More Wii Fit

It seems that every time I get the opportunity to try my friend's Wii Fit, something prevents it from happening. The week they went away and I was minding their doggie, they had painters come to do the interior of the house and I couldn't get close to the TV to try it out. So, this week he gave it to me for a week to try at my own house. But I woke up Monday morning with a killer sore throat and have gotten sicker each day. I did try to do some activities on the Wii Fit, but I couldn't really give it my all. But, I can tell you that I DO love it and I'll be getting my own. The Yoga is especially good. With each pose you have a target circle on the screen to try to stay inside of which tracks your balance. So, you know if you are doing the pose correctly. The balance board is very sensitive. Any little movement and you can go outside the target circle, so it's a great way to keep on track. It tracks your time and calories burned. I love the little running programs. The graphics are great and I find I'm really competitive with the other little avatar people. The Hula Hoop is a kick. Best of all, I really work up a sweat so I know I'm getting a workout. There are so many things to try that I never get bored. In my opinion, a lot of couch potato kids would love this and it would be a great way to get them active. I do it for about 40 minutes a day.
So far, I'm down 7 lbs since I restarted this weight loss thing the week after Xmas. That's a good steady pace of about 1.5 lbs a week. Of course I think it should be melting right off me at a terrific speed considering my diet, but this is the right way to do it.

It's working!

As of today, hubby has lost 7 lbs and I've lost 5 since we started 2 weeks ago. That is just the right pace for me....and he will slow down to two or three lbs a week I'm pretty sure. Doing it together is the secret. Knowing he is depending on me to keep track of things ...keeps me on track too. We went over to a neighbor's house last night and tried out the new Wii Fit Plus game with the balance board. I was thinking about getting one but wanted to try it first. I'm minding their pooch while they are away this week so I'll get to use it every day. That should tell me if the initial fun wears off or not. From the little I did, I could see that it could be a real workout......I was huffing away. I do love my technology toys.....my iPhone is acquiring new Apps every week as I browse through what's available. I now have an App to play Scrabble with random opponents! Exercise for my brain!

The New Year

Well, the Holidays put a bit of a damper on the whole new eating plan. Not that I overate, but that I didn't give all aspects of it the attention I should have and to have any success at weight loss, I really have to pay attention to everything and make sure I follow through. So, with my cool new Iphone that my hubby got me for Xmas, I have downloaded all kinds of Apps to help me get restarted. There are apps for everything! Along with a scrabble game, I now have a calorie counter with nutritional info and food log and exercise log, a pedometer that is very accurate and a beginner yoga stretching routine. I've been doing the morning walk with the pooch but then going out for a brisk 2 miles by myself since I don't have to stop to sniff or pee every ten yards. Using the pedometer along with my Iphone tunes keeps me motivated and counting everything that goes in my mouth is the best way to keep track. I plan on doing the yoga routine a few times a week to get more flexible. I've been feeling my age lately.
What is also a big help is that my husband has agreed to do this plan with me. So, I am tracking his calories since I am the one who makes his food and hopefully we can encourage each other and be able to live longer with each other. I know it won't be easy for him but I hope he knows it will be worth it as he starts to slim down and feel better. And knowing someone is depending on my help, I am more apt to work harder for myself. So, I'll try to check back in here more often and let you know how it's going.

Eating Habits

More and more, I'm moving towards a vegetarian diet. Part of it is because I'm trying to eat healthier but I think a lot of it has to do with all the reading I've done . Michael Pollan's book " In Defense of Food" which I blogged about, was a big influence on how I look at the food we eat. His previous book, "The Omnivore's Dilemma" dealt with how the food we eat gets to the table. I couldn't read the chapter on beef and chicken because I knew what was in there and I knew after reading it, I would have a hard time enjoying eating meat....and I wasn't ready to give it up.
A New Book by Jonathan Safran Foer is Eating Animals. Foer, author of the acclaimed novels Everything Is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, uncovers some ugly truths about America's meat production system, but he also weaves in stories from his own family history—and shows how stories can shape our diets. While others have argued for reforming our system of factory farms, Foer argues for much more radical change:giving up meat. So, I think I am going to read the book.....soon.

Cravings? What cravings?

I'm finding this new plan I am on is not as difficult as I thought it would be. I'm sure a lot of that has to do with all the research and reading I had done about nutrition and what is in the stuff that passes for food these days.
The great side affect of not eating any processed foods or sugar is that after a week or so, you just don't want it! This is proven to me every time I see a food that I formerly could not resist. Just last night, I was at a friend's house and she put out potato chips. Now, I was a chip fiend for years. I could not resist and I definitely couldn't eat just one! I craved salt and all the fatty yumminess. But, I had absolutely no desire to have any. It wasn't that I knew I shouldn't or used great will power....I just didn't want any. That's the thing about food cravings....if you stop eating the stuff, your body stops physically wanting it. I bet you thought it was all in your brain when you crave chocolate or chips or fatty foods, but it's not in your mind, it's a physical craving.
So, if you think you could never give up the junk because you love it so much and would feel deprived...that lasts about 2 weeks. If you can go 2 weeks without that junk, you'll find that you don't even want it. I am proof of that. I see the changes every day. I used to almost get a high after eating ( several pieces of) chocolate. Food is no longer an emotional fix for me....I'm not drawn to food to satisfy cravings, it's just the fuel for my body.....and my body is worth ultra premium fuel. And because I love to cook, I am using that energy to cook good tasting, flavorful, nutritious food. I'll have an occasional piece of really good chocolate and one piece is all I want, as a treat to enjoy, not a need to fulfill.
The plan I am on is also a weight loss plan and I've lost about 5 lbs in 3 weeks and quite a few inches too. But, I'll be following the same guidelines even when it's time to just maintain a good weight....in other words, for the rest of my life, and I'm taking the steps to make it a long and healthy one.
I feel so empowered to take charge of my own health. I apologize to my body for all those years of food abuse and I thank it for bouncing back so well.

