Slow-carb, low-carb, no-carb

All this talk about restricting starchy carbs JUST MAKES ME WANT TO EAT THEM!

© Debora J. McNeer

I'm totally jonesing for a big hunk of homemade bread dripping with butter. And marmalade.

Paleo plans are all over the internets these days. I even got a message from my former son-in-law yesterday suggesting I try the Four Hour Body plan, not paleo but definitely carb-restricting. (He and I have had many conversations about weight-loss struggles over the years, so he was trying to be helpful and supportive.) He has apparently done well with it. I'm not linking, if you're curious you'll find lots of information with a Google search.

One of the common threads in the plans I've been looking at lately is including a cheat day, a day off from whatever the plan is (another one I've checked out is called Game On). The theory is that a free-for-all day keeps your metabolism revved up, tricking your body into thinking you're not really on a diet. Because you just ate a … whatever your particular food porn is.

My daily weight checks this week are increasingly discouraging. Because they're increasing. I'm ready to cut off an arm to lose weight.

Yesterday's luncheon at the Governor's mansion consisted of tuna, chicken or egg salad on a flaky croissant; some kind of warm pasta dish (the pasta was decidedly not whole grain); mayonnaise-y cole slaw; potato salad, and red velvet cake. I ate very little, but I had to eat something. I'd been on the road for two hours and then in meetings for another three.

And, of course, I made up for the crappy food I ate during the day by overeating last night when I got home. I just. couldn't. get. enough. It was one of those nights where I simply wanted to eat and eat and eat.

I hate when that happens.

It's good that there's not much here that's bad to eat. You can't eat what you don't have and I'm certainly not going to drive 12 miles to the nearest market to get the food porn of my choice.

But overeating good stuff isn't good either.

So. Have I parted company with South Beach? No, not really, although my food log certainly looks like I have. I'm beginning to think that having these rules is probably hindering my progress. I do tend to throw up my hands when I can't (because meals are out of my control) follow the plan.

It was just two days ago that I wrote I needed to reboot, reset, renew my resolve. Here I am feeling the same way, with literally nothing to hang my hat on in between. Oh, and today? A funeral and a reception following it with food lovingly prepared and served by members of the departed's church. I suppose I could skip it, but my mother-in-law won't want to leave.

So there you go. Another downer of a post about how hard it is to stick to a plan when life happens. Life has been happening in a big way lately – family issues and illnesses, travel, work. Maybe instead of a reset button I should just lock myself in a tower and have my food delivered.

I hear Jillian has launched a meal-delivery plan …

Sugar-free, but …

not completely South Beach compliant.

It was hard to stay on plan while I was gone over the weekend. Rather than go into all the gory details, let's just say I need to hit the reset button today.

Sigh.

I listened to a lot of podcasts while traveling to and from, and got all caught up Russ and Jeff, Jillian and The Moth. I actually had to listen to music the last 20 miles or so coming home. Considering I was on the road for a total of probably 10 hours, I was, um, pretty far behind.

I wish listening to podcasts was all there was to it. Unfortunately, I need to put into practice the ideas these folks are preaching and teaching. And I am, really, but as you can probably tell I'm discouraged after a weekend where I wasn't able to eat the way I need to.

I might give myself a pass on the official weigh-in tomorrow.

One bright spot of the weekend (I was visiting one of my grandchildren, so that was the true bright spot) was getting out for a run/walk Saturday morning. Six other women, all young enough to be my daughters, meet up semi-regularly and invited me to tag along.

They've been doing a 1/1 run/walk, but we mixed it up a bit and did some 3/2s, 2/2s and 2/1s. I'm so out of running shape. But it felt good to be running (the flat terrain and paved trail helped a lot) and the fact that I didn't die gave me a little hope that I might actually be able to get back to it again.

Today I will hit the gym and the produce aisle. I have some freelance work to do this afternoon, but tomorrow will be another day out of town. Including  another lunch out of my control. This is what real life looks like, and it's making me wonder whether SB is really what I need to be doing. It's pretty inflexible and I end up feeling bad when I can't follow it to the letter. The testimonials in the book were carefully chosen, I'm sure, to point out how easy it is to stick with the program come hell or high water. Or business trips or restaurant meals.

In a situation where someone else is doing the cooking, though – well, not so easy at all. When one feels bad about oneself to start with, it's probably not useful or productive to intentionally add yet another guilt-inducing layer to the scenario.

A good hard workout will do me good and give me lots of time to think. My e-mail was read and discussed on episode #111 of the Fat2Fit podcast, and I listened to it again yesterday. I haven't lost any additional weight since then (12/8/10, and isn't that discouraging!), but I also haven't been starving myself for a year, either. Russ and Jeff encourage their listeners to eat whole, healthy foods, just as Dr. Agatston does, but I haven't been doing much at all to keep my metabolism revved up by eating more frequently. And I'm back into the calorie-restriction mentality, which isn't the best place to be.

