing a low carb diet, perhaps the most popular of these diets is the ketogenic diet. Low-carb diets are lauded as being one of the most effective ways to lose weight, but they also:

Help reduce appetite.

Help to burn and budge stubborn abdominal and visceral fat.

Reduces triglycerides (fat molecules in the bloodstream), which thereby reduces the risk of heart disease. 

Increases ‘good cholesterol’ which also lowers the risk of heart disease.

Reduces blood sugar and insulin levels, making it ideal for those living with diabetes. 

Can help lower blood pressure.

Lowers ‘bad cholesterol’ levels.

Highly effective in controlling seizures for those with epilepsy. 

What Exactly Are Carbohydrates?

To understand how to eliminate carbohydrates from your diet, you need to first understand what they are and where they are found:

“Carbohydrates are the sugars, starches and fibers found in fruits, grains, vegetables and milk products. They're a source of energy for the body.” 

At a glance, this may make it seem impossible to avoid carbs and still enjoy your food. Ultimately a low-carb diet isn't about completely eliminating carbohydrates altogether, but limiting them and finding alternative, low-carb foods. 

Low-Carb Flours

One of the things most people who follow a low carb diet will tell you is that they miss bread, cakes, pasta and pizza. All of these are traditionally very high in carbohydrates which would usually mean skipping them altogether on a low-carb diet. While there are no true no carb flour options, there are some great low-carb flour alternatives. Meaning you can now have your cake and eat it too! 

Not all low-carb flours are created equal however and it is rarely as simple as switching wheat flour at a 1-to-1 ratio. It is also worth noting that just because a flour is gluten-free, does not mean it is low-carb. Is cassava flour low-carb? No, but it is gluten-free. It is for this reason that tapioca flour is not considered keto either. Always check carefully and don’t assume gluten-free and low-carb are interchangeable. 

For gluten-free options, you may like to review our guide on them here. 

So what are your options? Let’s review some of the more popular alternatives.

Almond Flour 

To make almond flour, the almonds are blanched, skins removed and then finely ground into a powder. It is most often used in baking lightweight biscuits and cakes. You can usually substitute all purpose flour at a 1-to-1 ratio for almond flour, but may need an extra egg to aid in binding. 

Almond Meal

More coarsely ground than almond flour, almond meal also grinds almonds with their skins on. Almond meal can be used in place of bread crumbs when frying or if you want a more crumbly, dense cake - however almond flour and almond meal can be used interchangeably in most instances. 

** Both almond flour and almond meal will be unsuitable for those with tree-nut allergies. 

Coconut Flour 

Coconut flour is low in carbs and high in protein and fibre. It is quite versatile in baking, however as it absorbs significantly more moisture than other flours, you will need to add extra eggs, butter, milk or oil. Getting this balance right in your favorite recipes can take quite some time.  

Coconut flour is best used as a thickening agent for sauces and soups. It does thicken on standing, so use sparingly and test as you go. 

Flax Meal  

Not only a low-carb flour substitute, but also one that can be used in place of eggs for this with egg allergies. Flax meal tends to be a little tricky to work with due to its ability to swell and become ‘gel-like’ on standing. Too much flaxseed products in your diet can also cause digestive discomfort. 

Psyllium Husk

While not technically a flour, psyllium husk is similar to flax meal in that it can bind your recipes together well. Sadly it can also cause intestinal issues if consumed in large amounts. It can also interfere with the absorption of certain medications, so discuss with your doctor if you decide to incorporate this into your diet. 

Sunflower Seed Flour 

Made from hulled sunflower seeds that are finely milled, sunflower seed flour is one of the leading low-carb or keto flour options. Not only is it low-carb, it is also allergy friendly, being completely nut free, it also is nutritionally dense and able to be swapped 1-for-1 in most recipes. 

Sunflower seeds are high in vitamin E, copper, selenium, phosphorus and thiamine, meaning you are adding vital nutrition when choosing this option as a low-carb flour. It is also lower in carbs than even almond meal, making it keto friendly.  

Low-carb, Gluten-free And Allergy friendly - Choose Beyond The Equator 

Going low-carb doesn't have to be difficult or feel terribly restrictive. With Beyond The Equators Sunflower Seed Flour, you can still make your favorite recipes, from pizza bases, to cakes, crumbed schnitzels and more. Knowing it is made in an environment free of the top 8 allergens means it is also suitable for just about anyone, no matter their dietary restrictions.

If you are new to a low-carb diet and want to ensure you can still enjoy your favorite foods with boosted nutrition, then Beyond The Equators Sunflower Seed Flour is the ideal low carb flour alternative. Should you also have allergy concerns, then it is the best possible choice you can make. 

Make the switch to a low-carb diet uncomplicated and enjoyable, choose Beyond The Equator.

from Beyond the Equator - Blog https://beyondtheequator.com/blogs/blog/the-definitive-guide-to-low-carb-flours via Beyond The Equator

[lindafrancois]

Does the Military Diet Actually Work? Yes, but don’t do it.

So you’re interested in enlisting in the Military Diet, eh cadet?

Not so fast there.

This is a seriously controversial diet – and that’s not including the fact it has NOTHING to do with the military.

What’s even worse? It works (temporarily).

Though you’ll hate yourself, I promise.

We advise all our Online Coaching Clients to avoid this like the plague.

We also advise them to avoid the plague, but that’s less relevant here.

What diet should you try to lose weight quickly? Let our coaches help you decide!

So let’s discuss the Military Diet (click to go to that answer):

What is the Military Diet?

What does the Military Diet plan look like?

Will the three-day Military Diet help you lose weight?

Are there any benefits to the Military Diet?

Are there any drawbacks to the Military Diet?

Where did the Military Diet come from?

Is the Military Diet safe?

FAQ on the Military Diet.

Alternatives to the Military Diet.

Before I make you fall in line, if you’re interested in changing the way you eat to get in shape, you may like our fun new habit-building app!

NF Journey helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally).

Try your free trial right here:

What is the Military Diet? How does the Military Diet work?

If the Military Diet could be described in two quick words, those words would be “short term calorie restriction.”

Crap, that’s four words.

Ahem.

The diet focuses on ruthlessly cutting out calories in order to spur weight loss.

There are some claims out there that you can lose up to ten pound in one week on the Military Diet. Which would be impressive – and should also be setting off your skeptical spidey-senses.

So I can understand your curiosity, recruit.

Now you’re thinking: “What exactly does ‘extreme calorie restriction’ look like Steve?”

How about one meal consisting of just a single piece of bread, a half cup of tuna, and some black coffee?

That’s it.

If you ask for more food you’ll be forced to climb a rope.

The Military Diet is broken into two stages, one for three days and the other for four.

3-day plan on the Military Diet. For three days, breakfast, lunch, and dinner is picked out for you. You get this meal only soldier, nothing more! Forget about snacking. For three days, every single crumb is accounted for. I’m only slightly exaggerating. And these three meals only add up to 1,000 calories per day. Ouch. That’s not much chow.

Four days of leave. The Military Diet does go easy on you after the three days, with four days of slightly more food. And by that I mean 1,500 daily calories. How generous. You’re on your own on what to eat for these four days, with the only guidance being to “eat healthy” and keep it at “1,500 calories.”

Three days on, four days off. You repeat this three day and four day rotation until you reach your ideal weight.

That’s the Military Diet in a nutshell.

Okay, you probably want to know, to the crumb, what you get to eat on the Military Diet? Sure.

But it ain’t pretty.

What does the Military Diet plan look like?

As I mentioned, the Military Diet provides strict orders on what to eat for three days. Your mission looks like this:

DAY 1

Breakfast:

Half a grapefruit

One slice of toast

Two tablespoons of peanut butter

One cup of coffee or tea

Lunch:

Half a cup of tuna

One slice of toast

One cup of coffee or tea

Dinner

3 ounces of any type of meat

1 cup of green beans

Half a banana

One small apple

One cup of vanilla ice cream

DAY 2

Breakfast

One egg

One slice of toast

Half a banana

Lunch

One cup of cottage cheese

One hard boiled egg

Five saltine crackers

Dinner

Two hot dogs (no bun)

One cup of broccoli

Half a cup of carrots

One banana

Half a cup of vanilla ice cream

DAY 3

Breakfast

Five saltine crackers

One slice of cheddar cheese

One small apple

Lunch

One egg (cooked however)

One slice of toast

Dinner

One cup of tuna

Hald a banana

One cup of vanilla ice cream

If you find yourself thinking, “That’s not much for rations, Steve.” You’d be right.

Not only that, but I bet your normal serving of peanut butter is significantly larger than 2 tablespoons. Yikes.

But I’m getting ahead of myself here.

I’ll keep filling you on the details and then share my real opinion at the end here.

Substitutions?

Some websites will guide you through substitutions to stick with in case you’re vegetarian or lactose intolerant, etc.

Think tofu dogs for hot dogs.

But you are told to match calories exactly for replacement, since the name of the game here is restriction.

For the most part however, substitutions are discouraged on the Military Diet.

What about after these three days? 

If you haven’t gone AWOL, you get a pass for four days. Some websites suggest you can enjoy a meal of shrimp fried rice or a black bean burger on your leave.

To stick with the strict Military Diet strategy, you would keep it to 1,500 calories for each 24 hour period.

Eating only 1,000 calories a day is really difficult.

1,500 isn’t exactly easy peezy either.

Is this actually worth it?

Will the three day Military Diet help me lose weight?

In the short term, the Military Diet will most likely cause you to lose weight.

Why, you ask?

Because science.

It’s the reason “all diets work in the short term.”

If you eat more calories than you burn in a day, you will gain weight over time. If you do the reverse, and burn more than you consume, you will lose weight[1].

Granted, there’s some finer details in that equation. Muscle, fat, body fat, etc.

But for simplicity sake, it works.

The Military Diet works by practically guaranteeing you will burn more calories than you consume.

