Thursday, December 29, 2011

Tomorrow I leave for Phoenix

to do my first 24 hour race.


I'm excited and scared at the same time. I'm hoping to complete 50 miles within 24 hours.

I wish my wheat belly was smaller. Damn you holiday carbs!

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

What would Fred eat?


I'm thinking of embracing a paleo diet for 4 months.
It will begin after my 24 hour race, on Jan 1.
It would end after my 50 mile race on April 21.
That would be 16 weeks, enough time to see if this type of diet would work for me.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

So what's it going to be for 2012?

Wheat-free?
Grain-free?
Paleo?
Sugar-free?

To make my decision, I've been reading lots of books. Wheat Belly by Dr Davis www.wheatbellyblog.com started it all, I know that I'll be wheat free in 2012. But what about the rest of it?

I've been learning about the Paleo/Primal diet. I like it except for the meat part. I've been a vegetarian for about 20 years. I eat fish/ dairy and eggs. No matter how I try to make the case for adding some meat to my diet, I can't do it. Even the grass fed, humanely treated kind.

How about giving up sugar? I'm tempted to do this but how radical will I go? Do I quit refined sugar but leave in honey, maple syrup and maybe agave? I've been reading about Coconut Sugar, maybe that's all I'll use. Or maybe just fruit sweetened desserts?

OK so no wheat. But how about rice? Maybe just small portions, like in sushi?

I've got some decisions to make. Whatever I decide on Jan 1 will extend through the year.

I better start reading...

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

I'm wheat-free from 7am - 3pm.

These baby steps are working for me. Thanks to protein shakes, an egg cooker and packing my lunch, I'm only 3-4 hours away from being 100% wheat-free. I'm confident that I'll be ringing in my new lifestyle on New Years Day.

The bad news is that I'm still consuming alot of sugar. On Jan 1, I'll use the same baby step method to wean myself off the sweet stuff.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Bento Box!

As of today, I'm wheat/grain free from 7am until 2pm. I've switched from eating english muffins to drinking protein shakes for breakfast. Now the time has extended into lunch, I had to find substitutes for my big fat sandwiches and pizza.

The solution?


A bento box! This one is by Laptop Lunches www.laptoplunches.com.  I bought it a year or so ago but never used it. I'm day 3 into packing my lunch and I actually enjoy it! I like the little compartments. The photo above has cheese/flax-seed crackers (no grain), tuna, fruit salad and mixed nuts.

I'm learning new things everyday.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

SUUUUUUUU.......EEEEEEEY!!!!!

Actually it's Sous Vide. I just ordered one of these...

Sous Vide is a way to cook things in a water bath. The food is vacuum packed then placed in the cooker. Sous Vide cooking is supposed to concentrate the flavors and make food very tender.

I plan on eating replacing plates of pasta with plates of fish. Sous Vide seems like an easy, foolproof way to prepare it. I'm going to order lots of Alaskan fish from this place..

I'm going to stock up on Wild caught Salmon, Halibut and other tasty fishies. The website is www.vitalchoice.com.

Another cool gadget I bought..



An egg cooker! That looks like an egg!

I'm also looking at some Paleo cookbooks. I'm determined to be wheat/grain free in 2012. Having some good recipes will help with the transition.

Speaking of transition, I'm wheat-free up to 1pm. I replaced my usual english muffin breakfast with a protein smoothie. Next week I'll pack wheat free lunches, probably a cheese/hard boiled egg combo with some fruit and veggies.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Getting back on track

Last time I jumped 100% into the wheat free lifestyle. One day I'm eating brownies, the next day I'm not.

That didn't work out too well. I'm trying a new tactic..baby stepping my way into a wheat-free life.

Beginning on Dec 11, I'm taking 21 days to become wheat free. One hour at a time. The schedule looks like this

Dec      Time without wheat
11         7-8am       
12         7-9am
13         7-10am
14         7-11am
15         7-12pm
16         7-1pm
17         7-1:30pm
18         7-2pm
19         7-2:30pm
20         7-3pm
21         7-3:30pm
22         7-4pm
23         7-4:30pm
24         7-5pm
25         7-5:30pm
26         7-6pm
27         7-6:30pm
28         7-7pm
29         7-7pm
30         7-7:30pm
31         7-8pm


WHEAT-FREE FOR 2012!!!!

Monday, December 12, 2011

In a nutshell

here's what's been happening since my last post in October...

-Fell off the wheat free wagon, pies, cookies, pizza, if it contains wheat, I've been eating it.
-My wheat belly is back with a vengeance.
-I've completed 2 marathons and I think 3 half marathons since my last post. My wheat belly would be three times it's size if I didn't do them.

I was going to post a photo of my belly, as a "before" picture. I can't bring myself to do it. Instead I'll attach a photo from my last marathon in November.

My wheat belly is concealed under my race number
The good news is that I'm working my way back to wheat free living. More details tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm re-reading Dr  Davis's book..

And soon it will be day 1 again

I'll explain later this afternoon...