tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84495965189889966682024-03-08T16:13:37.366-08:00Laser Rocket ArmThis is decaf, right?Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-14892807375982856662009-07-16T18:04:00.000-07:002009-07-16T18:05:45.981-07:00Ve are moving, ve are moving!After some thought, I've decided to move this to WordPress. Look for me <a href="http://laserrocketarm.wordpress.com/">here</a>. This blog will be deleted once I get established over there.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-8444588675845371732009-04-15T21:24:00.000-07:002009-04-16T18:45:15.053-07:00Liver to LRA: "Payback, it's a bitch."After Pooti's comments here and other places, I started looking into the whole liver problem thing. I used to make jokes about my liver shuddering, but now it seems the joke's on me.<br /><br />For someone who's abused their body as shamefully as I have--it would be easier to list the drugs I <span style="font-style:italic;">haven't</span> done, and let's not forget the thousands of gallons of spirits consumed by yours truly--I've enjoyed good health other than being fat. I catch a cold maybe once every couple of years; my last illness with fever was the bout of "Red Sox flu" I caught this time last year. But the calendar doesn't lie. I'm in my early forties and it seems like my body is saying "hey, I've had enough of this shit" and turning on me. And my liver is leading the way. It's not quite at crisis mode yet--my eyeballs are still nice and white and I don't have any pain--but looking at my swollen feet and swollen stomach and having to catch my breath after bending over to tie my sneakers scares the crap out of me.<br /><br />So today is day five of no alcohol (I'd been restricting it to weekends mostly but as with everything else in life I went way overboard and now look what happened). I've been eating fish and chicken and some green veggies ... okay, and a bunless hot dog here and there. My feet are still blowing up but today was the first time in a while that I haven't felt so bloated it seemed like it was hard to breathe, and I've been sleeping a little (emphasis on little) better. I'm also going to start taking milk thistle capsules since per my research it's supposed to be good for improving liver function. I splurged for a good brand, so we'll see if that makes a difference.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-9387705326086082742009-04-07T19:06:00.000-07:002009-04-07T19:33:43.096-07:00One Size Does Not Fit All, Part 4760For a few months I've been following a "zero carb" board where it's advocated to eat nothing but unseasoned red meat (preferably really fatty ribeye steaks, hamburger and chuck roast) and water. I endeavored to do so and succeeded much of the time. But on the few occasions I weighed myself, I found myself gaining weight, not dropping like crazy like other people were. In addition to the cankles mentioned my stomach is bloated and to be honest I feel like garbage a lot of the time.<br /><br />Back when I first read <i>Protein Power</i> the Drs. Eades mentioned arachidonic acid, which is found food-wise in ... fatty red meat. They said that it was inflammatory and if patients were having problems in losing on their diet they would recommend cutting out red meat and cutting down on egg yolks. Later on Mike Eades said that AA wasn't as horrible as once thought and they've toned down on the warning. But it always stayed with me regardless, and so I started Googling and researching. Sure, it might not be bad to have a steak once a week or some eggs, but a diet of NOTHING but fatty red meat? The cankles/swollen feet are a relatively recent phenomenon. I was looking through my personal journal and saw where I'd written an entry on "WTF is up with my feet, the tops are all swollen." The date? Roughly two weeks after I started the new dietary regime. AA plus liquor? The clicking you hear is the sound of the pieces falling into place. When I read in several places that AA is considered a good supplement for bodybuilders to help them get puffed up plus Pooti's response to my previous entry, it made perfect sense.<br /><br />To clarify, I was NOT powering down two-pound ribeyes three times a day. Normally I'd eat once, maybe twice a day and the servings were pretty normal, but obviously it's taken its toll. When I delicately tried to bring this up in the ZC forum, I was of course immediately told that I hadn't given the plan enough time to work and I had admitted I didn't stick to it so it was probably the other stuff I was eating. All I know is what the dates tell me ... and I wasn't feeling this stuffed and bloated and headachy before I went to All Red Meat All The Time. Maybe like a lot of other plans it works for some, but this particular one doesn't work for me. I'd already discovered a problem with pork so I pretty much have given that up anyway. Fortunately there's a lot of chicken in my freezer. I've missed chicken. And salads. And broccoli. And cauliflower (no, I don't make pizza out of it). In the original PP book it said "when in doubt eat meat, fish, fowl and salad." <br /><br />Can't hurt. Might help.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-39439652519906219932009-03-29T17:36:00.000-07:002009-03-29T17:51:54.514-07:00Attack of the Killer CanklesI'll admit my eating (and drinking) patterns have sucked like a Dyson as of late. Things in the Real World are going well--I just got promoted, marriage is fine, cats are cute, baseball's starting soon, etc. so I guess my addictive personality is just having fun. <br /><br />My feet and ankles, however, aren't. <br /><br />I get up in the morning, I have distinct ankles. Within an hour I can feel the swelling, particularly in the tops of my feet. It does seem to ease with movement, to the point that I can, you know, get my feet into shoes and things like that. I've tried elevating my feet, taking diuretics, just moving around, but nope, there are the cankles. On some days (like today) my feet get so swollen I have trouble moving my toes and I hobble. And it hurts. I worry that the tops of my feet will explode. <br /><br />But does this new devilry prevent me from eating way too much processed meat and downing the demon rum? No, of course not. That would be logical and make sense and we can't have that.<br /><br />But as I sit, feeling my left foot (the one that gets the worst of it) ache with held water, I know something needs to be done. Pain is generally a good motivating tool for me. <br /><br />Don't feel bad or offer sympathy. I did it to myself. Now I have to undo it.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-22413342371662963772009-02-22T14:23:00.000-08:002009-02-22T15:01:38.342-08:00Dying for a dreamA friend of mine who is morbidly obese (as in over 400 pounds) is considering weight loss surgery. She has an excellent job with good health insurance that would cover the procedure and she's been getting the rah-rah-you-go-girl speech from just about everyone.