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...

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/

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???

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.

...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.