Yes, it's definitely time to reset, reboot, renew my resolve.

I like last week's results better

Tuesdays are weigh-in days around here. Last Tuesday I loudly and proudly announced a total loss of 10 pounds in six weeks. Today? Not so much.

After seven weeks, I've lost seven pounds. A pound a week, that's supposed to be good, right? But a three-pound gain in one week? That's not so good. And I'm really discouraged.

©Debora J. McNeer

So tired of eating eggs I took a week off.

I haven't eaten an egg all week. Eggs are a go-to breakfast for South Beach followers. I have either been skipping breakfast or eating Shredded Wheat, which is permitted on Phase II, but clearly my body is hanging on to every delicious carb-laden shred of that wheat.

So. Bummed.

No, really, I am

SO BUMMED!

In fact, I am so bummed I think I'll go scramble an egg. Grrr.

Yesterday's four to six inches of snow has been significantly reduced. It's nearly gone completely from the driveway. The emerging daffodils are planted in an area that didn't get more than a dusting. We lost several birch branches and a huge limb from one of the pines. All in all, not a bad way to kick winter to the curb.

Now it's time to kick the rest of these extra pounds after them.

A South Beach gripe

I alluded to this when I began following the South Beach plan a month ago. I'm a "whole foods" kinda gal. When it comes to dietary fat, SB suggests that you:

Dispose of all solid vegetable shortening, lard, butter and hydrogenated oils. Replace them with extra-virgin olive oil, canola oil and cooking spray, and with margarines and spreads that do not contain trans fatty acids.

The South Beach Diet Super Charged, p. 165

I have some issues with this directive.

Obviously I'm not doing much baking on South Beach. Do I miss it? Hell, yeah! I told my husband last night that possibly the worst thing about the plan is I really don't get to cook. Mostly I throw a chicken breast on the George Forman and toss a salad or roast some cauliflower – not exactly haute cuisine, nor is it even creative cooking.

In the second phase of the plan you can eat whole grains. I'm really missing pizza, so I decided to try making a 100 percent whole-wheat pizza dough. It's in progress; I'll report back tomorrow on how successful I was.

I found the recipe I'm using in Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats.

Right up my alley, little rebel that I am. Heh.

The thing about the recipe that doesn't fit with South Beach is, um, butter. And full-fat yogurt (which I make from fresh, grass-fed, non-homogenized cow's milk). I'll post the whole thing if it's edible, but I just wanted to say right up front that butter is now and always has been on my menu.

Granted since Dr. Agatston doesn't encourage baking or the eating of bread, there's not much opportunity to eat butter. And I use olive oil when I sauté meat or poultry in my non-stick skillet (or Dutch oven, I love my new Dutch oven!), but I've been using olive oil to sauté for years.

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There is, however, butter in the pizza dough. One. Entire. Stick. The recipe calls for softened butter, and mine wasn't, so here's a tip. Don't put a stick of butter in the microwave to soften. Instead, grab your box grater and shred it into your mixing bowl. It will soften quickly and be ready to incorporate into your recipe in no time.

I need to make the mozzarella this morning, pull a jar of frozen pesto and a chicken breast out to thaw and  tonight – we feast! I hope. Film at eleven.

Up, down, up down ... HEAVY SIGH

[Before I get started this morning, did you read Mindy's fantastic comment yesterday about how she knew her husband was The One? What a guy! Thanks for sharing your story, Mindy.]

Okay, I'm ready.

Perhaps I shouldn't be weighing myself daily. Or perhaps I shouldn't give the number I saw this morning so much power. I have a lot to do today. I don't have time to analyze why I've bounced back up again, nor do I have the energy for it.

It's. Just. Information.

Data comes in all forms, and what I weigh is just part of it. How my clothes fit, how my wedding ring slips around on my finger, how I move, how I feel are better indicators of how the South Beach+gym workout plan is working than what the scale says.

Can I get an "amen" on that?

I'll be honest with you, I'm pretty tired of all protein and vegetables, all the time. I'm sticking with Phase I most days; a couple days a week I have steel-cut oats or whole-grain bread at one meal. I'm allowed to add a half-cup of carrots (and peas) on Phase II, and I think I'll do that today.

What's so bad about carrots, anyway? Yes, I know they have more "sugar" than spinach or celery, but still. Come to think of it, though, the original incarnation of Weight Watchers limited carrots (and peas) to four ounces daily. (Many vegetables were unlimited back in the day.) There must be something inherently delicious about carrots (and peas) if they're restricted.

For the last couple gym workouts I've been using free weights instead of Nautilus for biceps and triceps. I started with five-pound dumbbells, because the gym doesn't have eight-pounders (which is what I have at home) and I didn't think I could lift 10-pounders. Because I'm a wimp.

