Update

So I have been eating lower-carb, higher-fat now for about 3 weeks and I am amazed at the stability of bgs (e.g. no 300s or lows ever). I am still struggling sometimes to bolus for things that I used to not bolus for - like salad . Or eggs and coffee (with half+half). BUT I am also consistently learning that I need to bolus for those things (unless I'm about to exercise or something). I am learning more about the impact of other factors on my BGs. Like stress. Or presentations (see stress). I am finding it easier to identify patterns and trends when not quite so much insulin and carbs are involved. And that makes me happy.

I don't have to be perfect. Truthfully, my bgs are still not where want them to be. BUT they are better than before (see post from 2 weeks ago) and I am seriously not interested in burning out by trying to push myself towards unattainable bg perfection that I crash or that I just want to give up if it's not "perfect enough". To avoid this, I am taking things slowly and making very very small adjustments to things like insulin doses, habits, other variables, etc. slowly over time. And that's OK.

I am spending a lot more time in the kitchen. If I haven't made my oopsie bread for the work-week or I don't have any lettuce washed and ready to go - I better get in there or else! (the else being eating out and hidden carbs as I've learned recently). Like this past weekend - I went to Subway and got a chopped salad with tuna on top and a cup of coffee. And well - let's just say there's something carby in that tuna because there's no way that (esp. after taking a walk) that spiked my bg as much as it did (ps. I SUCK because I never looked up the carb count online on the Subway site - I am assuming that info is available? - I still haven't looked it up...)

Anyway - to give some more details, there are things that I do consider free(ish) foods still (albeit in moderation only): pickles, almonds, numerous crunchy veggies, protein/fat-only foods (again, in moderation). Coffee can be free but unfortunately not when I need it most (in the AM!) Then there are the 1/2-1 U bolus foods: big greek salads, meat + veggies (varies), anything consumed  in the morning (see coffee)... Then there are the 1-2 U/ meal bolus foods: any reasonable (e.g. half serving) amounts of rice, bread, potatoes, starchy things like that, etc. Here are some pics:

Still haven't suite figured out those cauliflower bagels (left pic); probably because I substituted a small amount of regular flour instead of the almond/coconut (but they were delicious!) May I just say how much I LOVE having the egg and cheese breakfast sandwich on oopsie bread recently: crack 2 eggs on med-high, add s+p (+whatever spices, I like a touch of cayenne), herbs (I like green onion), and plenty of shredded cheese, fold over, and cook on each side (on Med heat) until cheese is spilling out and almost crunchy; sandwich between oopsie bread (google the recipe, it's soooo easy and yummy!). On the right is a slightly higher-carb dinner option that has some rice and croutons (there's roast chicken on the plate too). 

You may wonder - am I craving real bagels? Real bread? Surprisingly not really. Sometimes I feel hungry for other stuff like berries and corn chips and bbq sauce. And I eat them, just not with a ton of other carbs on top. Makes sense to me as a biologist - reducing my fortified flour intake makes me crave folate/B-vitamin-rich foods (including green leafy vegetables, nuts, and fruit and veggies). I can't say that I am craving bread. I eat small amounts of rice/potato - just a small amount, and it's nice but not my favorite thing about my new meals.

I lost approximately 3 lbs. over the last 3 weeks. As an (albeit former) athlete (I played high school and college tennis, very competitively - pre-diabetes - but that's another story for another time ;) I consider that almost negligible because (back then) I have seen myself routinely drop 8 lbs.  over a 3-day weekend of competition. Since I don't want to lose more than another 5 lbs anyway, I will keep track of it to make sure I don't drop down too much. If I do, I will probably increase my carb intake a bit.

My skin! This has been the biggest surprise - it's very clear. Very clear for me, considering especially that I am on my period now and I used to ALWAYS break out a ton the week before. I know it's not summer-time sunshine or anything like that because I have been struggling with some degree of acne for the last 15 years or so (I'm 27 if you're keeping tabs :) so I'm pretty much 100% certain (can't say that I'm a scientist!) fairly certain that the improvement is related to the dietary changes.

Anyways.. Sorry I fell off the #dblogweek bandwagon half-way through. You know - LIFE! I loved participating as well as reading everyone's entries - although I still have a TON to get through - I always get excited that after #dblogweek there are sooo many new entries to read and "doc"ers to meet :D

Happy (extended) weekend! :D