Peata's Log For Weight Loss & Misc

[thebigpeatowski]

Sounds GREAT Peata!

I'm with you on the decalcification thing, been thinking that's a problem for me for a good long while. Cheese has been a MAJOR addiction for me. I eat waaaay too much of it and I lovingly refer to it as crack.

I also feel better with more fiber in my diet, it helps to clear estrogen and endotoxin, but I prefer me vegs with lots of butter and salt. So I'm willing to switch it up and trade in my beloved crack for more buttered vegetables.....sounds reasonable anyways.

And yes, gastritis can feel like hunger pains.

 

[Peata]

Sounds GREAT Peata!

I'm with you on the decalcification thing, been thinking that's a problem for me for a good long while. Cheese has been a MAJOR addiction for me. I eat waaaay too much of it and I lovingly refer to it as crack.

I also feel better with more fiber in my diet, it helps to clear estrogen and endotoxin, but I prefer me vegs with lots of butter and salt. So I'm willing to switch it up and trade in my beloved crack for more buttered vegetables.....sounds reasonable anyways.

And yes, gastritis can feel like hunger pains.

The gastris has given me a lot of symptoms that I would never have associated with that - I am convinced that it was the cause of all those strange symptoms I was having that twice sent me to get checked out/blood work. And sure enough today when my stomach was bothering me, those symptoms came back very faintly. I didn't need Dramamine it was so mild, but yeah, it can cause everything from dizziness, malaise, pressure in abdomen, around lungs, and so on.

The decalcification - I'm pretty sure that's the reason for the crunchy neck and maybe some loose/popping joints I didn't use to have until I started this way. It came on in 2014, after I'd been "peating" for a year. My tinnitus got worse then and that can be another calcification. So, we'll see. Hope the Magnesium and K2 helps out along with reduced calcium. Oh, I read the brain can even start calcifying which can cause brain fog and all.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

Oh, I read the brain can even start calcifying which can cause brain fog and all

Yep, this has been my main complaint that started upon "Peating" and has gotten progressively worse. I'm trying various new experiments now to see what helps. My tinnitus comes and goes, seems to correlate to brain inflammation/excitotoxicity.

My knees started popping in late 2014 early 2015 too....no pain just very irritating, they would click even with regular walking, not just during deep knee bends etc. Peat says it's from estrogen, but mine came on when my estrogen symptoms were at their very lowest. I suppose it could have been part of the healing process, I dunno.

My knees have since stopped being noisy. It could be because my gut symptoms were solved and perhaps I'm actually getting the benefit from my food...or perhaps due to my increased intake of gelatin...or BOTH.

I'm excited about your high magnesium/k2 reduced calcium experiment!!!

 

[lindsay]

Just wanted to chime in here about your K2 and calcium intake. I noticed huge improvements when I stopped drinking milk and switched to cream and started eating hard cheeses (which strangely enough was one of the only foods I wanted to eat after my appendicitis). I still eat quite a lot of cheese, but hard cheeses (especially gouda) have a good amount of K2. When I started listening to my cravings, I noticed that I really wanted things like eggs, cheese, cream, and sometimes fish - I went through a sushi craving phase for awhile, which stopped when I began taking iodine. I've been hooked on hard cheeses as a snack for over a year now and have not really gained weight from them - actually, I lost weight during the fall/winter months, but that could be due to the iodine, which I have stopped taking. I was also supplementing Carlson's K2 - 5,000 mg, two capsules a day with food. K2 requires fat intake to be absorbed, so I always took it in the evening with my cheese plate :)

That being said, I'm not sure I noticed huge improvements taking it - other than better tooth and bone strength, but eating foods that contain K2 and supplementing it together seems to help. Now I am working on my B-vitamins and liver intake - wow! Is liver an energy booster.

Anyhow, the reason I mentioned eating the fattier dairy is because they contain more fat soluble vitamins, which may be why it's a good food source. Plus, I remember reading an article last year somewhere that said people who have full fat dairy do better than those who opt for low fat dairy - since I don't really like milk much, I decided I could totally opt for cream and eat cheese for protein. I don't eat tons of calcium, but I get plenty.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

I'm with you @lindsay on the full fat thing...seriously. After doing low fat for so long it just feels right to eat higher fat now. I've been craving more fat for months.

