I can't get me no satisfraction, oh no no no

About a year ago, I noted the introduction of "Satisfries" to the Burger King menu. I wrote

Destroyer of Hopes & Dreams

I'm slowly making my way through "Sugar Salt Fat", a quite in depth look at how the Food Industry manipulates the three ingredients of the title to sell more of their product, regardless of the health and welfare of society or individual. One thread running in defense of Big Food is companies like McDonalds & Dannon are actually revising and rolling out incrementally healthier recipes, not just because its the right thing but because doing it stealthily will prevent the common and proven reaction from the public that if something is presented as "healthier", people will reject it. (McLean Deluxe, anyone?) Not to mention when the obesity epidemic gets so bad that the government will have no choice but enact legislation to hang the bastards, they'll have this track record of stealth health to defend themselves with.

I guess stealth was too subtle for a 3rd rate fast food executive at Burger King this week. After the facts and figures of the reduced calories and special oil-repelling coating of their new and more expensive "Satisfries" got trumpeted all over the Internet, on TV with a hash tag marketing blitz, and billboards and the like, one industry strategist had the cojones to write:

 “Burger King's new fries are totally in tune with the concept of stealth health, which offers patrons guilt-free indulgence. If the fries truly deliver on taste, they could be a real game changer.”

So stealthy.

Well it's a year later, and the news is in: Satisfries is basically a Satisflop. The chain has pulled the item from their company-owned stores, and gave the option of franchisees to drop them -- the result is more than 2/3 of the outlets will stop selling them immediately.

Odd thing is, if you read around the blogosphere and the comments sections of various sites, the general consensus is two fold.

1. Burger King has easily had the worst fries of all the major fast food chains, and the Satisfries were a clear improvement in terms of taste over them. 
2. "Satisfries" is a horrible name that no one really wants to utter from their mouth-holes.

Two other things clearly worked against the acceptance of Satisfries:

1. The fact that they were lower-calorie or lower-fat was never presented stealthily; it was trumpeted in the media and in stores. Despite lip service, people who eat Burger King more than the very rare occasion don't really care about calories and fat.
2. They cost more than regular fries, something like 30 cents per serving which sounds piddling, but in the low-cost realm of cheap fast food, this is a huge deal. The people who eat Burger King more than the very rare occasion value cheap satisfying calories above all else even if they don't consciously know it, and calling if a "Satisfry" won't make the ding to the wallet any more palatable.

I can only assume that the original food scientists and food strategists told the BK authorities they had a winning product -- a fry that tastes better and has less fat and calories. The downside is that food cost will go slightly up. The BK bean counters then probably ignored all advice and tried to monetize the product as fast as possible.

Interestingly, the rollback of the "healthy item" is occurring at the same time as the reintroduction of another BK menu item that was also introduced a year or so ago as an experiment: "chicken fries", which are essentially breast meat shaped like french fries that are battered and fried. Despite not being able to tout anything healthy about this novelty, fans of the item have been calling for it's return all over social media, and sells enough perhaps become a permanent fixture on the menu. Low fat low cal fries, no. Fries made out of industrial feed-lot meat, yes. It's not that you should never underestimate the stupidity of the masses -- you should never underestimate the stupidity of the masses who eat at Burger King on the regular. 

Look like meaty mozzarella sticks to me.

As I referred to in my original post, the storm that is going to hold Big Food responsible for the damage to the public that they hath wrought is still picking up steam, and "Satisfry" fig-leaves aren't going to make one whit of difference.

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: 2764

Hard week. Due to an unfortunately accident, I had to act much like a single dad this week. There were aspects of it that were brilliant, but I can definitely see how a harried single mom or dad could skip cooking and/or paying attention what goes into their mouth hole and blow up to unfortunate sizes.

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MONDAY COUNT: 2420 cal

SLEPT: 11pm-5:45am, 6.75 hrs
Long day, lots of drama. Lucky to have a good friend in town sleeping on the couch and share a glass of wine together in the evening.

AM SNACK: 5:15am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 9am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, falafel, cream of mushroom soup, health salad, pickles, 600 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox honey almonds ,310 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, tilapia, asparagus, poppa salad with ranch dressing, 500 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, popcorn, glass of wine, +/- 400 cal

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TUESDAY COUNT: 3120 cal
SLEPT: 9pm-4am, 2-2:30pm, 7.5 hrs

Grazed a little hardcore in the evening, but I understand fully where it's coming from -- the pressure of having someone close to me fall ill (not a child). It's interrupted my schedule, and it's not surprising I need a little comfort in food. Ramen is comforting, and this packet has been in my pantry for over a year waiting for a night like this.

