Thursday, September 29, 2011

Detoxing, sorta...


Yup, that's my breakfast and lunch today.  I have a green smoothie planned for dinner. 

Breakfast was a Honeycrisp Apple, purchased at The Fresh Market.  It was quite tasty.  A little Fiji like.  I've never had one before so I thought I'd try it.  When I tell you it took me three hours to eat that apple, I'm not lying!  It was HUGE!

Lunch was a little something I whipped up in the "kitchen" at work.  Corn tortillas with black beans, white rice (forgive me, I like white rice), spring mix, and a tomato/avocado mix with lemon.  I added lots of black pepper to the rice and beans.  It all could have used a little umf.  It was also dry.  It needed sour cream (but I'm staying away from dairy.)  It needed cheese (see previous comment about dairy.)  Someone suggested a chipotle ranch dressing.  That could have done the trick...anything is better with Ranch Dressing :-)

I can already feel my body releasing all the crapolla I've consumed in the last week.  It's a good thing!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Steak!

I had steak last night. Haven't had that in about six months. It was good. Went to my favorite steak place and also had salad, loaded baked potato and an appetizer.
The good news is I had nearly all my salad, four bites of potato and half the 7 ounce steak. I was absolutely stuffed.  I also had half the appetizer.  But seriously, no way another bite could get in there!
Is this what they mean by having your cake and eating it too?  If I can have a little steak every six months or so, I'm happy :-)

Sunday, September 25, 2011

A Beautiful Falling Off

Spectacular. Beautiful.  Epic.  Words to describe my fast decent to the dark side last week. 
It was one of those weeks at work that was...challenging. Long hours, nothing happened the way it should have and the looming deadline was happening with or without me.  It happens from time to time.
I found myself falling into old habits. LOTS of coffee. Little water. Processed foods that were fast and easy.
Saturday culminated in potato chips, pigs in a blanket, BBQ sauce drenched meatballs, pastrami, corned beef, onion dip, Buffalo chicken and...ROOTBEER.  HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) filled rootbeer.
I have not had soda other than that made with natural flavors and cane sugar in months. One small can led to two, a craving for more, and a craving for all that food. Fortunately it was all served buffet style so I didn't completely lose myself. Little bites here and there.
Today I had pasta. I was craving it and I gave in. And after a week of this, I feel horrible.  I am not surprised. The body is a strange thing.  Mine lets me know when enough is enough.
Once in a while, I'm ok to permit myself a treat. This week wasn't a treat.
Enough is enough. Getting back on the horse. Juice time!  A cleansing is in order...

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

If You're Gonna Eat at 9pm....

What the heck. The Firehouse Meatball Sub is a dandy choice. And Salt and Vinager Kettle Chips.
If a girl's gotta go there, go there in style!

Monday, September 19, 2011

The Evils of High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) Part 1

I really hate the stupid commercial "Corn sugar is sugar".  BULL-PUCKY (as my mama used to say).  First of all, sugar SHOULD come from a sugar cane plant, on a plantation, in a tropical place like, oh let's say Hawaii.  Have you ever tasted sugar cane?  Mmmmmm....

Sugar should be pure, and unprocessed, and it certainly should not be white.

Sugar should NOT come from Genetically Modified (GMO) Corn plants in the midwest.  Sugar should not come from GMO Sugar Beets either.  What these products make is High Fructose Corn Syrup, and it's just plain wrong.

Personl experiment - Give up Diet Soda.  Gave it up fine, but immediatly went to the HFCS variety (otherwise known as fully leaded).  I lost 5 pounds giving up the other fake sugar, but gained it back with HFCS - and then some.  Discovered that both "diet" soda and full octane soda adds pounds and makes you hungry and crave more.

New experiment - Give up HFCS Sodas.  Amazing.  My weight dropped TEN POUNDS!!!!  From time to time I treat myself to Blue Sky Root Beer, made with Cane Sugar.  It's now a treat, not a daily craving.  In fact, all I crave now are bubbles, which I get with my seltzer waters (I love lime La Croix and Polar brands.)  And I drink a heck of a lot more regular old water. Crave it even.  Hmmm, I have a lot of cravings...

