Primal Journal (Judg) page 62

[Judg]

Okay, food and activity report.

Got a bit of walking in, to church and thence to in-laws' place. And soccer with toddlers in the back yard, which involved a lot of retrieving balls from the tomato patch. So I got my play in too.

Had a Denver sandwich minus bread for breakfast (two eggs, ham, and onions in this version), and my fairly typical Sunday family feast: sweet potato with tomato sauce (made from fresh garden tomatoes, yum!) and Romano, a piece of lamb, salad and veggies (unfortunately fried in bad oils and the zucchini was lightly breaded - yes, these are my compromises), and an espresso with white sugar in it, another compromise. Haven't eaten since, except for a small, crisp, and very fresh apple picked this morning. So different from the sad Macintoshes they present to us in grocery stores.

[JudyCr]

Okay, food and activity report.

Got a bit of walking in, to church and thence to in-laws' place. And soccer with toddlers in the back yard, which involved a lot of retrieving balls from the tomato patch. So I got my play in too.

Had a Denver sandwich minus bread for breakfast (two eggs, ham, and onions in this version), and my fairly typical Sunday family feast: sweet potato with tomato sauce (made from fresh garden tomatoes, yum!) and Romano, a piece of lamb, salad and veggies (unfortunately fried in bad oils and the zucchini was lightly breaded - yes, these are my compromises), and an espresso with white sugar in it, another compromise. Haven't eaten since, except for a small, crisp, and very fresh apple picked this morning. So different from the sad Macintoshes they present to us in grocery stores.

Judg, my neighbor wants to lose about 50 lbs and will not even consider primal, no matter how much I preach or the fact that she's seen my success with it. I told her about you yesterday (showed her your pics) when she was trying to decide on weight watchers, nutrisystem, etc. Did you just cut back or go with a plan when you lost your initial weight? She has decided to walk everyday so that will rev up her metabolism and help her lose, but she needs a structured food plan. Thx for any advice.

[Judg]

Judy, no I didn't follow a program. I did start looking for healthy, delicious food that would not make me fat but would keep me happy. I absolutely refused to use diet products, except for some low-fat dairy (sorry, I didn't know any better) because I figured I needed to develop a healthy relationship with food, and if I was eating chemical substitutes for real food, I obviously hadn't learned to eat right. I also aimed for as little processing as possible. I kept questioning myself: is there something better I could be eating now that would be just as much fun? I discovered that fresh cucumber or tomato in a sandwich made it just as delectable as piles of mayo, that sometimes just cutting back the helping size a bit was a sufficient adjustment. And walking was key, being about the only exercise I could handle. I put a strong emphasis on enjoying my eating, because I was looking for a permanent lifestyle, not a temporary diet. I can't handle long-term deprivation. Once every three months, for no longer than three weeks, I would deprive myself, by cutting back on serving sizes and eliminating indulgences. That's when I would lose the weight. Then I would spend about the same amount of time persuading my body to accept the new status quo. Then I would relax on maintenance a while, recharge my psychological and physical batteries before starting the cycle over again. Please note I had reasonably good eating habits compared to most of the population.

I would absolutely avoid any program that involves eating unnatural food, or eating prepared meals they send you. You have to learn how to eat properly and sustainably, so those programs are just setting you up for a cycle of failure, IMO. I would guess that Weight Watchers is the best of the lot, if she's dead set against primal. Or any other program that emphasizes learning to eat well sustainably.

I am very bad at sticking to routines and programs. I need principles I understand and can live with for anything to work for me. I can do primal because I know what I'm doing and why, and I can tailor it to my tastes and lifestyle. Honestly, it was mainly a question of swapping out carbs and legumes for fats, in my case. Once I had wrapped my head around it, it wasn't that hard. I have really enjoyed not going through the blood sugar crashes, for sure. That alone probably makes it worth sticking to.

[JudyCr]

Thx so much; I am sending this to her. Six of us walked around our neighborhood lake this morning and she loved it. She's going this afternoon to her first WW meeting. I think when she compares WW to primal she'll "see the light".

She gained 50lbs in 2 yrs after a bad skiing accident, followed by 2 surgeries. She was flat of her back and her family showed their love by bringing her double cheeseburgers, whoppers and DQ blizzards, got her hooked on the junk.

