Have I mentioned how much better I’ve felt the past few weeks? I am never going back to my old way of eating. Ever.
Also, here is another reason to like Seth Rogen.
Also, too, this has been today’s ear worm, courtesy of fucking Shawn, who was singing it this morning and got it stuck in my head:
Good night, peeps. It’s so nice feeling good, isn’t it?
*** Update ***
In what is probably the weirdest blogpost update in history, attached is a picture of my fingers since I keep talking about my knuckles:
Now, before you gasp in horror at my mangled digits, I will remind you all that you have seen my broken meathooks before, and even though I am too lazy to look up pictures for comparison, I remember the collective horror in the comments section when I posted a picture of my hand petting one of my animals and many of you started screaming “That’s it man, game over man, game over! What the fuck are we gonna do now? What are we gonna do?” They have all been broken several times, but what is noticeably different is that yes, they are mangled pegs, but I can hold them straight for a change, they don’t hurt even after fourteen hours of typing, I have not had an advil or alleve in weeks, and you see that excess skin around the knuckles- that is there not because I am skinny, but because in just a few weeks all the inflammation is gone. My knuckles are half the size they were, and the only thing I have changed is cutting sugar, wheat, rice, and processed foods out of my diet.
Sorry for all the annoying chatter, but I feel kind of evangelical about things because I think I figured something out, and I did it on my own, which means it counts and I will stick with it. Thus ends the weirdest post ever.
Mnemosyne
A little something for Yutsy (or any other Japanese-speaking Disney fan):
“Let It Go” (Japanese version)
The lyrics are translated (obviously) but they kept the same themes.
ruemara
You change moods faster than a hyperactive squirrel on a meth/Quaalude cocktail. Good night.
@Mnemosyne: I can’t wait for the cosplay at Fanime Con this year.
Keith P
I used to think that you needed to smoke weed more than anyone I could think of. Now, maybe it isn’t such a good idea. You’d fall off the wagon by the time you exhaled.
trollhattan
For anybody who loves whimsical, high-quality photography, this.
luminous-landscape.com/essays/kitchen_stories.shtml
Comrade Mary
The pod people got John!
NotMax
Kumbaya.
Mnemosyne
@ruemara:
It’s already so huge that it made Time magazine. When has Time ever done an article about cosplay?
(The sisters in the last photo are extra adorable.)
The Dangerman
Harvey! Son!!
ETA: I’m a spoiled CA person and I’m not at all looking forward to being out in this monster storm tomorrow; what is this winter weather shit? I pay a lot of money to not deal with weather and instead deal with ugly traffic and random gunfire on the roadway.
Gex
I was eating really well just after Kate was diagnosed and I was trying to get her through treatments. I remember realizing that what I thought was “feeling okay” before was actually feeling gross. The book I based my diet off of was Crazy Sexy Diet – I know stupid name – written by a woman with an untreatable sarcoma who has managed to shrink her tumors and live longer than they thought she would.
All of a sudden, when I checked in with my body it didn’t just feel okay. It felt good.
I’ve fallen off of it though. Did a lot of grief eating last year and having a hard time getting back to it. But I really need to just get back to it. I remember that after a certain amount of time on the good diet I no longer craved all the crap I’m having trouble giving up now. Or if I did indulge very occasionally, it was easy to stop right after.
Your posts are really helping to motivate me. I’m going to get back on track.
Mnemosyne
Bringing this up from the thread below (via lamh36):
President Obama Speaks on the My Brother’s Keeper Initiative
NotMax
@Gex
German word in the same ballpark:
Kummerspeck
Comrade Mary
@Mnemosyne: They are! I think they’re wearing circle contact lenses, too, which certainly ramps the cute to 11.
Yatsuno
@Mnemosyne: I love it, but this one stands as my favourite version. The Finnish version of “Frozen Heart” is also amazing, but about to run out of links.
@Comrade Mary: Tunch has returned! His spirit has possessed JC! EXORCIST STAT!!!
Comrade Mary
Your hand looks AWESOME, John! Sheesh, that diet really does make a difference for you. Maybe I should look at some experimentation myself …
@Yatsuno: You’re running out of Finnish music? I’m here to help.
The Dangerman
@Yatsuno:
Running a little short on exorcists currently; how about a Sushi Chef?
Mnemosyne
@The Dangerman:
Have you been watching the radar pictures? They’re a little freaky.