I don't know if it's because my body desperately needs more fat soluble vitamins or if it's a seasonal thing or perhaps the higher fat is helping wash stored PUFA from my cells or what....but I cannot ignore it.

I haven't gained any weight from my my higher fat intake either, yesterday I ate 98.4 grams of fat...TOTAL BLISS!!!

 

[Peata]

Just wanted to chime in here about your K2 and calcium intake. I noticed huge improvements when I stopped drinking milk and switched to cream and started eating hard cheeses (which strangely enough was one of the only foods I wanted to eat after my appendicitis). I still eat quite a lot of cheese, but hard cheeses (especially gouda) have a good amount of K2. When I started listening to my cravings, I noticed that I really wanted things like eggs, cheese, cream, and sometimes fish - I went through a sushi craving phase for awhile, which stopped when I began taking iodine. I've been hooked on hard cheeses as a snack for over a year now and have not really gained weight from them - actually, I lost weight during the fall/winter months, but that could be due to the iodine, which I have stopped taking. I was also supplementing Carlson's K2 - 5,000 mg, two capsules a day with food. K2 requires fat intake to be absorbed, so I always took it in the evening with my cheese plate :)

That being said, I'm not sure I noticed huge improvements taking it - other than better tooth and bone strength, but eating foods that contain K2 and supplementing it together seems to help. Now I am working on my B-vitamins and liver intake - wow! Is liver an energy booster.

Anyhow, the reason I mentioned eating the fattier dairy is because they contain more fat soluble vitamins, which may be why it's a good food source. Plus, I remember reading an article last year somewhere that said people who have full fat dairy do better than those who opt for low fat dairy - since I don't really like milk much, I decided I could totally opt for cream and eat cheese for protein. I don't eat tons of calcium, but I get plenty.

I'll take some tooth and bone strength. I read that plaque on teeth can be from calcification and it could be an indicator of what's going on elsewhere in the body you can't see. It's really a testament to how tough our bodies are, they can put up with a lot and keep us going.

Yeah, liver is like clean burning energy. I cooked some last night, both beef and chicken. Definitely prefer the beef. I get about the same effect from "fresh" oysters (they are not canned but come in refrigerated in plastic containers in the meat case at the store). Lots of warmth and just feel good. Of course I salt the hyell out of liver and oysters, so I'm sure that helps.

Funny you mention the fattier dairy. I switched from skim milk to half & half for the coffee just yesterday. It doesn't take as much and of course it tastes better.

 

[Peata]

Still using Natural Calm, making sure I get around 1 g. magnesium per day (including from foods). I am now in that last week before my period, so this is normally where the crap will hit the fan.

I found this info on a website called thyroid nation Magnesium Can Rescue Your Unbalanced Hormones

8 ways that Magnesium Rescues your Hormonal System
1. It regulates cortisol. Magnesium calms your nervous system and prevents excessive cortisol. Your stress hormonal system (called HPA, or hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis) is your central hormonal system. When it is better regulated, then your other hormonal axes – thyroid and sex hormones – will function better.

2. Mag lowers blood sugar. Magnesium is so effective at sensitizing the insulin receptor that I refer to it as our ‘natural metformin’. Better insulin control means fewer sugar cravings. Healthy insulin sensitivity is important for weight loss and PCOS, and it also prevents osteoporosis.

3. It supports thyroid. Magnesium is essential for the production of thyroid hormone. It is also anti-inflammatory, which helps to quiet the autoimmune inflammation that underlies most cases of thyroid disease. (Other ways to address thyroid autoimmunity include gluten-elimination and a selenium supplement.)

4. It aids sleep. As I’ve written here before, magnesium is the great sleep-promoter, and sleep is crucial for hormone production. Sleep is when we should have a surge in anabolic hormones like DHEA and growth hormone.

5. It fuels cellular energy. Magnesium is so intricately involved with glycolysis and the Krebs cycle (ATP energy production), that we can safely say: “There is no cellular energy without magnesium.” Glandular tissue like thyroid, ovaries and testes is metabolically very active, so requires even more cellular energy and more magnesium than other tissue.

6. It makes hormones. Magnesium is involved in the manufacture of steroid hormones such as progesterone, estrogen and testosterone. Magnesium has been shown to reduce hot flashes by 50%.

7. It activates vitamin D. Without enough magnesium, vitamin D cannot do its job . Conversely, too much vitamin D supplementation can cause magnesium deficiency.

