Cleanse/Detox is Over! More Importantly...Way To Go Pamela!

Ok before I even start babbling on about myself I have to send a HUGE shout out to Pamela. She has been struggling to make the 60 pound market for weeks now and never quite made it. She persisted though, and now she has she not only made it she exceeded it! Persistence wins the race.

We are all so proud of you Pamela. Congratulations!!!!

OK...now on to me :-)

I survived!

The cleanse and the sickness!

I can now return to eating like a human being! To be honest I ended it a little bit early but only about twelve hours early. When you consider that it was a seven day cleanse I think I can forgive myself for not doing the last 12 hours. Especially since it was a "planned" early end, rather than a "caving-in of willpower". I decided to end it early a few days ago.

You see, a friend of ours is in town visiting from England (you may recall a girl sticking her tongue out in our vacation photos...that is her). Here she is again in Toronto with us last night:

Kimme and her famous Tongue

Steve, Kimme and Jamie

Last night was the only night we would be able to see her before she leaves Toronto so we met her and our friend Steve for a late dinner. It was sooooo good to be able to eat food! We went to a sushi restaurant.

I know Stacey, the girl who does my colonics, is going to kill me because I kind of promised that, after not eating anything solid for a week, I would only have Miso soup and Salad. She was quite rightly concerned that my body would not be prepared to process much more.

That didn't happen. I had Sushi and Ice Cream (and Miso Soup). Sorry Stacey. Fortunately I didn't have any digestive issues.

I am feeling a lot better today. Going to focus on that final exam I have been whining about all week and get the damn thing done. I am showing properties tonight, however, and tomorrow is also crazy so unless a miracle strikes I will likely be handing it in Monday and taking a 15% late penalty. It sucks, but there isn't much point in doing it unless I am actually doing it right and learning something. I just hope I pass the course. I haven't got my marks back yet from my last assignment and test so I really don't know where I stand.

In spite of the fact that I got sick I am so glad I did the cleanse and the colonics. I have become a big believer in them and Stacey from VitaLife Digestive Wellness Clinic . She is so knowledgeable about health as well as colonics. I actually found myself looking forward to going. Not something one would normally look forward to, I know...but I did look forward to it. I may actually miss it! Well...maybe not the colonics...but Stacey.

As I mentioned before I want to write more about the "colonic" topic (yeah...it might not be the "feel good" blog you might hope for...but I hope it will be informative and you will "feel good" about doing it if you decide to), but I think I will wait until the weekend when I have more time to reflect on what I want to say.

For now...it is back to normal living.

Last week I suggested you set a goal for the week and actually do it. Did you set one? If not, how about setting one for this week? You can do it if you really want to.

It is critical I set a new goal now. I have my goal of fitting into that shirt I bought in London on November 3rd, but that is way too far out for it to be my only goal. I am only going to commit to one thing this week and that is tracking my food for the whole week. There are a lot of nights out so I think I have to. I want to keep things balanced.

I was down .2 pounds today (that is "point two" and not "two"). Not much I know, especially since it has been two weeks since my last weigh-in, but I am not concerned for a number of reasons.

1) I am pretty sure if I had weighed-in last week I would have been up at least 4 pounds so technically I am down more than .2 pounds over the last week.
2) I have been doing detox and colonics which you would think would lead to weight loss, but that is tampered by the fact that I had a LOT of fresh fruit as juice, and therefore a lot of natural sugars.
3) I was sick and that can mess everything up metabolism wise.
4) Because I was sick I wasn't going to the gym. I am still not going to go today, but hope to get back tomorrow. Saturday at the latest. I want to get back on track as soon as possible but also want to acknowledge that I haven't been well and consequently don't want to push myself just for the sake of pushing myself. The important thing is that I do get back to regular work outs this week!

I have a lot of fruits and vegetables left from my cleanse so there are still going to be a lot of veggie/fruit drinks this week, but I will "count" everything in terms if Weight Watcher's points..

Be healthy!

Alan

Road To Recovery Has Hills

I felt so much better last night but am a little rough again this morning. Still, I think I have turned the worst corner and am on the road to recovery.

It really messed up the nutrition course though. I am supposed to hand in my final exam tomorrow (it was a take home exam) and I have barely started it. It seems to me that it will take a minimum two full days to complete. I don't have two full days of time left so I will likely hand it in Friday and accept a 5% late penalty. Such is life.

I just hope I can get it done for Friday. I set my alarm to get up early this morning to work on it but I am just not feeling up to it. I hope the feeling I have now is just temporary. If I hand it in Monday there is a 15% penalty.

I have also decided I am skipping the new course that begins today. Not just the class...the course. Too many other things I need to do and don't want to burn myself out again in the pursuit of health. This course is only 9 classes long though and the next one starts October 28th so I will only be out of school for a month.

The bottom line is I am there to learn right? It really doesn't matter how long it takes as long as I keep going back and I keep learning. I have kind of accepted that this two year program is going to take me three years to complete. Such is life.

On another note, today is the last day of detox. Yeah!

It will be sooooo good to eat real food again. Can't wait!

The key now though is to eat logically. After not eating solid food for a weak the temptation to overeat can be huge. I know this from past experience.

So being logical and sensible for the next week is the name of the game. We have a grand total of four "dinners out" scheduled so I will have to hope the universe has aligned itself properly to give me maximum strength.

"Self Empowerment through Personal Responsibility" will be the words repeated in my head a million times over next week.

Be healthy!

Alan

In Sickness and In Health

Yes I am in sickness and in health, but I hope it is not until death do us part.

Yesterday I was feeling good when I got up but as the day progressed I got worse and worse.

It is going to be a tough day today  as the nutrition course I just completed had a final "take home" exam that is due Thursday.

Wednesday is pretty much a write off for me (I am crazy busy) so that only leaves today.

The exam involves completing an analyses of two case studies. My plan was to do one yesterday and one today, but yesterday didn't happen. I don't know how I will get two done today. Especially since I am still sick and have Real Estate work to do as well.

I think I am in sickness AND in health though...or maybe sickness because of health.

You see, I have been doing this cleanse/detox thing and going for colonics.

Colonics are something I have been debating whether to write about, as it can gross some people out, but it is something I do for health so I have decided I will write about it. Not today though...so you can relax...look for it "coming soon" to a blog near you.

Anyway, I went for a colonic yesterday, and the girl who does is it the owner of the establishment and also a Holistic Nutritionist (if you are in Toronto I highly recommend VitaLife Digestive Wellness Clinic) . I told her I was getting sick and she indicated it was probably a good thing. The detoxing and the colonics are releasing all the toxins in my body, and as they travel out my body, the body becomes full of...well...toxic crap trying to find its exit.

That actually seemed to make some sense so I did some google work and...yes...detoxing and getting sick in the process, as your body tries to expel stuff, is actually quite common.

Jamie keeps bugging me to take NeoCitran but I really don't want to. It kind of goes against my new set of beliefs. To keep the peace at home I take the NeoCitran box out, open it up to look like I took it, and leave it on the counter :-). After all, if he thinks it is my own fault because I am not taking anything to heal myself I won't get any sympathy right? That's no fun. That is one of the small pleasures I think one is entitled to when they are sick.

I think that when you get "normal sick" (i.e. not needing medical attention) your body is trying to release things, and if you take drugs to suppress that you may feel better but you haven't released what you need to release...and that is how you get things like Cancer down the road.

My choice it simply to let it all out. I may feel worse during the bouts of illness but my body will have done what it is designed to do.

So...it is a day of sickness in health...or sickness for health? Whatever.....I'm sick :-(

Be healthy

Alan

What Are You Doing New Years? New Year's Eve?

I am stealing today's blog topic from Weight Watchers. Well...I am not sure if it is really from Weight Watchers's but it is from our Weight Watcher's leader.  She asks this question around this time every year and she asked it a couple of weeks ago.

