Veggies, V-Slicers and Very Bad Ideas

This is cool.

I bought a V-Slicer Mandoline I've wanted for a long time. It's the affordable sort but it's pretty darn good. It slices thin, thick, or tiny (matchstick) julienne, or larger (McD french-fry size) julienne. Or you can use it for slicing 'cubed' stuff. It's superfast to clean up (just rinse off), easy to use and has its own holder you can mount it on the wall with if you like. It has reduced the 'prepping veggies' part of these dishes to vastly, vastly less trouble and better outcome.

I've been reading about everything from OTC supplements to illegal steroids geared toward fat loss. This is probably indicative of my state of mind in some fashion. It's unfortunate that most stuff is so much better for men than women. Everything mucks with hormones which is a big deal, but what the hell, if my hormones were anything akin to balanced I would not weigh what I do anyway.

A recent agreement between the 14 year old and I, resulted in my agreement that we would go on a "mostly Salad and Stir-Fry" diet for awhile (she lasts on any plan about 3 days, sigh).


She just doesn't like meat and eggs enough to eat enough of them IMO or eat them 'mostly'. So I figure I will get her to take some protein powder and amino acid supplements, eat what meat I can stuff down her, she does eat cheese, and otherwise the 'salad and stir-fry' will have to do. She likes vinaigrette dressings blessedly, and Penzeys provided me some nice spice mixes to add to those, and anything to rein in the amount of junk food she eats is good. Maybe if I keep her stuffed with veggies she will not have much desire to eat everything-else.


Lowcarb lost me what, about 170# total. I have regained and relost the last 70# of that several times now. That is really exasperating to me. I can't believe how FAST my body gains weight. I don't even have to eat hideously. When I'm LC, I am really lowcarb and I am really low calorie too, just by default (I like meat and eggs and cheese more than I like everything-else that I could eat 'in moderation'). But if I'm not doing that, I'm gaining weight. It's so frustrating!

Maybe lowcarb 'normalizes the metabolism' for some people. It didn't for me. It just got the mega chronic insulin issues taken care of. And that did work for that part of it. But obviously there is a lot more than that involved.

My big wonder is why the hell it works differently at different times, I mean what is going on with my body that it is so unpredictable?

I have had cycles where I went on LC, lost 13# in water weight the first 24 hours, and 25# the first week (water of course), this is normal, this is the 'extra' I carry (not all of it, but most of it).

I have had cycles where I went on LC, and after 4 weeks had lost all of 8# and that includes the water weight. In other words I did not even lose the WATER -- let alone any fat. (So I did not lose 8# you understand. I lost 1/4 to 1/3 of the water weight I should have lost the first week -- that is all.)

Why? Why would it be so different?

It's surprising how much of "drive" takes the part of "hope". If I have hope that I can lose some fat and feel better, then I find myself planning it and counting the days and that sort of thing. If my results make me feel like I have no particular hope of losing even the water weight never mind anything more at any speed where I'd reach even 300# prior to age 412 if I dieted consistently, then I completely lose all volition for wanting to bother at all.

April Fool's Day is the big day. The kid and I begin her "salad and stir fry" eating plan tomorrow. I will probably live more on eggs and meat as usual since I like that better.

I am hoping to resume lifting weights though. I guess I'll see how my energy does for that.

PJ