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That Infuriating, Ever-Unreachable Last Mile

May 5, 2014

Me and my college choir director, Ms. Hiddie Stanley, a living legend.

Last weekend, I attended an alumni event at my alma mater, a small school in rural Georgia.

It was such a great experience to reconnect with my old(er) college friends, many of whom I haven’t seen at all since we graduated!

Several of them asked me about my weight loss and health, having followed this little corner of the internet on and off the last year. I was really humbled and flattered that they’d taken the time to keep up with it all, but more than that, it really caused me to reflect on my progress thus far.

As of today, I’ve only lost about 10 lbs. since November of last year. Part of the reason for this is, now that I weigh a lot less, the amount of calories it takes to actually LOSE the weight is a lot less than it used to be. If I were to continue to lose weight at a more rapid pace, I would have to keep my caloric intake well under 2,000 calories per day, which is totally doable, I might add, but here I stand, wavering, unsure and uncommitted to seeing it through.

I’ve made rash food choices in the last few weeks, some of which, I later found, contained oil or other ingredients I’m supposed to avoid altogether. I’ve been passionless and careless, and my healthy weight (that worthy goal I set before me) twiddles its thumbs helplessly while I make up my mind.

I think one of the things that happens on the way to a worthy goal is getting stuck in the endless, winding maze of “the good.”

Why wouldn’t I be satisfied with my progress? I’m 135 lbs. lighter than I was two years ago. I finally had to buy a new wardrobe to clothe this smaller body, and my health numbers are still fantastic. It’s all really GOOD!

My goal, however, is to reach a normal Body Mass Index (BMI) at 210 lbs. It’s the finish line of all that I’ve been working toward. And in a year and four full months now, I’ve failed to reach it, and the completion date seems to be getting farther and farther away.

Reaching my goal is “the great.”

You’ve heard the saying before, “don’t sacrifice the great for the good.”

I’m pretty sure that’s what I’ve been doing, and I know it has to change.

How do you push through to reach your worthy goals?
11 ‘Health Foods’ That Aren’t Really Good For You

March 16, 2014

I love lists like these, because they cause me to revisit what I’m eating (or not eating) and adjust my habits. If you’d rather jump to the list, it’s at the bottom of this article, but I wanted to say one thing first…especially to those of you four faithful readers who are experiencing slow weight loss or riding a little bit of a weight roller coaster…

I’m just now coming off almost six months of VERY slow, almost zero weight loss, marked by losing a pound, gaining two, losing three, gaining one, and on and on and on for MONTHS. It was frustrating.

I know the reason for this is my weight loss. The more weight you lose, the less calories you require during the day to maintain your weight. Over the last few months, I’ve been “bumping up against” this threshold, figuring out what works and what doesn’t.

The one thing I’ve found is this (and buckle your seatbelts, because it’ll blow you away, people): the more I stay away from added sugar (sucrose, corn syrup, agave nectar, etc.), the more I consistently lose weight.

Those of you who have fallen on the floor, revive yourselves. I’ll wait here for a minute while you do.

It really does make sense, but when you’re eating “healthy,” how could you gain weight, right? And I’ve been eating “healthy.” Right?

Not quite.

The things that were tripping me up were things I can technically HAVE…because they aren’t highly processed, don’t contain high fructose corn syrup and a lot of other preservatives. However, they do contain sugar, and that’s what caused my body to hang onto the weight and/or pile it back on.

Things like Kashi’s Cinnamon Harvest cereal are “all natural” and “healthy” when compared to other cereals, but when you look at the sugar count, it’s not the best choice for breakfast. Blue Bell’s All Natural Fruit Bars are SO GREAT as a snack because they contain real fruit, are vegan, and only have five or six ingredients. However, they’re packed with sugar, and on days when I’d have two of them, I could almost guarantee and extra pound or two within a couple of days.

All that said, I’m still eating things I enjoy. And on occasion, I’ll still have Blue Bell’s Lime Fruit Bars because they are freaking delicious! But for my daily routine, I’ll stick to the natural fructose found in my favorite fruits rather than refined sugar…and watch my health keep getting better and my weight falling again as it should.

Now, to keep you informed, my four faithful readers, here is a list of the “Top 11 ‘Health Foods’ That Aren’t Healthy.” Great reading for those of you trying to stay on the straight and narrow!
8.7 Million Pounds of Beef Recalled

February 11, 2014
(Photo: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

Did you know that 8.7 million pounds of beef had been recalled this week?

California company Rancho Feeding Corp. has voluntarily recalled the meat after the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service said the company had “processed diseased and unsound animals” without a full federal inspection.

Here are links to the story on several news outlets:
- http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/02/10/nearly-9-million-pounds-beef-recalled
- http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-california-firm-beef-recall-20140210,0,6069493.story#axzz2t1NeIAyv
- http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/09/recall-beef-rancho-calif/5333309/
A Week of Groceries Around the World

January 10, 2014

I hope you four faithful readers will find this as interesting (and possibly as telling?) as I did. These are photos of families around the world with a week’s worth of groceries. It’s amazing to see the differences in food cultures. I hope you’ll be as edified and enlightened as I was.

