I said LOW carb, NOT NO carb!!!

I am constantly astounded at the comments 

I see/hear from people regarding LCHF (Low carb, high fat).  

These generally range from people assuming you are depriving yourself of tasty food and treats through to people getting quite defensive about you 'cutting an entire food group'.

I have to assume they have no idea what it is I do and haven't done any research themselves, they just jump to conclusions and decide they should voice them far and wide.

Cutting out processed carbs, that are mostly grain foods and then saying you are depriving yourself of carbs entirely is the same as telling a vegetarian they need meat to get their protein!!

Total bullshit in my honest opinion!

It never ceases to amaze me that people feel should feel so strongly about what another person consumes.  At the end of the day we really only need to worry about our own health and habits I would have thought.
I do share links and info I come across, whether people choose to take it on board is entirely up to them and I am beastly careless if they do or not.
I would love for others to feel as great as I do and I do feel sad when I see or hear people lamenting their poor health and I wonder if dietary changes would make a difference.

In our house hold we have completely cut carbohydrates from processed foods and wheat/grain based foods.   We have minimised fruit, beans and pulses.  Does this mean we are getting NO carbs?  Obviously not, since fruit, vegetables, dairy and other sources still contain carbs.

Another concern by the opinionated masses is whether we can get through the day due to lack of energy, since carbs are the only source of fuel in their 'professional' opinion.

Since changing my diet I am now able to walk several kilometres a week where as before giving up carbs I was too sick.

A great site that addresses this is Mark's Daily Apple.  

Another great site with fabulous podcasts is Jimmy Moore's site.   

 Jimmy has loads of info on ketonic lifestyle and how to maintain it.
Also check out what Tim Noakes has to say on his site.  He does some great podcasts that he shares on his twitter feed to.

But you know, at the end of the day you do what suits you.  This suits me perfectly.  I haven't felt this great in forever and I love that others who are joining me are feeling the benefits too.

Do you eat your fermented veg?

I must admit I am new to the whole fermented veg caper.  

I was one of those people who always said sauerkraut was gross.  

Until I actually tried it! LOL

Once I tried it I realised just how awesome it actually is. 

But there are loads of veg ferments you can do. 

Beetroot is another fave here with my son and I am yet to try other veg.

I prefer sauerkraut myself and love love love it with beef!

Another thing that turned me off it was that I thought it was something terribly difficult to make.

The opposite couldn't be more true though.

If you can use a knife you can make kraut pretty much. 

That is how simple it is.

Slice some cabbage, actually you'll want loads of cabbage as it packs down quite a bit.  Take off the outer leaves (but keep them as you will use them later).

Once you have sliced it up thinly, cut it into inch long pieces and put in a large dish.  Then pound it with a meat cleaver or, as I used, a rolling pin.

This releases juices and sugars and helps get the fermentation process happening.  Once you can see it is wet move on to the next step of salting it all.

Sprinkle some salt and add some water and culture.

That's it!

The salt I use is the seaweed salt from Changing Habits.  I love himalayan salt at the best of times but like the added nutrition of seaweed in this one.   

I used 1/2 a medium cabbage for one large jar of kraut and I added two good pinches of salt to the cabbage and mixed it in well.

Once you have mixed the salt in well it is time to pack it into your jar.  Make sure you have a clean, sterile jar.  As you add the cabbage, push it down firmly with your  rolling pin or spoon etc   Make sure you push it down as hard as you can.

When you have all the cabbage in the jar add your water and starter.  I used about 3tbs of water kefir and filtered (no chlorine or fluoride) water.   Add enough water to cover the sliced cabbage.  You don't want cabbage sticking out the top as it will go mouldy and spoil.  

With those outer leaves tear them up and place them in the top, Pushing the sliced cabbage down under the liquid.

When it is all nicely packed in and covered pop a clean cloth over the top to keep dust/bugs out and sit it in a warm spot.  Just check reguarly that the cabbage is still under the liquid line.

Depending on the weather it will take between three days and two weeks to get all funky and tasty.

After the first couple of days just have a taste every now and then to see if you like it in.  

The texture should be firm but not raw crunchy and it should have a bit of a funky smell about it.

It really is personal taste as to how long you let it ferment but once it has reached the point you want pop it in the fridge to stop the process.

You can add some of the liquid from this one to your subsequent batches as a starter and if you don't have kefir to add don't panic.  You can add some probiotic, or buy a whey powder online to add.  You can also make it without any of these but the process may take a bit longer.

