Week 2, Day 4 (Party Food. I'm OK With That. Sorta.)

7:30 am- Breakfast (I'm really slacking off with the wake up times! In my defense, this project is definitely wearing me out.)

Cinnamon Pecan Special K (I had to do it)
2% Milk
Clementine (I always find myself going for the quickest, easiest fruits. For example, I rarely eat strawberries because they require me cutting the little green things off. I'm all about convenience. In college I will need healthy convenient options so I don't find myself resorting to the chips or candy that will constantly be around.)

9:15 am- Triple Fit
Let me just say, I had not had a class really kick my butt yet during this project, but Triple Fit killed me. It wasn't the kind of workout that left me gasping for air in a heap on the floor, but my muscles burned like no other, and I was dripping in sweat. I couldn't stop watching the clock, which at one point I thought was broken because of how slow the minutes were passing. It is a little bit of a challenge to explain without getting into too much detail, so I will first offer you the short, sweet description from www.urbanactive.com:

"A true interval class! Basic moves. Intervals consist of: 4 minutes of cardio, 3 minutes of legs, 2 minutes of upper body. A Member Favorite!"

Essentially, we used a step for 4 minutes, but everything was super fast paced including a lot of jumping that was absolutely killer. We would then go to squats or leg lifts, often using weights. Finally, we picked up rubber bands and used them to work both arms and legs. The activity was constant and extremely physically challenging. After about the second set, I could not stop watching the clock. By the end of the hour, my legs were shaking. There were a lot of squats in this class. Also, working out this hard early in the morning was definitely a change. I will say I enjoy working out in the evening better, but it is much easier to motivate myself to come to the gym in the morning. Dilemma.

12:00 pm- Lunch
Market Day Mini Quesadilla
Leftover Pork Cut Up with Teriyaki Sauce
Red Apple
Broccoli

1:00 pm- Snack
Market Day Chocolate Cake
8oz 2% Milk

5:45- Snack #2
Baby Bowl Bumpy Road Ice Cream

then...PARTY. Where there was A LOT of food. And honestly, I felt very guilty for eating it at first. There was candy, pizza, cookies, mac n cheese, cheese cake and more. I was with my friends, and I ate it. The whole time I kept saying "I'm gaining five pounds right now. I need to stop eating." and things of that nature. I was so focused on the fact that I already had eaten a good amount of my food for the day before I got there, and I just ate and ate because it was there and it was fun and everyone was doing it. I need to realize that its OK to have fun with friends and not feel awful about it. Some days I eat more, and other days I eat less. My body is smart and adjusts to my food intake. I need to constantly keep telling myself that. I will never learn to actually enjoy my time until i can be OK with having a little fun and splurging sometimes without being immediately worries about how to fix my "mistake."

Correction From Yesterday

One of the chemistry teachers at Hawken, Doc M. as I call him, has been following my blog closely and had a correction on something I posted yesterday. I made some general statements about honey and splenda and other such nutrion related information, and he kind of came in and dropped a bit of chemistry knowledge on me, which I really appreciate. Here is what he said,


"Hi Sam,
I have to disagree with some of the nutritional "facts" you've been told. At best, raw sugar might have slightly less sugar than refined because the refining process takes out little bits of nonsugar items like pollen and wax. There might be other differences in terms of micronutrients (vitamins and the like), but as far as the simple sugars that are largely responsible for honey's sweetness - samo, samo. Go ahead and use raw sugar if you prefer it, but don't think you're going light on sugar when you do.

Which brings me to splenda. Yes, splenda is derived from sugar by chemical chlorination. But that does not mean sugar is in any way like, or as dangerous as, chlorine (Cl2) - which is a poisonous, choking gas. By similar logic you should avoid salt - but actually the reason salt is bad is its sodium, not its chlorine. And sodium explodes in water, so don't take salt on a picnic if there's a threat of rain! I'm kidding, of course, but you can see how ridiculous things can get if you don't apply good judgment to such claims.

You may not know, by the way, that the whole "Splenda contains chlorine!" fright package was a campaign by sugar producers to hold on to market share against Splenda. There's not a grain of scientific validity to the scare as far as I know. Sugar producers themselves are not the folks I would trust to be looking out for my health!

Doc M."

I really appreciate and encourage comments, corrections, and feedback. This project is about learning for me. If you know something I don't, SHARE IT!

Reading Material

This week, I am reading the book, Nutrition for Life by: Lisa Hark and Darwin Deen.

Yesterday, I began discussing "bad" carbohydrates to eat and also a "good" alternative. I offered basics such as white bread versus wheat bread and white rice versus brown rice. But here are some pairs that might not be so obvious:

Bad: White Potato Good: Sweet Potato
Bad: Corn Good: Lentils
Bad: Cornflakes Good: Raisin Bran
Bad: Instant Oatmeal Good: Rolled Oats
Bad: White Pasta Good: Couscous
Bad: Egg Noodles Good: Barley

Q: What is the glycemic index?
A: The G.I. classifies foods according to how fast they release sugar into the bloodstream. High glycemic index foods release glucose rapidly causing quick rise in blood sugar levels, to which the body reacts with insulin, which turns on fat storage. Low GI foods release glucose steadily over several hours so less insulin is required. Diets like Nutrisystem are based on the glycemic index.

Q: What is the difference between an enriched food and a fortified food?
A: Enriched food- nutrients are replaced that were originally lost during processing. For example, some of the B-complex vitamins are added back to refined flour. Fortified food- Nutrients are added that were never naturally a part of the food. For example, vitamins A and D are often added to milk.

I just came across the section in the book devoted to the "set point." This is a very hot topic for me, especially with my mom, and something that will be very relevant in my life in college and beyond. Be looking for definition and discussion of the body's natural set point in tomorrow's post!

Enjoy the weekend everyone!