If an overweight person who usually eats 2,500-3,000+ calories in a day, suddenly switches to ONLY eat 1,000 calories for multiple days in a row, their body will operate at a caloric deficit while it seeks the energy required for drills, push-ups, and cleaning the mess hall.

When this is repeated for a few days, the number on the scale will get smaller!

So will YOU (specifically you, in the green hat) lose weight?

Depending on where you are now and your current intake, that deficit (and thus the accompanying weight loss) could be DRAMATIC.

But will you lose 10 pounds in one week like some sites claim? I highly doubt it. Unless you have 100+ pounds to lose and usually eat 5,000+ calories per day, you can only lose so much water weight in a short time period.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. People don’t get overweight in a day. And people won’t lose all the fat they want to lose in a day either.

Here’s another truth bomb that needs to be said: Even if the number on the scale drops significantly in a week, most of it is water weight.

Your body contains a lot of water, especially if you normally eat very salty, carby foods. So when you remove those foods from your system, the amount of water your body holds can decrease significantly too.

So if somebody strictly followed the Military Diet down to the calorie for a week they could lose maybe one to two pounds of actual fat.

They could lose multiple pounds of water weight too, but that won’t continue from week to week.

ATTENTION!

It’s time to hit you with more knowledge: Any weight you lose while on the Military Diet will only remain lost if you stay on the Military Diet.

Temporary changes create temporary results.

This is super important and will be stressed again later.

Are there any benefits to the Military Diet?

Any kind of calorie restricted eating program, if adhered to consistently, will likely result in weight loss.

Remember that guy who lost weight eating Twinkies[2]?

It worked because he made a strict protocol of his calorie requirements. Then, he followed it.

Yeah, he filled a lot of his diet with junk food.

But the point is he managed his food intake according to a plan to lose weight, and then stuck to it.

And it worked!

Before you get all mad at me, I too believe that the quality of calories is as important as the quantity.

One of the FEW things I like about the Military Diet is that it provides a strict protocol to follow. You don’t have to worry about what to eat. It’s breakfast time on Day 2.

That means you eat one egg, one slice of toast, and half a banana.

It’s the same reason why many people love the Paleo Diet or Intermittent Fasting or Keto Diet or the Mediterranean Diet: there are specific rules to follow that removes all guesswork from “what should I eat, and how much?”

I won’t lie to you and claim that a guide on what to eat has no benefits. Lying will get you court-martialed.

Hell, we even have our own free 10-level diet blueprint that tells you exactly what to eat to help cut out the guesswork (you can get yours when you sign up in the box below):

Download our free weight loss guide

THE NERD FITNESS DIET: 10 Levels to Change Your Life

Follow our 10-level nutrition system at your own pace

What you need to know about weight loss and healthy eating

3 Simple rules we follow every day to stay on target

But as your friend, I can’t give you only one side of the story.

Are There Any Drawbacks to the Military Diet?

DON’T DO THE MILITARY DIET!

Sorry, I’ve been holding that in this whole post. Literally. I typed this whole post up to this point while holding my breath so that I could then blurt this out.

I won’t deny that you could lose weight following the Military Diet. But can any diet telling you to eat bread, crackers, and ice cream actually be good for you?

I know you know better.

You’re an adult with a good head on your shoulders, and you’re probably considering the Military Diet because you want a quick weight loss win without having to make any permanent changes.

Unfortunately, things like “science,” “thermodynamics,” and “reality” will keep getting in the way.

The Military Diet is what we in the fitness world call a “crash diet.” Crash diets are designed for quick weight loss in a short amount of time.

These diets – and I can included “cleanses” here – prey on people’s desperation to “get fit quick.”

They know that if you follow a short term diet, lose a bunch of water weight, and see a lower number on the scale – you’re convinced it worked and then you can go back to how you were eating before.

Then when you quickly put all of that weight back on…you’ll come running back to the diet that got you short term results.

This is how they make their money, get your attention, and ultimately leave you sad and right back where you started.

Other examples of terrible crash diets include the Cabbage Soup Diet, the Baby Food Diet and just about any juice cleanse on the market.

I won’t even link to them, that’s how annoyed I am about their existence.

The reason these diets are short term is because they are not sustainable. Can you eat nothing but cabbage soup for a week? Sure. For an entire year? No way.

Crash diets are temporary diets. Which means their results will be just that, temporary.

The Military Diet is extreme and short term. Why do people in the military do this to themselves?

Spoiler alert: they don’t.

Where did the Military Diet come from?

Here’s another crappy bit of info: The Military Diet has absolutely nothing to do with any branch of the Armed Forces.

As quoted in CNN, Patricia Deuster explained, “In my 30 years working with the military, I’ve never heard of it.”

And she would know, because Deuster helped write the nutritional guide for the U.S. Special Operations Forces[3].

So if it doesn’t come from the actual military, where does the Military Diet come from?

This three days crash diet has gone by different names before, the Cleveland Clinic Diet 3-Day Diet, the Kaiser Diet, the American Heart Association Diet, and the Birmingham Hospital Diet[4].

Despite the different names, the three day meal plan is exactly the same.

And guess what?

None of the organizations claim to have created or support their namesake diet.

So where did it come from? Honestly, I don’t care.

It’s silly and I don’t need to meet the person who created a three day crash diet, that co-opts the military name to make itself sound reputable and legitimate.

Is the Military Diet safe?

There’s nothing inherently dangerous about the Military Diet. It’s just eating moderately healthy/unhealthy food in small quantities.

Which, depending on your current diet – could be a big improvement from eating unhealthy food in large quantities.

I don’t know you or your situation, but if you want to practice Karate kicks in the garage and become best friends, I’m down to clown.

Now, based on my 10 years of running Nerd Fitness, helping hundreds of thousands of people lose weight safely and in a sustainable way, I’m gonna tell you that this is probably not the diet you’re looking for.

Why?

Because this diet will make you miserable, and sticking to the portion sizes will make you unhappy and hangry.

As soon as your 7 days are up, you’re gonna gorge yourself and probably end up even worse off than where you started!

This probably isn’t your first rodeo, nor is it the first quick fix you’ve sought out for weight loss. How have the previous attempts worked out for you in the long run?

I’m not saying this to be a jerk, but rather to make a point:

I like you, your friends like you, and the world needs you to be the healthiest superhero version of yourself you can be.

And that will never happen if you keep chasing extreme short term diets.

I’d rather see you make changes you can stick with. Even if it’s one small change. Gradually reduce the calories you eat, by switching to REAL food.

Things like veggies, fruits, and good quality meat. Build a plate that looks like this:

If you make one change, like eggs and avocados for breakfast, you’ll be making a great step in the right direction.

Small changes are something you can live with.

Studies have shown that decreasing your caloric consumption by 25% can be fine for your mood[5]. Perhaps even beneficial. But dropping down to 1,000 calories? There’s no way that can, or should, be maintained.

I wouldn’t recommend you reduce calories by reducing the quantity of food, like ordering you to eat a meal of five saltine crackers, a slice of cheddar cheese, and one tiny apple.

Instead, I want you to make small changes to REAL food. That’s the ticket to long term weight loss. We’ve seen it over and over again here at Nerd Fitness.

Want help making the switch to REAL food?

Not sure how to make all of that work in your busy lifestyle?

I hear ya. It’s brutally difficult to stick with any diet, and that doesn’t even factor in when your kids get sick or work sucks or there’s two feet of snow on the ground.

It’s why we launched our 1-on-1 Online Coaching Program: to help create specific solutions and accountability for people that want guidance on how to eat, how to train, and the confidence to know they’re doing it correctly!

Learn more how our coaching program can help you fix your nutrition:

Frequently asked questionS on the Military Diet

1) Do foods in the Military Diet help boost your metabolism?

There’s some debate on this. For example, can coffee help you lose weight by raising your metabolism?

I’ll go with: HIGHLY unlikely.

Any effect of caffeine to your metabolic rate isn’t enough to make a substantial impact[6]. If anything, it might act as an appetite suppressor[7].

Which isn’t nothing. But don’t count on it to raise your resting caloric expenditure like magic.

However, here are two things outside of diet that will help keep your metabolism high:

Strength training. The more muscle you have on your frame, the more energy you will use at rest[8]. It’s one of the reasons we recommend it so much. I have no problem playing drill instructor and demanding push-ups.

Stand up and move more. Any movement helps and even just standing up, outside of any walking, can help raise your metabolism[9]. A standing desk, for those long hours in the office, might be a good move.

Do either of these strategies, or better yet both. It’s better than relying on grapefruit powers to burn calories.

2) Will I enter starvation mode on the Military Diet?

Most likely not.

Sure, if you go without food for a lonnnng period of time, your metabolism might slow down slightly, though this requires EXTREME nutritional restriction over a long period of time[10].

This makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. If there’s nothing to eat in sight, it might be that way for a while.

Depending on how often you repeat it, the Military Diet might reduce calories to a point where this slow down of metabolism kicks in.

However, it’s more likely that as you lose weight, your body doesn’t need to burn as many calories because there’s less of you to manage every day!

So your metabolism WILL slow down as you lose weight, but it’s not due to you eating fewer calories in a day.

Now, some would say the climb up to 1,500 calories might help prevent this, but each person is different.

My take: The fear of “starvation mode” is overblown, and it should be the least of your concerns while eating bread and ice cream and calling it a “diet”

3) Is the Military Diet a form of intermittent fasting?

Not really:

The MIlitary Diet focuses on restricting calories at a specific meal, by counting the amount of hotdogs you can have, for example.

Intermittent fasting centers on making a strategic decision to skip certain meals on purpose.

With intermittent fasting, you narrow the size of your eating window, or you occasionally do fasts of 24 hours.

For instance, you can start eating at noon and finish up by 8pm, essentially skipping breakfast.

I wrote all about it in our “Beginner’s Guide to Intermittent Fasting,” where I outlined the benefits of teaching your body to consume food more efficiently, and also reduces the total number of calories you are probably eating.

Conversely, the Military Diet teaches your body to run on hot dogs.

