Being a lover of all things fashion I’m very familiar with trends.  But these fleeting fits of popularity are not restricted to just the latest styles, they can also be found in the health, nutrition, and exercise industry.  One of the latest fads to return to the spotlight is the organic movement.  It seems that every time I turn around I’m seeing another article or ad touting the greatness that is organic and all natural foods.

Considering my recent decision to go au natural, it seems only natural that I would take a trip to a local farmers market to kick off my healthy new lifestyle.  So I did just that on Sunday.  After having a fabulous (and even organic) brunch with Kristine, Andrew and Cesar at Blue Dahlia, we headed a few blocks over to HOPE Farmers Market.

This adorable market nestled in the Eastside (ironically in the same field where we were up to no good a month ago at Fader Fort during SxSW) lures you in with organic offerings from local vendors.  Maybe it’s the natural setting or the return to the simplest form of presentation (aka a booth), but the foods manage to look and smell more vibrant and fresh at a farmers market.  The colors are brighter, the leaves of lettuce are bigger, and the smell of strawberries waft at you.

Not only can you find produce, but there’s organic chocolate, fresh salsa, and even tamale’s at HOPE Market.  If you don’t have an appetite, then check out the live band playing in the warehouse or peruse the local jewelry and vintage clothing vendors.  There’s something for everyone here…seriously.  Oh, and bring your dog too!

I can’t wait to check out the other Austin markets to see what they have to offer.  Here’s a list of a few of them so you can discover the wonderful world of farmers markets too:

• Austin Farmers Market at the Triangle, Downtown, and Sunset Valley
• Westlake Farmers Market
• Travis County Farmers Market

Hello fatroll peeps! The ladies and I are sorry for being MIA as of late. Between work, travel, school, and social media burnout, we have been a bit negligent of the blog.

So recently I sat down and took account of the major changes I’ve made in my life in the past year. I gave my lifestyle a makeover (aka changed my approach to food and working out) and managed to shed 30 lbs. For New Year’s 2010 I decided to continue on the path to healthy living by giving up my beloved Diet Coke (and all other sodas) and decreasing my salt intake. Recently I thought to myself “that wasn’t so hard…so what’s next?”. Well, I’ve decided to go au natural.

That’s right. I’m giving up preservatives, artificial sweeteners, and all those other man-made foods. Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not giving these things up cold turkey. For a girl that was raised by a mother who was always on a diet, anything with the words “lowfat”, “fat free”, “light”, or “diet” is more natural to me than veggies from a Farmer’s Market. This is going to be a tough transition for me, not only from a taste perspective (my body is used to and therefore craves pre-packaged foods) but from a mental perspective. I will have to fight the urge to run away from real foods such as sour cream, cheese, butter, eggs, etc. that I normally buy in fat free, light, or fake forms.

Why do this? I have actually been inspired by my friend Ellen. Several months ago Ellen decided she was going to eat natural and organic foods almost exclusively and blog about what she ate to hold herself accountable. Her blog, Blue Tree Green Heart, outlines her daily food intake, complete with pictures, recipes, and workout logging.  Ellen and I recently went on a very wet kayaking excursion and then had brunch.  She looked so great and healthy (not to mention thin) that I decided I wanted to be like her.  I read her blog and constantly find myself hungry just perusing her pics of oatmeal, fruit, or salad.  I figure if the food looks good and Ellen looks good, then there must be something to her lifestyle.

So here I go.  To start off, I have given up artificial sweeteners.  I drink coffee or tea straight up or with raw sugar only (this is a BIG step for me).  Since I still have a lot of pre-packaged, artificially filled foods in my pantry, I am going to eat what I currently have and slowly integrate all natural and organic items in with them.  Afterall, I’m not just going to waste all of the food I already have.  That’s like throwing money away!

It’s going to be a tough transition, but with baby steps and a couple of trips to Whole Foods, I’m excited to be able to say I will soon be au natural!  Thanks for inspiring me El!

Me and Ellen at the Nike Human Race in August 2008

If there is one thing I’ve learned so far from Kirstie Alley’s Big Life (the actress’ new reality show on A&E chronicling her weight loss journey) it’s that fabulous hair (big, blonde extensions with loads of curls) and impeccable makeup make you look really attractive and hide the vag-arms with ease. Seriously, notice how her hair hides the vag arms in EVERY publicity shot. Genius. This is mental note #1 for the bikini shoot in June.

Note the placement of the hair over the vag-arms. Genius!

Let’s be frank – Kirstie Alley is the one who made the “I’m going to pose in a bikini to force myself to get skinny” weight loss trick that @fatroll employs chic. Unfortunately, she only posed once in said bikini, which is probably one of the reasons why she gained all the weight back. So, even though the weekly weigh-ins and ultimate weigh-in cruelty for us @fatroll girls is painful, it’s better than gaining the weight all back. Complacency is the #1 killer of weight loss programs!

So I’ve watched the first episode of Big Life (you can watch it by clicking here) and it was a “scripted” recap of her weight journey and her “Tipping Point” to losing weight – not fitting into a New Year’s Eve dress and being photographed by the paps at an unflattering angle. Although, one would argue that the real Tipping Point was when she signed a deal to have cameras in her home to record her “scripted” tipping points. Clearly, that part wasn’t total reality, but instead sets a bad precedent for the rest of the series – and highlights the problem with reality shows in general.