<br /><br />Everyone, that is, except me. I sent her this link to the <a href="http://www.obesityhelp.com/morbidobesity/members/wlsmemorial.php">Weight Loss Surgery Memorial Page</a> run by obesityhelp.com. My e-mail:<br /><br /><i>Dude, seriously, it's not worth it. Google weight loss surgery and look at all the complications that can happen, not to mention it's no magic cure, people can gain all their weight back and then some. You're lucky that so far you don't have major health problems but there's just too many horror stories out there. Please reconsider--I don't want you cutting yourself up for no reason.</i><br /><br />Her response:<br /><br /><i>Way to piss in my cheerios. A lot of those people didn't die from the surgery but from other things and the links are old. I have been researching and the surgery's a lot safer now and like you said I'm healthy except for being a fatass so it makes sense to do it now. I hope you're not going to give me a hard time if I do this and I know you said what you did because you're worried but if you're just going to give me shit about it then be quiet.</i><br /><br />Me:<br /><i>I'm not going to give you shit. Like everything else, your body, your choice. I just don't want to go to your funeral or see you suffer needlessly. Keep me informed.</i><br /><br />I know two people who have had weight loss surgery. One wasn't all that fat but had it done anyway ... and what weight she lost came back and brought friends. The other one was more successful--she dropped over two hundred pounds--but she's actually too thin now. Her face is gaunt and drawn and her body looks like a skeleton draped in an ill-fitting fat suit (she's going to have skin removal surgery this summer). She is constantly cold, can't stomach any food other than baby rice cereal and protein shakes--once I saw her eat ONE piece of popcorn and then spend the next fifteen minutes puking in the sink--and has to take naps at her job because her energy is sapped. She was healthier and more active at 330 pounds than she is now at 110. But she's thin, and that's all she wanted. She proudly shows me her size two jeans, her collarbones, and says "you should talk to my doctor, he did a fantastic job." Of what, making you look like a corpse?<br /><br />I may be fat, but I can say with confidence that I would NEVER do weight loss surgery. Even if it takes me ten years to lose all the weight, I would rather do it through diet and exercise--exercise is a factor in weight loss for me, always has been--than by getting myself cut open. I read the names on the memorial lists, read their stories if available, and sometimes I think of that old saying "digging your grave with a knife and fork." I have seen my 400-plus-pound friend go through two huge bags of chips and a two-liter bottle of soda during the course of a movie on TV, then eat a full meal afterwards, then retire to her room to munch on a bag of M&Ms while she's surfing the net. I try very hard not to say anything. She tried low-carb a couple of years back but got induction flu (which I did warn her about) and said fuck it after maybe three days. What's worse is I tend to fall off the wagon of good eating when I'm with her (like this weekend)--I don't eat in her quantities but I find myself mindlessly munching crap and then paying for it by feeling like shit. I'm home now, with pork ribs in the crock pot and tons of steak in the fridge and freezer. It's what works, it's what makes me feel better ... and it will keep my name off that page.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-60793612424607344962008-12-31T12:20:00.000-08:002008-12-31T09:20:06.467-08:00Fools, money, parted--you know the drillOne of the most overwhelming dangers of the Internet is the false sense of intimacy it provides. Even smart people can (and do) fall prey to this; back in the early days of "phishing" I thought I was updating some information for eBay and as a result got my bank account cleaned out. I got the money back but it didn't change the fact that I felt like a complete moron when I found out what had happened. A lot of times it takes situations like that to wake people up, but when something is glaringly obvious and <em>still</em> people fall for it, then whine about how they got ripped off? To paraphrase Seinfeld's Soup Nazi, no sympathy for you.<br /><br />And so it is with me and Kimkins.<br /><br />If you've been around the low-carb world for more than a couple of years you have undoubtedly encountered the sordid saga of one Heidi Diaz, who one day got it into her head that she wanted to be Grand Poobah of Something and came up with Kimkins, essentially a low-fat low-calorie low-carb plan. She created a website, charged people thirty bucks for the privilege of accessing her wisdom, and essentially had thousands of people falling all over themselves to sign up. The devotees raved about the ease of the diet and how wonderful "Kimmer" was and how beautiful she looked after losing all the weight and Heidi basked in all the attention. If someone dared to express even the slightest doubt about the Almighty Kimmer they were immediately banished from the <strike>cult</strike> website. At its peak Heidi was literally raking in millions of dollars--raising the admission price helped with that--and got Kimkins a cover story in <em>Woman's World</em> magazine.<br /><br />As it's said, absolute power corrupts absolutely. Our Heidi got greedy and mean, and Kimkins wiped out in spectacular fashion complete with lawsuits galore. That didn't surprise me. What <em>did</em> surprise me were the enormous amounts of people who gladly handed over money to someone who, to her credit, never claimed to be a doctor or any sort of weight loss expert except for her personal experience. Hell, she even got people to work for her <em>that had never met her in real life</em>. And the merry chase she led Jimmy "Livin' La Vida <strike>Frankenfoods</strike> Low-Carb" Moore on when he was blustering all over the place that Kimmer was Teh Awesome was one of the best 'net trainwrecks I've ever seen. Now there are websites for "Kimkins survivors."<br /><br />Back in the day for shits and giggles I checked out the Kimkins site. The first thing I saw was a picture of actress Jaclyn Smith. Below was a blurb along the lines of "Ask me, Kimmer, how I got to look this great!" When I pointed out on the forum I was visitng at the time that it was Jaclyn Smith, you would have thought I said "the Antichrist." "No, it's not, it's Kimmer!" cried the acolytes, even after I linked to a Jaclyn Smith fan site that had the identical picture. These same people were the ones crying loudest about how Heidi ripped them off when everything went down. Countless blogs kept track of the downfall, all outraged that they had been led astray by some fat housewife from California. And I just watched, and occasionally snickered.