Spiritual Dieting

Thinking about impulse control and the Day of Bad Eating - one of the things that Buddhists talk about is "sitting with" a feeling. Don't do anything about it. Just sit and examine it. Treat it as an object of intense curiousity.

What is this? Where did it come from? Where am I feeling it? Is something physical? If so, where is it located? Is it emotional? What are the connenctions? What thoughts led to it? What other ideas is it related to? Is it based in love? What would happen if I did act on it? What would happen if I did not?

My personal orientation is Christian, of course, and there is plenty of Christian wisdom on the topic. I am reminded of Paul's admonition to "take every thought captive" or the idea of being transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Both Jesus and Paul and James all let us know that the things that are seen proceed from the things that are not seen. Simply put, our actions come out of our thoughts.

So I am resolved that the next time I heading off the food rails, I will take a moment to look at my thoughts.

For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:4 - 6

Wheels fall off

Today has been my worst eating day in two months. I am doing crazy eating and wondering why. I can only hope that tomorrow will be better.

Being honest, I think several things came into play.

One is the "might as well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb" syndrome. For those whose parents didn't come from the south, that means if you are in the red zone, might as well be really red -- and not just a little pink. So once I fell off the diet, I figured I might as well eat anything I wanted.

I am not claiming this is logical. Or even sensible.

Another contributing factor that I cannot deny (even if I try with both hands) is emotional eating. I know I do not feel 100% emotionally and I am sure I am turning to food as my drug of choice.

Is there a lurking feeling of deprivation? Am I thinking that I am missing something by sticking to my diet plan? If so, I am wrong. The junk I ate today was not nearly as good as the food I have been eating.

I'll tell you, the mind is a strange place.

Maybe I need a sponsor.

Meet Up at the Conveniently Natural Restaurant

The folks behind the movie Forks Over Knives are committed to sponsoring meet ups on the local level for those interested in following up on the eating changes that the movie embraces. The Kansas City group had their first event last night at the Conveniently Natural restaurant, 3711 Southwest Trafficway, KCMO.

We had 1) wonderful food and 2) a wonderful time.

The restaurant serves vegan food and provides home delivery of prepared vegan meals. The idea is to order a weeks' worth at a time.

This is a very intriguing to me. The food plan I am now following has me spending more at the grocery store and more time in the kitchen than I was really ready for. The idea that someone would do the shopping, menu planning and preparation is very attractive to me.

I will tell you right now that the food they serve is better than anything you will get in my kitchen. They are trying to make the vegan option attractive to people by proving that you do not need to give up your favorite foods when you decide to forgo animal products. You can have anything you crave - including brownies.

As I try to describe the food, you will see that I am not much of a gourmet. I have the same problem with paint colors. I still don't know what color "ecru" is.

We had a super tasty gluten-free pasta with tomato sauce and also a rice and quinoa casserole. The hit for me was a sea vegetable salad that seemed a lot like cole slaw. I was so impressed with it because it is high in vitamin B12. I saw an article on food sources for various vitamins & was alarmed to see the B12 seemed to exist only in meat. Finding out that you can get it from sea vegetable is great news.

And the blondies and brownies they served for dessert were far too good. Apparently you can overeat on food that is good for you. Who knew?

I do not know why I did not take pictures of the meal. Duh. But now, I have been inside the restaurant and know where I can find a guilt-free meal. 

There are, of course, other vegan restaurants in KC. I will try to track them down and write them up.

For those not familiar with the "meet up" idea, it is kind of like a Craigslist for groups. (They would probably hate to hear me say that.) If you have any interests at all, you can probably find a like-minded group on the site -- and also find out when and where they are meeting. 

FYI: Dirty Dozen

The new "dirty dozen" list of produce

• Read More from This Author »

By Sarah B. WeirMore from Green Picks blog

(Photo: Getty Images)

A new report published by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) might make you re-think that "apple a day" -- if it's conventionally grown using pesticides.

According to the group's annual "dirty dozen" list of fruits and vegetables with the highest pesticide residues, apples ranked number one as the most-contaminated item, up from number four last year.

Other changes from the 2010 findings: this year, cherries dropped off the list, and lettuce, previously absent, now appears at number 11. The EWG uses data compiled by the USDA to produce these findings.

Dirty Dozen 2011

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Strawberries
4. Peaches
5. Spinach
6. Nectarines (imported)
7. Grapes (imported)
8. Sweet bell peppers
9. Potatoes
10. Blueberries (domestic)
11. Lettuce
12. Kale/collard greens

The "clean fifteen" are also included in the report - these are fruits and veggies with the lowest levels of pesticides so there's no need to waste your money on organic versions. Some popular items include watermelon and avocado.