Enjoy!  

As I said, I love it with beef in particular. Fermented veg are so beneficial to your health and aid digestion.  The lactic acid released in the fermentation process help promote the growth of good bacteria in the gut too.

What did Christmas look like at your house??

Everyone talks about how hard it is at christmas time to stay on track with food.  Not to over indulge, eat crap, drink too much etc

I must admit I was in a bit of a quandary of what to do as I was host and knew that not everyone was on board with my food choices.  

I got the children to write a list of what they wanted.  I was surprised as their choices were pretty good:

potato bake (with white potatoes please mum!)

bean and avocado salad

mushrooms

chicken

ham

and cheese in our stockings!

So, I went to work.  The meat and salad side of things were the same as every year pretty much and simple.  All made with good fresh produce (other than tinned 4 bean mix), olive oil and fresh herbs.

I did a cheese plate with cheeses from Ashgrove (and yes the kids did get cheese in their stockings!) along with some naturally leavened sourdough from Apiece Bakery for the bread eaters.

I also got some smoked salmon and whipped up these beauties from Ditch the Carbs!

Salmon and cream cheese egg bites.  They are divine, although next time I will put more salmon in them.

I usually make up small platters for friends and family at christmas time but this year with a newborn in the house I was a little challenged for time and spare hands. 

I did manage to make this pale green christmas that was delicious 

                                                    along with some strawberry truffles.

My boy wanted real trifle (meaning processed cake, sugary jelly and packet custard).   

Um, no.

LOL

He wasn't actually home when I made this and on boxing day I asked him what he thought.  He told me it was amazing and he was so glad I made a 'real' one.  

Imagine his surprise when I told him how I made it!

This 'real trifle' was broken up paleo ginger cake, jelly made with juice, agar agar and passionfruit pulp, fresh berries, fresh mango, quirky's coconut caramel custard and ashgrove cream.

 No added sugars or grains and tasted divine!

Lastly was the request for a raw cheesecake, fast becoming a fave in this household but a treat due to the expense of nuts!

I use the I Quit Sugar recipe for this.  

The texture was quite stiff when making this and I was concerned about it but needn't have been. 

 I made it four days in advance and popped it in the freezer.  

Pulled it out christmas eve and left it in the fridge.  

I swear to god this is heaven in a baking dish!

So, christmas was sugar free, grain free (for me) and successfully low carb high fat.  I didn't feel like I missed out on anything or was deprived and I don't think my kids did either. 

What was your christmas like?

Question time with Luke and Scott

In my journey of reaching and maintaining good health I have come across some great people, recipe books and speakers.  I am loving the path I am on and love being able to share what I have learnt with others.

When I received a copy of Clean Living Cookbook by Luke & Scott 

for my birthday I was rapt.  

I have said previously what a fabulous book it is, filled with amazing recipes.  

I have since got their Paleo Sweets book (OMG!) and their Paleo Breakfasts book,both of which I would thoroughly recommend.

But, I wanted more.  I emailed the guys and told them how much I appreciated their books and asked if they would like to answer some reader questions.   These guys are awesome and very kindly agreed to not only a question/answer session but also a give away of their newest book Clean Living Quick & Easy.  

How great is that!!

So, to get the ball rolling, here are the answers 

to your questions.

1. Were you eating a paleo diet completely before MKR or did you develop more afterwards?

Luke: I was eating what I considered to be healthy, but certainly not paleo. It was a great and exciting learning curve for me once the show finished, as I really wanted to regain my health and look and feel my best, so I 100% completely embraced paleo upon completion of filming. My physical and mental transformation was quick and really quite exceptional. 

Scott:  Prior to MKR I was paleo but arguably not as purist as i now am.  My understanding of nutrition has evolved over the last 2-3 years and so has the foods I include and don't include in my diet.

2. Many sporting people will insist on eating carbs for energy.  What are your views on this?

Luke: I have trained my body to use ketones for energy. Which in its simplest form is when our body uses fat as energy as opposed to carbohydrates. If I need to exert myself in an intense way and need more of an energy burst, I will make smart carb choices such as a banana or some berries for the added boost my body needs. At the end of the day, you need to listen to your body and do what works for you.

Scott: Generally speaking we fixate on carbs being the source of our energy for training and sport. The fact of the matter is we can perform exceptionally well on a ketogenic diet, I would say that if you training volume include considerable amount of high intensity training then some safe starches are fine.

