SUGAR

I have read the same thing in various sources.  As the government demonized 'fat' - the food industry responded by creating a billion dollar industry creating 'low-fat' and 'no-fat' foods.  Dumb Americans like me, always took some comfort in reaching for these alternatives - certainly they seemed healthier than the alternative.  The problem is, apparently 'fat' serves a few purposes.  Among them, fat gives taste and creates a sense of satiety after a meal.  Food companies still desired to sell food, so they took out the fat and loaded up on sugar.

Many 'low-fat' and 'no-fat' foods are even higher in calories than their 'fat' counterparts.  A food loaded up with sugar, does not provide a sense of satiety, in fact, quite the opposite, leads to more hunger.  It is a vicious cycle, and I was certainly riding it for the past many years. We need Protein, Carbohydrates and Fat for our body to operate efficiently. From what I have learned we need no sugar.  Zip. Zero. Nada. And yet, the sugar that Americans eat has risen sharply in decade for more than 100 years. It is virtually impossible to completely eliminate sugar from one's diet. Cutting out cookies, candy, ice-cream, and cakes is a good place to start.  Sugar is added to countless foods.  The trick is to keep it to a minimum.

When it comes to sugar, 'The Guess Who' said it best on their 1970 release, 'American Woman' which included the song: No Sugar Tonight.  Probably a good idea tonight, and every night.

SATURDAY MENU

breakfast    three sunnyside up eggs, two slices turkey 'bacon'                                240 calories
lunch         spinach salad w/roma tomato, 6oz. can pink salmon                              210 calories
dinner        1/4 lb lamb bratwurst, spinach salad w/tomato, chicken tortilla soup    495 calories
total calories consumed        945 calories


CALORIES BURNED
11AM elliptical machine 32 minutes        485 calories

SATURDAY NET CALORIES     460 CALORIES

TAKING THE SUBWAY

In an earlier blog entry titled, 'Confessions' I might have appeared to denigrate 'Subway.' This was unintentional as I meant only to denigrate the choices I made at that restaurant.   There are more than 43,000 Subway locations around the world - this can be a good option on the road if smart choices are made.  For lunch today,  I 'got back on track.' I have been frequenting Subway restaurants for many years and prior to today the number of salads I purchased was exactly zero.   I made my selection for lunch today long before I entered the restaurant by visiting the nutritional information page on the Subway website.   Today I ordered an oven-roasted chicken salad with the 2oz. packet of fat free Italian dressing.    This may not be fine dining, the salad is served in a plastic container, but it sure tasted fine.   True hunger makes food taste better.

OVEN ROASTED CHICKEN SALAD                   140 CALORIES
1.5OZ. KEN'S  FAT FREE ITALIAN DRESSING    15 CALORIES
                                                   TOTAL LUNCH   155 CALORIES

Subway oven-roasted chicken salad w/dressing 155 CALORIES