I’ve personally been utilizing intermittent fasting for three years. But I have never, nor will I ever, follow the Military Diet.

Shots fired.

If you’re interested, Nerd Fitness Journey has an intermittent fasting adventure that you can start today!

You can give it a whirl for free right here:

Why you should not do the Military Diet, and What to do Instead.

We all want instant gratification. Unfortunately when it comes to fitness and diet, instant gratification will always fail you.

Short term changes only lead to short term results and heartbreak.

IF YOU ARE GOING TO DO THE MILITARY DIET: Godspeed, soldier.

Good luck with your 7 days, and let me know how it goes in the comments below.

My only request: use those 7 days to learn about yourself and nutrition (maybe by reading this post?), and do what you can implement permanent adjustments to how you choose to eat after.

I’d imagine most people who do this diet are hoping for a permanent fix with minimal work in just a few days time, and I’m here to caution you against that line of thinking.

LIFE DON’T WORK THAT WAY.

DON’T DO THE MILITARY DIET. DO THIS INSTEAD:

Eat real food when possible.

Eat a damn vegetable every once and awhile. Yes, even if you hate them.

Cut out liquid calories like soda and juice (essentially sugar water). Drink water, black coffee, tea, or diet soda.

If you can eat real food, minimize liquid calories, and eat veggies, and do so consistently for months and months – you’re going to have permanent success.

Making these changes too tough to do permanently? Change fewer things!  

Start thinking in terms of “days and years,” not “weeks and months:”

Try one meal, based on REAL food. Forget the crackers and ice cream.

If you want a strict diet to follow with rules, create your own.

Or find one that already exists.

Try Keto. Or intermittent fasting.

Maybe Paleo. Or Mediterranean.

But don’t waste your time with the Military Diet or any other crash diet. Instead make lasting changes like I lay out in that video above.

If you read all of this and you’re overwhelmed, and you’re just looking for guidance on how to eat for your situation, you’re not alone!

We had so many people ask us for specific advice that we built an Online Coaching Program to help them get results.

Our professional coaches are regular people like you, with families, hobbies, and struggles – but they spend all day helping busy people like you live better, lose weight, and feel better about themselves.

If you’re like “hey I want somebody to tell me what to do,” schedule a free call with our team to learn more by clicking in the big box below:

Back to the post: You don’t need to do the Military Diet.

The people in the military certainly don’t.

INSTEAD, YOUR MISSION, SHOULD YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT:

Cut back on your liquid calories. If it’s not water, tea, or coffee (black), try cutting back in a deliberate fashion. Switch to diet sodas. Switch to coffee instead of lattes. Realize that juice is just sugar water.

Prepare one healthy meal. Consider my healthy go-to option. Just make sure it has a vegetable, okay? Don’t overthink this.

If you can do those two things this week, and then repeat that week after week, you’ll be 10X better off a year from now than if you had followed the Military Diet for 7 days.

And lastly, remember, THE MILITARY DIET HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE MILITARY!!!

Ahem.

Any questions?

-Steve

PS: Check out the actual guide for Special Operations Forces – Special Ops Forces Nutrition Guide. But those folks work out A LOT. Adjust your caloric intake accordingly.

PPS: And if you already did the Military Diet, please drop and give me 20 push-ups 🙂

Not sure how to do them correctly?

Our new app will teach them to you!

ALL Photos Sources can be found in this footnote here[11].

Footnotes    ( returns to text)

Check out the study on a caloric deficit leading to body fat loss here

Read the article on CNN here

Check out the CNN article here and the nutritional guide here

Links to these crash diets can be found here, here, and here

Check out that study here

Check out that study on coffee here

Study on coffee and appetite found here

Study on muscle and metabolic rate found here

Study on standing up and metabolism here

Study on starvation and metabolic rate found here

patrolling, pushups, grapefruit, tape measure, sniper, caution, soldier, quick draw, cameraman, beach

Does the Military Diet Actually Work? Yes, but don’t do it. published first on https://dietariouspage.tumblr.com/

[ketaketosis]

11/30/17 “Day 41″

Shopping day! Scored major deals on meat and produce at Mejiers, as usual. Got a few other good snacks and such at the other places we went to as well. Lots of shopping and walking so I’m pretty tired. 

Yoga update: Even though I was hurting and so, so, very tired last night I did do my day 7 yoga challenge! I have muscles that are sore for the first time (honestly didn’t even know I had any in those places I’m that weak.) I bought a yoga (well, it’s a fitness mat but same thing) mat and a yoga block while I was shopping today. Can’t wait to try them out with day 8 of yoga! (Honestly, anything has to be better than my carpet.)

For food today...I felt like I cheated all day. I had to use a whole lot of willpower to get through the day, I tell you what...

Breakfast: Golden Corral. This place is MAJOR trigger for me because of the yummy bread and the amazing carrot cake but I was good! I had two strips of bacon, a spoonful of eggs, bite of sausage patty, two strawberries, a tiny bit of roasted chicken, and a small salad topped with a little cheese, bacon bits, and a tiny bit of blue cheese (since I didn’t know the carb count.) My sister got the carrot cake and I ate a teeny, tiny, crumb of it but does that even count? IDK how many carbs for all that maybe 5g?

Lunch: Atkins chicken Alfredo with broccoli frozen meal (4g net carb.)

Snack: Two beef sticks (2g carbs or less.) 8 raspberries. (2g carbs)

Dinner: Small salad (lettuce, Parmesan cheese, tiny bit of blue cheese dressing 1g carb.) And some turkey breast tenderloin. Mmm so good. Small portion, only three small slices.

Dessert: I caved in and got more Halo Top (even though I didn’t eat all the salted caramel that I got last night). This time it was waffles and pancakes. Omg...it tasted so sinful. Buying this stuff was a mistake. 12g (7g if you don’t count sugar alcohol, still not 100% sure on that.) I didn’t portion it out but it didn’t seem like much.

So...really high on carbs today. I feel so guilty and disgusted, but it could have been worse. I could have binged on rolls and cake, stopped for fries, and done all those terrible things old Keta would do. After I get through this ice cream I am...not buying it again. It’s just triggering me too much. :( 

I just hope this doesn’t kick me out of keto too bad.

I wish I was fit enough to go run a mile or something but I guess my nightly yoga will have to do. I don’t even have time to go on a walk tomorrow like I want. Ughhhh. This Planet Fitness needs to hurry up and open already.

[ketodietweightloss-blog]

Keto Diet Foods

For many who eat low-carb or keto diets, there may be virtually all the time one thing you possibly can eat in each quick meals place or restaurant. Plan forward. Earlier than coming into a restaurant, take a look at their menu and diet data on-line at dwelling or utilizing your sensible cellphone. Keto Diet Foods It is all the time good to know the safe choices earlier than being tempted by menu objects you should not have on a low-carb food regimen. As a way to make it simpler to discover a fast keto-friendly possibility, I've compiled an inventory of a number of eating places and quick meals locations and people objects that I've discovered to be the bottom carb (and most emotionally satisfying) decisions. These should not all good choices, however once you're caught with no different decisions because of time or location constraints, they're going to do in a pinch.

It is an enormous assist that fast-food locations are required to put up dietary content material. It will get simpler to observe the keto plan day by day. The carb depend I am itemizing is approximate and is NET grams.Usually, there may be often some salad possibility anyplace you might be. At Burger joints, simply take away the bun, and lots of locations provide lettuce wraps as a substitute. Rooster should not have breading. As a aspect be aware, it helps to have a knife and fork helpful in your automotive or purse. Large, juicy burgers in tiny items of lettuce find yourself on the desk - or in your lap. Small, flimsy fastfood plasticware additionally makes for troublesome consuming. Pull out your individual sturdy utensils and luxuriate in! Read More.

go for any burger (zero g) or grilled hen (2 g) with out the bun and topped with cheese, mayo, mustard, onions, and so forth. No ketchup. Add a aspect salad (3g). The Caesar salad with grilled hen or the bacon ranch salad with grilled hen are 9g. similar burger data as McDonald's: burger (zero g) with out the bun and topped with cheese, mayo, mustard, onions, and so forth. No ketchup. The tendergrill hen sandwich with out the bun is 3g. BEWARE - you would possibly suppose the veggie burger is low, however it's 19g of carbs, in order that's a few full day of carbs on keto. Add a aspect salad (3g). The tendergrill hen backyard salad is 8g with out dressing or croutons. The tendercrisp hen salad will not be an possibility. Don't try.

In all probability ought to skip Subway in case you can. The buns and wraps are all excessive in carbs. I suppose you would simply have them throw the elements in a wrapper sans bun, however that does not sound interesting. I've no data on what the carb depend could be for every bunless sub, however you possibly can in all probability determine it out - hen or pepperoni is ok, however is "candy onion" hen okay? No thought. Persist with the salads, however notice you will solely get iceberg lettuce (4g).

This chain provides "lettuce wraps" - your burger wrapped in a big piece of lettuce for simple low carb consuming. (As I've stated, I attempted it and do not adore it. I like to hold my very own fork as a substitute.) Bunless choices - Six greenback burger (7g), half thick-burger (5g), charbroiled hen membership sandwich (7g/10g at Hardees). Grilled hen salad with out croutons is 10g. Aspect salad is 3g. The unwich - a sandwich wrapped in lettuce - matches the invoice right here. Meats are fantastic, simply be certain that the elements should not carb-rich.

Once more, you will get your burger in a lettuce wrap or a field. Any burger with toppings. Mayo has corn syrup, and is 1g. The hen grill fillet is 1 g. It may be ordered within the hen membership sandwich or the final word hen grill sandwich. Finest salads: hen caesar (7g), blt hen salad with grilled hen. Aspect salads aer 6g or 2g for Caesar.

It's attainable to get used to consuming pizza with no crust. You must eat twice as a lot, but when there is a social gathering or dinner out that you could't keep away from at a pizza place, simply slide the tacky toppings off and eat the massive messy pile of cheese and toppings. A aspect salad is a pleasant addition. In any other case, simply go for making pizza at dwelling with a low-carb crust.

