Rusty's Ramblings

[E_T]

There are ALL different types.... 

[Buster's Uncle]

It TAKES all types...

[Rusty Edge]

You might try weight lifting as supplementary effort - you seen me talk about my two-exercise routine, surely.  I'm roughly overweight the same as you've gotten down to, and going heavy on careful bent-over rows, has never strained my lower back, and I look FANTASIC from behind, for my weight, from the upper back muscles and broad shoulders I've built up - those are still with me when I haven't touched a weight in years...

You know, as it happens the doctor who wrote the book(s) I'm trying to follow is a supporter of strength training rather than cardio, and he was a nationally renowned cardiac surgeon. He says marathoners lab  test similar to cancer patients, and more muscles mean more customers for your calories. He says if you are going to run, sprint. If you're going a long distance, walk. That's how the long-lived bushmen do it.  He notes that sprinters are muscular, rather than emaciated. At the stage I'm in, strength training makes statistically no difference in weight loss. But eventually it will matter.

He says as we age, our genetics value our efficiency once we're past reproduction age. If you spend all of your time running, then chowing down to refuel, your genes think you are an inefficient animal, unable to fend off predators, and a drain on the herd food supply. That's a candidate for a stroke or heart attack, cancer, etc. On the other hand, the ideal is more like a silverback gorilla, who need only expend energy briefly to defend the herd, or a little old lady who consumes very little.

[Buster's Uncle]

I'd say weights AND a little cardio is best - and I've had best results, for sure for keeping it up, with bench-press one day, rows the next, maybe Sunday off, maybe not.  That hits all the muscles a Man needs most for appearance, and keeps it simple and low in time investment...

[Rusty Edge]

"Saw" my ribs in the bathroom mirror today. That was a surprise. I don't really recall when they disappeared.

I bought a bundle of collard greens tonight. They look nice, and I haven't found greens I don't like yet. Have you southerners ever eaten them?  What is a "collard" anyway?

[Buster's Uncle]

Satan's toilet paper, judging by the smell and taste, cooked.  I'd judge it way too tough/gritty for a salad.  -Turnip greens share all the same bad properties, but you can eat them.

Daddy loved the stuff, of course, and it don't get more 'Southern' than a man who got an actual red neck working in his daddy's sharecrop tobacco fields as a boy in single digits during the Great Depression.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collard_greens

[Rusty Edge]

Satan's toilet paper, judging by the smell and taste, cooked.  I'd judge it way too tough/gritty for a salad.  -Turnip greens share all the same bad properties, but you can eat them.

Daddy loved the stuff, of course, and it don't get more 'Southern' than a man who got an actual red neck working in his daddy's sharecrop tobacco fields as a boy in single digits during the Great Depression.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collard_greens

I ate half a leaf raw. Somewhere between Kale and cabbage, I guess. Edible.  However, there may be a Satanic connection as you suggest.

  The first time I cooked them I just  about had dinner ready to plate when I smelled smoke. The stainless steel  lid of my skillet hid another pot lid and a plastic cover from view. The plastic touched a burner and ignited. I had a fire extinguisher under the sink. I got the fire out, but worked from dinner time until a little after 3 AM cleaning soot, fire extinguisher powder, and removing melted plastic. The only thing I lost was the hidden lid, which  had a lot of plastic adhered to it, as well as it's bakelite knob burned/melted. I threw it out.  The stove top I was able to  take apart and clean by scraping carefully and using Barkeep's Friend, an extremely fine cleansing powder. Never did get to eat.

So the next time I try to cook the last of the collards 2 nights later I had another fire, while trying to pop some sorghum like pop-corn. No mess that time.

I think these are the first fires I've had since I moved here in 2003.

[E_T]

Must be the greens...

[Buster's Uncle]

Greens is teh Devil. 

[Rusty Edge]

My weight is essentially steady this week. I'm still encouraged, because last night I dreamed of greens instead of forbidden foods. I don't dislike greens, but apart from spinach I wouldn't say I actually like any of them. I'm not craving bread anymore. According to diet theory, this means that I am succeeding in changing my gut biome. Apparently certain bacteria and yeasts actually produce hormones and chemicals that make you hungry for starchy/sweet foods which they specialize upon.

Regardless, while I have been sticking to the program pretty well, life will be easier when I'm not focused on what I can't have.

It's a beautiful day, our snow is almost gone, and I promised myself I'd take down the last of the Christmas lights from the roof and chimney. Later.

[Green1]

Greens is teh Devil. 

Why, thank you

[Buster's Uncle]

[Geo]

Willpower permitting, I might drop below seventy five next week (kilo's that is, not your yankee pounds).

[Buster's Uncle]

Yankee everything is bad.

[Rusty Edge]

So while I'm up there taking down and storing the lights, I disconnected the plugs for the heat cables on the roof, took down the cord, figuring it was done for the season, and leaving it up would only degrade the vinyl in the sunlight, and let water in. Besides, I can put the cords  to other use as needed.

So this weekend we got 5-7" inches of dense snow-sleet mix.  It's on the roof and gutters, too. I'm expecting seasonal weather to come along and cause a small flood or something. If it doesn't, I may have to hook up and defrost. Part of today was wasted partially clearing the walks while waiting for the service to do it, and dealing with ice on the driveway created by the plow.   Also, I got my gaming laptop back from Geek Squad. I'm getting re-adjusted to the screen size after using a tablet for the last month or so.