8. It is anti-aging. The mineral has been shown to prevent telomere shortening, reduce oxidative stress, and enhance the production of glutathione.

 

[Peata]

My knees started popping in late 2014 early 2015 too....no pain just very irritating, they would click even with regular walking, not just during deep knee bends etc. Peat says it's from estrogen, but mine came on when my estrogen symptoms were at their very lowest. I suppose it could have been part of the healing process, I dunno.

My knees have since stopped being noisy. It could be because my gut symptoms were solved and perhaps I'm actually getting the benefit from my food...or perhaps due to my increased intake of gelatin...or BOTH.

I'm excited about your high magnesium/k2 reduced calcium experiment!!!

Are you having estrogen dominant symptoms?

I notice the joint popping gets worse the week before my period, which is always my worst time for symptoms, period.

Still taking 15 mg K2 per day for 2.5 weeks now, though for a few days I did drop down a little lower to conserve capsules til more came. I'm getting at least 1 g. magnesium through Natural Calm and food. I take glycine with meat.

I also take 250 mg. lysine, 20 drops MitoLipin topically, and 12 mg. pregnenolone for about 3 weeks. I probably should be getting B vitamins, but I read the magnesium helps you use them better anyway. Zinc might be helpful but I'm eating more meat lately.

Last month, I could tell my liver was still having some issues the week before period and during period. Then things seem to get better for a while. For example, symptoms like my skin quality declining (oily, acne), anxiety amped up, yeast, joint pain/popping, more prone to headache from low bs, caffeine, heat, etc; breast tenderness/swelling.

So far, the symptoms are there this time in my cycle too, but not nearly as bad. I hope it's not just a fluctuation that sometimes happens, but actual improvement to stay. Really the main difference in what I'm doing is taking a lot of Natural Calm magnesium. I'd say I have tried everything else I am doing at least one time before, whether it's supplements or diet. Not saying it doesn't all work together, but I have pretty much done them all except be consistent with that type of magnesium.

But if I think of anything else that could be making a difference with estrogen, I'll post.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

Are you having estrogen dominant symptoms?

Not at the moment....but they were godawful for a month or so there following my ridiculously stupid low fat/brewer's yeast/aspirin failure. Took me over a month to clear the estrogen/inflammation hell-raising that triggered......I haven't felt THAT bad in a very long time.

That extremely unpleasant experience makes me think my liver is less than happy, so now I'm plotting out a Shiny New Liver Plan....which includes taurine, milk thistle, alpha lipoid acid and pau d'arco which I guess helps with inflammation too. I also quit taking my Cynoplus.

Really the main difference in what I'm doing is taking a lot of Natural Calm magnesium. I'd say I have tried everything else I am doing at least one time before, whether it's supplements or diet. Not saying it doesn't all work together, but I have pretty much done them all except be consistent with that type of magnesium.

But if I think of anything else that could be making a difference with estrogen, I'll post.

I ran out of Natural Calm, I need to get more. I like it much better than my mag/glycinate powder...not sure why, I guess it's the citrate.

ESTROGEN IS EVIL.

 

[tara]

my liver is less than happy, so now I'm plotting out a Shiny New Liver Plan....which includes taurine, milk thistle, alpha lipoid acid and pau d'arco which I guess helps with inflammation too.

I've been considering trying the milk thistle I have in my cupboard for my liver's sake too - I'll be interested in your report.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

I've been considering trying the milk thistle I have in my cupboard for my liver's sake too - I'll be interested in your report.

I bought the powdered stuff from Powder City, I've only had a couple of doses. I very much like the taste, reminds of malted milk for some reason. The package says to take 100 mg. per dose, but since I never follow the rules I tripled that.

Some peeps say that milk thistle is estrogenic and some say that it's dose dependent.... I'm VERY sensitive to estrogen so we shall see. I'll be aiming for 600 mg. per day divided into two 300 mg. doses.....so far, so good.

I'm also trying to cut out starch again, I haven't had much success. Made corn bread last night...home made corn bread slathered in butter and honey is a tough one to give up.

I've noticed that whenever I set a dietary "rule" for myself I immediately break it....it's an Exercise in Futility....too bad this exercise does not result in a diminished derriere.

 

[Peata]

I bought the powdered stuff from Powder City, I've only had a couple of doses. I very much like the taste, reminds of malted milk for some reason. The package says to take 100 mg. per dose, but since I never follow the rules I tripled that.

