frozen blueberries are a treat for dessert. Also, collad greens are in the kale family, so we'll count them.

I just had some collard greens, or at least I think it was collard greens. When I typed into google translate collard greens
it told me that it is boerenkool in Dutch. However if I let google translate boerenkool into English it says that it's kale. I
even tried different online dictionaries and they all gave me the same, from English into Dutch collard greens=boerenkool and
from Dutch into English boerenkool=kale...
If collard greens are boerenkool, it is the Dutch national food, boerenkool stampot, collard greens cut up finely and then
added to mashed potatoes. So it wasn't very difficult to find it fresh in the store.

I had apples with peanut butter for dessert last night.

Company events are a challenge now... kegs, chips, dips, and chocolates... had the cheese, crackers, fruits, veggies and the celebratory champagne instead.

I hear they make an alcohol-free version of Jell-O now.

If you need dessert on a regular basis to keep you from binging, maybe you could just change the nature of your dessert. Say perhaps, to a dessert with fruit in it. Like, JELLO with fruit or fruit with CoolWhip or fruit filled pie or just fruit as a dessert. Man those grapes are sweet.

Ok, got second day of climbing in at the gym, but unfortunately I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to classify yesterday's dinner at Perkins as fast food.

And I was excited because the Co-op was serving steamed collard greens at lunch today, but when I asked, the serving tray was empty. I did find a can at Town & Country, but it's 40% of the daily sodium so I'm debating donating that and trying to find a different can.

And that's why poor people have high blood pressure.

meow

"The Men who Stare at Goats." is a funny movie. I might have to go see it again.

You are still on the books at Upper Limits. I would imagine that means they have you on record for belaying.

We can go to Upper Limits if they don't want to charge me $35 to verify that I can belay. I did all the V0 bouldering routes I could find, so I'm probably on 5.8's and 5.9's now too. I'll find out when I can convince someone else from work to belay.

Sarah is the only one with double vegetable points so far. Maybe I can find some collard greens yet and cook'em up and feed them to the Doughers.

Michele, you're completely right about the desserts. They should be allowed as a reward for exercising regularly, or maybe allowed one per week, or some such... I suppose the real trick is just learning to allow the occasional negative points. Anyhow, I say you should decide next week's challenge/bonus thingamajig and then decide who picks next, so it's not always me choosing.

Heaven above and the sea below,
And a little white whale on the go.

my work bag smells like bananas.

Well, I'm not in the challenge per se, but I did eat collard greens and sweet potatoes in the same day. And I just joined a Zumba class today. It was fun, but I bet we all look like fools...fools having fun.

Hey, those happen to be the same things I learned from the challenge. That, and I still run at 6am when my running partner doesn't show up. I guess I DO take my health pretty seriously. Filled the grocery cart up with produce because I couldn't think of a main course to cook. Then I wandered around the store looking for raisins. Then, I ran into Jason Field and Amy. They didn't know where the raisins were either. I love this town.

nto, does this mean we are going to Upper Limits when you come to visit? I'm on like 5.8+ and 5.9's

Things the challenge has taught me (or reminded me):

-I will binge on sweets if I deprive myself completely. I am allowing myself a very small sweet (one hot chocolate, one fun size candy bar etc) most days so I can avoid the urge to binge.

-I need to make a point to exercise more. It is VERY easy for me to come up with excuses not to exercise. The challenge helps me get some simply because I am logging/admitting to others when I do none for an entire week.

-It is mentally healthy for me to not take EVERYTHING so seriously and remember that people have good intentions.

I appreciate what I've realized, or been reminded of. And on another great note, Friday I plan to wear a really nice, size 10 black suit I bought in 1998. That is a huge motivation for me to continue with the healthy eating and exercise.

well, for starters, my faculty for rock-climbing has fallen drastically.

healthiest day yet:
breakfast: orange, bagel, yogurt, tea
lunch: garlic pepper pork w/ rice, salad, carrot, water
afternoon snack: pear
30 minute workout at the gym

(it used to be breakfast: bagel, lunch: wrap/sandwich and a coke)

plus the time I spent helping out with teaching climbing gave me a free month membership, so I'm good til vacation.

