I’ve decided to start on a low carb diet again.  I’ve debated for a while about whether I should do it or not.  I’m absolutely convinced low carb is best for me…the debate is not about what type of diet to try, but it has been about whether I should be dieting right now or not.  Mentally, it’s hard for me to work at a diet and do it “perfectly” and not see any weight loss.  I know that the prednisone will impact (possibly even prevent )losing weight.  In past years, I spoke with a doctor about this and she told me that the goal of dieting while on steroids for me would be to maintain my current weight….not to lose weight, but trying not to gain.  She told me it’s not realistic to expect to lose weight while taking steroids.  I always drop fluid when I’m eating low carb which would definitely be good now.  Another aspect of it is that mentally, I have to be in the right place to start something like that and I’ve had a lot to adjust to these past few months and just wasn’t mentally ready to start.  I definitely feel my best when I’m living a low carb lifestyle and although I don’t have diabetes, it runs in my family, and can be one of the side effects of long-term steroid use, so I figure it’s good for me to be eating low carb anyhow – certainly can’t hurt.  I am a person that needs a certain amount of protein to keep my blood sugar stable and can’t skip meals or I get really sick.  Low carb eating keeps my blood sugar very stable, decreases my appetite, and I feel my absolute best when I do it.  My hubby drops huge amounts of weight when he does this and I’m very happy for him.  It can be slightly discouraging, though, when I ask him how much weight he lost in a given week and his answer is 15 lbs and I’ve lost 1.5!  So, my goal here is not necessarily to lose weight (although that would be nice) but to start making the transition to a low carb lifestyle.  That doesn’t mean no deviations, but limited and planned deviations.  I weighed on Tuesday for the first time in several months.  I knew I’d put on weight – there is clearly an increase in my appetite along with the immense fluid retention.  Turns out I’ve gained 30 lbs since May – gulp.  This is exactly what the doctor told me to expect, so I’m not surprised, but need to/want to try to find ways to stop or at least slow this down.  I’m happy to report that since I started back on low carb foods on Tuesday, I’ve already dropped 7.4 lbs!  No doubt it’s all fluid, but that’s more than 7 lbs. of fluid that I’m not carrying today, and I feel better already!  I’m not adding exercise to the equation yet – I want to give myself a week or two to adjust to eating differently again, but then I will add more activity and I know that will also help.   For today, I’m happy to be feeling good and am also happy to be actively doing something that is making a difference!