Primal Update

Let the record show that I have dropped over one percent of my total body fat percentage in six weeks.

GO ME!

Gone Primal

So I recently (i.e. about a month ago) found myself gazing down upon a friend's unread copy of The Primal Blueprint. (Side note: it remains to this day, to the best of my knowledge, unread by said friend...to losely quote his reasoning, "If I read it then I know and have no excuses." ha!). I have to admit it was a very interesting and informative read. So the general jist according to the author, Mark Sisson, is that we should eat and live more like our primal ancestors. So, eat and play like a caveman, not work and die like a cubicle-bound insurance claims representative. It's actually quite difficult to fully encapsulate Sisson's principles in a single sentence but the idea is that modern culture puts too much emphasis on eating processed carbs and grains and killing ourselves at the gym, with the result being...well, no long-term positive result. Instead a vicious cycle develops in which we gain and lose weight and in the process set ourselves up for diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and a long list of other ailments which are now inflicting humans more than every before. So The Primal Blueprint discusses how a primal existence is healthier and more enjoyable, and more true to our evolutionary development. To sum it up: turn off the television, put down that cupcake, grab a leg o' lamb and go play Frisbee with your dog. Ok, that's probably an oversimplification, but if you want a more technical explanation...buy the damn book.

Anyway, I've been "primal" for about 30 days now. I actually started primal living the day I cracked the book open and read Sisson's quick list of the primal living principles. And despite my above mentioned friend's criticism that perhaps I should read the book in its entirity before diving in head first, I think it actually gave me an advantage. First, it was so cool to notice some change in my body's reaction to this new lifestyle and then read that exact change in the book the following day or so. For example, I noticed around day 8-10 that I no longer required my usual 5-6 daily feedings and that my overall need to feed had dropped significantly; I then read something to that same effect a day or so later. Second, slowly absorbing the information in the book and applying the neccessary change to my life was easier in piecemeal, opposed to one drastic and cold-turkey stop to my previous dietary and exercise habits.

So, a month in and the results are as follows: can eat fewer meals, can actually skip a meal or two and be fine (those of you who know my previous anxiety and physical reaction to skipping a meal will understand the significance this holds for me), a steady supply of energy throughout the day that is high in the morning and slowly dwindles til its bedtime, and a stack of jeans that are a little too loose now. I pretty much have the dietary changes down, but finding the time to include fun and a daily nap in my busy schedule is a little more challenging. But I'm happy to report that I survived the 30-day Primal challenge (which is try it out for a month and see how it impacts your life). It isn't even necessary to buy the book to get started, Sisson's blog, www.marksdailyapple.com has all the information needed to successfully go full on Primal.

Trust Me...I Meant Two Years!

(Scene: Jen is sitting on the couch in dimly lit living room with what appears to be a crossword puzzle book and a pencil, sitting opposite is recently arrived guests Gabe and Emilie).

Gabe: (said with a smug intent) So...what happened to "I'm not gonna read ANYTHING for two years, not even a restaurant menu?" Looks like you're messing with words to me.

Jen: (flashes up cover of book in hand with an equal amount of smug intent) Sudoku, baby, yeah! BAM!

Emilie: (giggles amusingly).

Distractions Needed

So, the job hunt begins. And while I battle it out with who knows how many other recent graduates and stress over that first dreaded student loan bill, I'm trying to find things to fill out my days. Inexpensive things to fill out my days. I think "inexpensive" is a pertinent qualifier, because while it would be nice to rebuild my bike or attempt a radio satellite...I have to remember that my dwindling savings limits my options. (Side note: the rebuilding of the Purple Trail Eater is on hiatus until such time as gainful employment has been successful). The same financial worries have also forced me to push back plans of giving mountain bike camping a valid effort...who knew panniers could be so damn expensive. And while I'm still trying to think up some clever and cheap ways to rig my bike down with the bare bones gear for outdoor survival, I think I could reasonably keep myself happy and occupied with just on-foot exploration and day trips to the closest mountain bike trails/parks.

The important goal here is not let myself get dragged down by the seemingly fruitless job search and the grey, dreariness of winter. Both which can lead to muscle loss, brain apathy, and mid-section increases. I'm doing pretty darn good at keeping the motorcycle on the road during the cold weather season, but I have my riding partners to partly praise for that. But it's the activities that require more independence and long, cold nights alone in a tent out in the middle of nowhere that are lacking at the moment. My gear for such endeavors is mostly set; I'm lacking a couple of items which would make it easier but not neccesary to actually hitting the trail. And while company would be great, the majority of my friends have jobs and can't just escape for an overnight backpacking trip. Which really leaves only two option. Either I commit to a plan and just do it...or sit at home and daydream about it.