Well, yesterday I picked up that 10-pound bad boy and ripped off two sets of 15 curls and kickbacks like it was nothing! I was so surprised, and I learned a valuable lesson: I must not underestimate myself. Maybe my inner badass is breaking free. Heh.

If that doesn't get me out of this scale-induced funk, nothing will. I feel better already, just remembering how I felt when I finished.

Don't worry, I'm not morphing into a weightlifter. I still don't much care for strength-training, but I can see  a few benefits already. Not so much in my shape, but more like this:

• my ability to move more freely
• my energy level
• my willingness to just go do [whatever] rather than delay or ignore doing [whatever]
• my posture (seriously!)

I hope I figure out all this health-and-fitness stuff before I'm eligible for Medicare. It would be so great to have a government health benefit and not have to use it for illness or a disability. I've been working on figuring it out more than half my life, you'd think I'd have it down by now.

If I did, though, what kind of drivel would both of you be reading this morning? Heh.

Here's what the rest of my day is going to look like:

This is the prototype for this year's campaign buttons for my Democratic women's group.
I need to make enough to give to members at our meeting tonight, and then we'll be
making and selling them as a fundraiser. Want one? Let me know. Just $3!

I hope your day is just as crafty, creative and hopey-changey as mine is!

Oh, the weather outside is …

beautiful! In an ethereal, dreamy, foggy kind of way.

Yesterday morning we woke up to low clouds and thick frost. See?

Today it's clear and crisp with frost covering everything on the northeast side of the house, but barely coating the stuff on the southwest side. Not sure how to explain that. And it's not nearly as picture-worthy as yesterday's icy morning greeting.

Looks like we're in for some cold, cold nights, with daytime highs gradually cooling as the week wears on. High today of 53° and sunny, so an outdoor walk is on the agenda. The rest of the week we descend into winter. Finally. I hope the daffs survive.

I've now been South Beaching for four weeks. My weight stayed the same this week, but the trend since January 1 has been two weeks of losses and one week of staying the same. Jen noted recently that she experiences a similar pattern. Not that I'm Jen, but it was instructive to read that and it helped me be not quite as bummed as I would have been in the past. Jen also is using a scale that tracks body fat. I have a scale that does that, but I'm not using it. Maybe it's time. (My body fat percentage was so scary-high I put the scale away and haven't looked at it in more than a year. Seriously!)

My old thinking would have had me jumping off the wagon at this point. I've been really good about this plan that promises big losses the first two weeks and a steady two-pounds-a-week after that. I can stay the same weight eating all kinds of crap. I maintained the same [too-high] weight for several months last year, eating pretty much whatever I wanted.

Rather than ditch it, I plan to stick with South Beach. Nothing about eating protein and vegetables is going to hurt me, and avoiding sugar and refined flour has already helped. I feel much better emotionally.

There's also the gym factor. I've been faithfully showing up there thrice-weekly for two weeks, spending at least half an hour on full-body weight-training and another 45 minutes watching Glee on the treadmill. I am a sweaty mess when I get done. On the days I'm not in the gym I try to walk outside or do the elliptical here at home, although I have missed either three or four days of intentional activity.

The interesting thing about skipping a day is that in the old days I could easily justify skipping another and another and then just falling back into the not-working-out habit. Now I just tell myself that because of circumstances, I need to take a day off. ONE day. Not a week.

Consistent healthful eating plus consistent workouts will theoretically yield results. There's a poster on Pinterest (naturally I can't find it now, sigh) that says (regarding weight loss) it takes 4 weeks for you to notice, 8 weeks for friends and family and 12 weeks for everyone else.

I guess I've still got time. Heh.

How's that workin' for ya?

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Between January 1 and January 12 I lost two pounds, counting calories but not limiting any foods or food groups.

From January 12 to today, I've lost seven pounds, following the South Beach plan.

You do the math.

I've been going to the gym for a week now. Last week I was doing 2 sets of 10 reps at a reasonably difficult weight level on both upper- and lower-body Nautilus and Cybex machines. Yesterday I bumped it up to 12 reps, and I'm making sure the weight is heavy enough to be challenging. I probably should write down what I'm doing so I can see some progress, but that would mean carrying around a clipboard. Cumbersome!

And I'd probably look really serious about it, too. Heh.

In addition to circuit training, I'm treadmilling at an average speed of 3.5 mph, and a slight incline (3 or 4), for 42 minutes – precisely the amount of time it takes to watch an episode of Glee on the Nook. There are so many TV series available on Netflix that I've never seen, because my husband commandeers the remote every. damned. night. My treadmill time will be entertaining for many months to come.