Related Links:

https://www.bulletproof.com/diet/keto/keto-food-list/

https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/ultimate-ketogenic-diet-shopping-list-easy-meal-ideas

YES! Load up your bowl with hen, shrimp, onion slices, and mushrooms, then prime with the Asian black bean sauce. I do know beans have carbs, however this sauce label says 1 gram of carbs per ounce (every sauce is plainly labeled). Add a little bit of garlic and anticipate the griller to do his work. It goes with out saying that you just skip the appetizers, tortillas, and rice. Ask the wait workers to not deliver them to the desk.

These take just a little crafty, however they are often conqurerd! Concepts: how about hen Marsala in an Italian place? Make certain it does not include pasta. Substitute broccoli or another keto-friendly aspect dish - or an enormous salad. Rooster piccata can also be a chance.

Mexican and Chinese language eating places are probably the most troublesome, as a result of any low carb possibility will not be the rationale to go to the restaurant within the first place. At a Mexican restaurant, I are likely to get a big burrito with no beans and unfold the tender tortilla out like a plate. Eat the interior elements and toss the tortilla. You could find choices, however they in all probability aren't going to be your favourite Common Tso's. How concerning the salad bar decisions? eggs? the insides of eggrolls, and I even ate the insides solely of crab rangoons. Sadly, these concepts depart fairly a pile of discarded shells and deep fried exterior items in your plate and makes it appear to be you actually waste meals. Comfort shops generally is a good possibility, too! 7-11 has packs of arduous boiled eggs, cheese slabs, slim jims, almonds, and pork rinds. Pork rinds are available a barbecue taste and so they're ZERO carbs.

Bear in mind, no matter you select, maintain the bread, potatoes, rice, noodles, fries, and tortillas. And be careful for the potential of corn starch, bread crumbs, and different fillers. With correct planning and a superb angle, you'll find wholesome keto and low-carb choices when eating out, and persist with your profitable keto food regimen plan.The ketogenic food regimen is a wholesome possibility for anybody who needs to reduce weight. Go to the Wholesome Keto web site, a priceless useful resource the place keto dieters can entry meal concepts and keto food regimen information.

Related Topics:

Keto Diet Weight Loss

Keto Diet and Weight Lifting

Keto Diet Menu Plan For Beginners

Keto Diet Menu Plan

[cannonisland9-blog]

Pepper Jack Stuffed Meatloaf

This keto smoked meatloaf recipe is a BBQ lover’s dream. Stuffed with Pepper Jack cheese and slathered in sugar-free BBQ sauce, it’s a low carb meal everyone will love.

Hey there! I’d like you to meet Mr. Traeger. I just recently met him myself but I suspect he’s going to be a good friend of mine. We’ve been hanging out a lot for the past few days. We made this awesome stuffed meatloaf together and he was a key player in making it come out so perfectly.

Traeger, as it happens, is a wood pellet grill. It’s also a smoker. It’s a smoker and a grill, and it’s pretty much my new best friend.  Which seems kind of sad, I realize, since my new best friend is made of metal and can’t talk back to me. But you won’t think it’s sad when you see all the things a Traeger Grill can do.

Have you heard of these grills? They are pretty famous among the diehard grilling folks and it was my next door neighbour who urged me to get one. He grills and smokes a lot of the time and I kept peeping over his fence, smelling all the good smells emanating from his yard. So when Traeger reached out and offered me one to try, well, you can guess what happened next.

I thought long and hard about what recipe I might want to do to showcase this mighty grilling machine. So many possibilities and ribs were at the top of my list. But I already have an amazing low carb ribs recipe and I wanted to do something a little different. A plethora of ground meat helped me make up my mind. Smoked meatloaf! And not only smoked but stuffed meatloaf too!

Admittedly, the inspiration was from another blog altogether. If you want to learn about some of the best ways to grill and smoke your favorite foods, you need to check out Hey Grill, Hey by Susie Bulloch. Her blog is fantastic and has steered me in the right direction many times. I spotted her Jack’d Up Smoked Meatloaf and I knew instantly that I wanted to make a low carb version.

But I also consulted some of the many wonderful recipes on the Traeger Grills website. That’s also an amazing reference point for all your grilling and smoking needs. I followed some of the methods outlined for the Not Your Mama’s Meatloaf to make mine, to get an idea of how long to cook it.

To make this a keto meatloaf, I substituted crushed pork rinds for the bread crumbs. And I skipped the onion altogether, but I did add a few cloves of minced garlic to the mix. I stuffed it with plenty of Pepper Jack cheese – I advise using sliced cheese if you can. I used both some sliced cheese and some pre-grated cheese, and the pre-grated didn’t get as melty as I would have liked. When you smoke foods at low temps, the grated cheese doesn’t melt as much.

And then I slathered on some of my Easy Sugar-Free BBQ Sauce in the last 30 minutes of cooking.

Smoking meatloaf takes it to a whole other level, but you can also do this easily on a regular grill or in the oven. I’ve included instructions for both of those methods as well!

If you ever get a chance to try out a Traeger Grill, I highly recommend it. It’s fun to use both as a grill and as a smoker. I had so much success with the meatloaf, I decided to spend a full day grilling other meats, including ribs, a brisket, and a pork roast. This grill/smoker is quickly making an addict out of me!

*Please note: I received a Traeger grill in exchange for this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Pepper Jack Stuffed Meatloaf

This keto smoked meatloaf recipe is a BBQ lover's dream. Stuffed with Pepper Jack cheese and slathered in sugar-free BBQ sauce, it's a low carb meal everyone will love.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: smoked meatloaf, stuffed meatloaf

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 453 kcal

Instructions

Preheat your smoker to 225F. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, pork rinds, garlic, salt, and pepper. Mix well with your hands to thoroughly combine. 

Use half of the mixture to form a rectangle about 5x9 inches on the prepared baking sheet. Layer with the cheese, leaving a border all around. Top with the remaining meat mixture, sealing the cheese inside. 

Place the baking sheet on the smoker and smoke for about 2 hours, until the meatloaf registers 160F with an instant read thermometer. In the last half hour of smoking, brush with the BBQ sauce. 

Remove and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with additional BBQ sauce for drizzling. 

Recipe Notes

Regular Grill Instructions: Set up the grill for indirect heat at about 375F to 400F. Set the baking sheet on the grill with the meatloaf centered over the indirect heat. Cook about 50 to 60 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 160F. Glaze in the last 15 to 20 minutes of grilling.

Oven Instructions: Preheat the oven to 350F and place the baking sheet in the oven. Cook about 50 to 60 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 160F. Glaze in the last 15 to 20 minutes of cooking.

Nutrition Facts

Pepper Jack Stuffed Meatloaf

Amount Per Serving (1 serving - 1/8th of loaf)

Calories 453 Calories from Fat 268

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 29.8g 46%

Total Carbohydrates 1.7g 1%

Dietary Fiber 0.1g 0%

Protein 42.5g 85%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Source: https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/pepper-jack-stuffed-meatloaf/

[vincentpennington]

Healthy Snack Ideas (Paleo, Gluten Free)

Looking for some fantastic gluten-free, grain-free, and paleo homemade snacks for your kids? I have a bunch of healthy snack ideas that are kid- and parent-approved! 

One of the most frequently asked questions I get from Nomsters like you is how to feed kids—especially at snack time. My children occasionally eat junk food, but I make it a priority to stock our pantry and fridge with tasty nibbles made with wholesome ingredients. Over the years, I’ve created many savory and sweet paleo snacks that my kids (and their friends) eagerly gobble up.

No time to make your own healthy snacks? No problem! I’ve listed some of our favorite paleo and gluten-free snacks that I buy online and at the grocery store, too. So let’s get snacking!

Savory Paleo Snacks

Who doesn’t love a great dip paired with raw veggies or some salty and crispy chips? Here are some of our family’s favorite healthy savory snacks that you can make at home!

Tonnato Sauce

This creamy and tangy sauce made with anchovies, capers, and canned tuna tastes waaaaay better than it sounds. It’s a Whole30- and keto-friendly sauce that pairs fantastically with grain-free crackers or crudités.

Read More

Beet Hummus

This pretty pink dip is a great way to get kids to eat more veggies. Plus, this beet hummus just so happens to be paleo, vegan, and Whole30-friendly!

Read More

Sweet Potato and Cashew Dip

Warning: this creamy curry-infused dip is crazy addictive—our family devours it as soon as I blitz a batch!

Read More

Brussels Sprout Chips

Love the crispy bits when you roast Brussels sprouts? Then make a whole tray of Brussels Sprouts Chips!

Read More

Baked Kale Chips

Get ready to bake more kale chips than you anticipate because your kids will demolish the whole bowl as soon as you put it in front of them!

Read More

Crispy Mushroom Chips

If you love umami as much as my family, you’ll love these crispy mushroom chips made with King Trumpet mushrooms. They’re divine!

Read More

Porkitos (Crispy Prosciutto Chips)

Did you know that you can turn prosciutto into Porkitos? These salty and crunchy prosciutto chips are a revelation!

Read More

Chicken Cracklings

If your favorite part of Ollie’s Cracklin’ Chicken, you can bake or air fry a platter of Chicken Cracklings to snack on!

Read More

Sweet Paleo Snacks

These grab-and-go snacks are gluten-free, refined sugar-free, and nomstastic! They’re just sweet enough to satisfy any cravings.

Cherry Chocolate Granola

My family loves this granola and I gift it to all my pals during the holidays. This paleo and vegan granola is super simple to make and customizable to delight even your pickiest pals.

Read More

Tropical Granola

This grain-free Paleo granola is crunchy, not too sweet, and infused with tropical flavors that remind me of my favorite fruity beachside drinks. Just a handful of this stuff delivers a mildly-sweet, nutty, tropical crunch like nothing else.

