Tuesday, April 17, 2012

What Diet Are You On Doc?

During 2011 it was obvious to friends, coworkers and professional acquaintances that I was loosing weight. Robin started calling me "the incredible shrinking man." Surprising, because she didn't know me until after I had already lost more than a hundred pounds. During 2011 there were two frequent questions asked by those wanting to know I was losing all that weight. 

What diet are you on? What program are you following? 

You know what my answer was - I was/am not following a program other than "eat right and exercise" just like Uncle Buck always said. A friend I have known for several years has now asked me the question a little differently. He knows that I eat right and exercise. We have had several conversations about it. And, like me, he started using the Journey Gym. Yesterday he sent an email with this request:
Do you have any weekly menus you've used over the past year that you could send to me?  I'm looking to drop a few pounds and wondered what your 7-day menus looked like.
That got me to thinking again about how to explain "eating right." The word diet does not have to be a verb. For me it is a noun. Dictonary.Com has one definition that explains what I mean - the foods eaten, as by a particular person or group, for example, The native diet consists of fish and fruit. So what is my "native diet?" Almost anything. 

True, I try to avoid bad fats, stay away from sugary foods, and avoid adding salt to anything. Otherwise, any food is on my "diet." And I record everything I eat. Every day for almost 400 days. Here is my diary from MyFitnessPal.com for Monday of this week.
On this particular Monday I had my standard breakfast of eggs, turkey sausage and juice. The eggs, ham and cheese prepared as an omelette by my beautiful wife, Cheryl. Almost every morning is the same. Notice lunch has pizza. That is the meal served at one of the regular office meetings I attend (every third Monday). The dinner is a little unusual. Chicken is normal, but not usually fried, but Cheryl and I were in the mood for some fried chicken. Well, actually, Cheryl was in the mood for fried chicken and I had enough calories left in the daily budget to handle it. Lunch is normally soup or sandwich; Progresso Lower Sodium Chicken Gumbo or a sandwich of sliced turkey with a slice of swiss. Maybe a 4 ounce serving of Yoplait low-fat yogurt. Lots of Ocean Spray Lite Grapefruit Juice with most every meal, or Del Monte grapefruit cup - no sugar added. Almonds and dark chocolate for snack before bedtime - great sleep aid. And good for you, too.

So, what  is your diet like? Please share what you are doing to get or stay in shape. I could always use some new food ideas.

Be sure to eat breakfast, and take Clif Bar with you.


Eat Right. Exercise. Get Plenty of Rest.

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