About Sugar

As many folks know, sugar has become something of a problematic commodity.

It's said that the American diet includes up to 22 teaspoons of sugar a day--more than the recommended amount, obviously.

But as John Oliver has pointed out in his expose-like segment on sugar, courtesy of his show "Last Week Tonight," the measurement of how much sugar is in an item is measured in grams, which is part of the metric system.

Unless you live in continental Europe, or are a scientist, it's not likely you'll understand how to convert metric measurement to Imperial (cups, tsps, Tbsp, etc).

But watching the segment, it got the scientist--and budding fitness geek--in me very, very curious. I can easily obtain a digital kitchen scale, and find out precisely just how many grams of sugar, give or take, are equal to 22 teaspoons. 

And once I find out, I'll report back. And if necessary, I will keep "bumping" this blog post or whatever to make sure that this post gets seen by as many people as possible.

...speaking of sugar...

You know how I've been keeping a food diary of what I eat and what kind of exercise I do, even if it's just a walk around the block--and the kinds of pics I used to inspire me?

Well, again, the pics I chose seem to be working their delicious magique de le Fantome, because yesterday I had an urge to go up and grab the last ice cream bar from the freezer. So I went upstairs to the freezer and grabbed it. But then the pics of Ramin as Erik, and Ramin (w/o Erik's costume on), shirtless, popped into my head. And I actually asked myself: Is this something Ramin would likely eat if he wants to keep that sexy physique? Is this something I can keep eating and still expect to look fit like that? 

The answer to both questions was definitely a big no. So I put it back.

I try to keep my soda consumption to something of a minimum, and I'm allowing myself one last Doctor Pepper before I do the sugar equivalent fact-finding mission.

That said, I'm cringing at the 40 g's of sugar present in a mere 12 oz can of Doc P.

I'm thinking of the fruits I can get during the winter that will be delicious to eat--and I'm thinking dates, definitely, though they are expensive. Dates are sensual as all-get-out, and they are so sexy-delicious! Pair them with other fruits like plums as well as nuts, and ohhh, yeaaahhh! ;-)

Yes, I am definitely thinking of a new mantra. Instead of "exercise is only for jocks," which Ramin Karimloo has completely busted, disproven, and out-and-out kicked to the curb (thank you, sweet Ramin!), my new mantra is the following:

"Good Nutrition is sexy, and Abundant Health is Pure Wealth."

Okay. So it's a tad "corny." And the last bit I rephrased from Dr. Bronner's Soap labels. But you know, I think I'd rather have a "mantra" like that be somewhat "corny" and be memorable enough to keep me on track (along with my fave pics to inspire me) than have a piece of disempowering, health-destroying BS running through my energy field.

Heck, just looking at Ramin-as-Erik feels good. For some reason, I feel this surge of beautiful, primal power running through me looking at him. I think, "Damn...so his face is messed up. So the hell what? The rest of him is so. Freaking. SEXY!!! What do I need to do to get my own body like that? Erik can be my personal trainer any day--music AND exercise-wise!" (and I admit I've been entertaining fantasies of doing a bit of belly dancing for him...hoo boy...I better stop--I've got Fiverr stuff to do!)

Okay, I'm going off on a tangent. I always do when it comes to him...but see, that's why I named my blog the way I did.

So, it will likely be another two weeks before I can post about the grams-to-teaspoons conversion, since I need to either find a formula online or a scale. I'd rather have the scale so I can really give portion control a go.

But then if I plan on exercising, portion control may not be a problem if I stick with lean, protein-dense foods.

Anyway, that's another subject for another time.

Until Later,
Kat ^.^

Stumbling Along

Well, so far, I seem to be stumbling along in my efforts to record what I eat and how much I exercise.

I sometimes remember, but then there are days I forget.

That being said, knowing what is in my journal so far makes me cringe.

Especially since I have both pics of Ramin AND Ramin-as-Erik in my front cover. (As I've said before: MAJOR YUM!)

Oh, hell, I might as well go up and grab it right now...it's become a bit like taking my medicine: if I remember my meds and don't take them, it always feels like there's something missing.

Which means having the pics of delicious Ramin Karimloo in my diary is WORKING!

There are certain details I wish to record, and I tried doing that all at once for a couple of days, but then it got to be too much. So I'm thinking: "Let me get into the habit of actually writing things down, and then let's keep track of the numbers, one nutrition fact at a time."

The thing I'm figuring out, though, is that when you're eating out, it's a bit difficult to keep track of what's in each dish. There's one dish at Perkins, for example, I know I'm not going to eat ever again--it's chock full of salt and grease and it really doesn't make me feel all that good.

Contrast that with the salmon dinners I like to make, with or without pasta: Serious, serious YUM! And serious, serious nutrition content!

Anyway, going to go plan a bunch of stuff, including blog post ideas. :-)

Later,
Kat ^.^