Worrybirds,
Thanks for the responses about sleeping better. Here are a few suggestions from readers. Avoid naps, use a fan for air circulation, limit dry air and try a firmer pillow.
For any new subscribers, my name’s Jed and I created the Get Afraid Journal. If you want to get in touch, hit reply.
Try It for the Story
Some actionables to get you moving.
🍪 Investigate a new ingredient. Where do cashews come from? What is cellulose? Who’s even in charge of Nutrition Facts? How’d they design the label?
🥘 Visit a chain restaurant. Gaudy? Yes. Tacky? Even better. Memorabilia without a coherent theme? Portillo’s here I come! I don’t know about you, but there’s something charming about a Cracker Barrel gift shop.
🍋 Skewer the wrong foods. Peanut butter cups on a pretzel stick? Impaled gummy bears? Speared ravioli drizzled in pasta sauce? Why not?
Did you know you can now leave a rating for the Get Afraid Journal on GoodReads?
🍟 Eating Differently
I put on a few pounds over the holidays and my lower back is starting to hurt. I reckon it could be age, medication or a mage’s spell.
Unfortunately, my belt is also getting a little tight. I picked it up out of desperation on a cruise in 2013. What good is a belt if it only lasts, oh, wait, it’s been 7 years?
To learn more about what I’ve been eating, I started using a food scale last month and the experience has been gut-busting.
I’ve learned most servings are about 28 grams. A serving of brown rice? Wish I had more. Half a serving of nut mix? Don’t bother. A serving of raisins? Nobody needs that many raisins.
Anyway, I downloaded MyFitnessPal, Lose It! and Cronometer and they all feature a food diary, calorie log, and too many charts and graphs.
MyFitnessPal
It’s popular and cluttered, but it works. I’m not a fan of their food database though. Anyone can upload and it’s out of control. Someone named Jeff loves Chipotle. He has public entries like, “Jeff’s Chipotle Bowl” and “Barbacoa Bowl Jeff”.
Lose It!
I love this app because it estimates a calorie goal for each meal.
393 for breakfast, 491 for lunch, 688 for dinner, 380 for snacks. Once you start adding food it adjusts the rest of your available calories. It’s nice to be able to guesstimate what to eat next.
The interface is also cleaner and it gives your food a little emoji, which makes it easier to see what you ate.
Cronometer
Stripped down design, but it is the easiest to use. What defines a medium apple vs. a large apple? Just toss an apple on a scale and put in the weight. This of course assumes you have a scale on you at all times, which isn’t ideal. The other downside is the app doesn’t categorize anything into meals unless you upgrade.
All of these trackers offer more features if you upgrade to a paid subscription. If I haven’t bought a belt in like seven years, I’m probably not going to pay to subscribe to an app.
If you’re lazy like me, you could reference Weight Watchers (WW) zero-point foods. In case you’re unfamiliar, WW converts calories, saturated fat, sugar, and protein into points. They don’t assign points for certain fruits, vegetables, and proteins.
If you want to eat more zero-point foods. Here’s their full list.
Of course there’s always Michael Pollan’s advice, "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants."
I just ate a bunch of peanut butter cups. Clearly this is going well.
— Jed
Thanks for being a subscriber to Get Afraid and welcome to 2020. Do you have any food suggestions? Hit reply and let me know. See you fearly soon. 🙄
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