Dr. Bernstein Diet - Happenings and Updates

Finally, I found Betty Lite bread... it took 15 weeks, but I managed to find it.  The elusive 100% whole wheat bread that yields you 2 full slices per day (more tangible food than any other bread item) can be found in Ottawa at the Produce Depot on Carling Ave, or at the Independent Grocer on Bank Street by Hunt Club. It's not on the Gatineau side, that's for sure.  What a nice change it is to finally have some toast for breakfast, or a cold cut sandwich for lunch. Mmmmmm  I was quite tired this week though. It may have been the combination of work burnout and just waiting for vacation to come, or the diet. I was being lazy and taking my K-Lite tablets twice daily. However, the nurse on Friday told me to break it up quarterly - the K-Lite is so fast acting that my body probably needs he more frequent intake throughout the day to help with the energy level. I'm not so sure about that.  It's Saturday today, and my first day of vacation. I'm still feeling quit...

I was most intrigued to learn that ketosis, or the fat burned, seems to actually cause bad breath . Luckily I've never had a problem previously, due to my thrice-daily brushing and flossing ritual.   However, about 6 weeks into the diet I noticed my breath was no longer minty-fresh. What to do? As I learned, the ketones /fat burned through are excreted through perspiration, urine, and exhaled breath. Apparently (and I can attest to my own personal experience) ketones are very unpleasant smelling. I liken it to an elderly person's breath who wears their dentures for two weeks straight without cleaning or rinsing. Believe me - it's a tear-jerker! The build up of ketones in your blood is called Ketosis . If you have diabetes, are on a low calorie diet, or if you have inadequate carbohydrate intake, Ketones can build up in your blood to levels which result in Halitosis. What can you do? Well, keep up the regular oral hygiene (or step it up if you're a little lax in th...

By the third month, I can say that I've tried a lot of combinations and techniques to keep the menu fresh and exciting. A little review - for your benefit. MONTH ONE : Going for gold (in one shopping trip) I think as an overall reflection on the first few weeks on the diet, I was, well, a little overzealous. In my defence though, that is true to my nature. I will always plunge in the deep end or dedicate myself to something 110%. I zealously scrutinize and memorize the entire program, and try to reap the full benefits as soon as possible. It's like learning a federal policy authority...okay, I'm a little hellbent on policy. I digress... For the first three weeks, I would lovingly choose a wide variety of meats from the list: a little lean beef, the full three servings of bison, chicken, turkey and some of the PC honey maple turkey slices. I had the full allowable. While I love caribou, it's a little difficult to source. Plus, I'd rather leave the ...

Well, I am officially 43 lbs lighter than when I started.  I can't believe it... I just can't believe it!   I was feeling so silly at work last week. It was Monday morning, and I pulled out some pants - light size 14 capris, recently purchased - appropriate for my back-to-back meetings slated for the day.  I slipped them on, and I stared as they hung like a wet paper bag.  Here I was only two weeks previously, shopping at MEXX, and jumping for joy that I could slip into a size 14. A little snug in the hips (of course) but good in the waist.  However, here I was, my pins floating in the pant legs, and searching for a belt (no loops) to keep them from slipping down and looking baggy.  No luck - I looked like such a shlub!  I chuckled with my colleague who suggested I get them taken in. Normally I would, but the amazing thing with this diet is that literally every 2 weeks, you're dropping down a full size.  I just added them to the next clothing s...

Into my third month, I found I was getting some stomach pains.  I started checking some of the staples I was eating, to narrow down the culprit.  Two things seems to correlate to my pains:  1) The RealLemon concentrate I was using in my water seems to be the key problem. After about two weeks, the taste seemed to be too harsh, even with the Splenda. Then, after each gulp I was getting pangs in my stomach. That was it - RealLemon was quickly punted out of the fridge and into the garbage. Solution: I used just fresh water for a few days then went back to squeezing fresh lemons. Now I go through about 12 lemons every two-days; recruiting my 4-year old daughter into child labour to help squeeze the lemons (she loves it - she's "cooking," she says...!) We have an electric juicer - relax.... Anyway, the yield is good for about 4-6 litres, and with liberal amounts of Splenda, it's the best pulp-filled fresh lemonade around! And guess what - no stomach pains!  2) I...

