A Little Kick In The Pants.

"Everything you want in the world is just right outside your comfort zone...every single thing you could possibly want."  

Jamie Lee Curtis

I guess this means I need to get out of my comfort zone (couch) and start exercising again! 

What is it that you want that is right outside your comfort zone?

Pineapple

We are eating this tomorrow.

Did you know that if you turn a pineapple upside down (set it on it's leaves) that it will ripen more evenly and quickly? I've done it 3 times now and it works! Fresh pineapple is wonderful! So far the best pineapple has been at Costco.

Summer Dinner

Oh, what do you eat in the summer time when all the world is green?

How about this for dinner:

Green salad
Steamed Green Beans with pepper
Cantalope
"Oven Fried" potatoes

Oh so yummy and easy and clean up was a breeze! The potatoes were sweet and made it feel like a real meal.

"Oven Fried" Potatoes

• New potatoes - cut to bite size - freshly harvested ones are sweet and tender
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• chives
• minced garlic
• pepper

Mix in bowl, spread on cookie sheet, bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until tender - turning once during baking time.
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This was such a light and satisfying meal. For dessert have Watermelon Icy's!

3 Months

I was doing some housekeeping and found a post that I wrote 3 months into the diet but for some reason I didn't ever post it. So, for your reading pleasure: A never published post from 3 months ago!

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5/17/2010

Roland and I have been nutritarian for 12 weeks now. It seems like we were just high fiving our 6 week goal and suddenly here we are at 12 weeks.

I've read back through my initial entries and have a different perspective now that I have some distance from the first few weeks. The first week was more difficult than I realized. I emotionally prepared myself and was ready for a tough time, so when you read the original posts, it sounds easy breezy when in fact in was hard. Not hard because I was hungry. I wasn't hungry at all. And I didn't really miss junk food or meat. There were so many new foods to try. And I love to cook and there were lots of new recipes.

What was hard was changing a life long habit. Change can cause struggle but struggle brings strength. And boy, am I much stronger now than I was in February!

When I look back on the first 2 weeks I remember that we were tired, the withdrawal from our previous diet made us feel weak and a little flu-ish. We watched a lot of TV during those weeks. And I was consumed with what I was eating. I thought about it all day long. I was obsessed.

.....................

Folks - that's all I wrote. But I think it is interesting to read because each month the diet just gets easier and easier. Sure, I crave junk sometimes and please don't leave an open bag of Doritos near me. But I've been at this long enough that it feels natural and normal. I can eat without thinking and planning as much. 

So
Glad
We 
Did
This!

After?

Quite a few people have told me that I need to post an after picture. I haven't because I'm not at the "After" point. But - I will post where I am right now.

I have been a nutritarian for 6 months and I've lowered my cholesterol by more than 60 points and lost 52 lbs. I feel so much better, younger, happier and productive!

Our before picture. A friend took this and thought it was such a flattering photo. And here are our afters (sorry - no body shots - yet!):

Roland - 53 lbs lighter

Me - 52 lbs and counting!

Pretty soon we will get a picture in the same pose as the "before".

I keep saying that even if I hadn't lost a pound I would still eat this way. My food tastes better and I feel better!

CSA Share

Every Saturday I go to the farmer's market and pick up my CSA share for the week. Each week I get more and more! This is what we got this week:

• celery
• kale
• basil
• beets
• green peppers
• lemon cucumbers
• baby potatoes
• garlic
• zucchini
• onions
• slicing cucumbers
• turnips (need ideas for what to do with these!)
• carrots
• cabbage
• tomatoes
• 2 kinds of beans

I still have quite a bit of produce left over from last week! I love that it is all organically grown, picked fresh and local. It tastes much better than store bought (and in the case of brocolli - much stronger!).

Can't wait to see what we get next week!

Veggie Sandies By The Dozen

Most of my family has started eating a nutritarian diet. My mom and sisters are especially devoted to this healthy lifestyle. This pleases me very much because it validates my position as the oldest and thus, the bossiest. But really, I love them and want them to feel as great as I do. I want to travel with them when we are old and when I say travel I mean adventure! Most of the places on my "To Explore" list involve, at the very least, vigorous walking. Some require an little bit of dare devil attitude and I want my mom and four sisters there because they really are the neatest people I know.

So this summer when we spent a few weeks together we ate lots of delicious food and had many exciting conversations about how wonderful it all tastes and how awesome we all are for treating ourselves so well. There was lots of bragging and back patting.

One night we made 12 veggie sandies:

12 wasn't enough. Everyone wanted two -they were so good. We served them with grilled corn on the cob (grill before shucking), melon salad, hummus and green salad. It was a feast!

Grilled Veggie Sandies

Sandwich thins - we used Pepperidge farms but any brand will do if it is whole wheat
Spread bottom thin with hummus
Stack:

• shredded carrots (on the hummus so they stick)
• grilled eggplant
• grilled zucchini
• grilled sweet peppers
• sliced onion (we used Vadalia)
• sliced cucumber

Spread top with guacamole.

Tuck bib into collar and open wide (real wide!).

