Fat Tuesday - Time To Lose

FAT TUESDAY - Don’t Do It
For those of you who may not know what that day represents, here is some background. Fat Tuesday is a day of "wild abandon," and it is the last day before the beginning of the "Lenten Season," practiced by Roman Catholics. I was brought up in a Roman Catholic family and I tried my hardest to meet all the rigors, rules and obligations of a practicing Catholic. We did not practice anything like "Fat Tuesday."
In one final day before the Lenten Season, one could "pig out" or eat everything desired. Then down in New Orleans, they expanded that to include a major celebration in which they practice, a kind of pagan holiday, when women are given beads for exposing their breasts. I am not a prude. Let them have their fun, as long as no one is hurt or abused, it may be a necessary "evil."
Parties and celebrations gave them license to ignore all the rules, including eating healthy. Now, if you like the way you look and can afford to indulge yourself in overeating candies, cookies, chocolates and alcohol, then so be it. However, if you’re like me, I would rather stay on a level plane. I will continue to benefit from that which I have developed in the way of muscle, a stronger immune system, and a healthy weight. If you don’t like the image in the mirror and want to continue to stay in your healthy-weight range - hang in there. Weight gained can be so hard to take off, so few of us can afford to "put it on."
"Time To Eat and Lose Weight" is in the blog site of February 27th, 2006. Refer to the regimen proposed to learn how you can develop a lifestyle approach to heathy eating without going hungry.
Dr. Andrew Weil, M.D., PhD.,recently spoke on National Public Radio about "Integrative Medicine." His recommendations closely resemble mine. He believes that the number one nutritional-problem in this country is a deficiency in "Omega-3" trans-fatty acids and I would add, the overabundant use of "Sugar." The epidemic proportions of overweight people who develop cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, stroke, heart attack and cardiovascular disease is growing by the day. People will have to know and respect the fact that their best doctor is the one in the mirror.

If you believe in learning what it is that prevents disease and how to build healthier cells, then you will have to rely on our best and newest weapon - the internet.

All generations on this planet had to learn to survive and adapt to a problematic environment - whether it was famine, disease, poverty, or a lack of access to clean water, clean air and food. We are no different in that respect. We are surrounded with a "splendid sufficiency" as my wife’s 92-year-old English mother would say. And she ought to know about survival. She grew up in London during WWII and tells us how she had to eat clover to survive. Even now, it is that same survival mode that bodes her well as she tries to go on. That "splendid sufficiency" may be what is causing all the diabetes. Too much food and too many choices can be a curse. Children are given school lunches, that consist of pizza, nachos and cheese, hot dogs, hamburgers and sugar-loaded beverages. When they arrive home, a tired mother, may suggest a trip to McDonald’s or Burger King, or even order out for a pizza.
As the Lenten Season starts on Ash Wednesday, remember that you don’t have to be Catholic to use good old-fashioned common sense. Eat your biggest meal in the middle of the day while you are in full stride and burning calories. Eat a light breakfast (oatmeal is excellent, or poached egg on toast with a slice of tomato) and/or fruit salad and cottage cheese with tea..
Make your night-time snack light. We have some sliced fruit, a cup of tea and an English muffin. It works, and if it doesn’t, experiment with other approaches. But, always keep your eye on the scale and know which foods will arm you best against disease, obesity, and viruses. Antioxidants in blueberries, anti-inflammatory cherries, heart-healthy wild sockeye salmon and a one-a-day vitamin to fill in the gaps.
As a nation, and a people determined to stop this endless onslaught of disease, on our health - we need to learn to eat healthy.
Fat Tuesday is not for me. Enjoy your family, friends and co-workers, by living longer, eating healthy, exercising, and most importantly, "HAVE FUN." Laughter releases endorphines that help to heal the body.

