Every day I learn more and newer things about myself. There are unfortunate things happening in the life of my family members at this time and the crummies of which I spoke in my last blog come from processing the information and my emotions surrounding it. Being three thousand miles away from my loved ones during difficult times is a tough thing, but understanding that and going gently inside of my own life is something that will help to keep me safe, sane and healthy. Not surprisingly, sticking to bennies in the diet help with that gentleness. I even allowed myself to stay up late (2 a.m…yipes!) re-reading Harry Potter last night. I needed to escape into somebody else’s world for a little while, and Hogwart’s was where I wanted to be! I was sleepy today, but my spirit felt cared for.

On less touchy-feely notes, the tuna that I grilled up in the beginning of the week has nearly all been eaten, and I do notice a difference in my strength with consistent flesh throughout the week. I’ve also been doing the cup of warm water/lemon thing in the mornings and it makes me feel pretty good, I think. I’ve also gotten back to eating way less more consistently throughout the day and have felt much more even, if that makes any sense. Finally, I’ve been having real trouble with coffee lately (I want too much of it!!), and while it hasn’t made me sick, per se, I know that it’s an avoid and I’m trying to control it in my diet. I did get some pretty good green tea from Trader Joe’s and it’s yummy with soymilk, so I’m going to shoot for less coffee and more green tea this coming week. Oh, and one more thing!! I’m meeting a friend in Pasadena this weekend to window shop and catch up on gossip, but we’re meeting up at the Barnes and Noble…so that means my dear BTD followers and friends…I’ll finally pick up LR4YT!! I’ll let you know what I think after this weekend. Maybe I’ll get the saliva test to check my secretor status after all…

Take care and be well…

Today finds me still feeling kind of crummy, but at least I got to print out a clean, empty weekly portions page. I made about a pound of tuna steaks this morning (pan steamed) and plan on spacing out the consumption of them throughout the week. I think that that ought’to cover the weekly allotment of fish flesh. I also bought ground turkey meat (I have a half a carcass in the freezer, but not enough hours at home to make soup…frustrating!), and will freeze out some portions of that so that protein is covered on that end too. I’m going to bulk up on dark leafy greens this week (collards, spinach) and see if that helps the mood. I’m off to hit the pool and then classes. It’s still raining here in sunny So. Cal…and despite the rainbow yesterday (so perfect!) and the exciting thunder and lightening…I’m about ready to get back to normal, sunshine…

Keep eating well, stay in healthful thoughts and make today a great day!!

Hullo, my name is Amanda and it’s been two days since my last blog…

I’m a bit down today…lots of things to worry about I guess. I haven’t been following the diet very closely the past couple of days…it’s just easier to grab whatever’s nearby than go through the thought process of taking care. This doesn’t help matters any with the affective state…but we do what we can do, right? At the very least I am still swimming and creating good chemicals. I’m also trying to bury myself in my studies since there’s not a lot that I can do about the other stuff right now. Of largest physical concern to me right now is the rapidly decreasing flexibility that I am experiencing. I can’t afford to buy yoga classes, so I have to figure out some way to stretch out effectively…I may pull out some of my Pilates paper work…maybe I can re-create my mat classes from a few years back.

On one other note before I sign off for today—I’m putting a big cosmic “wonder” out there. I got no protein this week to speak of (no eggs, tofu, nuts, turkey or fish) and felt pretty horrible. Yesterday I forced down a can of tuna and felt better within the hour. I’m struggling with the heart/brain connection…my brain knows that I need to eat a balanced diet…my heart is still having trouble warming up to flesh. Anybody have any tricks to hide the animal protein behind yummy veggies…or space it out so that it’s not so overwhelming?

Peace, love and serenity to y’all…have a groovy weekend…be well…

I got a lovely message from a darling young lady in the UK. She mentioned a few things that I forgot about, and feel would be great to bring up here. A few of the many benefits of living on the BTD aside from weight loss are a clearer complexion, shining hair, more energy and elevated mood levels. I’ve found a type of “afterglow” that comes along with adherence to bennies and neutrals on the diet. This really is such a wonderful life-style change that even with the occasional slips…my quality of life has improved a thousandfold from what it was before (and I didn’t think it was too bad pre-BTD!).

