The Preggers Diet

I almost didn't even bother posting since I'm preggers. HOWEVER, you can diet while pregnant--just have to be careful. I have been reading a lot of blogs on babycenter.com and ivillage for healthy eating options. Fit Pregnancy magazine also helps. Three things I'm focused on are sugar, overall calories, and quality of food. On my first pregnancy I gained 60 pounds. It was horrible. And it took forever to lose the weight. This pregnancy I want to be better at my dieting. This has been my plan so far.

Sugar: Instead of consuming regular soda, I do diet and I limit my intake to one a day.

Overall Calories: With past pregnancies I would eat whatever I wanted, and whenever. Now, I try to limit my portions and stop BEFORE I feel full. I try to substitute fatty food by drinking more skim milk, which makes me feel full, and is good for me and the baby.

Quality of Food: I have always been picky and concerned about food being organic. It is difficult for me to eat low quality food. I rather eat oatmeal.

Overall: The only way I can really lose weight is to run. I can't do that now and it shows. I could walk, but just haven't made the time. Being pregnant is too much of an excuse to not exercise. That's bad, I know. But maybe if I didn't work, wasn't in school, etc...

Rick’s Diet – Week 1 Report

As expected, sticking with the new diet hasn’t been easy.  I’ve probably been about 60% compliant this week.  Lunch during the work week has proven to be the biggest problem.  With very little effort, my friends successfully convinced me to abandon the diet in favor of more enjoyable meals.  My lunches this week have included Pepperoni Pizza, Fettuccini Alfredo, BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich & French Fries, and one very large Italian Submarine Sandwich. 

It has become clear to me that dieting takes great discipline (which I clearly don’t have).  Further, in order to be successful, I may be forced to isolate myself from those that are not supportive.  Unfortunately, this is much easier said than done.  First, I enjoy the work day lunch camaraderie.   I particularly appreciate being able to make a personal connection with my co-workers.  Further, it has proven to be a great opportunity for professional networking.  As such, I am struggling with the notion of giving up the “lunch club” in favor of the new diet. 

Starting this week, I am going to try and cut down on the number of group lunch outings.  I figure two days a week should be sufficient to keep my status as a member of the lunch club.  In addition, when I do go out to lunch, I am going to target the healthiest choices on the menu.  Unfortunately, I suspect this will lead to relentless ridicule.  Hopefully, I won't cave under pressure this time...

The evolution of our CI question...

... appears to have migrated from how to improve one's diet to who can most colorfully express the tribulations of attempting to do so.  In other words, who's got the best 'fat rant'.  (Thanks for that term, Joel, I'll have to remember that...).

For real, here's where I'm at:

+  Have completed eleven days on myfitnesspal, and thus far have focused on changing portion sizes.  The diet that I inputed is less bad than my rant would have indicated, but I kill myself being the family garbage can.  Two-plus hours sequestered in the study tends to lead to random snacking as well.  All said, my caloric surplus is a manageable +300, which I've been handling via a few extra aerobic minutes.  The other dietary measures are OK because I eat a largely Asian-influenced meal that doesn't have a lot of bad stuff except for the occasional coconut milk dishes that are bad on cholesterol.

+  In terms of the three measures -- affordability will be a wash (not really changing the diet so much but perhaps increasing leftovers), my challenge measures will be satisfying and sustainable (can I cut the portions, avoid a bad catch-up meal, and not fall asleep at my desk while reading workplace learning ... oh, that's right, I'm doing that now).

Regards, Neo

Post vacation blues

Hello all,

Well, there is good and bad news.  First, the good.  I signed up for a My Fitness Pal account tonight and will begin tracking tomorrow.  Now the bad...after an extended week (was supposed to be 4 days, turned into 7) in the Florida Keys, I am back home and staring reality in the face.  Perhaps nightly sunset viewing cocktail hour, stone crabs and our mission to find the best Key Lime Pie in the Keys was not such a good idea after all.

Tomorrow is another day, as they say.  Now the really good news is that I got lots of reading done (err, poolside, of course!)

