i'm claiming it...

I've been weighing in under 200 for over a week, so now I feel comfortable declaring permanent residency in Onederland (I don't love that phrase in general, but it fits the circumstance).

I went shopping yesterday and am also claiming residency in the regular size women's clothing department.  I didn't try on pants, but all of the tops that I bought were size L (and even one M)!!!  I also can't wear any of my 16W pants anymore--too big!

On a whim, I dug into my closet archives and tried on the stack of size 14 pants that I've been saving since 2007.  Every single pair zipped and buttoned!!--although, the eyes of the world will thank me if I lose another 10-15 lbs before wearing any of them in public. ;)

I am having blood drawn on Monday in preparation for my checkup with Dr. Steinburg on Feb. 4.  He will be checking all of my vitamin levels, cholesterol, etc.  I will admit that I haven't been taking all of my vitamins lately AND I haven't been tracking my food so I have no idea how I'm doing on nutrition & calories.  Fingers crossed!

Cheers!

1-month behind schedule, but...

199.2 !!!

2013 Unprocessed

In keeping with our blogging community tradition, I have chosen a word for the new year...

UNPROCESSED

The theory behing living an unprocessed life (as it relates to food) is to eat food that is as close to it's natural state as possible.  It's not about being "good" 100% of the time and there is no such thing as "failure."  It's really about making the best choice available at the time.  When making decisions about what is and isn't considered unprocessed, I will be using The Kitchen Test devised by Andrew Wilder over at Eating Rules.

Unprocessed food is any food that could be made by a person with reasonable skill in a home kitchen with whole-food ingredients.

I call it “The Kitchen Test.” If you pick up something with a label (if it doesn’t have a label, it’s probably unprocessed), and find an ingredient you’d never use in your kitchen and couldn’t possibly make yourself from the whole form, it’s processed.

It doesn’t mean you actually have to make it yourself, it just means that for it to be considered “unprocessed” that you could, in theory, do so.

I have been leaning toward this type of eating and cooking for many years now and was thrilled to find the Eating Rules site that so closely mimics my own views on food and eating.   

When I cleaned out my pantry last week, I was shocked at how much processed food I was keeping around...sugar, white flour, canned soups (loaded with preservatives), etc.  Once I started really examining the labels, I was again surprised to discover the less-than-natural ingredients in things like a can of Chiles en Adobo (I have since found an acceptable substitute at Whole Foods) and even my sliced water chestnuts.

If you are interested in a lengthy & detailed explanation, you can find it here.