Choices, choices, choices

Is there any idea that stock imagery can't express....cheesily? 

A few months ago, a close friend expressed some concern that I both spent way too much time thinking about what I eat, and was puzzled why I eat the same things over and over again, week after week. It seemed rather obvious to me, so obvious that I had a hard time explaining it. After some thought: I eat the same pre-measured diet over and over again 5 days a week is so I don't have to think about it. Recording it is simply a safety measure, so I don't have to worry that I'm losing focus.

Too much choice is....too much, especially if we are not aware of all the factors needed to make an informed choice. A recent piece in the New York Times elegantly explains how the government can take three different tacts to given choice with significantly different outcomes:

Until last month, all 50 states had a simple policy for voter registration: If you want to become a voter, you have the opportunity to register. Oregon is now the first state to adopt a radically different approach: If the relevant state officials know that you live in Oregon and are 18 or older, you’re automatically registered as a voter. If you don’t want to be one, you have the opportunity to opt out.
We could easily imagine a third approach. A state might decide that if you want some kind of benefit — say, a driver’s license — you have to say whether you want to register to vote. Under this approach, the state would require you to make an active choice about whether to be a voter. You would have to indicate your desires explicitly.

Three methods:

1. opt in - you must actively make a choice to participate
2. opt out - you must actively make a choice not to participate
3. active choice - you must make a choice to participate or not participate.

In an ideal world with unlimited time, unlimited resources and unlimited knowledge, all choices would be active choices. In reality, we depend on a representative government, on financial planners and lawyers, on parents and spouses, on our employers and on our media gate-keepers to make choices for us every moment of the day so we aren't flooded. Indeed, the industrial revolution in the processing of our food supply is a way of limiting choices -- there is a lot more choice in a kitchen stocked full of raw, unprocessed ingredients that rely on a home cook to come up with a home-cooked meal than in a box of Kraft Dinner.

A box full of many, many (bad) choices.

Making voting registration opt-out results in a bottom-line good: more people can and will vote. Well, good for pro-democracy people who believe people should vote in their self-interest, bad for the politicians who depend on the laziness of the people to stay silent.

There is one national party who is very against opt-out voting, and it would be disingenuous to play like it's somehow "neutral" not to name them. It's a fact. The Republicans want to make it harder for people who don't agree with them to vote. Maybe the Democrats do, too, but they don't act on that evil urge. Anyway,...

In 2004, Congress authorized the Department of Agriculture to allow states and localities to automatically enroll eligible poor children in school meal programs, rather than requiring their parents to sign them up. As a result, millions of such children now have access to school meals.

Is this because a bunch of poor, anti-government parents all of sudden got hoodwinked into buying into the system? Or because when you step back and take a macro-look at things, too much choice allows a shockingly large amount of important choices go unmade? As the old saw goes, "war is not lost by the wrong decision, war is lost by indecision."

Any choice that a positive response will be a benefit to society should always be opt-out. Voting, enrolling kids in free-lunch, health insurance, education, and yes, vaccinations, should always happen automatically. You can then choose not to vote, or protest the gubbermint's hands on maaaah kiiiidz, but bottom line a lot of good will come from simply making things automatic in the positive.

We like it when a website allows us to check that blessed box that says “do not ask me again.” If we are busy — and most of us are — choosing not to choose may be the best choice of all. A fundamental reason is that it frees us to focus on our deepest concerns.
Consider the revealing words of President Obama: “You’ll see I wear only gray or blue suits. I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.” There is a lesson here for everyone, not merely presidents. If people were required to make active choices about all decisions involving their diets, their finances, or their health, they would have far less time to think about their families, their work, and their favorite forms of recreation. (bolding mine)

Choice is held as right in this society, as it fits in well with consumerism and capitalism -- the right to choose your doctor will magically make the health care system stronger, the right to choose one of 100 different sugared breakfast cereals is an exercise in freedom, the right to choose a president from a centrist bought-and-paid-for Democrat or a centrist bought-and-paid-for Republican will strengthen our democracy. Sometimes too much choice is just white noise, but sometimes choice is an illusion if all the options are just slight variations on the same theme. Then we must question the system that limited the choices, but that's a rant of a whole 'nuther level.

