Thursday, July 17, 2008

On the lowcarb front:
It is going to be a hot one again today. I knew that as soon as I woke up drenched in sweat. Immediately the voice of self-sabotage began. I need to give this voice a name. Let's see, how about Mary Ann. Mary Ann is what I was called as a child. That's what this voice is - it's the immature part of me that wants to have its own way all the time. It wants to skip the hard work and go straight to the reward. Mary Ann is not bad or evil - she is just immature and needy. So here is how the conversation went this morning.

Mary Ann: It's too hot to workout today. Let's wait until tomorrow.
Me: Nope, I didn't workout yesterday and I don't want that pattern to get started.
Mary Ann: But I don't feel like working out.
Me: It's not about what I feel like doing - it's about what I need to be doing. It isn't even the working out that I don't like - it's the getting started. Today I am going to do a video workout - Walk Away the Pounds with Leslie Sansone. It's not the toughest workout, but it really is too warm and humid to go out.

Here is where I quit arguing with Mary Ann. Here is where I have to be the big girl. I am off to the living room.
My stats for today:
Type: WATP video
Time: 30 minutes
Average heart rate: 112
Maximum heart rate: 127
Calories burned: 181
I’m up 1 from last Thursday
Wow, it's been a while since I did one of these videos. I used to zip through them like nothing. I felt like I was working a lot harder than my numbers would indicate. This might be a good strength training workout for now - I could really feel my muscles.

The other day I noticed that I was getting a lot of traffic from Jimmy Moore's blog. I headed over there to see what was what. He mentioned my blog on his list. I was thrilled and flattered. He is one of my lowcarb heroes. Thanks, Jimmy!!!

Update: Speaking of Jimmy, I just visited his blog. Please continue to keep his family in prayer regarding his brother Kevin. Now Jimmy's dad is scheduled for quintuple bypass surgery. Prayers comin' your way, Jimmy and Christine!

On the home/business front:
Kelli just emailed me this pic of Claire that was taken at their house on Sam's birthday. She is wearing the tissue paper from one of Sam's birthday gifts. (Altogether now - Awwwwwwwwww!!!!)










I just finished 2 stockings. I am running out of green yarn and have to re-stock. I am way behind for the day. Now I have to head off to the school to do a couple hours of inventory. I can't wait until that's done. I would go nuts if it wasn't for being able to listen to online radio while I work. I was tempted to blow it off for today, but I do have to get it finished before the students come back. It's not hard work - it's just dusty and it irritates my nose. I have a wedding rehearsal tonight and our weekly cantor rehearsal. We had to reschedule it because of high winds and hail last night. Then I head over to Anna's to pick up some labels and then home to make 2 more stockings and a batch of jar candles.

Word of the day:
Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus said, "Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

Thoughts from the cornfield:
Whenever I read or hear this passage, it brings to mind the lovely aria from Messiah - He Shall Feed His Flock. So many times in the Gospels Jesus invites us to rest in him. In fact, the whole of the new testament and Jesus' mission on earth could be summed up in the above passage. So why do we struggle? It all comes back to a need for faith and a willingness to "let go and let God."

God bless the troops!

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

On the lowcarb front:
Jamie(Cleochatra) wrote in her Lighter Side of Lowcarb blog about the honeymoon of lowcarbing. Of course that "diet honeymoon" isn't just limited to lowcarb, but the point is that unless we make a lifelong committment to whatever plan we choose, we are going to be continually frustrated in our efforts to get where we want to go.

One of the frequent criticisms of the Atkins lifestyle (and it really should be a lifestyle) is this.
"As soon as you go off it, you'll gain that weight right back." Duh! Can you name me one diet that works when you're not on it?

In today's Word of the day we hear about false prophets. The lowcarb community has a false prophet. Her name is Heidi Diaz and her creed is lowfat, lowcarb, very low calories. I think we've all seen the fruit of that particular prophet's teaching. False prophets succeed because they read people very well and they know how to manipulate them. Thank goodness Kimkins is now being exposed for what it is. And the fruits of Heidi Diaz's proselytizing? Loss of hair, weakness, heart palpitations, thyroid issues, and a whole host of other nasty side effects.