Read More

PB&J Energy Balls

Miss PB&J sandwiches? You can eat them in energy ball form and you won’t miss the peanuts or bread.

Read More

Pumpkin Muffins

My simple and delicious almond flour pumpkin muffin recipe has a moist crumb and calls for just a few easy-to-find ingredients.

Read More

The World’s Easiest Cookies

Yes, these delicious crunchy almond flour cookies are the world’s easiest cookies to make—and they’re paleo, too!

Read More

Chocolate Cherry Scones

Feel like a morning scone with your coffee? These paleo chocolate cherry scones are truly delightful.

Read More

Matcha Coconut Gummies

Just look at ’em—these Matcha Coconut Gummies are the jade-colored jigglers you need in your life.

Read More

Berry Snack Cake

This snack cake has a tender crumb dotted with tangy berries and just the right amount of sweetness from maple or coconut sugar. Also, it passed the test with my picky gluten-eating in-laws, so you know this snacking cake is a winner!

Read More

Store-Bought Healthy Snacks

These days you can buy tons of paleo-friendly snacks at the store or online. Thank goodness, because I don’t have time to make all our snacks from scratch!

Our family’s favorite store-bought snacks:

Potato chips fried in avocado oil, coconut oil, or olive oil

Grain-free Siete tortilla chips

Plantain chips

SeaSnax seaweed snacks

Simple Mills grain-free crackers and cookies

Organic applesauce

Variety of nuts and seeds

Turkey and beef sticks

Psst! I buy almost all of the snacks listed above online at Thrive Market because I save money and the items get shipped to my doorstep in a jiffy.

Need healthy school lunch ideas? Check out this post and this epic paleo school lunch roundup!

Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013) and Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017)!

The post Healthy Snack Ideas (Paleo, Gluten Free) appeared first on Nom Nom Paleo®.

[hinach168]

Low-Carb and Keto Diet Fast Food Menu Choices: How to Eat Successfully at Restaurants

For those who eat low-carb or keto diets, there is almost always something you can eat in every fast food place or restaurant. Plan ahead. Before entering a restaurant, check out their menu and nutrition information online at home or using your smart phone. It's always good to know the safe options before being tempted by menu items you shouldn't have on a low-carb diet.

In order to make it easier to find a quick keto-friendly option, I've compiled a list of several restaurants and fast food places and those items that I've found to be the lowest carb (and most emotionally satisfying) choices. These are not all perfect options, but when you're stuck with no other choices due to time or location constraints, they'll do in a pinch.

It's a huge help that fast-food places are required to post nutritional content. It gets easier to follow the keto plan every day. The carb count I'm listing is approximate and is NET grams.

In general, there is usually some salad option anywhere you are. At Burger joints, just remove the bun, and many places offer lettuce wraps instead. Chicken shouldn't have breading.

As a side note, it helps to have a knife and fork handy in your car or purse. Big, juicy burgers in tiny pieces of lettuce end up on the table - or in your lap. Small, flimsy fastfood plasticware also makes for difficult eating. Pull out your own sturdy utensils and enjoy!

Now for the food choices... here are some pretty obvious general rules to follow:

Skip the bun or wrap

Skip the pasta, potato, or rice

Salads - no croutons. Stick with low sugar dressing options - Caesar, Blue Cheese, Ranch, Chipotle. Look at the name which may give you a clue, things like "honey" in the honey dijon or "sweet" in the dressing name - these are usually not a good choice. Check the ingredient for items that are higher in carb content.

Chicken - Choose grilled or sauteed. Stay away from any chicken that is breaded.

McDonald's - opt for any burger (zero g) or keto fried chicken (2 g) without the bun and topped with cheese, mayo, mustard, onions, etc. No ketchup. Add a side salad (3g). The Caesar salad with grilled chicken or the bacon ranch salad with grilled chicken are 9g.

Burger King - same burger info as McDonald's: burger (zero g) without the bun and topped with cheese, mayo, mustard, onions, etc. No ketchup. The tendergrill chicken sandwich without the bun is 3g. BEWARE - you might think the veggie burger is low, but it is 19g of carbs, so that's about a full day of carbs on keto. Add a side salad (3g). The tendergrill chicken garden salad is 8g without dressing or croutons. The tendercrisp chicken salad is not an option. Do not attempt.

BONUS - dessert!?! - the fresh apple fries are not fried and are 5g net carbs WITHOUT caramel sauce.

Subway - Probably should skip Subway if you can. The buns and wraps are all high in carbs. I guess you could just have them throw the ingredients in a wrapper sans bun, but that doesn't sound appealing. I have no info on what the carb count would be for each bunless sub, but you can probably figure it out - chicken or pepperoni is fine, but is "sweet onion" chicken okay? No idea. Stick to the salads, but realize you'll only get iceberg lettuce (4g).

Carl's Junior and Hardees - This chain offers "lettuce wraps" - your burger wrapped in a large piece of lettuce for easy low carb eating. (As I've said, I tried it and don't love it. I like to carry my own fork instead.) Bunless options - Six dollar burger (7g), 1/2 thick-burger (5g), charbroiled chicken club sandwich (7g/10g at Hardees). Grilled chicken salad without croutons is 10g. Side salad is 3g.

Jimmy John's - The unwich - a sandwich wrapped in lettuce - fits the bill here. Meats are fine, just make sure the ingredients are not carb-rich.

Wendy's - Again, you can get your burger in a lettuce wrap or a box. Any burger with toppings. Mayo has corn syrup, and is 1g. The chicken grill fillet is 1 g. It can be ordered in the chicken club sandwich or the ultimate chicken grill sandwich. Best salads: chicken caesar (7g), blt chicken salad with grilled chicken. Side salads aer 6g or 2g for Caesar.

Pizza Hut and other pizza places - It is possible to get used to eating pizza with no crust. You need to eat twice as much, but if there's a party or dinner out that you can't avoid at a pizza place, just slide the cheesy toppings off and eat the big messy pile of cheese and toppings. A side salad is a nice addition. Otherwise, just opt for making pizza at home with a low-carb crust.

Mongolian Barbecue - YES! Load up your bowl with chicken, shrimp, onion slices, and mushrooms, then top with the Asian black bean sauce. I know beans have carbs, but this sauce label says 1 gram of carbs per ounce (each sauce is plainly labeled). Add a bit of garlic and wait for the griller to do his work. It goes without saying that you skip the appetizers, tortillas, and rice. Ask the wait staff not to bring them to the table.

Italian Restaurants - These take a little cunning, but they can be conquered! Ideas: how about chicken Marsala in an Italian place? Make sure it doesn't come with pasta. Substitute broccoli or some other keto-friendly side dish - or a big salad. Chicken piccata is also a possibility.

Mexican and Chinese restaurants are the most difficult, because any low carb option is not the reason to go to the restaurant in the first place. At a Mexican restaurant, I tend to get a large burrito with no beans and spread the soft tortilla out like a plate. Eat the inner ingredients and toss the tortilla.

If you MUST go to a Chinese buffet (I attended a funeral dinner at one), you can find options, but they probably aren't going to be your favorite General Tso's. How about the salad bar choices? eggs? the insides of eggrolls, and I even ate the insides only of crab rangoons. Unfortunately, these ideas leave quite a pile of discarded shells and deep fried exterior pieces on your plate and makes it look like you really waste food.

Wings anywhere - Standard buffalo sauce is usually OK as well as garlic Parmesan

Convenience stores can be a good option, too! 7-11 has packs of hard boiled eggs, cheese slabs, slim jims, almonds, and pork rinds. Pork rinds come in a barbecue flavor and they're ZERO carbs.

Remember, whatever you choose, hold the bread, potatoes, rice, noodles, fries, and tortillas. And watch out for the possibility of corn starch, bread crumbs, and other fillers. With proper planning and a good attitude, you can find healthy keto and low-carb options when dining out, and stick to your successful keto diet plan.

[inspectorgorgeous]

This post has been compensated by Inmar Intelligence and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SauceIntoSummer #CheckOutOurBackSide #GreenMountainGringo

Like Avocado Toast, but make it tacos

Because breakfast is always better when there are tortillas involved.

I never really hopped on the avocado toast train because I couldn’t really see the appeal. Avocados are great, but what was toast bringing to the breakfast table?

A lot of crumbs? And crust?

Seems shady. A more logical recipe would be avocado tortillas. Don’t the folding capabilities alone make it superior? And at that point, you’re just a fried egg and some (really good) salsa away from having breakfast tacos. WHICH SOUNDS WAY BETTER THAN TOAST. And is consequently what we are whipping up today!

You’re welcome.

Let’s Taco Bout Salsa

So the breakfast taco sitch is this: we want something super healthy, light, fresh, refreshing (gluten-free & keto for me) while still being flavorful enough that it will put all of your other breakfast options to shame. Yes, even pancakes. BUT it’s nothing without a high-quality salsa.

Let me introduce you to Green Mountain Gringo® aka my favorite salsa for topping breakfast, lunch, and dinner tacos.

Look, when I say GOOD salsa, I don’t just mean tasty salsa. It’s GOOD, meaning it’s got a truly clean ingredient label. No hidden sugars. No hidden preservatives. No hidden agenda!

Need more proof? The folks at Green Mountain Gringo® brand dare you to #CheckOutOurBackSide (in the most proper way possible) so you health-conscious cooks can see for yourself.

What’s better than a great-tasting salsa that is made with YOU in mind? A salsa that is easy to buy…online.

Ordering from Target is already one of my favorite hobbies, so add online ordering my breakfast taco fixin’s on top of that (with the in-store pickup option)? LIFE CHANGING.

Or if you aren’t in the mood for an in-store pickup outing? I feel you. The Green Mountain Gringo® website has you covered. You can order jars and jars of their array of salsa, hot sauce, and tortilla varieties to be delivered right to your front door. Regular pants optional.

Maybe you are feeling like being a little social (while distancing) for salsa, and in that case, you can find a store using the Green Mountain Gringo® Locator.