Where do you imagine yourself this New Year's Eve? What will you be wearing? How will you feel?

These are serious questions. Take a minute and stop reading the blog...not yet...in a minute.

I want you to close your eyes and imagine yourself on New Year's Eve. Imagine the outfit you are wearing (yes...even you gentlemen). Imagine how alive you feel. Imagine the amazing 2011 that lies ahead.

Ok stop reading this blog for at least one minute and start imagining...right.....NOW!!!

Don't peak!

OK I am going to trust that you did it.

Didn't you feel great?! Would you be happy if you were 15 pounds lighter by New Years? If you lose, on average, one pound a week you will be. The "on average" part is critical because we all have ups and downs.

Even if you don't lose 15 pounds I know you can lose some weight and if you do you will feel great. I promise.

Perhaps you have already reached goal. The same applies. Not gaining weight over a holiday is equal to losing weight don't you think? Don't gain weight and you will feel great. Hey....I rhymed!! :-)

The key is to start now. Not tomorrow, not the next day, and for god's sake not in December. You need to get ahead of the game.

Imagine that outfit you will be in and you will do it. I know you will.

As Thanksgiving and the big holiday season approaches, I have one other piece of advice (that I also stole): Try to remember they are holidays...they are not holimonths...and set some new family traditions. I know I am going to.

Be healthy!

Alan

P.S. It is day 5 of my cleanse. I am going strong, feel fantastic and am NOT hungry :-)

Update to today's blog. It is 7:42pm and I feel far from fantastic now. Been getting sicker and sicker by the hour. It sucks!

Unlearning And Relearning The Lessons We Were Taught

Who had it right? Our parents or us? Maybe our grandparents?

What is right?

I find that the more I learn about food the more confusing things get. We speak of our parents and all the fat that they consumed as if they must have been the unhealthiest people on the planet. My family likes to recall a story of my brother sitting at the table and crying because my parents wouldn't let him leave the dinner table until he had eaten all the fat from around his meat.

Sounds crazy doesn't it?

Perhaps. But is it any more crazy than putting processed packages of food into ourselves and our families day after day after day? Any more crazy than giving any chocolates we have in the house to children and grandchildren just to ensure we don't eat it ourselves? Any more crazy that baking things we know are unhealthy for our families during the holidays simply because it is tradition? Why can't we start a new tradition?

We have also reached a point in this world where we somehow accept that chemicals are ok as long as they make things lower in fat.

It is a sensitive subject and to be honest I sit completely on the fence.

I totally believe that whole and unprocessed foods is the way to go, but I also understand that sometimes, goals have to be prioritized and things have to be done in stages. If eating low fat processed foods gets you to a weight goal you wish to be at, and you are certain that eating those foods is at least eating healthier than you were before, then I say go for it. Just know that it is a healthier food choice but not the healthiest food choice, and aim to make yet another positive change later.

I think I just made every nutritionist in my program at school cringe.

You see...it really is a journey...and you can't do everything at once. I think you should keep the end goal in mind, and I think the end goal should be 100% non-procesed foods for everyone, but how you get there and how long it takes to get there is an individual thing. As long as you are always striving to be healthier than you used to be, you are on the right track.

I had an interesting conversation with a nutritionist friend of mine a while ago about the fact that Fish and Chips are often cooked in Lard in Scotland. His reaction? "That's amazing! Oh man I would eat that...that is soooo much better then the manipulated crap we cook our own foods in!". It was not the reaction I expected...but when you step back and think about it...there actually is some logic there.

It made me wonder if our parents didn't have it right in the first place. They certainly were not as obese as we are on average. In all likelihood it was the grandparents who really had it right. Processed wasn't as much of an option back then.

My statements are all relative of course. I am 47. If you are twenty something it was probably your great grandparents who had it right. Adjust as necessary :-)

We look healthier I think...but are we? Maybe we just look younger. We say we are more active. Some are...many aren't. "Forty is the new Thirty" right? Maybe from a vanity perspective. From a health perspective? Is looking healthy being healthy? We are becoming more aware all the time, but aware of what? Aware of what food and drug companies, often with the backing of the government they fund, are marketing to us as "healthy"? I think that is very likely.

You may agree or disagree with that last statement and that is totally cool, but either way the only way you will really know what is going in your mouth is to start with raw ingredients and make it yourself.

That takes time...both mental and physical.

It is taking me a very long time but I am getting there. Two steps forward and one step back, but I am still getting there.

It's all food for thought.

The bottom line...be as healthy as you can whenever you can and choose processed foods only if it is a better choice than the choice you made before.

Day four of my cleanse today. Feeling pretty good :-)

Be healthy!

Alan

Where In My World Am I?

If I ever write a book about weight loss I think "Where In My World Am I?" is what I will call it.

The book wouldn't be in sequential order. Each chapter would describe different spots that people are often at "mentally" in their journey. You would only read the chapter applicable to your state of mind in that moment. In time, your state of mind will change, and you will read a DIFFERENT chapter, but not necessarily the NEXT chapter.

Are you new to a weight loss plan and eager to get going? Are you plateauing? Are you focused on low fat foods? Focused on Healthy Foods? Focused on "make in a minute" foods?

I think most of us are at similar stages in our journey at one time or another, just never at the same time. So, why not have a book that covers all of the common stages? If you are in one place "mentally" you follow the information in the chapter that deals with that. At another point in your journey you may find yourself in a different place...you may be temporarily just trying to "maintain" your weight for example, so you would follow the chapter that deals with that particular mindset.

Sooner or later you will be back to a chapter you were at before but that is the great thing. The focus of the book changes by chapter, just like we are constantly changing. Old can become new again.

Change, after all, is the only thing that keeps me going. I just can't do the same thing forever...and as you may have noticed if you followed this blog...my mental state is constantly changing. It probably drives you nuts!

I may actually write this book someday...if I ever find the time. The blog will definitely be a great source for material!

Right now my focus in on cleansing. I am starting day three, and I am still hungry, but as stated yesterday, I knew that that would be the case. I am pretty certain it will get easier after today, and the journey through to next Wednesday won't be so bad. At least I hope it gets easier.

How are you doing? Where in your life are you?

Wherever you are, do your best to be healthy!

Alan

Self Empowerment Through Personal Responsibilty

Isn't that a great title?

I have mentioned that phrase before, and I actually stole it from one of my nutrition course text books.

Words to live by I think.

I don't think there are any words that better describe how I am feeling right now.

After three weeks of vacation and then three weeks of waffling back and forth I have finally taken personal responsibility for my actions. Nobody...and I mean nobody...can make me do that. Many have encouraged me, and I REALLY appreciate that, but ultimate I decide what I am going to do and when I am going to do it.

Your encouragement has meant the world to me, and probably made me face the reality of my situation earlier than I would have otherwise, so I sincerely thank you for that. Without your feedback I probably would have gained 20 pounds before starting to turn myself around.

If I waffle, my weight will waffle, and my health will waffle.

I am done with waffling.

That does not mean life becomes easy by any means. I have completed the first day of my cleanse, and, quite frankly, I am hungry. That is part of the process...part of what I signed up for when I committed to doing the cleanse...it will subside and I will be glad I struggled through.

I have made the commitment and I am keeping it. That in itself is incredibly self empowering and it feels great.

What do you wish to accomplish this week? I urge you to decide and do it! It doesn't even have to be about food, weight, or health. Only you can decide to actually do what you want to do though.

Take responsibility for doing what you want to do and do it! That is, as long as it is legal...don't go and murder someone or anything like that :-).

I promise you that as soon as you make the commitment and take that first step you will feel empowered.

I can do it, and if I can do it, you can too.

Be Healthy!