3. Will your sweets book come out in hard copy?

Luke: All of our books will be released in the same format as the others in the Clean Living Series. We look for uniformity across the brand. One day down the track we might bring out a massive hard copy collection. You will have to wait and see.

Scott: Our next book FAST FOOD has heaps of amazing sweet recipes, all of which can be made in no time, with little fuss.

4. You use a huge amount of seafood in your current book.  Will the next book have more land animals?

Luke: Yes, you will see lots of land animals ranging from grassed beef, organic free range chicken to free range pork, and of course, lots of different varieties of sustainable seafood choices.

Scott: It's not deliberate to include more seafood vs land animals, I guess it just works out that way.  We do try to keep the sources of protein as varied as we can and include some cheaper cuts to keep budgets low.  We feel its important that if you do choose to eat meat then you should respect the animal and eat nose to tail. 

5.  You seemed a bit reluctant to use high fat in MKR.  Do you still follow this principal as strictly or have you changed your views?

Luke: We were very reluctant to use bad quality food sources, but have always been really excited to use good quality fats that come from meat, avocados, nuts and seeds. On the show we really wanted to reflect making the healthier choice with the options on offer. And we certainly steered away from sugar.

Scott: I don't recall being reluctant to use fat - we often spoke of the benefits of eating full fat over reduced fat products.  Im a huge advocate for the high fat diet; we have lived in a world where saturated fat has been the bad guy for 40-50 years and now the tide is slowly turning which is good news for health.  The sooner we pull away from vegetable oils and trans-fats the better off we'll be. 

6. Will you be doing a book tour with the next book?  How about a visit to Tasmania?

Luke: We will be doing a series of pop-up restaurants around the country. Melbourne and Sydney are first of the block and we will announce more dates to follow. We love being able to reach our fan base and connect with people who really embody our clean living lifestyle.

Scott: We would absolutely love to come to Tasmania to do book tour.  Tasmania is one of my favorite places to visit and boasts some of the best scenery I've ever seen.

7.  Eating a paleo inspired diet isn't the norm for most people, particularly those who are active. What prompted the shift from a high carb diet to this for you?

Luke: In fact, we have seen the opposite to this statement. We have seen that highly active people are more so switched on to how they fuel there bodies and what effect food has on their performance. It is sometimes the supermarkets and advertising campaigns in health and fitness magazines that tell a different story that we still need high amounts of carbs to function. To me, it seems the healthier more active people are the more educated and informed, because they care.

Scott: The shift came from listening to my body and witnessing the telltale signs of a high carb diet - lethargy, mood change and energy dips.  The shift was also a consequence of reading as most as i could around the subject - arming myself with as much info to make informed choices around nutrition.

8. What are your thoughts on electrolyte replacements such as Hydralyte during sustained physical activity (eg 4+ hours of cycling, tri, ironman etc). Do you have any ideas on alternatives?

Luke: My choice is always to go natural. Coconut water is natures superfood sports drink, 100% natural and so good for you. A way better option.

Scott: Its imperative to ingest some form of electrolyte replacements during sustained exertion, otherwise performance will be impaired and diminish.

9. What are your thoughts on the HCG Protocol and the concept of reaching leptin sensitivity.

Luke: Not my specialty thanks x

Scott: My thoughts are that we should shift our focus from weight management to health.  Once we start eating for health then our weight will naturally revert to its optimum.  Forget quick fixes, fads and short cuts - food should be enjoyed with an eating plan which has longevity and one you can sustain indefinitely.  I encourage people that are hoping to lose weight to eat real food, minimise their intake of carbs/sugar and embrace a high fat diet.

Thanks to both Luke and Scott for helping out here and their generous offer of donating a copy of their latest book for a competition.  

Keep your eye on this space

 if you 

would like to win your own copy.

Week four and counting

Round 3 (started loading 11 Oct 2014)
Phase 2   (Started 13 Oct 2014)
Day28
Blood group A+

Fourth week down.   

No detox symptoms to speak of this week but am struggling with a 'chest thing'.  Some hard congestion that won't shift and so I am feeling really tired as my body tries to fight it.  Using olive leaf extract, vitC and a Himalayan salt pipe to try to clear it.   Have been walking heaps this week too which is good for the lungs.  No hard core, just gentle walks (lots of stop/start as with kids) of about 3-4km.