If it's Chilly, It's Time For Chili

Chili With Vegetables and Beans
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 lbs. Ground Beef
2 Large Cut Chopped Onions
2 Large Diced Green Peppers
3 Cups Diced Potatoes
1 Can Mexican Chili Beans
1 Can Diced Tomatoes
3 Cloves Garlic, peeled and minced
4 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 Package Chili -O-Mix
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp allspice
2 tsp oregano
1 Can Dark Kidney Beans drained and rinsed
2 Cups Diced Carrots
2 Cups Diced Celery
2 Large Green Peppers, diced
1 Bunch chopped Scallions
1 Teaspoon pepper
1 Can (15 oz.) Cannelini Beans, drained and rinsed
1 Can Pinto Beans
1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Tbsp dark brown sugar packed level
This is my own special chili recipe and people won’t stop eating it. Some call it a kind of minestrone. I add 1 cup of water for every cup of vegetables to volumize it. It’s loaded with good ingredients and never has caused any acid indigestion with the balance of brown sugar and apple cider vinegar. If you want to make it thicker, just place 1/4 cup of water in a carafe and add 2 tablespoons of corn starch and shake. Add it to the simmering (at a chuckle) contents, after 2 hours of slow cooking. If you like it hot, add about 4 jolts of tabasco or hot pepper sauce. You can also add a couple of tablespoons of chili powder. Stir with a wooden spoon to prevent sticking and if it is too thick, you can always add a can or two of beef broth.
I start by browning the ground beef with the garlic, green pepper, potatoes and onions. Add as many vegetables as you have around with an equal amount of water or you can add a package of frozen Mediterranean Vegetables. This is really good stuff. I haven’t met anyone who had a bowl who didn’t ask for seconds. You really don’t have to buy 90% fat- free beef. Use whatever is on sale, even ground chuck, you can drain off any excess fat. However, the fat is an excellent base for cooking the vegetables and the volumetrics or percentage of fat in the total mix is very small. I never get a hard yellow crust of fat on the top when I place the remains in the refrigerator. If you do, simply remove the fat that is on top for a reduced-fat chili. I salivate as I write this article, and have all the ingredients ready for tomorrow.

Time To Eat And Lose Weight

Eating Regimen Suggestions
Grazing on healthy foods in limited quantities will keep the metabolism higher - than simply skipping meals. However, there is a tendency to overeat and that is where I decided to go back in time to find some formula that would actually take off pounds without getting hungry.
The idea came to me from my experience, as a child. During the Lenten Season, we were required to "fast." The definition of fasting was: Eating one meal a day with two other meals that, combined, did not equal the major meal of the day. A small breakfast, a dinner at about 2 - 3 p.m. and a snack at about 8 - 9 p.m. All this is still within the "Nutrition-Based-Regimen" which I recommend because it needs to consist of healthy foods.
It works, I have lost 10 lbs in less than 2 weeks and continuing to feel strong and healthy. The idea came to me again, in my 30s, when I found that I could get a decent meal before 4 p.m. with the "Early Bird Specials." The restaurants are usually empty between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. and so they add an incentive in lowering the price and sometimes reducing the size of the meal. That is not a bad idea for people watching their weight. If you get a dinner of salad, vegetables and fish, chicken or even beef with fewer calories, at a lower price – it’s a good deal.
In the middle of the day you are in full stride and burning calories, but you are beginning to feel hungry. Instead of waiting until you are famished, try eating from a lunch menu or a lighter fare. If you eat properly, it should last you until at least 7 - 8 p.m. Then a cup of tea and an English muffin, may tide you over until bedtime. Also, the small amount of carbs will relax you and prepare you for a good night’s sleep.
For lunch, it is a good idea to have a salad before eating. Researchers had 42 women eat as much pasta as they wanted for lunch, with or without one of several salads before the pasta. The women ate 12 % fewer calories when they were given a large salad (3 cups) with low calorie density (veggies plus fat-free dressing and light cheese) than when they ate pasta alone. Even after a small salad (1 ½ cup), they ate seven percent fewer calories than when they were offered pasta alone. However, when the ate either a large or small calorie-dense salad (with regular dressing and cheese), they ended up consuming more calories than when they ate only pasta.
Start dinner with a salad consisting of mostly vegetables and skip the cheese, croutons and Chinese noodles, and other calorie-dense salad dressings.
Watch out for the beverage. Soda ups weight. Researchers tracked more than 50,000 women for four years. Those who went from drinking no more than one soft drink a week to drinking one daily, had nearly twice the risk of diabetes compared to those who drank those beverages less than once a month. Though the soda drinkers also weighed more and ate more, that didn’t entirely explain their higher risk. You might want to think twice before reaching for that 250-calorie bottle of Coke.

It is interesting to me, that this same regimen is practised by the, nearby, Retirement Residence. Dinner is served at noon, and snacks are availabe (fruits, tea and toast) in the early morning and the evening. These are people well into their 90s, and still taking care of themselves, writing, dancing, fishing, playing chess and walking.

Red Pacific Sockeye-Salmon, Fresh Fish Recipe

Fresh Wild Red Pacific Sockeye Salmon
Serving: 6 oz. Cooked, dry heat.

