Food Thursday: 08.16.12

Last week we spoke of painting your plate and how the best way to do that is with a variety of vegetables.  This week is a variation on that theme.  We are at the peak of the summer fruits and vegetables, so I want to encourage you to find out what your local seasonal harvest looks like.  Right now in Jersey, it's great corn, tomatoes of course, blueberries, zucchini, and a host of other great stuff.  If you live in the south, you are lucky to get fabulous peaches.

Most towns around my home have one day a week where they host a farmer's market.  It's in a parking lot somewhere and the farms come and set up tables, much like a flea market.   They offer up things that were picked fresh that day.  (Here's a tip. Try to eat corn the very day it is picked to ensure its optimum sweetness.)  If you go late enough in the day, many will offer discounts so they don't have to cart anything back to the farm.

Another great find at many farmer's markets is local honey.  Did you know that eating local honey can build your immunity to seasonal ailments like hay fever?  So pass on the bear shaped squeeze bottle and grab a jar from the local bees.

When picking tomatoes from market, look for heirloom varieties and go with colors you don't normally find.  Purples and yellows, etc.  The uglier the better.  We've gotten used to eating perfect red tomatoes and the truth is that they may look good, but are bland at best.  Pick a gnarly one, dude.

Find out which day your town or the town closest to you holds their market.  Plan a meal around what you expect to find.  For instance, tonight we ate a vegetable lasagna that featured local zucchini and cremini mushrooms.  There are staples that you will find universally, so you will be able to have a jumping off point.  Also, peruse all the tables and see what you can add to your plate.  Maybe a great salad with local lettuces, radishes and strawberries.  When it is fresh and local, you can be sure it will taste better.  It helps fuel your local economy and lessens your carbon footprint.  Everyone wins and you get healthier.

Cya Friday (maybe Saturday?),
M

What I ate and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Amy's breakfast burrito
Lunch ~ A riceless sushi roll w/veggies and shrimp, plus a tomato and cucumber salad
Dinner ~ Vegetable Lasagna
Exercise ~ 45 minutes of Crossfit ass kicking

W.I.M.H.W. 08.15.12

Just got back from having dinner with The Wife.  Too busy today to plan anything.  We had someone come and see our fabulous foster Fay (Snappy alliteration there, huh?), I ran to the tailor to have my five new pairs of pants hemmed, had a full day of work and we have one of Tab's longtime friends coming to live with us for a while, so there is  much to do.  It's a wonder I have time to do this, but I welcome the chance to sit and jot down a few things.  Let's see what's in my head this Wednesday, halfway through August.  Then it's time to vacuum.  Busy, busy, busy...

Back Back to Normal 
After the weekend's back issues, things seem to have gotten back to normal.  I feel really good actually.  I'm ready to return to Crossfit training on Thursday.  He is going to put me through some paces with Olympic style weight maneuvers.  My trainer is often so complimentary about how quickly I pick things up and correct little details.  He always tells me, as I exit, how well I am doing.  You have to wonder if it is part of his weight-side manner or if I am just that quick a study.  Either way I like it there.  I really do look forward to going back and pushing myself.  I'll be a little extra careful tomorrow, just to be sure I am not moving too quick after the back pain.

Walking
Time for a confession.  There are many times I write the blog with good intentions of walking between writing and bed.  Too often it doesn't happen.  Last night I had those good intentions.  They never came to pass.  I always want to be on the up-and-up with all of you, so know that I never am inclined to dupe anyone.  I'm ever the optimist. There have been number of times when I've already "gone to press" and my optimism got the best of me.  Don't think less of me.

Kevin
Kevin made a confession of his own to me last night.  He's a good friend and he reads this blog, so he gains even extra points.  He told me last night that he is secretly avoiding any interim pictures I post of myself, so that ''the next time we hugged, it was as big a reveal for me as possible..."  I think that is so cool!  Things like this spur me one and give me a boost.  I love that he gives it that much thought.  Does anyone else feel that way?  Should I not chronicle those little milestones with pictures?  If so, I can hold off posting anymore until much farther down the road.  Thanks for reading, Kev!

10,000
Congratulations to whichever reader is from Fort Meyers, Florida.  You were the 10,000th page view of this blog earlier today.  I do have some code embedded in these pages that tell me where readers come from, which is how I provide some of the factoids I throw out here and there.  It's so mind boggling to me that there have been that many pageloads in the these six months.  I know some bloggers get that in a day, but they are famous to some extent.  It's just 'not-so-little ole me' and I am humbled by the traffic we get here.  You may get tired of hearing it, but thanks to all who take the time to check in on me.  You rock!

