FOOD is not love

In preparation for the long drive to Chicago, Beth wanted me to run by the store. I got 5 kinds of snacks. Every time I think I'm getting a handle on emotional eating, I do something like this.

Of course, Wednesday night, it snowed. We loaded up the car and parked at the neighbor's. Their driveway doesn't blow shut … unlike mine. Beth was so excited that she barely slept. We left Thursday at 7:30 a.m., and didn't pull into our motel till 2. It normally takes half the time. Only one lane was plowed for most of the way. The road sludge on my windshield was like driving in fog. I thought they fixed the washers. Wrong!
Thursday night, neither one of us slept well. Strange bed. Excitement. Nerves. I paced around the motel room Friday morning and stuffed a bunch of treats in her luggage (which the airline has lost, by the way). At 11, we went to the airport and met Whitney. I got us lunch at Mickey D's. The girls checked in. When they went through security, I had to say good bye. I watched her for a few moments, but just standing there was … well, I was going to cry and there's no point in that.
The drive home was a breeze. I was seriously doubting the decision to go up a day early, until Guy Morris called. He'd been by to dig me out. There were about 15 inches of snow in my driveway. (It's low and drifts.)
Then at home, the silence set in. My youngest child is on the other side of the globe. I want her to have this adventure, but I'll definitely miss her. We didn't eat very many of those snacks in the hotel, but I plowed through a lot Friday night.

FOOD is not love.

She called this morning. She's so tired and stressed that she's teary, but that'll pass. She will remember the next few months for the rest of her life.

FAST FOOD FACTS: Taco Bell

As I’ve mentioned before, it’s unlikely that I will completely give up fast food. It’s so convenient. But I am trying to choose what I order with care. Beth and I ate a lot of Taco Bell over the summer, so I thought I’d look over their menu and find out what the low calorie options were.

First, avoid their salads. Their Chicken Ranch Taco Salad has 960 calories and 1710 mgs of salt, while the Chipotle Steak Taco Salad comes in at 950 calories and 1760mgs of salt.

Originally I was looking for entrees under 350 calories, and had a page long list. Then, I added 2 additional criteria – less than 35% of daily sodium and roughly one third (or less) of calories from fat. That last one dramatically shrunk the list.

Here are FOUR Lo-Cal FAVORITES from Taco Bell:

• GRILLED CHICKEN SOFT SHELL TACO – 200 calories – 32% of daily sodium – 70 calories from fat
• SOFT TACO – BEEF – 210 calories – 31% of daily sodium – 80 calories from fat
• SOFT TACO SUPREME® - BEEF – 240 calories –33% of daily sodium – 100 calories from fat
• GORDITA SUPREME® - CHICKEN – 300 calories – 34% of daily sodium – 120 calories from fat
• I got this information from http://m.tacobell.com/nutrition.do?pid=7

Eat this, Not That agrees with me. They listed a Taco Bell salad as the Worst Meal at the place. The Fiesta Taco Salad with Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes, and Large Mountain Dew has 1,690 calories, 60 g fat (14 g saturated fat, 3 g trans fats) and 2,540 mg sodium. The web site went on to say, “Grilled Stuffed Burritos, anything prepared with multiple ""layers"", and anything served in a bowl are your worst options at Taco Bell. Despite the chain's switch the trans fat-free frying oil in April of 2007, the taco salads still contain an unhealthy dose of this heart-threatening fat.” (See http://eatthis.menshealth.com/content/worst-fast-food-meals-america?article=19&page=1  for more.) If you're going to eat at Taco Bell, they recommend the following meal: two Grilled Steak Soft Tacos, Fresco Style Mexican Rice, and Medium Diet Pepsi. It has 430 calories, 12 g fat (3 g saturated fat) and 1,660 mg sodium. Personally, I’m trying to stay below that.