Committing to a Healthy Life

For the past few years, I've been really interested in taking control of my own health. Having to self diagnose my gluten intolerance led me to lots of information that makes a lot of sense to me. The more I learn about the chemicals and toxins in the food we eat and the medicines we take, the more convinced I am that there should be a better way to optimum health.
Our Medical doctors aren't trained very well in whole body health and healing. Rather than look for the causes of symptoms, they tend to just want to treat the symptoms, usually with drugs. Symptoms may improve with the drugs but it only masks the condition. Like my gluten intolerance which caused all kinds of chronic autoimmune responses in my body, there is usually a reason why your body is not acting like the well designed machine it is meant to be. Whether it's a food sensitivity or an environmental factor, it seems like we have to be our own investigators and seek out the causes and remedies to live a life of optimum health.
It may be easier to pop a pill to make something go away, but when you learn what is going on inside your body...when you understand how our organs and systems work in perfect balance with each other and what we put into them can make so many things get out of whack, it will become clear that there is a better way to live, to eat and to care for yourself that will result in a long and healthy life.
I made an appointment with a Naturopathic Physician a couple of weeks ago. As I've documented so well in this blog, I am having trouble losing weight and I thought maybe she would have some kind of therapy to boost my metabolism. As it turns out, after she did a BIA test on me, my metabolism is just fine!

The BIA test is a simple, non invasive, painless procedure. By using a very small amount of electric current, this test can not only show the ratio of lean muscle to fat, but also other important indicators such as the amount of intra-cellular and extra cellular-water. Your total body weight is not just what is important, it is what makes up that total body weight, and how it changes over time.

The test consists of electrodes on my hand and foot and the machine sends a painless electrical charge through my body that measures the amount of water in my tissues. It took about 2 minutes.
So, Dr. Arnold suggested a program which will not only help me lose weight but will set me up for a healthy life. It includes a binder with all the info I need to get started, How my body works, explaining the Glycemic Index and insulin resistance and how it affects weight loss....and weight gain., how to exercise, how and what to eat. I had a lot of this information before but I like the fact that it is all in this one little binder that I can refer to often. I have a chart for each day where I cross out each serving as I eat it so I can see right away what I need to eat...or not eat :-)
The program is called First Line Therapy put out by the Metagenics company, which I already knew was the leading nutritional supplement company that most Naturopathic practitioners use because of its reliability and quality. The FirstLine Therapy program is a low-glycemic-index dietary plan and accompanying soy-and phytosterol-containing beverage, combined with a moderate exercise regimen, The program is based in functional medicine:

Functional medicine is personalized medicine that deals with primary prevention and underlying causes instead of symptoms for serious chronic disease. It is a science-based field of health care that is grounded in the following principles:

• Biochemical individuality describes the importance of individual variations in metabolic function that derive from genetic and environmental differences among individuals.
  
• Patient-centered medicine emphasizes "patient care" rather than "disease care," following Sir William Osler’s admonition that "It is more important to know what patient has the disease than to know what disease the patient has."
  
• Dynamic balance of internal and external factors.
  
• Web-like interconnections of physiological factors – an abundance of research now supports the view that the human body functions as an orchestrated network of interconnected systems, rather than individual systems functioning autonomously and without effect on each other. For example, we now know that immunological dysfunctions can promote cardiovascular disease, that dietary imbalances can cause hormonal disturbances, and that environmental exposures can precipitate neurologic syndromes such as Parkinson’s disease.
  
• Health as a positive vitality – not merely the absence of disease.

My program includes a protein and nutritional drink that I can drink twice a day as a snack. It's good to know that even if I don't get all the foods I am supposed to eat in a single day, this drink is feeding me all the essentials my body needs to stay healthy and in balance. I'll have another BIA test in a few weeks to monitor any changes. She also has me taking a probiotic for gut health, fish oil, calcium and Vitamin D supplements. I've taken supplements before...sort of off and on and been lazy about it. I learned how important consistency is and I have a routine now where I never skip a dose.
Following the diet part of the program isn't as hard for me since I am very used to not eating processed foods and such because of my gluten intolerance. But, I hadn't been as good with the dairy. My testing showed that I had an autoimmune reaction to milk protein as well as wheat protein(gluten) so following this program, I've cut out all dairy now too.
What helps me to stay committed to the diet is all the information that comes with it. I now understand WHY I don't want that baked potato. I look at it now as something that will raise my insulin level and will work against my goals. There are plenty of tasty alternatives. And I have found that it is true that you do lose your cravings for the fried, fatty and processed sugary foods after a week or so.
So far, after a week, I feel great, I have terrific energy, a positive outlook and I think I probably burned off a little fat. I'll keep you all updated on my progress.
To learn more I suggest you follow the links I've provided above....lots of great info.

Beets! Who Knew?

My only experience with beets was seeing my mother eat the pickled beets from a jar at Thanksgiving. As a picky eater kid who only included corn and iceberg lettuce in my veggie repertoire, you can imagine I never tried them, and the smell alone made my toes curl.
Fast forward 40 years later and I think it's about time I take a look at beets again. Now that I am expanding my veggie experiences, I'm looking for new and interesting flavors. I've been seeing beets everywhere.....on Top Chef in fancy salads, at the Farmer's Markets and all over gourmet recipe blogs.
So, I bought some beets and looked up some recipes. Roasting them looked like a good idea. I love the way roasting brings out the sweetness in vegetables. I cut off the tops.......there were lots of leafy green tops, and I couldn't imagine just throwing them in the compost. I decided to saute them in some olive oil with a little onion and serve them with the roasted beets and some carrots that I decided to add. An hour in the oven at 350 and I was on my way. While they cooled a little bit, I sauteed the greens. I placed the greens on a plate, peeled and sliced the beets and arranged them on the greens....a little salt and pepper.....delish! Really, they were great! So beets will be in my veggie repertoire from now on!
But perhaps the best reason to eat beets is that they are very good for you. According to WHFoods.com, beets contain compounds that help protect against heart disease, birth defects and colon cancer. They are high in fiber and despite their high sugar content, surprisingly low in calories.
But, if you are a veggie virgin and will not try the beets roasted....just hide them....