I think last night might just be the first time I ever made a salad for just myself.

...looks like I spoke too soon... another company dinner tonight.

We're making progress: Frank, Frankie, Edgardo and Roman we still need some sort of Christmas list from you, even if it's just sizes for clothes.

ooooo...faculty dramas...please e-mail me the details. I'll share mine!

Any ideas on how I got "Baby Belluga" in my head?

that's what i said.

AO, I called. They didn't lose yours. They lost mine and that's why they called you.

we had some sad cranberries last night after the joke. Yum!

Sorry about that Ao. I will call today.

Ha ha

what are sad cranberries called?
blueberries

The good news about large family dramas is that they prepare you for faculty dramas. Accidentally (and luckily), I was left off a few department e-mails. New chair nominations due by Nov. 20th.

Frozen collards are healthier than fresh sweet potatoes in almost every regard except Vitamin A content (proteins, sugars, carbohydrates, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, etc.).

Canned collards are similarly healthier, except they have a high level of sodium and 1 gram of fat.

Peanut butter and apple for +50 today.

Fair warning: I'm gonna try and pull out of last place in exercise points here shortly. Hopefully get signed up with the gym tomorrow for lunch time workouts.

rsj, the 5k people called me. it sounds like they don't know that you are running the 5k. so you might want to fix that.

Probably not...maybe the frozen...nto, what does your "official" health standard say? There ARE lots of fresh greens in the supermarket that I haven't tried. I just wish artichokes and asparagus were cheaper since those are the two my kids will eat.

Really? Canned and frozen collard greens are better for you than a plain sweet potatoes?

If you can't find them fresh, you can either get them already prepared...in a can, or you can go to the frozen section and find mustard greens and turnip greens in bags alongside the spinach.

They may be difficult to find given that they are a 'spring green', but the Bozeman community is known to demand weird things from time to time.

Hm, you just reminded me I forgot to pack a vegetable this morning.

Hoping to make it some time this week to the grocery store to search out collard greens. May come to regret that if it smells like sauerkraut.

Opened that can of southern style collard greens last night. It smelled more like sauerkraut than bacon fat. Yum. I'm the only one that ate 'em though.

Oh, man!

Well I guess that just leaves Matthew to find out if all the snorkeling workout negates all of the Fried Puerto Rican food and Bacardi you will be consuming next week...

My teeth are clean and healthy. Can I get some points for that?

I love that this competition has gotten us out cross country skiing almost every night. And my points aren't adding up fast, but I've lost 4 pounds...so it's already worth it.

Yeah, but my goal is to eat more fruits and veg. Not 1 and not 5. So I don't think that rules no matter how you slice 'em are going to align with that one.

That and my other goal is to work out on a regular schedule, rather than the binge and purge schedule I have now. And the competition is ruining that goal as well, constantly feeling the need to go workout more.

So reluctantly I have pulled myself from the competition, as it's not meeting my personal goals. I'm glad to see you all getting healthy. I can't wait to participate in healthy activities with you at Christmas. Eric, I'll see you on the 23rd for an 'Ohler hockey game'.

+1,000,000,000 for laughing comparing Eric's drinking habits to Frank's coke addiction.

Left-over garlic pepper pork for lunch is awesome.

On a side-note: I think I just brought my lunch from home for the first time working here.

You are not "challenging yourself further while staying within the rules of the contest". (You could even do 10 points per serving with a max of 50).

You clearly have options which give you incentive to reach 5 servings per day while remaining in the contest. Of course, if you think 5 servings per day is too difficult of a challenge to achieve then those options would appear to be disincentives.

The hard alcohol deduction does not violate the rules of the contest at all, so that's great that you've added that challenge to yourself.

I am challenging myself further, by giving myself more points for more veg/fruits. And giving myself negative points each time I drink hard alcohol, like Vodka Tonics.