Welcome to WIMHW once again. Other days we spend our time discussing food, nutrition and a multitude of other topics, but today is about feelings, ponderances and whatever the heck is on my mind. It's free therapy for me and a chance to ask questions of my beloved readers. So sit back and let me get on my virtual couch. Here is what's in my head today.Math For Dummies
I dug into the conundrum regarding my alleged water weight gain and just what my fancy scale measures. I have to fall on my sword here and say that, too often, I have a tendency to overlook the obvious. In my defense, some of my very smart daily readership didn't catch it either. I was concerned that my water weight percentage kept creeping up and it was holding back my weight loss progress, keeping the scale from giving me more pleasing numbers each Monday. I was also thinking that since the typical male my age has water weight in the 60% range that something wasn't quite right. What wasn't right was my own logic! If I am currently around 60% body fat, how can I be anything more than the 27%, or so, water weight which the scale indicates? And, of course, the water weight percentage will go up and SHOULD go up each week I lose weight. As the fat decreases, the water in my body gains 'market share' on the whole. DUH! That being said, I am still going to lay off the red meat and even chicken for a week or more to get more vegetables in me. I will see if that can keep my progress healthy, steady and slightly more than the results I have seen for the last month. I want to be eyeing 299, not minus 50.
Incredible?
It certainly didn't start this way. My intent the blog was to find a mechanism for accountability, community and introspection in aiding my new-found desire for health. As I have been writing my feelings, recipes and philosophies on weight loss and nutrition, I have been thinking more and more about how this could all be a book some day. A number of you have told me this offline and I do enjoy writing. At least then I would have editors catching the sometimes appalling amount of typos and other errors inherent in publishing your own stuff. The question I have is one of credibility. If anyone else were to have success dropping 168 pounds and keeping it off, I would have no doubt they would be deemed credible. I have one difference though. Since ten years ago I had a gastric bypass that took me out of the extreme danger zone, but not much else, does that make me less credible? I know the truth. Changing your life is hard work and it is obvious that bariatric surgery is not a magic bullet. I consider at my starting point on this journey to be February 6, 2012, not April of 2001 when I was almost 500 pounds. But the question of perception still exists. Will people negate the credibility of someone in the diet/nutrition/healthy lifestyle arena due to the fact that they had internal alterations to that end in the past or will they embrace someone that took control, despite failure and made their life better?
Cya tomorrow for Food Thursday,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Let's call this the Egg Mikemuffin: 1 fried egg, Canadian bacon and sliced tomato on a whole grain sandwich round. 210 calories 7g fat.
Lunch ~ Caesar salad, no croutons
Afternoon ~ My office away from home: Starbucks. One Grande decaf Mocha Lite Frappaccino
Dinner ~ TBD
Exercise ~ 30 minutes of walking on a beautiful afternoon.
I, for one, would give anyone who keeps trying until they find what works a TON of credibility. I would, however, like to see your experience translated into people choosing to NOT alter their plumbing and, instead, get to the root cause of their overeating FIRST!!! - Tabitha
ReplyDeleteThe inclusion of the bariatric surgery NOT being an answer until you are ready for real change and the fact that the results can be disappointing if you are not is valuable information for someone who is looking for a magic bullet. I think this day to day, non-diet approach could help a lot of people.
ReplyDeleteIt adds to, not detracts from, the credibilty - at least for me. What did not work is as important to those staring the journey as what did. And what has worked is, as both Tabitha and Megan said, root cause and real change -no magic bullet. (And given your love for the bullet (do they call it magic? Not sure, but it is indispensable when it comes to making salad dressing in this house) there has to be a post in there somewhere). OK - one too many parentheses, I can comment but don't ask me to edit!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Fiona. And yes, there is a post in there somewhere.
ReplyDeletehttp://thedriveto195.blogspot.com/2012/02/cooking-healthy-thursday.html
Indeed and there is (was) - how quickly I forgot! Bill uses it for the eggs, but the spice blends we have not tried. I have now bookmarked and will see what I can come up with, especially since we have a variety growing this year. In Costco today we bought a big bag of Quinoa, have a couple of salad recipes I am ready to try but if you have any other thoughts I'd love to hear them. As always, keep up the great work.
DeleteBill reeeeeally liked a chimmichurri sauce I made a while back for some grilled steaks. Perfect for the Bullet. Imagine a cross between a vinaigrette and a pesto. In fact, I just made on in my Bullet this past weekend. Get a recipe at foodnetwork.com
DeleteQuinoa pilaf with cranberries and almonds:
ReplyDelete1 cup quinoa, 1/4 cup diced shallot, 1 tsp. evoo, 2 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth, 2/3 cup dried cranberries (yes, they're sweetened, but very high in fiber, etc., adjust amount if desired), 2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted, 1 tbs. chopped fresh parsley.
Saute shallots in evoo until soft, add quinoa and toast for about a minute, add broth, cover and simmer 10 minutes, add cranberries and simmer 8-10 minutes more until water is absorbed and quinoa is tender, add almonds and chopped parsley and toss. Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy...H.
Reader interaction? Recipes from the TDT195 community? I LOVE IT!!!! Thanks for participating, H. This is exactly the kind of thing I always hoped to happen here. :D
ReplyDeleteI forgot to mention, this can be served hot, at room temperature, or chilled as a salad; hence, a perfect picnic food. Harriet
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