Now all we need is an amazing keto and gluten-free soft taco shell. My skillet flatbread works perfectly here, just roll it realllllly thin and char each side in a very lightly oiled skillet.

Then we make this breakfast tortilla better than any other breakfast tortilla recipe out there. We melt a handful of cheese on the shell. No more dry cheese falling out of your breakfast taco!

Layer It

If you have a picky 5-year-old in the house, you might stop there, but you and me? We are going all the way.

Smashed Avocado and Lime Juice

Green Mountain Gringo® Medium Salsa

A perfectly fried Egg

Crushed Red Pepper, Cilantro, more Salsa…

I have even tossed a few stray purple onions in. I was not disappointed.

If you wanted to switch up your salsa flavor (maybe roasted garlic?) or scramble your eggs, you can. It’s still going to be amazing. Toss in leftover veggies from dinner, too, and then you’re cleaning out the fridge AND saving time/effort.

Is it just me or is this breakfast just getting better and better??

[mv_create title=”Zesty Breakfast Tacos! {Vegetarian & Gluten-Free!}” key=”197″ thumbnail=”https://www.inspectorgorgeous.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Gluten-Free-Vegetarian-Breakfast-Tacos-185.jpg” type=”recipe”]

Zesty Breakfast Tacos! {Vegetarian & Gluten-Free!} This post has been compensated by Inmar Intelligence and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SauceIntoSummer #CheckOutOurBackSide #GreenMountainGringo…

[keto-dietitian-india]

Priya’s Keto Sweet Bread

So it’s raining cats and dogs in my city, which makes it the perfect time to have a piece of toasted bread with butter on it. It is the simple pleasures of life that make life worth living. I have for you today a yummy Keto Sweet Bread.

I am often asked that how do you manage, when you are out socializing. Well I am going to be candid today. Initially it was very tough, as people just don’t get it or they pretend to listen but at the end of it they are only hearing.

I have also got stuck at places where close friends insist on feeding you ‘just a bite’, and have had to face the worst of expressions when I have refused desserts. And you can imagine what a big crime that can be in India, where joyous occasions start and end with something sweet.

I think in my case as people around me saw the change they accepted my ‘no’ with respect. At work they don’t offer me pizza anymore, there is no slice of cake for me, instead I get sweet smiles and somebody always gets me some cheese.

So if you ask me, you just need to be tough in the head and a little flexible too. I have some easy tips for you that can come handy, on this journey.

1. If you know the venue for the party, be smart and have a look at the menu beforehand. Choose your dishes beforehand and don’t be caught off guard.

2. If the occasion involves close friends and family, be smart and skip a meal. Hold the appetite for the evening.

3. If you are going to a social gathering like a wedding or a christening, you can either leave before the buffet is laid, or play around with the food on the plate, or pick Keto friendly items.

4. If you are going out clubbing or dancing, or to a place where nobody will care to see what you eating, just sip on some clear soda, or have some nimbu soda/ lime soda, and even better eat from home on go.

5. In most Indian weddings where vegetarian food is being served hog on the paneer, or try the taka tak or the pan fried veggies. You can also pick the cucumbers, radishes from the mountains of salad you see there.

6. Ratia or yogurt can also be a life saver. And the tikkas both paneer/ cottage cheese and chicken should be your best friend.

7. Avoid the punch no matter how attractive it might look, and drink water or even salty butter milk will do. Although very few people will serve that at an occasion. They would prefer Coke !

8. Another fact that you need to keep in mind is that Chinese is a big no. No matter how convincing the steward might sound they add cornflour to almost everything. Even the clear soups have it.

9. Sea food is a good bet, provided it is not crumb fried, just baked and sautéed is good.

10. And as a golden rule I never step out of the house without stevia in my pocket and sometimes coffee sachets too, and sometimes when nobody is looking I carry my small bottle of coconut oil too. While everybody around you is getting drunk on calories and sugar laden drinks, you can get drunk on your cup of BPC.

11. Lastly, it is your body and your life, how you want to treat it, and what you want to do with it is your business. People who claim to be your well wishers should be able to respect that, or next time when you review the clothes you need to give out, also you review your list of so called good friends.

So coming to the recipe, it is very simple, yum and keeps you full for a long time. You need to ensure that the egg whites are beaten till they form stiff peaks. I had Whey Protein in Chocolate flavor, so I made the bread with that. But you can use any flavor you want.

Keto Sweet Bread Recipe

Procedure

1. Separate the egg whites and yellow. And it is beyond me why one has a different color.

2. In a blender put the egg whites and beat till stiff peaks are formed. 3. Next add the cocoa and keep blending.

4. Add the Whey protein, Vanilla essence and sweetener and blend some more.

5. Now add the baking powder and the salt and blend for a few minutes more.

6. Lastly add the yolks and blend for two minutes.

7. Preheat the oven for 5 to 10 minutes.

8. Pour the batter in the loaf tin, in which you have rubbed the butter already.

9. Sprinkle the chia seeds and pumpkin seeds on the top. Or you can also mix them in the batter.

10. Bake at 180 degrees Celcius for 35 minutes and check with a knife. If not done bake for another fifteen minutes.

11. Allow the bread to cool completely, before you slice it and store in an air-tight container.

12. Enjoy at any time, with a cup of coffee or even with your eggs.

13. You can skip the sweetener completely and make it bland or salty too. But since my Whey was chocolate flavored so I made it sweet.

Source: https://www.ketoforindia.com/keto-sweet-bread-india

[the-expert-zone]

Cheap KETO Food List – including Pantry Staples (PDF)

To shave dollars off your keto grocery list and stay on track with weight loss, you need smart strategies.  There are plenty of budget-friendly, delicious low-carb foods so you don’t need to resort to pasta, bread, rice and other inexpensive carbs!

Download the FREE PDF below with this exact list of cheap keto and low-carb foods, many of which are also long-lasting pantry staples. We’ll send it straight to your inbox >>>

Success! Now check your email to download the FREE Low-Budget Keto Food List

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  With food shortages and out-of stocks common right now, as well as many of us being in isolation and unable to get to the shops, we are turning to our pantries to help us stay on track with keto and try to maintain the progress we’ve made.

When you’ve spent weeks, months or years following a keto diet, the last thing you want is to be forced to throw it all in and see that hard-earned weight loss reverse.

Many of us need to stay keto or low-carb for health reasons, whether that be managing insulin resistance and diabetes or the multitude of other conditions that the ketogenic diet helps. 

It’s not an option just to throw our hands up and use the current world health crisis to buy all the pasta we can get our hands on and give up.

Because it doesn’t need to be this way…

If you’re committed to maintaining keto right now then this post will give you plenty of ideas for keto groceries that are easy on the budget.

I’ve tried to showcase low-carb foods that are low-budget AND…

…can be stored for long periods of time whether that be a non-perishable item like canned tuna or in the freezer, like frozen cauliflower or broccoli rice.

LOW-BUDGET KETO FOOD LIST – PDF

Get our FREE Cheap Keto Food List and keep dropping the weight without blowing the budget

Success! Now check your email to download the FREE Cheap Keto Food List

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THE TOP 10 CHEAP KETO FOODS

Canned tuna, salmon, chicken – properly stored, these can last for 3-5 years. Ideally in olive oil for the added fat.

Smoked oysters, tinned sardines – properly stored, these can last for 3-5 years

Ground or minced meat eg. beef is typically the cheapest and can be used in hundreds of ways

Frozen low-carb vegetables – cauliflower rice, broccoli rice, any frozen low-carb vegetables like green beans

Canned tomatoes – used in so many recipes

Coconut milk, coconut cream – used in so many recipes and as a dairy-free milk & cream substitute

Olives – we don’t eat many at a time so they tend to last a while, a good source of healthy fat. Look for whole olives with the seed, not pitted or sliced.

Condiments like mayonnaise – also consider making your own to save even more money

Fresh ketogenic vegetables in season – always buy in season to get the lowest prices. You can save money here by making your own cauliflower rice and spiralizing your own zucchini noodles etc.

Olive oil & avocado oil – avocadoes may be too expensive right now, so look for an affordable avocado oil to enjoy some of the same benefits

  RELATED: Keto Home-Made Staples

USEFUL KETO “PANTRY” STAPLES (THAT COST A LITTLE MORE)

Eggs – depending on egg prices near you, they may actually be considered cheap. Eggs are a great way to meet your protein goals and can be used in many ways from breakfast to dinner. If you don’t usually eat a lot of eggs, consider frittatas and egg muffins.

Low-carb sweeteners – avoid keto dessert recipes if they use large quantities of sweetener or you’ll burn through your supplies very quickly. Think about keto sweeteners as a luxury right now. Use sparingly for tea and coffee and you’ll find that it helps to avoid sweet cravings.

Coconut flour – recipes only use very small amounts of coconut flour due to its unusual texture. A packet will last a long time.

Almond flour – while not low-budget, almond flour or almond meal it is a classic low-carb pantry staple that can be used in everything from baking to crumbing fish. Buy on discount and use sparingly.

RELATED : 10 Low-Carb Keto Pantry Essentials

LOW-BUDGET KETO FOOD LIST – PDF

Get our FREE Cheap Keto Food List and keep dropping the weight without blowing the budget

Success! Now check your email to download the FREE Cheap Keto Food List

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  CHEAPER CUTS OF MEAT

Beef – brisket, ground beef (mince), chuck, blade – avoid rib eye, eye fillet, tenderloin, waygu

Chicken thighs, drumsticks or whole chicken (use bones to make bone broth) – avoid chicken breast

Organ meats – liver, heart, kidneys etc

Pork – belly, shoulder, gigot, chop, ribs. Pork loin or tenderloin tends to be more pricey.

TIP: Go for lower quality meat and cook it in your slow-cooker, pressure cooker or in your oven over a long period, at a low temperature.

Cheap ground or minced beef can be used in many ways including burgers

  AVOID THESE TO SAVE ON YOUR KETO GROCERY LIST

ALL processed keto foods – protein bars, packet mixes, anything that comes packaged!

