mercurial scribe

In my desperation to lose nearly 70 lbs off my 5′7″ frame - I’ve gained 10 lbs just from living with my mother and all her good cooking! - I actually turned to a source I never thought I would turn to…

… the United States government.

Yes, my internet friends, you read that correctly. Let me explain why I turned to Them, of all sources…

After I used my favorite website (www.fitday.com) to assess my current condition (including daily caloric needs and entry of daily food intake), I realized that I had no idea how eat healthily. I know how to restrict my calories and up my calorie-burning… but what should I be eating? I know fruits and vegetables are good for me, but how many? I love fruit… shoot, I’ll eat a bowl of strawberries the size of my head happily! But the same bowl full of cabbage or spinach? Maybe 1/4 of it. Maybe if I’m REALLY hungry.

And that, my dears, is where the U.S. government came in. See, they have this handy-dandy little tool called “MyPyramid” where you can assess your daily intake needs. Thanks to FitDay.com, I already know I need to consume 1600-1800 calories a day to lose 2 lbs a week, which is very reasonable. Well, Big Brother’s site gave me a 1800 caloric intake chart that breaks it down by food group (check it here).

But why is this so nifty?

Because the next time I go to pull a snack out of the fridge, I’ll look at my neat little chart and think “Have I had my 2.5 cups of veggies today?” And being the conscientious person I am, I will put away the third helping of cheese for the day and think about grabbing some salad… or better yet, a glass of Trader Joe’s “Garden Patch” (think TJ’s version of V8). I can do that much more easily than a salad again.