Some peeps say that milk thistle is estrogenic and some say that it's dose dependent.... I'm VERY sensitive to estrogen so we shall see. I'll be aiming for 600 mg. per day divided into two 300 mg. doses.....so far, so good.

I'm also trying to cut out starch again, I haven't had much success. Made corn bread last night...home made corn bread slathered in butter and honey is a tough one to give up.

I've noticed that whenever I set a dietary "rule" for myself I immediately break it....it's an Exercise in Futility....too bad this exercise does not result in a diminished derriere.

What did you do to lower the estrogen after the brewer's yeast fiasco?

 

[thebigpeatowski]

I went back to taking vitamin E, actually I doubled up on that for a bit. I had quit taking the E temporarily because I was doing aspirin along with brewer's yeast and didn't wish to thin my blood too much.

I had also reduced my vitamin A intake during My Doomed Experiment, so I got back on that as well.

I also drank like three bottles of Progest-E.

I ate a LOT more broccoli (some days up to a pound a day) because it seems that cooked veg fiber helps me to reduce estrogen through the bowels. I also tried to eat more raw carrots, even though sometimes I get real tired of them. I don't love broccoli, but it definitely does the job.

I spent as much time outside as I possibly could...walking, laying in the sun (actually got me some tan lines). Not sure what that does for estrogen, but it seems to help.

I swear milk thistle is a Miracle Herb...I dropped a couple more pounds of water weight almost immediately after starting it. I suppose it could be some sort of placebo effect....maybe too soon to tell? I dunno, I was doing a lot of things to get the situation under control.

Oh, and I took a dose of turpentine one afternoon too, it helps with inflammation (I cannot even believe how inflamed I felt), but it's also a diuretic....so maybe that helped.

Today I'm at 134.2....stuck as usual....been here for a year and a half.....wondering when the Miracle Of Improved Metabolism will magically melt the fat off my *ss.

Granted, I eat way more calories than I was able to when I first arrived here and I'm toasty warm and happy, but c'mon already! At my height I should be like 120 pounds. I'm not asking for the 115 of my college days or even 120, I'd settle for 125....ten measly pounds.

I've tried dropping calories a couple times, NO GO, I get way too hungry. I tried cutting fat too....I can't do that either, I still get way too hungry. I'm not sure why.

How goes the fat loss with you, Peata? Any change after dropping cola?

 

[Birdie]

Yep, this has been my main complaint that started upon "Peating" and has gotten progressively worse. I'm trying various new experiments now to see what helps. My tinnitus comes and goes, seems to correlate to brain inflammation/excitotoxicity.

My knees started popping in late 2014 early 2015 too....no pain just very irritating, they would click even with regular walking, not just during deep knee bends etc. Peat says it's from estrogen, but mine came on when my estrogen symptoms were at their very lowest. I suppose it could have been part of the healing process, I dunno.

My knees have since stopped being noisy. It could be because my gut symptoms were solved and perhaps I'm actually getting the benefit from my food...or perhaps due to my increased intake of gelatin...or BOTH.

I'm excited about your high magnesium/k2 reduced calcium experiment!!!

Well, interesting that you two are experiencing this.
My neck started crunching with my morning neck ROM exercises, about a year ago.
I just attributed it to age. It came on rather gradually.
Nothing else cracks. No tinnitus.

 

[Peata]

I ate a LOT more broccoli (some days up to a pound a day) because it seems that cooked veg fiber helps me to reduce estrogen through the bowels. I also tried to eat more raw carrots, even though sometimes I get real tired of them. I don't love broccoli, but it definitely does the job.

I spent as much time outside as I possibly could...walking, laying in the sun (actually got me some tan lines). Not sure what that does for estrogen, but it seems to help.

I swear milk thistle is a Miracle Herb...I dropped a couple more pounds of water weight almost immediately after starting it. I suppose it could be some sort of placebo effect....maybe too soon to tell? I dunno, I was doing a lot of things to get the situation under control.

Oh, and I took a dose of turpentine one afternoon too, it helps with inflammation (I cannot even believe how inflamed I felt), but it's also a diuretic....so maybe that helped.

Today I'm at 134.2....stuck as usual....been here for a year and a half.....wondering when the Miracle Of Improved Metabolism will magically melt the fat off my *ss.