Jor-el's Weekly Fat Rant

On the heels of Neo's confessional, I will have to echo his sentiment. The amount of caloric disparity in my estimations of my food intake is staggering. How in the world can my 1550 calorie diet in reality be 3000+! How does that happen?! How can fatless foods taste so bad!? Why can't I have a job that causes me to burn 4000-6000 extra calories a day!?And why is it that clothing manufacturers seemingly have engineered a shrinking fabric? I have it on good authority (experiential, that is), that clothing I have been wearing has been shrinking an average of 10% over a 4-6 month period...even if erroneously labeled "pre-shrunk". I am actually thinking of following Christ's model of a 40 day water only fast....but who am I kidding, I can't stand missing lunch!!
Ah well, not sure where this all fits into the CI project, but thought I'd write something.
I gotta go each some moose rouladen leftovers with a side of mashed potatos....I'm guessing 300 calories, tops.

Neo's progress as of 9 Nov

Teammates,

After getting over myself and posting my diet and exercise profile in myfitnesspal.com, I have the following observations.

1.  I am an unsuccessful liar.  My wife prepares this wonderful Javanese dish called rendang which is a spicy boiled beef cooked in a chili coconut milk sauce.  (You probably already see where I'm going with this.)  I have always thought, {hmm.  Boiled beef = no fat.  I'm eatin' healthfully!}  I then plug it into myfitnesspal.com, discovering to my pleasure that rendang exists in the database, and thereby registering my honest, typical nice and hefty portion.  KABAM!  The calories, fat, and cholesterol accounted for that entree alone counted for 45% of my recommended daily intake.  So, I reduce the size of the portion and moved on.  ...  Then once my conscience quickly got to me, I re-registered the truth and allowed the software to inform me (almost with the smugness of a typical GPS system) that if I were to consume that day's diet over 5 months, I would risk turning spherical.  Darn.

2.  My daily runs only account for a 1/2 meal.  I sat at the table with my boys this evening and counted my dinner in miles.  I have a bag of Sun Chips in my home office where I am typing this.  ...  Must resist  ...  Must resist  ...  ok, I feel better now, but hmmm, my eldest didn't eat that last chocolate chip c--- Must Resist!

3.  There are no calories, none whatsoever, in my nightly post-study reward beer.

4.  And finally, the worst thing in the world is packaged salad dressing.  We doth kiddeth ourselves that salads are part of the path to a healthier life.  Apart from the rendang, the dressings are a gotcha waiting to happen. (On a similar note, I thank heaven that six months ago I stopped taking cream and sugar in my daily seven cups of coffee and have learned to take it black.)

So, I guess you can say that my personal sign of learning through the CI project is the need to be more circumspect about things I treat with benign neglect.

Good luck, y'all.

Regards, Neo

Joel's Caloric Monitoring Diet

Joel’s Caloric intake modification

Using myfitnesspal.com, (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/) I have undertaken the method of weight loss based on caloric intake only.

This website allows you to input your meals throughout the day, and include any exercise you accomplish to offset any extra caloric intake. I have used the tool to map out my desired weight, and using the factors of age, sex, and type of work I do, and the fitness goals you have, I have established a maximum caloric intake to achieve that goal.

This tool will allow me to measure the changes to my body composition based on a radical change to caloric intake, which, up until know has been largely (and I mean LARGELY) ignored.

You can also form teams on this site and monitor and encourage each other, which might be something to discuss as well.

As you input your food throughout the day, it updates your intake to include carbs fats and proteins, which may be helpful; to those of you tracking these specific intakes.

With my goal is a lofty 2 pounds weight loss per week, my daily caloric intake is 1580. If I want to eat more than that, I simply need to increase the output through exercise.

	0		0		0		0
Your Daily Goal	1,580		217		53		59
Remaining	1,580		217		53		59
Calories		Carbs		Fat		Protein

Nancy's New Diet

Hello everyone, I took a bit of a different approach to this one.  I modified Tom’s diet to reflect one that more  closely matches mine, and then I went through and tried to reduce the sugar.  Next step:  work on cost comparisons and possible number of sugar grams per day.

--Nancy

 

Note:  Average adult consumes 88 grams of sugar PER DAY.  According to the American Heart Association, it should be 30g for men and 24g for women.

