No Junk January Weight Loss Challenge: So what ARE we going to eat??

 

Hiya friends! Day one of my No Junk January weight loss challenge commences. And in preparation, I've discussed what I'm not going to eat: junk food, sweet and salty snacks and fatty, fried and fast foods. But then, queried my  husband, what ARE you going to eat? Like, just sticks and twigs?? (He's not usually such a food Philistine). He's been down this long and winding road to overweight, obesity and weight loss with me. His support was a big help in how I lost 100 pounds. And he's generally a pretty healthy eater and doesn't need to lose weight himself (he makes the exception for sausage. There will always be sausage, sigh). However, with age even "he can eat anything and not gain weight" is finding that it's harder to  keep the tummy trim than in years past. Welcome to my world. 

So he does pose a cogent question. Having identified triggers and purged everything that will lead us into temptation (see previous No Junk January weight loss posts) what are we eating? We can't just remove foods to lose weight. We can't just eat a 1200 calorie diet of the same problem foods. We have to replace with better options that still satisfy hunger. 

So just a bunch of "sticks and twigs" (see also rabbit food, etc)?? Well, yes. Or maybe to be more precise, leaves and seeds and stems (make of that what you will). I'll be eating as close to my ancient forebears hunter gatherer diet as possible. Aka paleo-ish. 

When writing about how I lost 100 pounds and beat obesity, without gastric bypass, some foods that frequently "crop up" (pun) are of course fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seeds and nuts. Also lean meat. I  used calorie restricting on the 1200 calorie diet, said calories consisting primarily of foods that fed our hunter gatherers. Yeah, most are produced now, but, are much closer to the source than processed junk. 

So my calorie restricting diet, (honey, here's your answer) will in fact be: seeds (pumpkin, chia, celery, poppy, sesame, and berry fruits: pomegranate, blueberries, raspberries and strawberries. High fiber fruits like apples, lemons and grapefruit. Nuts: almonds and peanuts (and some nut butter), leaves (lettuce, kale, spinach, collard greens, cabbage red and green) and cruciferous vegetables (broccoli and cauliflower). Some nightshades like mushrooms, peppers and tomatoes. Plant protein powder shakes. Lean meat: chicken and beef mostly. I make a mean beef jerky that is crazy satisfying. And spicy bone broth, pho and other nourishing broths. A lot of these are considered "superfood". I'll blog more about broths as a diet. 

After the crazy that was Christmas I literally need to detox from the cookies, candy, ham, cheese, etc. I'm excited to start No Junk January weight loss challenge. Even if I don't lose weight, I feel better already. For more ideas, keep your dial set on this "how I lost 100 pounds" blog.