Last month, I did a post on McDonald’s. (http://fatfamilyotherfwords.blogspot.com/2009/08/fast-food-mcdonalds.html ) I did not include the percentage of calories from fat in the criteria, because I didn’t think of it then.  Eat This, Not That says the Chicken Selects® Premium Breast Strips (5 pc) with Creamy Ranch Sauce with Large French Fries, and Large Coke is the Worst McDonald’s Meal. It has 1,670 calories, 87 g fat (13 g saturated fat) and 2,370 mg sodium. Instead, they like the Quarter-Pounder without Cheese with a Side Salad with Low-Fat Balsamic Vinaigrette, and Large Iced Tea. It has 470 calories, 22 g fat (7 g saturated fat, 1 g trans fat) and 1,490 mg sodium. Find out more at http://eatthis.menshealth.com/content/worst-fast-food-meals-america?article=14&page=1

Fighting FAT: The New Plan

Now that Beth is back in school, I have to refocus. This weight is not going to lose itself. I tried that approach already. Yeah, not so good.

Weight Loss Tool 1 - Exercise: Instead of hitting the treadmill for a decreasing amount of time, I’m going to pick up the pace and start using the arm machine at the gym. I've planned to do it after the treadmill, but it never happens. My upper arms are icky, so I’m going to quit making excuses. Next, I’ll do 40 minutes on the treadmill. No one is waiting for me to get home, so I have no excuse to slack off.

• 1st 5 minutes … 3.5 mph, 10 incline with 10 arm exercises every minute
• 2nd 5 minutes … 3.6 mph, 11 incline, continue arms
• 3rd 5 minutes … 3.7 mph, 12 incline drop arms
• 4th 5 minutes … 3.8 mph, 13 incline (Are you noticing a pattern?)
• 5th 5 minutes … 3.9 mph & 14 incline
• 6th 5 minutes … 4 mph & 15
• Last 10 minutes ... Last night I started my cool down at this point. With in a week or so, I want to do 4.1 and a 16 incline. Then cool down fore the last 5

That will be Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. This will burn 400 calories a night.  On Tuesday, I’m going to Pilates. My first class was not as intense as I had feared, but there was a lot of explaining. That’s not to say my muscles didn’t tremble every now and then. I’m learning as I go here, but I think you have to sweat to loose weight. Based on one experience, the Pilate’s class does not look like a lot of sweat, but I still think it will be useful. I have a flabby gut I’d like to get rid of.

If this doesn’t work, I can do more arm exercises on the treadmill, add Friday to my gym routine and pick up a second Pilates class.

Weight Loss Tool Number 2 – Food: After my last plateau, I started counting calories. It’s dull, but I saw where I was going wrong. Whoever invented mochas was an evil genius. With Beth cooking this summer, I quit paying attention, so now I’m back to 1300 calories a day. If that doesn’t work, I can go to 1200 or 1000, but I don’t think I have the discipline for lower.

• Breakfast: Yogurt & fruit on weekdays ... oatmeal on weekends– 200 calories
• Mid-Morning Snack: No-Fat, Sugar-Free Latte or International Coffee – 100 calories
• Lunch: Take out salad or low sodium Healthy Choice dinner – 250 to 300 calories
• Mid Afternoon Snack: Diet Soda & one of the following: 100 calorie pack, fiber bar, fruit or low fat pudding – 100 calories
• Supper: I have an advance copy of the Full Plate Diet. I though I’d experiment with his high-fiber options -- something around 400 calories
• Evening snack: One of the following: fruit & yogurt, fruit & low fat pudding, toast with fruit spread, Weight Watcher Chocolate Fudgicle – 200 calories

Just by writing it down, I can see one place I’ve been off track. Too much evening snacking. I’m not hungry and yet watching TV makes me want to eat.

Weight Loss Tool Number 3 – Liquids: Liquids make you feel full. I’m going allow 2 caffeinated beverages per day. I know it’s bad, but I get the napsies in the afternoon. I’ll have at least one 8-ounce glass of water with each meal and several more during the day, particularly in the afternoon.

So this is the plan. Now I have to stick to it. At my age, I don’t get instant weight loss. This fat and I have been together 20 years. It won’t go quietly. I need to stick with this at least a month. If by October 1 I’m still not losing, I’ll have to try something else

FOOD & FAMILY: Beth's Cooking

Beth has been cooking recently. It helps, but she heads back to college in a few days. I’ll have to become re-acquainted with the kitchen.