I’ll rehash some of what works for me here, both for myself and for y’all…it’s what we educators call “spiraling review”…if you go over the content of something enough times, you get a bit deeper with it each time and come to some better connections and understandings.

ANYHOW!!

I own only the Cook Right 4 Your Type book currently. I have every intention to buy Live Right 4 Your Type, but have to save a few dollars first. I have read ER4YT out of the library to understand some of the history behind Dr. D’s work a while back. This web-site is also very informative…click on the different articles and try out the different interactive “base” programs (TYPEbase, RECIbase, DOCbase, etc.).

Every Monday I print out my weekly chart of foods and serving sizes so that I can track a balanced diet. I have found that left to my own devices, I eat mostly fruits and veggies and not much protein or starches…both of which are necessary for balance. When I go to the market (local growers…I’m lucky to be in Southern Cali)…about twice a week…I wash and dry everything as soon as I get home. This makes it much easier to cook quickly or grab and go!! I’m gone from the house for nearly 12 hours a day, so I have to pack most of my food. I’ve found that since being on the BTD, my appetite has decreased (b/c I’m getting starch and protein!!), so it’s not too difficult to pack a day’s worth of food!

I think I’ll save some of my fave foods for an upcoming blog…this is getting lengthy!

The last thing that I wanted to share is that I swim nearly every day for an hour. We do sets of between 1800-2300 meters each workout. I don’t stretch out much, and feel a need to do so…I just have to make the time….like everything else!

To re-cap quickly, the diet combined with exercise, enough sleep (at least 8 hours/day), and lots of water (I drink 2-3 liters a day) have contributed to weight loss, clearer skin, elevated energy and mood and a general “afterglow” affect that leaves me feeling strong and capable.

My poor zombie lactic acid laden body is aching from the kidneys out. We got M&M’s as treats tonight in one of my classes and I just couldn’t not eat them!! Now my kidneys are screaming, my muscles are crying from being taken on a wonderful hike yesterday and then submitted to THREE HOURS of sitting in traffic (lactic acid puddles tried to drown my poor muscles). Anyhow, I’m still happy on the BTD and working to fit in my weekly counts of everything…and working on laying off the highly-processed-not-so-good-for-you junk food. Happy day and happy eating. With love in secrets big and small…be well…

I have discovered the world’s best food…again. Every time I make collard greens (which clearly isn’t enough), I remember how much I love them!! I use Dr. D’s braised collards recipe from CR4YT but added portabelo (not sure on the spelling of that one!) mushrooms this time…the greens, combined with rice and beans and blackened corn muffins (just a few bites, the avoid in that is worth it) make this a meal fit for the gods. I think that next time I make it, I’ll do a blackened fish to replace the corn muffin. Oh…if only there was some left over to mix with eggs in the morning…it was a meal enjoyed by the entire house tonight. I love Sundays with no worries about having to get up on Monday…we are all so relaxed and happy with ourselves and each other. I even got homework done today (having a spot of trouble getting back into the Master’s groove!!)!!

On other notes, I still haven’t gotten Live Right for Your Type yet, but do plan on it. I’m hiking down near San Diego tomorrow and so look forward to another week started on the right foot!! It’s going to be a busy couple of weeks coming up here, so I have to enjoy every last free moment that I’ve got. Sticking to “bennies” and getting precious sleep and staying in the pool will all help to make it as painless as possible.