Alan

Let The Fun Begin

Today is the day it starts. The one week cleanse.

I am a little nervous as I don't feel as mentally prepared for it as I have when I have done it in the past, but I am going to do it.

I know that today and tomorrow are going to be extremely hard. I will feel like I am starving, and then things will balance out.

I am allowing myself raw fruits and vegetables, but other than that it is a concoction of clay water, fibre, Apple cider, apple vinegar, and supplements.

The VitaMix should come in handy this week.

The good news is I ate well yesterday, and I had a good nights sleep again.

I haven't been going to the gym as regularly as I should lately which is another problem. I will commit to doing that every day this week as well, but I amy not work out as hard. Without solid food in I have to be realistic about what I can do. But I will do something!

Wish me luck and be healthy!

Alan

"The Power Of being Anonymous" and "Goal Setting"

Thanks to the "Anonymous" post of two days ago I got back to eating well yesterday. Sometimes I need a good kick in the butt to snap myself back into shape.

"Anonymous" can work in many positive ways. If you ever read my blog and want to tell me to smarten up, or send other well meaning but "hard to hear' message don't hesitate to use the "anonymous" option at the bottom of the blog post. Even if you usually use your own name, if you don't want to be tied to a comment, or challenged on it, use "Anonymous". I love anonymous.

I have found another great use for "anonymous" for Weight Watchers. If you are a member have you ever skipped a meeting, or been too embarrassed to go to one because your weight is up? I have found a great solution.

Go to a meeting at a different location. You can simply take your coupon, or payment card, and tell them you are unable to make it to your own centre. Don't bring your book in with you because then they will see your last weigh-in weight. They will weigh you, and give you a sticky paper with your weight on it to put in your book, but they don't know what you used to weigh so there is no "embarrassment" factor.

Get back on track right away. This way, when you show up at your own meeting the following week, they will see by your sticky paper, that you had indeed gained weight, but they will hardly even notice that. They will only comment on you NOW being "down" from the week before. It works like a charm! YOU JUST HAVE TO ENSURE YOU SMARTEN UP SO YOU ARE DOWN THE NEXT WEEK. You just gave yourself a good reason for smartening up though. You have challenged yourself.

It doesn't prevent you from going to your own, regular, WW meeting the week you weighed-in somewhere else. You have already weighed in for the week so you don't even have to go to the weigh-in counter. Just sit in on the meeting. The important thing is that you do weigh in somewhere!

I wanted to talk about two things today though. The first was "anonymous" and the second is "goal setting". Before starting this blog I really only ever set one goal and that was to reach goal. There was no other goal.

The blog has really taught me about the importance of setting short term goals. I am still learning.

Short term goals have been critical to me this time around. They do come with pluses and minuses though.

When I set a goal to be a certain weight by a certain date, I thought that perhaps making a specific "weight" a target was an unwise thing. You can do a lot of unhealthy things to get where you want to get. So success may not be entirely good for you, from a health perspective. I'm still thinking about that one.

The last goal I set was to fit into a specific shirt on November 3rd. I fully intend to keep that goal. The thing that occurred to me though was that I think I set my goal date out too far. At the time (the beginning of September) I thought a date like November 3rd would allow me to reach the goal without too much time pressure, which is probably the healthiest way to do it.

That hasn't been the reality though. The reality has been that I have had so much time to reach this goal that it gave me permission to waffle around for three weeks and not worry too much about it. Now November 3rd is a realistic date, so the goal date stays, but it has taught me that one can set their goal dates too far out. If they don't seem real they don't exist. I guess a short term goal has to be short term. Go figure! LOL

So, I am setting a new, interim, goal. Starting tomorrow I am going to do a short term cleanse. It will not be a fast, but a cleanse. I will be eating raw fruits and vegetables, drinking clay water (good for detox) and taking supplements to ensure I stay healthy. I will do it for one week.

I will also go for some colonic treatments. This is for two reasons. One is that I believe they are necessary to truly "cleanse" your body, and the second is that I can't cheat when I do those. You see, I did colonics before and told the lady who does them what my goal was. If I eat anything other than fresh fruits and veggies it will come out of a tube and I will be caught!. OK...enough of that...I have grossed you out enough.

My point is that short term goals aren't just important on this journey, they are critical. I challenge everyone out there to come up with their own short term goal. Starting tomorrow. Mine will end next Wednesday night but your doesn't have to.

I am not going to be able to make it to Weight Watcher's tonight (I have to do my assignment for my nutrition course), but I will be there in spirit though. The good news is it is NOT because I am avoiding weighing-in. I am going to find a meeting to weigh-in at tomorrow. I know I am "up" so I will probably us my "anonymous" trick. :-)

Be healthy!

Alan

Back To Health

Ok "Anonymous" convinced me yesterday, at least to a certain extent, that I was making excuses to eat.

I still believe I have a very real issue with study/food I need to work out though, and I ate WAY too much yesterday, but that doesn't give me the license to eat until Thursday. Busy or not.

I do have an assignment due Thursday. If it is late I lose 5% a day but I would rather lose 5% a day then sacrifice my health. Thanks Anon.

Short blog today because I am up excessively early to study for the test, and not to write a blog.

So...on to studying and wish me luck!

Tomorrow I will report back on today's healthy day of eating. 

The "cleanse" will still start Thursday. I am thinking I will do a major one. Possible a week long cleanse. I need something severe to kick myself back into action. 

Will let you know what I decide by Thursday.

If I do decide on a week long cleanse it will be a nourished one with supplements, and it will not be a "fast". I did a week long fast last spring. Once a year is enough for that!

Alan

Finding The Middle Ground For Three Days

I am trying to be realistic about the next three days.

As I mentioned yesterday I am struggling right now and am heading into a really difficult week work/study wise.

If I have learned anything on this journey it is to know myself.

Unfortunately I know myself well enough to know that nothing I write on this blog is going to magically make me eat properly this week. My head isn't in the right place and when I have tests and assignments I have real struggles even when my head IS is in the right place.

So...I have decided to work with that knowledge and at least try to find some grounds of compromise.

My rules will be:

1) I still cannot bring new processed food into the house. I have to have it to eat it.
2) I will not eat out.
3) I will allow myself to have heavier meals but will try and avoid continually eating all day.
4) I will accept that each day I may need a snack or two, maybe even three (but not 15), to get through the next three days.
5) Starting Thursday after breakfast, I will do a minimum three day fruit and vegetable cleanse to try and "flush" the damage and reset things a bit. I have been saying I would do this since getting back from vacation but have yet to actually do it.

I am going to gain weight by Thursday with this strategy. I know that, and no, I don't like it. Especially since I am sure I have already gained weight this week.

I just hope by keeping it "real" the damage will be less than it normally is.

Alan

Feeling Yourself Grow

Ok I know this doesn't just happen to me...or maybe it does and I am a total freak.

Do you ever "feel" yourself growing? I am not talking about feeling stuffed or noticing that after a big meal that your stomach is bloated...although it is true I am usually eating when it happens.

I mean physically feeling things like your cheeks (the facial ones ) grow. Feeling like the weight is coming onto you right in that second. The weight that will stay, not the weight that is temporary.

That happened to me yesterday at the wedding. The bizarre thing is the food was pretty healthy. Although I did have some h'orderves before the formal meal, and, in spite of the fact that I said on the blog yesterday that I would NOT have the "Decadent Chocolate Dessert" I had it.

I think it is a build up of a few days of bad habits. I ate pretty good the day before yesterday, but in general, ever since my episode with the two A&W Mama Burgers and the Pecan Pie Blizzard, I haven't been feeling "on track". In fact I feel like I am slipping.

I have kept my promise not to bring any processed food into the house, but that hasn't been good enough. I have eaten outside and unhealthy or inside and too much.