Store-bought drinks – diet soda, Zevia

Bottled water 

Expensive, high quality cuts of meat – chicken breast, eye fillet beef, rib eye, boned fish and pricey seafood

Diet supplements – shakes, “fat burning” pills, protein powder

Pre-cut veggies – also fresh cauliflower rice, fresh zucchini noodles

Out of season veggies and fruit

Free-range and organic – sadly, higher welfare produce generally costs more

Pre-shredded cheese – buy cheese in blocks and shred with a food processor or box grater

Alcohol – it doesn’t help you stay in ketosis so nix it for the time being

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You can click the LINK to start creating your 8-week plan. Simply follow the plan to achieve a successful keto diet.

⠀ LINK : CLICK HERE LINK :CLICK HERE

from Your Keto Plan https://ift.tt/2N7BfUZ

[lindafrancois]

Does the Military Diet Actually Work? Yes, but don’t do it.

So you’re interested in enlisting in the Military Diet, eh cadet?

Not so fast there.

This is a seriously controversial diet – and that’s not including the fact it has NOTHING to do with the military.

What’s even worse? It works (temporarily).

Though you’ll hate yourself, I promise.

We advise all our Online Coaching Clients to avoid this like the plague.

We also advise them to avoid the plague, but that’s less relevant here.

What diet should you try to lose weight quickly? Let our coaches help you decide!

So let’s discuss the Military Diet (click to go to that answer):

What is the Military Diet?

What does the Military Diet plan look like?

Will the three-day Military Diet help you lose weight?

Are there any benefits to the Military Diet?

Are there any drawbacks to the Military Diet?

Where did the Military Diet come from?

Is the Military Diet safe?

FAQ on the Military Diet.

Alternatives to the Military Diet.

Before I make you fall in line, if you’re interested in changing the way you eat to get in shape, you may like our fun new habit-building app!

NF Journey helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally).

Try your free trial right here:

What is the Military Diet? How does the Military Diet work?

If the Military Diet could be described in two quick words, those words would be “short term calorie restriction.”

Crap, that’s four words.

Ahem.

The diet focuses on ruthlessly cutting out calories in order to spur weight loss.

There are some claims out there that you can lose up to ten pound in one week on the Military Diet. Which would be impressive – and should also be setting off your skeptical spidey-senses.

So I can understand your curiosity, recruit.

Now you’re thinking: “What exactly does ‘extreme calorie restriction’ look like Steve?”

How about one meal consisting of just a single piece of bread, a half cup of tuna, and some black coffee?

That’s it.

If you ask for more food you’ll be forced to climb a rope.

The Military Diet is broken into two stages, one for three days and the other for four.

3-day plan on the Military Diet. For three days, breakfast, lunch, and dinner is picked out for you. You get this meal only soldier, nothing more! Forget about snacking. For three days, every single crumb is accounted for. I’m only slightly exaggerating. And these three meals only add up to 1,000 calories per day. Ouch. That’s not much chow.

Four days of leave. The Military Diet does go easy on you after the three days, with four days of slightly more food. And by that I mean 1,500 daily calories. How generous. You’re on your own on what to eat for these four days, with the only guidance being to “eat healthy” and keep it at “1,500 calories.”

Three days on, four days off. You repeat this three day and four day rotation until you reach your ideal weight.

That’s the Military Diet in a nutshell.

Okay, you probably want to know, to the crumb, what you get to eat on the Military Diet? Sure.

But it ain’t pretty.

What does the Military Diet plan look like?

As I mentioned, the Military Diet provides strict orders on what to eat for three days. Your mission looks like this:

DAY 1

Breakfast:

Half a grapefruit

One slice of toast

Two tablespoons of peanut butter

One cup of coffee or tea

Lunch:

Half a cup of tuna

One slice of toast

One cup of coffee or tea

Dinner

3 ounces of any type of meat

1 cup of green beans

Half a banana

One small apple

One cup of vanilla ice cream

DAY 2

Breakfast

One egg

One slice of toast

Half a banana

Lunch

One cup of cottage cheese

One hard boiled egg

Five saltine crackers

Dinner

Two hot dogs (no bun)

One cup of broccoli

Half a cup of carrots

One banana

Half a cup of vanilla ice cream

DAY 3

Breakfast

Five saltine crackers

One slice of cheddar cheese

One small apple

Lunch

One egg (cooked however)

One slice of toast

Dinner

One cup of tuna

Hald a banana

One cup of vanilla ice cream

If you find yourself thinking, “That’s not much for rations, Steve.” You’d be right.

Not only that, but I bet your normal serving of peanut butter is significantly larger than 2 tablespoons. Yikes.

But I’m getting ahead of myself here.

I’ll keep filling you on the details and then share my real opinion at the end here.

Substitutions?

Some websites will guide you through substitutions to stick with in case you’re vegetarian or lactose intolerant, etc.

Think tofu dogs for hot dogs.

But you are told to match calories exactly for replacement, since the name of the game here is restriction.

For the most part however, substitutions are discouraged on the Military Diet.

What about after these three days? 

If you haven’t gone AWOL, you get a pass for four days. Some websites suggest you can enjoy a meal of shrimp fried rice or a black bean burger on your leave.

To stick with the strict Military Diet strategy, you would keep it to 1,500 calories for each 24 hour period.

Eating only 1,000 calories a day is really difficult.

1,500 isn’t exactly easy peezy either.

Is this actually worth it?

Will the three day Military Diet help me lose weight?

In the short term, the Military Diet will most likely cause you to lose weight.

Why, you ask?

Because science.

It’s the reason “all diets work in the short term.”

If you eat more calories than you burn in a day, you will gain weight over time. If you do the reverse, and burn more than you consume, you will lose weight[1].

Granted, there’s some finer details in that equation. Muscle, fat, body fat, etc.

But for simplicity sake, it works.

The Military Diet works by practically guaranteeing you will burn more calories than you consume.

If an overweight person who usually eats 2,500-3,000+ calories in a day, suddenly switches to ONLY eat 1,000 calories for multiple days in a row, their body will operate at a caloric deficit while it seeks the energy required for drills, push-ups, and cleaning the mess hall.

When this is repeated for a few days, the number on the scale will get smaller!

So will YOU (specifically you, in the green hat) lose weight?

Depending on where you are now and your current intake, that deficit (and thus the accompanying weight loss) could be DRAMATIC.

But will you lose 10 pounds in one week like some sites claim? I highly doubt it. Unless you have 100+ pounds to lose and usually eat 5,000+ calories per day, you can only lose so much water weight in a short time period.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. People don’t get overweight in a day. And people won’t lose all the fat they want to lose in a day either.

Here’s another truth bomb that needs to be said: Even if the number on the scale drops significantly in a week, most of it is water weight.

Your body contains a lot of water, especially if you normally eat very salty, carby foods. So when you remove those foods from your system, the amount of water your body holds can decrease significantly too.

So if somebody strictly followed the Military Diet down to the calorie for a week they could lose maybe one to two pounds of actual fat.

They could lose multiple pounds of water weight too, but that won’t continue from week to week.

ATTENTION!

It’s time to hit you with more knowledge: Any weight you lose while on the Military Diet will only remain lost if you stay on the Military Diet.

Temporary changes create temporary results.

This is super important and will be stressed again later.

Are there any benefits to the Military Diet?

Any kind of calorie restricted eating program, if adhered to consistently, will likely result in weight loss.

Remember that guy who lost weight eating Twinkies[2]?

It worked because he made a strict protocol of his calorie requirements. Then, he followed it.

Yeah, he filled a lot of his diet with junk food.

But the point is he managed his food intake according to a plan to lose weight, and then stuck to it.

And it worked!

Before you get all mad at me, I too believe that the quality of calories is as important as the quantity.

One of the FEW things I like about the Military Diet is that it provides a strict protocol to follow. You don’t have to worry about what to eat. It’s breakfast time on Day 2.

That means you eat one egg, one slice of toast, and half a banana.

It’s the same reason why many people love the Paleo Diet or Intermittent Fasting or Keto Diet or the Mediterranean Diet: there are specific rules to follow that removes all guesswork from “what should I eat, and how much?”

I won’t lie to you and claim that a guide on what to eat has no benefits. Lying will get you court-martialed.

Hell, we even have our own free 10-level diet blueprint that tells you exactly what to eat to help cut out the guesswork (you can get yours when you sign up in the box below):

Download our free weight loss guide

THE NERD FITNESS DIET: 10 Levels to Change Your Life

Follow our 10-level nutrition system at your own pace

What you need to know about weight loss and healthy eating

3 Simple rules we follow every day to stay on target

But as your friend, I can’t give you only one side of the story.

Are There Any Drawbacks to the Military Diet?

DON’T DO THE MILITARY DIET!

Sorry, I’ve been holding that in this whole post. Literally. I typed this whole post up to this point while holding my breath so that I could then blurt this out.

I won’t deny that you could lose weight following the Military Diet. But can any diet telling you to eat bread, crackers, and ice cream actually be good for you?

I know you know better.

You’re an adult with a good head on your shoulders, and you’re probably considering the Military Diet because you want a quick weight loss win without having to make any permanent changes.

Unfortunately, things like “science,” “thermodynamics,” and “reality” will keep getting in the way.

The Military Diet is what we in the fitness world call a “crash diet.” Crash diets are designed for quick weight loss in a short amount of time.

These diets – and I can included “cleanses” here – prey on people’s desperation to “get fit quick.”

They know that if you follow a short term diet, lose a bunch of water weight, and see a lower number on the scale – you’re convinced it worked and then you can go back to how you were eating before.

Then when you quickly put all of that weight back on…you’ll come running back to the diet that got you short term results.

This is how they make their money, get your attention, and ultimately leave you sad and right back where you started.

Other examples of terrible crash diets include the Cabbage Soup Diet, the Baby Food Diet and just about any juice cleanse on the market.