I was pleased to get on the scale this morning and see that the downward movement is continuing. I got on the treadmill at 9:30 and did an interval mix of cardio and weights.

Here are my stats for this morning:
Time: 30 minutes
Average heart rate: 120
Maximum heat rate: 159
Calories burned: 213
I am down 2 pounds from last Wednesday

Not eating at night is a very good thing. Last night's "stay out of the kitchen" project was a batch of Crisp Green Apple jar candles. Of course, I have to test a candle from each batch so the house smells yummy. It's not a tart green apple smell, but more of a sweet tangy scent.

Visited Jamie's blog at the Examiner this morning and found a great recipe for mozzarella sticks using crushed pork rinds. That's one I plan to try this week.

Do any of you do Mypoints? Here's an interesting email I received this morning - I went to the website to collect my 5 points. Here's what I found:

CalTrap is a safe and effective food additive that when sprinkled on your food effectively reduces the amount of calories your body absorbs. The CalTrap program includes a easy to use shaker, 30 on-the-go packets and a handy lifestyle planner.

Reduces caloric absorption of the food you eat
Will not change the taste or texture of the food
Doesn't have the unpleasant side effects associated with fat blockers
Uses an advanced patent pending technologyto deliver amazing results

CalTrap's active ingredient, the Konjac Root is a 100% natural fiber, long recognized for its amazing health benefits and known to be a safe and powerful diet food in its native Japan.The scientists at the American Weight Loss Institute have developed a patent pending method for encapsulating the fiber from the Konjac root to create the world's first clinically proven food sprinkle that actually reduces the calories in the food it is combined with.
Has virtually zero calories
Is an all-natural fiber that’s Generally Recognized As Safe by the FDA
Is known for its ability to reduce cholesterol & blood sugar levels
Because CalTrap is natural and does not work like common fat blockers, it has no harmful side effects and does not cause embarrassing secretions. In fact taking CalTrap is just like switching to a high fiber diet.

Comments anyone?

I visited Jimmy Moore's blog yesterday where he shared some sad news about his brother's declining health. Please, everyone, take a minute today to pray for Kevin and those who love him.

Word of the day:
Matthew 7:15-20
Jesus told the crowds, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits."

Reflections from the cornfield:
You know, we can probably all name some pretty famous false prophets. Hitler comes to mind imediately, along with Jim Jones and a few others. I once did a paper on Hitler and some of his tactics were pretty remarkable. He viewed himself as another Messiah. He once wanted to project his image on the side of a mountain, but his advisors talked him out of it saying that it was a bit over the top. For a false prophet to succeed, he or she must have an audience. Hitler's audience consisted of a depressed country looking for new hope. When people have lost hope, they are at their most vulnerable. Hitler did most of his proselytizing to an audience who was hungry and tired. Contrast this to Jesus, who fed the people to whom he preached. Hitler preached hate, Jesus preached love. Thorns and thistles vs. Grapes and figs - God gave us a choice when we were created. Choose wisely.




God bless the troops!

Tues. June 10 - Atkins Induction - Day 1

On the lowcarb front:
I've decided not to wait until next week to get back on induction. I felt just too darn good while I was on it. I have re-read the rules and I am just going to dive back in. I was thinking about what I wrote. How next week would be easier because I would have less distraction etc. I was making excuses. If I weren't holding myself accountable here, I'm not sure I would even admit it to myself.

Dealing with distractions is exactly the point of making the Atkins WOE a way of life. It's being able to focus on this battle yet still being able to function in the world. I think that it the primary obstacle to ANY weight loss plan.

Whether or not you are a Christian, there are some wise words in the Good Book. Jesus talked about being "in the world, but not of the world." That's pretty much how one who chooses the Atkins way of life needs to operate.

In a sense, when it comes to how we eat, we need to put blinders on. Someone on the lowcarb board (please forgive me, but I can't remember who it was) said, "for me sugar doesn't exist." It's not a matter of giving up sugar, or white flour, or anything else. It's taking the attitude that for me they just don't exist. You can't miss or feel deprived of something that doesn't exist, can you?