Cya Thursday (perhaps Friday morning),
M

What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Multi Bran Chex cereal w/fresh fruit, toasted pecans and almond milk
Lunch ~ Whole grain pasta w/marinara and a bit of chicken
Dinner ~ Chicken w/artichokes, sun dried tomatoes and roasted peppers in a balsamic glaze, plus a lightly dressed side salad.  Oh...and a couple pieces of bread.
Exercise ~ Probably none.  If I am better than that, I'll crow about it tomorrow.

Is it Hard?

Alright, so I am not above a double entendre as an enticement to read my stuff.  But your head was in the gutter, too.  Actually, I hear the above quite often.  Only in a dietary context.  The conversation goes like this: "You are doing great!  I am so proud of you!  I love food like you do.  It has to be so hard!"  My reply is always the same. "The funny thing is, it hasn't been that hard at all."

I thought it might be when I was about to start.  I wondered silently to myself if this would be the time it stuck.  Could I make good decisions every day?  Could I do it long enough to change my habits?  What I found out was that a switch had gone off.  I made a binding agreement with myself that I deserved a better life and everything else was secondary.  Add to that a dash of self-respect to uphold that decision and each day became a no-brainer.

Being a lover of all things food immediately makes one wonder how you can lose such a large amount of weight and keep it off.  I haven't proven anything yet, because I still have 102 lbs. to go and then keep it off, but truth of the matter is that loving food is a tremendous asset.  

As long as I can remember, I have been thinking about my next meal the very second I put down the fork from the previous one.  Being equipped with the proper tools to prepare amazing food makes all the difference in the world.  I still look forward to every meal.  These days I look forward to them even more.  Before, too many meals meant tossing down unhealthy grub that I had little to do with creating.  Fast food and take out were the staples of my existence   Today, I take time to plan out most meals, get my creative juices flowing and add culinary flair to something that nourishes my body and lets me eat myself thin.  It satisfies me on two levels.  Sure it takes a lot more effort, but I'm worth it.

It usually takes much more time to do things right, but in my mind that is where we have gone wrong as a society.  Our hunger for immediacy has taken over our hunger for good food and we've learned to settle.  We choose convenience over our well-being.  America is growing more and more obese as a result.

There will always be temptations and challenges.  The hardest part of the process is making that initial decision for permanent change.  After that, it's not hard at all.  It's just your way of life.

Cya tomorrow,

M

What I ate today and how I exercised:

Breakfast ~ Multi Bran Chex cereal w/fresh fruit and almond milk

Lunch ~ A Chipotle Garden Burger on a whole grain sandwich thin w/avocado and lite chipotle mayo

Dinner ~ Rotisserie chicken breast w/a large side salad of mixed greens, carrots, avocado, sunflower seeds and homemade chipotle lime dressing

Exercise ~ I am going to get on the treadmill for 20-30 minutes before bed

Weigh-in: Week 27

Howdydoodly, neighbors!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.  The weather here on right coast was milder than previous weeks and it was quite tolerable.  Due to back issues, I didn't get to any of the yard work I had slated, but it will wait for me next until weekend.  Did anyone hear any screaming today around 8:30AM Eastern?  No you didn't!  That's because the scale moved in the right direction.

A small amount of progress posted today, but enough for my frustration levels to be kept at bay.  There was a 1 lb. loss, bringing me down to 297.2.   That's a total of 66.2 lbs. for those keeping score.  Body fat was down to 47.4% and water also fell to 37.2%.  That number is supposed to go up and I have been drinking a ton of water.  Okay.  Not a ton...maybe half a ton.  Not sure why the dip.

 I'll do my best to weather temptation this week.  I have two business lunches, a poker night that I am hosting and a trip to Yankee Stadium to see the Yanks and Sox battle it out on Saturday.  I was hoping to enjoy a dog and a beer, but I'm ambivalent about that now, having only shown a single pound reduction over three weeks.  We'll see what the week brings. 

Cya Tuesday,
M

What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Amy's Breakfast Burrito
Lunch ~ A cup of pasta fagioli and broiled tilapia and shrimp with veggies and balsamic glaze, plus a bit of Italian bread

Dinner ~ What you see here is a stir-fry of asparagus,. mushrooms and tempeh over brown rice.  I'm not a huge tempeh fan, but this wasn't half bad.  What's tempeh?  Click >HERE<.
Exercise ~ A 25 minute dog walk after dinner.