My daughter is a fine cook, but she doesn’t make exactly 2 portions. I think I need more food than I actually do, so if there’s extra I eat it. I have a real case of clean-your-plate-itus. Empty-the-pot-atosis, too. The extra food will look better in the dogs’ dish than on my butt. Now, if I can just remember that …

The advantages of her cooking are:

• I don’t have to do it.


• She has more time. I don’t mind cooking. I just don’t like coming home tired and hungry … and then having to start dinner from scratch.


• More effort. More variety. I get in ruts. Campbell’s Soup and Healthy Choice dinners control the portions, but they’re boring after a while.


• It’s like being a man. I come home and dinner is on the table. Pretty cool.

The very minor down side of having someone else do the cooking is:

• Of course, she doesn’t take my diet as seriously as I do.


• I opened my big mouth and said I’d do the clean up. She’s messy.

I’ll miss her when she leaves, but she has to grow up. It’s the law.

FAST FOOD FACTS: McDonald’s

Here in the real world, people occasionally eat fast food. Since it’s inevitable, I wanted to know what my best choices were. I’ve learned a few things along the way:

• Who knew salads had that much salt? Half of it is in the dressing. You can drop 15 percentage points by cutting the dressing in half. I have high blood pressure, so need to watch the salt.
• Mochas aren’t on the list, because even nonfat ones with no whipped cream have too many calories. (… But I love mochas.)
• My kids were right. Chicken McNuggets are awesome!

The point is you can fast-food-it without trashing your diet.

If the sodium is under 5%, I have it listed as unimportant.

Lunch or Dinner for 300 calories or less at McDonald’s:

• Hamburger: 250 calories, 9 grams of fat, 22% of daily sodium
• Cheeseburger: 300 Calories, 12 grams of fat, 31% of daily sodium
• Honey Mustard Snack Wrap® (Grilled): 260 calories, 9 grams of fat, 33% of daily sodium
• Chipotle BBQ Snack Wrap® (Grilled): 260 Calories, 9 grams of fat, 34 % of daily sodium
• Chicken McNuggets® (4-piece): 190 calories, 12 grams of fat, 17% of daily sodium. BBQ Sauce, honey or sweet ’n’ sour sauce adds 50 calories. Hot Mustard Sauce adds 60 calories.
• Bacon Ranch Salad with Grilled Chicken and Low Fat Balsamic Vinaigrette: 300 calories, 11 grams of fat, 72% of daily sodium
• Caesar Salad with Grilled Chicken and Low Fat Italian Dressing: 280 calories, 8.5 grams of fat, 67% of daily sodium

Breakfast at McDonald’s for 300 calories of less:

• Egg McMuffin®: 300 calories, 12 grams of fat, 34% of daily sodium
• Sausage Burrito: 300 calories, 16 grams of fat, 35% of daily sodium
• Fruit 'n Yogurt Parfait: 160 calories, 2 grams of fat, sodium is unimportant

Snacks at McDonald’s for 110 calories or less:

• Apple Dippers with low fat caramel dip: 105 calories, ½ gram of fat, sodium is unimportant
• 1% Low Fat Milk Jug: 100 calories, 2.5 grams of fat, sodium is unimportant
• Minute Maid® Apple Juice Box: 100 calories, no fat, sodium is unimportant
• Medium Iced Coffee with Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup: 90 calories, 8 grams of fat, sodium is unimportant
• Large Nonfat Cappuccino (20 fl oz): 90 calories, no fat, sodium is unimportant
• Medium Nonfat Latte (16 fl oz): 110 calories, no fat, 6% of daily sodium
• Large Nonfat Cappuccino with Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup (20 fl oz): 80 calories, no fat, 6% of daily sodium
• Large Nonfat Latte with Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup (20 fl oz): 110 calories, no fat, 8% of daily sodium
• Large Iced Nonfat Latte (22 fl oz): 70 calories, no fat, sodium is unimportant
• Large Iced Nonfat Latte with Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup (22 fl oz): 60 calories, no fat, sodium is unimportant

If you want to know more, go to http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/nutritionfacts.pdf