Losses have picked up again which is much better for my anal, impatient self :)

Weights for this week are:

3 Nov - 70.8kg

4 Nov -70.6kg

5 Nov - 70.3kg

 Nov - 70.1kg

7 Nov -70.1kg

 8 Nov -   69.8kg
9 Nov -  69.5kg

Total loss for week=    1.3kg

Overall R3=8.4kg

Starting measurements 10 Oct:

waist    94cm

hip  109cm

thigh  52cm

upper arm   33cm

chest  97cm

calf  35cm

This weeks measurements:

waist    88cm

hip  102cm

thigh  50cm

upper arm   30cm

chest  96cm

calf  34cm

(I just added up total cm lost since starting the Protocol and I have lost 124cm!! Mind you I only started measuring my calf halfway through round 2)

Walked:  9km

Meals for the week:

Breakfast is generally an apple and a cup of black coffee.  Although this week I have had a blueberry smoothie and a blueberry sorbet.

Lunches:

beef burger and salad

lamb and broccoli

chicken dumpling soup

beef burger lettuce wrap

Dinner:

lamb steak and zucchini chips

BBQ chicken breast and asparagus salad
chicken dumpling soup in bone broth
Omelette with sauteed fennel
chicken and broccoli in bone broth

Recipe porn

Who doesn't love a bit of recipe porn!  

All you kind folk out there who purchase through my advertising link can rest in the knowledge that my commission gets well spent!  Not that I get much mind you.

Yup,, I have been stocking up on recipe books that are supportive of my low carb/high fat lifesstyle.

I thought I would list a few good ones. 

 I know that if you can't get your hands on a copy to flick through before purchase it is hard to know whether it is worth buying or not.

And, well I am sure you will agree that some books can be expensive.

I always try to buy from local book stores but sometimes my finances just don't allow that and I do have to look elsewhere.  My usual online go to is fishpond or book depository.

Here is my top ten in no particular order:

I was given this one by a friend for my birthday.  If you only buy one recipe book I would say this is it!   I am loving the healthy recipes. They are not only sugar free and 'paleo' but also easy and taste great.   Our fave recipes are the chicken burgers and the Moroccan Lamb Skewers. 

They also have a paleo sweets ebook which is only a few dollars and also awesome.

Watch this space for more from Luke and Scott as I will be interviewing them and 

offering a fabulous giveaway very soon.

After hearing an interview with Tori on ABC radio I just had to have her book.  It does not disappoint!   Some great healthy grain free recipes. 

Faves from this are the Moroccan Lamb & Chickpea burgers and the Lentil 'meatballs'. 

A good friend put me on to this book a long time ago.  She writes about food so beautifully.  You can hear her passion in her words and I love her stuff.  Not a huge amount of recipes but gorgeous writing and ideas to lessen food waste and to utilise all your veg and meat.

 OMG!  this one is brilliant!!   Pete Evans is obviously a name everyone knows at the moment and this book is his latest.  

Another old fave of mine is the Moosewood.  I have had this for years and it has some wonderful vegetarian (look away paleo fanatics LOL) recipes.   It has an awesome baked bean recipe that I have used many times.

I know so many people who have this book and swear by it.  It has so much info packed into it on nutrition and food for medicine.   THe bone broth recipe is fail proof and it has loads of hearty and nutrition meat based recipes that I love.

A new one to my flock.  My friend Christina from over at Joy of the Home had this and I got to flick through it.  I was so tired of the same old 'tomato, onion, Worcestershire sauce' recipes for the slow cooker.  This is refreshing and has some amazing recipes for soups, main meals and desserts.

Ahhh, Quirky Jo has been known on the interwebs for sometime.  She cooks amazing,healthy meals with her thermomix and the hard copy print book does not disappoint.  Now, I don't have a thermomix but do have a bellini.

I really love her raw sweets and for basics like the nut milks/butters and smoothies she is great.  

My current crush!  This is a bit like a Stephanie Alexander's cooks companion but  simpler in my opinion.   Definitely not paleo but a beautiful range of recipes none the less.

Ahh, who doesn't love Hugh!   My favourite recipe from this book is his pancake one.  Yes, made with flour!!   I buy einkhorn flour from Changing Habits and make these for the kids about once a fortnight.  The recipe NEVER fails and I am pretty crap at making pancakes!

He also does an amazing spinach & bacon frittata and an equally great spicy lamb burger.

 

These are just a few of some of the fabulous recipe books that are out there.  There are loads of online blogs and ebooks too but I will save those for another post.  

What are your fave books??

Leave a comment with your recommendations!

