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I always bring my lunches to work. I’m frugal. I can make a lunch for less money than if I bought it anywhere. I am also careful with what I eat. When I pack my own meals, I know what I am getting. Even if it is a purchased food, ready-to-eat, I can read the labels to know what I am eating.

I am primarily a clinical instructor in our nursing program. When I am at the clinical site, I generally never have a long time to sit and eat. I might get five uninterrupted minutes. I need a good meal that can be eaten relatively quickly and still be a healthy meal. 

Today’s meal is a good example:

It is certainly nothing gourmet.  I bought all this at my favorite grocery store (Aldi). A can of sardines in water, a non-fat Greek yogurt and a Gala apple. Nothing needs to be refrigerated (yogurt can sit out for the 8+ hours without harm.) It is a high protein meal (33g), moderate fat (7g total, 2 g sat fat, with 1200mg omega-3 fatty acids). Only a total of 355 calories with only 250 mg sodium. And the entire meal cost $2.20. 

And most importantly, it tastes great!

Yup.  That is my first tattoo.  I’ve made it to almost 49 years old before finally getting one.  “Vincero” means “I will win” in Italian (in case you didn’t watch the video in yesterday’s post.)  It’s inked on my right forearm, near the wrist. I will see it daily. I will be reminded daily.

I know I will succeed. I have learned that I am powerful, determined, focused and driven. But reminders never hurt. I like using calendars, and “to do” lists. They keep me organized. On task. (Remember my shopping list?)  And this event was a life-changing event. I achieved my goal, and have embarked on the next goal (maintenance.)

I decided to make this reminder permanent, because this new goal will be permanent. I will never leave maintenance. And I will never settle for “almost”.

What are you willing to do as a reminder, as an incentive? It doesn’t have to be a tattoo. Maybe you are going buy a new summer outfit in your new size. Register for a run? Join a gym and pay for a coach. How are you going to invest in your life? What are you going to do, right now, so that you can be better later?

If you are ever in Sheboygan, Wisconsin and feel the need to add some art to your body, ask for Steve here.

A couple of in-progress pictures:

Sorry, this is a lengthy post.

If you have or know children, you know they long the question”why?” Usually it is an unanswerable question, like “why is the sky blue?” or “why do dogs bark and cats meow?” or “why do I have to have a baby brother?” About the only more annoying question is “are we they yet?” which can be rephrased as “why are we not there yet?”

“Why” is an important question to answer. We have all seen the police TV show, where they find fingerprints, and DNA evidence, but still can’t solve the case until the detective uncovers the motive. The “why”. Other questions (who, what, when, where, and how) can be answered with a picture or two. But can you find any pictures to answer the questions above?

I started this blog as a way to keep my focus on my weight management goal. I wanted to lose weight. Many people on LoseIt and followers of the blog can claim the same goal. But wanting to lose weight is only the first step, and is not the most important step. Like the TV detective, you need to answer the “why”.

Why do you want to lose weight (or gain muscle, or reduce body fat, whatever your goal.) The reason is going to be primarily external or internal. An external reason, and one that I see on LoseIt frequently it so look good at an upcoming wedding, reunion, or vacation. He/she wants to look good on that beach in that new swim suit. This person wants to look good for others. Sure, ego is involved, but it is other people that are the focus.

An internal factor could be that your health is diminished, or is at risk of developing a condition. Personally, my blood pressure was greatly elevated, and my back and knees were in constant pain. I didn’t like how I looked, but my motivation was more about being rejected for platelet donation because my blood pressure was VERY high (168/108). I really didn’t care what the Red Cross worker thought, I just didn’t want to think about a stroke or heart attack in my future.

Until you know why you are choosing to change your body, success will be difficult. Obstacles will be presented and will seem insurmountable. Or the goal will seem to be more effort than it is worth. And if your reasons are external, I believe long term success will elude you. Even if you lose the weight, and look spectacular in that new swim suit as you walk the Bahamanian beaches, as soon as the vacation is done and you have returned to the frozen winter, your reason for the workouts and logging will be gone. This is especially true for those of you who are following significantly restrictive plans to lose weight (extreme low carb, or extreme low calorie, or even extreme workout regimens.) Anything that requires a major paradigm shift from your “average day” will be challenging, (although not impossible) to maintain that change forever.

But if you have a strong internal motivator, do not have a rigid deadline for success, and use a plan that is only a variant of your usual life, you are more likely to reach your goal–eventually–and then stay there. In other words, use portion control for your meals, and add exercise in a natural fashion. Rather than buy exercise DVDs and rigorously exercise for 60 minutes a day, simply walk more in your daily life. Ignore elevators. Look for parking spots distant from your destination. Walk your dog a little longer or twice a day. Ozzy loves my new life. If you have a home and have a lawn that is 1/3 acre or less, get rid of the lawn service or self-propelled mower and buy a reel mower. You become the motor. You’ll buy no gasoline and add no extra carbon to the atmosphere. You’ll burn a lot of calories–quietly. And you’ll be the envy of the neighborhood, because you will probably mow twice a week.

