TV makes you fat.

Kill Yr TV

My brother is four years older than me. When I was little, between 4 and 7, I wanted to hang out with him and his friends, but of course they did not want a little pip squeak like me hanging around, being all child-like. Once, they were talking about all the clubs they were going to form, and of course I would be excluded. Building 3 foot Lego towers? Getting to kiss girls? Eat an entire pizza? They were all clearly out of my league. However, when they mentioned "TV club", they first said you have to watch 3 hours a day. I raised my hand, and then they changed it to 5 hours a day. I still raised my hand. Six? Yep. My prodigious television watching made me a shoe-in to the club, despite my youth.

I want back the several years of television that I watched in my youth. My parents plopped me in front of the TV whenever they were busy or wanted to relax, my dad with his headphones and reading material, my mom with her martini and her own television. Unlike the time I spent with them actively, my memory of television is hazy and vague -- Little Rascals in mind-numbing repetition strikes a bell, with a little Gilligan's Island and Munsters, but that's about it. Now that I have kids of my own who I find plopping in front of the single television in the house to get the dishes done and business in order (though the TV is much bigger than back in the day and is matched with a tablet and iPhones), I'm starting to wonder how it affected me, so I can be aware of how it's affecting them.

How it affects kids who watch it? Damn, how it affects kids who are ON it!

According to the science, it's probably a contributing factor as to why I was chubby as a kid and tubby as an adult. There is a lot of articles, listicles, opinion pieces and blog posts about the subject, but I'll boil it down here to the points that most resonate with me:

• Watching TV takes less energy than sitting still and reading a book. Your brain on TV literally slows down your metabolism. I call this the "numbing" effect of a good, immersive session of television watching. And man, did I go there a lot as a kid when things bothered me, things perhaps were out of my ability to understand.
• The messages of TV advertising are designed to make you want hyper-processed, bad-for-you foods.  No one is advertising the wonders of asparagus and a big green salad, but the fun & instant gratification of go-gurt, super sugar smack downs, and McClowny's Butt-Busting Burger Bonanza. Some would say that with repeated exposure, this could be seen as manipulative hypnotizing of the more innocent and vulnerable members of our society. But then again SHSHSHSH there is too big of an industry making too much money that pays off the politicians to really go there.
• Snacking and watching TV go hand in hand. When you sit for a few hours, you need to keep your hands busy. What a better way than to shovel in some yummies? Looking back, until just a year or so ago, there was nothing I liked better than turning on my favorite recorded shows and sitting down to a big plate of something delicious, and just losing myself in the sensations/lack of sensations. That "television bubble." 
• Partially due to that "numbing" quality of television + snacks, studies show that people who snack in front of the tube actually eat more in subsequent meals. For some reason, the food you eat in front of the tube just doesn't satisfy in the same way that a meal that is more focused on.

So what if your a TV addict? Unlike, say, shooting speed balls and smoking meth, television does not rise to the level of "problem addiction", and because so many industries stand to profit, rarely rises to the level of "addiction" at all. What can one do? Well, once you decide it's problem and you want to stop, there are plenty of listicles on the Internet, two points of which I digest for your reading pleasure...

I guess this only makes sense if you watch a lot of TV, therefore certain low-viewership shows...

• Treat yo self! But don't indulge yo self. Stick to the limited number of shows you like, and don't just graze on the tube because your bored. Plan ahead. With the magic of DVRs, this is actually incredibly easy (and you can skip out on all the hypno-ads.) How much tube does it really take to de-stress? If it's more than a few hours a week, then your problems probably aren't being helped by your viewing habits.
• Keep your hands busy with something other than food. Some can do mindless repetition like knitting or needlepoint, while others will mount a stationary bike or treadmill. 

