My Diet: Official Day One (yesterday 9/29/08)

Well, I wasn't feeling well yesterday but still stuck to my guns. For breakfast, I had a Bagelfuls by Kraft (I think) and a small orange juice. Snack was some wine grapes that were on sale at Whole Foods (yum!). Lunch was vegan "chicken" with no meat or soy, broccoli, and all sprinkled with a little bit of cheese. That was awesome! My afternoon snack was some yogurt. For dinner I fixed some imitation crab meat, one medium portabella mushroom cap, a clove of garlic and some of the broccoli I boiled up Sunday. Oh that was divine. My drinks were the orange juice, my hi*ball energy water, water, unsweet tea, an all natural soda, and one Budweiser. Like I said I'm allowing myself dairy and seafood. I stuck within my prescribed guidelines for myself and felt content with my food choices. I do want some more OJ though!

Food Review : Annie Chun's Sushi Wrap! Kit

I'm addicted to sushi. My friend Lauren got me started on it in April and I've been addicted ever since. I'm a broke college student, so I don't have the money to enjoy it as often as I'd like, so I decided to try it after finding it at Whole Foods. On a fluke I thought to look in Walmart, since I was going to prepare it with imitation crab meat I was buying there. Walmart had it for $2.99 compared to Whole Food's $3.99. I also bought some spring rolls to have with it since this was to feed myself and my partner in crime.

I followed all the instructions provided on the packaging, which were very limited. The sticky rice sticks to everything. Overall the product is awesome for 10 pieces of sushi. However, the price is a little steep for so few pieces. My man loved it and actually used chop sticks instead of his hands or a fork! This is a big step for him =D.

I'd recommend this for someone who just wants to have the experience of having sushi at home but with the ingredients of their choosing. Next time, I'm going to make my own sticky rice and make true sushi!

Diet Food Review: hi*ball Energy: Sparkling Energy Water

I'm trying to get past the Monster Energy drinks. I'm completely addicted to them. They taste like liquid Smarties. Those just happen to be one of my all-time favorite Halloween candies! But the high-fructose corn syrup and other additives make them bad for me and so I'm trying to find a healthier alternative. So I'm trying new energy drinks that I find at Whole Foods (see links at bottom).

The first I'm trying is called "hi*ball ENERGY" and I'm having the orange flavor. It's a sparkling water with orange flavor. A long time ago I found I hated sparkling waters due to their obnoxious flavor and texture and general bad after taste. As I'm drinking this, the only time I taste orange is the after taste. The sparkling part of the water is slightly annoying, but like coffee it will grow on you. Overall, I'd say it's ok.

For a product with only 10 calories, the "energy" for the cost is amazing. It doesn't leave you feeling gittery or spike your blood sugar like the main stream energy drinks do. One of the main reasons I'm wanting to look for a substitute for the Monsters is that diabetes runs strongly in my family, and I'm trying to avoid it via my diet. My only real complaints of the product is that it comes in a glass bottle, which some places will not allow you to have and it's only 10 oz. I'm used to my 16 oz Monster which lasts me about 2 hours. However, the fact that I'm taking in more water than suger is a facture that I take into consideration.

My recommendation is that if you like sparkling water and want to give up the mainstream energy drinks, this may be the one for you. The company has a whole line and even has mixers. I have links below.

www.wholefoodsmarket.com

www.hiballer.com I've had difficulty just typing this one in, but had to Google it to get to the actual page.

Diet Food Review: Special K Protein Water

As I begin to try new foods as I change my diet, I will write reviews of the items I have tried, especially if I hated it a lot or if I love to the extreme. Today's review is on the Special K Protein Water, the Ice Tea Flavor.

I hated it! First off, it taste like overly sweetened instant tea, which for all Southerners, is nasty. Secondly, it feels really thick in the mouth. A girl in my Grammar class last night said it has to do with the added protein and fiber, but I disagree. I've had protein enriched juices and they do not have this texture issue. It is something apparently with this product. In addition to these issues, the product states it helps with the feeling of fullness when used in conjunction with a high protein/high fiber diet, as I have, it does not.

The only person I would recommend this product to is an individual that just needs something sweet but needs few calories. This product has only 50 calories per bottle. But for that kind of intake, I'd rather have a Vitamin water which for the full bottle (not the 32 oz size though) is only 125 calories and tastes a million times better.

Funniest Email I've Ever Received!

" Dear American: I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great magnitude. I am Minister of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of 800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it would be most profitable to you. I am working with Mr. Phil Gramm, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my replacement as Minister of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation movement in the 1990s. This transaction is 100% safe.
This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the funds can be transferred. Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds. -Yours Faithfully Minister of Treasury Paulson "

Baby Bush, you make me laugh

I'm watching Bush's speech. He says he thinks businesses that fail should go out of business, then let these business that messed up fail, like the capitalism dictates. I don't want my tax dollars going to bail out these institutions that were being shady. He keeps saying that money needs to be free to lend. Why? One of the reasons we're in this situation is from people borrowing more than they make or can pay back. If you can't afford it, you don't need it. If loans are not readily available for you to start a new business, then it's not the market to start a new business. People need to take responsibility for their actions, both in business and in their personal lives. Stop looking for the government to bail you out because when you really need help because of something beyond your control, that help won't be there because the government spent all that money bailing your ass out.

Ok, I'm done ranting.

Dieting and Me

I've never been good with strict diets. I think one should have what they crave because you wouldn't be craving it if your body didn't need something in it. (See studies on kids that crave "inedible" things and dogs eating cat poop!) I've always just watched how much I eat of the foods I crave. It should be noted that I also have had a very limited diet until the last year because I'm so picky and finally started trying new things. I'm really on an eastern food kick.

But I've found that even with watching what I eat, limiting my soda intake to one a day (I have to have my Dr Pepper people!), and trying to limit exactly what goes into my mouth, I'm still not losing any weight. I don't have time to workout more than I do (which is yoga twice a week at school) as I work 30-40 hours a week, have four classes, and need time to do homework/eat/sleep. Also, my family members (all overweight but two) are getting diagnosed with diabetes one after another and I've come to a strong conclusion, it's time to do what needs to be done... go vegetarian.

I've already limited myself to red meat less than twice a week, and so far this week not at all. I will NEVER give up fish and seafood as I love them too much to give them up. But all the chicken and turkey (I haven't eaten pork in years) as got to go as well as the cheese. I'm still going to eat yogurt as it's a more enjoyable way to get the good bacteria my stomach needs for me to keep my gastro-intestinal functions healthy. I know there are pills with this bacteria in them, but I can't remember to take them and don't take vitamins because I always forget. I can't help it. So, starting Monday, I will post how I'm doing with this process of cutting out meat. Wish me luck in my endeavours, I'm going to need it.

Here's to moving out of MySpace Land

I've been blogging on MySpace for years now, ok since 2005, and found that I may be getting to old for all that. My serious blogs never get read and my funny ones, well that's the place for them. I know that I won't have much time for more pressing topics, such as my take of the economy or who I will vote for president, but I think this will be a good place to put all of that. I just didn't know that it was tied to my Gmail account or I would have been on here a long time ago. I think I'd much rather blog where there are fewer high school grade posts to contend with and possibly have my blog be read by more than the few little crazies on MySpace that read it. Hopefully, I'll be able to dedicate the time needed for content filled posts that I prefer to write than small little pieces. I think I'll leave the diary-esque stuff for drama land, I mean MySpace.