I eat the same thing week in week out about 90% of the time, 5 days a week. I'm cool with it.

You can choose which ever color you'd like, as long as it's black.

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Presented without comment: McDonald's is closing a lot of stores here and abroad. Chipotle announced in a year's time, there will be no genetically modified food served in their restaurants. 

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: 2850
A very intense week. Probably took in too many calories, but I did get to ride a lot. I'm very not-bored.

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MONDAY COUNT: 3270

SLEPT: 9:30pm - 6am, 8.5 hrs

AM SNACK: 6:15 am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 9:30am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal  

LUNCH: 2pm, falafel, chicken soup, momma salad, 600 cal

PM SNACK: 4:30pm, poppa salad with dressing, cheezits, 410 cal

DINNER: 5:30pm, tilapia, asparagus, 350 cal

EVENING SNACKS: 6-8pm, popcorn, cashews & chocolate chips, kind bar, left over bagel and creamcheese, +/- 1300 cal

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BIKE CREDIT: 1340
TUESDAY COUNT: 2285

SLEPT: 9:30pm- 5:45am, 8.25hrs

AM SNACK: 6:30 am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, Fage with honey, vanilla, almonds, 450 cal

BIKE SNACK: 12:15pm, cashews and chocolate chips, 535 cal

LUNCH: 3pm, quarter pounder, fries, diet coke, 920 dal

PM SNACK: 5:15pm, momma salad, 100 cal

DINNER: 6:30pm, Stouffer's french bread pizzas, poppa salad with dressing, 1060

EVENING SNACK: 7:15pm, popcorn, +/- 400 cal
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WEDNESDAY COUNT: 3030cal

SLEPT: 9pm-1am, 3:30am-6:45am, 7.25hrs

AM SNACK: 7 am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST 1: 10am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST: 11am, Steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 2pm, chicken meatballs, curry lentils, steamed strignbeans, a pickle, 610 cal

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

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

DINNER: 7:45pm, Ethiopian food, water, +/- 900 cal

EVENING SNACK: 9:30pm, two cookies, +/- 600 cal
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BIKE CREDIT 1070 cal
THURSDAY COUNT: 2155

SLEPT: 11pm -1am, 3am-6:45am,  6.75 hrs

AM SNACK: 7am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, Fage Yogurt with honey, vanilla, almonds, 450 cal

BIKE SNACKS: 12:30pm, 3:30pm, homemade granola bars, 150 mg caffeine, 490 cal

LUNCH: 5:15pm, sauteed shrimp and mushrooms over poppa salad with dressing, 625 cal

DINNER: 7:30pm, vegetarian dim sum, +/- 1500 cal

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FRIDAY COUNT: 3510

SLEPT: 12am-6:30am, 6.5 hours

AM SNACK: 6:45am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, fruit smoothie, 450 cal

LUNCH: 2pm, almond butter and grape jelly on whole wheat, slaw, momma salad, cheezits, 1000 cal

DINNER: 7:30pm, halibut, sausage, gnochi, fancy cake and ice cream, water, +/- 900 cal

EVENING SNACK: 11pm, pint of ice cream, 1000 cal

Kind Bars Vs Reality

A few years ago,  I looked closely at the idea of the granola bar. I bake my own granola then bar-ify it with a heady mix of nut butters, molasses, egg and other ingredients. There has been a big market for pre-made granola bars since the 70s; however as time went on they kinda devolved into candy bars with just a whiff of "health" on them. A block of sugar and fat with a few oats stuck in them is still candy.

A more modern phenomenon is a new class of good-for you bar that is kinda like a granola bar, but dispenses with the rolled oats -- the nut bar is exemplified by Kind bars. With a vaguely hippy-dippy stoner name, modern packaging whose block colors look like an abstract rainbow, and an ingredient list that features nuts front and center, it has replaced the granola bar among the health conscious set as the go-to grab-and-go convenience snack. However, all may not seem like it is.

At least four of Kind LLC’s self-proclaimed healthy bars are in violation of “healthy” labeling requirements, according to the Food and Drug Administration, which sent a warning letter to the company.
“Your products do not meet the requirements for use of the nutrient content claim ‘healthy’ on a food label,” William Correll, director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, said in the letter, dated March 17 and released publicly on Tuesday. “You should take prompt action to correct the violations.”