I guess if my 6 year old self were to peer into the future at my 42 year old self, the first thing he'd investigate is a) how awesome my own adult television is (OK, it's pretty huge and awesome) and b) how much time I get to tune out in front of it. On that count, he'd be pretty horrified to hear that I only watch one show without distraction (Sons of Anarchy, a poor replacement for Breaking Bad), and watch snippets of the Daily Show, SNL, NY1 and sitcoms like Parks & Rec with half an ear while lifting weights or trying to spin on bike rollers, maybe another 1.5 hours a week. I'm a bad, bad entertainment consumer -- I know more about TV culture through my guilty-pleasure reading of Entertainment Weekly, a habit carried over from my mom, than through actual watching of TV. I just don't have the time to watch the tube anymore.

When the harm out ways the benefits of media consumption, will it be too late to pull our selves away?

Which is not to discount the Internet. Put aside the instant availability of higher-quality ad-free content through streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime, my little girl is just as comfortable on the big 60" flat screen in the living room as she is snuggled up in bed with a parent on one side of her, her baby brother on the other, and the iPad showing the same stuff as the TV right on her lap. To be fair, I do a bit of Internet-consumption at work and sometimes on the weekend on the couch while the kids watch the big screen, but I don't watch too much video. Damn, writing this just made me think that I can catch up with some programs on HBO through the tablet and headphones while the kids watch the TV. Damn it!

Telelove.

Life is good, I don't watch much boobtube anymore because between my family, my work, my friends, my cycling, and other interests (like, umm, blogging!) fill up that television-shaped hole that opened up in my childhood. 

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This morning while watching Yo Gabba Gabba, my pre-verbal son started frantically making raspberry noises with his lips while watching Biz do his "Beat of the Day". It was amazing. I would like nothing more than to get on Biz's lap and do a beat of the day with him, too.
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Just signed up for a free sample box from this subscription club. Could be interesting, add a little healthy variety to my lock step eating. Then again, at $1.50 per snack, it may make more sense to just buy my favorite stuff in bulk and make my own little portion-controlled servings, minus all the packaging and extra shipping. Then again, I do need to TREAT MAH SELF! We'll see, haven't done any straight-up product reviews on this blog yet.
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Uhhh, nose candy?

Drugs, ain't they a bitch? Started feeling ill on Thursday, with a stuffy nose causing pressure in my head, leading to a head ache and achy teeth. My parents used to administer me Afrin, a nasal spray that would clear up my stuffy nose right quick, usually right before bed. So for the first time since I was a kid, I got some and administered it to myself, and indeed, my stuffy nose disappeared and it helped me sleep.

So Saturday afternoon, I was wondering how it worked and what were the downsides, so I googled it and urrrrgh.  It works well, but after a few days, you may get a rebound stuffiness even if the original bug that caused it has passed. That will lead someone to continue to use it, months or years on end in a vicious cycle of addiction. Addiciton to friggin' nasal spray!!! Who woulda thunk it. The packages says do not use more than 3 days, and I realized I was on my third day, so I left it alone. I went to sleep with a clear nose but when I woke up at 6 on Sunday, my first thought was for a hit, then I remembered the article. Weird how easily I might fall into that trap. Fortunately my stuffiness and achiness seems to be on the decline, making my weaning off the junk not to bad.

In related drug news, I totally forgot to take my 100mg hit of caffeine when I went riding Saturday morning, I'm not a very good druggy, I suppose.
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Next week is weigh in. Last weigh in was a week late, and this is a short month. Hopefully the Xmas holiday won't screw me up like Thanksgiving did.
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WEEKLY AVERAGE: 2365

Funny how one day of busting the budget can pull the weekly average out of the target zone. Very close to the old zone, but still.

Getting tired of the afternoon salad routine, which is dangerous, as it's a pillar of my daily eating, the main source of raw vegetables, and a good percent of my vegetable consumption over all. Swapped out the dressing on the poppa salad, thought of making something new but took the easy way out and bought a bottle of Whole Foods organic ranch. It's basically mayonnaise with a little tang of buttermilk and some chives, but calorie-wise it works. If I was making it myself, I'd use the same ingredients except the "expeller pressed canola oil" -- sure, expeller pressed is better than the chemical processes used to make this very refined oil, but using EVOO or coconut oil would still be better. Compromises, compromises!