Week three round up

Round 3 (started loading 11 Oct 2014)
Phase 2   (Started 13 Oct 2014)
Day21
Blood group A+

Third week down.   

I have found that I am suffering less from detox symptoms this week.   

Still have some pain in left ribs and a small amount in the right ribs.    

Loss has been slower this week again.  

I mean, seriously I have stalled for 3 days AND had a bloody gain!!

Not happy Jan!

However, overall average for 3wks is pretty damn good and I lost 8cm this week so can't complain really.

But I will.

Weights for this week are:

27 Oct - 71.6kg

28 Oct -71.4kg

29 Oct -  71.1kg

30 Oct  - 71.3kg

31 Oct -   70.9kg

1Nov-   70.9kg

 Nov -   70.9kg

Total loss for week=   700gr

Overall R3=7.1kg

Starting measurements 10 Oct:

waist    94cm

hip  109cm

thigh  52cm

upper arm   33cm

chest  97cm

calf  35cm

This weeks measurements:

waist    88cm

hip  102cm

thigh  52cm

upper arm   31cm

chest  96cm

calf  34cm

(I just added up total cm lost since starting the Protocol and I have lost 121cm!! Mind you I only started measuring my calf halfway through round 2)

Walked:  12km

Meals for the week:

Breakfast is generally an apple and a cup of black coffee.  Although this week I have had a blueberry smoothie and a blueberry sorbet.

Lunches:

 tuna and celery salad

Chicken and broccoli  soup

Mexican chicken and zucchini lettuce wraps
Chicken and asparagus stirfry
BBQ beef burger with zucchini chips and salad

  

    Dinner:

 Veal zoodles

Chicken and Broccoli soup

Chicken and zucchini stir fry

morrocan beef cauliflower risotto
chicken bolognaise with zoodles
Asparagus and chicken meatball soup

  

OMG! I have cheek bones and shoulders. Who knew!

Soooo,  I have been on this health thing for a bit now.  

Started hard core in February and haven't looked back.  

For those not aware, I suffered severe fibromyalgia and was on prescription pain meds, severe depression and anxiety and could barely walk to the letter box some days.

I was also 111kg.

Nuff said really.

I would look at people carrying loads of excess fat (as was I) in those mobile skooter things with disgust.  

The day it dawned on me that I would end up in one was the day I knew I had to do something.

I had been looking into  the Changing Habits, HCG Protocol and decided to go with that.

I have also followed the principles of low carb, high fat since February.

I wish I had taken better before photos that I could share.  

These are the only ones that really shows what I was like.

 

The most recent I have to offer are these 

 

You can kinda see that

I have now officially lost over 

40kg

just sayin'

Week one

Round 3 (started loading 11 Oct 2014)
Phase 2   (Started 13 Oct 2014)
Day 7
Blood group A+
Loss to date - 38kg

So week one is done and dusted.   

I have found that I am suffering detox symptoms quite severely this week.  Round two wasn't so bad with them.

I have had headaches, itchy skin and a shocking pain in left ribs.   The latter I had for much of round two  and it is back again.  My chiropractor thinks it is to do with liver detox so I guess I should be grateful my body is working hard at mending but gee it is annoying.

Weights for this week are:

13Oct - 78.1kg (post loading)

14Oct -76.4kg

15Oct- 75.5kg

16Oct 74.8kg

17Oct - 74.5kg

18Oct- 73.8kg

19Oct - 73.6kg

Total loss for week= 4.5kg

Starting measurements10 Oct:

waist    94cm

hip  108cm

thigh  51cm

upper arm   30cm

chest  100cm

calf  36cm

This weeks measurements:

waist    94cm

hip  108cm

thigh  51cm

upper arm   33cm

chest  97cm

calf  35cm

Walked:
Approx 5.5km intentionally

Meals for the week:

Breakfast is generally an apple and a cup of black coffee.

Lunches:

stir fry chicken with broccoli, onion, garlic

egg and zucchini frittata

egg salad with celery, tomato, lettuce, lemon juice

Chicken and Broccoli salad
Curried Chicken and cauliflower soup
Tomato, zucchini and chicken soup

 

Dinner:

Broccoli and spinach soup with shredded chicken

beef broth with zucchini, spinach and beef meatballs

Poached chicken with spinach and cauliflower mash
corned beef (preservative free) and broccoli
Lemon chicken and asparagus with tomato
curried chicken and Cauliflower soup
Calamari and broccoli stir fry

Recipes for the week

Curried Chicken Soup
100gr chicken
1 cup cauliflower
water to cover
S&P
oregano
1tsp curry powder of choice

Simmer until chicken is well cooked through and cauli is soft.  Blend to a creamy texture with food processor/stick blender/bellini/thermomix.