Happy Monday y’all and be well…

Yuck! When I fall off the wagon, I don’t just fall off…I fling myself over the edge. It’s amazing what triggers can do to a person. Yesterday started out well enough, but on my way down to the pool I got stuck in a traffic jam of epic (okay, native ‘Angelenos…I know I haven’t experienced “epic” by your standards yet…nobody was tailgating on the freeway) proportions only a few miles from the house. I was so disgusted, enraged, upset and, well, let me be honest, CRAZY (possibly the PMS talking?) that I got off the freeway (not an easy task!!), turned around and went home over surface streets. Missing a workout in the pool would have been okay if I had gone for a walk or jog in the neighborhood, or spent some time beating up the heavy bag…but oh, no…little miss ‘thang over here cooked herself up a very large (thankfully beneficial) meal and spent the rest of the afternoon vegging in front of the TV (not something I do very often). Even that wouldn’t have been a tragedy except that I began free grazing for whatever was in the house to eat that was not beneficial or even neutral. There was plenty.

So anyhow, my BTD friends and foes…This morning saw me wake up (not exactly refreshed, but the junk food hangover’s not too bad), work-out, submit this blog and now go to the market for “benies” and neutrals and perhaps during the course of other errands I’ll go pick up LR4YT as an extra motivator.

With love in love, hauling one’s @$$ back onto the wagon and holiday weekends…happy, healthful eating to you all…

Hey y'all...I think that I'll miss the worst of this cold, but I've done my work to make it happen! I've slept for the past three nights over ten hours and haven't done any significant cognitive thinking (though I have gone to all classes and been in the pool). I'm also PMSing and ate the rest of a pack of cookies for b-fast today (darn housemates with their junk food!). But my tummy is super upset from the cookies...so each slip takes me further away from wanting junky foods.

I'm still struggling to get in seafood during the week. Last night I broiled three red snapper fillets with garlic and threw them in the fridge. I'll have one for lunch/dinner today and probably break the others up into a stir fry or salad over the next day or two. It is challenging because I'm only here to cook breakfast and then gone for the rest of the day. I eat mostly like a vegetarian during the weekend because my one housemate and I cook together. But I'll keep working on it.

O'tay...time to submit this run-of-the-mill blog and be on my way. It is crazy windy here in SoCal today...I want to go play for a bit in the elements!! Be well, with love in meeting goals big and little...

Hey y'all...I woke up today realizing that I'm going to pay for eating those cookies and cheesecake bites over this weekend. I've got this yucky feeling inside like I'm getting a cold. So it's plenty of water, extra doses of Superfood and beneficial only food for me. It's harder to control the sleep now that classes are back in full swing, but I'll go straight to bed when I get home tonight. If I play my cards right, I'll avoid a cold...I haven't gotten sick in a long time, it should be cool.

Happy eating and health to you, with love in cat naps stolen in a busy day...

Can't stay too long to chat tonight, but as it's been a couple of days since my last entry...I thought that I'd better check in!! My b'day weekend has been so wonderful, I love all of the people in my life...they make it so special!

Food intake was surprisingly great this weekend. Those cheesecake "bites" that I made for dessert really limited consumption of "bad" things and anything else that I ordered out over the past couple of days has been beneficial or neutral...scallops, tofu, spinach--lots of veggies...the only thing that I have to go back and double-check is coconut milk (dangerous yummy in thai food!!).

The one thing that did give me a tummyache this morning (because it broke the fast) were the cookies that my mom sent along...but they are a childhood favorite and I figure that I'll just pay for it in the pool tomorrow. Also...signs of growing up I suppose...I went hiking all day up by Santa Barbera as a b'day treat and didn't over-indulge in "spirits." I only had a few glasses of red wine since Friday night...and I think (another item to check) that red wine is beneficial or neutral.

The thing that I do notice from eating out for several meals over the past couple of days is that I'm kind of puffy and just a touch lethargic. I'm going to guess that it's due to extra salt and whatever else goes into big kitchen cooking. The nice thing is that since following the diet so closely, I don't crave the "bad" foods so much, and am very satisfied with what I make for myself. This is good because in the past, I would have gone on an eating out binge for a week or so. I'm actually looking forward to being able to pack (read:control) all of my meals tomorrow and for the rest of the week.