So that "Corn sugar is sugar" crapolla is just that.  Thank goodness we have people looking out for us.  Today I saw this article on the Ban of High Fructose Corn Syrup's Facebook page.  In part it reads:

"The Food and Drug Administration has cautioned the corn industry over its ongoing use of the term "corn sugar" to describe high fructose corn syrup, asking them to stop using the proposed new name before it has received regulatory approval, The Associated Press has learned."

View the full article for the nitty gritty, and I hope that the continued pressure on the FDA will do away with this latest attempt to continue poisoning our country.

'nuff said!  Join the fight at http://www.stopcornsugarnow.com/

Sunday, September 18, 2011

My First Raw Food Experience - Vida De Cafe, St Pete Beach Florida

Yup.  Went to a Raw Food Restaurant.  Kind of an oxymoron since nothing was cooked.  Well, cooked fully.

Vida De Cafe was pretty good.  A number of interesting, not too scary things on the menu.  Two of the people I went with were vegans, so they were in heaven.  My other friend is NOT, but she did pretty good. 

I opted for a large Green Juice and an Apple Avocado Salad, and two glasses of water.  It was filling enough, and very good.  The dressing for the salad was quite yummy!

My friends got crab cakes, tacos, the same salad I did, along with Key Lime Cheese Cake (which was unbelievable!) and a Fudge Brownie and Choco Chip Ice Cream (which I didn't enjoy as much as my two bites of the key lime cheese cake).

The gals working there prepared each item, and it was presented very well.  Below are photos of some of our meal.  I wish I'd taken a pic of my juice, it was soooooooooo good!!

Would I do it again?  Probably.  Once in a while.  Why not???


Saturday, September 17, 2011

Review: Forks Over Knives

Tonight I was invited to a Raw Food restaurant.  Intrigued, I went. Upon arrival, our friend who invited us handed us a copy of Forks Over Knives and swore it would change our lives.
I've had this documentary on my wish list on Net Flix for a few months, waiting for it to come out. Now I can remove it.  After dinner I went to my other friends house and we watched it (such a healthy evening!)
It was very good, very informative.  It continues to amaze me how food controls our health. It makes sense - you are what you eat - and all, but still...
Much of what I saw I've heard of before, like the China Study, the good doctors and their amazing work, the plant based diet.  I would rate this a must watch, as long as you understand its not as entertaining as Food Inc or King Corn. It is just as important.
As for the raw food experience, more on that later!

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Cheese, Congestion, and the Migraine

This has been an excellent week for the great dairy experiment!  I've had lasagna, cheesecake, pizza, potato salad, chicken strips, and saucy things that I KNOW have HFCS (high fructose corn syrup), and who knows what else.

The night I had lasagna I got super congested, and got a migraine. 

The day I had cheesecake, pasta, and cold cuts, I got a migraine.

The day I had chicken strips with bbq chipotly sauce dipped in ranch dressing, I had some tummy distress.

Today I had pizza with feta as well as pizza cheese, and I had a bit of potato salad, and guess what....MIGRAINE!!!!

I truly find this facinating.  It's very interesting to watch how my body responds.  I doubt I'll ever give up these tasty treats completely, but it's nice to know I need to plan ahead.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Comfort Food

I went to a wake today for a man who loved to cook - no, create culinary explosions of delight - for those around him. He fed me my first plate of Lobster Newburg.  It was like nothing I'd ever tasted. He made award winning New England Clam Chowder. He could roast potatoes and make them magical.  Corned Beef and Cabbage was an event.  He was a culinary genius.

I will miss him. He was a grandfatherly figure for me. His humor and zest for life reminded me of the best parts of my grampas, who passed on a long, long time ago.  He was full of stories and he loved his wife, truly, in the most wonderful and sweet way.

In true style, his children hosted "refreshments" after. He would have loved the biggest, cheesiest lasagna I've ever seen. A platter of pasta salad that could feed a third world country. Chicken, antipasta, beverages, and a dessert table filled with snickerdoodles, cannolli, and mini cream puffs, eclairs, and petifores and more I can't remember. And pies. Lots of cheesy, sweet comfort food. Did I mention the cheese? 