Current Breakfasts (7):

3 = raisin bran, CHEERIOS, Orange juice, 2 toast with butter, NATURAL (NO SUGAR ADDED) APPLE SAUCE and jam

2 = greek yogurt WITH FRESH FRUIT with jam, Orange juice, 2 toast with butter

1 = pancakes w BLUEBERIES syrup, bacon, Orange juice, coffee

1 = cheese omelette, bacon, 2 toast, coffee

Lunches (7):

5 = chicken caesar salad with BALSAMIC DRESSING 2 packets of dressing, 50cent vending pack of cheese crackers, piece of FRESH FRUIT, diet coke

1 = Turkey sandwich on WHEAT white bread with LOW CAL MAYONAISE cranberry sauce and lettuce, PRETZELS chips, shortbread cookie, diet coke

1 = Grilled Cheese on Wheat, Romaine lettuce with Balsamic Vinagrette.

Dinners (7):

 
1 = Grilled chicken breast, BROWN white rice with butter and garlic sauce, broccoli, chocolate chip cookie, BANANA with LIGHT DRIZZLE OF CHOCOLATE SAUCE, water

1 = Beef Stew, BROWNwhite rice, kale with balsamic vinegar, 100 CALORIE PUDDING CUP chocolate chip cookie, water, glass of red wine

1 = 1 = Chicken caccitore, WHOLE WHEAT ROTINIrotini, chocolate chip cookie, water, glass of red wine

Grilled swordfish with Mango chutney, white BROWN rice, spinach, chocolate chip cookie, piece of FRESH FRUIT, water

1 = Grilled chicken breast, mashed potatoes, SUGAR FREE JELLO with FAT FREE COOL WHIP chocolate chip cookie, water

1 = Tortellini with butter and parmesan cheese, romaine lettuce salad with fat free Italian dressing, FRESH STRAWBERRIES chocolate chip cookie, water, glass of red wine

1 = spaghetti with tomato sauce, 100 CALORIE PUDDING CUP, chocolate chip cookie, water

 

Snacks and Other Stuff (7):

Morning snack – greek yogurt with Craisins

Occasional afternoon snack – cookie or brownie  or Welch’s fruit snacks NATURAL ALMONDS

Rick’s New Diet - Initial Report

Motivated by our CI project, I have decided to modify my diet.  I exercise regularly, but admittedly my diet has never been very healthy.  As I swiftly approach middle age, I realize it’s time to make a change.   My primary goal is to have a long, healthy life.  As such, I will focus on maintaining a 2000 calorie a day diet and reducing my overall fat intake. 

Based on age and activity level, the suggested calorie range for men is between 1600 and 2800 calories per day.  I have decided to establish a 2000 calorie a day diet.  This decision was based on my age group (31 - 40 years of age) and moderate level of activity.   

Due to my steady weight gain over the past decade, I also decided to focus on fat reduction.  As most of us know, being overweight increases the risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and certain forms of cancer.  Further, a gram of fat has about twice as many calories per gram as carbohydrates and proteins.  

I started the new diet this morning.   My plan is to provide weekly reports on my progress.  In the weekly reports, I will share my experiences related to the affordability, satisfaction, and sustainability of the diet.  I fully expect to have moments of dietary weakness.  I am particularly worried about my tendency to consume fast food during the work week (i.e., Taco Bell and Wendy’s).  In addition, I have a notorious sweet tooth (the excess Halloween candy isn’t helping).  I will also be curious to see how maintaining a healthy diet impacts my budget.   Ultimately, I fear these concerns may negatively impact my satisfaction with the diet and my ability to sustain the diet in the short or long-term.        

The table below contains an overview of my target diet.  My wife has graciously volunteered to help prepare the meals and keep me motivated.  In addition, the cafeteria at work offers several healthy eating options, including many of the items listed in the diet.  I plan to repeat the diet on a weekly basis, with some modification based on food availability and personal preference.  Any changes in the diet will be noted in my weekly reports.