My right hip joint has been painful for several weeks, but since I've been going to the gym it's only a minor twinge every now and then. I hardly ever notice it. I believe it's because I'm using the machines for hip adductor and abductor, which I always thought toned your inner and outer thighs. Who knew they were useful for muscle and joint pain?

Busy day today. I'm working with a client this afternoon, but before I do that I need to throw together a couple meat loaves and put a roast in the oven. I'm really motivated to continue with South Beach after the progress I've made. I've been buying sliced deli roast beef, but I have a freezer full of grass-fed beef I should probably be using. One of the meat loaves is going to my dog-sitter. I usually make him something sweet; he's going to really be surprised to receive an entrée instead of dessert!

January is done, done, done … your turn to share your progress with your first-of-the-year goals. That's what the comments are for, after all. Sharing. Or leave a link to your blog in the comments, so we can be nosy and read more, more, more.

I promised you pictures …

and I deliver! I swear it took as long to edit these pictures as it did to clean the closet. Heh.

On the left, the before view of a very messy closet that gets all kinds of stuff
dumped in it. When I don't know where to store something, I put it in the hall
closet. On the right, everything's tidy. And I've already moved some things
around since I took the after photo. Can't. Leave. Well. Enough. Alone. Heh.

The tippy top shelf didn't have much on it, because I'm
too short to reach it. So I didn't take pictures of it. This is
the third shelf, the before view is above the after one.
Those boxes stacked on the left are empty, do any of you
have trouble throwing away perfectly good empty boxes?

Second shelf, the in-your-face-when-you-open-the-door
one. Yes, I have foot mannequins, I'm a sock designer!
(Although I haven't created a new design in, hmmm,
how long? TOO LONG TO REMEMBER!)

Lowest shelf, and the most important one. All the
instruction books for all the appliances, heat pump, etc.,
plus office supplies, bank statements.
Above: Chaos!
Below: Order!

The floor. In the before view (above) I sometimes had to
wiggle things around to get the door closed.
Not a problem now.

On the left, things to donate (not much, unfortunately).
On the right, the trash. I'm a little embarrassed to show you how many
paper towel rolls I had stashed away for some kind of craft project!

I feel NO NEED to buy fancy canvas containers to make the inside of a closet look good. Priority Mail boxes and other shipping containers are free. Those, a box cutter and packing tape are all I needed for storage solutions.

It took a good three hours to finish this job, which really isn't much considering the amount of crap I had stuffed in there. To reward myself at the end of it, I worked out. At my new gym!

Time for a progress report. I've been feeling really, really down this week, because I check my weight daily and I haven't seen any losses. Yesterday was the end of the two-week South Beach Phase 1 regimen, and I'd hoped to see some results. Until this morning, I felt unrewarded for all my hard work. (I can honestly say I've followed the plan pretty well. No sugar, no grains, if I've gotten off track at all it's in not eating enough vegetables with each meal.)

Today's weigh-in showed a two-pound loss. I was so surprised! How does that happen, to go all week long staying the same and then suddenly drop two overnight. I guess if I knew the answer to that I'd already have written a book, right?

I think I reported incorrectly last week that I'd lost six pounds since the first of the year, when it was really five. Now it's seven since January 1 and five since January 10, when I started South Beach.

Looks like it's working. No reason to stop now, especially when I've added the element of regular weight-training to the plan.

I didn't join the gym for cardio, I'm happy to walk on my mountain for that. I joined for the Nautilus and Cybex machines and, eventually, the free weights. My previous (albeit 20 years ago) experience is that muscle-building = weight loss. That's also what science says, at least current science. So we'll see. I'm my own guinea pig!

One week done, three pounds gone

I'm smart enough not to say they're gone forever, since they've been gone forever before. Many times, just for the record. The three pounds last week are in addition to three pounds lost just counting calories the first 10 days of January. To sum up, since New Year's Day I've lost six pounds, half of that last week following the South Beach plan.

It's a miracle! Or a fluke, only time will tell.

It helps to be busy doing Other Stuff. My brain's go-to default is "let's eat!" so having a knitting project or a freelance design gig or some other compelling time-suck really helps, and if I have to create them, I'm going to.

The clog knitting isn't done yet, and there's not much football left. (If you're new here, I like to knit watching sports. It's difficult for me to do one without the other. They go together like South Beach-friendly ham and eggs. Heh.) I like college ball much better than pro, especially this year when my man Peyton had to sit out. (The Colts won ONE game all year, shouldn't Peyton Manning be the MVP? Clearly he is Indy's most valuable player!)

But little bro Eli made it to the championship series, so maybe there will be enough football left to complete the last two pair. I'm working on my husband's now, with one nearly done. The last pair, of course, will be mine, because I'm like the shoemaker: My footwear has holes in it, but I'm too busy making footwear for other people.