Image via Wikipedia When you go in for your thrice-weekly weigh-in and needle-pokefest, your urine gets scrutinzed at the same time. It's actually a little fun - you get instant feedback on whether you're burning that flab and how high your engine is running.  Now, I usually eat breakfast around 7 a.m - protein first, some fruit, coffee, pills/potassium and a large glass of my lemon/Splenda/water potion. It gives me a full belly, lots of energy, and a full bladder by the time I reach the clinic.  My regular 8 a.m. weigh-in usually requires a morning urine sample. I just bypass the sign-in and head to the ladies room. Now, you usually need to provide a Monday and Wednesday morning urine (MU) sample; occasionally the nurses will request a Friday evening urine (EU) sample.  Samples should be taken one (1) hour after eating. Hence, my pit stop upon reaching the clinic is perfect timing.  I don't come from a medical background, and am the furthest removed possible fr...

I'm quite excited today.  My third month on the diet resulted in new numbers - in the 160's.  I didn't find the first two weeks that good though. I was hovering in the mid-170s, not moving very much. I even had a faint panic attack when my numbers went up a little on a mid-week weigh-in.  What had happened? I follow the diet strictly, and haven't changed my diet much?  Well, I realized that I had mistakenly eaten something wrong. Wrong in that the Applesnax applesauce my husband bought for me (through my cell phone instructions) was the Organic brand with "natural sugars."  Same bottle and label, but different variety.   It wasn't Applesnax Unsweetened . So, unbeknownst to me, I was injesting sugar every morning for the entire week and didn't realize it. (Come to think of it though, it did taste sweeter... but obviously to my detriment.)   Lesson learned: Stick to the food list and check your brands like a hawk...and leave the diet f...

I thought it interesting this morning as I had my shower, that I haven't been dry and itchy as I had been in the first month on the diet.  As the program "bible" (the diet manual) explains, you will get dry skin. That was an understatement! I mean it's bound to happen. The fats are drawn from your skin and none is being replinished through the diet.  There's going to be some consequence. However, I hadn't used cream like this since I lived in the Arctic.  I was having flashbacks of slathering endless amounts of Body Shop Shea Butter Body Butter to recoup from ice cold blizzard conditions. After the first two weeks on the diet, I had fashioned pencil and crayon sketches of a personal hip holster for my husband to fashion for me in his woodworking workshop. I needed a permanent supply of cream to keep my skin moisturized.  Every night in front of the t.v., I became the star of my own personal Itchy and Scratchy show: a full hour drama of applying cream to al...

Image via Wikipedia The diet touts the B6 vitamin as the key to success. As their literature denotes, for women it's our "guardian angel." I must admit, from the first injection, I've never slept so well or felt as good as I have over the last two months, and I could certainly feel a difference from the injections.  B6 (or pyridoxine) is argued by Dr. Seymour Levine as the key vitamin in the B-complex group that offers the most benefits. Over 60 million people are thought to be vitamin B deficient, particularly dieters, people over 50 years of age and all women. Vitamin B6 is linked to addressing water retention, swelling, moodiness, dry skin, anemia and hormonal imbalances. No wonder whenever I'm on my menses on the diet, they give me a full b-complex (the full B vitamin group) injection...likely for my hormones! Seriously, B6 is key to regulating hormones. It stimulats the production of potamine and provides a calming effect on the nervous system. Resea...

I've been on the diet for two months now, and you're probably asking what the impact has been on my family?  I must admit, I do the majority of the cooking in the house. I openly admit to talking my husband away from the stove, but I do encourage my kids to learn how to cook.  The first few weeks was really difficult on me - I'd prepare a separate meal for them (pasta, rice, meat with sauces that I couldn't have) and wait until they were served before I'd get my meal done. Silliness of course...  While there are many foods that are restricted on the diet that my family eats routinely, such as carrots, potatoes, rice, etc., I've continued to make those as side dishes for the family so they have some carbs. However, I focus on the proteins, fruits and breads/crackers that I am allowed to have and stick to my portions, while they have their amounts.  My son and daughter and slim, healthy and energetic kids anyway, and have no need to diet. Instead, they eat the...

A little blurb on the supplements you take on the Bernstein diet.  Because the diet itself is only 800-900 calories per day, you need to ensure that you take extra multivitamins, minerals and potassium supplements. The clinic recommends Swiss One 50 timed release caplets with 36 minerals and supplements. It includes extra B vitamins and lutein - a supplement to the B-complex injections you receive.  You can get these in any drug store in the natural brands section. The clinic sells for $16 per bottle. Not bad for 72 caplets. You take one per day, so you've got a good 2+ months worth there.  Take your vitamins first thing with breakfast to kick-start your body throughout the day. Along with the multivitamin, take your potassium supplement.  The clinic usually starts off with a low dose prescription, but will regularly touch base with you on your visits whether you need to increase your dosage. Symptoms include headaches, coldness in your hands/feet, tingling,...