Double Dark Chocolate Beet Muffins

1 C. whole wheat flour
1 C. all-purpose flour
2 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 C. Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 C. chopped pecans or walnuts

1/4 C. butter
2/3 C. Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips
3/4 C. packed brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 C. beet puree
2/3 C. buttermilk
1 t. vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line it with paper cups; set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together first 5 ingredients until well combined.Stir in the half cup chocolate chips and nuts; set aside.
4. In a small saucepan, melt the other 2/3 cup chocolate chips and butter over very low heat.Stir to combine and set aside to cool until lukewarm.
5. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, brown sugar, beet puree, buttermilk, vanilla and melted chocolate.
6. Pour the chocolate mixture into the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined.Don’t over mix.
7. Immediately spoon batter into 12 well-greased or paper-lined muffin cups.Batter should completely fill the cups.
8. Place muffin pan in a preheated 375 oven and bake for 18-20 minutes. Muffins are done when they spring back when touched lightly in the center (or when a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean). Don’t overbake!
9. Cool muffins for 10 minutes in pan then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.
10. Enjoy!

Day two!

See that lady up there in that picture? She is doing the same workout as I am with one difference....I don't have a happy grin....I would say I have more of a grimace.......
I did the 5 mile workout again today. Boy, I have to say it really makes you sweat! After each mile, I tried to think of reasons why I should quit and only do two miles or three miles....but I talked myself out of it and stuck with it till the end. I had sweat dripping down my face and back...so I know this is good for me! This workout works your core, as well as your legs and arms. It is aerobic so it gets you up to your peak heart rate, but it also incorporates strength training. So it works your whole body and burns lots of calories. It warms up my joints so well, that I feel completely limber....almost lithe....for the rest of the day. And it has killed any appetite I may have had. So for the hour and 15 minutes, plus the shower I have to take after.....it is an hour and a half well spent. I will be away Friday to Monday, so I will do another one tomorrow and make sure we get a lot of nice hiking in this weekend. And then back to walkin'.

walk away the pounds!

I am still trying to lose weight, but even though I am eating healthy and restricting calories and exercising, I am still just yo yo-ing back and forth within the same 5 lbs. with no progress. I know I need to kick up my slower than a turtle metabolism....and that means aerobics....the kind where I sweat and pant away the calories.
Knowing myself and "how I am" I know I don't want to go to a gym and take classes, so I plugged in the new DVD player and loaded in Leslie Sansone's 5 mile walk dvd.
The last time I had success with dropping pounds was when I was using Leslie Sansone's program. Walking may sound like a too easy thing to do to get the heart rate going, but don't be fooled by the title. Yes, the basis of the workout is walking...as in moving your feet up and down...but she also adds in knee lifts, kick backs, side steps, kick outs, arm work and weights, lunges and squats. I did the whole 5 mile workout which took an hour and ten minutes, moving at a rate of 4 to 5 mph. I was sweating, but felt really great. When I was done I was full of energy and had no appetite the rest of the day, so I vowed to do this every day!
Well, I had to skip yesterday....no, I didn't overdo it and ache all over. I actually had no pain or stiffness....except for one thing...........It seems that during the cool down stretch, when I pulled my arms to each side, I pulled a muscle in my neck and shoulder. When I got up yesterday, I couldn't turn my head or move my arm. Leave it to me, to get through a long workout and then injure myself in the cool down! As much as I wanted to suck it up and do it anyway, I resisted. It paid off because today there is hardly a twinge and I can get right back into it! I'm actually looking forward to it.
This is the type of workout anyone can do. She usually has a group of normal looking people of different sizes doing the workout along with her to the beat of some catchy music.
If you don't feel like you can keep up with aerobic classes or you need to fit it into your own schedule, this is a perfect workout. If you go to her site, you'll see she has all levels of programs to suit everyone. I've also used her beginner yoga program, which I love! If you think aerobics are too hard, give one of Leslie's programs a try. You don't have to be a gym rat to get healthy!

On Hold

I know it's been ages since I last posted ....and I may have been neglecting the blog, but not the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle! Eating healthy and exercising is just a part of my daily routine. I feel great, full of energy and filled with lots of new pursuits and new ideas.
So, while I won't be on Hold, the blog will be....for a while anyway. I found that I was spending way too much time doing research and writing for the blog. And while I found it all very valuable and interesting and learned a lot, it was taking too much time away from other pursuits.

For now, I'm going to spend time working on my painting...(see my painting blog), practicing all the new methods I learned at a recent workshop. I find that I can easily spend all day at my easel and not tire of it! I also need to find other employment...the kind you leave the house for that hopefully has health insurance benefits.
So, I'm leaving the blog up for people who use the links (like me) and I'll be posting new links and occasionally will write a new post when I want to share some helpful info.
So, keep living healthy and check back occasionally!

I'm off to a workshop!

Today I'm heading up to Gloucester, MA for a 3 day painting workshop with Charlotte Wharton and I'm pretty sure I won't have access to a computer.....so you won't hear from me till next week!
It's supposed to be a glorious weekend, so I hope I'll have a chance to get out for some nice walks around Rockport and Gloucester.

