First Weekly Update after Ramadan!

Hey Everyone! So it's been a week since my last update. This week I decided to take only 5 days on the diet, since I got used to it from Ramadan, except i've only taken one cheat day this time!

Right before cheat day, here were my stats, and right after the comparison to last week!

As you can see, scale reads 218.2lbs, which is a 0.8lb loss from the week before! It's still a loss in only 5 days so I'm thrilled!

Measurements

Chest: 110.5cm (43.50 in) (-3.0cm)

Waist: 105.5cm (41.54 in) (-2.5cm)

Hips: 110.5cm (43.50 in) (-3.0cm)

Losses across the board from the last time I measured, for a total of 8.5cm (3.35 inches) lost!!

My last reading on this if I remember correctly was 31.3% fat and 38.8 BMI. So a "slight loss" of 0.2% in the fat department, and a 1.4 drop in BMI! Still a drop which is all that matters!

This week I will be going to get a scan that will accurately tell me where I stand fat percentage wise, just so that I have a reference with the Omron monitor.

After Cheat Day

As you can see, I weighed in at 221.8lbs, which is a 3.6lb gain, which is pretty much in line with my normal cheat day gains!

Until next week, I'll have some more good news for you I hope!

Ramadan Update

Hey Everyone!! I hope you missed me because i've missed blogging here!

Eid Saeid to all of my Muslim brothers and sisters and I hope you got to eat lots of wonderful food! I sure did!!

Let's see what the scale said right before I cheated lasted day of Ramadan:

What a good way to end off Ramadan with a 3.4lb drop, so I guess just the protein shake at night was the key to getting me into the teens finally!! I couldn't resist not cheating the day of, so instead of my SCD meal (especially since they screwed up my salad by adding salad dressing to it!) I thought what the heck, 3.5 days of cheating instead of just the 3! Since I was unprepared, I didn't get a chance to measure, so i'll do that before the next cheat day! As you can see, the scale reads 219.0lbs!

Let's try to summarize the progress in Ramadan (especially since last week I changed the tape measure, but let's do it anyways!)

Before Ramadan:

Weight: 233lbs

Chest: 113.5cm (44.685 in)

Waist: 115.5cm (45.472 in)

Hips: 115.0cm (45.276 in)

After Ramadan

Weight: 219lbs (-14.0lbs)

Chest: 113.5cm "unchaged"

Waist: 108.0cm (-7.5cm)

Hips: 113.5cm (1.5cm)

As you can see, i'd say that Ramadan on SCD was pretty successful on my part. I dropped 14lbs in that time, and lost at least 9.0cm (3.54 in) total. I changed my tape measure to a more accurate one at the end, so i'm giving the measurements a lower weight in comparison, and will use the more recent measurements as the base for my future measurements.

Pretty good though, don't you think?

Today i'm back on SCD after 3.5 days, and here's what the scale read this morning:

That's a gain of 4.0lbs for the 3.5 cheat days I took. Not so bad! Pretty much in line with Ramadan (and before) when i'd take 1-2 cheat days. Although because I want to fix my schedule and get back my off day on a Saturday I might go the full 9 days, although if I don't I will post the results then!

Thank you all for giving me your time throughout Ramadan, and hopefully continue to follow my future updates, as I will continue to post weekly updates on my slow carb journey!

Ramadan, Iftar Day 28, Suhur Day 29

Let's not waste any time! Let's take a look at the scale reading:

What in god's name is that? A gain? A gain of 0.8lbs at that too! I guess eggs really do help me during Ramadan! Again, it's a blunt number, unless it's a loss I won't be too happy about it lol. The reading on the scale today if you can't tell is 222.4lbs. Let's move on!

Iftar

Today we were having fish, Alexandrian style (fried and submerged in sauce). Also, this requires roz samak which is basically onion flavoured rice. So today we got a little creative!

There was little I could do about the fish, had to put it in flour after it sat in the marinade and deep fried the suckers. Although I told myself I wouldn't eat any of the skin, just the fish itself. At least i'm telling myself that it won't affect me ;) After they were fried they were submerged in the spicy tomato garlic sauce.

This would be tilapia cut and cleaned, then fried. So what was I going to do about the rice? Well, the other day at the market I found a yellow cauliflower and immediately said "What if I fry the onions in macadamia oil, and then add the cooked cauliflower to it?"

Not quite the brown colour that normally the egyptian rice brings up, looks more like saffron rice. However, it was delicious. It's not an exact match, but it was close enough for me!!

I also had this salad on the side. Usually what I do is I take all the white meat of the fish out and put it on the rice, add salad and tahini (which I didn't have today), and more sauce and mix it all together and eat it like a burrito bowl. Didn't picture it since my hands were dirty! But it was really good!

Of course to break my fast I had water and my PAG supplement.

Suhur

No suhur today! I decided to only have my protein shake and see how that goes tomorrow. Only because after Ramadan i'm going to have 3 whole days of garbage, and then get back on for the long haul. SO i'm taking advantage of the fasting by limiting my meals in the next couple of days.

See you tomorrow and let's hope for some good results!