The FDA's definition of healthy is simply a limit on the amounts of things like trans fats, salt and sugar. While Kind correctly argues that whatever the fat-content of nuts may be, they are nutritionally sound, but it's not the whole story.

Kind has rapidly expanded and has introduced a wide variety of both flavors of nut bars and other products, like granola (excuse me, "Oat Clusters") and granola bars (nope, "Healthy Grains Bars"). You don't have to go far in this expanded product line to find something like the "Almond & Coconut" kind bar whose trans fat are a multiple of what the FDA recommends and triple the sugar load, and further variations that involve chocolate and other trappings of candy. The system demands expanding profits at all times, so in the food world, that always means devolving into finding the broadest possible appeal...which means increasing salt, sugar and fat.

Serving for serving, not hella different nutritionally than a Reeses.  OK, a little bit more fiber.

I get my kind bars in bulk from Costco, and they come in 2 plain-jane flavors, basically fancy names for vanilla and chocolate. Looking at the list of ingredients, all the nuts are in front, but as one "mixed nut" ingredient, and each one has several sweeteners, including sugar, honey, glucose, and "chicory root fiber", which is another fancy term for a low glycemic sweetener. Straight up according to the listing, each bar contains about a teaspoon of sugar. This isn't just a bunch of nuts pressed together, this is a bunch of nuts bound with sugar. The truly "kind" thing would to simply eat nuts and not a processed bar.

I'll continue to eat kind bars for the same reason I'll continue to juice vegetables every morning. My juicing is not a replacement for my twice daily raw vegetable salads -- it is a supplement to get more nutrition in that otherwise would be overwhelmed by too much fiber. I sparingly eat nuts -- almonds with my 2x weekly yogurt, a serving of cashews once a week to keep away the hunger, and the kind bar is a convenient way to keep some variety and decadence without feeling like I'm hurting myself. 

But make no mistake -- it is a highly processed, packaged and marketed product that is not as good as just eating nuts. 

Chuck D was talking about food marketing, right?

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: 3091
Weird week, cycling kept me hungry, though I wonder if following my hunger to these higher calorie counts is the way to go. Will know in  a week or so. Just so much going on, don't have the mental space to focus too much on the food thing...

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MONDAY COUNT: 2940

SLEPT: 11pm - 5am, 6hrs

AM SNACK: 5:15 am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, Fage yogurt with honey, almonds, vanilla, 450 cal  

LUNCH: 2pm, falafel, split pea soup, health salad, pickle, 620 cal

PM SNACK: 4:45pm, momma salad, cheezits 310 cal

PM SNACK: 5:15pm, poppa salad, 200 cal

DINNER: 7pm, chicken sausage, asparagus,  poppa salad with dressing, 600 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:45pm, popcorn, +/-400 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, flourless chocolate cake,+/- 400 cal

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TUESDAY COUNT: 3040

SLEPT: 11pm- 6am, 7hrs

AM SNACK: 5:30 am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, Steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 2:30pm, grilled chicken, steamed string beans, Mushroom curry, pickles, 600 cal

PM SNACK: 4pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

PM SNACK: 5pm, poppa salad, 200 cal

DINNER: 6:15pm, Chipotle burrito, 880 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, kind bar, peanut butter cracker, 420 cal
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BIKE CREDIT: 1260 cal
WEDNESDAY COUNT: 3090 cal

SLEPT: 9pm-2am, 4am-6am, 7hrs

AM SNACK: 6:15 am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST 1: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

AM SNACK: 8:15am, half a horrible ham and cheese biscuit thing, +/- 150 cal

BREAKFAST: 9:30am, Fage yogurt, honey vanilla, almonds, 150 mg caffeine, 450 cal

BIKE SNACKS: 12-2:30pm, 1 homemade granola bars, digestive cookies, 730 cal

LUNCH: 3:45pm, tiapia, health salad, pickle veggie straws, 650 cal

PM SNACK: 4:30pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

DINNER: 8:15pm, bibimbop, seafood pancake, kimchi, various little plates, +/- 1000 cal