Click here to see all the article and photos.
Why I drink only water

November 1, 2013

Giving up soda was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. More difficult than losing over 100 lbs. More difficult than adopting a new way of eating and nutrition. Hands down more difficult.

I was honestly a diet soda JUNKIE! I could plow through a two-liter of soda in less than 24 hours and go looking for more. I was easily drinking two 20-ounce bottles of soda per day — and that was when I was trying to LIMIT myself!

At first, I really waffled about quitting. I figured that diet soda wasn’t causing me any harm, really, and I was eating so well otherwise…surely it would all even out. Then I read the findings of this study. Then I read about what diet soda does to your body. Then I read that Dr. Esselstyn suggests staying away from it.

So, then I cut back to only one a day…and wrote this.

I finally had to come to a decision about my body as a whole. If my nutrition is going to heal my arteries, help me lose weight and help my body restore the harm I’ve done to it for 40 years, wouldn’t it be better if I didn’t put ANYTHING harmful into it? I read more about the ingredients in diet soda, which made the decision easier.

The process wasn’t fun at all. I tried weaning myself, allowing myself only one diet soda per day. That inevitably led to two. I noticed, too, that when I was drinking them, I would crave more sweet things. I really struggled with wanting sweets with every meal. I knew this road would lead to undoing everything I’d worked for thus far, so I decided to go cold turkey. I splurged on soda that night (making myself a little sick in the process), and went with water the next day.

I started looking for some kind of alternative…something to fill the void, but everything seemed to be either way too processed, have way too much sugar, have way too much sodium…or all of the above. I will occasionally drink 100% Orange Juice not from concentrate, but not often. It’s natural sugar, but there’s still a LOT of it.

So, water it is, and it was definitely the right decision. I feel better, don’t crave the sweets the way I did, and I feel satiated much more quickly when I’m drinking enough of it with meals.

Are you struggling with what to drink? Lindsay over at The Happy Herbivore shared a list of the 11 Worst Drinks for Your Body. Sign up for her newsletter while you’re at it! You’ll be glad you did!
Buying clean foods

October 30, 2013

Happy Halloween, you four faithful readers!

I hope the lovely Fall weather and scenery is inspiring you to get some veggie colors into your menu! We are experimenting with some new Fall-inspired foods from The Happy Herbivore, including a Pumpkin Chili that should be interesting!

I came across the following article this morning, and thought it would be helpful to you as you attempt to get clean foods into your diet. These are not only a list of 8 foods to avoid, but also what to replace them with.

Hope it helps you in your journey to health! As for me, I’m down to 235 lbs. this month, 123 lbs. lost since I began this journey so long ago. I hope you’ll be encouraged to stay on the path!

Read the full article here »
Eating to Live: Government Shutdown Edition

October 7, 2013

No matter which side you blame for it, the government is officially closed.

I’m certainly not here to point the finger at anyone. You four faithful readers don’t read my once a “whenever-the-mood-strikes-me” posts for political commentary.

However, I’m always happy to tell you about your food, and being picky about what you’re eating. And the long and short of it is, you should really be picky right now.

With the shutdown, the US Food and Drug Administration has furloughed their food safety inspectors, who are responsible for inspecting 80% of our nation’s food supply. And what does this mean?

The furlough means more than 90% of the foreign seafood Americans eat is coming through unchecked, as well as half the fruit and one-fifth of the vegetables.

You can read the entire article at TheAtlantic.com »

In the meantime, be careful out there!

UPDATE: Click here for more on this story!
Where I moan about corporations…

September 26, 2013

I will not hide the fact that I’m disappointed and alarmed at the power of the modern corporation. The deregulation movement has created mammoth, monolithic corporations that have more than a lot of influence in global economies, politics and policies.

I’m still enraged by the Monsanto Protection Act, but it’s really just the tip of the iceberg where all of this is concerned.

Today, my four faithful readers, I’m sharing with you a little infographic that explains how all those different brands you’re seeing in the grocery store aisles are actually just nine or ten brands, really…huge corporations that run the food industry.

Just one of those, “you need to be aware of this” kind of things.
Just so you know…

September 18, 2013

I really hate to pop up every month or so and show you something gross. I’m not doing that here, by the way.

I am, however, linking you to an important article about how the poultry industry is changing and how it will affect you.

Earlier this month, while you were busy sneaking out of your empty office, hoping nobody would notice your starting the holiday weekend early, the USDA was also doing something it was hoping nobody would notice. It was green-lighting the sale of Chinese processed American chicken. As Politico explained, “U.S. officials have given the thumbs-up to four Chinese poultry plants, paving the way for the country to send processed chicken to American markets.” But while, “at first, China will only be able to process chicken that has been slaughtered in the U.S. or other certified countries,” that should not be a comfort to fans of the McNugget, Campbell’s chicken soup, or any other processed chicken product.

Read the entire article here at Salon.com »
No words.

August 23, 2013

http://vimeo.com/57126054

This six minute clip has no words. It doesn’t need any, however, to explain why you should be questioning what you eat.

It’s a clip from the documentary Samsara, directed by Ron Fricke.

Link via trueactivist.com