I know I am not slipping for long but for long enough to worry. This is going to be a crazy week work-wise and I also have a test at the Institute of Holistic Nutrition on Tuesday and an assignment due on Thursday. These are things that I have traditionally eaten myself through.

I also haven't got to the gym for a few days. Eating more and working out less is not a good combination.

I am going backwards and I don't like backwards. The only solace is that I know myself well enough now to know it will be corrected no later than Thursday (after the assignment is submitted) but I hope I can correct it before then.

This may be a week where I can't make it to Weight Watchers either. That meeting is Wednesday night and with the test Tuesday, the assignment Thursday, and my heavy workload, it might have to miss it this week. It won't be the end of the world, but it is a week where I should go. We will see.

I did have the most fantastic day yesterday though. We attended the wedding of a wonderful couple, Ilona and John, and Ilona even mentioned us in her speech. It was an honour to be asked to this wedding as it was a small wedding and almost entirely family, but even more of an honour to be singled out like that. We love them both and wish them much happiness.

Meeting Ilona, was an amazing example of how the universe insists on bringing people who should be together, together.

About eight years ago we got an email form a girl in Russia who was immigrating to Canada and needed a place to stay until she found an apartment. She booked into our B&B for ten days.

The ironic thing is she never actually stayed with us.

We subsequently received an email from Ilona cancelling the reservation. She was the best  guest we never had.

Normally we would not be happy when someone booked for ten days and then cancelled on us but there was something so refreshing about Ilona's email. She did not make up excuses and we could tell by her email she was so sweet and so sincerely sorry about the situation she felt she placed us in.

She said that she had come to the conclusion that she simply had to be realistic given that she was a new immigrant and needed to find a cheaper place to stay. As a result she was going to have to book somewhere else. She worded it in such a way that we not only understood, we knew that whether she stayed with us or not we simply had to meet this girl.

We told her we completely understood her situation and asked her to drop by and say hi when she got to Canada. To our surprise, and delight, she did. She was not only strikingly beautiful on the outside, but had a heart that would make you melt and a brain that could compete with the best.

Since then we have become close to her new husband John as well (no...she never had an old one) and he is also fantastic.

She decided to bring her parents to Canada and used me as her Real Estate Broker to buy them a home before they arrived. I was honoured to be asked to do this as well.

Ilona and John are two very special people. I wish them much happiness but I know I don't need to. As Jamie would say..."It Is Written".

The Beautiful Bride and Groom

John and Ilona

We Love You!

Be healthy!

Alan

Would You have Cosmetic Surgery or Botox?

Have you contemplated cosmetic surgery? Perhaps something less invasive like some Botox injections?

I have. Hell I even did Botox!

I am not going to write about the health associated dangers. Frankly I don't know enough about that, but I will write about the pure dangers associated with the way you might look. Possibly Forever. What if it goes wrong?!!!!

The bizarre thing is I can make a scary statement like that but I still haven't ruled it out completely. I am in absolutely no rush to do anything but I can't bring myself to say I would NEVER do anything again. Botox is all I have ever done though.

I love the skin I'm in, but that doesn't mean I would totally rule out a refurbishment.

The only thing I would caution if you are contemplating this is that you understand what COULD happen. You could walk around looking like a frickin freak show for the rest of your life!

I know this first hand because I walked around looking like Dr. Spock for months. You know how the eyebrows sort of go up to a slight point on either side? That was me! That was Botox. If you don't believe me take a look at this pic. I may look like I am frozen for the split second that the picture was taken, but no....I was just frozen....for months!

Pretty scary huh? Jamie said I just looked angry for six months.

Part of me thinks I just got the wrong person doing the injections and I should try it again. Another part of me thinks: "What if that was actually plastic surgery?...and it was forever!" Yikes.

Then again, Joan Rivers looked horrible after her 2000th surgery but the 2001st seemed to have improved her. She still looks plastic...but the plastic is much more appealing now. So there must be a bit of a correction factor possible.

I guess the question is...what would she look like if she had done nothing? Would she look better as an old shrivelled up prune? I guess we will never know. Nor will she. If you change who you are in an unnatural way...do you ever know who you are again?

I know I should be screaming "NO!" at the top of my lungs, but I can't say I would rule it out. I know I STILL wouldn't look 20 years old but not looking 80 when I am 80 is an appealing thought.

I would have to think long and hard before doing it though..and make sure I found the right person. If I did anything it would probably be the lines under the eyes. At least that is pretty non-invasive.

Still...if it doesn't work...I'd be stuck with it.

Maybe just being healthy is enough.

Time will tell.

Off to a wedding today...wish me luck on the food front! I did well yesterday.

Be healthy!

Alan

Too Much Good Can Be Bad

Yesterday we had a good friend over for dinner and I made a really healthy meal. Ok the dessert wasn't that healthy but that isn't really the point.

The point is, that no matter how good food is for you, if you eat too much...it's not a good thing.

I am not stressed. I knew last night was a bit of an "indulgence" night. I even mentioned it in yesterday's blog.

I made Hummus with fresh ingredients as an appetizer and we had it with grapes and some "slimthin" crackers. Then we moved on to a homemade Carrot, Ginger and Tofu Soup. I thought it was pretty good.

For the main course we had Brown Rice Sushi and Kaleslaw which is coleslaw made with Kale (all made at home but I kinda screwed up the sushi...didn't roll it properly).  Tasted good :-)

For dessert we shared three pastries our guest brought and then had homemade Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream made with fresh organic ingredients. The Ice Cream did have sugar in it but at least it was organic sugar cane. Still...it's a refined product so not really a "whole food".

My plan yesterday was to have wine with dinner, but we ended up having Martinis. The fancy sugary kind. I had three I think.

Sooooo...healthy mixed with unhealthy but too much food regardless.

I have made the decision that at the lunchtime wedding we are going to tomorrow I am skipping the "Chocolate Decadence" dessert. The splurges for the week are all done and there are still five more days in my "Weight Watchers" week.

No worries. I had a good time and other than eating TOO much, have no regrets.

On to a perfectly healthy remainder of the week.

Be healthy!

Alan

OK I'M AN IDIOT! WHY, OH WHY, OH WHY?!

Alright, I have no choice but to take back everything I said in yesterday's blog about my partner and his bag of Chocolate Digestive Cookies. Well...almost everything. I still do want him to be healthy so he lives a long life.

I don't have much right to judge though, as I had another "crash and burn" day yesterday.

I just have to keep telling myself I am learning, and I am changing, just very, very, slowly.

The plan yesterday was a good one...if I had followed it through.

First part of the plan...get a good nights sleep.

I didn't go to the gym and slept 9 hours. Well done!

Second part of plan. Drive to Weight Watcher's in Burlington at lunch time (it is about a 40 minute drive with no traffic) even though the meeting isn't until 6pm.

Why?

A) I won't have any traffic.

B) I can do the studying I needed to do separated from everything.

C) I can work out at the gym in Burlington, just before I go to Weight Watchers and weigh-in. When I do that I am usually down two pounds just because I have just worked out. Mostly water loss I think.

Perfect plan!

What happened?

A) Had no breakfast (always the first mistake)

B) Drove to Burlington at lunch time as scheduled.

C) As I approached Burlington it occurred to me that if I stopped in at Weight Watchers and weighed-in right away I would probably be slightly down. That way I could go for lunch and skip the gym leaving more time to study. I was hungry ( remember...no breakfast) and my body needed a break anyway right?

D) Weighed-in at Weight Watchers. Was down .8 pounds (it would have been 2.8 if I had weighed in in the evening after working out)

E) Went to Burlington Mall for lunch. Went to A&W and had two Mama Burgers, and then had a large DQ Pecan Pie Blizzard (If you count points it works out to 51 points).

F) Shopped the rest of the afternoon, had a coffee and went to the meeting. Did absolutely no studying.