EVENING SNACK: 10pm, waffle & ice cream, digestive cookies, +/- 800 cal
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BIKE CREDIT 640 cal
THURSDAY COUNT: 3295

SLEPT: 11pm -4am,  5 hrs

AM SNACK: 4:15am, iced green tea, 150 mg caffeine

BIKE SNACK: 6am, homemade granola bar, 235 cal

BREAKFAST: 9:30am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal

LUNCH: 1pm, sauteed shrimp,  poppa salad and dressing, 400 cal

PM SNACK: 2:15pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

PM SNACK: 4pm, peanut butter crackers, 480 cal

DINNER: 5:30pm, pizza, salad, +/- 900 cal cal

EVENING SNACK: 7pm, pecan pie, tea, ice cream, +/- 500 cal

EVENING SNACK: 10pm, kind bar, peanut butter & chocolate syrup, +/- 500 cal

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FRIDAY COUNT: x

SLEPT: 11pm-7am, 8 hours

AM SNACK: 7:15am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 11am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 12:30pm, fruit smoothie, 450 cal

Things got busy....

Another rant, imagining an ideal world.

I'm not one to fat-shame, but if your job requires you to be fit to do your duty....

I feel like there is a loop running in the back of my brain. Whenever I sit down to find a new topic to write about on this weekly blog, it gets a little louder: Regardless of right wing politicians who deny climate change to protect the interests of the energy concerns who pay their bills, insurance companies are reacting swiftly and with precision to the rising chances of losing their fortunes due to future flooding, black outs, famine and storms. And regardless of the propaganda put forward by Big Food that eating is a personal choice which government should keep from regulating or legislating, the fact is that people's habits of over consumption has caused a defined and real public health crisis. 

I've already written here about problems with child obesity and the military's problem with having a volunteer army that's fit enough to fight. Now the FBI has sounded the alarm about agents who are too fat to serve.

“The lives of your colleagues and those you protect may well depend upon your ability to run, fight and shoot, no matter what job you hold,” James B. Comey, the F.B.I. director, said in October in an internal memo to agents that was obtained by The New York Times.
The fitness tests, which started at the end of last year, are a return to a tradition begun by the F.B.I.’s first director, J. Edgar Hoover, who obsessed about his agents’ weight, as well his own considerable girth. More significantly, the tests are a response to concerns throughout the bureau about how its transformation after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, has put more stress on the agents and given them less time for fitness.

Over-consumption in our culture seems to have sneakily become synonymous with happiness, comfort, celebration, wealth and care. It should be synonymous with what it used to be associated with: gluttony, greed, sloth, laziness, waste, unfairness and imbalance. You just need to watch some commercials to see it. This feels like the same story over and over again, it's making feel a little bit batty!

In an ideal world, the culture of accountability put forward by he FBI and the military should expand to everyone -- accounts, lawyers, doctors, teachers, just about anyone will be a benefit to society if they are fit and eat right -- though it'll be at the expense of Big Food and the consumer culture. Do you want a gluttonous, overweight smoker as your primary care physician? Do you want someone who eats fast food 3 times a day teaching your child? You may be born a certain race or with a certain sexual preference, but socially shared self-destructive habits shouldn't be the basis of a protected class of people, no matter how hard manufacturers of fizzy corn syrup water try to associate their product with a vague concept of "freedom". Ill health is slavery. Those who profit from it are slave masters.

Freedom. (Feel free to replace soda cans & woman with guns and a corpse...)

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: 2667
Intense work week, in a good way. Depended on the rote eating habits to get me through,

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MONDAY COUNT: 2805

SLEPT: 11pm - 5:30am, 6.5hrs

AM SNACK: 5:45 am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, Steel cut oatmeal, 450 cal  

LUNCH: 2pm, falafel, split pea soup, health salad, pickle, 620 cal

PM SNACK: 4:45pm, momma salad, cheezits 310 cal

DINNER: 7pm, tilapia, asparagus,  poppa salad with dressing, 665 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:45pm, popcorn, +/-400 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, kind bar, 200 cal