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MONDAY COUNT: 2220

SLEPT: 8:30pm-4am, 7.5 hr
Decent weight lift in the morning. Good eating day, feels good to come out of the haze that too many calories and too few vegetables give me. I look forward to the day I kick that compulsive habit all together.

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

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, fruit smoothie, 415 cal

LUNCH: 1pm, falafel, butternut squash soup, health salad, pickles, 790 cal

PM SNACK: 4 pm, momma salad, babaganoush, 150 cal

PM SNACK: 5:30 pm, poppa salad with bottled organic ranch dressing, 150 cal

DINNER: 7:30pm, fish, asparagus, kimchi, 555 cal

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TUESDAY COUNT: 2270

SLEPT: 8:30pm-4am, 7.5 hr
Spent the morning making tomato soup, the hard way -- chopping and caramelizing tomatoes, using homemade chicken stock. The recipe called for 3/4 cup of olive oil and 1/2 cup of heavy cream, I ended up using about 1/8 cup of olive oil and 1/4 cup of cream, still came out to 360 cal for a 16oz portion. I guess that's all right, that's a big portion and still fits into the high end of what my Monday lunch will come out at.

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

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

BREAKFAST 2: 10:45am, steel cut oatmeal, 410 cal

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

PM SNACK: 3 pm, momma salad, babaganoush, 150 cal

PM SNACK: 5:30 pm, poppa salad with bottled organic ranch dressing, 150 cal

DINNER: 7:30pm, chicken breast, roasted broccoli, quinoa, kimchi, 720 cal

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WEDNESDAY COUNT: 2010

SLEPT: 8:45pm - 4am, 7.25 hrs
Decent enough sleep, got weights in, in hopes of being able to ride one of the next few mornings, as the weather forecast predicts overnight temps over 30! Woooo! Had the urge to eat more after dinner, still almost 200 cal from my max, but instead decided to go straight to bed. Good choice, as by the time I was in bed, the urge had passed….

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

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

BREAKFAST 2: 9:45am, fage whole yogurt with agave, vanilla and almonds, 310 cal

LUNCH: 1pm, chicken breast, roasted broccoli, quinoa, pickles, 720 cal

PM SNACK: 3 pm, momma salad, babaganoush, 150 cal

PM SNACK: 5 pm, poppa salad with bottled organic ranch dressing, 150 cal

PM SNACK: 6:30pm, handful of roasted salted cashews, 160 cal

DINNER: 8:30pm, shirataki stir fry with shrimp, shitaki mushrooms and oyster sauce, 360 cal 

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THURSDAY COUNT: 2045

SLEPT: 9pm-4am, 7 hr
Could have slept in, but 7 is enough. Considered doing a few minutes on the rollers, but weather reports make cycling eminent in my future. After doing my daily food, my son's lunch, collected laundry, changed bedding and towels, installed a new toner cartridge, updated shopping lists for the weekend, sat down in front of the boob tube, thinking I'd have a good block of tune-out time. Within 15 minutes, the little one was up and wandering about, and the wifey went back to bed. -hrumph!- Turned off the tube yes, but enjoyed my one on one time with the little fellah. Good thing about on-demand and DVRs, I feel no sense of loss or urgency if I have to pop in and out of programs.

AM SNACK: 4:15 am, iced green tea

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

AM DRUGGING: 8am, 2 ibuprofin
Headachey, nose has been stuffy/drippy the last few days. Could this be my first illness since revamping my diet? Within an hour, felt much better, but that might because I rode my bike (to work) for the first time since Monday, due to weather...