<br /><br />A good rule of thumb to go through life with is don't give money to strangers. I have broken the rule occasionally, but never in large amounts. How often have we heard about someone supposedly down on their luck that everyone runs to give money to, only to learn that the whole story was bullshit? I've seen many instances on the 'net of this as well. If someone has their hand out asking for mandatory donations? Walk on by. I don't care if they're offering the secret to eternal life ... or a quick easy way to lose weight. If you're dumb enough to do it and get ripped off learn from the experience instead of whining about being a victim.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-30674007973306753012008-12-15T12:02:00.000-08:002008-12-15T12:47:02.188-08:00So yeah, Oprah.By now everyone's heard that Oprah Winfrey, the Goddess of Daytime TV, is back up to 200 pounds (at least that's what she's admitting to). Like many things Oprah does this was reported as news of the utmost importance and has been a hot topic in the blogosphere as well. Of course the low-carb/zero-carb blogs are sniffing "well, she just needs to eat like US!" And therein lies the problem.<br /><br />It is amazing to me how many people gush over how "real" Oprah is, and her latest trip up the scales has her fans billing and cooing about how BRAVE she is to come out and admit what anyone who's stood in a supermarket checkout line could have told you six months ago looking at her magazine--she's porking up again. "I have trouble with my weight toooo!" they say. "Oprah's just like MEEEEEEE!"<br /><br />I personally have nothing against Oprah. Anyone who can go from abject poverty to three-times-over billionaire without whacking somebody gets props from me. But a little fact seems to slip under everyone's radar ... she's an actress. She got her start in TV news, where anchorpeople are required to constantly feign emotion. When she made the jump to films, she was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "The Color Purple" and that in a lot of ways spurred the talk show. She can ACT like she gives a shit about you when in fact she lost herself in her own PR a while ago. Come on, who else would buy a magazine just to put her own face on it every month? Who else would charge her minions $200 a pop to hear her mouth platitudes Dale Carnegie would find stale? She pays people to tell her what she wants to hear. In this case, it's that she has a bad thyroid, that her hormones are out of whack, that it's <i>not her fault</i>. No one's going to tell her "you're eating too much fucking sugar and Bob Greene is a crackpot and Dr. Phil has no right to have any opinion on diet considering he could stand to lose about fifty pounds and we all know you have a crush on that Oz guy which is why you have him on every other week."<br /><br />Maybe someone has told her. But ... she's Oprah. One word from her can get your book on the best-seller list, have your movie gross another $10 million, get your own talk show. She will listen to only what she wants to hear ... and she doesn't want to hear that she can't eat mashed potatoes again, just like a crack addict can't get told "you can't smoke rocks anymore."Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-61747400973983711442008-12-07T12:11:00.000-08:002008-12-07T12:13:55.491-08:00So ... I'm back.Time to get this place fired up again. I'm pretty sure zero carb is the way I need to go. I feel my best on it and I do lose weight. Back to the gym too, but more as a sleep aid than a weight loss aid. I'm not going to worry about portion size or how many pounds a week. I'll just eat meat when I'm hungry.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-10056173785426526382008-07-29T15:47:00.000-07:002008-07-29T15:48:57.402-07:008 Simple Rules For Following Low Carb (Because You People Are Starting To Piss Me Off)I’m still a regular visitor over at the Low Carb Board That Shall Not Be Named. There’s been a flood of noobs over there since those studies came out a couple of weeks ago that low carb might not be all that evil. Now I don’t claim to be any great diet guru but Jesus, even when I was first starting to get into this I didn’t ask the stupid shit I’m seeing there. Since I would get flamed to a crisp for saying anything remotely negative like “really, you’re this dumb and you’ve reproduced?” I will write my list here.<br /><br />1. READ THE FUCKING BOOK. Atkins, Protein Power, Carbohydrate Addicts, whatever you’ve decided to do. If you’re cheap you can find all of them in used bookstores but for the love of God read the damn thing. There is a 99.9999998 percent chance that what you’re asking will be found in the book. Don’t say you’re following XYZ plan and make it blatantly obvious you picked it because your 28-month-old DD sounded cute when she said the name. <br /> <br />2. If you have to ask “can I eat (whatever)”, you can’t. See rule one for clarification.<br /><br />3. Many people wiser than me have said this--<i>if you try to recreate the way you used to eat on a low-carb plan you will fail.</i> Just because it’s sugar-free low-carb shit doesn’t mean it’s not shit. <br /><br />4. When in doubt, eat meat and veggies. Actually, when in doubt just eat meat. You don’t need veggies—that’s a holdover from the indoctrination we got that veggies = health. They don’t.<br /><br />5. Ketostix are useless unless you’re a type 1 diabetic. Because you know what happens once your body gets used to using ketones as fuel? The sticks stop changing color. Also pink or purple is no indication you’re losing weight. Lora Ruffner of the Low Carb Luxury site once got stalled for a SOLID YEAR—and all the while her ketostix were nice dark purple. <br /><br />6. Scales? If you weigh once a month or so, okay. Three or more times a day? Useless again, particularly if you’re a woman. Go by how you feel and how your clothes fit.<br /><br />7. Don’t panic if you don’t drop ten pounds in the first week. Don’t panic if you’ve been losing relatively quickly and then tail off. Just don’t fucking panic, okay? <br /><br />8. It’s very easy to stress out about eating too much/too little, exercising too much/not enough, responding badly to food, etc. That’s the beauty of eating this way—you can tweak to your heart’s content. Try different things and find what works for you. Just because someone has 5000 posts on the board doesn’t mean they’re not talking out of their ass. Pay attention to those who’ve lost weight, or those who seem to be honest about everything. There’s a lot of people who just use the place for social hour. You can tell who the serious ones are—even if they joke around.<br /><br />Go in peace.