I like to do multiple batches at once and then divide up for future meals.

Calamari & broccoli stir fry
100gr calamari cut into rings
1c broccoli cut very fine
1/2onion cut fine
S&P
cumin
Coriander
Garlic
1/2 lemon
Marinate the calamari for at least 30 minutes in the juice from the lemon and plenty of S&P.  Lightly steam the broccoli while doing this.  Heat your pan to very hot then add a splash of water and fry the onion, add the calamari and garlic and fry until cooked through, toss in the broccoli, cumin and coriander and let the water absorb so you get some colour in the calamari. At the last minute put a tbs of water in and swish around to create a type of sauce.  It will be brown from the previous step so don't stress.
Serve on a bed of lettuce greens.

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Why do you eat?

This is something I have been thinking about lately.  

We know that to survive we have to eat.  

But when we eat and why we eat is something I am working on at the moment.  Changing your lifestyle is such a huge thing.  It isn't just about ditching the crap and embracing the good stuff.  I have found it to be a massive psychological journey too.

In online support groups I see multiple posts daily from people lamenting that they have 'fallen off the wagon' or 'cheated'.   

These folk know that eating certain foods will make them feel ill, gain weight or have some other reaction.  Yet, despite this they still eat them.  This could be due to cravings, emotions, peer pressure, habit, boredom or time restraints.

For me, I don't tend to crave anything much since changing my diet.  I attribute this to being so ill beforehand and feeling so much better within six weeks of starting the protocol.   There is no way I want to go back to feeling like I did!  This doesn't mean I don't have the occasional flare up, but this is mostly due to testing something and finding it doesn't agree with me.  On the rare occasion (okay the other day), I will have something I know will react but do so anyway.  Damn that kebab was good!   Yes, I had a gain and my body aches but I doubled my ACV and water intake to try and flush it through faster.  

This isn't my biggest challenge though.

Ask yourself this.  

Are you hungry?  

Seriously, when you sit down to eat tonight really think about that.   

Do you have set meal times?

How often do you look at the clock and think about breakfast, lunch or dinner?

I know, right!!

I do it too.  

Because I home educate my kids I have two kids harping for food often LOL  Actually, I should correct that because since going LCHF (low carb, high fat) in our house they don't harp nearly as much as they used to.  

But they also clock watch!

"it's 12.30pm we have to have lunch now!"

Something I am trying to teach, not only them but ME! 

 Is to stop.  Just stop.  

Then ask "am I really hungry?" 

Because we start our day later than most because we can and arent you jelly around 9am we don't have breakfast until late, this means we don't really NEED lunch until later.   We have also been having high protein breakfasts, which we know is filling and will keep you going.  

Another reason to ask that question, "am I really hungry?"

Recently I went to the Primal Living conference in Hobart.  The food provided was very high protein, high fat.   This challenged me, I was full for two days and was not hungry at all, yet I struggled with that demand of the clock.  It is meal o'clock so I should be eating!

I ate a meal the following day and felt ill.

The next day I decided enough was enough and I didn't eat for 1.5 days after that.

You know what, I survived!  

I did not need to eat, I was not hungry.

I am trying very hard to break this habit of eating because the clock says to.  

Another question I ask is 

AM I THIRSTY?

We often mistake thirst for hunger.  When did you last have some water?  Go have a drink now!

If you think you should be eating, go have a glass of water and wait 30 minutes then ask yourself if you are really hungry.

Do we need to snack?

I say no.

Again, I find myself offering food to my kids and I am trying to stop this habit.  IF they are truly hungry they will ask.  No doubting that!

When I think "oooh it is 3pm I better get them a snack" I am trying to stop myself.  

Again, LCHF they shouldn't need a snack.  If I fill them up with good food for main meals that should sustain them.

For myself, I rarely snack now. 

I will have the occasional raw date/nut ball and I often feel like something salty so I will sometimes sprinkle some himalayan salt on it for that hit.  When I am not in phase 2 I rarely eat fruit and again feel fine with that. In phase 2 I want that extra snack as my protein is reduced and all fats stopped for the duration but in phase 4/5 I am full most of the time. 

So, why do you eat??