The REAL question I am asking myself now is WHY? Not really "Why?" from a weight loss perspective. In reality I am allowed 31 points a day so 51 isn't a total disaster. The "Why?" is from a health perspective.

Why would I pay the money to eat Organic Whole Foods all week and then destroy the internal body by eating crap? It makes no sense. I really need to smarten up...and please don't tell me we all need to splurge now and then...you may have noticed I don't have a problem with that. Splurging should have value...like a night out with friends...not a self-indulgent quickie in a fast food restaurant.

So what can I do? Refuse to beat myself up for one...but not pass it off as nothing either. This is a significant and repetitive problem of mine so it needs to be faced and not trivialized.

Today begins a new Weight Watchers week and I begin anew. I already know I will not be perfect. We are having a friend over for dinner tonight (it is going to be vegetarian and very healthy but there will likely be wine and perhaps some home made ice cream so there will still be calories). Saturday we have a wedding to attend. It is a late morning wedding with a lunch reception. I think that will be more manageable than an evening wedding.

To be honest I am really not worried about either of those events. Tonight the worst will be the ice cream and it will be made with fresh whole ingredients, and a bottle of wine is ten points on Weight Watchers Plan. Totally manageable.

I really think the wedding will be fine too. It is a preset meal and the only unhealthy thing on the menu is a "Chocolate Decadence" dessert. I will have that. That is the type of thing I believe is a "splurge with value". It isn't an evening thing so there won't be drinking all night.

So, to summarize,  I picked on Jamie for eating a bag of cookies and then pigged out myself. Go figure.

As a friend from Scotland said in a "comment" added to yesterday's blog: "Changing oneself is hard".

It is indeed, but it is thoroughly and totally possible.

Five years ago A&W and Dairy Queen type days would have occurred several times a week for me. Now it freaks me out a bit if it happens only once in a while. That only proves that I can change, and if I can change, anyone can change. You just have to want to enough.

I'm in a good mood now :-)

Be healthy!

Alan

What Do You Do If You Want To Change Someone?

Changing People. Can you? Perhaps more importantly, should you?

I have said for the last few years that I am a firm believer in the fact that you can't change people. I believe people can change (I am changing for one) but the desire has to come from within.

In the earlier years Jamie and I had some pretty rough times. It took us a long time to realize that the reason we were having many of our issues was because we were focused on trying to turn the other person into what we wanted them to be.

Once we let go of the illusion that we could change someone else, life didn't just become better, it became pretty great. We realized we could change the way we reacted to a person (and as a result we were no longer acting as a "trigger" for certain reactions) but we could not change the person. By changing the way you react to a person, however, it is quite astonishing how that can change the way the person then reacts to you.

Trust me, it makes a huge difference.

I really should get a show called "Dr. Alan" don't you think? I could kick old Phil's ass out of the water! :-)

Until recently I have been at peace with this bit of wisdom. Now I have a problem.

I am not sure if I am going to get killed for writing this, but I think it is common and therefore should be "out there". Fortunately Jamie next to never reads my blog anyway so maybe all will be cool.

You see, I have this desire to change Jamie again. Strictly from a health perspective, but a change nonetheless. It is for good reason. If I am going to live a longer life he better damn well be there with me.

To be fair he is getting there. He usually eats healthier food if I prepare it, but the "drive" to be healthy isn't there.

The other day he wasn't hungry when I made dinner. Then I realized had had already eaten take out junk. That is fine. God knows I have done that and probably still will once in a while. The thing that bugged me is that ten minutes after saying he was too full for the healthy dinner he ate an entire bag of chocolate covered digestive biscuits.

I said (in a positive tone), "so, your too full for dinner but a bag of chocolate cookies are ok?". He responded (in a positive tone), "We just aren't in the same place. I'm not where you are with food".

What can I say? He speaks the truth.

I was not where I am "now", even a month ago, and it has taken me years, truly, years, to get where I am. Sure the "Nutrition" thing only started last January, but the struggles that lead to it started years ago.

I do worry about his health though.

As I write this blog I am realizing that I am answering my own question.

The answer it to do nothing to change him, but continue to change myself. Fits with my theory about changing people.

I can only hope that my positive changes are an indirect influence. They have been, to a certain extent, already.

I do worry about his overall health though. Other than allergies and headaches he is ok, but time has a way of catching up with us if we don't change our ways. Doing it in five years is still good, but doing it now would be so much better....and safer. I guess I just have to hope he catches up with me on the journey sooner rather than later.

I feel like a bit of a hypocrite writing this blog though. It make it sound as though I have "attained perfection" myself. As most of you know I am far from it.

As a side note I do want to repeat something I put in a comment after yesterday's blog, because I think it is good info to pass on and I know many of you never read the comments. In our Nutrition Class yesterday we learned about the effect of the following foods on adolescence, but I believe it can have a similar impact on adults. The title of the slide I am giving you the information from was "Mood and Food"

The indication is that the following foods in your diet can effect behaviour:
Increased sugar/refined
Increased Fat/Processed
Decreased Fibre
Decreased Vitamins and Minerals

Other interesting points

Spinach - increased learning capacity/motor skills
Eggplant - increased focus
Red cabbage - decreased brain cell damage
Eggs - boosts memory
Yogurt - Nerve function/alertness/memory
Wild Salmon - Increased Bran Function and Growth (well maybe the growth part is for adolescence only)


I thought it was interesting, anyway.


Be healthy!


Alan

Do You Pay Attention To Your Overall Feedback

Have you heard of paying attention to your feedback?

It is a term often used by Weight Watchers that basically means "pay attention to how you feel after you eat something you shouldn't". The idea is that if you  remember the feedback your body gives you after a misstep, it might prevent you from making the same mistake the next time around.

In theory it works, but I tend to swear I will remember the "feedback" after a specific event and then the next time the same food is put in front of me I go to town all over again. It takes years of repeated mistakes before I slowly...very slowly...start to learn.

Lately though, I have been noticing a more general form of feedback.

It started when I was on vacation.

Everything was great at the beginning, but I was noticing by the end of the holiday that no matter how great a time I was having, or how much I was "enjoying" the bad food, I was becoming more sluggish in general. I kept up the pace of my "active vacation" and loved every minute of it, but as time went by, maintaining the pace of "enjoyment" started to feel like work.

I think that is why Jamie and I were saying on the last day that we were ready to go home. We needed some "normal" in our life.

That was the first time I noticed the more general "feedback"of food.

Following that I think I started paying attention to my feedback over the week. I noticed that my energy level was always high in the first part of the week and lower toward the end of the week. As silly as this may sound it really only hit me as to "why" this might be the case today.

I don't think that it is any coincidence that it is tied to "weigh-in day".

As I head toward Wednesday night each week I take particular care to eat healthy and proper portions. I feel fantastic on Monday's, Tuesday's and Wednesdays.

After the Wednesday evening meeting, the Wednesday night through to Saturday can tend to get a little more "loose". It is when I tend to confess my slip ups or go out to dinner for processed food.

Funny isn't it? Eat well...feel good...eat not so well (or processed)...feel less energetic. Hmmm...could be something to that...not sure. LOL

I think Weight Watchers should have a class on a person's weekly feedback. How do you feel at different times of the week. Is there a pattern? How do you change that?

On a different note I tried to trick Jamie yesterday. I took the dinner Jamie didn't like from the day before, threw it in the Vitamix, tuned it into soup and reserved it to him. He still did't like it.

Lesson learned. Bad tasting food s bad tasting food. Although he did eat the soup so I guess I accomplished something :-)

Today I am back at the Institute of Holistic Nutrition doing the second half of my "Nutrition Through The Lifespan" course. Just what I need...more work! I am excited about learning again though.

Be healthy!