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-19705279174683084462008-07-23T16:15:00.000-07:002008-07-23T16:37:00.548-07:00Tweaking like a meth addictThe Carnivorous Regime continues, with some success and a lot of playing around. The only dairy I eat these days is heavy cream, used to boost the fat content of stuff like chicken breasts and tilapia (the only fish I can eat that doesn't gross me out). It is carefully measured out as well. Red meat was banished temporarily, only to be brought back. Tonight I ate whole eggs for the first time in a while to see if they affect me. Still keeping green stuff to the weekends. I dutifully plug in my numbers into Fitday, averaging about a 60/40 fat/protein ratio and about 1700 calories. And I go to the gym at 4:30 in the morning for either a couple miles on the elliptical or lifting.<br /><br />My suspicions about my scale being off? Correct. I bought an analog scale and found I was 220. And I kept being 220. The little voices started whispering. <i>Maybe</i> Good Calories, Bad Calories<i> is bullshit. Maybe you'll have to start doing low-fat like you used to. Up the fat. Lower the protein. Get rid of the veggies.</i><br /><br />At the same time, though, there were encouraging signs. My jeans were getting extraordinarily loose in the legs and ass. A favorite pair of black suede ankle boots that were sitting in my closet for five years because last time I tried to wear them the zipper only went up a half inch could now be zipped all the way (and worn to a concert). A pair of pull-on khakis that I'd bought three years ago no longer gave me a continent-swallowing camel toe and could be worn in public. My original engagement ring--yes, I have two--which similarly sat in my ring holder for about the same amount of time as the boots in my closet now sparkles on my right ring finger. There is a definite hollow beneath my breast bone that doesn't require me sucking in my stomach to see it. I sleep a little better. My nails are growing nicely. My gums look awesome. <br /><br />And Tuesday the choir of angels sang as the scale read 215. The scale at the gym was 218.5, leading me to believe that this is accurate. There was joy and perhaps a little squeeing.<br /><br />I don't miss veggies or sweets. Heavy cream, a past bugaboo, looks like it can be controlled. The only thing I want now is for my weight to start with a 1. Maybe before my birthday in two months. Maybe sometime this year.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-27493737875382580442008-07-05T09:29:00.000-07:002008-07-05T10:27:42.834-07:00The Episode In Which LRA Becomes A CarnivoreA few weeks ago I volunteered for my city's Race For The Cure with a few other people from my company. There were pictures taken for the company's in-house magazine and they were forwarded along to us. I was only in one. That was plenty because I looked completely awful in it. I know it's said the camera adds ten pounds, but I didn't think that would include a double chin and a bright red face. <br /><br />So I slowly gathered my resolve and three weeks ago I cut all plant life out of my diet. I eat mostly meat, some egg whites and a little cheese and butter (and I'm, ahem, cutting the cheese once it's gone). I do have green stuff with one meal on Saturdays but that's it--yep, I've turned into the freak for whom vegetables are treats. And ... I'm feeling better. One thing I noticed immediately is that my normally crappy gums look gorgeous now. I have a cleaning in three weeks--thanks to said crappy gums and teeth I have to get quarterly cleanings, but I am hoping that this new regimen might aid in getting me down to twice a year like normal people. I've lost three pounds, down to 211, and in addition to my gingivitis clearing up my face is a little less red (I suspect I might have rosacea and this regimen is supposed to be good for it), I'm not bloating/retaining water and I'm sleeping a lot better. I've also returned to the gym with a vengeance, back to my 6x/week workouts. I have to do that since I spend the majority of my time sitting on my ass staring at a computer screen. Best of all ... I'm not hungry. I don't have the urge to go face first in a bucket of cream sauce or cheesecake (even if it is low-carb). I eat my two meals a day and I'm good to go.<br /><br />Mmm, meat--om nom nom nom ...Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-10491282286738369932008-04-25T04:00:00.000-07:002008-04-25T04:08:32.295-07:00WTF?Hi, here again. (waves)<br /><br />A couple of weeks ago I went up to Boston to visit with friends and take in a Yankees/Red Sox game at Fenway Park. Since I am a Yankees fan and was decked in navy and gray from head to toe, I am almost certain that a Red Sox fan saw this, went "ooh, Yankees fan!" and coughed on me. My certainty comes from the fact that the next day I was constantly clearing my throat. On the plane home my throat was sore and with dismay I could feel my temperature rising. The next morning, I awoke with a 102-degree temperature and horking up stuff that looked like alien life forms. I went to the local urgent care center (which is also my PCP) and after they got my info they brought me in and popped me on the scale. Last time I had weighed myself I was still in the 215 area. The urgent care scale, however, showed 224. "Maybe it's your clothing," suggested the nurse. Um, no, I don't think a sweatshirt, jeans, sneakers, underwear and socks weigh nine pounds. Conclusion--my scale is off.<br /><br />This morning for the hell of it I weighed myself. 209. I'm still only eating one meal a day (and not exactly sticking to low carb) so I chalk it up to the recent illness. I must admit I'm considering buying another scale (analog this time) to see if my current scale, which is digital, is off. Or maybe the urgent care scale is. I haven't noted loosening clothes, but then they haven't tightened either. Hmm.<br /><br />I'm still rundown, but I've been sleeping a lot and I need to get this place fired up again.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-21945364634093467192008-03-14T16:17:00.000-07:002008-03-14T17:11:11.777-07:00Buckling downI have been inspired by the ever-awesome Tracy at <a href="http://www.fearandloathinginthekitchen.com">Fear and Loathing in the Kitchen</a> and her posts concerning being a total carnivore. With the exception of some carrots in a stew I made Sunday, a few marinated mushrooms (Costco sells them, oh dear Cthulhu they are the bomb but I do mean only a few, maybe fifteen for the entire week) and some almond milk I have eaten nothing but meat, eggs, a little cheese and fat since Sunday. I'm still doing the one-meal-a-day thing. The other night I killed half of a fairly sizable chicken, did steak and eggs a couple of times. I made rev rolls last night, but instead of six I made twelve little ones. I bought some sausage patties, cooked them up, and made the wheat-free version of one of my favorite treats, sausage and biscuits, with the rev rolls. Yum. Oh--and I've dropped about five pounds. Up yours, low-fatters.