Remember that colored salmon has white lines that cannot be colored and is usually "farm raised" Atlantic Salmon. Pacifice Salmon (good) is deep red in color and has no white lines. Red Pacific Wild Caught Salmon is usually available from the middle of May to the middle of June. It is pricey, but it is worth the health benefits you receive.
Strengths: An excellent source of nerve protecting vitamin B12. Fresh, wild sockeye salmon is also a good source of body-building niacin, thiamine and omega-3-fatty acids.
Caution: Allergy alert: Fish can occasionally cause an allergic reaction.
Selection: Buy fresh sockeye that has been caught in the Pacific Ocean or in western rivers, where it goes to spawn. Sockeye from the Great Lakes should be avoided—it feeds on a regional fish, resulting in off-tasting, colorless meat. Fresh sockeye is less nutritious than canned sockeye—partly because canned sockeye includes edible chunks of bone.
Storage: Fish perishes quickly, so whenever possible, enjoy it within two or three hours of purchase. To keep the fillets in top quality until cooking time, pack them in crushed ice and refrigerate them. If need be, you can store the fish chilled for up to 24 hours.
Serve: Whole, fresh salmon that is poached in a fish stock with vegetables is delectable. So is fresh salmon that is baked in your oven on a Chinook cedar baking plank—the modern-day translation of an ancient Indian cooking technique that imbues salmon with mouth-watering aromas and flavors. Soak the cedar plank in water for about an hour before placing the fish and board in a 400 degree oven (15 minutes)
Sockeye Salmon with Fusilli pasta
Serves Four Active Time: 10 min Total Time: 25 min
4 fillets (6 oz each) Wild Sockeye (Pacific) Salmon2 Tbsp olive oil1/3 pkg (6 oz) Italian Classics Whole Wheat Fusilli, cooked per pkg directions. Two cups Italian Spaghetti Sauce
Heat oil in skillet on MEDIUM-HIGH, until oil faintly smokes; add fillets. Turn over when fillets change color one quarter of way up and seared side has turned paper-bag brown, 3-4 min. Reduce heat to MEDIUM; cook 3-4 min, until internal temp reaches 130 degrees; check by inserting thermometer halfway into thickest part of fillet. Transfer to clean platter; let rest at least 2 min.
Heat spaghetti sauce in saucepan while fillet rests. Top fillet with sauce; add fusilli to pan and mix with sauce. Serve salmon over fusilli.
Nutrition Info: Each serving (3/4 cup of fusilli, 1 fllet & 1/2 cup sauce) contains 510 calories, 36g carbohydrate (5g fiber), 36g protein, 24g fat (4g saturated fat), 80mg cholesterol and 870mg sodium.

Type 2 Diabetes, Exercise and Insulin

Insulin is a hormone that works in conjunction with cells throughout the body to convert sugar, protein and other forms of food into energy. In people who have type 2 diabetes, either the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells cannot efficiently use the insulin.

A study of a group of men in their late 60's with type 2 diabetes found that two weekly sessions of strength training improved their insulin sensitivity and resting blood sugar levels. The 16-week supervised program required the men to exercise their major muscle groups (badminton and tennis do that also) by using weight machines (more fun with tennis or badminton) for 45 to 60 minutes. At the conclusion of the study, their total body fat had decreased by 10%. Plus, their leg strength had increased by 17% and their arm strength by 18%. To fully appreciate the significance of these findings, keep in mind that these positive changes occurred without any modification to their existing diets. I wonder what they ate and whether they were beer drinkers, smoked and ate a lot of ice cream and candy? Maybe they were healthy eaters to begin with.
In my case, I found that badminton and tennis also kept my blood pressure readings lower and the muscles taut and strong. Weight was no problem. The medical community is just beginning to learn what I have known all these years: Exercise in badminton (uses more muscle groups than any other sport) and tennis keep you healthy mentally, and physically, and has the added benefit of keeping you off expensive prescription drugs. Now, just because these men found that exercise alone improved these features of their health — doesn’t mean you should go out and drink beer, eat ice cream, a hot dog and some French fries. One of my thin relatives died while reaching in the freezer for a half-gallon of ice cream.
It is the whole body that we are concerned with and that includes vital signs-- blood pressure, weight, lipid profile, strength, and social and mental health. That is a comprehensive approach that I call Nutrition-Based-Regimen with exercise in social-recreational activities that brings the blood pressure down. (If you finish your game with a higher blood pressure than when you went on the court, then you’re defeating your purpose).
"Make Eating A Lifestyle Change" involves a total approach to living--involving mind, body and spirit while using your intelligence to fight the war against disease and then practicing self-discipline in the way you eat, play, socialize and deal with everyday stress.