It hurts like hell to sit and knit, though, because of the hip pain. The loveseat in our little TV room is waaaay less comfortable than working on the laptop at the dining room table. Which is where you would have found me yesterday, designing a logo for a new client. (He loved it, I'm always happy when my vision matches the client's.) I need to do a little clean-up and formatting and that job will be out the door.

I have a couple little craft projects on the agenda. Actually if you saw my Pinterest Crafty board I have enough DIY ideas to get me to my goal weight. This is the one I'm doing as soon as the clogs are finished.

All in all, I'm doing pretty well following the plan. Eating more protein really does curb hunger. South Beach doesn't limit the number of carbs you can eat, but my research indicates that I might have an easier time releasing weight if I were to keep them around 30 per day. I'm averaging around 40; prior to SB I was eating about 175 carbs/day. And I'm NOT complaining about losing three pounds the first week.

The most difficult part has been honoring my commitment to eat real, whole foods, particularly when I'm looking for something sweet. I don't want to get sucked back into using artificial sweeteners, but there are few alternatives. (And because I don't like to waste anything, I'm determined to use that bag of Splenda before I try stevia.) The last time I went sugar-free it took about three weeks for the sugar cravings to subside, so I just need to be patient and wait this out.

My husband is totally on board with me doing South Beach, and hasn't even asked for a baked potato or hamburger bun to supplement his meals. He's really making it a lot easier for me, remind me to thank him. Again. And thank you for being patient with me as I slog through a South Beach post. I promise I won't make this a habit.

One down, two to go

Friday the 13ths, that is. We'll have another in April and one in July, and the most you can have in one year is three. A third of the way done with the bad-luck Fridays.

I've had more unfortunate incidents happen on the Ides of March than any Friday the 13th, though, so I will keep calm and carry on today. And keep warm while I'm at it. The arctic cold front came through last night, dumping a good eighth of an inch of snow here in the Middle of Nowhere. The high today will be 28. I have a date with the elliptical later.

Thank you all for your encouragement as I begin this new way of eating. My daughter said it seemed like a sensible, healthful plan for her. She didn't try to encourage me to jump on board at all. She was simply being a good example, although she doesn't know it. I won't see her again until June, and I'm hoping against hope that I will be able to surprise her with a much-improved body by then.

Frankly, after all the chopping-prepping-cooking I've done this week, I'm impressed by how she manages.  She has a full-time job, two children who are involved in time-sucking extracurriculars and she goes to law school. But she's always been very organized and when she knows she has to do something, she doesn't procrastinate. She. Just. Does. It.

She's been a good example for me in that respect, as well.

South Beach appears to be working so far. I've been weighing myself daily since the first of the year, and until I quit eating sugar and flour products, I'd been bouncing up and down with the same three pounds. I've now lost six pounds since January 1.

Quite amazing. And, apparently, against the laws of nature according to FatSecret. When I recorded my weight this morning, I got this little pop-up message, which TOTALLY cracked me up:

           My Weigh in Report

              You lost 2.0 lb (1.0 %) since you last weighed in on Thursday 12 Jan 12.
              At that rate it will take you about 1 months to get to your goal weight.

One month to goal? HAH! Even I don't wish for that!

I've been using FatSecret off and on since the fall of 2010, and I really like the program. I don't get involved in challenges or have buddies or join sub-groups. I use it only for tracking my progress and recording my food and exercise.

This little warning message was a surprise, since I've never recorded my weight on a daily basis before. One more reason to like it. I know a lot of iPhone folks use LoseIt, and in the past I've used other programs, some free, some paid. Do any of you use one I might not have heard of? Do tell!

Insights from a trip to the grocery

When I travel for a few days, I usually leave the refrigerator fairly empty, as my husband doesn't won't okay, can't cook (job security for me) and I don't want to come home to spoiled food.  The confluence of my return home and my decision to follow a South Beach plan meant I needed to stock up.

It's not like I didn't shop while I was at my daughter's. Heh. And never mind that I brought oat groats, wheat berries and brown rice home with me. Until I watched my daughter eat over the weekend, the idea of South Beach never crossed my mind. The grains are hidden in the pantry for now, but will be useful in a couple of weeks.

I went to Tiny Kroger yesterday without a list. I knew I needed vegetables and cheese, and thought I would have a look at other products that might work for me.

As both of you know, I enjoy cooking. I'd rather cook from scratch than open jars or cans (with the exception of mushrooms – canned mushrooms are so convenient).

So why was I in the pasta aisle, reading nutrition labels on jars of Alfredo sauce? It's like a low-carb worm has taken over my brain. Once I got past the produce bins, everything I picked up had a bar code. That's generally not how I shop, cook or eat.

I took a moment to reset my attitude and made my way to the dairy department as quickly as I could.

