Today I am still maintaining 258, which is a 2 pound loss from last week.
At least 50 pounds of paper and junk has gone out my door in the last two days. I'm making progress.
To someone who didn't see me at 280 pounds, I would still look huge at 258. To someone who hadn't seen me pitching and heaving junk out my door, my office would still look like a dump. I cannot let how I look discourage me. I will not look svelte in a few weeks. It takes time and consistency. The same with the clutter in my office - baby steps - will get the clutter out of my office.
POTATOES - STARCHES - could they be my friend? I was watching a program on TV today where a guest doctor was explaining that for thousands of years whole people groups consisted mainly on starches and did so in good health and without being obese.
He said that we have been told that starches are bad because they convert to sugar. We are told to eat less carbohydrates and yet we are a nation of sick, obese people. He said that a graveyard of gladiators was discovered recently. Gladiator's diets consisted of starches, and right before their fights they would eat barley for a day or two. They were called "barley eaters." Scientists have analyzed their bones and their bones were denser and showed to be more healthy than the surrounding population.
He also talked about the 3 Sisters - the diet of the Indians: corn, beans and squash. The Native Americans were healthy and lean. I've often wondered how modern day Native Americans have become obese, diabetic and sickly when they still eat lots of beans and corn tortillas. I don't know if it is the added fat in their diets or the fact that the maize (corn) of even a hundred years ago had much more protein in it than the hybrid corn of today. It could be that they are eating beef (hamburger) which was not a native food.
There are many examples - the whole nation of China has lived for thousands of years on a diet in which the main ingredient was rice. This doctor claimed that the Irish used to live on nothing but potatoes and were healthy and strong.
The point was that starches give us energy and strength. Athletes load up on carbs before a big game or race. He said there was enough protein in a potato to sustain us. During a period (I can't remember - 20 years maybe?) in Ireland, the population doubled while the people were eating almost nothing but potatoes.
Something I have discovered on my own during this time of trying to eat better: when I have a (small to medium) yukon gold potato with my meal, I do not have cravings after I eat. I eat the gold yukons because the brown and red potatoes make my joints ache - even to the smaller joints in my fingers. And doctors say that the gold and sweet potatoes are healing to stomach ulcers. I have a history of ulcers, so I want to eat things that are soothing to my stomach.
Two things I have learned in the past four weeks: A hearty breakfast helps rev up my metabolism, and eating a yellow potato with my meal stops food cravings.
I just bought a new bag of potatoes and will be experimenting with eating a potato one or more times a day. I am not talking about greasy fries or a baked potato with huge globs of butter and sour cream on top. I am talking about a steamed, boiled or baked potato with toppings that are not fattening. This will be a habit I will have to develop as I rarely eat potatoes, believing they were fattening and not good for me.
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers (and sisters), whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:1-4
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