My Bad - Not

Isn't it a relief to hear the words "it's not your fault"?

For 20 years I always thought it was my fault that I wasn't healthy and slim. I assigned all sorts of negative descriptors to myself:

• lazy
• lack of self control
• gluttonous
• undisciplined 
• careless
• ugly
• gross

I remember wondering how I could raise 4 babies while going to graduate school and working but not have enough strength to loose weight. Duh - it was easy! Eat less=weigh less, right?

I thought that if I ate the Standard American Diet (SAD) - but less of SAD-  I would lose weight. Then when I couldn't stick to that diet I would berate myself. My SIL, Christine, once told me that I was entirely too hard on myself. She was right.

In the past 6 months (yes! 6 months of nutritarian eating!) and 50 lbs of weight loss I have learned that it wasn't my fault. I had no idea how to feed myself. I was eating foods that created addictions and more hunger. My body wasn't getting the nutrition it needed so I had overwhelming cravings that I couldn't ignore. My diet of meat, cheese, and simple carbs was starving me nutritionally. Your body will not let you starve. It will create an urge to eat that cannot be denied. So I ate more of the diet that was starving me. It was a vicious, destructive, frustrating cycle that went on for 20 years.

Now I am eating such nutritionally dense food that my appetite has all but disappeared. My body only craves food when it is really hungry for more nutrition. I don't even feel the urge to eat when bored, sad, or lonely - those were my big food triggers.

If you struggle with your weight let me pat you on the shoulder and say, "There, there. It's not your fault." Eat a ton of veggies, pig out on the beans and lentils, gorge on the fruit and start saving your money for some new clothes honey, cause those pants are gonna fall right off you pretty soon.

What I Ate Today:

30 oz of green smoothie
small slice of whole wheat banana bread

Soy Nut Mix
banana
Almonds

cantaloupe
watermelon
apple
Zucchini spaghetti ( blend fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, and garlic and serve over cold shredded zucchini - so good!)
Lemon squash (very thin slices of yellow squash topped with a spritz of fresh lemon juice, a small drizzle of olive oil, salt, pepper, light sprinkle of shredded Parmesan, and chopped fresh mint. If I make this I will drop the oil and cheese and I think it will still taste fabulous!)

Now, quit beating yourself up and have some watermelon!

Back To What?

Back to school lunch? Back to junky cold lunch? Nope.

Ike and I did his back to school shopping today and that included lunch stuff. We walked up and down all the isles at Costco looking for healthy lunch options. Let me tell you, it was slim pickin's!

Ike's health has improved so much this summer. His skin has always been covered with large rough patches of eczema and scabs and now it is smooth and soft with only a few small patches on his ankles - this is almost miraculous to me. The dark circles under his eyes are gone. He can breathe through his nose. He just feels so much better. I believe it is because we removed nearly all animal products and processed foods from his diet (I say nearly because he will nab fried mozzarella sticks and Doritos when given the opportunity) and because he drinks a green smoothie everyday.

It has been pleasantly surprising to see that he wants healthy food. He now prefers almond milk to cow's milk and finds processed food to be too salty/sweet or just yucky. But what 13 year old is going to choose cucumbers over tater tots? It will be interesting to see if his health declines when he goes back to school and is surrounded by unhealthy food. And it will be interesting to see if he is ready to take his health into his own hands and choose healthy food at school.

In addition to fresh fruit and veggies and organic p-nut butter honey sandwiches on whole wheat bread, here are the healthy lunch options we found at Costco:

Mrs. Mays dried fruit
Mrs. Mays Trio bars (not his favorite but I think these are so amazingly yummy)
Lara bars ( again - not his favorite but I love them)
Grapefruit cups (he likes grapefruit!)
Stretch Island dried fruit bars

Last year we did yogurt, chips, carrot sticks and a lunch meat sandwich. So I need more options for this year.

Any ideas?
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ps - Haiku Tofu - will you send me a link to your private blog? I miss you!

Forks Over Knives

If you've read The China Study then you know exactly what this all about:



Can't wait to see this movie!

Me and Padma

We went on a little trip this week and we ate mostly from restaurants.

After ordering a pizza that we redesigned to be vegan Ike told us that we are difficult customers. He said it in that embarrassed way 13 year olds have. I said, "Of course! If we are paying $22 for a pizza (this was in Vail, CO after all) I want it done right!" And so it went the entire trip.

When ordering the Irish steel cut oatmeal be sure to order without cream or butter or yogurt and ask for the berries on the side (you get more). And clarify that you want the grilled veggie sandwich without cheese. You have to be exacting and demanding. It goes against my nature to make demands but I have actually found that in a restaurant it is fun! Especially an upscale restaurant with a chef who has celebrity aspirations. We've had some delicious meals from those chefs.

On our last night there we went out for a  celebration dinner and chose the restaurant because several people in the group were vegetarian and we saw "Mushroom Meatloaf" and assumed it was like a mushroom burger - but meatloaf style. We were wrong. I asked the waiter what vegetarian/vegan options were available besides dinner salad. After checking with the chef he said the chef was up to the challenge and would create something special for us.

