What's on your mind?

[FatherAlabaster]

Today got better. I made rocky road brownies (which I can't eat but I did taste a teeeeeny bit) and Sharknado. I love it so far. It's so terrible.

Why can't you eat them, allergies? Dietary choice?

[Ghouly]

Dietary choice. I have a guest (internet buddy) visiting for thanksgiving and his favorite is brownies so I made rocky road brownies which are basically regular brownies but with mini marshmallows, toasted walnuts and chocolate chips mixed in. A special treat before he flies home.

[FatherAlabaster]

Dietary choice. I have a guest (internet buddy) visiting for thanksgiving and his favorite is brownies so I made rocky road brownies which are basically regular brownies but with mini marshmallows, toasted walnuts and chocolate chips mixed in. A special treat before he flies home.

That's very sweet of you! Now I'm trying to think up some kind of meat-based brownie...

[Ghouly]

Well, y'know. That's what friends do! Sharknado is absolutely SLAYING me. I think you should just stock up on like, a few massive slabs of pig, cow, and chicken to cook into various dishes. Invite me over and we'll have an internet meat-up. Get it... get it... *hangs head in shame*

[RelentlessOblivion]

Those brownies sound pretty damn awesome ghouly. I'm so making my own batch in the near future

[FatherAlabaster]

Invite me over and we'll have an internet meat-up. Get it... get it... *hangs head in shame*

I'm just trying to imagine the look on my wife's face when I tell her I met a married woman on the internet and she's coming over from the West Coast to share my meat.

[FatherAlabaster]

BTW, Ghouly, out of slightly more than idle curiosity, what is your diet? I remember it's a version of the Paleo diet, and that you don't use refined sugar, and avoid grains and beans... what else? Do you follow the "blood type" diets at all?

[Ghouly]

I'm just trying to imagine the look on my wife's face when I tell her I met a married woman on the internet and she's coming over from the West Coast to share my meat.

XD maybe you can post a reaction gif of what you think she'd do.

[FatherAlabaster]

XD maybe you can post a reaction gif of what you think she'd do.

You're really just fishing for pics of my wife, now, aren't ya.

[Ghouly]