[Coll]

Judg, you look adorable in that outfit, just need a perky smile and that will be 'it'! I really like those boots - look good and comfy too, good combo! You are inspiring - I just need to keep on keeping on and one day I may be that close to my goal weight too!

[Sabine]

Great picture, Judg!

[Judg]

Wow. I never thought in a million years I would be an inspiration to people for weight loss. Amazing where life leads you sometimes. I spent over 20 years near my peak weight, so I really thought I would probably stay there forever. And when I started losing weight, I couldn't even picture succeeding. But I knew that every pound off would be a step closer to good health, so I figured even getting partway there was worth it.

I'm kind of overwhelmed that I can actually see the end of the process approaching, and that you guys have been so supportive. I'm getting kind of emotional here...

[Judg]

Went out shopping today. Checked clearance racks, didn't find anything. I have no urgent needs, so that's okay. Went on to a fabric store, armed with one of my new patterns, but didn't find appropriate material. This is going to be harder than I thought. And who knew fabric cost so much now? Then went grocery shopping. That's a lot for one day.

I have a confession to make. I haven't been taking my supplements since the food poisoning incident. I've been a little demoralized by the "getting worse before it gets better" part, and kind of felt like I needed a break. And I do seem to be less tired the last few days too. So I'm going to try easing them back in much more gradually, and finding out if there's any one of them that makes me tireder. I know it might be short term pain for long term gain, but honestly, the pain was stretching out too long.

Breakfast was my yogurt concoction and a bit of ham, seeing as there wasn't much yogurt left. And coconut oil. I wanted to be well fortified... LOL.

When I got back, I fired up some bacon, the last bit of the ham, some onion and a whole big green pepper in a sort of stir fry. Ate the whole thing too. Two squares of 90% were also consumed. I was stuffed.

I was pleased that I was out for hours, had only a black coffee, and felt not the slightest hunger pang, nor blood sugar crash. I did feel a bit tired at one point (after the 2.5 k walking part), but not crushingly so. Nice.

[tomi]

Went out shopping today. Checked clearance racks, didn't find anything. I have no urgent needs, so that's okay. Went on to a fabric store, armed with one of my new patterns, but didn't find appropriate material. This is going to be harder than I thought. And who knew fabric cost so much now? Then went grocery shopping. That's a lot for one day.

I have a confession to make. I haven't been taking my supplements since the food poisoning incident. I've been a little demoralized by the "getting worse before it gets better" part, and kind of felt like I needed a break. And I do seem to be less tired the last few days too. So I'm going to try easing them back in much more gradually, and finding out if there's any one of them that makes me tireder. I know it might be short term pain for long term gain, but honestly, the pain was stretching out too long.

Breakfast was my yogurt concoction and a bit of ham, seeing as there wasn't much yogurt left. And coconut oil. I wanted to be well fortified... LOL.

When I got back, I fired up some bacon, the last bit of the ham, some onion and a whole big green pepper in a sort of stir fry. Ate the whole thing too. Two squares of 90% were also consumed. I was stuffed.

I was pleased that I was out for hours, had only a black coffee, and felt not the slightest hunger pang, nor blood sugar crash. I did feel a bit tired at one point (after the 2.5 k walking part), but not crushingly so. Nice.

Sounds like a very productive day - even if you didn't actually buy any clothes or fabric. I'd call it a good day for sure!

Yes, fabric has gotten very expensive. Used to be you could make your clothes for less than you could buy off the rack - not so much anymore! I'm trying to buy fabric to re-do the valances and side curtains in our 5th wheel! Goodness! I'm looking at stuff that is $30 a yard! I'm looking online. My town has a grand total of 2 stores with upholstery fabric and they are both pricey! Well, maybe 3 now that I think about it. But the selection is slim so I find it easier to just shop online. Have you tried that? There are zillions of places to buy fabric online. Even Ebay. I got a nice 3 yard peice to re-do the hall bath curtains after the step daughters moved out. REALLY cute!

After today's outings you might want to take it easy tomorrow, huh? I might skip my walk tomorrow since I've logged 6 hours for this passed 7 days. Maybe a little leisurely bike ride???

[Sabine]

Insert rant about the exploitative practices of clothing manufacturers here.