I buried a little sorrow in lasagna, chicken, and pasta salad. I treated myself to a mini cream puff and eclair. I drank a lot of water.  It felt comforting, warm and embracing. My head is now sore, I've become congested, and my tummy is dancing, but the cheese was well worth it. Sometimes a girl needs comfort food.

I'll never eat lobster, be it boiled with butter, bisque, newburg, or on a roll, again without remembering him. Prime rib and roasted potatoes will make me smile with warm memories.  And I'll never forget the Bourbon Pumpkin Pie he made with me in mind one Thanksgiving day. It was the most spectacular pumpkin pie I'd ever had.

Tomorrow I'll return to juice and salad and natural, healthy fair. Today I will remember with comfort food.

Saturday, September 10, 2011

...and some weeks are better than others...

This has been a very challenging week.  I lost a dear friend this week.  He lived a long, full life, and for that I'm glad.  His passing has left me reevaluating everything, as passings often do.

I'm working on my business.  I'm working on my food.  I'm going to be a better person.  I'm going to find a purpose. 

Food wise, not a horrible week, but I did give into M & M's, potato chips, and a processed pulled chicken sandwich.  I of course got a headache, and no one can tell me that by eliminating HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) from my diet, that it's not causing headaches when I let it back in. 

Maybe this will be my next food experiment!

Rest in peace Don.  Your family and friends will miss you.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Must See: Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead

Three people I know have mentioned this documentary in the last week. All three have begun juicing. 
My dear friend A invited me over to watch it this evening.  Very sweet of her. I don't have internet at home and its a download only from Netflix.

We began with a fabulous juice - cucumber, celery, tomato, apple, ginger, peaches, carrots - I think there was more but I'm forgetting.  Delicious!

Next we had an amazing spinach salad with hard boiled eggs, asparagus, and a healthy dressing my friend whipped up (totally amazing for a girl incapable of whipping anything up).  I love spinach, and I never think to eat it so simply. Genius!

In celebration of the movie, we ate our healthy fair in front of the TV. I confess to a glass of Chardonnay for dessert.  I haven't had an adult beverage in weeks. It was very nice!

The meal was wonderful and so filling. The movie was inspirational.  It follows a man with weight and health issues on a 60 day juice fast. He meets fascinating people and turns his health around. The story follows him and a fellow he meets along the way named Phil who asks him for help.

I won't give any more away, but....I laughed a lot, I experienced moments where I gasped in horror, I almost cried several times, I left inspired, and Phil is my new hero.

Thank you A and MM for telling me about it!  I'm not sure I'm up to a 60 day fast, but I'm inspired to continue my great food experiment of 2011 :-)
http://www.fatsickandnearlydead.com/

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Not a Nutritional Week

This week I became obsessed with salt, potato chips, candy, cookies, Taco Bell, chili dogs, corned beef, pastrami....yes, my first bout of PMPD in six months. That's PMS on steroids for those unfamiliar.
Not only that, I have pretty much been hungry since Monday. Chew my own arm off and dip it in Ranch Dressing hungry.
And we won't discuss the emotional side...or what I like to call Dr Jeckle and. Mr Hyde rides the scariest rollercoaster in the world.  Or the physical illness that accompanies that special time.
I had been on meds that wrapped my whacky cycle in a neat, happy package. Some months I didn't even realize it had happened. I went off them.  Now I remember why I went on them...
So now that I understand why I've lost all senses, I can get back on track. My goal is no meat until well into next week and tons of water. And nothing fried. And nothing with HFCS. Please wish me luck (and my cats who ran for cover days ago).

Friday, September 2, 2011

The Joys of Migraines

A sure sign that something is out of whack, this appears to be migraine week. Two, count them two in two days.

Last night's struck like a knife after I had soothed my sweet craving with Pretzel and Coconut M&M's. I have to wonder if my day of having some processed food, ending with the sweets was a trigger.

I've been doing a decent job of avoiding High Fructose Corn Syrup lately. Today, not so much. Hmmmm...