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FoodThoughts on diet & nutrition, exercise, and weight loss
I lost twenty pounds in the last two months in triathlon training. I attribute half the loss to exercise and half to nutrition. I completely lost the taste for chocolate, most sweets, beer, most beef, most high-fat foods, all fried foods, all fast foods, in general I have no desire for the main staples of the American diet.
I wanted to lose some weight to make the run easier. I didn't have a specific goal, but I thought twenty pounds was probably a good ultimate target. I sure didn't expect it to come off so easily. So what's the trick? The only way I can explain it is that I've shifted my perspective on food to make it a means to an end. If I start to eat something I think about how it will help get me closer to my fitness goals. And generally if it won't help me I don't have a problem not eating it, I even want to not eat it. It's all part of the plan of setting an aggressive fitness goal and then doing what it takes to get there.
I doubt this will work for ever, and I don't know if it would work for anyone else at all, but I'm throwing it out here in case someone else should come across it and find it useful.
Oklahoma Joe smoker moves on to new home
I've wanted a "real" smoker for several years, so when I found a genuine Oklahoma Joe smoker for sale a couple of years ago I jumped on it. But I only used it once, we don't eat a lot of meat, I'm trying to simplify, and I needed the money to buy triathlon gear. So I took some pictures with the idea of putting it on craigslist. I was talking about this at work and within ten minutes word spread and someone bought it. I will miss having it but I'll probably get more meat from it now that it's with a friend. These have a great reputation because they are so well built. This one is made from 1/4-inch thick pipe, so it won't lose heat to the wind. That's vital out here on the open prairie. It's a 16-inch, meaning it's made from a 16-inch diameter pipe. The firebox is 16 inches long, and the main cooking area is 32 inches long, giving 512 square inches of cook area on the stock expanded steel racks. Everything seals pretty well, and it has a mason jar lid tacked onto the bottom, so you can screw on a jar to catch your grease and drippings. It also has a propane connection for starting, if you're into that sort of thing. This smoker is heavy. Four feet of 16" x 1/4" pipe weights 168 pounds! Add the ends, legs, and shelves and it's over 200 pounds. More pictures here: http://sharpcraft.com/gallery/v/garden/smoker/ You can still buy one of these new. After going through a few owners they are for sale here as the "classic 16" backyard smoker": http://www.horizonbbqsmokersstore.com/servlet/the-373/16%22-Classic-Back...
Black bean mango penne pasta
Here is a picture of tonight's dinner. It is penne pasta with black beans and mango. I got the recipe from RecipeZaar with a few changes. I used a can of tomatoes with onions already in it, I couldn't find fresh basil leaves at the store, and my garlic press jammed on me so I ended up chopping it up instead. Believe it or not black beans and mangoes actually do go well with pasta, it was really tasty.
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