<br /><br />As I said in my previous entry, I'm practically positive that the intermittent fasting has played a huge role in me being able to maintain but not lose weight. The non-loss of weight I blame on alcohol. I love to drink, always have, but lately it's just been getting ridiculous. Let's put it this way--if I gave you amounts someone would be coming down and either hustling me to an AA meeting or throwing my ass in rehab. However, compared to a few months ago when I was getting smashed pretty much every night, more recently I've been confining it to the weekends. Now? It's out of the picture, at least for a while. I'm fortunate in when I decide to quit something I can do so pretty easily. I smoked for twenty years, but nine years ago I decided to quit. The last time I had a cigarette, two years ago, it tasted so fucking awful I thought to myself "How the hell did I do this for so long?" There was a period of five years where I didn't drink. That's the whole point of anything--quitting smoking, quitting drinking, quitting a bad habit, losing weight--you have to WANT to do it. If you don't want to, no amount of rehab or meetings or patches or support forums is going to help your ass.<br /><br />However, I'm trying not to look at this as a "just lose weight" thing. I tend to fixate on that and it's not good for me to do that. Right now it's basically detoxing. I'm feeling better, I'm starting to sleep better. And the gym is calling my name. I want to start pumping iron again, get some strength and stamina back. And when I want to do something, I do it. One day at a time ain't just a seventies TV show, you know.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-21034002349708244812008-02-07T04:00:00.000-08:002008-02-07T04:06:16.612-08:00Hello. (waves)Yeah, I've been gone for a while. Had a LOT of stuff to deal with that I don't really want to get into--it'd bore you anyway.<br /><br />The deltoid pull actually turned out to be a small tear, so I was on doctor-mandated "no weights" orders. As a result, I've pretty much stayed away entirely from the gym. However, I just got clearance to start again and to stay the hell away from the fly machine that injured me in the first place. Dude, I don't do machines anymore.<br /><br />I haven't lost any weight, but I haven't gained any either--I stay right around the 215 mark, and the jeans I bought in my last entry still fit nicely. Lately I've been only eating one meal a day, through I throw in an extra here and there just to shake things up, and I credit that for the maintenance. I will admit to breaking down and eating flour and rice once in a while. I can do rice, but flour ALWAYS makes me regret it. <br /><br />I got a Nano and wireless headphones for Xmas which I'm dying to try out at the gym.<br /><br />Anyway, I'm back. Hope someone missed me.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-80716187434555976332007-09-29T17:45:00.000-07:002007-09-29T18:05:41.440-07:00Victory in denimBetween vacation and a nasty cold I picked up after we came back I went exactly a month without going to the gym. Since I ate off-plan a lot during the trip (with the exception of an absolutely magnificent display of carnivorisity at a Brazilian steakhouse in Vancouver, literally one of the best meals I've ever had) I kind of wonder if somehow that weakened my immunity and caused me to catch the cold. But I got to the gym twice this week including yesterday, which was my birthday. I remembered last year, which was my Big 4-0, spending the weekend getting drunk and eating crap and watching football. This year my big luxury was going to the gym at 7:15 instead of 4:30. Fear my audacity.<br /><br />Thanks to various gift certificates and moolah laid on me in honor on the natal day, I decided to shop--specifically for jeans. <br /><br />The back story: last year before our vacation I decided that I was going to buy jeans. I didn't own any and was tired of wearing sweats. I ventured into Lane Bryant with a sense of embarrassment. I don't care how they tart up the place, it is and always will be the Fat Chick Store. Once there, I did find jeans ... in size (gulp) 24. And although they were stretch they were still tight around my non-existent waist. I bought them, but I drove home severely bummed, and after the trip they hung in my closet, dark blue testaments of how far I had fallen.<br /><br />Fast forward to this year, getting ready to rampage in the Pacific Northwest. I'm rummaging in my closet and find the jeans. For the hell of it, I try them on ... and I look like a gangbanger because they're so loose. I don't particularly want to buy new ones, so I take them to our tailor and have them taken in a bit. They're still huge, though--I can literally pull them on and off while buttoned and zipped, but since they're stretch I brought them anyway just so I could have the pockets. There were a couple of times during the trip that I literally feared they'd fall down around my ankles because I had stuff like my camera in the pocket.<br /><br />So yesterday I ventured into TJ Maxx in search of cheap "transitional" jeans. Since the jeans I had were 24s and I'm a crappy judge of sizes I picked out a pair of 22s and a pair of 20s to try on. But then I thought "wait. Should I maybe try an 18?" I found a pair from a different maker than the twenty-something sizes in an 18 and brought it in, figuring I'd try them first. <br /><br />And ... they fit. They were tight, but they fit. I didn't care for the styling, though, so I went out to see if I could find a pair like the twenty-somethings sizes. I did ... and they fit perfectly.<br /><br />I have not been able to fit into a size that started with a one in roughly five years. My squee of joy echoed throughout the dressing room.<br /><br />Progress.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-28677820285945356382007-09-11T12:05:00.000-07:002007-09-11T09:05:54.594-07:00Eight more things about me, or I'm Being A Post WhoreThe indomitable Tracy of <a href="www.fearandloathinginthekitchen.com">Fear and Loathing in the Kitchen</a> apparently didn't scroll down far enough to see that I'd already done the Eight Things About Myself meme, but since she is a most cool and funny chick I figured what the hell. <br /><br />1. By nature I am not a superstitious person, but whenever I fly I always wear my Yankees cap. Even if it clashes with my outfit. Then again, navy goes with everything. <br /><br />2. I ADORE the NFL (in case the name of the blog wasn't a tipoff). The ONLY reason I have digital cable is so I can get the NFL Network. I have a brokerage account whose sole purpose of existence is to pay for tickets and trips to games. I frequently break the "if you're over 30 you're too old to wear jerseys outside of games" rule. I have three fantasy teams this year. Ironically, I couldn't care less about college football, although the bowl games were handy mind-occupiers in my younger years when I was recuperating from New Year's hangovers.<br /><br />3. Outside of sports, I rarely watch TV. Name any popular show and I can guarantee you I've never seen it (with the exception of one episode each of "The Sopranos" and "Desperate Housewives"). This year I even missed the Oscars, the one non-sports event I look forward to, due to being exhausted by travel. I went for several years without owning a TV and just kind of fell out of the habit. However, I can and do put in twelve-hour couch potato sessions during football season.