Ah, the holidays. That time of year when our better angels aspire to treat others with just that much more patience, cheer and kindness. Decorations, celebrations and traditions. Office parties and family gatherings. And food. Dear heaven the food. Obligatory, omnipresent and sometimes overwhelming food. Those of us who are trying to lose weight or get fit or improve our health face challenges all the year round, but the month of December is the mother lode of challenges. There's no way around it, only a way through it. And I indeed ate my way right on through the weekend of Christmas.

For me, avoiding foods that are not on the approved food list is not the hard part. As I've discussed here, eating only when hungry is. I've been getting better with that, asking myself, as I stand in front of the fridge, "What are you doing, dummy?" And my weight has continued to come down, incrementally. I even set up my plan-to-be last weight loss goal. And a wouldn't-it-be-cool date for that goal of January 8, 2017. That day in 2014 was when I started following the ketogenic (low carb/high fat) diet. I had just watched the video of Dr. Eric Westman and something clicked for me.

Well, looks like a new goal date is in order because starting with Christmas Eve brunch at a the home of friends and straight into Christmas dinner with our sons and daughters-in-law, I ate like a condemned person. I kept everything very low carb. I remained in ketosis. But up went my weight. With extreme prejudice. 5.2 pounds. Considering my 'new lows' are measured in 1/10 of a pound, 5.2 is a lot. Like, a real lot.

Never fear. It will reverse. But I don't expect it will be quick. And a difference with this weight gain compared to those in my prior dieting life is that I know the reason, I know the solution and there's no questioning whether the program works. Those niggling doubts about being the only person for whom a nutrition program doesn't work, about one's body being so far gone as to be irredeemable or that there's some secret being overlooked are not there. This works. I just need to get back to the very straight forward rules: keep carbs under about 20g/day, moderate protein and .... wait for it ... eat only when hungry.

Now, let's all spend the next 51 weeks enjoying freedom from the holidays!

[See information on watching the Periscope broadcast of the support group meeting mentioned in the video below]

PERISCOPE BROADCAST

Join us for a live stream Durham North Carolina Low Carb Support Group meeting tonight: Tuesday night, January 3, 6:30 pm Eastern Time (GMT-5). For those who attend, there is a possibility that your image/comments will make it into the live streaming. Please let us know if that is a problem. If you would like to watch, the following iphone apps are required: Twitter,Periscope. Be sure to go to Twitter and follow @drericwestman. Then at the meeting time, the livestream will appear in the Periscope app. Thank you!

Disclaimer: I’ve been fortunate to have had the time and resources to research the ketogenic diet, also known as LCHF (low carb/high fat). The information I share is based solely on my understanding of that research. We are all responsible for our own choices, including what we put in our mouths and there’s no substitute for each of us checking things out ourselves. And I’m not a medical professional in any way. Go Keto With Casey is not a medical site. “Duh,” you might say. But best to make it clear to all.  I welcome questions, comments and even civil criticism. I’m still learning. So, if you have something to add, go for it. Links in this post and all others may direct you to amazon.com, where I will receive a small amount of the purchase price of any items you buy through my affiliate links. Thanks!