padthais

in need of a hobby

2009-06-18T09:59:00.000-07:00

i don't know why my hobbies are limited to yoga, shopping and eating. [these activities are listed in order of frequency] i'm compulsive about things and like to read up on each subject in great detail. for yoga, i read up on instructors, styles, history and even ashrams. for shopping, i frequent a steady stream of sites each day. for eating, i think about what restaurants i should frequent, what dishes to order. if i counted the number of hours i spent each day thinking about food/shopping it would easily tally to a couple of hours each day. the only days i don't think about these things are on the weekends. the weekends are when my eating/shopping time is subsumed by time spent deciding which yoga class to go to.

i need a new hobby! suggestions welcome.

twitter feed

2009-05-19T13:06:00.000-07:00

Since it is boring to talk about food/dieting so much I thought I'd post about other things I'm thinking about. I suppose this is my twitter feed.

I. NYC Real Estate

- you can actually buy a 1 bedroom in a doorman/elevator building in Nolita for 625K now. probably offer less. its unfortunate that the listing doesn't describe the sq ft. looks pretty small, and the open house is scheduled for memorial day weekend so i'm wondering if they'll get much traffic.
http://www.streeteasy.com/nyc/sale/394846-condo-259-elizabeth-street-nolita-new-york

II. Made in China

- there's a procedure by which they can make you 5 inches taller. It involves breaking bones, and lots of stretches. Eek. Seems awfully painful to me, but apparently in China there are height requirements for jobs. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/dec/15/gender.uk To be a female flight attendant you need to be 5'5'' and to be a lawyer you need to be 5'1''. I really shouldn't have started drinking coffee at such a young age (yes, I do believe it stunts your growth).

III. 30 Rock

I'm disappointed there may not be a new episode of the show until next May.

"Its the way my world is right now" - Tracey Jordan

IV. Death of Pattabhi Jois

Makes me realize that I need to stop putting off my yoga studies.

http://www.onlineprnews.com/news/1456-1242691297-sri-krishna-pattabhi-jois-the-founder-of-ashtanga-yoga-passed-away-today-at-age-93.html#

lovely fast

2009-05-19T12:54:00.001-07:00

I made the mistake of signing up for a raw food detox plan last week. Its a great program with delicious juices and raw foods, but it also was too extreme for me to follow. I've done it before, but moving from bacon to beets is a hard thing to do. I'm going to not make it so easy to fail by setting smaller goals for this week. I have two goals for the week. First, to post everything I consume so that I can shame myself into positive behavior. Second, to work out at least 5 times this week (Tues-Tues). Let's get started.

Tuesday, May 19th:

Breakfast - piece of thick sausage, one pork sausage link, egg whites and watermelon.
Lunch - Two pieces of seared tuna sashimi, two pieces of salmon sashimi, one piece of tuna sashimi, half a miso soup, one spicy tuna roll.
Snack - One entire bar of Green & Tea's Milk Chocolate (550kcal).
Coffee intake - 2 cups and counting.

Planned workout -

Deciding between Core Fusion at Exhale Spa at 8 or Yoga at Equinox Soho at 7:30. I have a pass for the week to Exhale, so I should make the most of it but 8 is late.

Weekend Fare

2009-05-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

NY Magazine has a weekly piece where they have a famous person describe what they ate for a week. I like to vicariously eat through these people. It can be quite ridiculous what I consume in a weekend so I thought I'd share this for posterity and perhaps learn from my mistakes.

Friday -

late breakfast - Starbucks breakfast sandwich (sausage of course)
lunch - chocolate chip cookies from the work cafetaria (2)
late afternoon snack - pret's roast beef and parmesan half sandwich
dinner - del posto : 2 pieces of bread with amazing garlic butter, a bite of the spring vegetable salad, a bite of tuna tartare, pasta sampler (the bolognese was pretty good, but couldn't eat my serving of the jalapeno crab pasta due to allergies), a few pieces of very salty steak, a bite of salmon, a bite of espresso gelato, cappucino, a glass of white wine and a glass of red.
party- 2 beers

summary - i ate like batali. hoping the gym pre-dinner and dancing at the party negated some of those calories - yikes.