I won’t even link to them, that’s how annoyed I am about their existence.

The reason these diets are short term is because they are not sustainable. Can you eat nothing but cabbage soup for a week? Sure. For an entire year? No way.

Crash diets are temporary diets. Which means their results will be just that, temporary.

The Military Diet is extreme and short term. Why do people in the military do this to themselves?

Spoiler alert: they don’t.

Where did the Military Diet come from?

Here’s another crappy bit of info: The Military Diet has absolutely nothing to do with any branch of the Armed Forces.

As quoted in CNN, Patricia Deuster explained, “In my 30 years working with the military, I’ve never heard of it.”

And she would know, because Deuster helped write the nutritional guide for the U.S. Special Operations Forces[3].

So if it doesn’t come from the actual military, where does the Military Diet come from?

This three days crash diet has gone by different names before, the Cleveland Clinic Diet 3-Day Diet, the Kaiser Diet, the American Heart Association Diet, and the Birmingham Hospital Diet[4].

Despite the different names, the three day meal plan is exactly the same.

And guess what?

None of the organizations claim to have created or support their namesake diet.

So where did it come from? Honestly, I don’t care.

It’s silly and I don’t need to meet the person who created a three day crash diet, that co-opts the military name to make itself sound reputable and legitimate.

Is the Military Diet safe?

There’s nothing inherently dangerous about the Military Diet. It’s just eating moderately healthy/unhealthy food in small quantities.

Which, depending on your current diet – could be a big improvement from eating unhealthy food in large quantities.

I don’t know you or your situation, but if you want to practice Karate kicks in the garage and become best friends, I’m down to clown.

Now, based on my 10 years of running Nerd Fitness, helping hundreds of thousands of people lose weight safely and in a sustainable way, I’m gonna tell you that this is probably not the diet you’re looking for.

Why?

Because this diet will make you miserable, and sticking to the portion sizes will make you unhappy and hangry.

As soon as your 7 days are up, you’re gonna gorge yourself and probably end up even worse off than where you started!

This probably isn’t your first rodeo, nor is it the first quick fix you’ve sought out for weight loss. How have the previous attempts worked out for you in the long run?

I’m not saying this to be a jerk, but rather to make a point:

I like you, your friends like you, and the world needs you to be the healthiest superhero version of yourself you can be.

And that will never happen if you keep chasing extreme short term diets.

I’d rather see you make changes you can stick with. Even if it’s one small change. Gradually reduce the calories you eat, by switching to REAL food.

Things like veggies, fruits, and good quality meat. Build a plate that looks like this:

If you make one change, like eggs and avocados for breakfast, you’ll be making a great step in the right direction.

Small changes are something you can live with.

Studies have shown that decreasing your caloric consumption by 25% can be fine for your mood[5]. Perhaps even beneficial. But dropping down to 1,000 calories? There’s no way that can, or should, be maintained.

I wouldn’t recommend you reduce calories by reducing the quantity of food, like ordering you to eat a meal of five saltine crackers, a slice of cheddar cheese, and one tiny apple.

Instead, I want you to make small changes to REAL food. That’s the ticket to long term weight loss. We’ve seen it over and over again here at Nerd Fitness.

Want help making the switch to REAL food?

Not sure how to make all of that work in your busy lifestyle?

I hear ya. It’s brutally difficult to stick with any diet, and that doesn’t even factor in when your kids get sick or work sucks or there’s two feet of snow on the ground.

It’s why we launched our 1-on-1 Online Coaching Program: to help create specific solutions and accountability for people that want guidance on how to eat, how to train, and the confidence to know they’re doing it correctly!

Learn more how our coaching program can help you fix your nutrition:

Frequently asked questionS on the Military Diet

1) Do foods in the Military Diet help boost your metabolism?

There’s some debate on this. For example, can coffee help you lose weight by raising your metabolism?

I’ll go with: HIGHLY unlikely.

Any effect of caffeine to your metabolic rate isn’t enough to make a substantial impact[6]. If anything, it might act as an appetite suppressor[7].

Which isn’t nothing. But don’t count on it to raise your resting caloric expenditure like magic.

However, here are two things outside of diet that will help keep your metabolism high:

Strength training. The more muscle you have on your frame, the more energy you will use at rest[8]. It’s one of the reasons we recommend it so much. I have no problem playing drill instructor and demanding push-ups.

Stand up and move more. Any movement helps and even just standing up, outside of any walking, can help raise your metabolism[9]. A standing desk, for those long hours in the office, might be a good move.

Do either of these strategies, or better yet both. It’s better than relying on grapefruit powers to burn calories.

2) Will I enter starvation mode on the Military Diet?

Most likely not.

Sure, if you go without food for a lonnnng period of time, your metabolism might slow down slightly, though this requires EXTREME nutritional restriction over a long period of time[10].

This makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. If there’s nothing to eat in sight, it might be that way for a while.

Depending on how often you repeat it, the Military Diet might reduce calories to a point where this slow down of metabolism kicks in.

However, it’s more likely that as you lose weight, your body doesn’t need to burn as many calories because there’s less of you to manage every day!

So your metabolism WILL slow down as you lose weight, but it’s not due to you eating fewer calories in a day.

Now, some would say the climb up to 1,500 calories might help prevent this, but each person is different.

My take: The fear of “starvation mode” is overblown, and it should be the least of your concerns while eating bread and ice cream and calling it a “diet”

3) Is the Military Diet a form of intermittent fasting?

Not really:

The MIlitary Diet focuses on restricting calories at a specific meal, by counting the amount of hotdogs you can have, for example.

Intermittent fasting centers on making a strategic decision to skip certain meals on purpose.

With intermittent fasting, you narrow the size of your eating window, or you occasionally do fasts of 24 hours.

For instance, you can start eating at noon and finish up by 8pm, essentially skipping breakfast.

I wrote all about it in our “Beginner’s Guide to Intermittent Fasting,” where I outlined the benefits of teaching your body to consume food more efficiently, and also reduces the total number of calories you are probably eating.

Conversely, the Military Diet teaches your body to run on hot dogs.

I’ve personally been utilizing intermittent fasting for three years. But I have never, nor will I ever, follow the Military Diet.

Shots fired.

If you’re interested, Nerd Fitness Journey has an intermittent fasting adventure that you can start today!

You can give it a whirl for free right here:

Why you should not do the Military Diet, and What to do Instead.

We all want instant gratification. Unfortunately when it comes to fitness and diet, instant gratification will always fail you.

Short term changes only lead to short term results and heartbreak.

IF YOU ARE GOING TO DO THE MILITARY DIET: Godspeed, soldier.

Good luck with your 7 days, and let me know how it goes in the comments below.

My only request: use those 7 days to learn about yourself and nutrition (maybe by reading this post?), and do what you can implement permanent adjustments to how you choose to eat after.

I’d imagine most people who do this diet are hoping for a permanent fix with minimal work in just a few days time, and I’m here to caution you against that line of thinking.

LIFE DON’T WORK THAT WAY.

DON’T DO THE MILITARY DIET. DO THIS INSTEAD:

Eat real food when possible.

Eat a damn vegetable every once and awhile. Yes, even if you hate them.

Cut out liquid calories like soda and juice (essentially sugar water). Drink water, black coffee, tea, or diet soda.

If you can eat real food, minimize liquid calories, and eat veggies, and do so consistently for months and months – you’re going to have permanent success.

Making these changes too tough to do permanently? Change fewer things!  

Start thinking in terms of “days and years,” not “weeks and months:”

Try one meal, based on REAL food. Forget the crackers and ice cream.

If you want a strict diet to follow with rules, create your own.

Or find one that already exists.

Try Keto. Or intermittent fasting.

Maybe Paleo. Or Mediterranean.

But don’t waste your time with the Military Diet or any other crash diet. Instead make lasting changes like I lay out in that video above.

If you read all of this and you’re overwhelmed, and you’re just looking for guidance on how to eat for your situation, you’re not alone!

We had so many people ask us for specific advice that we built an Online Coaching Program to help them get results.

Our professional coaches are regular people like you, with families, hobbies, and struggles – but they spend all day helping busy people like you live better, lose weight, and feel better about themselves.

If you’re like “hey I want somebody to tell me what to do,” schedule a free call with our team to learn more by clicking in the big box below:

Back to the post: You don’t need to do the Military Diet.

The people in the military certainly don’t.

INSTEAD, YOUR MISSION, SHOULD YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT:

Cut back on your liquid calories. If it’s not water, tea, or coffee (black), try cutting back in a deliberate fashion. Switch to diet sodas. Switch to coffee instead of lattes. Realize that juice is just sugar water.

Prepare one healthy meal. Consider my healthy go-to option. Just make sure it has a vegetable, okay? Don’t overthink this.

If you can do those two things this week, and then repeat that week after week, you’ll be 10X better off a year from now than if you had followed the Military Diet for 7 days.

And lastly, remember, THE MILITARY DIET HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE MILITARY!!!

Ahem.

Any questions?

-Steve

PS: Check out the actual guide for Special Operations Forces – Special Ops Forces Nutrition Guide. But those folks work out A LOT. Adjust your caloric intake accordingly.

PPS: And if you already did the Military Diet, please drop and give me 20 push-ups 🙂

Not sure how to do them correctly?

Our new app will teach them to you!

ALL Photos Sources can be found in this footnote here[11].

Footnotes    ( returns to text)

Check out the study on a caloric deficit leading to body fat loss here

Read the article on CNN here

Check out the CNN article here and the nutritional guide here

Links to these crash diets can be found here, here, and here

Check out that study here

Check out that study on coffee here

Study on coffee and appetite found here

Study on muscle and metabolic rate found here

Study on standing up and metabolism here

Study on starvation and metabolic rate found here

patrolling, pushups, grapefruit, tape measure, sniper, caution, soldier, quick draw, cameraman, beach

Does the Military Diet Actually Work? Yes, but don’t do it. published first on https://dietariouspage.tumblr.com/