<br /><br />4. I used to be a voracious reader, but being on the internet almost non-stop seems to satisfy my print addiction. The last book I read was the new Harry Potter. I used to spend a fortune on books and come home from the library with armfuls of stuff, but not anymore. When I do read it's usually historical fiction or biographies, with the odd mystery thrown in.<br /><br />5. One thing that I ALWAYS need is music. Even when I was absolutely dirt-poor I always had some source of it, even if it was a shitty 1970s-era cassette player. Now, of course, I have my iPod. I am not the one to come to for the trendy music. In my mp3 list I have everything from 50 Cent to music written for a 15th-century wedding of a Medici and a French princess. My current favorite band is Within Temptation, a Dutch band with a female singer whose music is described as "symphonic metal." If you have hard guitars with a chick singing I'll listen to it, since during my teen years I worshipped Pat Benatar.<br /><br />6. It is rare that even armed with a map and a decent sense of direction I do not make at least one wrong turn when going someplace I've never been before. However, once the place is found I will always be able to find it again from memory, even if decades pass between visits.<br /><br />7. I can vomit at will without the aid of fingers or implements down the throat. This was a skill I learned in childhood because my mother, a nurse, demanded, uh, hard evidence that you were sick when you claimed it in order to stay home from school. I often employed this to avoid alcohol poisoning in my younger years. I'd be a hell of a bulimic.<br /><br />8. I can talk about myself endlessly. :DLaser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-11466666316901941812007-09-11T05:19:00.000-07:002007-09-11T05:36:42.698-07:00I'm not dead!Sorry for the long silence. Mr. LRA and I are currently in Vancouver on our vacation, which started (and will end) in Seattle. It's been a couple weeks since I've hit the gym due to a nagging deltoid pull, but I've pretty much been on plan and am endeavoring to do so on the trip, more so by avoidance than anything else. I do not, however, regret the amazing scoop of caramel/coffee gelato I had at Butchart Gardens yesterday, which along with some macadamias and sugar-free apple drink was about all I ate. I do have a couple of small indulgences planned--garlic fries at Safeco Park during the Mariners game, which if they taste halfway as good as they smell (they also serve them at Qwest Field, where Mr. LRA and I took in Seahawks/Bucs on Sunday) will be awesome and some rice with my shawarma at a little place here in Vancouver that comes highly recommended and happens to be conveniently located in my hotel plaza--but other than that I'm staying reasonably paleo.<br /><br />The arm is feeling better, so once home the weights will be hit with a vengeance.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-44608118859259898382007-08-25T11:51:00.000-07:002007-08-25T11:59:21.563-07:00Mouse Hole ReportBecause I don't like typing twice I've copy-pasted the following from my post on the low-carb forum I frequent, changing some names and dates as needed.<br /><br /><i>It was a successful journey to the Mouse Hole. The family reunion went swimmingly and I got to go on all the rides I wanted to--Mission: Space was a little disappointing (listen, if people are croaking on this thing I expect intensity, LIVE UP TO THE HYPE DAMMIT) but Expedition Everest more than made up for it. The sun was BRUTAL so we did the parks either in the early morning or night and spent the rest of the time visiting with my ginormous amount of relatives in air-conditioned hotel rooms. We stayed at All Stars Movies and I feel sorry for the poor people on our floor, as we basically monopolized the balcony all weekend. Good times.<br /><br />As for food, I was very proud of myself. I figured intermittent fasting would balance out any "bad stuff" that came my way, but there wasn't a lot of "bad stuff." Friday was a VERY low food volume day--basically all I ate were a couple bags of peanuts on the plane, a Casey's Corner hot dog at the Magic Kingdom (sans bun, thank you) and a bag of apple slices with cheese sauce with a lot of water. The next morning I was REALLY stiff and sore as we headed over to Animal Kingdom, no doubt because I was running on empty. After doing Expedition Everest three times in a row we went to a place called Restaurantsaurus, which had an all-you-could-eat breakfast buffet, and I ate my weight in eggs, bacon and sausage because I was starving (I also got molested by Pluto during my meal). I felt MUCH better after that. The family dinner at Boma went well--ate prime rib, a piece of chicken, green beans, roasted veggies and peppers, then I had a "treat plate" with small amounts of hummus, chocolate mousse, a baked custard that was kind of like coconut custard without coconut, a tiny mango cream tart, and some other little mousse-tart thing. It was good and I enjoyed it and I didn't have a reaction to the sugar considering it's been a while since I ate any (no cravings either). Sunday we did Epcot and ate lunch at the British pub in World Showcase--I had "ploughman's lunch," which is basically a meat-heavy chef's salad with roast beef, ham and turkey. It included some delicious chutney and onion jam, which I ate on a three-inch long inch-thing slab of bread. Again no bad reactions to the wheat thankfully. I drank a lot of water and ate no snacks, including the mass amount of chocolate that was in the reunion goodie bag (I snuck it into other people's bags because I'm evil like that).<br /><br />What I (and Mr. LRA) noticed was I kept up with everyone. I'm notorious for yelling "SLOW DOWN!" as Mr. LRA charges through our vacations, but I kept up. My legs are sore from pounding the concrete--anyone who's been to Disney knows it requires a ton of walking--but I'm not even close to the agony I previously experienced. Yay leg presses.</i><br /><br />I was down to 215 last week, but the Dread Pirate Ovulation is making me retain water so I'm currently at 217.<br /><br />And yes, <a href="http://www.fearandloathinginthekitchen.com">Tracy</a>, I'll do the eight things meme again just for you.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-66081494570699946462007-08-05T15:18:00.000-07:002007-08-05T15:36:00.253-07:00Three more downI came in at 221 Friday, so for those keeping score at home that's another three pounds gone, nineteen overall. To reward myself, I bought a shiny black 30 GB video iPod. I now have a separate playlist for cardio and lifting. I R N NERD. I previously had an iPod Shuffle which used to drive me crazy by playing the same ten songs over and over again. I have given it to Mr. LRA, who is mystified by anything computer-related but who is thoroughly delighted that he can now listen to Neil Young and Jimi Hendrix while watching CNBC at the gym.