I've lost 10 pounds this month eating mostly nuts, seeds, Trader Joe's soy powder, soy burgers, soy hot dogs, eggs, cheese, guacamole with low carb tortilla chips, and Lean Cuisine / Weight Watcher type frozen meals for lunches.

I am modeling my intake somewhat on the Atkins and South Beach diets, but not going crazy on the saturated fats. Eggs once a week. Just a little bit of cheese at a time.

My intention is to make this a permanent change in my eating habits, not just a sprint to drop 20 pounds and then start eating Ho Ho's, ice cream, and crap until the 20 pounds goes back on. That is not a healthy cycle to fall into.

The soy protein powder is especially important to me. In the morning I am not usually hungry (I think because of the glycogen that is released from the liver into the blood while you sleep.) A lot of times I would therefore just run out of the house without breakfast. After an hour or so at work the glycogen gets burned up and I am starving. This leads to eating things I shouldn't. Donuts in the break room. Chocolates that they keep in the Impact Fee department. Stuff like that.

For the past month I force myself in the morning to mix three scoops of protein powder with 16 ounces of water and six packs of Equal sweetener in the blender. I knock that back and I don't even think about food until between 11:00 am and 11:30 am. Then I will have a couple handfuls of low salt almonds from Trader Joes and a glass of water. That holds me until about 1:00 pm when I stick a frozen meal in the microwave. Around 3:00 pm I start getting a little hungry again and I will have another couple handfuls of almonds. That has been my habit for the last month, and it is pretty easy to stick to.

On the weekends we have made a meal on a batch of guacamole, low carb tortilla chips, and some shredded cheese to make a few nachos out of under the broiler. That is satisfying and feels indulgent, but is very healthy. It feels like party food when we watch movies. (Avocados are one of the best foods you can put in your body. The oils they contain lower your cholesterol, lower your blood pressure, fight certain kinds of cancer, especially colon cancer, and help your skin. They also have more potassium than bananas and have a ton of fiber. Don't feel bad about the calories if they are displacing other unhealthy fats and calories from your diet.)

It is a danger time if I come home from work in the evening and I am starving. That is when I am most likely to go on a rampage through the fridge. On those days I force myself to make up another 16 ounce protein shake and wait a few minutes until that settles in. Then I am better able to make healthy food choices rather than eating things I will regret.