The Middle Pillar

I've been a slacker lately and not posted anything here. Originally I could blame it on a virus, but then it was little more than shear lazyness. I've been back on track with my diet and exercise for about a 10 days now, and I'm happy to report that my blood sugar is responding nicely. It has been floating in the 87-91 range for about the last week. During this time my diet rules have been simple, always eat protein when eating a carb, and eat Low GI carbs. Most of my carb choices have been fruits, vegetables, legumes, and some whole grains. Though, I did have Ice Cream once. One is not a saint. Unlike some, I actually find it easier to keep control of both my diet and sugar by limiting saturated fat. I know this runs counter to what many feel, but its what works for me. The fact is that foods that are High in fat are trigger foods for me. Some like to binge on sugar, I would binge on fat. It must run in my family, I have a sister who still eats butter by the spoonful. This is not to say my diet is low fat. if I were to assign percentages, my diet would resemble 40-30-30. This is less an attempt to eat in the ZONE, than the fact its just an easy diet to do and live with over a long period of time. Using the "hand-eye" method Sears describes, or the plate dividing method ( divide plate into fourths, cover one fourth with protein, one fourth with low gi starchy carbs, and the other 2 fourths with vegetables and fruit.) provides an easy way to control carb intake, eat nutient dense, and still have a wide varitey of choices. Eating this way, I find I have plenty of energy for exercise and activity. I have been getting at least 30 minutes everyday of some type of activity. Generally three days a week of some type of strength training or calisthenics, yes dear freinds push ups and squat thrusts woo-hoo, and walking at a moderate pace on the other days. Nothing extreme, just the basics. I often am amused by the actions of myself and others who take extreme measures when moderation really does work. I think it may be a symptom of the times that moderation has gotten such a bad reputation. Everything these days is polarized, politics, diet, business, even strength training. The whole issue is one of a false dichotomy, Red Sate vs Blue State, low fat or low carb, HIT or HVT, no one seems to be willing to admit that there might be a middle ground. The high rate of diet failure could be related to this all or nothing mentality. I know for both my wife and I, diets which eliminate one type of food or another ultimately lead to a sense of deprivation. Being deprived of something you enjoy sucks. But I think many people like deprivation. They wear their suffering, and sacrifice like a badge for all to see. They then gather in groups of people who are suffering similar deprivation and cast aspersions upon those who choose other forms of deprivation, then brand them heretics for failing to see the one true path of deprivation. Generally when both sides of an issue think I'm wrong, I know I'm close to the truth. Later this week I'll be posting progress updates, I'm feeling pretty good, and my clothes are fitting better. So it should be a positive outcome

Hail Caeser

This morning my fasting glucose was 94. Not bad, but not good either. Considering my Romanesque over indulgence in tribute to saturnalia that we call Christmas, I was expecting much worse. I also had to loosen my belt a notch this morning. It doesn't seem likely at this point that I'll make my goal of getting back to my October weight and waist measurement. I am not sure at this point what my waist is, but given that I had to loosen my belt, it moved in the wrong direction. I often wonder about the effect of long nights and short days. Many cultures the world over have historically over-indulged around this time of year. Perhaps some archetypal part of our Jungian psyche needs the bright lights and festivities to ward off doldrums many get from lack of sunlight. The coldest part of the winter is at hand, are we storing up fat to prepare for the depravation that it has brought in the past? Today of course, for most of us, the hardship of winter is an inconvenience at worst. The closest we get to depravation are all the New Years resolutions of diet and exercise that are forgotten by St Patrick’s Day. As this year closes, I reflect on the mistakes of the past year, not to beat myself up, but as a learning tool, so I can do better next year. One of my biggest downfalls this past year was watching the scale too closely. There were times when the tape measure was moving the right direction, but the scale went the wrong direction causing me to change course and second guess what I was doing. Generally this would lead to me trying to add something new to the mix, or changing exercise plans, or some other tweak that would ultimately de-rail progress and I'd be right back where I started from. Lesson from this, if the waist is shrinking, ignore the damn scale. Ultimately body fat levels are more important than the number on the scale, but last year my goal was tied to a number on the scale. So this coming year my goal is going to be tape measure based, a 34 inch waist. The lowest I got this past year was 36 inches. I believe if I had trusted the plan I had originally set up, and not continually changed direction, I would already have a 34 inch waist and could shoot for, dare I say it, a 30 inch waist. Or even better try to get back to the measurements I had when I graduated from college. But one step at a time. Later this week I'll post my waist measurement for all to see, and also an outline of my plan. In all likely hood it will revolve around High Intensity Training and carb controlled eating, shocking is it not?