Day	Breakfast	Morning Snack	Lunch	Afternoon Snack	Dinner
Sun.	Egg & Light Cheese Muffin Orange Juice (1 cup)	Fruit Yogurt (1 cup) Water (1 cup)	Chicken Salad Three Bean Salad (1 cup) Reduced-Fat Wheat Crackers (4 crackers) Apple (1/2 large) Diet Soda (12 ounces)	Fat-Free Fig Bars (2 bars) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)	Garlic Chicken Wild Rice Zucchini/Summer Squash Medley (1 cup) Light Pound Cake Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)
Mon.	Toasted Oatbran Bagel (1 large) Light Cream Cheese (2 T.) Pineapple and Cantaloupe (1-1/2 cups) Skim Milk (1 cup)	Dried Apricots (6 halves) and Nuts (1/4 cup) Coffee (8 ounces)	Roast Beef and Swiss on Rye Baked Potato Chips (1 ounce) Diet Soda (12 ounces)	Soft, Fat-Free Fruit Granola Bar (1) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)	Reduced Fat Taco Salad Low Fat Custard (1 serving) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)
Tues.	Cinnamon and Raisin Toast (2 slices) Bran Cereal (1 ounce) Sliced Apple (1) Skim Milk (1 cup)	Animal Crackers (11) Coffee (1 cup)	Low Fat Turkey Sandwich Carrots Sticks (5) Diet Soda (1 cup)	Butter Flavored Light Microwave Popcorn (3 cups) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)	Healthful Fettuccine Alfredo Italian Green Beans with Pimento (1 cup) Garlic Bread Sticks (4) Reduced-Fat Margarine (2 tsp.) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup) Light Ice Cream (1 serving)
Wed.	Cream of Wheat (3/4 cup with 1 teaspoon brown sugar) Low-Fat Bran Muffin (1 large) Orange Juice (1 cup) Skim Milk (1 cup)	Cantaloupe and Watermelon Balls (2 cups) Coffee (8 ounces)	Ham and Cheese Sandwich Pretzels (1 ounce) Diet Soda (12 ounces)	Fat-Free, Sugar-Free Yogurt (1 cup) Honey Graham Crackers (3) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)	Crunchy Baked Cod Asparagus Spears (6) Baked Sweet Potato (1 medium) Whole Wheat Roll (1 ounce) Light Lemonade (1 cup)   Sugar Free Sorbet (1/2 cup)
Thur.	Fruit-Topped Low Fat Waffles Extra-Light Margarine (2 tsp.) Skim Milk (1 cup) Orange Juice (1 cup)	Apple Slices (1 medium apple) Topped with Peanut Butter (2 T.) Coffee (8 ounces)	Grilled Chicken Sandwich Baked Tortilla Chips (1 ounce) Salsa (1/4 cup) Diet Soda (12 ounces)	Low-Fat Granola Bar (1) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)	Healthy Sweet’n Sour Pork Steamed Brown Rice (1 cup) Asisan Vegetables (1 cup) Fortune Cookies (1) Iced Tea, Unsweetened (1 cup)
Fri.	Vegetable Omelet (prepared with 1/2 cup egg substitute and 1/4 cup vegetables) Turkey Sausage (3 ounces) Wheat Toast (1 slice) Grapefruit (1/2 large) Whipped Diet Margarine ( 1 tsp.)	Part-Skim String Cheese (1 ounce) Whole Wheat Crackers (2) Coffee (8 ounces)	Low Fat Tuna Melt Baked Chips (1 ounce) Low-Sodium Vegetable Juice (6 ounces) Diet Soda (12 ounces)	Frozen Vanilla Yogurt Cone (4 ounces) with Crisp Cereal Nuggets (2 tsp.) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)	Seasoned Select Sirloin Strip (3.5 ounces cooked) Baked Potato (1 large) with Non-Fat Sour Cream and Chives (2 T.) Baby Carrots (1/2 cup) Tossed Salad (1 cup) with Low Calorie Catalina Dressing (2 T.) Sorbet (1/2 cup) Iced Tea, Unsweetened (1 cup)
Sat.	Light French Toast Light Maple Syrup (4 T.) Whipped Diet Margarine (1 T.) Light Orange Juice (1/2 cup)	Low Fat Yogurt (1 Cup) Vanilla Wafers (4)	Vegetarian Burger Roasted Potatoes (2 small) Green Beans (1/2 cup) Diet Soda (12 ounces)	Light Snack Cake (1 serving) Iced Tea with Lemon (1 cup)	Healthy Vegeterian Pizza Mixed Salad (1 cup) with Fat-Free Italian Dressing (2 T.) Diet Soft Drink (12 ounces)

From Neo --

In case I am unable to participate tomorrow due to the hurricane, here are my thoughts:

Of the seven factors that we drew up (alcohol, calories, protein, salt/sodium, cholesterol/fat, artificial preservatives, and sugars/sweeteners), I will pursue salt-sodium and calories.

