I got your protein right here
The other day, someone figured out that I was a vegetarian, and so of course asked me where I got my protein. I suppose, of the three responses everyone has to a vegetarian, asking where I get my protein is better than whimsically enthusing over how much they love meat and could not live without it. Or tell me about that one time they met a vegan who didn’t like their food choices and they’re still angry. That one is always awkward.
And after 19 years of vegetarianism, you’d think I would be able to just accept these questions, but no. They still annoy. I do consider the person: this might be his or her first brush with it and I try hard to make it a positive one. But inside my eyes are rolling hard.
More than anything, the protein question has made me believe that Americans are obsessed with protein. Like its not a macronutrient that’s found in almost all natural foods. Hell, calorie for calorie, lettuce has more protein than steak. People act like it’s a trace nutrient like B-12 or Vitamin D that often needs to be supplemented because otherwise they would be deficient. It’s why studies touting Atkins get so much more play in the media. Rather than studies that say we get way too much protein as it is and are pretty unhealthy for it.
I’ve seen protein deficiency, like the real thing, in malnourished children, and it’s no picnic. But no one has that here, even little, old, almost-vegan me. I don’t think I’m going to change anyone’s mindset anytime soon about this, but you know, there are other kinds of macronutrients. Like carbohydrates, which fuel brains and muscles, and fats, which transport hormones, store vitamins, and protect nerves. But again, those things are in everything, even vegetables. And those are apparently everywhere while protein is a rarity, like platinum. Also, I know he memo says that carbs are evil, but how can the stuff that runs your brain be that bad?
Maybe I should print up cards to hand out when I get asked this? But nicer ones.
Weight Loss Contest: The home stretch
At the weigh-in on Tuesday, the scale said that I lost 13 pounds. Which, after 7 weeks, averages to about less than two pounds lost per week. Since my contest is 8 weeks, that means that I have one week to go before this contest is over. I am winning at 9.1% of weight lost vs the other guy at 7.8%. I am a bit concerned about winning the contest that I conceived and ran, but not too much.
While I still have 8 pounds to go before I hit all my goals, I am ready for this to be over. It definitely had its highs and lows. First, I didn’t anticipate how much more competitive it would be than other times I’ve done it. I liked the trash-talking, which was motivating. The outright cheating and policing people, as well as herding my (delightful) coworkers was not. I just want to work a little bit without the extracurriculars for now, and can’t wait to get back to that.
But lately, I have been getting some awesome feedback. People have regularly been coming up to me and either saying that they want to be added to the list the next time we do this. People not in my office are starting their own contests, both within the company and without. And I think it’s a credit to what I like to think is my (relatively) smooth handling of it. Could I have done some things better? A million times yes! Overall though, I am now on the side that maybe this was successful rather than the abject failure I was worried about two weeks ago.
I’m proud of my coworkers and this has really cemented how much I really like them. Added bonus: I now fit into all my suits!
This month on GeekSpeak
It’s the season of Snow White and I have a review of a retelling it, as well as a whole treatise (it’s more like a treatise than a review).
Not since Naomi Wolf’s “The Beauty Myth” has such a compelling argument been made that basing a woman’s worth on her physical attractiveness is incredibly destructive. From the beginning of the book, we see the reinforcement of the Queen’s (and Snow’s) goodness reflected in the eyes of men around them. The Queen’s abusive father hated her and bullied her with taunts that she was an ugly hag and therefore unlovable. The king never compliments her on her thoughtfulness and kindness. It’s always how beautiful she is. Snow White isn’t a bright child full of empathy, she’s a beautiful little girl with perfect white skin (another aspect of this book I found disturbing). In this world, being beautiful equates to being loved. Or worse, being worthy of love. Which is interesting, because that is a bit of a running theme in Disney. Ugly characters are evil, good ones are beautiful. This book draws a direct line to this philosophy, creating a twisted and wicked queen. Then it takes that line and beats you over the head with it.
One thing that I’ve always wondered about Disney is, why don’t they have a line of Wicked Queen line of merchandise and apparel for kids like I was? The ones that lived Daria in high school? I would have made the best damn Maleficent you’ve ever seen. It would also cater to all those goth kids who get sick of pastel, sparkly dresses. I know I could have rocked it so hard.
Weight Loss Contest Week 6
Well, apparently, there was no need to fear! I won this past weigh-in by a full percentage point. Something in my body gave way and I started losing again. I’m down about 10 pounds since I began this thing, and so I’m halfway to my ultimate goal.
My immediate goal was met this morning when I tried in the pants of my smallest suit… and they fit! I was so pleased, I did the Dance of Weight Loss Happiness. I now fit into all the suits!
This presents me with a little bit of a conundrum. If I lose another 10, will I not be able to fit into my suits again — this time because I am so small? I suppose it’s a nicer problem to have.
I still don’t think I’m going to win the contest. The guy behind me started at over 200lbs, and is now going on a juice fast. But I’m going to keep trying. This feels good.
Potluck Rules
I was just at a potluck brunch over the weekend that was quite a bit of fun. I met some fantastic women and Facebook-friended one so far. As far as my mission this year to make more friends, this really helped it pay off.
There are a couple of rules to potlucks though that I think everyone should follow. If you ever catch yourself organizing one, definitely do the following, it can make your final table much more interesting:
1. Organize what everyone is bringing, to keep people from bringing the same thing. If two people bring a dozen muffins for eight people, everyone will be muffined-out.
2. Tell people not to bring drinks or desserts. Everyone wants to be the person to bring the dessert or the soda. Someone will ignore you completely and bring them anyway, so you don’t have to worry about not having any. But what you will have is an actual dinner and not just a bunch of dessert.
3. Do not worry about having enough food. If you ask people to cook for four, they’ll generally cook for more than that. I’ve never been to a potluck where there wasn’t a massive amount of food left over, even if 50 people were there and some brought nothing. The trick is to minimize, not maximize.
4. Some people won’t bring anything. It might be because they are a mooch, or perhaps they can’t boil water. If they come empty-handed, they need to contribute something. Whether it’s a story, help at the end cleaning up for those that cooked, or sent out for party favors. It keeps moochers from mooching and helps those who can’t cook calm.
These are just simple steps people can take to avoid potluck snafus and have a great party.
Weight Loss Contest Week 5
This past week was also a wash. A half of a pound loss and I’m at a loss too. I’m planning on some cardio tomorrow but I have niggling doubts in the back of my mind. Every time I exercise like this, many times a week, I never seem to lose. It’s always after I stop and just diet that the weight falls off.
It could be the type of exercise too. Conventional wisdom says that lots of cardio helps drop the weight. But conventional wisdom also said a high protein diet would do the same, when the opposite is true and I just needed more veggies. Maybe what I need is something like Pilates, with some weight training thrown in for bone health. It would be a relief – I hate cardio with a passion. I would rather do anything than ride a stationary bike or run on a treadmill.
I was finding that my approach was a little disordered this past week, and all for nothing. So, I’m staying on plan but not religiously tracking calories. Hopefully I’ll do better at the weigh on this coming Tuesday.