The EWG points out that if consumers simply chose their daily recommended five servings of fruit and vegetables from the least contaminated list over five from the dirty dozen, they would reduce the amount of pesticides ingested by 92% - without having to shell out extra money for organics.

Clean Fifteen 2011

1. Onions
2. Sweet corn
3. Pineapples
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet peas
7. Mangoes
8. Eggplants
9. Cantaloupe (domestic)
10. Kiwi
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet potatoes
14. Grapefruit
15. Mushrooms

Pesticides on produce

Conventional farmers use an arsenal of pesticides to protect their crops from insects, bacteria, rodents, molds, and fungi. These substances can end up in the food supply. Washing and peeling fruit and vegetables can lower pesticide residues, but not necessarily. When the USDA tests for pesticides, they wash and peel fruit the same way a typical consumer would.

The National Institute of Environmental Health Services acknowledges that scientists do not have a full understanding of the health risks associated with exposure to agricultural pesticide residues through food, soil, water, or air. They also report that farmers who use pesticides experience an increase in neurological symptoms and that the harmful effects on children are greater than on adults.

Recent studies indicate that pregnant women should also be careful of their exposure to pesticides. Three studies published in 2011 in the Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives suggest pesticide exposure can harm the developing fetal brain.

Organic vs. conventional produce

Organic produce is grown without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. However, organics can be harder to find and prohibitively expensive. If you are concerned about consuming pesticides, the EWG's dirty dozen and clean fifteen lists can help you make the safest and most affordable choices.

Foods that can be eaten in unlimited quantities

LEAFY GREEN VEGETABLES
romaine lettuce, leaf lettuces, kale, collards, Swiss chard, cabbage, spinach, bok choy

SOLID GREEN VEGETABLES
artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, celery, cucumber, peas, green peppers, string beans, zucchini

NON-GREEN, HIGH NUTRIENT VEGETABLES
beets, eggplant, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, peppers, water chestnuts, cauliflower, squash, carrots

BEANS AND LEGUMES
red kidney beans, pinto beans, soybeans, lentils, black-eyed peas, black beans

FRESH FRUITS
apples, apricots, blackberries, blueberries, grapefruit, grapes, kiwis, mangoes, nectarines, all melons, oranges, peaches, pears, pineapples, plums, strawberries, tangerines

A little slip up

I confess. This week for the first time since I started this eating plan, I have been hungry. And my weight loss seems to have hit a plateau. So it was back to the books for a diet review.

Aha and eureka! Who would have thought it? I am hungry because I am not eating enough!

As I understand it, there are macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients. The macro-nutrients are protein, carbohydrates and fat.  They have calories.  And consequences. They should be eaten moderately.

The micro-nutrients are things like vitamins and minerals. They are found in colorful vegetables. They are nothing but good for you. And they can be eaten with abandon. As much as you want.

The problem with my diet for the past week was that I had been eating the macro-nutrients but had not chowed down on the veggies. I was eating far less than the pound of raw vegetables and the pound of cooked vegetables that I am supposed to eat.

There is no reason to be hungry. Just gotta chop and cook a little more.

The Sugar Debate

"Is Sugar Toxic?" asks journalist and author Gary Taubes in a recent article in the New York Times magazine.

Usually the problem with sugar is thought of simply as one of over-consumption of "empty" calories. Source of problem: personal discipline. Solution: Cut back.

However, Taubes' reading of the medical research suggests much more than that. The problem, he argues, is with sugar itself, not our personal will power. In fact, there are those suggesting that sugar should be thought of like tobacco, as something that is actively toxic.

The issue is the way in which sugar is metabolized by the body.  Sugar (really no different than high fructrose corn syrup) is chemically half glucose and half fructose. The glucose part is a normal byproduct of carbohydrate digestion. That is the part to be handled with moderation.

The piece that concerns him -- and many researchers -- is the fructose. It is digested primarily in the liver, where it rapidly deposits fat.

"In animals, or at least in laboratory rats and mice, it’s clear that if the fructose hits the liver in sufficient quantity and with sufficient speed, the liver will convert much of it to fat. This apparently induces a condition known as insulin resistance, which is now considered the fundamental problem in obesity, and the underlying defect in heart disease and in the type of diabetes, type 2, that is common to obese and overweight individuals. It might also be the underlying defect in many cancers."

Excessive fat in the liver has been linked to metabolic syndrome (also know as insulin resistance), a condition in which your body ignores the action of the hormone insulin. In response, your pancreas produces more and more insulin - until it reaches a state of exhaustion.

