The new diet...I mean eating plan...uh, um...lifestyle change

Quick disclaimer: NO! This is not a picture of my feet on the scale. Are we clear on that? Yeah, like I care about what the weight says, it's the FEET! ACK! However, I thought the picture was appropriate for this post.


Okay - so the "diet" I'm starting is called The Metabolism Miracle from the book with the same title, by Diane Kress.  I was a little skeptical at first but the more I read the book the more I knew that no matter how hard I thought it was going to be, it would be worth trying it.  Yeah, the worst that could happen is that I could gain more weight but ((sigh)) I've got to try something and I don't think gaining weight would happen on this plan.  Not if I'm smart and actually follow the plan.

The short and sweet of Step One: Like many other diets, there is the "requirement" you give up a ton of things that I know we all LOVE, DIE FOR, CRAVE!!!! ((sigh)) It's so sad to see it, but here is the list:

bread, bread products, pasta, rice, crackers, chips, pretzels, cereal and granola bars, other grains, fruit, fruit juice, potatoes and sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips (ew!), beets, legumes (beans and peas), winter squash, pumpkin, milk, yogurt, sweetened beverages, sweets and desserts, and foods that fail the 5X5 net carb test.

I know what you're thinking - "It sounds a lot like the South Beach Diet".  I thought so too but then she threw me for a loop with her 5X5 net carb test (total carbs - dietary fiber=net carb).  Let's say I want a turkey wrap for lunch - the turkey, mustard, lettuce, and light whipped cream cheese are all okay but what about the wrap part?  Well, I found a wrap that has a total of 10g of carbs but it also has 7g of dietary fiber, leaving a net carb of 3g.  Woo hoo!!!!  I'm allowed to have one.  The only catch is that I can't have anything fitting that formula within 5 hours of eating the wrap, before or after.  It's not bad.  I could have a 5g net carb item at every meal as long as they're 5 hours apart.  OH thank the Lord!!!

I can also have a 1/2 glass of wine at night.  Okay so it's equal to 5 oz. BUT I put it in a small glass so it looks like I'm having a lush-ful glass of wine :) Stupid mind trick but it works on my feeble brain.

Oh and I can also have "light" or "low carb" beer. Oh joy.  Water Beer!!!!! Actually, my man brought home some of the Budweiser 55 calorie beer and it wasn't too bad.  I had one...okay, a few.

The other cool thing about her 5X5 net carb rule is that I can have nummy desserts using her recipe for chocolate brownie muffins or I can have a piece of low carb toast with my omelet or anything like that.  It's a little easier to handle with all the other food restrictions. 

What do you think?  Sounds awful?  Well, if you're me and have been fighting to lose weight for the last 7 months without losing an ounce, it's worth a try.