The Food Experience

The conclusion of Michael Pollan's book, "In Defense of Food" is that we should "Eat Real food, Mostly Plants, Not too Much" He says that we should eat like the French.
They enjoy their food, don't diet and never snack! They take a long time to eat, enjoying the company as well as the food. They drink wine, eat butter and pastries...what is their secret?

Below are some excerpts from an article about why the French seem to eat more but stay slim"

Despite a diet stuffed with cream, butter, cheese and meat, just 10 per cent of French adults are obese, compared America's colossal 33 per cent. The French live longer too, and have lower death rates from coronary heart disease - in spite of those artery-clogging feasts of cholesterol and saturated fat. This curious observation, dubbed 'the French paradox', has baffled scientists for more than a decade. And it leaves us diet-obsessed Americans baffled.
Instead of an addiction to 'invented foods' full of hydrogenated oils, E numbers and preservatives, the French way, even today, focuses on the careful preparation of unprocessed foods. It's why French women ration themselves to one rich, dark square of real chocolate rather than hogging-out on a preservative-laden, pre-frozen, half-chemical wedge of pseudo-foodo. Snobbery, alongside vanity, is an asset in the war against weight. (Consider, by contrast, the disheartening fact that the market for ready meals in the US grew by 39 per cent from 1999 to 2003; the $3 billion market for 'food bars' is expected to more than double by 2009.)
Eating in France is a social activity. There are several ,but small courses, with plenty of time between courses for the physiological feedback to kick in. In America we eat more pre-prepared foods and ready-meals; we eat fast food both in and outside the home. We have single, large meals, and family members will eat different foods at different times... Fast food is, by definition, eaten fast, so there's no time for that physiological feedback.'

French people, it seems, naturally exercise strict portion control. In their study of why the French remain so much slimmer than Americans, the researchers from the University of Pennsylvania came to the remarkable conclusion that it was because the French ate less. 'Based on observation in Paris and Philadelphia,' they wrote, 'we document that the French portion sizes are smaller in comparable restaurants, in the sizes of individual portions in supermarkets, individual portions specified in cookbooks, and in the prominence of "all-you-can-eat" restaurants in dining guides.'

So actually French people don't eat more and stay slim....they eat less.....but they definitely ENJOY the "food experience" much more.

That is what the book "In Defense of Food" is about.....enjoying the "food experience" again....real food, that is.
So, inspired by his book, I'm going to follow Mr. Pollan's advice. I am going to enjoy my food...my real food...mostly plants!

Food Industry Reform!!!!

Folowing up on the previous post about being more aware of the food we put in our mouths....
Michael Pollan had a great op-ed in the NY Times today.. Here is an excerpt....but go read the whole thing!

TO listen to President Obama’s speech on Wednesday night, or to just about anyone else in the health care debate, you would think that the biggest problem with health care in America is the system itself — perverse incentives, inefficiencies, unnecessary tests and procedures, lack of competition, and greed.

No one disputes that the $2.3 trillion we devote to the health care industry is often spent unwisely, but the fact that the United States spends twice as much per person as most European countries on health care can be substantially explained, as a study released last month says, by our being fatter. Even the most efficient health care system that the administration could hope to devise would still confront a rising tide of chronic disease linked to diet.

That’s why our success in bringing health care costs under control ultimately depends on whether Washington can summon the political will to take on and reform a second, even more powerful industry: the food industry.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, three-quarters of health care spending now goes to treat “preventable chronic diseases.” Not all of these diseases are linked to diet — there’s smoking, for instance — but many, if not most, of them are.

We’re spending $147 billion to treat obesity, $116 billion to treat diabetes, and hundreds of billions more to treat cardiovascular disease and the many types of cancer that have been linked to the so-called Western diet. One recent study estimated that 30 percent of the increase in health care spending over the past 20 years could be attributed to the soaring rate of obesity, a condition that now accounts for nearly a tenth of all spending on health care.

The American way of eating has become the elephant in the room in the debate over health care. The president has made a few notable allusions to it, and, by planting her vegetable garden on the South Lawn, Michelle Obama has tried to focus our attention on it. Just last month, Mr. Obama talked about putting a farmers’ market in front of the White House, and building new distribution networks to connect local farmers to public schools so that student lunches might offer more fresh produce and fewer Tater Tots. He’s even floated the idea of taxing soda.

But so far, food system reform has not figured in the national conversation about health care reform. And so the government is poised to go on encouraging America’s fast-food diet with its farm policies even as it takes on added responsibilities for covering the medical costs of that diet. To put it more bluntly, the government is putting itself in the uncomfortable position of subsidizing both the costs of treating Type 2 diabetes and the consumption of high-fructose corn syrup.

He makes a good point...that under the President's health insurance reform, insurance companies can no longer deny or drop someone with a chronic, expensive disease, like type 2 diabetes....so it will be in their best interest ( and their best interest is making a profit) to help fund nutrition education, healthy school lunches and marketing programs to convince kids not to drink soda.....kind of like they did for the anti-smoking campaign.

That’s why it’s easy to imagine the industry throwing its weight behind a soda tax. School lunch reform would become its cause, too, and in time the industry would come to see that the development of regional food systems, which make fresh produce more available and reduce dependence on heavily processed food from far away, could help prevent chronic disease and reduce their costs.

Recently a team of designers from M.I.T. and Columbia was asked by the foundation of the insurer UnitedHealthcare to develop an innovative systems approach to tackling childhood obesity in America. Their conclusion surprised the designers as much as their sponsor: they determined that promoting the concept of a “foodshed” — a diversified, regional food economy — could be the key to improving the American diet.