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TUESDAY COUNT: 2500

SLEPT: 8:30pm- 5:15am, 8.75 hrs

AM SNACK: 5:30 am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, fage whole yogurt with honey, vanilla, almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 2pm, chicken meatballs, steamed string beans, lentil curry, pickles, 680 cal

PM SNACK: 4:45pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

DINNER: 7pm, pork tenderloin, brussel sprouts, poppa salad with dressing, ice cream, +/- 900 cal
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WEDNESDAY COUNT:3015

SLEPT: 9pm - 2am,  5 hrs

AM SNACK: 2:15 am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST 1: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST: 11am, steel cut oatmeal 450 cal

PM SNACK: 1:30pm, poppa salad with dressing, 180 cal

PM SNACK: 3pm, momma salad, cheezits 310 cal

PM SNACK: 5pm, cashews, 235 cal

DINNER: 6:15pm, Chipotle burrito, 880 cal

EVENING SNACK: 6:45pm, pint of ice cream, 800 cal
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THURSDAY COUNT: 2350

SLEPT: 8pm -3am, 3:30am- 5:30am,  9 hrs
Woke up to ride, but quickly realized I was overtired and could make myself sick without additional sleep.

AM SNACK: 5:45am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, Cabot yogurt with honey, vanilla, almonds, 500 cal

LUNCH: 2pm, work sandwich, poppa salad and dressing, +/- 480 cal

PM SNACK: 4pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

DINNER: 7pm, Meatball sangweech, salad, bruscetta, half a chocolate crepe, +/- 900 cal

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BIKE CREDIT: 320
FRIDAY COUNT: x

SLEPT: 12am-3am, 3 hours

AM SNACK: 3:15amam, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 7:15am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, fruit smoothie, cal

LUNCH: 2pm, work sandwich, poppa salad and dressing, +/- 480 cal

PM SNACK: 4pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

DINNER: 7pm, pizza, ice scream, I don't quite remember, it's Sunday night writing this up and my brain is scrambled...

Krafty bastards

To make money you have to spend money. If your product has been revealed to be processed garbage that destroys people's health and the market is turning against your interests, you also have to spend money. Spend money to make a better, healthier, less-processed product? I guess that would assume that "corporations are people" with "morals" and "love for humanity".  In reality, you buy off non-profit organization to gain a sheen of respectability at the least possible cost to promote your interests...

The goal, according to the academy, was to spread the word that children need more calcium and vitamin D in their diets. "We saw this opportunity to help parents bridge that dairy gap," said Katie Brown, national education director for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation, the academy's philanthropic arm.

As part of the arrangement, Kraft agreed to provide money for a grant to be used at the academy's discretion for scholarships, research or public education initiatives. Ms. Brown declined to disclose the sum provided by Kraft.

In sum, Kraft paid an organization whose goal is it to protect the public from corporations like Kraft to put a logo of said organization on it's "cheez product". Children need more calcium and vitamin D? Not getting enough from the massive amounts of unnecessary dairy from those child-unfriendly foods like ice cream, chocolate milk and pizza? (Not to mention those crazy leafy greens and nuts.) Kraft recently had to recall over 2.5 million boxes of mac and cheese that might have been contaminated with metal pieces -- maybe they should promote it as fortified with iron?

Never have an iron deficiency ever again...

Though I promised not to rant about McDonalds yet again, this is really the same story. Kraft produces processed convenience foods for people to prepare at home. That was the trend my parents fell into it, after a life time of seeing their own parents make everything from scratch. Both their mothers had never entered the work force and spent their time in the kitchen.

(Kraft) specializes in cheeses, salad dressings and Oscar Mayer meats — things that are typically used to make sit-down meals. But sit-down meals are not what consumers are buying, says Jared Koerten, senior food analyst with market-research firm Euromonitor.
"When you look sort of at the broader U.S. food landscape, you're seeing a big shift toward snack foods," Koerten says. "Some people have called it the 'snackification of U.S. food.' "
Another challenge: a younger generation that prefers artisanal brands with a healthier image.

Our parents raised us on Kraft mac n' cheese, Hamburger Helper and supermarket roasted chicken. As families started to require two incomes to get by, less time was spent in the kitchen: maybe rather than blame the divorce rate on liberated women entering the workforce, perhaps we should blame the push "snackification" and less time in the kitchen by the entire family unit for proper sit down meals?

