Rozey Thorn Trees

 In the autobiography Finding Ultra , Rich Roll recounts how large and unfinished he was at 208 lbs. Wow! Initially, I hadn’t started my first diet and exercise program until I had reached 225 lbs many years ago. At the time, I was so embarrassed that I had let myself go that much. It was summer vacation and I was motivated! And my weight dropped to 199 lbs. Years later, I reached 255 lbs. I’m so grateful that my WFPB diet has helped me to drop so many pounds in a short two months. I’m nearly back to 225! Then into 208 lbs!

We have our big 4-day family reunion this week! I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone come together again.  I set up my checklist this morning to stay under 2,500 calories each day this week, to eat WFPB SOS-Free each day with the exception of catered vegan meals at the reunion.  I’m looking forward to it!

I surprised myself with a delicious soupy salad dinner bowl that I threw together. I think the secret ingredient was just the right amount of chopped habanero pepper. It’s an ugly hodgepodge meal, but amazing (to me)! (Yes, just two strawberries seem arbitrary. It was. But worth it! The corn on the cob was air fried at 400 degrees for 7 minutes, then cut off the cob and tossed into my salad mix. Also, the miso paste was mixed with a cup of hot water then added to my salad to make it a soupy-salad.)  By the way, I think I’m ready to throw away my XXL T-shirts and khaki trousers. I feel like a clown wearing them. I’ll at least take a picture with them on for the record. Gregg says to keep at least one pair to show people what I used to wear.  I bought new Large-sized T-shirts (I took a chance and skipped the XL size!). One brand fit me just right; another brand was a snug fit; I look forward to wearing them some day soon!  Bonus Meal of the Day Recipe for my PB2 Performance Protein Shake

 I ate well today. I tried raw mushrooms (mini bella) in my salad for the first time since I began my diet. I prefer them cooked. Next time I’ll try air frying instead. I bought an eggplant for the first time in decades. I’ll have to look up want to do with it. Also, I really enjoyed eating sweet medjool dates covered in coconuts! I also bought dried figs imported from Turkey that I look forward to snacking on.  I started reading Ultra yesterday. It’s really good. I motivated me to pick up my jogging pace to beat my time

 I dropped to 227.2 this morning after getting stuck between 228 and 230 for a few days. I’m getting very close to my next two significant milestones of 225 and 223. It’s always nice to pass old weight scale numbers (on the way down this time).

 Yesterday, the library took back my audiobook loan of How Not to Die. I was disappointed, but I found a very good, though short, audiobook that I enjoyed and recommend: Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual by journalist Michael Pollan. It’s really short at 1 hr 20 min including the introduction. I heard it in a day. Have you listened to that one? It’s a collection of sagely truisms about food and health that Pollan collected from regular folks who had inherited it from their parents, grandparents, and community. Highly recommend.

 My wife reactivated our lapsed Y membership today. We haven’t been there since the COVID Lockdown in the spring of 2020. Four years later we’re very ready to have access to the pool this hot June. My favorite perk is the hot tub after a workout with weights and treadmill. Laura prefers a good swim. I also made time to play on the PlayStation with my kids. I see they have added a pickleball court and new exercise equipment. I might check a trainer this time around.  Also, my new digital food scale arrived!

 My new weighted vest came in yesterday! I have ten 5 lb weights that fit into the vest. Very heavy! I wore 40 lbs of weight today while I mowed grass. It definitely worked me out! I checked my heart rate a number of times to be sure I’m being safe in this high heat. If works great! This got me thinking more about my pulse. I haven’t checked in a long while. It’s looking good!

  My Apple Health app quotes the Mayo Clinic regarding Sodium: “Sodium helps maintain the right balance of fluids in your body, helps transmit nerve impulses, and influences muscle contraction and relaxation. Your kidneys naturally balance the amount of sodium stored in your body to maintain optimal health. When your body sodium is low, your kidneys hold on to sodium. When body sodium is high, your kidneys excrete the excess in urine. Most adults consume much more sodium than is needed. It's found in many prepared and processed foods, including prepared dinners, cold cuts and bacon, soups, condiments, and fast foods. In addition, many recipes call for salt, and many people also salt their food at the table.” I’ve worrying about sodium the past couple of days because the temperature has been in the high 80s and 90s and I’ve sweating profusely working outdoors.  I checked with ChatGPT about recommended sources of sodium for someone on a WFPB SOS-free diet. Usually people get their s