I want this South Beach experiment to support my desire to cook fresh, whole foods as much as possible. When I looked at my receipt, I think I did okay. The bulk of my purchases were vegetables. I also bought low-fat sausage and pepperoni, vegetable juice, mayonnaise (which I could make myself, and probably will from now on), cheeses, sour cream and yogurt for my husband. (I prefer plain, which is quite easy and so cheap to make, while he likes the slimy flavored low-fat sugar-free kind. No offense if that's what you like, too! Heh.)

There are plenty of recipes out there for tasty SB meals, and it looks like there's a lot of chopping and prepping and cooking-from-scratch involved. We had this cauliflower dish (I subbed fresh mushrooms for the olives) last night and it was beyond delicious. And I don't even like cauliflower.

So I think I'm on the right track, at least as far as meal prep goes. I know that a lot of people complain about the amount of cooking there is when you start a plan like this, but I think it's just what I need. And I'm very fortunate to not be working full-time, to only be cooking for two, to have a well-stocked freezer and to think that cooking is a creative hobby, not a loathesome chore.

As for reduced-fat Alfredo sauce, every label – even Newman's Own – had a long list of unpronounceable ingredients. When the time comes, I'll be making my own. Or going without. It's not like Alfredo sauce is a regular part of my menu rotation.

I hope the blog doesn't get boring or uninteresting (if it even was interesting to start with). I'll try not to make it all-South-Beach-all-the-time. But as I begin the program, it's inevitable that I'll be nattering on about it. Let me know if you get bored.

Check this OUT!

As both of you know, Pinterest is the new crack and I'm totally addicted. I was able to cut back slightly while I was away, simply because I thought it would be rude to stay glued to the computer at my daughter's house the way I'm glued to it at mine. And, wonder of wonders, I really didn't gawk much yesterday, since the day after a trip usually means laundry and cleaning and cooking a Real Meal for my husband instead of the toaster-oven cheese sandwiches he survives on when I travel.

But I digress.

I'm always excited to check out whatever new growth there might be in the indoor jungle, and I nearly yelped when I found this:

I recently pinned this method for re-growing celery, and then proceeded to chop off the root end of a limp bunch of celery from my crisper drawer and plop it in a glass with about a half inch of water. I think I did this a week ago. And there are leaves! Already! Tiny baby celery stalks are growing in my living room in January!

I'm astonished, can you tell? Heh.

I've planted celery in the outdoor garden for the past three years, and it does grow. I've never gotten big stalks like you see at the market, but the stalks are tender and much greener (I don't collar my plants) and quite tasty. Just … not a great yield for the space it takes up.

Some vegetables pull their weight as far as garden real estate goes: tomatoes, of course, and green beans. Cucumbers. Edamame is a high-yield, easy-to-grow plant, as is okra (although the growing season for okra is pretty long).

With celery, though, you get one bunch per plant (obviously) and each plant takes about a foot of row space and you can't eat all of the mature plants at the same time. There's not much point in growing even one whole row unless you're willing to chop and freeze most of it. Which I'm not.

(Other crops that don't pull their weight, in my opinion, are beans that are meant to be dried – cranberry, black, lima, etc., with the exception of black-eyed peas – and corn – one ear per stalk and those stalks take up a lot of space. English peas take up a lot of room and are a pain in the ass to shell, but are SO DELICIOUS that I don't mind giving them a couple rows early in the spring, before I can plant anything else.)

The celery re-growing method also works on green onions, which are on my grocery list.

Okay, moving on. My ginger-haired friend commented yesterday that when her husband eliminated one food from his diet – in his case, it was grains – he was able to lose weight. And that got me to thinking about the only time in the last 20 years I've been successful at losing a significant amount of weight (almost 50 pounds). I didn't eat sugar or white flour. At all. For five years.

One taste was all it took and in no time flat I was out of my skinny jeans and back into my yoga pants. Because sugar is my crack, just as surely as Pinterest is.

My daughter casually remarked over the weekend that she felt South Beach was the healthiest way to eat. It certainly works for her. I happen to have three South Beach books on my cookbook shelf (who among us doesn't?) so I took one of them down yesterday and started reading it again.

How hard can it be? After one day … not very. But I'll let you know in two weeks, when the first phase is over.

Knitting? Running? RepEATING!

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know this blog is called “Knit. Run. Repeat.” I feel like I should apologize for the past two weeks of almost exclusively writing about eating.

The knitting continues, although with a great deal less enthusiasm than at any other time in the past 20 years. My friend Nancy, who died late last year, was my knitting buddy. Before she got sick we had daily conversations, either by e-mail or by phone, about knitting: yarn, needles, projects, ideas, progress (or lack of it), problems. She would have loved the poufs I gave to my two older grandchildren for Valentine’s Day. She would have made them for her grandsons.

