Stack Attack!

Fresh Ink Card by Hallmark sent from Daryl

For all of you stackers out there, 

this one's for you!

I did not realize April marks the 17th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide that claimed over 1 million lives. Barbara Walters reminded her viewers of that fact yesterday on The View by discussing Same Sky and introducing their beautiful line of bracelets.  

That's Amore

When the moon hits your eye 

Like a big pizza pie

That's Amore

When the world seems to shine 

Like you've had too much wine 

That's Amore

First made famous by Dean Martin in 1952, That's Amore still has meaning today. I definitely find pizza and wine to be "Amore." I think that one of the most romantic things in life is to share a pizza and a nice bottle of red with the one that you love in a small, intimate restaurant; better yet, if the restaurant happens to be in Italy during truffle season. 

Unfortunately, pizza and wine are two things not on the top of the "what to eat while on a diet" list. So, what do you do when that craving for pizza and wine envelope you? Do you ignore it and hope that the yearning fades away? Do you go to your favorite pizza parlor and "pig out" on your favorite pie and promise to get back on your diet track tomorrow? 

Tool Time

Life is much easier if one has the correct tools to complete the job successfully. A surgeon needs a scalpel, a dentist needs a drill, a jeweler needs an anvil, a hairstylist needs a scissors, a painter needs a brush and Tim needs tools for Home Improvement. What about the dieter? 

                                                              

One of my friends lost 15 pounds recently after many unsuccessful attempts over the years. She claims that one of the reasons for her success was the food log she faithfully kept; her trainer recommended that she record everything that she ate and drank daily. Over time, this became not only a habit for her, but also an awareness; an awareness of portion size and calories.

Tracking your food intake is part of many formal diet programs. Two that I have followed during the course of my life, The Diet Center and Weight Watchers both suggested recording what you eat. Once even, I went to a nutritionist; she too requested that I keep a food diary. Of course during the beginning of any program when the excitement and motivation of losing weight was a buzz, recording was a motivator.  When the excitement wore off and weight loss was slow, the tracking element fizzled away and so did the diet plan; hence, weight loss goals were never achieved.

I want my MBTs

Masai Barefoot Technology; yes, I am talking about those funky, chunky and clunky creations of this Swiss based company. Originally introduced in 1996, this unique, revolutionary shoe was developed after studying the walking patterns of the Masai tribes of Africa. MBT set out to create a shoe that would "mimic walking on soft, uneven ground."

After reading and hearing about these shoes for a long time, "curiosity killed this cat." I purchased a pair of Fora Black. I went to Shuz of Los Gatos, a European walking store. They had a large selection of styles to choose from; in fact, they had several styles that were less "chunky and clunky" than the original. There are less expensive "knock offs" out there, but like the fact that I don't like to "waste calories" on anything bad, I don't want to waste money on the "wannabes" either. I wanted to try the product developed by the company that put this shoe technology on the map.

Give us this day our daily bread

It is rare that I use the word daily and bread in the same sentence. It is also rare for me to eat bread. This is mainly due to the carbohydrates and the calories. However, when Daryl makes her special Irish soda bread; or I am in France, splurging on a fresh baguette is tops on my list.

In January, 1993, during our honeymoon in Chamonix, France, Bob and I discovered the most wonderful "Baguettes Cereals." It was the 11 seed/grain bread of The Restaurant Albert 1er. Over the course of the week, I ate it every chance that I had; it is no wonder that I came home carrying an additional 10 pounds! The kitchen invited me for a 3:00 am bread bake but I politely declined; what regret I have today for choosing sleep over learning the secrets of making this French luxury. The restaurant was kind enough to send me off with the recipe which I treasure to this day.

My daily diet does not include splurging on bread; in fact, I try to keep the thought of it out of my mind. However, when I do have a hankering, there are some alternatives that meet my criteria - calories, carbohydrate and content (fiber, protein, whole grain, etc.). Keep in mind, these are not French baguette substitutions; these are healthy, satisfying breads made from bakeries that have interesting stories. 

Cleansing Conclusions

It has now been one full week since completing my 3-day BluePrintCleanse (BPC) and the 1-day "ease back onto solid foods" recommended recovery regime. I am satisfied with my results and I am a believer! BPC did help me to get off the plateau that was holding me back. I am now again well on my way to reach my weight loss goals of 1 to 1-1/2 pounds per week. Ultimately, after the completion of my 4 day program, I dropped 4.9 pounds. As you may guess, all of this did not stay off. After one week of "eating, drinking & being merry (with conscience awareness)" with "real" food and attending two dinner parties, my final result <3.7> pounds. It's possible that my results could have been greater by forgoing the dinner parties all together; however my goal was to break my plateau not to use the cleanse as my main weight loss mechanism.

After this objective test, I will incorporate BPC into my quarterly regime for plateau problems, over- indulgence from a celebration or vacation, or just getting myself back on track. I will even purchase their raw concoctions to have on hand for a morning or afternoon snack. I hope that they have a more San Jose centric location for purchasing these products soon.

When discussing BPC with a friend who works with a lot of brides, she suggested that this would be a great preparation for a wedding or a big event. I concur! In fact, BluePrintCleanse offers a "Bride to BPC" program.

The next time that I do BPC, I will avoid intense exercise. My 4+ mile walk was too aggressive for the amount of caloric intake while on this cleanse. From past experience on cleanses, I already knew this but had to try anyway. Instead, I think that a gentle yoga class, relaxing with a good book or meditation in a hot tub would be better alternatives for the mind, body, and spirit.

Whether you take on the BluePrintCleanse for the reasons that I did, or for reasons of your own, as the BPC folks say,  it's about the "juice, the whole juice and nothing but the juice;" I believe it!

Let Them Eat Cake!

There is much debate about these words that Marie Antoinette supposedly shouted "Qu'ils mangent de la brioche!" If she actually did, perhaps she was not referring to "cake" as we know it.

Growing up, my Grandma Stafford made beautiful cakes for all of her children and grandchildren for many, many years. Everything she created was from scratch, including the gardens of flowers she used to embellish them. It is a shame that I did not appreciate them or indulge in them as cake was never really one of my things; unless of course, it was fruitcake or Galette des Rois, both topics for another time.