NotMax
re: The hand update.
Outside chance you were allergic to Subarus.
SIA
I cannot get enough of your food/diet change posts. More, more, more!
The Dangerman
@Mnemosyne:
A little, but I’ve been more fascinated by watching the weatherpeople change their attitudes over the past several days; it went from “finally, some rain” to “oh, this is going to be a good one” to “oh, oh” to “anybody got a spare Ark?” FWIW, tomorrow or Saturday is the Anniversary of the monster flood of 1938 (may be off on year); that was the flood that drove much of the flood control around these urban parts.
Mnemosyne
@Yatsuno:
And yet it doesn’t even open in Japan until next month (March 14th). It’s doing well all over the rest of Asia, though — right now, in South Korea it has not just the highest admissions of any animation film, it has the second-highest admissions of any foreign film (second only to Iron Man 3).
(Apparently South Korea counts admissions rather than money which, if you think about it, makes a lot more sense as a metric.)
seaboogie
Time for a mani/pedi to honor those newly happy digits. Hopefully in WV they don’t use chainsaws for calluses and the like. Reaganite to metrosexual health food blogger/tea granny in how many years? So good to hear you sounding and feeling well. BTW, the hand/arm massage in a manicure is the bomb!
James E. Powell
Thus ends the weirdest post ever.
No sir, not even close.
Mnemosyne
@Comrade Mary:
If you have arthritis or a family history of arthritis, it might be worth looking into gluten-free — there seem to be some connections.
Personally, I suspect the transformation is more because of the cutting out of processed foods and their massive sodium content (that’s what the “S” in MSG is) than most of the other dietary changes.
Yatsuno
@Comrade Mary: Ei, rakas rouva.
Bill ORLY
That is a great song from a shitty album. Disappointing.
Gary
John, good for you. Once you walk through the door, you can never go back. Thom Hartman spent a whole hour on the evils of sugar today even though he admits to be addicted. I lost 50 pounds removing sugar, processed food, and almost all wheat based product from my diet. I have kept a steady weight for 15 years. I still have the occasional pizza (once a quarter) and enjoy it so much more than I used to even though I know that I will pay physically for a day or two.
Comrade Mary
@Yatsuno: Kiitos, kulta-nipussa!
Comrade Mary
@Mnemosyne: No arthritis, but heart disease and diabetes run in the family for sure, even though all my blood values are still stellar. Hmmph. Let me get through these deadlines and I’ll think about it.
luc
A very good book on nutrition – once you get past the first 10 pages: “Death by food pyramid”
goodreads.com/book/show/18054967-death-by-food-pyramid
Gary
John one more thing, I know you have dogs. Start taking them for a walk. Once around the block for 2 weeks same time every day. Then twice around the block for another two weeks same time every day. Then 3 to 4 miles same time every day. Expect some initial pain but you have to push through it. As a vet I know you can do it. I’ve been doing 3 to 4 miles every day (takes about an hour and a half) for the past 15 years with my dog(s). I have a Husky mix that is 14 years old. 2 years past his “normal” life span. The thing about the dogs is that they get in the habit, can tell time and will drive you nuts until you get off your ass and take them for a walk. They don’t take excuses lightly. If it is raining, they might give me a break until the rain stops or they might not. Choose your time wisely because the dogs will drive you nuts at the set time until you walk them. I’m almost 60 years old and I can walk any of my friends into the dirt. I’m at my ideal weight and feel great. Some people think I’m crazy and maybe they are correct buy I guarantee that they can’t keep up with me. Do it, after a month you will feel better than you can remember since high school or basic training.
patrick II
I am sincerely happy for you. I have struggled with weight my whole life and health problems the last few years. So, I know. It just drags you down, mentally physically and with a lack of self respect. Keep up the good work.
Punchy
Are you throwing out gang signs in blog photos now?
Schlemizel
The onion deftly covers this news
theonion.com/articles/disturbing-fast-food-truth-not-exactly-a-gamechang,35388/
Luci
“Thus ends the weirdest post ever.”
Nope… I am sure I’ve not read EVERY post here, but I’ve seen plenty that are weirder than this one… On the other hand, I’m super happy for you that things are looking up and you are feeling better, and I hope you keep it up. I need to start following your example, and you are a good example for us all!!