All of which suggests that passing a health care reform bill, no matter how ambitious, is only the first step in solving our health care crisis. To keep from bankrupting ourselves, we will then have to get to work on improving our health — which means going to work on the American way of eating.

Get this book!!!

We have to be smarter about what we put in our mouths. We have to realize that what we choose to eat has a direct effect on our health. I want to live a long healthy life. If you do too, get this book...today!
The information in here should be enough to convince you to start eating the way we did in Great Grandma's day. Or, go see the movie "Food,Inc."....you'll be running to your nearest farmer's market as you leave the theater.

From a book reviewer:

Food. There's plenty of it around, and we all love to eat it. So why should anyone need to defend it?

Because most of what we're consuming today is not food, and how we're consuming it -- in the car, in front of the TV, and increasingly alone -- is not really eating. Instead of food, we're consuming "edible foodlike substances" -- no longer the products of nature but of food science. Many of them come packaged with health claims that should be our first clue they are anything but healthy. In the so-called Western diet, food has been replaced by nutrients, and common sense by confusion. The result is what Michael Pollan calls the American paradox: The more we worry about nutrition, the less healthy we seem to become.

But if real food -- the sort of food our great grandmothers would recognize as food -- stands in need of defense, from whom does it need defending? From the food industry on one side and nutritional science on the other. Both stand to gain much from widespread confusion about what to eat, a question that for most of human history people have been able to answer without expert help. Yet the professionalization of eating has failed to make Americans healthier. Thirty years of official nutritional advice has only made us sicker and fatter while ruining countless numbers of meals.

What's better for you --- whole milk, 2% milk or skim? Is a chicken labeled "free range" good enough to reassure you of its purity? How about "grass fed" beef? About milk: I'll bet most of you voted for reduced or non-fat. But if you'll turn to page 153 of "In Defense of Food," you'll read that processors don't make low-fat dairy products just by removing the fat. To restore the texture --- to make the drink "milky" --- they must add stuff, usually powdered milk. Did you know powdered milk contains oxidized cholesterol, said to be worse for your arteries than plain old cholesterol? And that removing the fat makes it harder for your body to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins that make milk a valuable food in the first place? About chicken and beef: Readers of Pollan's previous book, "The Omnivore's Dilemma", know that "free range" refers to the chicken's access to grass, not whether it actually ventures out of its coop. And all cattle are "grass fed" until they get to the feedlot. The magic words for delightful beef are "grass finished" or "100% grass fed".

I have decided to try to go completely organic in what I eat. I'll have to talk to the spouse about it, and I may need to make separate food, but I am really committed to it. This blog, my project, is not just about losing weight, it is about taking care of my body and my health. The paperback version of this book is $9.00 on Amazon...go there now.

Tip of the Day

The best way to start, after reading the book, is to go to these two sites:

101 cookbooks on facebook...and her blog. Heidi is reknowned for her blog as a great place to learn to cook fresh, healthy food! Her recipes are easy to follow and use ingredients you may not have ever tried before....but the one thing they all have in common is that they are so darn tasty! You'll be eating vegetarian in no time...and you'll be enjoying it!

The double broccolli quinoa is a great way to introduce yourself to this marvelous little grain....try it!!

Back from vacation!

our view from the Lake House

I had a great visit with my son, his fiance and her parents. It was way too short, just three days! After they left, we went up to Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire and stayed at a lovely house right on the lake, courtesy of my other son's girlfriend's parents. It was beautiful and relaxing and the weather was perfect! We only stayed a couple of days...and now it's back to reality!
So, it's Friday, and that means weigh in day for me! Now, while I had company and while I was away, I didn't count calories, I didn't do any exercise routines....and I lost a pound! Go figure!
But, looking back, I see that I didn't indulge in the usual vacation gluttony. That can be directly attributed to my gluten free diet. It is pretty limiting, especially when eating out. At the sports bar when everyone else had the typical, fattening, not good for you ( but yummy!) bar food, the only thing I could eat from the menu was a salad with grilled chicken. At the nice restaurant we went to, I don't eat the bread that looked so delicious, or pasta or anything breaded or anything with sauce since I can't guarantee it's gluten free....so roasted chicken and veggies for me! ( and it was absolutely the best I've ever had!) In NH, at a nice Italian restaurant, I just about swooned when she said they had a chocolate ganache FLOURLESS cake! So, hubby and I shared a piece that came with a tablespoon of vanilla ice cream, just the right amount!
Having been on the gluten free "lifestyle" ( as it's called) for a few years, I don't feel deprived and I really don't get cravings for the stuff I'm not supposed to eat. Sometimes, it's a challenge to find something safe on a menu, but I usually can fall back to a salad if I have to. Most snacks are off limits too.
So, you would think I would be kind of slim since I don't ever eat anything with flour or sauces...baked goodies, bread, pasta, crackers, cookies, etc. I must have the world's slowest metabolism, I guess!
But, today it's back to my routine and counting calories. I still haven't broken that 5-6 lb mark that I've been juggling for 3 years, so I'm determined to do that this week!

Tip of the Day

Speaking of gluten, I just read a new book on the subject that has all the latest research and explains it very well. It's called "The Gluten Effect".
If you or someone you know suffers from any kind of autoimmune diseaase, I strongly suggest that you read the book. It proves through recent research that as many as 5 out of ten people are gluten sensitive and only one in ten are celiacs. Most doctors think celiac disease is the only way that gluten intolerance manifests itself. That is not true. I never had celiac disease. I had arthritis, psoriasis, depression, brain fog and chronic fatigue. I stopped eating foods with gluten and in three weeks I was a new person. The book is less than 12 bucks and it may change your life. And...get this.....One of the symptoms of gluten sensitivity is weight gain and difficulty in losing weight. The book goes into great detail explaining how this is caused my your adrenal glands being stressed by fighting the gluten proteins that are toxic to people who are sensitive to it. Even though I have been researching gluten sensitivity for several years for myself, this book gave me all the info I needed in one place to give me a new resolve to be very very strict in keeping gluten out of my body! Here is a link to the blog of the doctors who wrote the book.
The Gluten Doctors. Go through the archives and you may start to see a connection to your own health problems.
If only one person reads this and is helped and then spreads the word, we can do for ourselves what our uninformed medical doctors can't or won't. I do believe that every year, more doctors will become aware and will help to make a healthier world. Until then, advocate for yourself!
Google searches for "gluten free" will bring up tons of info to keep you busy for a while.

