When??

When will I ever learn?

Will I ever get back to 100% compliance to the McDougall Plan?

There has been so much stress going on in my (our) life (lives) right now, and I'm (we're) such an emotional eater, that I usually go off plan before breakfast is even over. For example:
On Plan - Scrambled Tofu with loads of veggies cooked in a non-stick pan
Off Plan - Scrambled eggs (2) fried in a bit of butter and served on a white-flour roll with a slice of cheese on top

On Plan - oatmeal and raisins with natural (no sugar) applesauce and a pinch of cinnamon
Off Plan - oatmeal & raisins & peanut butter & chocolate chips

On Plan - no-fat added bean burrito
Off Plan - cold pizza with extra cheese & meat

You know the old 12-Step Program slogan, "Each Day A New Beginning?" Today is yet another new beginning. At least I had the on-plan version of oatmeal already, lunch will be a salad with garbanzo beans, and dinner will be rice and veggies and a vegetable soup.

How much does it really cost to eat a healthy diet?

Money Is Tight, and Junk Food Beckons

By TARA PARKER-POPE

How much does it really cost to eat a healthy diet?

Economists, health researchers and consumers are struggling to answer that question as food prices rise and the economy slumps. The World Bank says nearly a billion people around the world live on a dollar a day, or even less; in the United States, the daily food-stamp allowance is typically just a few dollars per person, while the average American eats $7 worth of food per day.

Even middle-class people struggle to put healthful food on the table. Studies show that junk foods tend to cost less than fruits, vegetables and other healthful foods, whose prices continue to rise.

This fall a couple in Encinitas, Calif., conducted their own experiment to find out what it was like to live for a month on just a dollar a day for food. Overnight, their diets changed significantly. The budget forced them to give up many store-bought foods and dinners out. Even bread and canned refried beans were too expensive.

Instead, the couple — Christopher Greenslate, 28, and Kerri Leonard, 29, both high school social studies teachers — bought raw beans, rice, cornmeal and oatmeal in bulk, and made their own bread and tortillas. Fresh fruits and vegetables weren’t an option. Ms. Leonard’s mother was so worried about scurvy, a result of vitamin C deficiency, that they made room in their budget for Tang orange drink mix. (They don’t eat meat — not that they could have afforded it.)

Breakfast consisted of oatmeal; lunch was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Dinner often consisted of beans, rice and homemade tortillas. Homemade pancakes were affordable, but syrup was not; a local restaurant gave them a few free syrup packets.

One of the biggest changes was the time they had to spend in meal preparation.

“If you’re buying raw materials, you’re spending more time preparing things,” Mr. Greenslate said. “We’d come home after working 10 to 11 hours and have to roll out tortillas. If you’re already really hungry at that point, it’s tough.”

While he lost weight on the budget diet, Mr. Greenslate said, the larger issue was his lack of energy. During the experiment he was no longer able to work out at the gym.

A few times they found a bag of carrots or lettuce that was within their budget, but produce was usually too expensive. They foraged for lemons on the trees in their neighborhood to squeeze juice into their water.

Ms. Leonard said that after the 30-day experiment, one of the first foods she ate was a strawberry. “I almost cried,” she said.

The couple acknowledged that the experiment was something of a luxury, given that many people have no choice about how much to spend on food.

“People in our situation have the leisure to be concerned about issues like this,” Ms. Leonard said. “If we were actually living in this situation, I would not be taking the time to be concerned about what I could and could not have; I’d be worried about survival.”

Researchers say the experiment reflects many of the challenges that poor people actually face. When food stamps and income checks run low toward the end of the month, they often do scrape by on a dollar a day or less. But many people don’t know how to prepare foods from scratch, or lack the time.

“You have to know how to cook beans and rice, how to make tortillas, how to soak lentils,” said Adam Drewnowski, director of the Center for Public Health Nutrition at the University of Washington. “Many people don’t have the knowledge or the time if they’re working two jobs.”