Mustang Bobby
According to Thom Paulson, the morning DJ at Interlochen Public Radio in northern lower Michigan — just west of Traverse City — it is -19 F there… and that’s not including the wind chill.
That is 84 degrees colder than my present location: downtown Miami.
I love northern Michigan’s woods, lakes, and hills, but I’m glad I’m here.
BruceFromOhio
Sorry, no. Shaving the cat’s ass takes that trophy.
@Gary: This, this, this. With dogs or without, even in the dead of an endless winter, walking is the cheapest, easiest, most accessible exercise.
Geeno
Yeah – Cat butt shaving and naked mopping were way weirder, and I’m not 100% sure those were the weirdest posts ever to grace these pages.
GHayduke (formerly lojasmo)
Yup. My arthritis disappeared when I stopped eating grains. I would like to remind you that I told you about this TWO FUCKING YEARS AGO.
You’re welcome.
Dave
John, I’m glad you figured it out. I’ve been overweight my whole life except for a couple years when I was working out 2-3 hours a day and running 30+ miles a week. Well, that routine gets in the way of having a life and family and didn’t last. When I hit 222 pounds and a bmi of 30+ I I decided to do something. I knew I could do the normal low fat, low calorie starve yourself hate every minute diet but it never works for the long term so I started researching alternatives and found low carb, high fat, moderate protein and I’ve lost 45 pounds since last September. All without ever being hungry or feeling deprived and I eat good food butter, cream, red meat, cheese, eggs, lots of eggs, and more veggies than I ever did before. I eat 3 meals and sometimes a snack and I average about 2200 calories a day. I walk 30 minutes to an hour a day and the weight just falls off. I figure I’ll end up around 155 to 160 pounds and a bmi of around 23 by mid-summer but I don’t see myself ever going back to a way of eating that made me sick. Eating this way has also cured my gerd, gotten rid of my migraines, and I expect I’ll be able to reduce or eliminate my blood pressure medicine by my next checkup. No sugar, No grains rules! Don’t fear the fat!
Violet
Your hand and knuckles do look a lot better. That must feel so much better for you. Congrats!
There is no one more evangelical than a convert. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s a known phenomenon. Your are in the initial three month euphoria period. It’s a high and you feel great. Like with any high, you’ll come down from it. Sticking with it at that point can be more challenging. Just something to keep in mind because if you’re not aware that can happen, you don’t know why you suddenly aren’t so excited about your diet and why that sandwich looks so enticing.
@GHayduke (formerly lojasmo):
A lot of us did. John has asked about how to deal with his pain issues a bunch of times over the last couple of years and people advised changing his diet. But now is the right time for him, so good for him.
I do think it’s false for him to say he “figured it out on his own” because by his own admission he did a lot of reading and used when he read to design his own diet. He also asked for advice from his commentariat and got a lot of good input, which he has incorporated. He may have come up with his own unique version of the diet, but it’s on the back of everyone else’s research and work. He did not invent this diet out of thin air, nor did he do the research on his own.
In any case, I’m happy for you, John. I’ve had similar results with changing my diet and it’s a wondrous thing when it happens. Who knew food could have such an effect on us. Well, everyone knows at some level but when it happens to you it’s like magic. Congrats!
am
I don’t know man, I think there have been weirder. But happy the diet is working out!
cmorenc
No, this isn’t the weirdest BJ blog post ever. Pictures of how much your new diet has reduced the inflammation in your knees, taken during one of your nude kitchen-mopping sessions, would be much MUCH weirder.
Now try hard not to think of a white bear.
Hawes
Holy shit! What happened to your thumb? Did one of the dogs eat it?
HRA
Keep this positive attitude going, John. As one who has been through dieting too many times, I know the temptation to just have a little of a favorite treat is still present in one’s mind.