Saturday -

brunch - at Park. Banana Bread was decent. egg white omelette with gruyere, tomatoes, and asparagus (bland), roasted potatoes (delicious), arugula salad (so-so), small piece of baby shower cake (delicious), lots of coffee

snack - iced cappucino from la colombe.

dinner - at Peasant. Had two pieces of bread (with goat cheese spread), shared the cheese plate (wonderful blue cheese and I think a Manchego), the spring vegetable salad, the skate and the paperdelle with rabbit in a cream sauce (heavenly), two carafes of red wine (Barbaro and something else my friend picked), capped with a cappucino.

after-dinner drink - a Dale's Pale Ale at Redhead. Don't recommend the beer but I do recommend the place.

summary - hard to eat at home when social engagements meant eating out twice on both saturday and sunday. tried to balance it by working out (yoga and gym), but may not have been enough.

Sunday -

breakfast - fage 2% with honey

lunch - fish bun from TaiPan Bakery. Favorite and only Chinatown bakery I trust. Am open to other suggestions, but am skeptical that Taipan's fish bun can be beat.

snack - chips and salsa and a ricky (frozen margarita and beer mix - weird but refreshing) from Diablo Royale.

dinner - 4 raw oysters, striped bass with fries and side salad from BLT Fish. shared a bottle of chardonnay.

Weekend Conclusion -

I consumed too much alcohol and bread this weekend and not enough veggies.

Things I learned -

Stopped at Au Bon Pain on Saturday afternoon and resisted the urge to get an Iced Mocha Blast. Its an old favorite, but thanks to Mayor Bloomberg I now know that each medium mocha blast has approximately 440 kcal (the large has 690!). No, thanks.

Salad is the New Steak

2009-05-11T09:23:00.000-07:00

I finally found a salad in midtown to like. Freefoods http://www.freefoodsnyc.com/ is my go to place. Highly recommended if you value fresh foods. Unlike other midtown salad places, the toppings are delicious and unusual. I always get the same salad: arugula, curried chicken, golden/red beets, manchego and grilled asparagus. The curried chicken and grilled asparagus have enough oil so that I don't need to use their dressing but I highly recommend the champaigne vinaigrette. This salad is not low in calories or fat bc they are generous with their use of olive oil. Even if this is not a calorie/fat winner, eating this salad for lunch should give me all of the vegetable servings I need in a day.

Viva La Resistance!

2009-04-08T13:13:00.000-07:00

Just got back from a trip to the office coffee shop and I did not buy any chocolate chip cookies. This is day 2 of my resistance. What's making it easier for me is focusing on other things to enjoy/like.

This shoe thing seems to be helping. Especially given how many great pairs of shoes are going on sale these days. I have already missed out on a pair of Loeffler Randall's Riley Boots (40%) off, but I'm hoping that maybe instead of shoes I can wear this dress comfortably.

Have also taken to planning gym dates. Suzers is a great friend and work out buddy. God knows I wouldn't be doing three sets of anything without her. Its much easier going to the gym when you know you're meeting someone. She also correctly pointed out that Equinox Soho is a dudefest, so that doesn't hurt either.

Predispositions

2009-04-07T15:00:00.000-07:00

Last week at Jivamukti, the focus of the month was finding your guru. I've been searching for my own guru for some time now, and even went to see an Ayurvedic guru a few years back. In Ayurveda, there are three personality/body types known as doshas: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. When I read Deepak Chopra's book A Perfect Health, I had self-diagnosed myself as a Kapha. In part because I think it sucks to be Kapha. Kaphas tend to be overweight and their food tends to be the worst (e.g. recommended grains are barley, buckwheat and millet). I blamed my Kapha dosha for a predisposition to gain weight. Well, my Ayurvedic guru told me that I was wrong and I was in fact Vata. I'd always wanted to be Vata because Vata's are supposed to eat fat and not be fat. Clearly, I couldn't blame my dosha anymore.

I believe that there is something to diets that balance temperaments because so many cultures seem to have similar customs (e.g. the Chinese concepts of heaty and cooling foods are very similar to the Ayurvedic categories). Though I may be Vata, I have to take responsibility for my own body. Despite being Vata my Kapha is out of balance. So onto lighter fruits, more complex grains and more exercise. Most importantly, I can't let myself believe that I'm predisposed to gaining weight. Everything is within my own control. Though I still haven't found my guru.