BTW' date=' Ghouly, out of slightly more than idle curiosity, what is your diet? I remember it's a version of the Paleo diet, and that you don't use refined sugar, and avoid grains and beans... what else? Do you follow the "blood type" diets at all?[/quote'] OK so. On doctors / nutritionist advice due to health issues it was recommended I go on a low carb, low fat diet and also eliminate caffeine from my diet. I actually thought cutting carbs would be the hardest, turned out cutting caffeine was and I still get intense cravings for it. So I did this for 30 days, and I felt amazing and dropped almost 10 pounds, no other lifestyle changes. In a discussion with my therapist about all this, she explained that I wasn't far off from the Paleo diet which is similar but a bit stricter. For the hell of it, I gave it a go and the following 3 months I went hardcore strict paleo. While documentation varies on what is and isn't acceptable, and some of it I believe to be a bit of pseudoscience (though, I can't argue with results) I mainly stick to these things: No lactose dairy (milk, yogurt, etc) No legumes No refined or processed foods with chemicals, preservatives, artifical color/sweetening/flavoring, high fructose corn syrup, refined wheat/rice/corn flour No starchy vegetables, meaning no potatoes, most root vegetables, corn, peas or carrots No white or refined sugar. Honey or Agave or Maple syrup only. I limit myself to 1tsp a day. No whole grains, meaning oats, barley, rice, etc. No concentrated sugars with low nutritional value, basically, no fruit juice. No processed meats with nitrates like deli cold cuts, sausages and hot dogs. What I do: Many small portions through the day, lots of "grazing". Most of my fats come from meats and nuts I eat lots of lean protien (chicken, eggs, pork loin, steak, lamb… not a fish fan.) I eat lots of dark green vegetables and salads. I eat fruits in moderation, as a snack, like dried mango bits and cranberries. This is NOT atkins. Atkins allows for refined and processed foods even if they're low carb …think those 2 carb chocolate bars and crap like that. Atkins also encourages a high-fat diet to induce satiety. Swapping epic amounts of fats for carbs often helps people feel satisfied, so you get these atkins people eating tons of butter, cheese, yolk, bacon fat, etc. To me, I can't handle it. Blech. Now I did this strictly for 3 months and my body fat percentage dropped, and I lost weight, gained a shit-ton of energy, and I am 32, but I honestly feel 19 in terms of energy and just… general physical vibrance. I can't argue with results so I continued. Now I've been doing this for 10 months and I'm maintaining a good weight and energy level and I have loosened up some of the paleo principals. I will have some of the "no" things, but very sparingly. Once in a while I'll have a yogurt. Or once in a while I'll have bit of chocolate. I have very much weaned off of breads, pasta, and filler carbs like rice and potato to the degree that I do not like it anymore. It feels like eating empty food with no nutrition, styrofoam food. All the appeal is gone, whereas before, pasta would get my mouth watering. So I think half the battle is sticking with it long enough to wean yourself off processed foods and carbs. Given that I am eating food that is really natural and doens't have artifical flavorings or added MSG/sodium, everything is super intensely flavorful now. Things I used to like are now overpowering, too salty, too rich, too chemically or artifical tasting. So it makes it easy for me to continue making good choices. I'm still for the most part very paleo in what I eat, but I make little exceptions here and there. Like the nibble of brownie I had last night. And surprisingly, like 9 out of 10 times it's not worth it nor is it a satisfying derailment of my diet. I'll take a rigatoni piece, nibble, and spit it out because its just not good anymore. I am over at Nerdfitness.com and I got a lot of help and encouragement and ideas there. Paleo is hard but I cannot argue with results. My girlfriend in Germany gave it a try too and she's doing amazing and slimmed down her bodyfat % and feels so good she doesn't want to go off it. All of this is a lot for me, considering I've done low carb diets before, and low calorie diets, and failed miserably and hated the food. Not this time around. Sorry for the diatribe! This is a subject I'm passionate about because it's done so well for me! And nope, haven't done anything bloodtype related. My menu for today: - Decaf Chai Tea with Almond Milk and 1 spoon of Honey - Snacking all throughout the day on sprouted nuts, seeds and berries. - Kale salad with butternut squash, lemon tahini dressing, and shredded cabbage, topped with chicken breast - Dinner tonight will be leftover turkey and probably some salad with viniagrette.

[FatherAlabaster]

Thanks! I'm considering dietary changes, and it's good to hear about other people's experiences. I've had the experience of finding previously enjoyable foods overwhelming - mostly due to cooking at home (or not at all) as opposed to buying pre-made meals (going out or otherwise). The food culture in NYC is very much geared towards restaurants. Neither time nor money for that right now, mostly! When I was growing up, my mom went through periods of trying all sorts of diets; sometimes the rest of us were subjected to them as well. She's been on a blood-type diet for quite a while now with great success, although I think a lot of her health issues stem from dental problems, which is a whole other conversation about money and insurance and surgery... depressing stuff. Anyway, my experience of that wasn't really fun, and I've always scoffed at formally codified diets because of it. Not the best approach, considering I'll be forty in six years.

[Ghouly]

You're really just fishing for pics of my wife' date=' now, aren't ya.[/quote'] Well, you know. I love ogling hot women... But actually, I just love reaction GIFs! XD As a courtesy to you people, i've heavily refrained from spamming this forum with them (as I see others don't).

[Iceni]

Well, you know. I love ogling hot women... But actually, I just love reaction GIFs! XD As a courtesy to you people, i've heavily refrained from spamming this forum with them (as I see others don't).

Actually, if I had to guess it's just because most of us can't be bothered.

[FatherAlabaster]

Actually, if I had to guess it's just because most of us can't be bothered.

Here, Iceni - FTFY.

[RelentlessOblivion]

It's summer, it should be hot, but instead it's 13 degrees celsius, blowing a gale and pouring with rain, I'd be fine with that if it was winter

[Iceni]

Here' date=' Iceni - FTFY.[/quote'] Words cannot describe how fantastically appropriate that is...

