A failed week? Not really...

Part of why i track my weight in a spreadsheet is for when I have weeks like this.   Weight went up and down a few times.   I felt like I was failing this week.    But looking at the numbers, I still lost a pound this week.   Now that I weigh less, losing 1 lb a week is my new goal.     At some point, I"ll have to accept a half pound a week most likely.

Anyway, I've noticed that when I exercise harder than normal, in this case lots of xc skiing, I'll retain water as my body tries to heal up sore muscles.    Throws the daily weigh-ins off.    Could be the added exercise pushes me to overeat too.   Who knows?    Weirdly though, I didn't feel hungry this week, more like I was bloated/constipated.     TMI, I know, but I share that just to say I'm not ravenous or starving myself.

 

And....while I still ate healthy this week, I think my retrospective lesson is that I can't eat my black bean patty recipe AND this higher calorie red lentil curry every day and still lose weight.   The recipes are still very healthy, just heavier calorie-wise.   With the lentil curry I did air fry a bunch of cauliflower to lessen the caloric hit, but it has a full can of regular fat coconut milk in it.   I need to find an easier Indian, lower calorie lentil soup recipe i like.   I have a butternut squash based one, but it's a fair amount of work.   

I made my mexican lentil soup yesterday, and I think that helped me have a good weigh-in today.  https://www.cookingclassy.com/mexican-lentil-soup/#jump-to-recipe 

I need to make a video on my approach to soups like that.    The 2 main things I do is a bit of sauteeing to add flavor before putting everything in the instant pot to finish cooking, and the second is I'll reserve a little bit of the instant pot contents with a slotted spoon before pureeing the rest.    It makes a creamy soup that still has some textured bites, so you don't feel like you're eating nursing home gruel.

 Anyway, today is the Superbowl.   Patriots fans are so spoiled.  I'm going to splurge with home made sushi for lunch, and my 50% whole wheat sourdough pizza for dinner.   I've learned to only eat 2 slices out of 8 and to eat a big salad so I don't pig out.   It's actually satisfying and I avoid the blood sugar crash/nap I used to get after eating pizza.   We normally eat at old people/farmer hours for dinner (5p.m.) so if I have the salad then, I can hold off on the pizza until 6-6:30.

I did get a couple new toys for my xc skiing this week.   A boot and glove dryer and a winter camelbak/backpack.    

Boot and glove dryer, https://a.co/d/0gdEJGgP 

I like you can turn off the heater and just run air.    the heater and fan is in the center and it forces the air out of the 4 towers in the corners.       Skiing every day, I was wondering why my feet would get cold sometimes, and I realized it was because my ski boots hadn't dried out fully from the day before.   Problem solved!    Great for after snowblowing and drying my gear out. 

 

 Insulated CamelBak backpack   https://a.co/d/0dRh9B3P 

 It has a 2 liter water reservoir.   I've found I just wasn't drinking as much as I should while skiing.   I tried my regular camelbak that has an insulated sleeve, but if I didn't drink every 15 minutes it would freeze the line.    This bag works much better, and it has extra storage for day hikes/ski outings.   for food and extra hats/gloves/clothes.   The insulation might help keep the water cool on hot summer hikes; I'll find out this Summer

 

 

 I'd bought a two pack of these back ventilation things to help your back not get so sweaty.   It does fit with this camelbak, just barely.  Helps that i've lost weight i suppose.   Even in the cold temps i wore it.  my xc ski jacket has vents on the back.   You get sweaty skiing, and wet clothes get cold.   Need ventilation.

https://vauclusegear.com/products/ultralight-ventilation-backpack-frame 

 

xc skiing and snowshoeing

I lost 6.4lbs over January.    Took a rest day yesterday (Friday) because it was super cold, but today, I plan on going skiing later after it warms up.    It's -2F/-19C right now.     It'll be 20F/-6.5C by noon.

Nothing exciting ski-wise.   Just a 2 mile flat section of rail trail that doesn't get much use by hikers or dog people.

I bought new backcountry skis (Madshus, 62 Panoramas, steel edged), and I enjoyed them for a quick outing Thursday.   They're 20mm wider than my old off track skis, but still fast enough for ungroomed classic cross country stride skiing, but the extra width helps with trails with fresh powder or other people have walked or snowshoed on.   Helps me slide over the dips and divots.

In the nearby Carlstrom Forest woods down the street from7ujm my house, I've been using my 37" long Crescent Denali aluminum frame snowshoes.    I can walk a 2 mile loop in the woods.   It's not scenic.   No views really, but good to be under the trees.    The one view you get is of a lot of dead fall in a swamp/marsh area.

https://crescentmoonsnowshoes.com/mens-powder-ski-snowshoes-denali-37-white/ 

 

First couple days I was noticing nothing other than the occasional rabbit/squirrel tracks crossing my trails.    Thursday I finally noticed some dog tracks in my snowshoe trails from nearby houses.    Good to see, and it felt nice to pack down some trail to make some puppers happy. 

