Well, I’m eleven weeks in now. Just to remind you all, I started the ketogenic diet at 15 stone, 10 pounds. My goal is 12 and a half stone, by mid-March 2015. This means a target weight-loss of 2lb per week.

Week Eleven’s target-weight therefore? 14 stone, 2 pounds. Waistline measurement only once a month, so not this week.

This week has presented particular challenges. We’re away on holiday in the German Christmas Markets. This is truly a land of carb-temptation! Beer, noodles, cake, dumplings, mulled-wine – all things a ketogenic-diet strictly forbids. Okay, at the time of writing this, we’ve only been here one day, but I must admit to having broken the rules and cheated, even on day one. I’ve had a couple of beers and food that looked carb-free but I have my doubts…

This morning the ketone-strips tested negative so I think I’ve pushed myself out of ketosis. Knowing how volatile the pounds and ounces can be, I step tentatively onto the scales… Can just one day’s cheating be reflected in weight…?

14 stone, 8 pounds. That’s another pound off! The downward trend continues and this week’s reading presents a 1lb weight-loss from last week. The ‘1lb pattern’ seems to have settled into a routine over the last four weeks, so I’m pleased. I’m officially 6lb behind target, but as I’ve stated in previous posts, I’ve accepted that speed is not an issue. As long as I’m losing weight, that’s all that counts. I’m now 1 stone & 2 pounds lighter than I was eleven weeks ago. This is a brilliant feeling – I’m now just about 14 and a half stone – that sounds so much better than 15 stone 10!

Being on holiday is hard on a diet – not because the food on a ketogenic regime is unappetising, simply because cooking it is so much harder. Out of necessity a large number of meals are consumed in pubs and restaurants, where one never truly knows what one’s eating, irrespective of the waitresses’ assurances.

The holiday-apartment also only seems equipped to cook the most basic of meals – boiling pasta etc (not keto-friendly!).  I have a lot of kitchen equipment at home – things like a food-processor to make cauliflower-rice and a spiraliser to do courgette-noodles. None of this exists in the holiday-flat; even fresh coffee is difficult! Add to this, the large store-cupboard of ingredients I have at home. I can make cakes and sweet things, but on holiday I don’t really want to go to all the expense of buying things in for just one week. We wouldn’t use half of them, and I’d have to end up binning food which I hate. In short therefore; a ketogenic diet relies 100% on real home-cooked food, when the ability to do this is curtailed, things become more of a challenge!

In spite of that, I’m here to have a good time. If I gain a pound or two over the week, then that’ll be no real problem – I can always lose them again! I didn’t come to Germany to spend my entire time in the kitchen, so some compromise is in order. I’m still highly motivated to achieve my goals (holiday or no holiday) – the plan is a long-term thing; so ‘short-term’ is simply a temporary obstacle!

Please do ‘look in’ on me next week to see if I make further progress towards my targets. Or there’s always the alternative that I’ve gained a few pounds!  Either way, I find it really positive to have people read this – the support is a massive encouragement!

Thanks again for reading, and have a great week,

Adam.