I’m nearly done knitting a felted bag (you can get the pattern here). I don’t think I’ll add the little doo-dad decoration to it, but I will add all the pockets, although knitting the pockets is the fiddly part and I’m in more of a mood to do mindless, don’t-think-about-it knitting lately. Hence the poufs. Heh.

The running has stopped completely. I haven’t run since the Richmond Half-Marathon in November. I walk a lot, either outside or on the treadmill, but I feel clumsy and stupid running when I’m as fat as I am now.

So that’s why I keep writing about eating, or at least eating the South Beach way. When I walked outside this morning I actually thought, ‘I should go running today.’ Keep in mind it’s f-f-freezing cold and my workout today will most definitely be on the treadmill. But that little running thought popped into my pea-sized brain and made me happy. I’ll be running again when the weather warms up. Oh, yes, I will!

One week down …

I took a photo of my February calendar page for today’s 365 post. I’ve been X-ing off each day of Phase One as if I’m counting down the days to my release from the big house. Not a very positive attitude toward something that is obviously good for me and seems to be working.

I weigh myself every morning and despite a gain from yesterday to today, the total loss for this first week was 3.5 pounds. Not too shabby, especially for someone who is normally thrilled to lose 3.5 pounds in a month!

Mostly I feel great. Yesterday I felt my energy plunge and I was hungry a lot, but that was after three days of almost manic activity, so I guess it shouldn’t have come as a surprise.

We experienced quite a change in the weather beginning early yesterday evening. A very strong storm came through with little rain but a great deal of wind. Two tree feel across our road, one from our property and one from our neighbor’s. The wind was so strong that we fled from the second floor of the garage to the house, found all the flashlights and made sure the batteries worked and filled the dog’s water dishes. (When our power goes out, so does our water.)

Amazingly, the lights flickered only once, briefly, and came right back on again. The wind howled all night, though, and I have many, many tree limbs to pick up today. Our very large, heavy barbecue grill, which has wheels to make it easy to move, ended up on its back in the yard, along with one wrought iron patio chair.

We don’t get storms like this very often. The worst for us is ice, because when the roads are icy we’re pretty much stuck at home. Our road is one-lane, curvy, hilly and dangerous to navigate. Four-wheel drive is great on snow, but useless on ice. And ice frequently will knock out the power. Being stuck at home with no power, no water, no heat and no way to get out – definitely the worst.

On a completely different note, today is the third National Call-In Day to support HR676. If you’re fed up with the way health care is delivered in the United States, I urge you to visit that link and make a call to your congressional representative. One thing I learned during the recent political season is that one person does make a difference. And that person could be you.

When your mind is forced to wander

I woke up this morning with a sore throat and the back of my neck is killing me. I can't turn my head to the right for some reason. I’m sure it's meningitis or a brain tumor or something equally dramatic.

I probably just slept wrong.

Here’s something you probably don’t think much about: forced meditation.

When I left for my three-mile walk yesterday at noon, my husband said he would be leaving within half an hour to go for his six-miler. He drives to his location; I take a left at the end of the driveway.

It occurred to me, about a quarter mile down the road, that he might lock the house when he left. I said to myself, “Surely he’ll realize I don’t have my keys when he checks to see if they’re where I always toss them.”

Yeah, right. I should have turned around – retracing a quarter mile takes less time than, oh, sitting on the porch for an hour and a half waiting for him to come home.

I thought about going for another walk, but I was thirsty and tired and, okay, lazy. I picked up some fallen tree branches and piled them up in the pine grove. I gathered up a very large pile of pine straw that’s been littering the driveway for two months and toted it (in the wheelbarrow) to the woods.

And I … sat on the porch. Thinking murderous thoughts. Wondering how he could be so thoughtless. And, finally, realizing that 90 minutes not playing computer solitaire was probably a Good Thing.

Day Six of South Beach is done, done, done. I can’t quite believe I have just eight days to go until I can have brown rice. (See? I didn’t even say dark chocolate – what a wonderful plan this is when your chocolate cravings can be transformed into brown-rice cravings!)

I can absolutely report a marked increase in my energy level, especially the past three days. When I see something that needs to be done, I do it. (Tree limbs, pine straw, anyone?) For instance, the office carpet needed vacuuming, but it wasn’t awful. However, it was littered enough that it bothered me so I swept it. Right then and there. I’ve also cleaned the house, cleaned the garage and kept up with the laundry. Including washing some fabric to make curtains for the office windows.

Manic? Who, me? Maybe a little. Now I understand why there’s a section in the book addressing the question, “Why can’t I stay on Phase One?”

How I diet

This is just me, I’m sure, because none of you are as crazy as I am, right?

When I’m working hard at losing weight – all right, all right, when I’m dieting – I am obsessed with the next meal. I noticed this the first time I began following a “real” plan (which was Weight Watchers when I was 21 – 36 years ago). How else do I roll with a diet?