Alan

Survived The Busy Weekend

I was real busy all weekend and I did NOT resort to fast food joints! Maybe I am actually learning something! The good news is the weekend was worthwhile as it resulted in a property sale. There were three offers on the property but mine won. Yeah! My clients are very happy.

I had a Vitamix juice/vegetable drink for breakfast (well more like brunch) again, with Watermelon (including the rind), grapes, pineapple, protein powder, and Zucchini. Surprisingly good.

Skipped lunch (I know I know...not good...but I was just too busy and had a late breakfast(.

For dinner we had Tempeh and some vegetarian concoction from my Nutrition Course. I didn't think it was too bad but Jamie didn't like it at all.

I am thinking I am going to turn the leftovers into soup in the Vitamix today and see if he likes it any better the second time around :-)

Regardless of taste it was real healthy. Basically a multitude of vegetables and Quinoa with the Tempeh on the side.

Really need to find the time for sleep though. Just not getting enough lately. The good news is the motivation for work is back. Going like gangbusters now.

Off to the gym.

Be healthy!

Alan

Exhausting Day Yesterday

What a day! Felt like a race from start to finish.

6:00: I was doing work and writing my blog.
8:00: At Gym
11:00 At Real Estate Clients discussing property
12:00 at home making Fresh Almond Milk and Fruit/Veggie shake in VitaMix.
1:00 Chiropractor appointment
2:00 Viewed a couple of properties on my own.
2:30 Had a quick soup at home.
3:00 - 6:00 - showed 16 properties in three hours!
6:30 - 7:00 Chicken and salad dinner (I planned a more interesting dinner but had no time to make it so Jamie cooked for us).
7:00 - 8:00: The clients I showed the properties to in the afternoon wanted to place an offer on one of the ones we saw. The original plan was to quickly go in with an offer last night before anyone else could buy it, but the evaluation showed the price to be a little high. We will probably still try an offer on it but became in less of a "race" to do so last night. We will view more properties today and tomorrow before making a final decision.
8:00 - 10:00 wanted to do more work but was totally fried so I vegged out in front of the TV.

Today is crazy too. Real Estate seems to have clicked back into full gear. It's a good thing.

I am really loving the VitaMix. Just wish I had more time to play with it but then I might make too much stuff and get fat :-)

The drink I made in it today had carrots, celery, grapes, and pineapple. It was yummy.

I mentioned before that Weight Watchers really doesn't encourage fruit juice as opposed to eating the fruit itself.

I think this is for three reasons:

1) Eating the real fruit takes longer and makes you feel more full.

I do believe this is true but I find that as long as I make a thick drink I feel pretty full.

2) It takes a lot of fruit to make that drink and fruit does contain sugars that without activity can quickly convert to fat.

Truth to this as well, but making the drink with vegetables AND Fruit reduces the amount of fruit in the drink. I exercise a lot so I think I am ok.

3) When you make fruit juice the pulp gets left behind. The pulp contains the fibre and the fibre slows the conversion of sugar to fat.

This is what I love the "second most" about the VitaMix. I basically pulverizes everything, pulp and all, so you actually drink the pulp and therefore you drink the fibre. Fantastic!

You know what the most amazing thing is though? The clean up.

I have bought juicers more than once before (I have one in the basement right now) but I always stop using it because it is too hard to clean.

With the Vitamix you put two drops of detergent in the blender and turn it on. The machine basically becomes a dishwasher and it cleans itself. Thirty seconds and your done.

I should do an infomercial for this product. I think I just DID a blogomercial!

Looking forward to making flour from organic grains in it etc too. All I need is time.

Wish me luck on another busy day, and, be healthy!

Alan

Love The Skin Your In

Over the last couple of days a few things have happened that have made me reflect on the vanity side of this journey.

I was out with a client/friend a few days ago and we were talking about all the young people you see in bars and recalling how we used to laugh at the "old trolls" when we were young. Somehow things are a bit different when you find yourself becoming an "old troll". In my world you are old at thirty so 47 is ancient!

Last night I saw my friend Wendy in Hamilton and I was telling her that one reaches a point in their life where they have to find acceptance. They have to "accept" that no matter what changes they make in their life or what they do, they are never going to be twenty again. I know I may FEEL twenty at times, in fact I feel two at times, but I will NEVER look twenty again. No amount of dieting or healthy eating will make that phenomenon occur.

There comes a certain peace with the acceptance of that knowledge though. When you know you will never look twenty it somehow takes the pressure off, and you can finally be at peace with who you are and love the skin you are in.

My buddy Alf sent me a similar message from another perspective last night. He was responding to my blog suggesting that one should not throw their clothes away and he said: "We have to like the skin we are in and then changing that becomes a possibility...". Isn't that the truth? 

The message is, I think, that we have to love who we are, right now, in this moment. 

Once we love who we are, we can bring about positive change for the RIGHT reasons.

Hey I am not saying I am not vein. This whole weight loss journey began out of pure vanity. I wanted to look good. I still want to look good. I see the other benefits that go with it but looking the best I can is definitely still an important goal.

Realizing that the best I can look will not, and can never be, the look of a twenty something person is a good thing. It takes the pressure off.

Now for a change in topic.

On the food front I was out of the city yesterday and consequently ate out for dinner. I had pasta with pesto sauce. Not an amazing choice but an ok one I think. I wanted that Fettucini Alfredo but eventually I smartened up. 

Of course it would be remiss not to ask everyone to remember the victims of 9/11/2001 today, but I especially want to send my best wishes out to the family of my friend and co-worker back in high school days, Mike Kuhn, who was killed in a tragic accident outside his home in Parry Sound on 9/11/2002. Mike and I lost touch after the high school years, and that is sad because he truly was a great guy. 

Be healthy,

Alan

VITAMIX IS HERE!

I'm so excited! Our Vitamix blender arrived yesterday. It is so cool!

We haven't done that much with it yet but we did make smoothies and I really was amazed at how well it worked.

We threw the following into the VitaMix (well washed of course):

i) Strawberries (uncut and with tops attached. It advises you to do this as the tops are edible and apparently full of nutrients).
ii) Kiwi Fruit
iii) a peach
iv) A Mango (with skin still on)
v) Carrots
vi) Celery
vii) Ice

This wasn't an official "recipe". Just things we had that were in danger of going bad.

A 64 oz blender was packed full. I turned the thing on for only 30 seconds and everything turned into a really smooth drink. Not a lump in the whole drink and it tasted surprisingly good. The fruits mask the vegetable taste. I am looking forward to getting more vegetables in this way.

There is a danger with something like this though. When you have a new "toy" you want to make and try everything and no matter how healthy it may be everything does have calories. It would be so easy to become fat and healthy real quick.

Weight Watchers also advises you that fruits in whole form are better than fruits in liquid form. There are good reasons for this (maybe a topic for tomorrow's blog as the blog will be way too long if I try to cover it off here) but the Vitamix does alleviate the concern to a certain extent. Still...caution is the word of the day.

Speaking of "getting fat" I FEEL fat this morning. I am not sure how real it is but I have that bloated feeling in my stomach. Why? Because we went out to eat last night with our neighbours.

There were five of us and a baby going for Indian Food and I thought I had prepared myself really well. I went on-line and read websites like "the survival guide for Indian food". I figured out exactly what I was going to have before we went.

The problem, however, was that I didn't do any analysis of alternate options. I had simply narrowed in on Chicken Tandoori and decided that was what I would have, with one slice of Roti (made with whole wheat flour).

I quickly found out we were all sharing and The Chicken Tandoori was a "Kabob" which wasn't really suitable for sharing. When I looked at the other items on the menu I recognized the names from my research but for each item I looked at the only thought in my head was "ok...this one was either really good or really fattening".