Ramadan, Iftar Day 27, Suhur Day 28

I wonder if you're going to be as shocked as I was when I stepped on the scale.

I had to do a double step to be able to make sure I was reading it right. So, let me get this straight. If I have a huge steak and some chicken, I drop 2.6lbs to 221.6lbs? That's awesome! :)

Now onto some food...

Iftar

We had some kofta bel salsa which is basically minced meat with spices rolled up and pan fried, and added to a tomato garlic sauce. It was really good!

The cauliflower rice soaked up the sauce like a champ! It was very delicious and very satisfying!

Also can't do without a salad! Had this to make everything flow nicely! I also had the PAG supplement and water to break the fast, and went on to eat this meal.

Suhur

No pictures here today since I had the same thing as iftar, sans cauliflower rice. Yes, it was that good! This also marks the first time this Ramadan for when I actually have Suhur that I don't have eggs! So I wonder how that'll work out with a double dose of meat.

Typically I had my PAG supplement before and lots of water, my protein shake and AGG supplement after.

We'll see how it works out tomorrow on the scale! I'm hoping for another big loss!

Ramadan, Ifrar Day 26, Suhur Day 27

Happy laylat ulkadr to my muslim brothers and sisters! It was definitely a beautiful night, so hopefully may god accept all of your supplication! With the night means EID is coming, I can't wait!

Without any more delay, here's the scale

As you can see, there is a loss of 0.4lbs from the previous day since it is 224.2lbs today. Still a move in the right direction, but we'll see what the results are tomorrow after today's "feast" :)

Iftar

I was craving some BBQ today, so decided to have a steak (Prime Rib) and some chicken (boneless leg). I had 1 nice steak, and about half a leg, plus some salad:

Pictured right above. Started it all off with my PAG supplement and water, and after prayer dove right into my steak!

Suhur

Didn't have much time to prepare the meal today, so I just threw 4 eggs together and fried em up with some butter. Even the cukes I didn't cut em up and ate em as is.

Bottom line, it all got into my stomach before dawn somehow. Before I had water and my PAG supplement. After I had my protein shake, and my AGG supplement, and more water. Then off to bed I went!

Come back tomorrow and check out the results!

Post Cheat Days Ramadan, Iftar Day 25, Suhur Day 26

And there it is... 224.6lbs which is a gain of 1.8lbs from the previous day, and 4.0lbs since I started the cheat days. That's about my average so let's hope I can lose it all this week. This week i'm going 6 days strong until EID, which when I will take 3 days off.

My new toy came in the mail today to measure body fat! So here's the reading:

It might not be accurate, but it's a start I guess! It says 31.3% body fat. Let's hope for drops int he near future!

Iftar

Was craving something a little different, so I went into my local sushi shop and asked the guy to make my favorites without any rice. After the weird looks he acknowledged, and this was the end result:

On the left is the California Special roll, which has tuna and salmon in it as well as the crab and avocado, and on the right is the BBQ rib roll. Kalbi with crab and avocado and cucumbers. I'm trying to think past the sugar in the sauces, and hope that it won't be so bad when I weight myself tomorrow!

Also on the sched was so delicious kibdah which is veal liver fried in some oil and spices. This was pretty good too, but didn't have as much since the sushi was really good!

Had a few bites of salad as well! As you can see, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, and parsley. Topped with lemon, oil, salt and pepper. I had my water and PAG supplement to break my fast, and continued to eat this delicious meal!

Suhur

We were making "McDonalds" patties for my son for school the next day since he's infatuated with it, so we decided to have a patty with our eggs:

That would be 4 eggs scrambled with just salt and pepper. Cucumbers, and the patty were served on the side. The patty itself is made from ground chuck and seasoned with salt, pepper, and onion powder. Turned out pretty good!

Had my PAG supplement and water before eating. More water, and my protein shake after. Some more water and my AGG supplement followed right before bed.

Come back tomorrow and check the results! :)

CHEAT DAY #2 Ramadan, Iftar Day 24, Suhur Day 25

Alright let's get this show on the road! Without any more delay... the scale:

As you can see, a 2.2lb gain from the previous day (which isn't all that bad considering everything that was consumed). The reading today is 222.8lbs.

Onto more "glutton" lol :)

Iftar

Broke my fast with some high end Ajwa dates:

Don't know what all the rage is about, they were average at best. I prefer my Mejdol or fresh dates :)

Had some of the breast and a whole leg of this bad boy, today we kept it a little traditional.

This would be besella or a pea/carrot stew served on Egyptian rice. It's made using the soup from the chicken, and it was really delicious!

Had a side salad here, with everything you see in the pic, and again dressed with lemon and oil. Pretty healthy so far!

Had a fruit salad shortly after; strawberries, cherries, watermelon, cantaloupe, kiwi, mangos, and pineapple all made up the components of this salad. If you flip back to yesterday I had some of the chocolate chip cookies from yesterday and a yogurt.

Broke my fast with my PAG supplement and some grapefruit juice.

