In keeping with the rest of my update, thought I would share the NSD survival strategies that have helped me get here:
1. Hardboiled eggs - My biggest and best discovery. I boil a dozen at a time to eat as breakfast, snacks or lunch. They are extremely portable, durable, and filling. I always, always keep these on hand. I dislike cold foods so I often warm them up in hot water.
2. Eating more fat Hitting 2000 calories every day was hard at first without starchy carbs and my weight dropped quickly. I quickly realized fat is key:
- lots of olive oil to roast or sauté vegetables (asparagus, rutabaga, spinach, kale, zucchini, peppers, eggplant)
- coconut milk in soups (see my Thai soup recipe in the recipe section) or pureed with fruit and honey for smoothies
- fatty cuts like beef blade, pork shoulder, ribs, chicken legs, lamb shanks, salmon belly, etc. - bonus: fatty cuts are usually also high in joint healing connective tissue
- avocado
3. Quick and easy Eating no starch means preparing most meals. Having options that come together easily is essential. Here are my top quick and/or easy foods:
- eggs, cooked any way (hardboiled, poached, scrambled with asparagus and salmon)
- pork ribs - 7 hours on low in the slow cooker and they're perfection, the tastiest cut of pork and full of connective tissue and calories; I also save the broth for soups
- tuna salad wrapped in romaine lettuce leaves
- soups with broth and whatever veg and leftover meat is in the fridge (last night was pork broth, leftover ribs, kale, mushrooms and onion)
- meat and two sides - a pork chop takes 5 minutes or less to cook, and with steamed broccoli and boiled carrots, dinner is ready in 15 minutes. Roasts take awhile but require little effort so I make them a lot in winter, with just a few minutes at the end to cook some veg. Sticking to 2 veg per meal is also a good way early on to figure out what you can/can't eat
5. Frozen fruit - many fruits can be starchy or sweet depending on how ripe they are, and it's especially tricky when they are out of season. I find frozen fruit reliably ripe, convenient, and much less expensive. I eat a lot of fruit to make up or the lack of other carbs, so this is a life saver. I mainly eat strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, sweet cherries and pineapple. I defrost ahead of time or heat on the stove in a bit of water for a quick dessert.
6. Lunches I always make enough dinner to have leftovers for lunch. It's that simple.
7. Eating out - This has been much easier than I thought it would be. I ask for more of the good veg in place of potatoes and rice. Most sandwiches and burgers and taste great without the bun. Worst case scenario I can have a salad with chicken and stick to the vinaigrette. The world is now used to low carbers so my requests don't seem strange.