Jimmy Moore has a YouTube video in which he talks about sugar being rat poison. (see video below) He's right of course, but I can't think about it being poison otherwise I would be jumping all over other people for eating it. (Kind of like the ex-smoker who feels called to evangelize the smoker.) I think that people need to make the decision for themselves.

I used to smoke. I smoked for 30 years. There wasn't a thing anyone could say that could make me quit. Guilt didn't work, health threats didn't work. Quitting smoking, or giving up sugar, or accepting Jesus, or any major lifestyle change entail much more than quitting smoking, or not eating sugar, or going to church. These are major life-changing decisions and once having made them your life changes. I don't know about you, but major life change scares me. These changes that we choose to make are not really about what we do, but rather, about what we become.

Well, that's my sermon for the day. As they say in OA take what you need and leave the rest. :)

Today's menu:

Breakfast:
Mocha latte double
Raspberry Cheesecake

Lunch:
Chicken salad on revoloopsie rolls
Romaine and spinach salad with dressing
SF Jello cup

Snack:
Atkins Advantage bar

Dinner:
Omelette with salsa, cheese, sour cream, and olives

Challenge of the day. Tonight there is a going away party at a bar in town. It is for one of our staff members. I don't drink and I don't plan to eat. My purpose for going is to wish the staff member well. (In the world, not of the world.)



God Bless Our Troops!

Later . . .

Friday, May 30, 2008

On the home front:
Well, the boxed toilet is still in the dining room. Hmmmmm. I have pushed it to the side because I am too lazy to walk around it any more.

We got our flowers planted and then God very graciously watered them for us today. Harold's flower bed is filled with flowering kale. I fought him on that last year, but I have to admit that once they came in they were gorgeous. My area consists of 3 large barrels that the kids bought me for mother's day a few years ago. (I don't like to pull weeds, but barrels with impatiens are a no brainer.) That year all of the kids also made me cement garden stones. They look very nice in the front. Nina and Jamie have been getting me stone angels for the last few mother's days. They look great on the west side of the house. I am eagerly awaiting the putting up of the windmill with weathervane that Harold got me for Mother's Day.

We will be moving Anna to her new house this weekend. I am thrilled for her, of course, but I will miss having her so close by.

On the lowcarb front:
Still reading DANDR. I am looking forward to next week. We will be getting high speed internet and then I'll be able to watch Jimmy Moore's Livin' La Vida Lowcarb youtube videos. I can access them at work, but not at home. I often stay after hours so I can watch one of his videos. They are very inspirational. If you are a lowcarber you probably already know about Jimmy, but if not, here is a link to his information.
http://www.livinlavidalowcarb.com/


I made a WONDERFUL cheesecake last night (Lowcarb of course).
This is my method:

4 eight ounce packages cream cheese
4 eggs
1 egg yolk
1/3 cup whipping cream or sour cream
1 cup splenda or equivalent sweetener
1/4 cup DaVinci raspberry sugar free syrup.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
I line the outside of a springform pan with foil.
I then set that in a larger pan (I use around stone cake pan form pampered chef)

Beat all ingredients except syrup until smooth. Stir in syrup and swirl into cream cheese mixture. Pour into springform pan. Add water to the outer pan. Bake for one hour at 300 degrees. Then turn oven down to 200 and bake for one more hour. Turn off the oven. I usually make my cheesecake at night and leave it in the oven all night. Last night I goofed up setting the oven so it stayed in the oven all night at 200 degress. It was fine. I couldn't believe it. I couldn't find my camera or I would take a picture. This method produces a beautiful cheesecake with no cracking!

I could not do lowcarb if I didn't have this decadent cheesecake.

On the business front:
Still plugging along with marketing and getting ourselves known. Not much new to report except that if you are thinking of putting up a website, I just love DIYestore.com. I spent a lot of money trying to find what I wanted. When I stumbled on DIYestore I almost cried. It was exaxtly what I was looking for. Well, I guess you live and you learn.