A.L.O.E. 08.12.12

It's a quiet Sunday night and the house is empty, except the three pups strewn around my feet.  It's time to jot down a few thoughts about my observations and thoughts on this whole weight loss process.  It's what we call A.L.O.E....A Little Of Everything.


Back Out
It's been a while since it's happened. It didn't happen during exercise.  It didn't happen lugging anything heavy.  My back had an explosion of pain while I was putting a dog's bowl into the sink.  Really?  I've had this happen from doing too much yard work and once even bending over clearing the paper out of a copier jam.  When I woke up this morning I felt much better.  That was until I flipped on the light in the kitchen to feed the dogs.  BAM!  Same spot, same pain.  I think the dogs are conspiring to get me down on the floor to their level.  This morning's pain drove me down on one knee.  Damn sneaky dogs.

Guest Blog Spot
I've been offered a guest writing opportunity on a blog called Balanced Peanut.  It's written by a woman who lives a balanced and healthy lifestyle and would like to share her story with others.  She puts up recipes, tells of her healthy eating regimen and posts recipes.  Sound familiar?  We're a good fit to cross-promote our  sites.  Please support Erin in her blog and look for my story on her pages some time soon.  It's a honor to be asked and I hope she will grace these pages as well.  Go to balancedpeanut.com to see what she is about.

Stalled and Frustrated
Last Monday, when I posted a slight gain, it really didn't bother me.  I'm all about honesty here, so I will be perfectly honest in telling you that if the scale doesn't move tomorrow morning, I'm going to be one unhappy camper.  I know perfectly well that the body will do what it wants when it wants.  My dietary path has been steady and true these past few weeks since I passed the 300-lb. mark.  I am hoping with all my being that the scale gods don't F with me in the morning.  I guess you will all find out tomorrow night. Unless, of course, it doesn't go well and in that case, if you live within a five mile radius of my house, you may hear my screaming around 8:30AM.

Cya tomorrow,
M

What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Kashi Go Lean Crisp w/banana and almond milk
Lunch ~ Onion soup and 1/2 a veggie sandwich
Snack ~ carrots and hummus
Dinner ~ "Kitchen Sink" Spaghetti: a bunch of leftovers made into a pasta dish, like grilled eggplant, garlic cauliflower, rotisserie chicken mixed into jarred marinara over whole grain thin spaghetti.  Tasty!

Advancing Dignity or Time of Death?

I got a message from a reader the other day and it really made think about where my head was at just mere months ago.  There was a time when some of the causes of the organization written of below rang true.  While I sympathize with their plight, I'm not sure they are doing anything to dig themselves out of the hole they've eaten themselves into.  Thanks, Sheila, for your note and for thinking my efforts.

Sheila writes:
Hey Mike, I encountered something that made me think...and I'm curious what your take on it is.

As I was checking into the Westin SFO, I noticed that the pool was closed for a private event (a NAAFA party, the sign said), but didn't think much of it. Then I saw two particularly overweight women. Also didn't think much of it. Then another very overweight woman in a scooter approached the elevator as my partner and I were getting in. Then, in the hallway as I was going to my room, I walked past a very tall but very overweight man. It occurred to me that these people might all be at the hotel for the same convention, so I googled NAAFA, and it turns out that it's the National Association to Advance Fat People. Their website states, "Founded in 1969, the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA) is a non-profit civil rights organization dedicated to ending size discrimination in all of its forms. NAAFA's goal is to help build a society in which people of every size are accepted with dignity and equality in all aspects of life. NAAFA will pursue this goal through advocacy, public education, and support."

My instinct is to feel sad that people would fight to embrace their "fatness" rather than support each other in leading a healthy lifestyle. I know that people come in all shapes and sizes, and to some degree there is no changing the shape you're born to have, but I also think that (after seeing the size of the people at the convention) the NAAFA members are leading each other to an early grave.

Being that you're someone who's fighting every day to live a healthy and active life, I'm really curious as to what your thoughts on this subject are.

My response to Sheila was of mixed emotions.  While I empathize with the obese that they deserve their dignity and some of the issues these folks are fighting for are real, I wonder how many of these fat people are doing something to change their situation.  Do I want society to see fat people seen as capable and treated with kindness and dignity?  Of course.  But in reading their website, they are couching themselves as victims of this affliction.  Even at my heaviest, I took responsibility for everything that passed my lips.  Once you fail to understand that the overwhelming majority of obesity is brought upon by personal choice, for me, the rest of your message falls upon deaf ears.