• I read cookbooks instead of magazines to lull myself to sleep at night.
• Breakfast for the next three days is already made.
• Snacks – sugar-free Jell-O and ricotta cheese mousses – have overtaken the refrigerator.
• My day revolves around mealtimes.
• Scrubbing two bathrooms is not the same as walking two miles, so I do both.
• I get cranky when my husband grabs a handful of trail mix every time he walks past the pantry.

There are more behavioral changes, but you get the idea. Nothing is as important as what, when and how I eat. It’s almost like I think I’ll never get to eat “good” food again, so I damned well better not miss any of this diet crap.

Perhaps it’s just Phase One Syndrome. On the other hand, anything worth doing is worth doing to excess, right? Heh.

P.S. The Bacon Salt adds a real kick to South Beach breakfast quiches.

Sliding back to normal

While I enjoy travel and company and changing my routine, I always enjoy getting back to ‘normal,’ whatever that is. Since my husband is rather, um, domestically challenged, normal has meant many loads of laundry and a more-than-normal amount of cleaning. I mowed half the yard yesterday and will finish that job today. Nothing says normal in the Middle of Nowhere like bouncing around a couple of acres on a riding lawnmower.

For those of us obsessed concerned with weight loss, “normal” eating probably means ice cream, chips and fast-food – all the stuff normal people eat. But if you look around, most of those eating calorie-laden meals and snacks don’t look very normal. In case you’ve missed the news lately, Americans are getting fatter.

My normal means getting back to the South Beach way of eating, which is easy to stick to and effective in shedding lard. It didn’t happen yesterday, I’m sorry to say, but it will today. For the foreseeable future I’ll be chowing down on eggs, lean meat, chicken and tons o’ salad.

I walked three miles yesterday, and even threw a bit of running into the route toward the end. I felt good when I was done, and am pleasantly sore this morning.

Thanks for all your welcome-home messages, and especially for your good wishes for my dad. We both appreciate it, more than you’ll ever know.

See you in the Middle of Normal. Heh.

Check this out!

This may very well be the week I begin training for a fall race. Could these conditions be any more perfect for running?

Well, yes, that is a lightning bolt there for tomorrow. But it never thunders or lightnings all day long; I’m sure I can squeeze a run in in between the raindrops.

I had intended to begin training for a fall race on June 1. However, I found myself in hot, humid, sunny Florida June 1, so training – hell, any running at all – didn’t happen. And the Florida weather followed me home, so all I’ve done since then is walking. Slowly.

But it feels great out there this morning. The combination of good weather, a good night’s sleep and the race motivation sounds like a perfect training storm, doesn’t it? Well, it does to me, anyway.

Which fall race? I’ve been thinking of the Space Coast Marathon, so my dad can watch me cross the finish line (he has said he will go anywhere in Florida to see that happen). However, my husband and I enjoyed our time there so much that we’re actually thinking of becoming snowbirds. If that’s the case, I’m sure there’s a race or two in southern Florida in January or February.

Speaking of southern Florida, it’s gratifying having such good blog company as I take a stab at South Beach. My husband lost about 50 pounds many years ago eating meat and vegetables, so he’s solidly supporting me, as well. I got back on the horse yesterday. I’d love to see another five pounds drop this month.

Hey. It could happen!

It works! Even when I don't!

That may be two too many exclamation points for some of you, but oh, well. Deal.

Week Two of the sunny southern eating plan was not quite as disciplined as Week One, and I still lost weight. I can’t even offer up any statistics for this week because I – gasp! – didn’t record a single bite eaten or step run.

Two more pounds gone, though, making a total of five in two weeks.

For both of you who are reading my drivel these days, that’s almost a miracle. For, oh, about the last seven years I’ve been able to reach a peak weight loss of half a pound a week. For a week or two. (Okay, that’s stretching it, but you get my drift. I’m not very good at losing weight.)

So I think I’ll keep doing this lean meat/chicken/vegetable thing for a while. You know, as an experiment. Just to see what happens. And when. Heh.

I’d really hoped to begin marathon training this coming Sunday. Something about the first day of the month really gets me jazzed about new training regimens. I am thisclose to being able to run three continuous miles outdoors; I can do it on the treadmill, but even slight slopes are challenging for me to ascend.

I’m slow, but that’s to be expected since I haven’t trained for anything since last fall. And the whole process of training is supposed to make one faster, right?

I did, however, impress myself (it doesn’t take much) this morning by clocking three continuous miles (out of a total of 4.25) in 34:34. I don’t think I’ve been able to crack a 12-minute mile in a year. (Remember: I’m old.)

And to wrap this whole thing up, I finished a little knitting project yesterday. I’ll try to put a photo up tomorrow. And I started the first of three little sweaters for the triplets; they will be Christmas gifts.