On a similar note I've been a mostly inactive member of Nashville's hiking meetup group for over a year now. In that time I've managed to make it to only one planned event. Now might be a good time to get out of lurk mode on the website and actually get out there and meet new people. As an added bonus, I may actually meet a similiarly unemployed recent graduate looking to distract him/herself from the realities of life with hiking/backpacking/camping activities. My impecunious misery would love company. :)

The Strip Down

I've decided to rebuild The Purple Trail Eater -- that heavy monstrosity of a bike that I rode for the Dirt, Guts, and Donuts race. I mean, I gotta give the bike props. For a P.O.S. that was likely manufactured by child labor in a developing nation, assembled by a minimum wage earning high school student, ridden for a few years, bought at a yard sale to be refurbished by a guy that earns his living doing such things as refurbing Walmart bikes, and bought by yours truly who got a crazy notion one day that she should start cycling the twelve odd miles to campus...it held up like a champ in the 8ish miles of DG&D. Of course, I suspect this is because the bike is composed of metals once used in Cold War era Soviet tanks. Anyway, another crazy notion hit me tonight. I want to put new life into this bike. The initial plan: strip the bike down to the frame and rebuild it into a single or fixed gear (to be determined) mountain bike. This is also a solo project with minimal expert (read: professional) or technical (read: manly) help.

Step one, the strip down, was completed tonight. I learned a lot of things tonight...mostly about using tools whose names do not exist in my vocabulary (but have made up my own names...kudos to anyone who can give the real name to the "shiny metal locking clamp thingy" and "the clicky wrench"). I did have to dig into my limited reserve of technical assistance for brute strength tasks like cutting the brake and shifter cables and removing the crank turned out to be a two person job. But 99% of the strip down was completed sans help.

And here is all that remains of the Purple Trail Eater.

I haven't decided whether to keep the purple or do a repaint, I'm kinda digging the idea of some WWII mat Jeep green, complete with white star. But ignoring the aesthetics for the moment I think the first task is a new crank. It was the last thing to come off, so seems right that it should be the first to go back on. Lucky for me Nashville has a bike shop that sells slighty used and lightly abused parts, and I imagine that will be my first shop stop. Steve pointed out a few obstacles which may kill this project. He thinks there is a possibility that the frame may have proprietary (that's the word he used, but I prefer non-standard) sizes which may make shopping for cranks and downtubes an impossibility. But we'll just have to wait and see.

Stage 1, The Strip Down: Complete

Stage 2, The Crank: Standby

The Church's Chicken Burn-Off Ride

I had lofty and some-what healthy plans for lunch today. A homemade...well, okay...workmade toasted turkey and Swiss sub complete with pine nut hummus. Yums. But as I was prepping my sandwich materials I noticed that my sub bread had sprouted little fuzzy green dots.../sigh. So, in a moment of weakness I threw my debit card into the hands of today's lunch lackey and she came back with a Church's chicken tender meal, mashed potatoes with gravy, and a biscuit (which I'm pretty sure was deep friend in butter and then doused with honey), which came to a whopping 660 calories. Okay, I'll admit, that's not really that bad...but it was deep fried and had something like 100,000 mg of sodium (I'm rounding up). So, with the weather being fairly good today, I left work an hour early and went for a quick 10 mile jaunt on my road bike, burning approximately 492 of those 660 calories off.

Stupid green fuzzy dots. Ruins everything it does.

Saint Stephen the Confessor

With nearly a week gone by with my new communications device, I'm proud to announce that it is no longer winning the struggle between human and machine. Up until Wednesday I'd seriously thought that I was witnessing the dawn of a robot uprising. I would open up an app only to not be able to get the app to disappear (cue movie clip: Adam Sandler yelling at the golf ball, "Why don't you go to your home?!?!?! Don't you like your home?!?!?!?!). No, joke, all day Tuesday I could not get the alarm icon to disappear off the main screen. I'd press my finger onto the icon, flick it off to the left...the icon would go zooting off in the correct direction...but alas, it wouldn't disappear into the menu. /sigh But, by Wednesday, I'd figured out all the tricks to making and moving my app icons.

So, with much elation, I'm proud to announce that I like my new cell phone and I am keeping it. And this is where the title of this post becomes relevant. I told Steve this about two hours ago, and without putting any effort into hiding his disappointment, his body sags and says, "Awwww...but I was hoping you'd hate it so much that you'd give it to me!"

....crickets....

This becomes all the more entertaining considering HE TRICKED ME INTO GETTING THE PHONE! (see previous post) This could have easily been solved with him buying the new phone I was way overdue for, stuck his SIM card in it instead, and just sunk extra cash into expanding the memory on my SLVR. But ya know, this is kinda like that episode of the Simpsons where Homer buys Marge a bowling ball for her birthday with the expectation that she won't want it and will just give it to him instead...but much to his dismay she takes up bowling. Yeah, well,...Steve, guess what...I just took up Samsung Sillouetting....or...something.