Also keep us informed on what you are cooking for the diet. I find it very helpful in planning our meals.
sal leone
Since you are responding well to eliminating gluten from you diet, I thought you might like this information from Chris Kresser who writes a great health blog, chriskresser.com/9-steps-to-perfect-health-1-dont-eat-toxins. The whole thing is very good but the part I’ve isolated is about people who are gluten intolerant and everything else they should skip because of cross reactions based on the similar molecular make-up:
Finally, we also now know that when you are gluten intolerant – which 33% (if not more) of you are – you will also “cross-react” with other foods that have a similar “molecular signature” to gluten and its components. Unfortunately, the list of these foods (shown below) contains all grains, which is why some medical practitioners (myself included) recommend not just a gluten-free diet, but an entirely grain-free diet. As you can see, it also contains other foods like dairy (alpha & beta casein, casomorphin, milk butyrophilin) and coffee (which is a very common cross-reactant).
alpha-caesin
beta-caesin
casomorphin
milk butyrophilin
cow’s milk
american cheese
chocolate
coffee
all cereal grains
quinoa
amaranth
buckwheat
tapioca
rice
potato
corn
sesame
metropro
I think the quinoa is probably doing the most to help your fingers. It contains anti-inflammatory phytonutrients that are supposed to be quite effective. If you haven’t done a search on quinoa, take a look.
Mnemosyne
@BruceFromOhio:
I posted in one of the other threads that the guru my annoying grain-free co-worker listens to made a pronouncement about the “one perfect exercise” that everyone should be doing, and that one perfect exercise was …. the one that you will do consistently.
Walking is a great one because you can do it (almost) anywhere, indoors or outdoors, in (almost) any weather, so it’s really hard to make excuses. Put your shoes on and go.
Bob
Your hands seems ok. Able to trip over the keyboard and find that song. Good on ya, Shawn and John. Nice couple. Just say’n.
Sherparick
Salon has a real good article on sugar and our diet and how it is not good for us middle aged folks. salon.com/2014/02/25/sugar_is_killing_us_and_it_doesnt_take_much_to_destroy_your_body_partner/
Gretchen
Gary, good advice about dog walking. The dogs enjoy it so much it hurts to disappoint them. And John loves his dogs so much that doing something that will give him more years of Rosie and Lily should be an inducement.
The Other Chuck
Cat shaving, naked mopping, and missing mustard. I don’t think this post is even in the top ten as weirdest goes.
Billy K.
@John,
I did a very similar thing about a year ago. I cut my portions in half, ate only what I cooked from real food (no boxes or cans) and I dropped 50 pounds with ease. More importantly, I came to realize just how shitty I had felt for the previous 15 years. There were other things, too – no eating after 9pm, no bread, no pasta, no rice (maybe a half cup of rice in some homemade chowder). Basically I did what you did and I had the same results. And yeah, I too have been annoyingly evangelical about it. Everyone wanted to know how I lost all that weight so quickly, and I just said “make your own food, nothing in a box or a can, eat half as much and realize you don’t have a right as an American to never feel hunger pangs.”
Good for you, bud.
(Oh, I also quit drinking beer at home. I’d still have a few pints when I was out, but at home I drank only red wine. I basically started eating and drinking like a European.)
ducktape
@Dave:
What Dave said. I also went No Sugar No Grains last July, figuring that I’d try it for a month after hearing some friends talk about it. Switched from dairy milk to almond milk, and since I don’t do bacon and eggs every day, picked up some whey isolate protein “milkshake” for breakfast smoothies with a handful of strawberries, frozen blueberries, and/or PB2 (defatted peanut butter powder from Amazon). I didn’t even notice when the month ended, but I definitely noticed I felt better. I kept going and am now 30 pounds lighter.
The amazing thing is never feeling hungry or deprived. How could I? Last night I had steak topped with blue cheese, nuked sweet potato, fresh asparagus, and a salad of spring greens with avocado, almonds, shallots, and fresh mandarin orange segments, all splashed with balsamic vinegar. That’s not deprivation by any stretch.
I did miss a crunch (other than almonds, which I eat a lot of). I picked up some papadum (made with lentil flour) for when I have to have something crisp and chip-like. I’ve also made crackers by mixing almond flour, cheddar cheese, some salt and chili powder chunks in the mini-prep, rolling out the dough super-thin on parchment, scoring it with a pizza cutter, and then baking it till is crisp — turns out just like Cheezits. I’ve also been experimenting with lentil and almond flour to make savory crackers and some fake graham crackers. The savory ones were awesome, the “graham crackers” not so much. I’ll take another shot at those.later.
I was worrying how I would get through Christmas. The thing I found most interesting — I didn’t want any of those goodies that I used to love, and I definitely didn’t want anything sweet. Part of my goal was to train my body & taste to not like sugar. Without it, I find that I have a lot more energy during the day and don’t get late-morning or afternoon “crashes<' and I sleep better at night.
Good luck John!