Hey, now even Starbuck's is getting on board and offering a gluten free orange cake...and it's not a crappy cake, it's made with whole ingredients!

Time Off!

You may have noticed that I don't do a new post every day. I've found that when I do that, I spend way too much time sitting at the computer when I should be up and moving...... and I find most people only stop by every few days. My son and his fiance are coming for a visit for a few days, so I won't be blogging at all! I only see them a few times a year, so I'm going to spend all the time I can with them. Then the spouse and I are heading off to New Hampshire for a few days of relaxation.
So, You may not see any posts for the next week.....but check back after that because I'm sure I'll have a lot to talk about!

MUFA!!

About five years ago, I started this project of losing weight and getting healthy. I wanted my 50's to be my best years yet. I made a lot of changes in my diet, I joined a gym and went regularly and I made sure to walk and move every day. I've added some yoga, strength training and even little pilates to my regimen. So, I know I am a lot healthier than I was five years ago. Things are tighter and I'm stronger, and discovering my gluten intolerance and taking it out of my diet has banished all the chronic health conditions I had suffered. But....and I hate to admit that it bothers me.....I don't weigh any less than when I started. I have bounced up and down within the same five pounds since I began in earnest five years ago. I'm a dress size smaller, so the hard work I've done has changed my body for the better....but I'm still "obese".

I'm at the point now where I've been doing this blog project for a month.....I lost five pounds in the first 3 weeks and then nothing.....although I changed nothing in my routine.
I'm doing all the right things. I have a healthy relationship with food. Cutting out the gluten has conditioned me to have no problem with doing without certain foods so it is easy for me to not eat junk food. I keep track and count calories and I exercise routinely.
So, I am hoping this time it will be different...that I'll finally be able to break through the five pound mark. It's not my goal to obsess about the number on the scale, but to get within a healthy weight that will get me out of the obese category. I know from all my research that as we age, extra weight hurts our heart and our joints. I'm carrying 40 extra pounds and if I don't get rid of that now, it will only get worse.

So, although I already eat lots of fruits and veggies, maybe I need to add more MUFAs to my diet!

What are MUFAs?
MUFAs (pronounced moo-fah) are monounsaturated fatty acids, plant-based fats found in some of the world's most delicious foods--avocado, nuts and seeds, oils, olives, and dark chocolate! Studies show that these good-for-you fats enhance heart health and protect against chronic disease. And now the latest research shows that these dietary superstars may even target fat where it's hardest to lose--in your belly

Meet the MUFAs:

Oils

Pick your MUFA: Canola oil, flaxseed oil, olive oil, peanut oil, pesto sauce, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, walnut oil

Use them like this: Stir-fry with sesame, peanut, or canola oil; pan-fry in walnut or olive oil; cook with safflower, soybean, or sunflower oil; use flaxseed oil in salad dressings (flaxseed oil cannot be used for cooking)

One serving equals: 1 tablespoon

Recipe: Leafy Grilled Chicken Salad with Creamy Balsamic Dressing

Nuts and Seeds

Pick your MUFA: Almonds, Brazil nuts, natural peanut butter, dry-roasted cashews, dry-roasted peanuts, dry-roasted sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, roasted pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts

Use them like this: Eat as a snack; sprinkle on a salad

One serving equals: 2 tablespoons

Recipe: Vietnamese Beef Salad

Dark Chocolate

Pick your MUFA: Dark or semisweet chocolate chips, shavings, or chunks

Use them like this: Any way you crave!

One serving equals: 1/4 cup

Recipe: Chocolate Pudding with Bananas and Graham Crackers

Avocado

Pick your MUFA: Florida avocado, Hass avocado

Use them like this: Slice and serve with a salad or any entrée; mash with lime juice, salt and pepper and serve with chips; chop and fold into store-bought salsa

One serving equals: 1/4 cup

Recipe: Key West Chicken-Avocado Sandwich

Olives

Pick your MUFA: Black olives, black olive tapenade, green olives, green olive tapenade

Use them like this: Serve olives as a snack; sprinkle sliced olives on pizzas, salads, or pastas; spread tapenade on crackers or sandwiches

One serving equals: 10 large olives or 2 tablespoons of tapenade

Recipe: Mediterranean Salad-Wraps

It's not just the UN-insured who suffer....

I have to vent. And this does have something to do with keeping healthy because it looks like if I get sick, I'll be bankrupt.....so more incentive to eat well and exercise.
I just spent a frustrating morning online and on the phone trying to find an affordable health insurance plan. I guess my idea of what is affordable and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' idea is very different. You may have heard about the Insurance reform in Massachusetts and how everyone can be insured now! Well, it has been successful in providing poor people with subsidized insurance but according to the State, we make too much income....the cutoff is $43,000 for a couple, to qualify. So the cheapest plan available to us is $1000 a month, with a $2000 deductible each and a 35% hospital co pay. One hospital stay will bankrupt us. $12000 a year ( almost 20% of our net income) paid to an insurance company but nothing paid to us except some of the hospital bill should we need it. A sweet deal for them. A plan with full hospital coverage is $1700 a month. Being pretty healthy and not on any meds, I'll never meet my deductible. I can't afford the $1000. for a colonoscopy that my doctor ordered. Not that and also the monthly premium in one month. So hopefully, there is nothing lurking in there that we'll find out about too late....because that will be very ironic.....because the insurance won't pay for the screening, I may develop a serious illness and they will finally end up paying a lot more. Oh, and in case you were wondering ....part of the deal the state made with the insurance companies to take part in there program was to not allow plans without prescription coverage that would cost less or plans for just catastrophic care. I doubt I would pay anywhere near $1000 a year for doctor visits, so hospital insurance is all we need......but you can't get that here.....that would hurt the insurance company profits. So,don't go bragging about the great Mass Health reform to me please. I am hoping and praying that Obama keeps his word and gets what we need.

