Trim Healthy Mama

When I tell people I’ve struggled with my weight since college, I often get a big eye roll.  Back then I struggled to maintain a body that was at least 15lbs lighter than was healthy, going so far as to binge and purge for several years in its pursuit.  I got over that only to gain about 20lbs in my twenties due to some unhealthy and borderline addictive habits.  Then I settled into a comfortable marriage (and a 2-glass-a-night Pinot habit) and gained 20 more.  Finally, I started a stressful new job and 9 more creeped up on me.  That put my 5’ almost 4” frame at a solid 169lbs for those of you who’ve been counting along!  I carried them well (hence the eye rolling), packing most of them into my breasts and hips, but I knew that they weren’t doing me any good, so I endeavored to lose them before I got pregnant.  Imagine my surprise when those two pink lines showed up just two weeks after we started trying!  I shed the 24lbs I gained during pregnancy within a couple of weeks, then another 10 or so dropped off because I never resumed my wine habit.  That’s where I find myself now.  I know I shouldn’t do a hardcore diet while breastfeeding, but my supply is more than adequate and I feel like I can stand to make a few healthier (skinnier) choices, which is why I’m starting Trim Healthy Mama.

Originally, I planned to do Weight Watchers, as I lost quite a bit of weight with them a few years ago.  However, after using Weston A. Price Foundation’s (WAPF) protocol to easily get pregnant, I am aware that Weight Watchers promotes a diet that would leave me deficient in some essential fats and nutrients.  Instead, I decided to try to adhere to WAPF recommendations for pregnant and nursing women (the following is copied and pasted straight from the WAPF website):

• Cod Liver Oil to supply 20,000 IU vitamin A and 2000 IU vitamin D per day, which is provided by 2 teaspoons high vitamin cod liver oil (Green Pasture brand).
• 1 quart (or 32 ounces) whole milk daily, preferably raw and from pasture-fed cows (learn more about raw milk on our website, A Campaign for Real Milk, www.realmilk.com)
• 4 tablespoons butter daily, preferably from pasture-fed cows
• 2 or more eggs daily, preferably from pastured chickens
• Additional egg yolks daily, added to smoothies, salad dressings, scrambled eggs, etc.
• 3-4 ounces fresh liver, once or twice per week (If you have been told to avoid liver for fear of getting “too much Vitamin A,” be sure to read Vitamin A Saga)
• Fresh seafood, 2-4 times per week, particularly wild salmon, shellfish and fish eggs
• Fresh beef or lamb daily, always consumed with the fat
• Oily fish or lard daily, for vitamin D
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil daily, used in cooking or smoothies, etc.
• Lacto-fermented condiments and beverages
• Bone broths used in soups, stews and sauces
• Soaked whole grains
• Fresh vegetables and fruits

AVOID:

• Trans fatty acids (e.g., hydrogenated oils)
• Junk foods
• Commercial fried foods
• Sugar
• White flour
• Soft drinks
• Caffeine
• Alcohol
• Cigarettes
• Drugs (even prescription drugs)

IMPORTANT WARNING: Cod liver oil contains substantial levels of omega-3 EPA, which can cause numerous health problems, such as hemorrhaging during the birth process, if not balanced by arachidonic acid (ARA), an omega-6 fatty acid found in liver, egg yolks and meat fats.  Please do not add cod liver oil to a diet that is deficient in these important animal foods. It is important to follow our diet for pregnant mothers in its entirety, not just selected parts of it, which is provided by 2 teaspoons high vitamin cod liver oil (Green Pasture brand).

As you can see, it is a tremendous amount of food!!  I wanted to find a way to temper the massive calorie count that comes with such a list, so I started watching YouTube videos on WAPF to see if I could come up with anything.  It was while doing this that I came across one mom’s testimonial on Trim Healthy Mama.  

At first glance, the Trim Healthy Mama plan seemed to give me the freedom to eat the foods I needed to adequately feed Alice, so I decided to look into it further.  I learned that the main idea was to combine food fuels in a way that would help my body burn its fat stores.  Satisfying, or S, meals use fats as their main fuel while eschewing carbohydrates.  Energizing, or E, meals are full of carbs and exclude fats.  The idea is to eat only one kind of fuel at a time.  This, along with all kinds of other complicated protocols that I haven’t learned yet, will give my body a chance to burn away excess fat, while I still eat all the nourishing foods on the WAPF diet.  

If I have any success, I plan to write more about it!  Maybe I’ll do a weekly post or post of my menu plans or food logs or whatever.  Would you read about it if I did?