 

Last Winter I also bought a smaller pair of their much smaller and lighter foam snowshoes.   Those are super fun and great for big guys walking on packed trails, either from other walkers or snowmobiles.      Half the price, more than half the weight, and they have little screw heads in the bottom so you don't slip on ice.   Super fun.   But again, they'd be useless in fresh snow IMHO.   I'm going to see if I can get Jacqui to go snowshoe with me after it warms up to 32F/0C.   I'll have her try the fun ones below

https://crescentmoonsnowshoes.com/eva-foam-snowshoes/ 

 

I did have an exciting weigh-in this morning 235.9!!!!, but I bet it'll be higher tomorrow morning.  I retain water after intense exercise, and again I'm going skiing later today.   I do my weekly weigh-ins on Sundays, my normal rest day.   Oh well.   At least I got to see 235 something.   And during my weigh-ins I'm wearing 0.8lbs of clothing too.      

I took my rest day yesterday because it was too cold for skiing/snowshoeing yesterday, only a high of 12F/-11C .      I've notice that the day after a rest day, i get my best weigh-ins.   I think it's because my body stops retaining water to help repair muscle.

In good news, I don't really feel like i'm dieting anymore.    I feel more like I've figured out a new way to eat healthy but enjoy it.    Eating a diet with more fiber and nutrients, I actually feel less hungry than when I was overeating.   It's frikkin weird!    Like a diet induced way of going on Ozempic/GLP1 shots.   The only caveat is dining out.   I don't crave it anymore.  There really aren't great healthy, dining out options, which is fine.   There's always salad I guess, and I can get lentil/bean dishes at Indian/Mexican restaurants. Dining out is too expensive now anyway.    

At BJ's, I even bought unsalted, roasted peanuts, still in their shells yesterday....AND I LIKED THEM!!!!    I used to hate the unsalted nuts.    Hate is too strong.   I just found them super bland.     Now,  they're not so bad.   Probably because I rarely eat chips anymore (crisps for your Brits).      

Per a recent Viva Longevity episode, I'm now working on upping my nut and seed oil intake.   I know peanuts aren't technically nuts, but they're very similar.    I also eat almonds, walnuts, pecans daily.   I should increase my healthy oil intake some probably.   

The guy that hosts the Viva Longevity channel was a tech guy.   Made his money and got out, but I don't think he's rich enough to be obnoxiously out of touch.   A kindred spirit.   He made enough money to retire early and spend more time doing the stuff he loves.    

 Anyhoo, he's older than me (70 something), a couple inches taller, and vegan.   But his blood work was still not good.   He's had bad numbers his whole life.   Like ridiculously high.    He recently re-tweaked his diet to eat more seed oils and nuts and BAM, amazing numbers!    The exact opposite of what the current health fad people are saying sadly.

 Again he was VEGAN, but his overall cholesterol was still 280 mg/dL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg_oDjern20 

 Look at his numbers now

His oldest Triglyceride numbers were when he was down to 185lbs and doing Ironman Triathlons.   He stopped racing due to AFIB risks.    As he started to put on weight, he tried low fat, high carb diet for awhile and the triglycerides and cholesterol spiked.

In his video above he really does a wonderful job explaining why there's so much misinformation.    A lot of it is the same old story the USA has been cursed with,  "Grifters grifting".    Glorified carpet baggers.        Sometimes it's a doctor meaning well but just not having the background in causal statistics to know better, but oftentimes, it's just a photogenic, extroverted doctor/health expert looking to make a buck.

 People get hurt and taken for a ride.     And then we all sit back and wonder why Trump supporters don't trust the experts.    THIS IS WHY!!!!

 Maybe as AI improves, we'll be able to use AI to filter through the mess.    But for now, AI doesn't really have true intelligence yet.    It's insanely good pattern recognition (better and far faster than human abilities), and it will regurgitate answers it finds most often.    

 So why would i put so much trust into a single youtube channel?    He doesn't make money on it.  He's not pushing books, he's not selling supplements or protein powder.   He does it because he nerds out on it.   He's retired, it's not even his job.    Any money made, goes back into the channel's production costs.    Also, if you open the description on his videos, it's all linked to the books and research he uses.

The problem is his channel isn't filled with attractive fit people and he's not paying for bots to push his content.    I fear it'll never break through, but I'm thankful to have found it.    Even if at times it feels like it's just me.