Waisting away!

Friday again already! You know what that means....weigh in day! It was bound to happen....my scale tells me I haven't lost an ounce this week. I was only discouraged for a minute though. Because I am counting calories, I know that, technically, I must have lost some fat somewhere and water weight will make the number on the scale fluctuate. I know that even on The Biggest Loser, the contestants have weeks when they don't lose ( or they gain) even though they haven't changed their routine or diet. My body has its own mind it seems. But, my body feels different so let's take out that tape measure and see.

Yep, my waist, my menopausal middle......is one inch less than last week.....so are my hips and thighs. So maybe all that muscle I'm building is the reason for the scale not budging! There is a part of me that always hopes for huge numbers lost every Friday, but logically I know that's not what I'll see. Whatever the reason, it doesn't matter because I know that if I am consistent with my plan, it will show up eventually.

The weekend is here! I have a party tonight and tomorrow I'm off to visit my sister for an overnight...so that means I have to be a little diligent about what I put in my mouth ( alcohol). So, I've committed to only have 2 drinks and I'll work them into my calorie count for each day. In social situations like this, with lots of tempting ,fattening food, it's actually an advantage that I can't eat gluten, because most of those goodies are stuff I can't eat anyway!

Recipe of the Day
Phyllo pizza with feta, basil and tomato
I have a ton of basil to harvest from the garden, so I'm looking for ways to use it. This recipe from Cooking Light looks great! ( of course I'll substitute a gluten free crust)

Salty cheese, tomatoes, and basil make this a savory treat. Pair with a tossed green salad for a light summer supper.

Yield

6 servings (serving size: 2 slices)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella
• 1/2 cup (2 ounces) finely crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 10 (18 x 14–inch) sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
• Cooking spray
• 2 cups thinly sliced plum tomato
• 1/3 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375°.

2. Combine first 6 ingredients in a bowl.

3. Cut phyllo sheets in half crosswise. Working with 1 phyllo sheet half at a time (cover remaining dough to keep from drying), place phyllo sheet on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Coat phyllo sheet with cooking spray. Repeat with 2 more layers of phyllo. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons cheese mixture. Repeat layers 5 times, ending with 2 phyllo sheets. Coat top phyllo sheet with cooking spray; sprinkle with 2 tablespoons cheese mixture. Pat tomato slices with a paper towel. Arrange tomato slices on top of cheese, leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle with onions and the remaining 6 tablespoons cheese mixture. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until golden. Sprinkle with basil leaves.

Wine note: A good wine for this dish won't overwhelm the delicate phyllo but will stand up to the salty cheeses and fresh basil. A favorite that fills the bill: Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc Reserva from the Casablanca Valley of Chile. The 2008 is $11. —Karen MacNeil

Nutritional Information

Calories:

195

Fat:

6.7g (sat 3.2g,mono 2.1g,poly 0.5g)

Protein:

9.3g

Carbohydrate:

24.6g

Fiber:

1.9g

Cholesterol:

11.4mg

Iron:

1.7mg

Sodium:

526mg

Calcium:

158mg

The power of Oatmeal!

I just finished a bowl of oatmeal with blueberries. I was inspired by an article today in The Cape Cod Times. Even though I know all the benefits of eating a good breakfast, ( I've blogged about it here) and I never skip my morning meal, I can see that I can do better. In fact, I want to do BEST! See what I mean below from the article:

BEST: A bowl of slow cooking oatmeal topped with fresh berries and a hard boiled egg.

This meal is a nutritional powerhouse and easy to pull off if you make the oatmeal and the eggs the night before. Fiber and protein help slow down the digestive process, making you feel full longer and keeping your blood sugar steady. To make this meal even better, add good fats by spreading peanut butter or avocado on whole grain toast or an English muffin.

So, I searched the pantry and found some oatmeal in a canister that I had put away for the summer and cooked up a bowl. I added some flax seed meal and fresh blueberries. I knew that oatmeal has been touted as a great weight loss tool....and I'm trying to lose weight, so I googled it and found all the info I need right here

As surprising as it may be, the warm comfort breakfast food you ate as a kid is actually a powerful fat burning food source-oatmeal! Packed full of oats, soluble fiber, and protein, oatmeal boosts weight loss and fat burning processes as it keeps consumers feeling fuller longer.

The Fat Burning Powers of Oatmeal

Oatmeal's most powerful fat burning agent is its incredible fiber source. The fiber in oatmeal is soluble, which means that your body slowly moves this food product through your digestive tract, making you feel fuller and more satisfied for longer periods of time. Oatmeal, as well as most other unprocessed whole grains, is an outstanding source of fiber which boosts weight loss results; yet the other key benefit to oatmeal is its ability to stabilize blood sugar levels and boost the body's metabolic fat burning engines.

