No Beatin' Round the Bush on Weigh-in Day #3

Friend or Foe?

My Engine 2 Diet associate greeted me with its usual enigmatic, Mona Lisa-like facade. I suspect it already has a number in mind but I approach with an air of confidence, knowing any fawning obsequiousness will be seen as uncertainty...weakness. I tickle him under the chin and his display flashes a few seconds before settling into an objective-looking "0.0"...my invitation step aboard and solicit his opinion of my efforts this week.

This is an "aside" - a perfectly legitimate literary tool - not to be mistaken as an attempt to beat around the bush: I've eaten a lot of food this week. Our most-delicious-to-date meal of lasagna, eating out, smoothies in the evening...basically all constitute a perfectly valid reason for my associate to deem this week's gravity strength as unchanged. That said, I feel it's a success for me to report that I'm down, once again, nearly 3 pounds, for a 3 week total of exactly 11 pounds. Now, I have lost weight on the past at an equal or greater rate, but it always involved a significant amount of intense physical effort, sweating and - ergo - a loss largely involving dehydration and - ergo, ergo - not a true metric of the reduction in body fat. Since this loss has occurred while I've been my lately-typical slothful self, it constitutes a much more honest analysis of fat that no longer resides upon my carcass. I actually can see a difference in my body composition...in a good way! That's cool.

My belly, admittedly, is still decidedly "convex-ish"...but visually less so than a few weeks ago. My other preferred energy storage depots seem equally depleted. I'm pretty jazzed about this. I have a ways to go, but I finally know I'll get there...and without a lot of discomfort and effort. Still to come in a week or so: a blood serum analysis - cholesterol, etc.

"Cookies" for snacking

When we began this journey 3 weeks ago, we eschewed anything sweet. It just seemed so wrong to eat things that taste good if our intention is to lose fat. Relenting the past week or so, we found a few "sweet treats" that are both vegan and sweet-tooth-satisfying. These cookies are primarily shredded carrot and apple with a small amount of whole wheat pastry flour and spices. A couple of these guys make a low calorie, very low fat way to moderate our blood sugar. I helped LG prepare these by doing some of the apple shredding. She told me I had to let her finish because she didn't want the blood to drip into the batter. I thought a cooking injury photo would be a great real-life addition today, but LG insisted it was just too "yucky" to put in a food blog. She completed the shredding with the food processor. Wish we'd thought of that before I lost that chunk of skin and nail.

Porridge...?

LG beautifully staged the makings for this Sunday morning breakfast. She insists on calling it "porridge." I have to say, I've never used that word without an affected English accent, followed by a chuckle. I didn't know anyone really used that word anymore. I'm adding it to my vocabulary - on the "hearing-without-chuckling" list only. I won't actually be saying it...without that accent thing anyway.

Whatever one chooses to call it, it's really a great way to start the day. LG has prepared some combination of these and similar ingredients EVERY MORNING for three weeks. Can't really say how much I appreciate it, lover. Thank you! There's grain, bran, fruit, nuts...so much healthy stuff in a single bowl.

Speaking of  "poooreege" (hee, hee) - mine is waiting in the kitchen. See ya tomorrow!