The following is the reference diet based on what I ate over 7 of the days since we broke camp.  It represents a typical diet for me (which I hope you don't mind my sharing).

Current Breakfasts (7):

3 = raisin bran, 2 toast with butter and jam
2 = greek yogurt with jam, 2 toast with butter
1 = pancakes (double stack) w syrup, corned beef hash (1/2 can) with additional seasonings, lots of coffee
1 = cheese omelette, bacon, lots of coffee

Lunches (7):

5 = chicken caesar salad with 2 packets of dressing, 50cent vending pack of cheese crackers, lots of coffee
2 = fast food lunch with kids -- 1 Burger King and 1 Pizza Hut

Dinners (7):

1 = 1/3 cornish hen, white rice with butter and garlic sauce, broccoli, chocolate chip cookie, water
1 = rendang (stewed spiced beef), white rice, kale with balsamic vinegar, chocolate chip cooke, water
1 = lamb chops w/mint jelly, white rice, spinach, chocolate chip cookie, water
1 = schnitzel with pickled red cabbage, mashed potatoes, chocolate chip cookie, water
1 = fried glass noodle with shrimp, scrambled egg, cabbage and carrots, chocolate chip cookie, water
1 = bulgogi ribs (4ea), white rice, kimchi, chocolate chip cookie, water
1 = spaghetti with tomato sauce, chocolate chip cookie, water

Snacks and Other Stuff (7):

7 = usually one pack of peanut M&Ms, lots of coffee, 1 beer at night (um, well, ok, maybe two...)

Now, I plan to develop the reference diet after the storm, but for next week I will have come up with the cost figures, and I already know the general degree of satisfaction.  Here's how I propose dealing with satisfaction:  Likert scale 1 to 5 (satisfaction being high) in which we answer the following questions on a per-meal basis (so we have to answer this for each of the 21 meals):

+  How satisfying was the meal's taste?
+  How satisfactorily filling was the meal?
+  How satisfied were you based on the meal's nutritional value?
+  How convenient was the meal to prepare and eat?
+  Would you eat this meal on a regular or occasional basis? (5 = regular, 3 = occasional)

I don't yet have an opinion on 'sustainable' and how we can best measure it.  Maybe subjectively as an overall assessment (not per meal)?  This is my impression based on how Nancy defined it, but I'll go with y'all.

See you Monday maybe, or not.  Let's just hope the storm passes quickly.

Cheers, Neo

(Very) Quick Notes for Team Meeting 10/20/12

Tension between many of the variables in the existing model

Process:

1.     Draw 6 variables on board

2.     Identify relationships between them

3.     Discuss tangible aspects of healthier eating style below

4.     Eliminate MAINTAINING and ENJOYABLE

5.     Experiment to test the links

Comparison of items in the grocery store?

Goals:

Capture current state and potential alternative by meal

i.e. here’s my diet today and what is the process for being more healthier, affordable and sustainable

Tangible aspects as defined by group:

·      Alcohol

·      Calories

·      Higher vegetable protein/meat protein

·      Salt/sodium

·      Cholesterol/fat

·      Artificial preserve/organic

·      Sugars/artificial sweetener

What is healthier option?

How does it affect budget?

What is satisfying?

What is sustainable?

How do healthier options affect the other variables of affordability, sustainable, satisfying?

Hypotheses:

1.  Higher degree of health will cost more

2.  Higher degree of health will take more time

Others?

Is this important? Interesting? An area of future research?

Focus on diet

Next steps:

We will each take a stab at this from current diet

·      Identify which 1-2 factors we think there is the greatest variable to change

·      Develop 7 breakfasts/lunches/dinner

·      Develop alternative menu

·      Test against all three aspects

Integrate theorists?

No team meeting Monday, 10/22.  Next meeting Monday, 10/29.  Be prepared to discuss your experiments so far.