AM SNACK: 4:30am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 7:30am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 9:45am, Fage whole yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, chicken meatballs, steamed string beans, mushroom curry,  pickles, 600 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox seed mix , 310 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, grilled chicken breast, roasted brussel sprouts, poppa salad with Italian dressing and fresh tomato, 600 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, 2 kids "granola bars", 1 kind bar, homemade banana bread, packet of ramen, +/- 1000 cal

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WEDNESDAY COUNT: 2800 cal
SLEPT: 9pm-4am, 2-2:30pm, 7.5 hrs

Unsurprisingly woke up with a funny-feeling stomach.

AM SNACK: 4:15am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 7:30am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, sautéed chicken breast, roasted brussel sprouts, quinoa,  pickles, 615 cal 
Messing with the quinoa. Usually it's coconut oil, salt and bay leaves. Added siracha, crumbled dried portobellos and a shot of red wine this time. I like it plain, but it's nice to make it a big flavor, too, sometimes.

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox crackermix , 200 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, stir fry with shiritaki noodles, shrimp, shitake mushrooms and oyster sauce, poppa salad with ranch and fresh tomato, 575 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, kind bar, kid granola bar, popcorn, almond butter & chocolate syrup, +/- 800 cal

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BIKE CREDIT: 735 cal
THURSDAY COUNT: 2940 cal

SLEPT: 9pm-12:45am,1:30-2:30pm, 4.75 hrs
Ding ding dong, da dinga ding ding ding dong! These are not the droids you are looking for.

AM SNACK:1:30am, iced green tea, 150mg caffeine, homemade granola bar, 305 cal

BIKE SNACK: 3am, granola bar, 305 cal

BREAKFAST: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 9:45am, Fage whole yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, vegetarian meatballs, black beans, roasted broccoli,  pickles, 605 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox crackers , 180 cal

DINNER: 6pm, Chipotle burrito, 870 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, cookies, +/- 800 cal
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FRIDAY COUNT: 2540 cal

SLEPT: 9pm-4pm, 7 hrs

AM SNACK: 4:15am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 6:30am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 8am,  fruit smoothie, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, almond butter and grape jelly on whole wheat, health salad,  pickles, 620 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Cheezits , 310 cal

DINNER: 5:15pm,  hot dog, fries, ice cream, +/- 1000 cal

Reverie in Clothes, man-style

There might be a guidebook to life after a significant weight loss, but I have not read it, and I suspect it would be a super-annoying read. On my last monthly weigh-in, I marked one year of maintaining a 45+ pound weight loss, which itself took the year before that. I know this is primarily a food/nutrition/related policy blog and try to steer away from the bluntly personal, but really how can I: food, nutrition and policy are all personal when you strip away the extra stuff.

About a year ago, my clothing started to clearly not fit anymore. I'm not a clothes horse, so most of my clothes were a ragtag bunch ranging from anywhere from 2 to 25+ years old, mostly skewing +10 years. Over the years sometimes the clothes were loose, sometimes tight, but always fit. Now, they started to make me look like one of them hippidy hoppidy kids with the dragging drawers and oversize shirts.

Hey y'all! Check out my new hippidy hoppidy pants!

So I went on a spree and got the basics needed to live life. The six bags above were filled with my old clothes and placed into a storage closet, with the thought in case my experiment in trying to get my weight under control lost steam, I wouldn't have the added indignity of having to buy all new fat clothes.

So it's been a year. There is a NYC-sponsored donation bin for clothing in my basement. This week, in a vote of confidence in myself that I won't be needing fat clothes anytime soon, I decided to move this clothing along to new owners. I was simply going to rummage through the bags to find the shirts, but I quickly realized just as food isn't just food, the clothing discarded by a new approach to my food life isn't just clothes. I am not a hoarder, and this sh@t has gotta go. However, in this digital age, the mantra is you never really have to let anything go….ever. So I took some pictures for memory's sake, wrote up some notes, and one two three, Bob's your uncle! Here we go…

(Apologies to the reader, the remainder of this entry is pretty much snaps of old clothes and random associations. Kinda boring. Suffice to say, this is the real result of a real weight loss, not the hyped sexy commodified 'you can do it!' weight loss drivel you read in magazines and other places that are trying to sell you something. Like new clothes, miracle pills, etc...)

When everyone was getting "BROOKLYN" sweatshirts, I had one made which represented where I was actually from. (Actually my mom was from Brooklyn, so I guess it's Brooklyn by proxy…) There was also an old-school bike messenger company called "Mother's", only one person over the 15+ years I had this sweater caught the reference. The flight jacket was the 1st of the post-ska post-skinhead life, the previous ones were full of patches and buttons and look quite dorky now.

