Finding the Low Carb/Banting Balance

I think you can be too extreme when it comes to the Banting/Low Carb lifestyle.

I’m not talking about diabetics, who have to be serious about what they eat. I’m not talking about the morbidly obese who need a serious change of lifestyle in order to prolong their life.

I’m talking about everyday people like me. I fall into the slightly above normal weight (I range between 70 &72kg).

Fat vss Fat. We have been raised on ‘bad fats’. I remember years ago making chicken curry and finding myself feeling guilty for putting coconut cream in it. Loaded with saturated fat (74g per cup), I was led to believe it was going to clog arteries and cause heart disease.  A tiny part of me wondered why a natural plant fat could be so bad. When you know better, you do better. Now we are beginning to know better.

In all of these things, two things come to mind. One is to try and figure out the ‘Biblical view’ if there is one and the other is to find the balance. In Acts 11,  Peter has a vision of a tablecloth laden with (previously) forbidden food. (Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?) God tells him to “kill and eat.” Peter is horrified. He responds “Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.” God replies, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.” (Acts 11:5-10).

And so it became more of a common practice for previously forbidden food such as pork to be eaten. As far as food for today is concerned,  it needs to be borne in mind that the industrial process of growing and getting to market involves more chemical enhancement of fruit and veggies. That results, I am told, in a fraction of the nutritional value than years gone buy. The hormone treatment of chickens and beef is known to have some negative consequences, so the drive for organic produce is on the up!

Finding the balance of the food we eat has to start with cutting sugar and carbs, while maintaining some enjoyment of life. This year, I have been particularly vigilant in cutting sugar, all refined carbohydrates and I’ve been eating unafraid!  The only thing that rocked my foundation was the fact that with this nicely high fat diet, my cholesterol rose to 8 and I’ve not felt very comfortable having it there, so have been cutting back on eggs (now only about 1 a day!) and have a little less cream…that’s a hard one! To compensate, because I’ve been Banting for so long, I’ve added some ‘orange list‘ fruit and – today I had half an apple. I had this for breakfast the other day…

Berries have always been a favourite, but due to their acidity, I’ve recently cut back a bit on those too.

However you want to eat, just find the balance, eat the best quality you are able to, eat when you are hungry, stop when you are full. Don’t binge. Avoid refined food. The fresher the better. As Job said

Job 14:5

A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed.

Enjoy each day and don’t make food a big thing. Eat to live and don’t live to eat!

Keep the smile going.

God bless you!

In His Grip,

Helga xx 🙂