[BlutAusNerd]

Re: What's on your mind?

OK so. On doctors / nutritionist advice due to health issues it was recommended I go on a low carb, low fat diet and also eliminate caffeine from my diet. I actually thought cutting carbs would be the hardest, turned out cutting caffeine was and I still get intense cravings for it. So I did this for 30 days, and I felt amazing and dropped almost 10 pounds, no other lifestyle changes. In a discussion with my therapist about all this, she explained that I wasn't far off from the Paleo diet which is similar but a bit stricter. For the hell of it, I gave it a go and the following 3 months I went hardcore strict paleo. While documentation varies on what is and isn't acceptable, and some of it I believe to be a bit of pseudoscience (though, I can't argue with results) I mainly stick to these things: No lactose dairy (milk, yogurt, etc) No legumes No refined or processed foods with chemicals, preservatives, artifical color/sweetening/flavoring, high fructose corn syrup, refined wheat/rice/corn flour No starchy vegetables, meaning no potatoes, most root vegetables, corn, peas or carrots No white or refined sugar. Honey or Agave or Maple syrup only. I limit myself to 1tsp a day. No whole grains, meaning oats, barley, rice, etc. No concentrated sugars with low nutritional value, basically, no fruit juice. No processed meats with nitrates like deli cold cuts, sausages and hot dogs. What I do: Many small portions through the day, lots of "grazing". Most of my fats come from meats and nuts I eat lots of lean protien (chicken, eggs, pork loin, steak, lamb… not a fish fan.) I eat lots of dark green vegetables and salads. I eat fruits in moderation, as a snack, like dried mango bits and cranberries. This is NOT atkins. Atkins allows for refined and processed foods even if they're low carb …think those 2 carb chocolate bars and crap like that. Atkins also encourages a high-fat diet to induce satiety. Swapping epic amounts of fats for carbs often helps people feel satisfied, so you get these atkins people eating tons of butter, cheese, yolk, bacon fat, etc. To me, I can't handle it. Blech. Now I did this strictly for 3 months and my body fat percentage dropped, and I lost weight, gained a shit-ton of energy, and I am 32, but I honestly feel 19 in terms of energy and just… general physical vibrance. I can't argue with results so I continued. Now I've been doing this for 10 months and I'm maintaining a good weight and energy level and I have loosened up some of the paleo principals. I will have some of the "no" things, but very sparingly. Once in a while I'll have a yogurt. Or once in a while I'll have bit of chocolate. I have very much weaned off of breads, pasta, and filler carbs like rice and potato to the degree that I do not like it anymore. It feels like eating empty food with no nutrition, styrofoam food. All the appeal is gone, whereas before, pasta would get my mouth watering. So I think half the battle is sticking with it long enough to wean yourself off processed foods and carbs. Given that I am eating food that is really natural and doens't have artifical flavorings or added MSG/sodium, everything is super intensely flavorful now. Things I used to like are now overpowering, too salty, too rich, too chemically or artifical tasting. So it makes it easy for me to continue making good choices. I'm still for the most part very paleo in what I eat, but I make little exceptions here and there. Like the nibble of brownie I had last night. And surprisingly, like 9 out of 10 times it's not worth it nor is it a satisfying derailment of my diet. I'll take a rigatoni piece, nibble, and spit it out because its just not good anymore. I am over at Nerdfitness.com and I got a lot of help and encouragement and ideas there. Paleo is hard but I cannot argue with results. My girlfriend in Germany gave it a try too and she's doing amazing and slimmed down her bodyfat % and feels so good she doesn't want to go off it. All of this is a lot for me, considering I've done low carb diets before, and low calorie diets, and failed miserably and hated the food. Not this time around. Sorry for the diatribe! This is a subject I'm passionate about because it's done so well for me! And nope, haven't done anything bloodtype related. My menu for today: - Decaf Chai Tea with Almond Milk and 1 spoon of Honey - Snacking all throughout the day on sprouted nuts, seeds and berries. - Kale salad with butternut squash, lemon tahini dressing, and shredded cabbage, topped with chicken breast - Dinner tonight will be leftover turkey and probably some salad with viniagrette.