The pea coats I had to buy in XXL then have the sleeves shortened to accommodate my girth. The rain jacket was so big I could contain my fatness and a baby in a baby bjorn in it. The XXL Cleveland Steamers hoodie was from a Tenacious D show, I still find it funny but it's a little bro-ey. Bottom right is a custom sweater again representing where I'm from other than the boring "BROOKLYN".

Three cashmere sweaters that I'd probably still wear as they are now very big & voluminous, except that they are full of holes and pilled up. The denim trucker jack is a few decades old -- it was hard to get because at the time the style was baggy denim jackets, and a more fitted "old school" cut was rare. Because of the trim cut, I had to get XXL and shorten the sleeves. For many years despite the size, this jacket just didn't fit. Now it swims on me, and has been replaced by a size L commuter-line Levis denim trucker jacket that just fits fine.

 A collection of Fred Perry knit shirts, a Ben Sherman button down, a FP track jacket. For years after my ska-period, they were too tight, now they swim. They're old and worn out and not worth re-selling, anyway. I replaced the track jacket this past spring with the same one, just a size M. I replaced the Ben Sherman with the same shirt in red in size L, but it's very slim cut and is a bit of a "goal" shirt if I lose a little more weight. I can get away with it if I'm wearing a sweater or suit jacket, but it's a bit tight. And nobody needs to see that.

My corduroy pants. All waists are 38 and a few 40s. I now wear 32 and 34. I started wearing cords in high school, in response to the uniform ubiquity of denim jeans. Soon enough, I was a member of the Corduroy Appreciation Club. Fortunately, I was able to track down the camos in a proper size this past year.

 T-shirts. When I was 11 at summer camp, my parents didn't send me with enough t-shirts. One or two got ruined and I was forced to borrow a fellow camper's, whose shirts were a size or two few small. Until the past year, I've always had an excess of t-shirts. Note the bottom left, a free t-shirt from Labortorio Del Gelato for handing in 10 tops from pints. I probably could have gotten another 5 shirts, if I had the will. Double XL, unsurprisingly

Top second from left, the "Brooklyn Barracudas" swim team was for a team at the Jewish Community Center my mother was executive for 20+ years. The team made this shirt, and my mom nixed it because she felt it was too "gang"-like. I always enjoyed wearing it because of  my mom somehow thought it was "too tough looking".

I'll miss this clothes, life was lived in it. Will not miss the girth it covered, or the alterations I had to make to shoehorn my way into them.

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: 2520

Relatively decent eating week. Not sure what the hiccup on Thursday was about.

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MONDAY COUNT: 2680

SLEPT: 11pm-5:45am, 6.75 hrs
Just felt straight up hungry in the evening, not craving sugar, not emotionally drained, just physically hungry. Nice to be able to check yo self and find that bottom line. Writing up the numbers the next day, nice to see them fall into a reasonable zone.

BREAKFAST: 8:45am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, falafel, cream of mushroom soup, health salad, pickles, 600 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox oat crackers , 210 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, tilapia, asparagus, poppa salad with ranch dressing, kind bar 750 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, popcorn, +/- 300 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, kind bar, 210 cal

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TUESDAY COUNT: 2700

SLEPT: 9pm-2am, 5 hrs
Couldn't lift due to physical exam yesterday morning, jammed it in this morning.

AM SNACK: 2:30am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 8am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, Fage whole yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 1:45pm, chicken meatballs, steamed string beans, madras lentils,  pickles, 680 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox nut mix , 320 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, grilled chicken breast, roasted brussel sprouts, poppa salad with Italian dressing and fresh tomato, 600 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, 3 small cookies, peanut butter & chocolate syrup, +/- 500 cal

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WEDNESDAY COUNT: 2725

SLEPT: 8:45pm-1am, 4:30am-6:15am, 12:45pm-2:45pm, 8 hrs
A bit of insomnia, got a lot done, glad I was able to fall back asleep on the back end. Took an extra long nap at work by accident, lucked out and was able to keep on top of work regardless.

AM SNACK: 1:30am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 8am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, sautéed adobo chicken breast, roasted brussels, quinoa,  pickles, 615 cal 

PM SNACK: 3pm, momma salad, Grazebox seed mix , 270 cal

PM SNACK: 5pm, poppa salad with ranch dressing and fresh tomato, 230 cal

DINNER: 7:30pm, herring, chowder, knish, latka, salmon on rye, chopped liver on matzoh, pickled vegetables, chocolate babka french toast, blueberry blintz, a cherry shrub, water, +/- 1000 cal
Fun dinner with a friend at the new Russ & Daughter's cafe on the LES. Well done modernized comfort food from my youth.
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BIKE CREDIT: 720 cal
THURSDAY COUNT: 2025

SLEPT: 10pm-3am,1:30-2:30pm, 6 hrs
Maybe I took in more calories at dinner last night than I suspected? It was a good time.

