"That's why Americans are so fat."

Mead, Malinowski, Sahlins, and a number of other anthropologists noticed a marked downturn in overall health and wellbeing of the people they studied once they were exposed to and even partially adopted the way Westerners ate.

 

My wife and I are in the process of switching to a mostly-veggie and vegan diet for some of the reasons listed here - Namely, that we don't eat dinner until 7, 7:30 most nights, so probably the last thing we need is a steak or a potato-heavy dish. I'd rather do veggie than vegan - the latter recipes can still be overloaded with calories thanks to rice, pasta and other grains - but I have shed about 5 pounds in two weeks.

The "secretly includes corn" thing of pretty much every processed food ruins them. About the only processed food I eat now is a morning granola bar. One thing I would recommend - While shit like Magic Spoon cereal and Whole Foods shopping seems expensive, oftentimes the health value and satiation that food provides is better than the cheap stuff anyway.

And finally, none of this shit matters if you're not doing SOME sort of advanced meal planning. My wife and I plan six meals for the week, with one night scheduled to go out, usually Saturdays, and Sunday is usually when I'll make 1 to 3 meals. You can avoid a lot of problems or "oh my god I just HAVE to get fast food!" sessions by adequately planning.

 

I was going strong with the cook-at-home Instant Pot thing for a while then fell off the wagon towards the end of summer. The thing I have come to realize is that after working from home in a silent house all day, my mind craves stimuli by dinner. Even if I’m not eating with someone, I at least need to be adjacent to people conversing.

Yes I realize how pathetic that sounds.

 

Not pathetic at all.

Congratulations! @sgreenwell

It amazes me what is considered to be a healthy option.
I was in the hospital for four days last week. The food was supposed to be a fluid/carb restrictive diet. I wish I'd taken pictures. Every dinner had a scoop of mashed potatoes or a cup of pasta and a sugary whole wheat roll. Many had little to no vegetables or it was a leaf or lettuce and a slice of tomato. When I could, I ate what vegetables were there (gelid, over-boiled squash, "steamed" green beans that were almost too hard to eat and still had stems and dirt on them) and part if not all of the 6 to 8 ounces of meat. My BGL, (which I had ignored for the past few years) started coming down after I got home and tucked into tofu scramble and leafy greens.

Not going to tell anyone else how to eat. After all, there are people who do cold cuts and cigars every day and live to be a hundred. For most of us lowly humans, maybe it's better to be careful.

 

I think it was almost a full year before I started seeing Lysol spray cans back on the shelf. That was my Holy Grail in 2020.

 

Most hospitals aren’t going to be renowned for their food service, but with the importance of patient satisfaction scores, I’d be amazed if any made a serious attempt to force “healthy” eating on anyone whose chart didn’t strictly demand it.

Also, get better @OscarMadison. We need your ass around here.

 

I can't do the Instant Pot thing because I like the process of cooking. I want it to take hours.
There is nothing I like better than sitting by my Weber.
I actually decided this morning to make a pot of chili tomorrow night, and have already been looking forward to it.

 

Emeril Legasse calls it the love of food and the food of love. The process is as important as the product. I made ratatouille my second night home.

 

I will add this: getting out of the newspaper did wonders for me.
I'm 10 years older and 20 pounds lighter because supper 4-5 nights a week for 9-10 months a year isn't concession stand hotdogs, fries, and cheese sticks.

 

After WW2 when Japan became affluent and started eating more meat, the incidence of stomach cancer skyrocketed. There are 15,000 fruits and vegetables native to China. In the past, expensive pork and meat was used as an accompaniment, not a main course, one of the reasons so many Chinese were slender subsisting on a diet heavy on rice.

 

Glad you got sprung!