to those of you in the know, i've been a lacto-ovo vegetarian since i was 12 years old. it is with great shyness that i inform you of my decision to expand my options and go pesco-vegetarian. the term refers to a "vegetarian who eats fish", which seems somewhat contradictory but alas, it is what it is.
i'm doing this mainly for health reasons. it's taken me a long time to understand that a healthy meal should be built on the basis of protein. for years i thought a plate of whole wheat pasta with a side of broccoli was good for me. now i see that this meal is completely void of protein, the most important part of an athlete's diet.
since i've been trying to lose fat, i've been reading up on some basic nutrition and trying to get a feel for what my diet should consist of. i came to the conclusion that, when i'm making a meal, i must first pick a source of protein, then design the rest of the meal around it. instead of 2 cups of pasta and veggies, i should eat tofu with 1/2 cup of pasta and veggies or a salad. tofu smoothies, seitan, protein shakes, yogurt... this has been my diet for the past few weeks. since i started eating high protein, the biggest change is that i don't "crash" like i used to after a long workout. this is huge; those crashes cost me heaps of productivity time. so i'm convinced to keep with it.
but let's face it, tofu and protein shakes can only go so far. aside from getting boring, soy protein doesn't live up to its meaty counterparts. fish presents me with an opportunity to get some good stuff in my diet like complete protein and omega-3 fatty acids. It's been shown that the incorporation of fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids into an energy-restricted, fat-reduced diet has significant beneficial effects on glucose, insulin, and lipid metabolism:
[Researchers] discovered that these [essential fatty acid's], particularly those of the omega-3 family, play essential roles in the maintenance of energy balance and glucose metabolism. In particular, they observed a phenomenon known as ‘fuel partitioning’, whereby dietary EFAs were able to direct glucose (from digested carbohydrates) towards glycogen storage while at the same time directing other fatty acids in the body away from triglyceride synthesis (ie fat storage) and towards fatty acid oxidation! In addition, these studies suggested that omega-3 fatty acids have the unique ability to enhance thermogenesis (the burning of excess fat to produce heat), thereby reducing the efficiency of body fat deposition(2-7). In simple terms, this fuel partitioning phenomenon appears to conserve carbohydrate while simultaneously shedding fat – exactly what most athletes would give their right arm for!
[from Peak Peformance]
the first fish-steak i ate was pesto grilled salmon. it was actually good and i was relieved to not be grossed out by the experience. i must have taken to fish quite well, because i massively pigged out last night at Kenichi, a sushi restaurant here in Austin (the outing had little to do with health and fitness, as the empty sake bomb glasses can attest to). the goal for this week is to learn how to cook fish in my own kitchen.
i got some junk mail this week that was actually somewhat interesting. it was a subscription "invitation" from the Nutrition Action Health Letter. i'm all for people naming names and dispelling nutrition myths. the envelope came with a list of samples of corporate crap food, for instance:
- the Starbucks Venti Mocha Coconut Frappucino Blended Coffee with whipped cream has 710 calories and 26 grams of fat (19 of them saturated). "to your heart, it's like drinking two McDonald's Quarter Pounders"
- Chex Milk'n Cereal Bars are made of mostly sugar, nonfat milk, lactose, palm kernel oil, and other additives. it's so-called "nutrition" comes from the vitamins and minerals that are added to these "glorified Rice Krispies Treats".
- half a can of Campbell's red-and-white-label condensed soups contains about half of a person's daily quota of salt.
On the other side of the pamphlet was a list of "Ten Super Foods You Should Eat". Included on the list was Kellogg's All-Bran Original or Post 100% Bran. So then I started wondering if this newsletter was funded by big bad companies trying to slam other companies - not a horrible thing, but I'm sure Kellogg's and Post are just as guilty as General Mills (maker of Chex) of filling kids with sugar-laden cereals.
The newsletter is published by the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest. With Tim's help, we found their website:
CSPI is primarily funded by the 800,000 subscribers to its Nutrition Action Healthletter and individual donors. Private foundation grants make up approximately 5% to 10% of CSPI's annual revenue of $15 million. Nutrition Action Healthletter accepts no advertising, and CSPI accepts no corporate or government grants.
Further more, the NAH's website is currently blasting Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Blueberry Yogurt Bars, so perhaps I was a little quick to judge NAH for corporate bias.
Could these be the good guys?
Here's something potentially even more interesting: CSPIScam, propaganda from The Center for Consumer Freedom, "a coalition of concerned individuals and businesses working together to promote personal responsibility and protect a full menu of consumer choices."
Read the site and feel the hate.
Can you guess where they get their funding?
Excuse me, are we filming?
Because I feel like I'm in a commercial..
...the kind that's usually about toaster treats or instant coffee: a fast paced morning, trying to get the kids to school on time, and barely a moment to breath. And then I take a bite into my toaster strudel and suddenly the world seems to slow to a lull, and a warm smile of contentment creeps on my face.
Only this isn't about a bullshit toaster strudel, no, this about a sandwich I just ate. It goes like this, in the following order:
1 slice of toasted nine grain bread.
Spinach and artichoke hummus.
Shredded carrots.
2 thin slices of tomato.
A modest helping of sliced red onion.
1 very thin slice of smoked provolone cheese.
sprouts
lettuce
and 1 more slice of toasted nine grain bread.
Absolutely amazing. When I took my first bite, I actually furrowed my eyebrows in surprise at how tasty this was.
I love food.