AM SNACK: 3:15am, iced green tea, 150mg caffeine, homemade granola bar, 205 cal

BIKE SNACK: 4:45am, granola bar, 205 cal

BREAKFAST: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 9:45am, Fage whole yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, chicken sausage, black beans, roasted broccoli and shitakes,  pickles, 615 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox crackers , 240 cal

DINNER: 6pm, Chipotle burrito, 870 cal

EVENING SNACK: 9pm, peanut butter & chocolate syrup, +/- 800 cal
Stressful evening, needed a release. Surprised I ate relatively little during the day, maybe I was anticipating I'd need the calorie budget to indulge.
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FRIDAY COUNT: 2470

SLEPT: 10pm-4am, 7 hrs
Mellow end of summer Friday.

AM SNACK: 4:15am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 9:15am, fruit smoothie, 500 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, sardines and avocado on whole wheat toast, health salad,  pickles, 580cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox popcorn , 230 cal

DINNER: 5pm, fried perogies, chocolate mouse, chocolate chip cookie, +/- 1000 cal

Congress to pass a National Soda Tax….bwaaaah ha ha ha!

When good-government legislation in Congress withers on the vine, this kitty cries.

Isn't it cute when a politician does something so nice but so futile that it seems silly and sad? A Connecticut Congresswoman has proposed legislation that would put a significant tax on sugary beverages across all 50 states uniformly. A national soda tax could:

work to reduce consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, and therefore obesity, and therefore diabetes, and therefore health care costs, and to raise money for health education about the dangers of over consumption of sugar.

Well, that's what government should do, but Congress ain't exactly functional right now. And remember, since corporations are people, they are busy expressing their free speech all over the media whenever legislation threatens their "freedom".

Not only are corporations people who express free speech, they also have a taste for haughty innuendo!

If you were to believe the hype of the soda lobby, a soda tax of any form would destroy our freedom, plunge us into a totalitarian nanny state and make children cry. Oddly enough, Mexico's soda tax has shown to have positive results. Guess they hate freedom there, or maybe the Drug Cartels realized that Big Sugar was a major competitor in selling addictive white powders, and paid off the right politicians.

That's it, on summer vacation for most of the week, will return next week with fresh, deep foodly food thoughts...

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: N/A

Got a good ride in on Thursday before taking off with the Edlebug to the Catskills. Not a good eating week or weekend but f-it, I'm on vacation and I'm not going to become a miserable git who never enjoys life. It's all about the balance. Suffice to say, Sunday evening I was craving salad, green juice and anything but gobs of simple carbs.

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MONDAY COUNT: 3005

SLEPT: 11pm-4am, 5 hrs
Even though I hit up some snacks in the evening, I don't think I was out of control and I think it's explainable. Did a 50 mile ride yesterday with a new friend, and our eating was relatively minimalistic, so even though I went out to dinner with friends and indulged in desert, a calorie deficit must be paid for sooner or later. The evening snack was relatively healthy, probably spurred by the white flour of the dinner, which itself was derailed by some bad asparagus. Funny, maybe even a year ago I'd be worried, "Oh shit, am I slipping back into old habits? Am I gonna balloon back up?" but now it's just a blip, as long as I know enough to acknowledge it for what it is, I can just start fresh the next day. My kung fu is strong.

AM SNACK: 4:15am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 9am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, falafel, tomato soup, health salad, pickles, 675 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox nut mix , 320 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, French bread pizzas, poppa salad with ranch dressing, 1050 cal
Asparagus was held in a cup of water since I got it Saturday, somehow it still went bad. Saving fish for tomorrow, as it was still partially frozen.

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, 2 kind bars, peanut butter with chocolate syrup, +/- 800 cal

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TUESDAY COUNT: 2750

SLEPT: 9pm-2am, 2:30-3pm, 5.5 hrs
x

AM SNACK: 2:15am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 9:15am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, fage yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, chicken meatballs, mushroom curry, steamed string beans, pickles, 620 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox seed , 290 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, tilapia, roasted Brussels, poppa salad with ranch dressing,720 cal
Brussels were too big and mature, their stems were tough and chewy. Ate around them, but threw out the rest of the batch.