I know I should have just asked, but sometimes I think people get tired of hearing about my health kick and just want to have a nice dinner out. I probably shouldn't have cared but I simply allowed someone else to order all the food. To be honest it didn't bother me in the least. I didn't have a clue what to order so I actually encouraged my neighbour to do the ordering.

Everything actually looked reasonably healthy. There were certainly lots of vegetable options, but I have no idea what was in the ingredients or what the fat count was.

I had a slice of Roti and reasonable, but not excessive, portions of the other foods. I didn't feel like I ate too much at all. Right now, however, 12 hours later, I feel fat and bloated. Interesting how the body gives you feedback.

I am off to Hamilton today. My car is being recalled on a couple of items so I am taking it in, and I am seeing a friend about Real Estate business in the evening. This means I won't be back until late so no VitaMix playing today.

I am going to soak some raw almonds though so I can make Almond Milk tomorrow morning. Looking forward to trying it.

Be healthy!

Alan

DON'T GIVE YOUR OLD CLOTHES AWAY!!!

Someone who had lost over 50 pounds asked me yesterday if I thought they should throw their old clothes out. It was something they were really struggling with.

I know most people at Weight Watchers, and perhaps Weight Watchers themselves, would say GET RID OF IT! YOU ARE NOT GOING BACK!

Personally, I think for most of us this is a big mistake. Of course it totally depends on where in your journey you are, but I believe there is sometimes a difference between what we are determined to have happen and what, in reality, may happen.

Over and over again I hear people in Weight Watchers meetings say they have joined and left the program five or six times, or done every other weight loss program as well...but they slipped. People do slip. I know I have joined and quit five or six times AND tried a dozen other programs. I slip. Just look at how disciplined I was before my recent vacation and then what happened to me while I was away. It happens. No matter how much we don't want to believe it will happen...it might happen. I don't think acknowledging this is setting yourself up for defeat. On the contrary, it reaffirms that you can ultimately be successful even if there are hills you have to climb and cliffs you fall off of.

I firmly believe in the Weight Watcher's mantra that "quitting is not an option". I now have zero doubt that I will go to Weight Watchers for the rest of my life. Do I know for sure that I won't gain weight again? I am pretty damned determined not to but the reality is I do not KNOW that.

Because I do not KNOW that, and I believe most people don't, I think it is important to keep one or two clothes sizes bigger.

I think most of us ride a roller coaster of weight loss. Our weight goes up and down, but as long as we never stop going to our program of choice the hills get smaller each time. There are, however, still hills.

That is why I believe it is a mistake to get rid of your larger clothes.

I have thrown my "fat clothes" out before and when I gained weight it became a real issue.

I refused to buy new "fat clothes" and the only clothes that I had that would fit me were elasticized things like old track pants. Not only was I unhappy because I had gained weight but that "unhappiness" was compounded by the fact that I did not feel good in anything I owned that I could actually wear. I felt like a fat street person in the clothes I had. Very demoralizing.

How did I deal with feeling so low? Simple...I ate my way through it.

So  I say KEEP YOUR FAT CLOTHES!

Make them really difficult to get. Put them in a box at the back of the attic or even better at a friends place so you have to actually ask for them back. Just make sure that if you need them, they are with a friend who will return them to you without discussion, judgement, or comment. You don't want to be afraid or feel defeated asking for your clothes back. You also shouldn't feel defeated if you need them back. Recognize the reality, feel good about the fact that you are being honest with yourself, and set goals for packing them away again. Just keep doing something repetitive (like going to meetings, or even emailing a friend once a week about where your head is at "weight-wise") and eventually you will get yourself back on track and the next hill will be a smaller one.

Maybe you only need to keep the bigger clothes that you feel you look good in, and maybe only one or two sizes up, but I say...do not throw them out!

Had a great weigh-in yesterday. Down 4.4 pounds so definitely back on track. Yay!

Be healthy!

Alan

Motivation Needed...but not for food

Do you find sometimes that it is really difficult to motivate yourself? I am feeling that way right now. Not sure why.

It isn't because I don't "feel good". I actually do. I have been eating well, and exercising again, and I feel like things are going well...but I just can't kick myself into high gear.

My exercise is happening but I'm not "pumped" about it. My work is getting done, but I am forcing myself to do it and it is getting done later than it should. That isn't like me.

Everything just seems to be that much harder to do right now. Except eating well. I am doing really well at that and I am truly enjoying being back on track.

Maybe I just need a rest after my vacation. In a way that sounds funny but the vacation was pretty fast tracked with little time for sleep. Perhaps the excitement of seeing all my relatives and old friends drained me a bit emotionally. Perhaps I just haven't got all that processed food out of my system yet. I don't know what it is.

I know some of you will say "just give yourself time". That sounds good but the problem is I am self-employed so I don't really have that luxury. I need to ensure that I maintain the high level of service I have a reputation for providing.

Looking back on what I have written I am afraid I sound depressed. Please know I am not...I actually feel like I am in a really good place in my life right now...I'm just not..well...motivated by much else other than the desire to eat well again.

It will change I know...it always does :-)

Be healthy!

Alan

No More Alcohol

For heaven's sake I didn't mean no more Alcohol forever! Just till next weekend.

I am eating pretty well but I have gone from lots of Beer (wine in Edinburgh) on vacation to a long weekend of wine in Toronto. It is time to stop for the week. If I don't, the healthy eating doesn't do much good now does it? I have no intention of stopping for good but I am stopping for the week...I know I know, not much of an accomplishment, but I have to write it publicly in order to ensure I do it. 

Today was an almost healthy day. I had the leftovers from yesterday's dinner (which was very healthy) for brunch, but in the afternoon we had a really good friend over and we had wine and Tortilla chips with Salsa. The chips and Salsa were organic but that doesn't mean the chips were not fattening. Everything already existed in my house though so I did not break my "no new processed food" commitment. I will just consider it "cleaning out the trash".

Dinner was a wonderfully healthy Vegetarian dish. The main ingredients were:

Red Lentils

Quinoa

Leeks

Kelp powder

Carrots

Red Chard

Zucchini

Tomatoes

A ton of relatively mild spices

It was quite good but needed more salt.

Red Lentil Quinoa Stew

I also went to the gym and did an hour of Cardio. My hamstrings are really hurting from my strength training Sunday but it is good to be back in action.

I am really enjoying healthy eating. It feels good knowing I am doing it. If you are not doing it...try it! You'll like it!

Well...maybe you won't like it at first. I didn't. Eventually you will though...promise! :-)

Be healthy!

Alan

Planning

I am not sure yet whether or not the move away from processed foods will really take that much more work or if it will just mean a more effective allocation of time. After all, it does take time to go and get take out food or go to a restaurant. Jamie and I sometimes spend so much time thinking about what to make for dinner we could have made it five times over.

I mentioned a couple of days ago that this change to "non-processed food only" was going to take some planning and I think it is turning into a "planning" weekend.

First there is the long term plan and then there is the  "What the hell am I going to cook tonight?!" plan.

The short term plan turned out good. I did have to go shopping at an organic store but the result was that I  made a delicious "Digestive Kichadi".  I had learned in my Ayurveda course at the Institute of Holistic Nutrition about the benefits of Kichadi for digestion and then when I tool the Holistic Food preparation course, the workbook had a recipe for Kichadi  so I decided to make it. It was healthy, organic, and great! We had it with an organic salad.

The ingredients included celery, zucchini, sweet potatoes, carrots, pigeon peas, a mixture of wild rice and brown rice, and Kombu (which is a form of seaweed full of minerals). Delicious.

I would love to say that made me an angel but I did have wine...too much wine...while watching "Drop Dead Diva" episodes with Jamie. Such a great show...and too much wine.

When you work in the Real Estate profession the only weekends you really get free are long weekends because clients are busy doing their own thing on long weekends .

