For months now, I've advocated a no-cheating approach to weight loss. Now I've revealed myself as a hypocrite, but I don't regret my hard-line approach. Most people read "occasional exception" as "as often as you want," especially where diet is concerned. There were consequences to my choice, but I must admit that that the aphorism Nothing tastes as good as being thin will feel presents a false dichotomy. I was able to enjoy the taste of clam chowder and Guinness, and I still weigh less today than I did two weeks ago. However, it did set me back an entire week, so cheating even once a week looks like it would completely cancel out the hard work the entire rest of the week.

I'm not actually sure whether or not I slipped out of ketosis. I know that I'm in ketosis now, having checked myself for the first time. I didn't feel any different after blowing the diet that Saturday, so it doesn't seem that I slipped out and had to work to get back in.

Taste Treats

One sensation that tends to disappear while on a low-carb diet is crispness. Not the crispness of fresh lettuce, but the crispness of crackers or toast. I recently learned of two "tricks" for creating cracker substitutes that won't break the carbohydrate bank. They work best with a paper plate; I've had mixed success on a normal dinner plate.

Sliced pepperoni crisps up nicely after one minute in a microwave oven. Place them one layer thick on a paper plate — no stacking — and cover them with a paper towel, then nuke them for 60 seconds. They shed a lot of fat, so you'll need more paper towels to mop up the grease, but that's a bit less fat that you eat, too! If you don't have a paper plate, use a paper towel, but don't leave them on the paper towel too long, or the grease will dry and the pepperoni slices may stick to the paper towel. I have found that turkey pepperoni, while a nice cold snack, doesn't crisp up well at all. Apparently it needs more fat.

Cheese is even better. Sliced cheddar works, but the best option of all is parmesan cheese, sliced or grated. Again, spread a thin layer of cheese on a paper plate — the thinner, the crispier — and microwave it for 60 seconds. For cheeses other than parmesan, soak up grease with a paper towel, then wait a minute or so for the cheese to cool and harden into a crispy cracker-like snack.

For the ultimate in something (I'm not sure what), try canned cheese spread on a cheese cracker!

Personal Update

This is my final week on the diet, and I plan to stop focusing on my weight after that. I have a little bit of belly fat left, but the rest of me is as thin as I should be. On Tuesday, my first day off the diet, I plan to start strength training again, and while lifting weights will help eliminate the belly fat, it will also cause me to gain weight.