<br /><br />Travel time is approaching at Chez LRA--next week we're going to Disney World for a family reunion (gah, Disney in August, what I do for family), then three weeks after that we're on our way to Seattle for a week, with two days in Vancouver during that time. We've also scored tickets for the Seattle Seahawks/Tampa Bay Buccaneers game since that's the opening weekend for the NFL (which are Holy Days of LRA Obligation). A few weeks ago I purchased a Seahawks jersey to wear to the game, a men's medium. When I tried it on, it was tight across my middle. Yesterday I was in my closet and glimpsed the jersey, and for the hell of it I tried it on ... and it's definitely loosened. Huzzah.<br /><br />As far as eating goes, I'm going to try my best to stay on plan. As a rule we don't tend to eat a lot on vacation anyway. I don't think Seattle/Vancouver will be a problem, but Disney isn't exactly the most welcoming place for healthy eating. We did luck out that the big family dinner will be at the restaurant at Animal Kingdom Lodge so I can get some decent meat and veggies. I will have a hot dog from Casey's Corner in the Magic Kingdom though, as that is tradition and I do not fuck with tradition. Believe it or not on one of the Disney fansites someone posted an article about doing low-carb at the Mouse Hole, so I'll take a look at it.<br /><br />I'm adding two days of cardio this week. Pray for me.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-81192763070456665402007-07-26T17:04:00.000-07:002007-07-26T17:28:00.882-07:00Lift cyclingIn the Low Fat Days when I subscribed to both <i>Shape</i> and <i>Fitness</i> before realizing it was the same magazine, I read an item that proved useful--weight cycling. If you lift three days a week, you do light weights/high reps one day, medium weights and reps the second day and heavy weights/low reps the third so your body doesn't get used to one particular weight. I did this with some success back then so I decided to try it again. I figured that Monday was my medium day, so I did the heavy stuff on Wednesday as follows:<br /><br />5 minutes warm-up on the cross trainer, level 3<br /><br />All sets 5 reps<br /><br />3 sets pull-ups on gravitron, 45 pounds resistance<br />3 set leg presses, 165 pounds<br />3 sets lat pulldowns, 85 pounds<br />3 sets shoulder pulldowns, 35 pounds<br />3 sets push-ups on gravitron, 45 pounds resistance<br />3 sets seated rows, 35 pounds<br />3 sets tight seated rows (hands close together), 70 pounds<br />3 sets tricep presses, 42.5 pounds<br />3 sets donkey presses, 100 pounds<br /><br />And oh, did I feel it. I just about managed good form on the last sets on some of these (mainly the lat pulldowns, those totally kicked my ass) but I did manage. Tomorrow is the light day, a nice way to finish out the week.<br /><br />And I HAVE to add cardio. Outside the gym I'm basically inert and I have to move if I want to get rid of this fat. When I move, I lose. I'm not going to go insane and repeat the hypoglycemia thing, but walking a couple miles every day is pretty much necessary for me since I spend so much time sitting on my ass. I have the food thing pretty well down so this is the final frontier.<br /><br />Oh--and I weighed myself today for the hell of it, even though I'm retaining water because of my cycle. 223.5. Since I weighed 224 at the beginning of the month, I hope to hell I have a nice whoosh next week.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-27475096956338204302007-07-18T16:30:00.000-07:002007-07-18T16:50:23.534-07:00Iron diva progressThe weights, they are going up. This is what I did today:<br /><br />5 minutes warm-up on the cross trainer, level 3<br /><br />All sets 10 reps<br /><br />2 sets pull-ups on gravitron, 25 pounds resistance (started at 10)<br />2 set leg presses, 150 pounds (started at 105)<br />2 sets lat pulldowns, 55 pounds (started at 25)<br />2 sets shoulder pulldowns, 20 pounds (I do these instead of bicep curls)<br />2 sets push-ups on gravitron, 25 pounds resistance (started at 10)<br />2 sets seated rows, 20 pounds (for some reason this weight still kicks my ass)<br />2 sets tight seated rows (hands close together), 27.5 pounds (new)<br />2 sets tricep presses, 30 pounds (new)<br />2 sets donkey presses, 80 pounds (started at 50)<br /><br />My left shoulder is feeling much better--just for shits and giggles I did ten push-ups on my stairs this morning on my way up to take a shower, and for the first time in a long time didn't feel any pain in the motion. I still feel it a little bit though so I'll continue to lay off the bench presses and other stuff, but I'll try to get in some push-ups on lifting days. I think I'm going to up it to three sets next week. I can always feel it after I've lifted but I'm not sore. I don't want to be in screaming pain, but I want to feel like I'm challenging myself. <br /><br />I ate my first official organic meat tonight--chicken drumsticks. I feel very virtuous.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-27898620200678567642007-07-16T04:11:00.000-07:002007-07-16T04:21:42.064-07:00In which LRA remembers she can't do shit like that anymoreCrappy week. REALLY crappy. Between the low blood sugar/cardio overdose and some heinous dental work (five fillings. And a cleaning. And I'm a former dental phobic, which means I was highly on edge for three hours. And the novocaine took SIX FUCKING HOURS to wear off) I was, as my icon t-shirt says, drinking like a Roethlisberger today. Well, actually, I was drinking like a Roethlisberger the whole weekend. Plus I ate french fries (OMG TEH HORROR).<br /><br />I could handle that at 21. At nearly 41, the body's like "I don't fucking think so, dumb bitch." Lifting does ease the hangover a bit. But I cooked LC like a mofo yesterday and went to the gym and am slugging water down. <br /><br />And I chucked the Bacardi. Amazingly I still had some left. But it's just one more thing to add to the list.<br /><br />Damn, this getting old shit sucks.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-69261198190458432552007-07-10T20:13:00.000-07:002007-07-10T17:39:23.317-07:00Feast and famineOn my normal intermittent fasting schedule I eat two meals a day--one at 12:30, my work-mandated lunch, and then around 6:30-7:00. When I first started, I tried to do a 24/24. I did, but I felt kind of tired and blah and decided the 18/6 would work better for me.