• Oatmeal and Fiber

As consumers of oatmeal feel more satisfied with the intake of fiber, dieters will feel less tempted to overeat or indulge in snacks or unhealthy temptations. When your hunger pangs are naturally suppressed, you are more capable of limiting the caloric and food intake; as a result, the body begins to feed on stored fat cells in order to generate energy. Simply by consuming oatmeal, the body should naturally go into a fat burning mode, resulting in the utilization of fatty cells for energy, support, and body functioning.

• Oatmeal and Blood Sugar Levels

As oatmeal boosts the body's intake of fiber, it simultaneously serves as a fat fighting agent because it stabilizes the body's blood sugar levels. Essentially, anytime you consume a food, your body converts the food into glucose, or sugar. This intake of food and rise in glucose levels leads to an immediate energy rush, followed by an inevitable energy crash, as eventually you feel lethargic, tired, and may even experience headaches after eating high-sugar or highly-processed foods. Unlike most foods, however, oatmeal has the opposite glucose-rising effect on the body. As oatmeal's fiber content allows the body to digest this food more slowly, the body does not react to this intake of food by immediately producing glucose and energy; on the contrary, oatmeal keeps the blood sugar levels more stable, as a steady amount of glucose is released at a steady and safe rate. As a result, you'll feel less tired after consuming this fat burning food, and you'll also be less likely to encounter an energy crash later in the day. The greatest fat burning benefit of this helpful side-effect is that the body's natural response to tiredness or fatigue is to crave or eat a sugary food or treat, as this will provide the body with quick and short-term energy. Because the body is less likely to feel fatigued when consuming oatmeal, dieters are ultimately less likely to crave sweeter foods and unhealthy snack options; therefore, dieters can again avoid temptations with minimal physical cravings or distractions, allowing the body to continue to burn up fat stores for energy supplies.

Choosing the Best Fat Burning Oatmeal Products

While dieters will benefit from traditional or instant oatmeal, individuals can also try out new and scientifically engineered oatmeal products in order to experience enhanced fat burning benefits. For example, companies today, such as Quaker Oats and Kashi, sell oatmeal varieties that are higher in protein. When paired with the natural benefit of fiber, this added protein boost will help consumers feel even more satisfied and satiated, again reinforcing the body's ability to limit caloric intake while burning stored body fat.

When perusing the oatmeal aisle at the grocery store, however, avoid the sugar-laden sweeter varieties, as an excess in sugar will essentially eliminate all of the fat burning potentials that oatmeal has to offer. If you can't eat your oatmeal plain, add some nuts, a small amount of honey (as this is a natural and unprocessed sugar), or a handful of blueberries into your bowl. This will add a bit of natural flavor without stealing all of your fat burning benefits! Also, as you are experiencing enhanced fat burning benefits, keep in mind that a steady intake of oatmeal as part of a regular diet also lowers harmful cholesterol levels, and lowers risks of certain cancers, such as colon cancer. Eat up, lose weight, and enjoy all of the wellness perks of oatmeal.

So, I'm off to the health food store today to get a big bag of gluten free oatmeal. I'll cook up a big batch to keep in the fridge so I just have to microwave it in the morning.

Tip of the Day

I'm always looking for ways to flatten my expanding post menopausal middle without having to do 1000 crunches a day! Here is an article I found that tells me an a-peeling way to do it....in just a few easy "steps"!

The Definitive Flat Tummy Rules

You have to include fiber in your diet

If you want to lose weight and trim inches off your waist, fiber is HUGE. And the reason it's huge is because it fills your stomach with much fewer calories. It also keeps you feeling full much longer. To sum it up, fiber enables you to not only eat less now, but also later in the day.

But you need plenty of fiber to accomplish this. The FDA advises 25 grams of fiber a day. But, that's not nearly enough if you want to flatten your gut now and keep it that way. You should shoot for a minimum of 20 grams of fiber per day. And it's not difficult to do. I'll show you how easy it is.

Go to Wal Mart and pick up a can of black beans and three apples. Eat that every single day. How hard it is that?

Black beans should only be used a side dish. They should not be the main course of your meal. With that said, you can fit black beans in just about kind of meal.

You can probably figure out how to eat 3 apples a day. Just substitute an apple for that king-size bag of chips you devour 20 minutes before going to bed.

Walk Up and Down Stairs

If you have stairs in your home or the building you live in, tie on some shoes and get stepping.

All you need to do is walk up and down them for 10 minutes a day, 5 days per week. Better yet, do it every single day.

Don't tell me you can't do that!

That may not seem like much, but you'll notice immediate and long-term benefits. If you commit to this for just two weeks, you'll see what I mean.

See, how easy it all can be?

All you have to do is follow these 2 easy flat tummy rules and your stomach will be something you'll be showing off sooner than you think.

So, I found a recipe using black beans AND apples:

Recipe of the Day

Apple Black Bean Salsa
From the American Institute for Cancer Research

Combining apples and black beans in a tangy salsa provides special health benefits as well as great taste. Both apples and black beans are rich in phytochemicals, the natural substances that have been linked to cancer protection.

lemon juice for dipping apple slices
2-3 red Delicious apples, peeled, enough to make 2 cups diced fruit
3 Tbsp. lime juice, preferably freshly squeezed
3 Tbsp. orange juice, preferably freshly squeezed
1/2 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
3 Tbsp. diced green chili pepper (canned version)
2 Tbsp. minced fresh cilantro leaves
salt and pepper, preferably white

Place lemon juice in wide shallow bowl. Peel and slice apples, then dip slices into juice to prevent browning. Dice slices to makes 2 cups.

In a mixing bowl, place apples, beans, chili pepper, cilantro, lime juice and orange juice. Mix thoroughly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Refrigerate 6 to 8 hours before serving. (Salsa can be prepared up to one day ahead.) Before serving, drain off excess liquid.

Serve with chicken or fish.

Makes 8 servings, each containing 28 calories and 0 grams of fat.