My husband does the grocery shopping in our house for a few reasons, the main one being because I can spend almost twice as much as he does! While we both end up getting things that are not on my list, my things are usually fairly expensive health foods to try, and of course, wine. His unlisted items consist of the 3/$5 bags of chips, to which he usually feels the need to purchase all 3 bags.

So, I send him to the store with a list and a child, and back he comes with the ingredients I need. He will typically call me 5 times within that hour questioning something, telling me he can’t find another, or asking why we need something else. This week, one of the items on my list was Fat Free Vanilla Soy Milk. I liked this milk so much last week in my coffee and in the Bulgur Buckwheat Pancakes, that I thought I’d have him purchase it again. I did the shopping last week, and only bought a small one, because I had never tried it before. I should have read the label, because I was shocked this morning when I read the label for the fat free version. ( I know I didn’t buy fat free last week because it made my coffee a different color). Anyway, have a look…

Here’s a link to 8th Continent Soymilk, should you want to check out their other products. I’m pretty sure I got the regular (full fat) Vanilla last week.

My point? I was mislead. I was thinking…”mmm Soy Milk. I need to put soy in my diet, I love vanilla flavor, how could this be bad“? Well, let me take a second to point out why I was so shocked this morning. The second ingredient on the list is SUGAR! The third ingredient is fructose, which is a fancy way of saying sugar that is found food. I thought I’d check out the website to see if the sugar was just so abundant in the flavored varieties… nope. It’s the second ingredient in all but the full-fat chocolate, in which case fructose is second, and sugar is third.

Last month, I purchased General Mill’s Whole Grain Total Cereal. I was happy with my purchase because I spent the time to look at the label. Only 100 calories per serving. I wished a serving size was one full cup, instead of 3/4 of a cup, but ‘Oh Well’. I was happy I was going to be getting “100% Daily Value of 12 vitamins & minerals”, “Fiber” and “100% Whole Grain”. I failed to read the entire label, though.

Guess what the SECOND ingredient is? SUGAR! When I started The Rule of Three Diet, I went through my pantry to get rid of all the temptations. I checked out this label one day and was shocked. How could I rightfully feed myself or my family a bowl full of whole grain wheat (the #1 ingredient) with all kinds of sugar, corn syrup (#3 ingredient) and vitamins sprinkled on top? No thank you, I’ll take that multivitamin and a bowl full of Steel Cut Oats, please.

So, check your labels! Not just part of a label, either. Read the whole thing. Serving size, Calories, Fat, Fiber, Protein, and the Ingredients. If sugar, high fructose corn syrup, or anything ending in ‘ose’ are in the top 5 in the list, think twice before purchasing the item. Do you really want that in your body? Would you feed it to a toddler? If your answer is no, why would you feed it to yourself? (Of course this does not apply to wine.)

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Article tags: bulgur buckwheat pancakes, general mills, Rule of Three Diet, soy milk, total cereal

Posted: September 17th, 2007 under Food Information.
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My husband told me today that two of the people we saw last night made unprompted comments today about the way I look.  The male thought I looked ‘athletic’ the female wondered why I was making a diet because I was “this big” (insert a visual of thumb touching your first finger). I wish I was there to tell her that I’ve created this ‘diet’ as a healthy way of living, not just as a method to lose weight. I’m happy that my efforts are paying off.  If they are not visible, I’m definitely more confident than I was before I started The Rule of Three Diet.  I am proud of myself for my choices at dinner tonight.  I didn’t feel like cooking, and headed to Hardee’s for fast food.  With very few healthy choices there, I ordered for only for my husband and son.  There was a Mc Donald’s right next door, so I went there for a salad and nuggets for my daughter.  I didn’t want to feel totally deprived, so I did allow myself 1 french fry and 1 bite of 2 different hamburgers.  YUM! I am so happy with myself that I made smart fast food choices and I’ll (probably) be down in the morning instead of up or the same.

What are your favorite fast food restaurants?  Is there something healthy you can order there?  A little bit of research with their online menu will help you know what to order everywhere you go.  I’d love to know what your favorite healthy fast food choices are. Please post your responses.

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Article tags: bulgur buckwheat pancakes, elliptical, Hardee's, McDonalds, Piloga, Rule of Three Diet

Posted: September 15th, 2007 under Daily Journal.
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 I’m still weighing the same.  I wonder if this is a plateau, or if I’ll still see weight loss this week, just not as quickly as last week. I am not discouraged.  As I said last week, I usually lose 4 pounds or more the first week. I have picked up my workouts a bit this week, and today, I ate 1/2 my portion of my usual snack, but I did have a rather large lunch.  I tried a new class at the gym today.  Body Pump. You lift weights to music for an hour. I loved it because I wasn’t thinking about the time. Man, I am sore! It hurts to walk down my staircase!  This is good sore, though, if there is such a thing.  It’s my proof that I worked my body, and I know I’m getting stronger. 

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Article tags: , body pump class, bulgur buckwheat pancakes, Garlic Clam Linguine with Spinach, Hummus, Rule of Three Diet

Posted: September 13th, 2007 under Daily Journal.
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