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, popcorn, +/- 300 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8:30pm, kind bar, 210 cal

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WEDNESDAY COUNT: 2725

SLEPT: 9pm-4am, 7 hrs
Good busy day at work. Nice dinner out with a new friend.

AM SNACK: 4:15am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 7:45am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, adobo chicken, quinoa, health salad, pickles, 675 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox dried legumes , 240 cal

PM SNACK: 5pm, poppa salad with ranch, 200 cal

DINNER: 8pm, half pound of BBQ brisket & pork, baked beans, a little bread pudding, 1 beer, +/- 1000 cal

Weigh in: Annually static

190.4-->194.6-->192.8

I am exactly the same weight as I was one year to the day. Readings on my cyclometer and heart rate monitor suggests steady progress this past month, and I'm doing some of my longest, most challenging bicycle routes with noticeable year-over-year improvements. Weight ain't nutthin' but one number among several.

Weight lifting has been static since cutting back to once a week -- once again I can barely do a pull up. My legs, however, feel a bit more developed. Not worried about it.

For August, the top of the summer, I will continue on as I have in July, and maybe try to be conscious of my daily calorie counts, but I don't think I'm going to think too deeply about what I can change right now. Keep on keepin' on.

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: 2656

OK eating week. Keeping it steady, if not as slow as I'd like.

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MONDAY COUNT: 2645

SLEPT: 11pm-5am, 6 hrs
Kind bars are a commercial product, but it's really well done - mostly nuts, relatively light on sugar, well done seasoning, and though small, packs an appetite-stopping power. And while they're kinda stupidly expensive, they're relatively reasonable when bought in a box from Costco.

AM SNACK: 5:15am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 8:30am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10:15am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, falafel, tomato, health salad, pickles, 675 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox cashews , 320 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, tilapia, asparagus, poppa salad with Italian dressing, 540 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:45pm, homemade popcorn, +/- 300 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8:15, kind bar, 200 cal

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TUESDAY COUNT: 2465

SLEPT: 11pm-5am, 1-2pm, 7 hrs
Rough day at work.

AM SNACK: 5:15am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 9:15am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10:15am, Fage whole yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 1:45pm, chicken meatballs, steamed string beans, lentil curry,  pickles, 680 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox spicy nut and seed mix , 310 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, shiritaki noodles with shrimp and shitaki mushrooms,  roasted brussel sprouts, poppa salad with Italian dressing, 665 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:45pm, cashews & M&Ms, +/- 200 cal
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WEDNESDAY COUNT: 2510

SLEPT: 9pm-5am, 8 hrs
Nice dinner out, split app and dessert, made the quantity feel right.

AM SNACK: 5:15am, iced green tea, 0 cal

BREAKFAST: 9:15am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 10:15am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 1:45pm, sautéed chicken breast, roasted brussel sprouts, quinoa  pickles, 600 cal 

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox pistachios , 200 cal

PM SNACK: 6pm, poppa salad with ranch dressing, 200 cal

DINNER: 7pm, veal meatballs with kale cannelloni, roasted veg, half a sundae, 1 beer, bread, water, +/- 900 cal
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BIKE CREDIT: 690` cal
THURSDAY COUNT: 2900

SLEPT: 10pm-3am, 5 hrs
Fitful, shallow sleep, effected the morning ride a little. Only ate half of the usual granola bar, as my stomach felt a little meh while out.

AM SNACK: 3:15am, iced green tea, granola bar, 150 mg caffeine, 300 cal

BREAKFAST: 6:45am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 9:45am, Fage whole yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, vegetarian meatballs, roasted broccoli, black beans, pickles, 680 cal 
Replaced EVOO with avocado oil. Not impressed. Very neutral tasting, prefer the slight earthiness of olive oil.

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, Grazebox tortilla chips, work ice cream novelties, +/- 1000cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, half a Ethiopian vegetarian combo plate, ice cream +/- 1000 cal
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BIKE CREDIT: 660
FRIDAY COUNT: 2760

SLEPT: 9pm-4:30am, 2-2:30pm, 8 hrs
Didn't get a nap in on the dayside yesterday, really needed this sleep. Whiffed on evening plans, left work early, got some nice riding in despite overcast skies and some rain drops.

AM SNACK: 4:45am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 8:45am, Fruit smoothie, 500 cal

LUNCH: 12:45pm, almond butter and grape jelly on whole wheat, roasted brussels, cabbage, pickles, 760 cal 

PM SNACK: 3pm, momma salad, cheezits, 3 ice cream novelties, +/- 700 cal

BIKE SNACK: 5:30pm, granola bar, 300 cal

DINNER: 6:45pm, meatball hero, onion rings, salad, ice cream, +/- 1000 cal