I have been using my free time this weekend to plan.

Because we have a Bed and Breakfast we applied for the ability to buy organic food wholesale, and got word while we were on vacation that we have been approved to join the Ontario Natural Food Co-operative. This means we can, indeed, buy organic food at wholesale prices. If anyone else in Ontario wants to take advantage of this let me know and if it works out I can place orders for you.

So the day was spent going through the catalogue of Organic and "Natural" ( I have never understood what "natural" means so I try to buy organic) food items figuring out what to order and planning, planning, planning.

The cost is still above retail for normal food I think but a lot less than organic retail prices so I consider myself lucky. Still lots more work to do before I place my first order though.

Tomorrow I am making "Red Lentil Quinoa Stew". Lets hope it turns out!

One of the episodes of "Drop Dead Diva" that we watched tonight dealt with a woman who was dying (well....it turned out she really wasn't but forget that part) who wanted to fight for her right to be frozen before the disease took full effect. She essentially wanted to have her heart stopped BEFORE the terminal illness took hold so that she might have the chance of being brought back later in life when a cure for her disease was found. Would you want to do this? I had never contemplated it before but I think I would if I could. The options for life are endless.

Wait...that's a lie. I would if I only had to think about me. It would be so selfish to leave Jamie alone based on the hope that I might be able to come back someday. When I consider that the day I return would likely be when he is no longer here I don't think I would want to be frozen. When it comes right down to it I couldn't give up losing even a day with the person I love...why come back when your love is no longer here?

There we have it. I have my answer.

Be healthy!

Alan

Processed Foods

Two days ago I committed to stop eating processed foods in my own home. I didn't give enough thought to what that really meant.

I am not backing down on that statement but it is a much bigger commitment than I really contemplated. No more store bought bread or cereals (mind you I pretty much gave up cereals a while ago) or cookies or crackers or most pre-packaged goods....well...no more store bought lots of things. Of course pretty much everything is ultimately from a store no matter what it is...but you know what I mean...pre-made with artificial ingredients added.

I have most of the equipment to do things other ways. We have our own bread maker (haven't used it for years) and we decided to invest in a VitaMix blender which is extremely expensive but does a million different things (when I took the Food Preparation Course at the Institute of Holistic Nutrition the instructor had the VitaMix blender and it was real impressive). The VitaMix hasn't arrived yet but Jamie and I are both excited about getting it. You can check out what it does by clicking the following link: VitaMix . Just don't look at the price tag unless you have had your physical recently. You may have a heart attack. I know we are close to having one so it better be good!

The only thing I think I still need is a Food Processor but Jamie is a little resistant to that as we tend to buy things and not use them. As equipment accumulates it also takes up more and more space in the kitchen which is critical for his running the B&B so I do see his point..maybe someday. I can survive without one for now. Can't afford one now anyway.

Still...the change to "unprocessed" is bigger and more challenging than I anticipated.

I am going to adjust my commitment only VERY slightly. The change is temporarily practical and allows me some wiggle room while adjusting. It also allows time for the VitaMix to arrive, but at the end of the day it is only temporary.

The adjustment is simply this: I am not going to throw out food I already have in the fridge/freezer. First of all I can't afford to do that (especially after buying the VitaMix) and second of all I am not going to waste all that food.

So for now it will be a bit of a mixed bag, but as processed things run out they will not be replaced, so I will get there whether I like it or not. I am actually excited about making this transition. It just takes more planning I think.

Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while may recall that a fortune teller once told me that I knew what I had to do but I was always finding a reason to "do it later". Well...this is it...later has arrived. I am going to do it.

As a general "update", yesterday I went swimming for the first time in a long time and enjoyed that. I used to swim all the time when I was young. I ate really well too although I did have some wine (come on...it was Saturday night!)

Feeling good about things right now.

Be healthy!

Alan

Feeling Good!

I woke up this morning feeling really good. It's amazing how quickly eating well can rejuvenate you.

I went to the gym again yesterday morning and had some fruit for breakfast, an omelet for lunch, and Fish (without batter this time) and veggies for dinner. Perfect :-)

I almost wasn't perfect though. I had to go to the corner store to get some milk and when I was there I saw this bag of shrimp chips. Could they possibly taste as good as the ones I love from Marks and Spencer's? I wanted to find out..so I bought them. I tasted one...it didn't taste bad but it wasn't what I was looking for so I immediately threw the rest of the bag in the garbage outside the corner store...whew!

I think the jet lag is disappearing too. Slept through the night until my normal wake up time without the help of Melatonin.

So...things return to normal. Yes, that can be boring, but I need a little "boring" every now and then.

I found myself trying to think of a topic to write about today. After such a whirlwind trip I haven't had that problem for a while. How to keep the blog from being a novel has been the bigger problem.

I do think though that I may owe some of you an apology. I have received so many comments, publicly and privately, about how people have found this blog to be an inspiration for them, and that really makes me happy, but I think, as fun as my vacation was, it was far from inspirational from a food perspective. Honest yes...inspirational...not so much.

The thing is though that you must understand how much you inspire me. I would not be back on track on day 1 of my return without you. You keep me on the straight and narrow...at least eventually.

So thank you for that.

I will try to get back to doing some things that are at least a BIT inspirational.

Have a GREAT day, and be healthy!

Alan

P.S. A big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my nephew Braeden :-)

Why?

Ok I faced the music yesterday. I went to a Weight Watchers meeting close to home and did an official weigh-in. I am up 13.4 pounds from my pre-vacation weigh-in.

You may be thinking the title of my blog stands for "Why Did I do It? It wasn't worth it!", but that is not why I titled my blog "Why?".

I do know WHY I did it and although I don't regret it I am not sure whether it was or was not worth it. There are a lot of really silly and unnecessary choices I made simply because I was "on vacation". It's such an easy excuse, but if the focus is on "health" rather than weight loss that excuse doesn't really hold a lot of weight (pardon the pun).

Believe it or not I am not upset in the least about the weight gain. I was actually relieved because I expected it to be in the 15 - 17 pound range.

It does not make me feel anguish because it will take "so much work" to lose it again as one might expect. I have certainly felt that way before.

That is the first "Why" of my title. Why doesn't this anguish exist?

The answer is because I am not returning to the dreaded "work" of weight loss. I am returning to my new lifestyle. The way I should be eating whether or not I am trying to lose weight. So the "work" doesn't exist....just the desire to be healthy and eat well forever.

The second "Why?" comes from my own reflection on yesterday's blog. In that blog I said: "For now I am ok with a bit of the processed “low fat” stuff even though I know it may not be best from a health perspective."

So the second big "Why?" is "Why I am ok with that?". If this journey really is for life and really is about health then why am I ok with processed low fat garbage in the short term?

To be honest when I started typing this blog, not ten minutes ago, I had planned to say that although I was questioning why I was saying this I wasn't committed to moving away from low fat processed food just yet. I was going to say that before I ate it I would at least ask myself that question "Why am I eating this?" before making the final decision.

The power of writing this blog, however, has made me realize that there really is no acceptable answer to that question. I should not be eating processed food, low fat or not. So, as long as it is in my control (i.e. at home) I will not eat processed food options anymore. There we have it, the decision is made.

I went back to the gym yesterday, only did 40 minutes on the elliptical and I was sweating so much my shirt was drenched. Man three weeks away can really affect you.

Look at the dry sleeves vs the sweaty shirt.
That is after only 40 minutes of Cardio!

It is great to get back to the gym though.

I was going to do a raw fruit and vegetable cleanse for a few days, and I will, but I have decided not to do it yet. Jumping from excessive food to raw fruits and vegetables is proving to extreme a switch so I will focus on healthy eating and do the cleanse in a week or so.

Be healthy!

Alan

P.S. CONGRATS QUADE!!!!