Last year, Dr. Drewnowski led a study, published in The Journal of the American Dietetic Association, comparing the prices of 370 foods sold at supermarkets in the Seattle area. The study showed that “energy dense” junk foods, which pack the most calories and fewest nutrients per gram, were far less expensive than nutrient-rich, lower-calorie foods like fruits and vegetables. The prices of the most healthful foods surged 19.5 percent over the two-year study period, while the junk food prices dropped 1.8 percent.

Obesity researchers worry that these trends will push consumers toward less healthful foods. “The message for this year and next year is going to be affordable nutrition,” Dr. Drewnowski said. “It’s not the food pyramid, it’s the budget pyramid.”

The experiment in California was hardly the first of its kind, though the teachers’ budget was tighter than most. Last month Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm of Michigan and her family took a weeklong “food stamp challenge,” spending only $5.87 per day per person on food — the Michigan food stamp allotment. She told reporters that she ended up buying a lot of macaroni and cheese. Last year Gov. Theodore R. Kulongoski of Oregon lived for a week on his state’s $3-a-day food stamp allocation.

Ms. Leonard and Mr. Greenslate, who chronicled their dollar-a-day experience on their blog, onedollardietproject.wordpress.com, say they are looking at other ways to explore how difficult it is for people with limited income to eat a healthful diet.

“I challenge anyone to try to live on a dollar a day and eat fresh food in this country,” Mr. Greenslate said. “I would love to be proven wrong.”

well@nytimes.com

The Director Who Films Your LIfe Test

I had a problem embedding the code so just copy/pasted it all here. The link to the test is after the results.

Your romantic comedy-drama of a life is now in the hands of Laverne. We almost put Ron Howard in this spot, but we figured you wouldn't want the part of your dad played by Ron's little brother Clint (who's in EVERY one of his films). Penny will hire Squiggy, instead. She directed A League Of Their Own, Big, Awakenings, and Riding In Cars With Boys among few others.

The Director Who Films Your Life

I would rather have Clint Howard - I loved him in his role of Eaglebauer in Rock and Roll High School, and just about every zany character he plays in Adam Sandler movies. With all his famous friends and relatives in the "business" I'm sure he's make a great movie!

NaBloPoMo Day 3

I know I promised to write a post a day for a month, but what does one write when there's nothing new to say?

Should I blog about my son's current health problems? Nah, that would be a HIPPA violation.

About my food problems? Nah, you're all sick of that stuff.

The weather? What can one say about November in New Jersey, when it's too cool to be a "nice" fall day and too warm to be the harbinger of winter.

Landlord? Crazy aunt? Depressed husband? Failed recipes?

I guess I really don't have anything to say today.

Another Reason to Post

Yes, another reason to post daily, at least through the month on November - NaBloPoMo - National Blog Post Month!



So, I may not make a lot of sense, I may whine and moan, curse or pray, but at least something will get written. At least VeganMoFo is over so I'm no longer posting daily recipes. :)

I won't be posting to the official NaBloPoMo site for their feed, just here and my LJ blog. With Thanksgiving, our vacation, and the kid's current health problem, I may not be able to make a daily post, but I'll try.

NaPraGoMo 2008

The Ironic Catholic has started the second annual NaPraGoMo - National Pray to God Month.

Details can be found on this blog here.

Try, Try Again

It doesn't pay to get pissed off at your doctor and rebel by eating anything that isn't tied down. I've been doing that since my appointment in August and the scale hasn't been kind. So today it's back to business, back to the McDougall food plan.

And of course, last night I had another "last meal" and pigged out on burgers and muffins.

I just spent about 3 hours playing with the blogs - this one (added all those links on the right side), made a new one for my food journal, and added today's post to my vegetarian foods blog.

I did my morning exercises (See the Mindful Meditations post below) and will hop on the treadmill later, but first I have to finish breakfast and do some housework. I was so embarrassed yesterday when the landlord came up unannounced — we have piles of "stuff" everywhere. If it's not covered by a magazine or book there's piles of fabric or patterns on it. And CD's and DVD's fight for their own pieces of real estate. Eight bookcases, 4 CD racks, and a shelf around 2 sides of our bedroom wall and still not enough room. It's time to get rid of clutter, both in our home and on our bodies!