BREAKFAST 2:  9:45am,  steel cut oatmeal, 410 cal

AM SNACK: 11:30am, hot green tea, unsweetened

LUNCH: 1pm, chicken sausage, sofrito black beans, roasted brussel sprouts, pickles, 740 cal

PM SNACK: 3:30 pm, momma salad, babaganoush, 150 cal

PM SNACK: 5:30 pm, poppa salad with bottled organic ranch dressing, 150 cal

DINNER: 7:30pm, Subway 6" veggie burger sub, diet coke, 435

EVENING DRUGGING: 11pm, afrin up da nose

Tired, but I knew a stuff nose would keep me up. My parents used to administer this stuff to me as a child, haven't had it since then. Very effective. Brought back a lot of memories of my parent's warm embrace of concern and love. Not enough, unforuntately, for a good night sleep….

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FRIDAY COUNT: 3280

SLEPT: 11:45pm-1:15am, 2:30am-5:30am, 4.5 hr
Hard time sleeping, just like last Thursday night. Kids up in the middle of the night actually helped me, as it forced me to get back into bed and comfort an upset 4 year old - sad, but so delicious. Before that happened, I went and gobbled up some crap in the kitchen -- feeling the edge of sick, felt sick-hungry, gave in with the pizza and brownies, but after that was down, I really didn't want to make myself sicker by moving on to M&Ms or Cheetos, so I stopped my moue dead in it's tracks with a small, compact bowl of homemade granola with whole milk. Really satisfying, helped blunt the sugar rush of the brownie that just went down. Despite it easily being a low-point, I can't help but feel a little proud of being able to think a little bit clearly about how I'm going to feel despite being in the middle of a binge episode.

AM SNACK: 1:30am, slice of cold pizza, brownie, small bowl of granola with whole milk, +/- 1000 cal

AM SNACK: 6am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 9:45am, fage whole yogurt with agave, vanilla and almonds, 310 cal

LUNCH: 1pm, almond butter & grape jelly on whole wheat, momma salad, pickles, 610 cal

DINNER: 6pm, Stouffer' French Bread pizzas, fritos, handful of cashews, french fries, +/- 1200 cal

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WEEKEND REPORT

BIKE CREDIT: 545

SATURDAY COUNT: 4080

SLEPT: 7pm-2am, 7 hrs

Double your fun, double your calories. Hrumph. Didn't feel like riding but between the nice weather and the current chaos in my personal life, it was a no-choice kinda thing. Body definitely felt run-down the rest of the day, only Afrin saving me from a stuffy nose/head ache/aching teeth kinda day.

BREAKFAST: 2:30am, homemade granola with 2% milk, banana, +/- 500 cal

BIKE SNACK: 5:30am, homemade granola bar, 575 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 8am, sausage mcmuffin, 2 hash browns, diet coke, 650 cal

AM SNACK/MEAL: 10:45am, slice of pizza, half of Edie's chocolate yogurt, +/- 1000 cal

PM SNACK: 2-2:30pm, chocolate chip cookie dough, chocolate chip cookies, +/- 500 cal

DINNER: 5:30pm, falafel sandwich, fries, 8oz dark beer, +/- 1000 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, 8 chocolate chip cookies, +/- 400 cal

SUNDAY
SLEPT: 8:30pm, 6am, 9.5 hrs
Sleep did me good. Felt better from the run-down aches of yesterday, hopefully quickly getting over this cold. Ate too much, but no compulsive binging. Cousins I only see once a year over for dinner, made pizza from scratch, haven't done that in a while. Spent part of the day churning ice cream and making ice cream sandwiches, oy….

AM SNACK: 6:30am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 8:45am, BLT on bagel, home fries, slaw, pickle, diet something
Out at a random diner. Left over 3/4 of a huuuge portion of potato, wtf up with that? I asked for Diet Coke, but it tasted like some off-brand diet cola, way too sweet and a weird aftertaste, so I left most of it over. 

LUNCH: 11:45am, 2 hotdogs, a little chocolate ice cream

DINNER: 4:30pm, homemade pizza, a little sweet potato knish, pickles, 2 ice cream sandwiches

EVENING SNACK: 7pm, ice cream sandwich, 3 cookies