Why does this work?

(First of all, today's weigh-in was a little disappointing: 1/2 pound up from yesterday. Am trying not to freak out that adding that one slice of low sodium Ezekiel bread screwed up the chemistry of the program. DB assures me that he had the same experience last week...and is still very down...lost less the second week, but is at 16 pounds lost in two weeks!)

I have probably tried every variation known to western woman of losing weight and keeping it off and I am a little shocked my my first week's results on this program (which is pretty painless once committed). So in my vast eight-whole-days of experience with the Crack program, I've been acting like a good little scientist and collecting data (other than logging weight every day) to figure out why this seems to be working on a kind of scientific level and here are some elements I have considered:

Water: Something about this program makes you really thirsty...maybe it's that the carbs hold the water to your cells more (as I think someone once told me)...maybe it's that I'm going to the bathroom all the time and need to replenish...I don't know, but I'm thirsty all the time and that makes me SURE to drink my full eight plus glasses of water a day. (I think I'm drinking close to a gallon a day...at least.) Yesterday it's possible I drank less because I was off liquids for most of the morning after my third (yes, third) root canal. That could have made the little gain. Both DB and I feel very thirsty and are drinking water now like we had been drinking beer...well, a lot more, actually. ;-) We also are drinking Diet Sprite as a treat, but don't rely on that as our "water".

5 "meals" a day: I'm never more than 3 hours away from eating. That gives me a lot of willpower. And the result is that I'm often not even hungry when it's time to eat. I do eat though because it's so early in the program and I am afraid I'll screw up the magic if I deviate. It's going to get more challenging to do this now probably when I'm less hungry and am adding in some more carbs...but I am really committed to staying with the program as instructed and seeing what happens...at least for the next few weeks. (I'm in a skirt today that I wouldn't have dared to even try on last week.)

Portion control: Much easier with 5 meals a day. Hunger is not my big problem in losing weight because I rarely eat for hunger. But being FULL is a whole different thing. I'm finding if I take a minute and notice that I'm full (sometimes I even feel TOO full), I have a pretty easy time of staying within good portion limits. And I don't (yet) feel deprived.

Chemistry: I don't understand the chemistry part of why this work, but it seems like it does...DB understands better. I just know it seems to really be working.

Carbs: OK, I guess I might have a teeny addiction. I noticed I was more hungry last night than I have been after just having one serving (one slice of Ezekiel bread) of a higher-carb food yesterday. I'm a little little shocked, but it did seem to awaken a craving...one that I hadn't felt in several days.

Broccoli: She tells you to eat broccoli every day because it's very low in carbs and the fiber helps you detox. I think it also helps you stay regular because I'm having a lot less trouble in that area than I have when I've done low- or no-carb before.

No food within 2 hours of bed: I thought this would be harder than it is but, after the first night, that habit seems to have gone easily away. Instead I drink A LOT of water. This means bathroom trips at night, but it also means lower weight on the scale the next morning! ;-)

Vickie asked yesterday about exercise and I'll add here what I wrote back to her:

I have been exercising exactly the same amount the past week. The main thing I notice is that my heart rate is a full 10 BPM higher when doing the exact same resistance/incline/paces per minute as I usually do. DB says that maybe the heart has to work harder to go find the fuel to exercise than when there is a ton of easily-available glycogen in the cells. I don't know. I do feel a teeny bit more tired more quickly...but I am able to do my usual workouts. And yoga is much better because it's always easier with less weight.

P.S. On yoga: I went to do my yogatoday.com last night and found that they have now monetized it (it WAS totally free). Now they just have one free class per week (I did the "novice" class last night and, despite my years of practice, was plenty challenged)...and you have to pay $9.99 for unlimited monthly classes. You cannot find a better deal for in-person yoga...but I would caution anyone who has not had a full in-person practice from jumping into this site. While the teachers there are very good and give good instruction, if you have not been trained in proper alignment and had an in-person teacher adjust you, I think it's possible you could get hurt if you are not either very in-shape already...or even if you are. So, just be careful if you want to try this...