Suhur

My wife's triple chocolate caramel brownie a la mode with ice cream, caramel, and walnuts! After I finished this guy off I had more watermelon and some cheese, grapefruit juice, a couple of yogurts, and my PAG supplement. Before bed I took my AGG supplement.

And that's all she wrote! We'll see how much damage I put on the scale tomorrow, and get ready to burn it all off! :)

CHEAT DAY!! Ramadan, Iftar Day 23, Suhur Day 24

It's cheat day!! You know what that means, it's measurement time!! I got a new tape measure that's a little more accurate than me squeezing the one I have to the last drop, so I will make comparisons with inches lost next week! However, here goes the measurements:

Chest: 113.5cm (44.685 in)
Waist: 108.0cm (42.519 in)
Hips: 113.5cm (44.685 in)

As you can see the Chest and the Hips were definitely off from the old measurements, but there was a loss around the waist? We'll see next week and compare it. But I definitely feel great this week!

The scale:

YES! This time it actually reads 220.6lbs (no typo this time!) that's a 1.4lbs loss from yesterday, and a total loss of 2.2lbs from the previous cheat day! I guess two cheat days in Ramadan = success! :)

Now on to the glutton:

Broke my fast with grapefruit juice, yogurt, and some delicious banana chocolate chip muffins that my wife made. Felt so good!

Steak pizza from BP! This time I didn't finish it (it's a small), only had half of it this time.

Hot/Honey Garlic oven roasted wings from BP. Had about 5 of these bad boys.

Also another Zorba Greek pizza with BBQ chicken on it from BP. Had 2 slices from here. Washed it all down with some Blood Orange Soda from Whole Foods!

Fresh out of the oven chocolate chip cookies!! Also made a batch with toffee bits in em too. So sweet but so good! Washed some down with milk.

This bad boy is a triple chocolate and caramel brownie! Had 2 of these guys, and let me tell you, the picture doesn't do it any justice cause it was awesome. Had more milk with this.

Suhur

I had 3 of the yogurts, plus some fruits:

Fresh PALESTINIAN dates :) Also had some grapes, and my favorite:

Watermelon! Also had my supplements and off to bed I went!

Tune in tomorrow for cheat day #2, and the results of the glutton!

Ramadan, Iftar Day 22, Suhur Day 23

One day away from Cheat Day!! So let's see how this goes on the scale...

Am I reading the scale right? I must have stepped on the scale like 4 times and got the same number to believe it! 222.0lbs is the reading, thats a 2.4lb loss from the previous day, putting me finally below the cheat day weight from last week! If I'm at anything lower than this tomorrow before cheat day, i'll consider the two cheat days as being "successful" ... just having the water weight come off slower.

Just incase you don't remember, before the first cheat day in Ramadan, I lost 5lbs (phenomenon if you ask me!). The following week before cheat day (5 days in) I had lost 2.4lbs, the week after that totalled a 1.8lb loss... If the loss this week is anywhere in that neighbourhood, i'll consider the experiment a success!!

Now on to the food!

Iftar

I was craving this today! The chicken bake in the oven with legs, onions, tomatoes... there's potatoes there but those are for my son :)

Served it with my favourite side salad (only put lemon on it again!) and on top of some cauliflower rice from yesterday. Again, very satisfying meal! Had a lemon pickle as well since those are awesome by the way! Started things off with water and my PAG supplement.

Suhur

I ran out of pastrami, but I ended up getting the egg whites! So 4 egg whites + 1 egg, and mushrooms, onions, garlic, and harissa fried in butter (still no macadamia nut oil!)

Served with a side of cucumbers. It was really good! Except I added too much harissa, so i'm sure i'll be paying for it tomorrow (not on the scale... if you catch my drift lol). Had my PAG supplement, my multivitamin, and lots of water.

This would be my protein shake, and had some water and my AGG supplement right before bed. Life's pretty good right now!! SO let's hope for the best tomorrow!

Ramadan, Iftar Day 21, Suhur Day 22

Alright, without further a do... the scale!

As you can see, i'm finally down to 224.4lbs which is a 1.0lb drop from the previous day. Finally a positive move in the right direction!

Iftar

Had some classic Egyptian food today!

This is what I like to call Lobya or a black eyed pea stew. Made with veal shank served on the cauliflower rice. Tasted pretty good! Had some nice salad on the side, and my father in law made some of his tahini sauce and some kofta:

Pan fried kofta (minced the parsley, tomato, and garlic into the meat).

Just lemon juice as the dressing here, was really nice and fresh!

Tahini sauce!! Had my PAG supplement and water to break my fast, and enjoyed this delicious meal with a side of lemon pickles and pepperocini peppers.

Suhur

I got a little creative today to kick up my scrambled eggs:

No egg whites today since they were all out, so I used 4 eggs instead with the pastrami, onions, and garlic. I also added a couple of spoons of harissa (hot pepper paste) to the mix, gave it an amazing flavour!!

Had lots of water, PAG supplement, served it with 3 cucumbers. After I was done I had more water, my protein shake, and off to bed!

Sorry for the short and late post today but I have to run! See you tomorrow right before cheat day!! :)