<br /><br />Today I was lazy and ran late, so I decided not to pack a lunch as a result. "Fuck it," I thought. "If I'm dying of hunger at lunchtime I'll go get a salad, no big deal." 12:30 came and went ... not hungry. A little tired, but I did hard cardio today so that contributed. <br /><br />But then came two o'clock. And I hit the Wall of Low Blood Sugar Level so hard I'm surprised I didn't bounce. I had my first true experience of ketone breath--to me it tasted like blood without the salt. I felt nauseous. I had the beginnings of a headache. When I stood up, I literally swayed back and forth because I got such a head rush. The floor vending machine sells only one low-carb item--peanuts. Once I was able to regain my equilibrium, I bought a pack and downed them ... and felt better almost immediately. I made it home and had a fat and (for me) carb fest--chicken thighs (ate two, ate the skin off two more) and a steamed "garden medley" (broccoli, cauliflower and baby carrots) topped with a cup of cream seasoned with salt and pepper and thickened with xanthan gum. No doubt my body's going "Dude, what the fuck, make up your mind!"<br /><br />It occurs to me, though, that that was literally the first time I'd experienced the stuff that's your body's way of yelling FEED ME SEYMOUR. I still feel a little strange, but hopefully digestion and a good night's sleep will take care of that.<br /><br />And I WILL bring lunch tomorrow.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-2455201668647082442007-07-09T16:00:00.000-07:002007-07-09T16:51:08.716-07:00If I'm Tagged, where are the supermodels?Christine at the mighty <a href="http://liftlikeagirl.blogspot.com/">Lift Like A Girl</a> has apparently already figured out that I spend my life on the internet and tagged me for a meme. Ah, fuck it, why not?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Here are the rules:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">1. We have to post these rules before we give you the facts.<br />2. Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.<br />3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.<br />4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people (I'd choose all the same people Christine did, so that's kind of worthless) to get tagged and list their names.<br />5. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them they're tagged, and to read your blog.</span><br /><br />1. I spoke my first words at six months, was speaking in complete sentences at nine months, said the ABCs at eighteen months and could read my mother's nursing school textbooks when I was three. However I didn't roll over until I was four months, didn't crawl until I was almost a year and didn't walk until I was almost two. Some doctors thought I had cerebral palsy. My mother's eldest sister told her that it was okay, I could always attend college in my wheelchair. Needless to say that didn't go over well with Mom.<br /><br />2. I am mostly right-handed, but I eat and play pool left-handed.<br /><br />3. Mr. LRA and I were engaged seventeen days after we met and married seven months later because I wanted a wedding with the big white poofy dress and six months gave us time to plan. We'll celebrate our ninth wedding anniversary next month and still make people around us nauseous with various lovey-dovey stuff.<br /><br />4. Speaking of dresses ... my wedding was seriously the last time I wore one. I don't even own one. I also rarely wear makeup and don't even have pierced ears. I'm pretty sure that in my past life I was a really macho gay guy.<br /><br />5. I have never broken a bone in my life despite such mishaps as falling out of a four-story window, being in a car accident where I was catapulted through a windshield, and falling down the side of a mountain so hard I left blood on a trail of rocks about a hundred yards long. Milk does indeed do a body good.<br /><br />6. Although I currently reside in the capital of the Confederacy, I was born and lived in central New Jersey most of my life. This tends to freak people out because they think that everyone from New Jersey talks like people on "The Sopranos" and I really have no discernible accent. Except for the words "mall," "walk" and "asshole." Must be the l's.<br /><br />7. I am practically impossible to offend and will laugh at the sickest stuff you can come up with. An example--right after 9/11 one of the many sick bastards I know sent me a picture of some guy falling out of one of the World Trade Center towers. The caption on the picture was OH SHIT I FORGOT MY LAPTOP! I laughed so hard I cried. Fortunately I have equally sick friends who also thought it was hilarious, so when I go to hell I'll be traveling with a large group. <br /><br />8. I hate shorts and refuse to wear them no matter how hot it is. It has nothing to do with my legs, I just don't like them. I wear sweats or yoga pants to the gym or out and about.<br /><br />I'm sure you all found that deeply fascinating.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8449596518988996668.post-14214150369276208042007-07-08T17:36:00.000-07:002007-07-08T15:07:09.044-07:00Sweets for the sweetAfter we went out for our usual Saturday night date dinner last night (if you ever see anything on the menu called "bacon cheeseburger salad" GET IT, it's a low-carber's dream), Mr. LRA and I hit the supermarket for a couple of things. He decided he wanted a "treat" so I stood patiently in the freezer section, watching as he dithered between various desserts ranging from a Pepperidge Farm coconut cake to Haagen-Dazs. <br /><br />Mr. LRA has been very supportive of my lifestyle change, to the point of giving up his own favorites just so they wouldn't be in the house and therefore exist as possible temptation. After some thought, however, it seemed that it was very unfair for me to restrict him just because I'm the fat ass in the family. He's naturally hyper so he's extremely active anyway. He has made some switches--instead of the quarts of sherbet and five or six ice cream sandwiches he used to down while watching <i>Fast Money</i> on CNBC he now snacks on Splenda-sweetened yogurt and jello--and he dropped about sixty pounds between losing the ice cream and stepping up his gym activity. If I didn't love him so much I would hate his guts for that, heh heh. <br /><br />But watching him rummage through the freezer case last night didn't stir envy or resentment. I'm fortunate that I've never had much of a sweet tooth; if I binged on something it was usually Fritos or pizza. Last night for dinner he had mass quantities of pasta. Now I truly love pasta, so you would think that I would be staring and drooling and cursing myself. But ... no. I was perfectly happy with my salad. While he was trying to decide on pie I thought about the blueberries and raspberries in my freezer. I could throw the frozen berries with a little cream and stevia into my baby Cuisinart and make soft serve, or I could thaw them and mix them with some Greek yogurt and stevia. Cake? I could make three-minute chocolate cake out of almond flour, or maybe cinnamon cake.<br /><br />In the end he decided on a piece of Dutch apple pie. I got involved with a computer project when we got home and forgot about dessert all together. I seem to do that a lot these days. <br /><br />Tomorrow I get to lift. Joy and huzzah.Laser Rocket Armhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12332672587425641355noreply@blogger.com1