Can you really eat low-carb at Taco Bell? If not "low-carb," you can at least eat "lower-carb" at Taco Bell, and get some quick tasty affordable nutrition while you do it. Of course, you must go in with a plan, and that means conducting a little research. Even then, I'm not suggesting that Taco Bell -- or for that matter, any fast-food restaurant -- is a good place to eat while on the induction phase of the Atkins plan. It's hard to keep your net carbs down to 25 grams a day if you eat anywhere … [Read more...]
I took a week off
Actually, it was a long weekend, and I didn't take it off from eating LCHF for the most part, but just from recording every morsel of intake. Anita and I left for Nashville, TN, a week ago today. Nashville is famous for country music, but I was going there to attend a writer's conference, and Anita was along to do some tourist stuff. I decided to give myself a break from the diet record-keeping. … [Read more...]
My low-carb week in review: April 5 – April 11, 2015
In dieting, as in most areas of life, averages can be deceptive. Take my daily averages of calories and net carbs consumed for last week -- 1, 831 and 39 grams respectively. And 72% of calories from fat. Not bad, not bad at all. Those averages imply a low-cal, low-carb consistency over the seven days, a steely resolve to eat the right way every day. Like I said, averages can be deceptive. On Thursday, I ate a single meal at Applebee's that ballooned my day's calories to almost 2, 600. My net … [Read more...]
Chowing down low-carb style at Red Robin
I try to be a food-snob, I really do, but it seldom works for long. Despite years of education, and my wife's best attempts to refine me, I remain a regular guy with regular guy tastes -- such as, for instance, the Bacon Cheeseburger at our local Red Robin. (For the record, I get nothing from that restaurant chain except the food I pay for.) Red Robin calls this a "Gourmet" burger. I'm not sure what criteria a gourmet burger has to meet, or even if I care. It's a good sandwich -- a hefty … [Read more...]
A windy, low-carb weekend in Chicago
This past weekend Anita and I traveled to Chicago by train. I was attending a professional conference, and she came along for the ride. The train is our favorite way to get to the City of Broad Shoulders. It picks us up at a small town in mid-Michigan -- a major hub in the old days but now just a place that the train stops at twice a day, going west in the morning and east at night. A few hours after we get on board, the train deposits us at Union Station, a short cab-ride from the Loop. … [Read more...]
Building your own breakfast special
Back in my carb-eating days, my favorite meal to eat out was breakfast. There were a couple reasons. First, breakfast is an affordable meal to eat out. You can usually get a hot breakfast for a few bucks. Even in Manhattan, on the edge of the theater district, Anita and I got a breakfast special at a Greek diner that included eggs, meat, toast, two cups of coffee and a small glass of juice for five dollars each. In mid-Michigan, breakfast specials typically start at $2.99. Second, breakfast … [Read more...]
Dealing with the risk of hidden calories in restaurant meals
Half of Americans eat out three or more meals a week, and 12% eat out more than seven meals a week. These statistics are cited by the authors of a study published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) to establish the importance knowing how many calories we're getting in all of those restaurant meals. It turns out we're often getting a significantly different number of calories than we think we're getting, at least where individual menu items are concerned. … [Read more...]
Low-carb road-trip eating
When my wife was 11 years old, she was mesmerized by Peter Tork, a member of the Monkees. Depending on whom you ask, the Monkees were either actors in a TV comedy or musicians in a rock-band. Or both. My wife would say both, and more, but her focus was always on the blond, hazel-eyed Mr. Tork. It still is. All of this explains why she and I drove to Merrillville, Indiana, yesterday to watch the Monkees (three of the four, anyway) perform at the Star Plaza Theatre. It was a stop on the … [Read more...]