I’m not telling anyone that their choices are wrong. These are my opinions, based on a sample size of one (me.) Your plan may work for you. But I truly believe that if you don’t have a solid and significantly personal reason for changing your life, you won’t be ultimately successful.

I hope you identify your “why.”

Later I will post tonight’s recipe, Moo Shu Vegetable with Shirataki Noodles.

Winter grilling is a blast!

I have a nice LP grill that I modified so that is connects to the natural gas line installed on our patio. That means that even in the coldest weather, when LP doesn’t burn as hot, I can walk out my patio door and have a hot grill. 

I have owned LP grills and charcoal grills. I prefer both, depending on what I am making. Right now, I have my NG grill (above) and a charcoal grill/smoker.  If I am making burgers, steaks or salmon, I use the NG grill. If I am making my pulled pork, beer can chickens, or a whole turkey, then I use the charcoal grill (and usually add apple wood chips for smoke and flavor.) My grills are my tools for the creation of delicious foods.

You need the right tools for success. The tools for weight management are more than scales and measuring cups (which are critically important) but you can consider your plan to be a tool. Maybe you are eating paleo or primal. Maybe you are vegetarian. Those are the tools you have chosen to use to reach your goal. Exercise is another tool that should be in your plan.

But don’t be welded to a single tool. Just as I have two different grills, used for different foods, you might need different tools as you make progress on your weight management path.  Add or remove food groups as you work toward your goal. Try different exercise forms. Take up swimming. Register for a race (like I did.) Buy a bike or roller blades. (I won’t buy roller blades. I tried my son’s one afternoon. I have never experienced that level of fear and loss of control. And the neighbors have never laughed so hard!)

A remember, weight management is a lifelong activity. You will not be able to reach a weight goal and then simply quit. You will need to find new foods and new activities continually for the rest of your life. (And that’s a good thing!)

According to a ad campaign from a few years ago, the answer to that question is “Beef.  It’s what’s for dinner.” 

But that answer doesn’t really help. I can’t find a recipe for “Beef”. And deciding what to make for dinner after a long day at work frequently resulted in a decision between take-out Chinese, delivered pizza, or a fast food run. Fast. Easy. Not cheap. And resulted in my formerly broad gut.

I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again. Plan ahead. Take some time on the weekend and chart the course of your week’s meals. It saves time and effort if you know what you will make during the week. It saves money at the grocery store, too.

Simple. Easy. But what if you don’t know what to make? Where do I get my ideas for meals? I buy a lot of cookbooks and cooking magazines. And I use many of them. (If I buy one and it sit on the shelf, untouched for 6 months, I donate it to Goodwill.) Here is a selection of what is in current use. I didn’t show all the editions of each magazine, just enough to give you an idea.

I don’t use every recipe in every book, and I don’t follow the recipes precisely. I add or remove ingredients to make the recipe more to my preferences. But each of the books and magazines shown has important recipes.  One of my favorite periodical is Eating Well. Great magazine, good stories about food, and the regions of the world that produce great foods, and healthy recipes. In a previous blog post, I already talked about the Eating Well cookbooks. In the back left are cookbooks by Rocco DiSpirito. Nice books, easy to make foods. The Weight Watcher 10-minute and 15-minute meals I pick at my local Fleet-Farm (I can’t find it anywhere else), and while I don’t make the recipes for the points, my wife does. It gives all the nutritional data that I need, and the recipes are good. At the right front is Taste of Home’s Healthy Cooking. I don’t use this as much as the others, but it is a nice filler. Better Homes and Gardens produced Eat Well, Lose Weight.  And another magazine published the three Cooking Light books. I don’t subscribe to the magazine, but I like their Fresh Food Fast books. Finally, the Kraft Food and Family magazine sometimes also has recipes that are useful.

These resources have great recipes, and most recipes are accompanied by a beautiful picture. Don’t freak out when your recipe does not look at perfect as the serving on the page. It will still taste great!

And I am a fan of making food taste good, in a healthy fashion, quickly and easily. That means I will make soup “from scratch” but I don’t make my own stock. I buy canned, reduced sodium stock. I buy my pasta instead of making it. I use frozen fruit and vegetables (especially when not in season.) I will sometimes (as evidenced by my beef stroganoff recipe) use prepared ingredients.

That is how I cook and still make healthy meals. Because I believe that almost any meal made at home will be better for you (general health and financially) than eating out.

Oh, and the real answer to the question in the blog post title?  Tonight’s meal will feature salmon, probably grilled. Pictures to follow later.