Satisfaction is Good For You! Go Nuts!

I heard on NPR's All Things Considered today that the reason nuts are associated, perhaps surprisingly, with weight loss, in spite of their high fat content, is because they are so very satisfying. Nuts offer a more lasting satisfaction than say, potatoes. Potatoes, it was shown, (in this recent study just published in the New England Journal of Medicine), are the worst culprit for weight gain. 

Paleo Diet: Please Pass the Mammoth Steaks

Movie Poster, One Million Years B.C. 1966

The "Paleo Diet" way of eating takes its cues from our paleolithic, pre-agricultural past. Modeled on a hunter-gatherer diet, basically it avoids grains, dairy, processed foods, and sugar, focusing on fruit, vegetables and meat. As a failed vegan with a minor degree in anthropology this does appeal to my imagination. "Yeah, Pass the Mammoth Steaks!" In fact a number of my friends have improved their health by avoiding gluten and dairy. The wisdom of avoiding highly processed and sugary foods almost goes without saying.

But its not just a food philosophy. Check out this Paleo style workout. I admit it hurts my ankles just to watch this but I do appreciate the attitude. Walking barefoot in sand or swimming in a forest pond might be a good start.

Link to: Hunt, Gather, Love
Link to: Living Paleo
Link to: Everyday Paleo
Link to: MovNat: Explore Your True Nature

"There is no dogma in the dance" Gabrielle Roth

Today I'm getting in the groove with Gabrielle Roth and the Five Rhythms. This is one of my favorite dance videos because it's so adaptable. It appeals to my spirit even if my body is reluctant. And it always feels good. "Movement is my medicine, my meditation, my metaphor and my method, a living language we can rely upon to tell us the truth about who we are, who we are with and where we are going. There is no dogma in the dance."

One Year Later...

It’s been a whole year since my last entry on this blog. I just had an annual Dr. checkup and since last year at this time I lost one pound. Ohhhhh Kay.... well, at least I didn’t gain weight but basically nothing much has changed. I ran off the rails with the old Mayo Clinic weight-loss plan. That was discouraging. I also was putting more and more time into my Art Blog, Blackfish Art. But now, I’m back.

Getting back to this blog was already on my mind when a friend enlisted me as a fitness buddy. She is in better shape than I am and I’m going to have to work to keep up with her but bless her and her patience. We’ll call her Miss S. Right now we have committed to three walks a week.

 Woman Eating an Apple, Fernando Botero, Oil on canvas 

There are plenty of reasons I want to lose weight, health and vitality being first on the list. But cleaning my closet the other day reminded me that I have some dresses I would very much like to wear…