I've been subject to misconceptions as to my value and abilities as a fat person.  Yes, there were shreds of resentment towards those who judged me, but my first thought was always in changing my situation, not their perceptions.  My impression of the NAAFA is also sad one, Sheila.  Since 1969 they have been trying to advance the rights of the obese and the only thing that has advanced is obesity.  I only wish that as part of their educational efforts, a healthier lifestyle would be covered.

The NAAFA advocates a HAES policy.  That stands for Health at Every Size.  They want healthcare organizations to adopt patient's rights policies that promote self-esteem, and "valuing body size diversity."  These all sound like great things, but calling it Health at Every Size is a misnomer.  Every size is not healthy.  Obesity is the enemy.  Prejudice is ugly, yes.  Funerals for people committing suicide by food are uglier.

Be nice to fat people.  Respect them and know that they are not failed human beings.  They can be as capable as you, as smart as you and they have feelings like everyone else on this planet.  I am guilty of these prejudices on some level myself.  If the world just treated everyone with respect, then groups like the NAAFA wouldn't have to exist.  They could spend their time trying to love themselves before insisting the world love them too.  The latter needs the former to coexist.

Cya Sunday,
M

What I ate Friday and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Kashi Go Lean Crisp cereal w/toasted pecans and almond milk
Lunch ~ A sliced rotisserie chicken sandwich w/avocado and lite chipotle mayo
Snack ~ 1.5 oz. of beef jerky
Dinner ~ 1/2 a smoked turkey sandwich and lemon chicken orzo soup.
Exercise ~ Crossfit session and a 20 minute dog walk.  I went to bed very early as a result.

To learn more about the NAAFA, visit http://www.naafaonline.com.

Food Thursday: 08.09.12

I haven't restated this in a number of weeks and it seemed I always used to include this principle in the opening paragraph:  If you want to lose weight, stay healthy and change your life, you should eat as many meals as possible at home by cooking them yourself.  I know that isn't always possible and not everyone likes to cook, but it gives you such a leg up toward success that you should make every attempt at preparing your own healthy cuisine.

The original idea for today's post was to be a recipe, but as it often does, life got in the way and I had a backup plan.  The notion was derived from a conversation with my Aunt K the other night.  She was staying with us for a few days, living the high-life at Chez Accadentardi (The Wife's last name is Dente, mine Accardi) and she and Tab were sitting down to a dinner of pasta and red sauce.  I had just gotten home from the gym and was going to tuck into my leftover steak and some arugula salad.  The greens were dotted with tomatoes and some of my pickled carrot sticks.  It was quite a pretty plate.  If I wasn't so debilitated from my workout, I would've gotten up and retrieved my phone to pictorially freeze it in time before I devoured the creation.  When I sat down at the table, she remarked how colorful my plate was and looked so much more diverse than hers.  It got me thinking, here's a concept I need to blog about.  Let's call it "Plate Painting".

We should all be getting more fruits and vegetables in our dietary regimen.  I know of few, if any, people that get enough.  One easy and fun way to be sure you are getting a nutritionally diverse meal is to use various colors when designing your plate.  The very compounds in food that give it color are also ones that give them unique nutrients to fuel you.  Beta-carotene from carrots and sweet potatoes aid in ocular health.  Tomatoes, pink grapefruit and watermelon provide lycopene which is beneficial to for lungs, your prostate and stomach.  And green veggies like broccoli, spinach and kale are great sources of vitamins A, C and calcium* .  Speaking of C, toss some red on your plate in the form of red bell pepper.  It has more vitamin C than an orange.  Purplish or reddish veggies like eggplant and radishes have anthocyanins that fight cancer and heart disease.  You don't need to know the particulars if you simply let the colors wash over your plate.  The rest takes care of itself.

So when feeding yourself and your family, paint your plate with color and pizzazz.  It makes the experience more visually appealing, fun and nutritious, not to mention tasty.  Expand your palate.  Also expand your palette.  Your color palette, that is.  As I always say, "Go on!  Play with your food!"

Cya later,
Mike

What I ate and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Fresh fruit salad of pink grapefruit, banana and blueberries.  Very colorful!
Lunch ~ Client lunch in Mexican restaurant.  Challenging at best.  I had a seafood ceviche and chicken with a green mole, with re-fried beans.  Anything but colorful.
Dinner ~ Rotisserie chicken w/roasted portobello mushrooms and eggplant
Evening out ~ 1 SoCo rocks w/a lime
Exercise ~ none  

*Although rich in calcium, spinach's is less available due to high levels of oxolate.  Look it up for details :)