Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Programming Note

I've been getting a lot of grief for my blog, and it's unfortunately being used against me in a negative way to portray that I am doing something bad in my life.

I admit that I am overweight and it's something that I've struggled with for time, and something that I'm working on. I am not perfect, nor is anyone else (we're human, right?). However, I am attempting to make a difference with this issue of weight, and am consciously exercising and eating right.

Well, then begs the question, how can you eat out and have a food blog if you are attempting to be healthy?

I can't eat out every meal, every day. If I did, I would be broke. $19.19/hour stretches very thin over a 2 week period, and my money primarily goes to rent, utilities, parking, and miscellaneous other fees (groceries, coffee, etc). So, when I do go out to eat (once or twice a week, Fridays usually Broad Street Bagel for lunch, and sushi on the weekends), I try and make it healthy.

Most of the pictures/reviews I do are from meals over a period of weeks. They are not meals in successions, often times they are weeks apart. I get busy to post stuff, so unfortunately the blog goes on the back burner.

My daily routine is pretty concise, and I don't really stray outside of it because I can't afford to:

Breakfast:
-oatmeal (usually, Kashi instant oatmeal, or Quaker low sugar or weight control). I can make this in the office from the hot water tap, so it is easy. On the weekends, I like to make vegetable omelets, or I will have Kashi Heart to Heart cereal.

Lunch:
-some weeks, I will pack 4 ounces of fish (about the size of my fist) that I will bake in the oven with pepper and lemon, or I will steam on the pan along with brown rice or vegetables. With the fish, I will have a cup of vegetables and 1/4 cup cooked brown rice.

-some weeks, I will pack tofu, baked plain, 1/4 cup brown rice, and 1 cup vegetables. I may add barbecue sauce for flavor.

-some weeks, I will buy flat outs (100 calorie wraps), add hummus, vegetables, and Boar's head low sodium turkey.

To these meals, I add a container of yogurt (sometimes the 60 calorie container of dannon light n fit, others the Fage greek yogurt and honey), a bag of baby carrots, or sometimes baked lays if I'm in the mood.

Afternoon snack:
-i try and pack a berry assortment (strawberries/blueberries), or I will have a Clif bar (the peanut butter pretzel). This will give me enough fuel to work out.

Work out:
-this is very new to me. I never played sports competitively as a child so did not understand the need for fitness. Luckily, I work in a very fitness conscious environment. I have gotten into group fitness classes (my gym has classes in the Les Mills program, and I've really enjoyed Body Pump, Spinning, and am now liking a class called Body Attack). If I don't do a group fitness class, I try and do 40 minutes on the elliptical, go on a bike ride, or walk 4 times around Goodale park.

Dinner:

-dinner is usually a repeat of lunch. I cook on Sundays so I will have enough until Friday. Sometimes I have food that my parents have made. Sometimes I get invited to dinner with friends. Sometimes I eat cereal.

I started this blog as a creative outlet. I really like writing, and I like to eat, and people say that I've given good reviews on places. I was even featured in the Columbus Dispatch because of it. But now, I've received so much turmoil about it, I feel like I am distributing pornography instead of showing my friends some cool new places to try. It really hurts and has caused me a lot of stress, and I really don't appreciate it as this was started with the premise of being something fun for me, not "disgusting," "nauseating," "poisonous," and "revolting." I wish people would ask the facts about my eating habits before making the assumption that I am a terrible eater. I eat very well basically every meal, every day, every week, and I feel that treating myself to lunch with a friend, or dinner with former colleagues isn't going to throw me off course.

I haven't decided whether I will keep posting or not, because I really can't deal with the stress that this is now causing. But, to all of the doubters: I have lost 10 pounds since April, and I hope to continue down the same track.

4 comments:

  1. Keep posting!! People are being ridiculous. You are an adult, and you heat healthy 90% of the time. Not to mention these are shared meals usually and just because you post a photo of food doesn't mean you ate everything on the plate in one sitting. Everything in moderation!!

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  2. Please keep posing! Who cares how you eat, I read your blog to learn about the great restaurants this town has to offer. You are providing great info about our great city. Without your blog I would probably only ever eat at McDonald's. Thanks from a grateful reader.

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  3. I like reading your blog. It would be a shame for you to quit posting because of some a-holes.

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  4. It doesn't matter if you eat healthy or not! I enjoy reading restaurant reviews of all kinds, keep posting! Thanks for the Park St. Cantina article, it was very helpful!

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