For special occasions out, a cheap fast meal at McDonalds further relieved us of "kitchen drudgery". Now even that seems anemic, unhealthy for body and earth and the continuous urge for cheap and convenient is starting to be met with an urge for what cheap convenience really costs us: a lack of health, freshness, wholeness, earth friendliness, quality and care. When some corporate monolith can start actually embodying those values over cheapness and shareholder value, perhaps corporations can actually evolve to become a little bit more like actual people and less than evil mono-goaled monsters.

Oh, it's GAS that will save us from kitchen drudgery. Please sir, what else can you sell me to meet this need I didn't know I had?!

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WEEKLY AVERAGE: xxxx
Between a late birthday celebration on Thursday evening, Seder and holiday eating on Friday (and an all day ride on Saturday and massive amounts of Easter candy on Sunday), I'm not even going to try to figure a weekly average this week -- suffice to say, I was more or less on the ball for the first half of the week, and not in the 2nd. Hope things steady up with the holidays behind me and more riding in the immediate future.

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MONDAY COUNT: 3135

SLEPT: 11pm - 4:30am, 5.5hrs

AM SNACK: 4:45 am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, Fage with honey, almonds, vanilla, 450 cal  

LUNCH: 3:15pm, almond butter and jelly on whole wheat, health salad, pickle, 610 cal

PM SNACK: 4:45pm, momma salad, cheezits 310 cal

DINNER: 7pm, tilapia, asparagus,  poppa salad with dressing, 745 cal

EVENING SNACK: 7:45pm, popcorn, +/-400 cal

EVENING SNACK: 8:30pm, peanut butter crackers, 460 cal

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BIKE CREDIT: 1560 cal
TUESDAY COUNT: 2430

SLEPT: 9:30pm- 2:30am, 4:15am-6am, 6.75 hrs

AM SNACK: 3:15 am, iced green tea

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

BREAKFAST 2: 9am, fruit smoothie, 450 cal

BIKE SNACKS: 11am-5pm, whole wheat bagel & cream cheese, 3 homemade granola bars, +/- 1430 cal

PM SNACK: 4:45pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

DINNER: 5:30pm, Stouffer's French Bread pizzas, poppa salad with dressing, 1040 cal

EVENING SNACKS: 6:30-8:30pm, 1 cracker pack, 1 kind bar, 2 kid granola bars, 600 cal
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WEDNESDAY COUNT:3155

SLEPT: 9:30pm - 4am,  6.5 hrs

AM SNACK: 4:15 am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST 1: 7am, apple/beet/celery/carrot/cayenne/cucumber/ginger juice, 160 cal

BREAKFAST: 11am, steel cut oatmeal 450 cal

LUNCH: 2pm, chicken meat balls, steamed string beans, mushroom curry,  pickle, 720 cal

PM SNACK: 4:30pm, momma salad, cheezits 310 cal

PM SNACK: 6pm, cashews, 235 cal

DINNER: 8:15pm, Chipotle burrito, poppa salad with dressing, 1080 cal

EVENING SNACK: 10pm, peanut butter sandwich crackers, 480 cal
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BIKE CREDIT: 680 cal
THURSDAY COUNT: xxx

SLEPT: 10pm - 3:30am,  5.5 hrs

AM SNACK: 4:15am, iced green tea, homemade granola bar, 150mg caffeine, 200 cal

BIKE SNACK: 5am, homemade granola bar, 200 cal

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

BREAKFAST 2: 11am, fage yogurt with honey, vanilla, almonds, 450 cal

LUNCH: 2pm, poppa salad and dressing, sauteed shrimp and mushrooms,  600 cal

PM SNACK: 4pm, momma salad, cheezits, 310 cal

PM SNACK: 5pm, whole wheat bread with nutella, +/-400 cal

DINNER: 7pm, Pastrami sammich, soup, fries, pickles, health salad, babka, XXXX
Overate with an old friend just like we used to years ago at a restaurant that meant a lot to both of us. Haven't felt this full since before I lost weight. I imagine I ate my entire calorie budget in this one sitting. Worth it, too fun, it was in honor of my b-day anyway.