There are two results from this. One is either a pre-diabetic condition or full blown type II diabetes. The other is a state of chronic insulin elevation. This second condition may be as dangerous as diabetes, perhaps more so.

"The connection between obesity, diabetes and cancer was first reported in 2004 in large population studies by researchers from the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer. It is not controversial. What it means is that you are more likely to get cancer if you’re obese or diabetic than if you’re not, and you’re more likely to get cancer if you have metabolic syndrome than if you don’t.

So how does it work? Cancer researchers now consider that the problem with insulin resistance is that it leads us to secrete more insulin, and insulin (as well as a related hormone known as insulin-like growth factor) actually promotes tumor growth."

In other words, chronic over-supply of insulin may foster the growth of cancerous cells.

This is a short version of a very long article. You can read more yourself.

For an expert, but admittedly negative, look at the sugar, take a look at the YouTube lecture by Dr. Robert H. Lustig, UCSF Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology.  An hour and a half long, this video has been viewed more than 1.4 million times. A great many people must think it is important.

Different than it seems

In some ways, juicing was easier than eating real food. One of my chief problems with food has been figuring out -- meal by meal -- what to eat. When I was juicing, it was simple: eat the green juice in the fridge. It is not nearly so simple now.

The basics are simple enough. Eat a pound of raw vegetables. Eat a pound of cooked vegetables. Don't eat too many grains or beans. Avoid oil, salt, sugar, animal products and gluten. Eat four fruits a day.

Five simple sentences.

One would think that "avoid oil, salt, sugar, animal products and gluten" would be the sticking point. It is not so much. I am stuck on how to eat the pound of cooked vegetables. I guess I need to spend more time reading recipes.

I sort of miss the simplicity of juice. But not the clean up time.

Have I Joined a Cult?

Have I joined some kind of foodist cult? No.
Do I think Joel Fuhrman is the Source of All Truth? No.
Was I brainwashed into trying some kind of harebrained eating scheme. Um, I don't think so.

Here's the deal. Years ago when I used to grow bonsai, the club leaders said, "If you are going to buy a book, only buy one book. If you get more than one, they will contradict each other and you will get confused."

For right now, Eat to Live is my one book. It may not be any better than any other book. But for a little while, it is my book.  So that I do not become confused.

Actually, on a personal level, my friend Jamie Rich had amazing -- and long-lived -- weight loss results with the Fuhrman method. (See below.) So I didn't just pick it out of a hat.

I am not afraid that I will become malnourished and die during this trial period. If anything, I was more malnourished during the years when I was gaining this weight.  Pizza, beer, diet coke and popcorn don't strike me as a spectacularly well-balanced diet. If I did not die then, I probably will not keel over in the next few weeks.

(Just for the record, the pizza etc. diet was more than 10 years ago. I was in a blue funk and gained 80 pounds in a year. Interestingly, it is far easier to gain weight than it is to lose it.)

What I keep in front of me is the reason that I am doing this. My knees are full of arthritis and my primary medical remedy is surgical. I want to try everything in my power to avoid that. If it takes losing weight, I am finally completely serious about it. 

And, honestly, even if I were to undergo surgery, my rehab and recovery would much easier if I were much smaller.

Little changes don't seem to work for me. I have been trying to tweak my diet and exercise for years with not much to show for it. Apparently, I need a radical shift my eating patterns for the time being while I determine what my new direction will be.

Remember, there are two phases to change. First, stop. Stop what you are doing. Second, do something different. This is my stop phase.

Right now, nutrient density makes sense to me. Sugar-free and gluten-free also recommends itself to my intelligence.

I cannot see anything wrong with eating highly nutritious foods exclusively for a while.

Back in love with Ethiopian Food

I do not know exactly what Dr. Joel Fuhrman would think but today I went to lunch with my co-workers at the Blue Nile Ethiopian Cafe in, shh, Johnson County. First, I love Ethiopian food. Second, I love Daniel and Selam who own it - have know them since 1995 or so. Third, it is practically guilt-free!

For those who do not know about Ethiopian food, it is mostly vegetarian and you eat it by tearing off little pieces of bread & scooping up the food with it. 

The good news is that injera, the bread with which you eat, is gluten-free. It is not made with wheat but with a grain called teff, grown in Ethiopia. It is made with a starter, like sourdough, and is spongy & stretchy. Great for those of us who like to play with our food.

I found a very complete recipe for injera that includes the starter process.

http://chefinyou.com/2010/02/ethiopian-injera-recipe/

More good news is that I ate all the right cooked vegetables: spinach, beets, squash, lentils, mushrooms.

I confess I do not know about the oil and salt content.

And I probably ate more than I should have.

But I am mostly joyful.