Granted, I eat way more calories than I was able to when I first arrived here and I'm toasty warm and happy, but c'mon already! At my height I should be like 120 pounds. I'm not asking for the 115 of my college days or even 120, I'd settle for 125....ten measly pounds.

I've tried dropping calories a couple times, NO GO, I get way too hungry. I tried cutting fat too....I can't do that either, I still get way too hungry. I'm not sure why.

How goes the fat loss with you, Peata? Any change after dropping cola?

I've been eating more cooked veggies lately too, as well as the occasional raw salad, but not going crazy with salad or anything. Also still getting 1 g. magnesium per day, also been taking 12 mg. pregnenolone, sometimes going up to 50 mg. to see what, if anything, it does. There are times I feel a burst of clarity from it. And maybe some other improvements but it's hard to tell what's doing what. I started taking MitoLipin orally only today, 10 drops (was using it on my skin but had a reaction after a couple weeks).

No matter what I've tried, I'll lose some weight but then it goes right back up. That's what was happening this last time, even with low fat and doing high carb. So this time I changed my diet quite a bit (besides dropping the cola). I've worked to keep my carbs around 200 g. per day. This has been hard sometimes because so many of the things I've been used to eating and drinking the last few years of "peating" have been higher carb. I also reduced my dairy/calcium intake which also required big changes. I'm eating more fat than I have been for about the last year. My protein is pretty much the same.

I hate to jump the gun like I have a million times already, but I can say that my belly is flatter *most of the time* now than it has been since I started all this. Maybe part of that is less liquids I'm taking in. I think less dairy has helped with that too.

I started this revamp on Monday, May 2. The last time I weighed myself since then was this past Tues, and I was down four pounds from May 2. But I won't get my hopes up yet. I'm averaging over 1,800 calories, 60 g. fat, 200 carbs, 70 g protein.

I'm having a time right now because I've been sleep deprived a couple nights in a row (caring for an elderly family member who needs assistance all hours of day and night, but I don't mind, just not getting much sleep..), my period finally came on today, and I've been cramping (though not too bad), but I've had GI upset since last night - my belly won't stop rumbling and gurgling, have had bad diarrhea, belly pains, etc. I'm just in a funk physically today. I went out to get a little sun and drank some Alka Seltzer (aspirin) this a.m.

I'll write more later if I get the chance.

 

[Birdie]

When I lose sleep, the next day I have the urge to eat more because when I'm tired, I confuse that with hunger.
I look to food for energy to wake me up. It doesn't work but my body seems to think more food will help.
Or my mind does.

Oh, sorry about that belly rumbling and gurgling and nausea and pains and diarrhea. I can relate.

 

[tara]

When I lose sleep, the next day I have the urge to eat more because when I'm tired, I confuse that with hunger.
I look to food for energy to wake me up. It doesn't work but my body seems to think more food will help.

Me too.

 

[Peata]

Wow, I had some of the worst menstrual cramps in recent memory this afternoon/early evening. Had more Alka Seltzer and balled up on the couch. Finally seems under control. The intestinal issues were still going strong. Finally found a bottle of Pepto Bismol (I'm not at home the last couple days and forgot my bottle at home). Guts seem to have settled a bit at last. Another thing I'm not happy about, my period came scanty for several days before it came on strong today. It used to do that in the past -"tease" for days that it was coming but wouldn't really come on for a while, and I understand that's a sign of estrogen dominance (not that I needed another sign). But for months it hasn't been happening like that - it's been coming on the normal day and going on regularly, which made me feel better about things. Not it's back to this weird routine with cramps and crap? Ugh. Grateful I didn't have to work today, what with the lack of sleep, the period issues, the intestinal joy...

 

[tara]

Wow, I had some of the worst menstrual cramps in recent memory this afternoon/early evening. Had more Alka Seltzer and balled up on the couch. Finally seems under control. The intestinal issues were still going strong.

Bad luck. When I had really bad menstrual cramps they often came with my digestive system packing a sad too - diarrhoea, sometimes vomiting, usually trouble digesting anything properly. Of course I took this as a sign to not eat, which probably prolonged the agony.

 

[sele]

Also still getting 1 g. magnesium per day, also been taking 12 mg. pregnenolone, sometimes going up to 50 mg.

Which brand of pregnenolone are you using?