Vacations

2009-04-07T14:20:00.000-07:00

Are they to be spent in a beautiful country or in a bikini bootcamp?

I went to Africa to go on safari and climb Kilimanjaro. I came back 5 lbs heavier. Riding around in a jeep all day and eating carbs apparently doesn't work for me. Even Kilimanjaro didn't help. We climbed all day, but porters carried our bags and made us 3 course meals 3 times a day. Then the following year I went to Madrid. I drank wine and ate prosciutto and manchego all day. I didn't gain a lb. I think the main lesson is that the surroundings don't determine weight gain/loss. I was fine in Madrid because I walked a lot, and a little manchego and proscuitto never hurt anyone.

My friend wants to go to a bootcamp, but I think I'm going to try and convince him to go hiking in Peru instead. Though this time without porters.

Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe

2009-04-07T13:38:00.000-07:00

I can't claim to know why most women seem to love shoes, but I know why I do. Shoes are something that always fit. Its easier to buy a new pair of shoes than a new pair of jeans. Even worse, I've found myself skipping the gym for trips to Topshop, manicures and even J Crew. Its much easier to buy something than to improve myself. Well, starting tomorrow (as in after Gilt's Louboutin sale) I will not buy a new pair of shoes until I've dropped 3 lbs.

Planning Ahead

2009-04-07T12:05:00.000-07:00

Is there anything healthy at Korean BBQ?

Going to K-town on Thursday night for Korean BBQ and am wondering what my best options are. Thankfully, we're not going for Korean Fried Chicken (which I love but cannot justify these days). I think its generally fine to load up on the various pickles. There are various claims that kimchi has various health benefits but the one thing I believe is that its a good source of Vitamin C and various forms of Vitamin B. If we're ordering individually, I will order the Kimchi Jjigae http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Korean_stew-Kimchi_jjigae-05.jpg (and minimize the number of rice cakes that I eat). My old friend and fellow dieter (until he conquered the beast) swears by the Kalbi Tang. Instead of stewing Kimchi, Kalbi Tang is rib stew. The Kalbi Tang is definitely less spicy but both are very salty. Since I don't need to worry about my blood pressure I'm choosing lower calories over lower salt, but if salt were a bigger concern I'd probably pick the Bibimbap over either stew (and go easy on the sauce and sesame oil).

If we decide to share meals and I have to order BBQ I think its best to stick to the Bulgogi (thinly sliced meat) and skip the Kalbi (shortribs). Most of all I'm skipping the rice!

Sushi Relativity

2009-04-07T11:51:00.000-07:00

Meal Choices listed from healthiest to least healthy.

- Green Tea, Sashimi. Sashimi kcal/piece = 15-20

- Miso Soup, Sashimi (choose smaller fish to decrease mercury content/limit tuna and favor salmon). Sashimi kcal/piece = 15-20.

- Green Tea, Sushi Rolls (opt for brown rice, no spicy mayo, no crunch) Sushi kcal/piece 20-30.

- Miso Soup, Sushi Rolls (brown rice, no spicy mayo, no crunch). Sushi kcal/piece 20-30.

- Miso Soup, Sushi Rolls (white rice, spicy tuna). Sushi kcal/piece = 50.

All calories are approximate. The Miso Soup contains about 70kcal but can be high in sodium (often as much as 1/3 of your sodium intake for a day). Lately, I've been eating the spicy tuna roll combo and miso soup. I am trying to have a miso soup with each meal because the soup helps fill me up and I eat less sushi as a result. The Divine Miss A pointed out that Green Tea is a better choice than miso soup. Switching to brown rice from white, salmon for spicy tuna and green tea for miso doesn't seem too bad so there's no feeling of deprivation.

Purpose

2009-04-07T11:40:00.000-07:00

I'm starting this blog to document my diet and share any tips I come across. I've read most fitness magazines, joined weight watchers, juice cleansed, south beach and zone dieted and I am finally ready to use the information. As a single person living in a big city, most of my social activities center around food. I'm working on developing my diet so that I can continue to enjoy my friends and all of the great restaurants that NYC offers. I'm also hoping that this blog will make me accountable to myself.