It was like Top Chef and I was Padma.

Yup. I'd say that's pretty much how I looked when I was being a "difficult customer".

The chef brought out our dinner and explained it to us (just like on Top Chef!) and we dug in. And we judged it to be good. He wouldn't need to pack his knives.

Orzo, smoked rosemary, pine nuts, grilled leeks and asparagus, strawberries and little slices of mushrooms. And lots of olive oil. I would have backed way off the oil, played up the veggies more, and garnished it with something fancy looking and given it a side of fresh mango. Ahh. That might have been perfect.

Younger Next Month

This is a good book:

Sure it says "Live like 50" but I think if you start early you can live like 40 or 30!  I definitely feel younger now than I did in February. And I am doing all kinds of new stuff. Like mountain biking. Down a mountain.

If you are older or if you have parents I recommend this book to you (them).  It is fairly repetitive so I found myself skimming parts and jumping ahead and still getting the message.

The Losing-est Loser Figures It Out

Athena 

The Goddess of War - and apparently more than 150 lbs.

If you are a woman who weighs more than 150 lbs, in the race I ran today, you are in the Athena Division. I am in the Athena Division.

When we lined up at the race start (The Classic 10K - dubbed the "fastest race in colorado" because it is relatively flat) I realized that I was the only non-athletic person there. 5K's attract walkers and very slow joggers but 10K's weed all those out (except the BolderBoulder because it is more like a street fair than a race). It was a small race - maybe 300 people? At the gun everyone took off and I told Roland, Ike and Kelly that they didn't need to run with me.  It took me about 5 minutes to realize that I would most likely be the last person to finish. It made me cry. Not sobbing wrenching tears, just a lump in the throat and a burning behind the eyelids.

Athena doesn't cry.

I was embarrassed. I wanted to turn back and wait at the car. I didn't want to run 6 miles knowing the whole time that I am the slowest. Athena doesn't quit. So I slogged it out. I ended up "running" with at 22 year old girl for most the race and I asked lots of questions so I could focus on listening and running.  Before long we were at the halfway point and I was feeling good. Better than I felt at BolderBoulder. But still - I was last.

In case you haven't ever been last (and you probably haven't) I will describe it for you. They've turned off the victory music. The finish line is empty except for the people you are riding home with, the race staff, and the Ethiopian winners of the race who are collecting their prize money. There is no fanfare. No one tells you what an inspiration you are for even showing up much less running that whole stupid thing. Your husband will hug you and tell you he is proud and that you really need to hurry to the bus because the last one is leaving soon. Your girlfriend will try to convince you that she saw someone running behind you and you weren't last. And, thankfully, everyone else will ignore you. No one, but you, really cares. And unlike the winner there is no recognition, thank goodness.

I did win though. I took 11 minutes off of my BolderBoulder time. So. That is a victory.

Afterwards we went to the farmer's market to pick up our CSA share (what the heck do you do with a kolrabi?) and I thought:

"Who are we? Last year I wouldn't have run 1/2 mile and certainly wouldn't have been excited about a bag o'beets! But today I ran 6 miles! 11 mintues faster than I did in May! And I can't wait to get this kolrabi home!"

I don't even recognize myself.

Athena

10K Manipulation

The running thing has slipped a bit. I've only run about 6 times in the last month. The less you run the less you want to run. I keep telling myself that once school starts I will be more consistent. But I worry that I won't.

Ike loved the BolderBoulder race and wants to do more races so a few weeks ago Roland said we should all do a 10K. Blah! I almost talked him out of it with my argument that we should spend the morning hiking instead. Or maybe painting the garage? I didn't want to run that race- even if it is mostly downhill. Finally Roland said, fine just drop us off and pick us up. So, I am doing the race.

It is tomorrow. I'll be the last one over the finish. High 5 me if you are still there.

Burgers

I find myself leaning towards burgers as a dinner solution in the summer. Here are 3 of my favorite burgers:

Easiest:

You can buy these at Costco and they are spicy delicious. I usually heat them in a fry pay (without oil) and serve them on whole wheat buns with guacamole, tomatoes, romaine and sweet onion. SO SO GOOD!

Most Like Meat:

Grilled marinated portobello mushrooms. Roland says they are as good as a burger. I marinate mine in balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, red wine vinegar and Montreal Steak seasoning. Roland puts 2 on his burgers. If you aren't worried about fat intake add some olive oil to that marinade.

Most Surprising!

Grilled Eggplant! Just slice in rounds and marinate (in the mix above) and grill. I make sandwiches out of these (I didn't make the sandwich in the picture).
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Serve burgers with grilled corn on the cob - Just soak the corn (still in husks) in water for 20 minutes or so and then grill with husks on. Roland wears gloves and husks the hot corn after grilling.

Slice up a watermelon and dinner is ready!
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Hey, as long as the grill is hot marinate some zucchini (quartered lengthwise), peppers, onions, and sweet potatoes and grill them up for sandwiches tomorrow.