No Bread & Butter Please!

Well, I've been doing my new program for one week now. I feel great. Over the weekend I did have some bouts with exhaustion. I attributed this to my intense upper body workout on Friday night. Saturday I felt sick, like I was getting a cold. I figure this was just toxins from my muscles spilling into my system, as I felt like I do after a really intense massage. I'm drinking plenty of water and keeping myself hydrated. Sunday I was really sore, finding it hard to lift my arms. At least I know it is all working and I feel better today.

The Sheraton has once again failed to give me a fridge. This will become a problem when I get busier on this project and have to buy and store food ahead of time. For now, I'll keep complaining and see if I can get them to understand. Last week I was given 1,000 star points, a free pay per view movie, and, quite oddly, two free beers from room service. Shame that even if I was drinking beer at this phase of my diet I wouldn't have a fridge to keep them cool in!

Being on the road presents a whole new challenge when you're trying to eat right. The glare of fast food signs is overwhelming. I combat this with a strict approach of keeping my daily menu pretty much the same and mapping out restaurants that I know can serve it. It really isn't that hard. For instance, last night I got to eat beef, and I did so at Outback. Along with it I had a dry sweet potato and green beans. I also get to eat a lot of fish (The Fish Market) and even Pork Tenderloin on Wednesdays (Keegans Grill, Phoenix). It was fun finding the food I need, such as Sushi with brown rice (Sushi 101, Tempe) and even better when I can find a more than one required dish at the same place (Thursdays - Tofu Stir Fry, Sushi 101, Tempe). For breakfast I eat at the hotel, ordering an Egg White Omelet with Mushrooms, no butter for preparation and dry whole wheat toast. Or, I'll get some oatmeal. Most of the time they get it right and understand I'm avoiding fat.

The best part is when the restaurant staff brings over the bread and butter and I send them away, along with the five or six others who bring it back, thinking the wait staff has made a mistake. Funny thing is at Outback the waitress knew I was on a diet, just from how I ordered. No bread was offered.

When I refuse bread, people assume that I am on a low carb diet. This is not true. I'm on a protein + carb diet. My six day a week workout routine requires me to eat a ton of protein. The carbs counter along with the protein to give me the energy I need to put that protein to good use. It is a back to basics approach for me and pretty simple for me to follow.

What I do avoid like the plague is fat. I don't want the bread and butter because I don't want to sit there and pass the time between order and delivery by munching on fatty butter and extra bread. Other thing is: Nothing but water. I drink Water with lemon now. Not sugar filled sodas, or even diet soda for that matter. Everyone's body is different but I find that soda of any type bloats me up the size of a Thanksgiving Day parade float.

So tonight's exercise is Cardio, right after some Sushi, Seaweed Salad, and brown rice of course.