Okay, so much for the "quickie," my battery's about to go on the computer so I'd better get this sent. Joyous Monday to y'all out there in cyber-land...with love in dear friends...take care

Aaaaaaooooo....

We had the most beautiful moonrise here in SoCal tonight!! This huge, bright, white, full moon rose up into a crimson sky streaked with orange and teases of yellow. The mountains stood in stark relief against a darkening horizon...aaahhh...pure perfection!

It is such a pretty day today!! I love waking up to crisp sunshine…

Life on the BTD is still going well. I’ve really taken to the checklist format to track food for the week. It is so telling to know what I haven’t had enough of yet; my main problem is still getting seafood into my diet. I’ve also found that I’m having trouble eating enough of the grains and starches. But after being back in the pool this week, my body is starting to catch up to the need for fuel!!

So the tradition around here is that I make the birthday dessert for everyone else, made to order. Well, I don’t really care for store bought sweets, and no one else really bakes…so I get to make my own b’day treat (though my bestest friends pay for the ingredients!). I have this problem--I finish all of whatever is made or opened (when it’s junkie food…chips, cookies, cake, etc.). So this time I’ve made little cheesecake cupcakes!! They are easier to give away and even better, I can control how much I eat. If I have three or four over a weekend, it’s about the same as a large piece of cheesecake. Hopefully the junk food hangover won’t be so bad this go around!

Okay, I know, I know…I’m a couple of bumps behind (wavelength bumps!!) on the whole LR4YT thing…but my b’day is coming up soon and must be that I’ll ask for that book. I read the other bloggers have gotten lots of great info from it…I wanna play too!!

Anyhow, I’m living well on the BTD with classes in full swing. Portioning out meals to the weekly “rations” chart has been great…I’ve lost three pounds already!! My body is rejoicing to be back in the water…but my muscles are still trying to play catch up. I think it shouldn’t take too much more than a week to be back…in…the…swim…of…things…soon!! Har har har…

Phew…made it through the first round of classes. Two more tomorrow night and two more after that on Thursday. Sixteen hours of sitting on my butt (not counting So. Cal. drive time) squashed into three tiny nights. Does all that sitting really change one’s hips and bottom? At any rate, my bum, knees and head are sore from the sitting and looking under bad lights.

All this from a girl who is so thankful and happy to be back on the other side of the classroom!! I love every bit of pursuing a higher education, really!!

Anyhow, DAY ONE of the pack-and-go eating schedule went swimmingly. I didn’t get to finish everything that I brought, but don’t feel hungry. I managed turkey flesh today, and I think that that helped. I have a hard time not falling back into my vegetarian ways…it’s just easier (and more fun) to prepare veg. friendly foods…but I know that the animal protein has really made a difference in my energy levels and strength.

Got back in the pool after six weeks off and had a great workout…actually, my buddies kicked my butt up and down the lanes…but it’s a good kind of “kicked around,” my body was so happy to be back in the water! And my emotions were happy to see my swim friends again…I highly recommend working out with a group of wonderful, supportive people…it just makes the whole experience joyous!!

Here’s my thought for the evening: It is worth the time and energy to prepare the food ahead of time for a pack-and-go kind of schedule because it’s healthy and much cheaper than eating on the road. And all those little tupperwares are so cute!!

Classes start tomorrow and after having had a month off, I must say that I’m very ready to be back on a schedule. My daily swim will resume tomorrow and if the game continues as it’s going…then I’ll have all of my food portioned out for the week!! I took one of the other blogger’s advice and printed out a chart showing servings for each food group for the week and just checked them off as I ate this week. I had no fish or meat all week…so much for being the well balanced person that I thought I was!! At least keeping track weekly helps me to make minor/major improvements to my technique for keeping on the “program.” I will also be trying out a yoga studio on Tuesday to perhaps retain some of that youthful flexibility that I feel trying to slip away from me!

Happy beginning of a new week to us all…with love in “big” games and new commercials…