The most glaring omission to me is beans, why would they be cut? They are chock full of good shit, and have more antioxidants than almost any other food (red beans are the most dense antioxidant rich food). Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Tapatalk 2

[Ghouly]

The most glaring omission to me is beans, why would they be cut? They are chock full of good shit, and have more antioxidants than almost any other food (red beans are the most dense antioxidant rich food). Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Tapatalk 2

As I stated above, I think /some/ of the theory behind Paleo diet to be pseudo science. I asked that question myself when I went on this diet. I referenced this link: What?s Wrong with Beans and Legumes? | Paleo Diet Lifestyle Keeping beans out of my diet isn't that big of a deal. One of my most absolutely hated foods (aside from donuts) is lentils. Beans in general I've just never been a huge fan of them. I don't care for peanut butter. I'd say the only legumey thing I actually like is hummus. And that's one of the diet-breaking foods I'll have now and again, two or three bites at most when I'm in the mood. Even still I go easy on it. I get better nutrition from lean protien and dark vegetables. So I don't really feel like I'm losing that much keeping them out. It's neither here nor there, I don't necessarily miss them. And when it comes to soy, I'm really hesitant to consume anything that could mess with my hormones, as soy is known to do. So I stick to almond milk.

[FatherAlabaster]

Man, you would totally hate the chili I just made... plenty of beef mixed in with a whole lot of no-no. On my mind: I might have just finished the last song for the album. I want to celebrate, just don't want to do it prematurely... lots of work left to do!

[Ghouly]

Man, you would totally hate the chili I just made... plenty of beef mixed in with a whole lot of no-no. On my mind: I might have just finished the last song for the album. I want to celebrate, just don't want to do it prematurely... lots of work left to do!

Woohooo! Like, FINISHED FINISHED? Like, I'm closer to getting a Black Harvest CD to rub all over my... Yeah!!! \m/\m/

[Ghouly]

Well, Dinner was healthy. But I destroyed my diet for a little bit as I got in a care package from Sweden from my Swedish teacher-slash-business partner Dinner: roast pork loin, with sauteed kale, broccolini, zucchini, brussels sprouts, beets, and purple cabbage. Today was amazing and what is on my mind today is that I feel like the luckiest girl in the world. I have such amazing friends all over the world and sadly, none of them are even in the same state as me. Even still, I feel loved. And that's an amazing feeling. I was a weepy, tearful ghoul today but in the happiest kind of way. My swede friend/teacher/partner sent me this! As I'm in the process of learning Swedish I made sure to do my FB update in swedish too. Idag fick jag ett underbart paket från Sverige!!!! Tack så mycket, Mattias!! Det Innehåller: två böker, ett serietidning, mandel-biskvier, tre daim, två kick, flera sorters bilar, salta katten, viol, nyponsopa, blåbärssopa, samt fler godsakar! Translates roughly to: Today I recieved a wonderful package from Sweden! Thanks so much Mattias! It's contents: two books, one comic, almond biscuits, three daim, two kick, several types of bilar, salty kat, violet candy, rosehip soup, blueberry soup, and many more yummy things. The process of learning Swedish is so challenging, but rewarding. Today was amazing.

[Iceni]

We had to do a debate in French class today about alternative energy. I had a lot of fun promoting nuclear power and attacking the other methods while responding to their argument/criticisms - I was actually able to describe the process of re-enrichment in relative detail, in French! Today was nice.

[Ghouly]

We had to do a debate in French class today about alternative energy. I had a lot of fun promoting nuclear power and attacking the other methods while responding to their argument/criticisms - I was actually able to describe the process of re-enrichment in relative detail' date=' in French! Today was nice.[/quote'] Tres Bien!!! Also, makes sense arguing for the sake of nuclear power. A very french thing to do.

[Iceni]

Tres Bien!!! Also, makes sense arguing for the sake of nuclear power. A very french thing to do.

Well, my Dad's a nuclear physicist as well, so that helped. The professor also studied nuclear energy so that was a great help. Plus I like nuclear power myself.

[FatherAlabaster]

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