…to start cooking nutritious meals at home.  After editing a book about the amount of shady sugar that is shoveled into the now-standard American diet, I have come to realize that I’m essentially addicting (and poisoning) myself when I go shopping because of the choices I make. I get boxed, bagged and bottled goods instead of the “live” fare that is available: fruits, nuts, vegetables, lean meats, etc.

In the 1700’s, the average human being consumed about four pounds of sugar in a year. In 2015, we consume about four pounds of sugar in just 22 days! Is it any wonder why we’re fat, alternately elated and depressed, and that health concerns are at epidemic proportions?

To be sure, it isn’t that we shovel sugar onto everything we eat.  It’s just that we buy processed foods that would be unpalatable if they weren’t flooded with manufactured and distilled sugars (High Fructose Corn Syrup chief among them), unhealthy fats, and other chemical concoctions that our grandparents’ bodies never even had to contend with. Our innards simply don’t know how to process faux foods, so they do the best they can but over time they start breaking down.

So today I went shopping and got what I needed to make a crock pot meal: beef, vegetables, a little broth. I’ll have it for days, ’cause I bought a big chunk of meat.

I’m going to limit soft drinks to rare outings; no more is coming into this house. It’s water with lemon or lime for me. (I’ve been doing this for a while already. My head is clearer and I feel less all-over-the-place emotionally and psychologically.)

I started a healthier regimen last year when I committed to riding my bike all last spring, summer and fall. I rode over 1,000 Orting Trail miles on a mountain bike and lost about eighteen pounds. (I have a sloth-slow metabolism, inherited from my father’s side of the family.) I only gained back three pounds over the winter and I’ve ridden those off since starting back on the trail a few weeks ago. I’ve ridden 90 miles so far this year.  Sue Rebar and I are going to go three days a week all summer long, so I should lose another ten to fifteen pounds (maybe more, since I’m going to knock off bringing home the unhealthy fare I’ve been buying).

I’m going to read labels, avoid fake sugars, and limit the amount of natural sugars I ingest. I’m eager to find out what I’ll look like come fall, just four months from now.  I think I’m going to be pleased!