no carbs

The Food Blog

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Food. Rarely have I been more obsessed with what I eat than the past six weeks. Going cold turkey on carbs (CTOC) wasn’t as horrible as I expected. I guessed that the goal of ‘27‘ would be motivation enough. I just wasn’t prepared for the side effects of no carbs!

My standard meal: fried egg, bacon, apple, spring onion and broccoli on a bed of lettuce and cucumber. Yummy!!!

A night or two after CTOC I didn’t wake up drenched in sweat, which was a relief. This continued for several nights and I was thinking that onco was right – the hot flashes were disappearing! My sleep-deprived brain didn’t really think any further than that. I do not function without enough sleep. When my life was still mine, and I was working, I sometimes had to apologise whilst doing field work because I know I turn into short-tempered bitch if I don’t get enough sleep…

Changing my diet was pretty easy. As I’ve had digestive issues for quite a few years, knowing what I can and can’t eat helps. Main CTOC-foods: lettuce, broccoli, spinach, cucumber, spring onion, apple, celery, chanterelles, quark, reikäleipä, moose meat, egg and bacon.

Which gets really boring after a while.

I can also eat cheese, shrimp, olives and pomegranates. Still kinda boring.

Button mushrooms with egg, cheese and freshly ground pepper.

A few days after CTOC my stomach was as good as it gets, and I was off on an exotic, overseas adventure to Sweden. Norwegians tend to go to Sweden to buy cheap booze, fags and meat. I go to get cheap cat food, tooth paste and allergen-free foods. We’re creatures of habit, always going to the same restaurant (Joe’s Diner) and eating delicious food (Joe’s burger or the Schnizel). I had decided that I was going to pig out on burger & chips and not care that I was subjecting my body to loads of carbs. Even on the strictest diet one should sometimes pig out.

The meal itself was a bit of a let-down. I realised that I didn’t really miss the bun or the chips that much, I felt bloated full rather than just full and slightly unwell. Got home, unpacked the car and was making coffee when the first major hot flash hit me. The next 36 hours were bad – really bad – and I realised that my lack of night sweats wasn’t because the side effects were going away, they were a direct result of going COTC. No carbs, no hot flashes.

The ultimate prawn dish. Bread & mayo not necessary. Lettuce, prawns, fresh dill and cilantro with a squeeze of lemon. So delish!!!

Six weeks (and quite a lot of experimentation) later, I have a slightly longer list of yes-food. I can eat small amounts of wheat in battered foods (fish’n’chips, here I come!), sauces and dark chocolate. Wines and white spirits are ok, beer and brown spirits send me into hot flashes faster than I can write this. I try to keep my meals as crunchy as possible (for some reason that works best for me).

And I’m only halfway to 27. Still in sight, still aiming for the stars!

20% is a LOT

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One thing I’ve learnt is that a good oncologist won’t tell you anything that isn’t fact-based, but if you say to them “I’ve heard/read/experienced that XX results in YY” they will listen, and give advice based on your experience.

I’ve recently joined a couple of Norwegian breast cancer groups on facebook. They’re really good places to ask for advice, cos you get a gazillion different opinions but at least some of them make sense so you can cherry pick the ones you prefer. Yes, I’ll freely admit it, even a super-sceptic as myself might – on this one occasion – admit to being guilty of it!!!

As you may recall, I didn’t even leaf through the pamphlet about this study before signing it. I didn’t read about potential side effects until I started blogging. I didn’t really need to know, and besides, I believe that the mind can give you additional side effects – so not really interested in reading. But I’ve been curious about the whole operation setup. I know that there are a gazillion variants of breast cancer treatment, but it seemed that every person I spoke to had a different op story to tell. I was rather confused, and Doc wasn’t really giving me any straight answers either (not that she can, until they have that last MRI) so I sent out a question in one of the groups, and I got some really great answers!

For single-tumour, non-spread cancer, it seemed that the magic number was 27, not 42. With a BMI of 27 or less, surgeons have a bigger range of possibilities in regards to surgery, and can do a reconstruction *using your tummy fat*. 28 and over and no reconstruction for a few years, until they are certain that there is no spread and it’s safe to go in again. And although I have asked the doc about surgery several times, she has never mentioned this.

Now, what with my hormone troubles and shitty body, my BMI is up at 33. Reducing it to 27 means a weight loss of 20 kg/20% of my body weight in just under 3 months, in a body that refuses to part with a single ounce (apart from last year, when I dropped 10 kg between May and November yet increased one whole size in all clothes. Again.)

Sooooo…… I am removing carbs from my diet, and replacing them with salad and broccoli. No more freshly baked bread with melting butter, no more potatoes, no pasta or rice or sweet potatoes or biscuits and cheese … and most certainly no chocolates, crisps, cakes, biscuits or other yummy items.

No more subs at Subway (when I go to the hospital, I usually grab one at the train station cos they’re cheap and filling and feel healthier than burgers & hot dogs), no more sushi at Sea Sushi (maybe the best in Oslo?), no more noodles or tempura or any of that yummy stuff.

Just greens, some proteins and a little fat.

I’m trying to convince myself that this will be easy peasy and that I do not want to binge on this cheesecake.

I don’t. Honestly, I don’t. Not at all. Please make and eat for me and send me NOMNOMNOMs…

[the stormtroopers are part of Stéfan Le Dû’s project, Stormtroopers 365, which is pretty awesome!]