So here is my pros and cons list on why you should watch the show, and a few storytelling tactics to be aware of as you go along:

Pros:

*Her story appeals to so many of us that have had a life-long battle with losing the weight and then keeping it off. “It’s comes back a hella of a lot faster than it comes off.” I also learned that she used to do cocaine to keep off the weight. Apparently when she was trying to quit the cocaine and smoking, she replaced those drugs with food. Point being, there is a fine line with food – sustenance vs. addiction.

*Starting any type of nutrition/exercise program sucks for the first several weeks until you get the hang of it. She was worn out after only working out for seven minutes. Ugh, we’ve all been there.

*Kirstie’s witty one-offs making fun of her weight keep the show from being too depressing about having to lose 6.4 stones (the British way of measuring weight, which I loved! Divide your weight by 14 pounds and you get how much you weigh in “stones.” Yay – I only weigh 10 stones! I want to weigh only nine though) The show is almost like a visual version of @fatroll — having a good time while trying to lose weight.

Cons:

*Blaming the paparazzi for chronicling your weight gain/loss is no different than becoming a spokesperson for Jenny Craig or doing your own television show. What came first – the chicken or the egg? Both do taste good She put herself in a position to be constantly monitored no matter what. Yes, the tabloids are jerks, but don’t live in LA or go to restaurants that aren’t infested with paps.

*The first few episodes are clearly setting up her own weight loss program called Organic Liaison. Here’s my issue (and no, it has nothing to do with its reported ties to Scientology that Kirstie strongly denied late last week): the program isn’t proven yet. I am beyond hesitant to try something when I haven’t been shown that program participants both LOST the weight and then KEPT it off for a few years. Right now, the company’s only testimonials are of employees, friends and family who tested the products during the developmental phase. Not to be mean, Kirstie, but your children acting as testimonials to your product don’t count. But hey, you have to start somewhere, right? And organic food is such a smarter way to eat AND you can do it on the cheap if you play your cards right.

That said I wish her the best of luck with her weight loss and her new weight loss program. If the method is healthy and helps Kristie and others lose weight AND keep it off, rock on. Because at the end of the day, helping others achieve a healthy lifestyle through Kristie’s own journey is what matters the most.

You can watch the show on Sundays at 10/9c on A&E.

Photo courtesy of A&E.

2010 presented me with a nice reality check. As my husband and I were re-budgeting for the new year (he’s been out of a job for the past nine months and we were operating under the assumption he would have a job by now. Mental note for future: assume nothing) — I discovered that we spent a stupid amount of our budget on food. Like probably close to $150 A WEEK. Ridiculous, right?

Granted, a lot of that consisted of going out to eat with friends, but the point remains — no more stupid food purchases.

So when you’re trying to keep yourself in check, here are some pointers I have discovered:

1. Eat less. I’m not saying starve yourself, but I find myself not going back for seconds so I can have more leftover. What’s great about this is that I eat too fast for my own good. Because it takes about twenty minutes for your brain to realize your stomach is full, I’m not even hungry an hour later. It’s a win-win for your @fatroll and your pocketbook.
2. Plan out your meals. I hate cooking. My husband hates cooking. But yet, when I cook/bake, I really like the finished product — usually more than eating out. Another problem I would have is I would buy food to make “a” meal, and have a bunch of leftover ingredients that would go bad after a week — what a waste of good food and money. So the new plan I’ve implemented is to either make enough of a meal to feed my husband and me two more times OR come up with three different recipes for the ingredients I’ve bought. For example, I bought 1.25 pounds of chicken breasts. With one of the breasts, I added it to an organic “Hamburger Helper” like meal from Annie’s (resulting in more than 5 meals!). With another breast, I chopped it into slices, sautéed it in EVOO and have put it on top of two separate salads, and the other breast I marinated in barbeque sauce, which my husband downed for dinner. The all-natural chicken breasts (so no hormones added) costs right under $7. I have managed to get eight meals out of it, which puts it under a $1 a meal. That’s better than the McD’s $1 menu — and healthier.
3. Avoid the middle section of the grocery store. Right now, I’m trying to have about 80% of my cart come from the outer ring of the grocery store. That’s where the veggies, milk, eggs, all the perishables are located. The stuff in the middle is usually the expensive, preservative-filled crap. Bad for the wallet/bad for the @fatroll. Yeah, you can get the instant potatoes there, but they taste so gross that you can just do it yourself with a little extra time and effort.
4. Commit a day to cooking. Speaking of time and effort, one of the reasons I hated to cook is that I never had “time” to do it. Solution — make an activity out of it. Justin and my new plan of action is Sunday mid-day (when we used to go out for brunch) is now spent helping each other plan and cook our meals for the week. Yes, it does take three or four hours, but I have refrigerated fresh ingredients to last me most of the week — and there is nothing better than heating up a home-cooked meal when you get home from work and it looking awesome. Plus, I also made some freakin’ sick oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that are going to last us awhile. Make sure you reward that @fatroll!

Okay, so here is my plan in action. Because I hate eating breakfast by myself at home, I usually do it at work. AND because I love fresh salads at work, I usually make one for lunch. Here’s an example of how typical work week looks for me.

Grocery List:

• Breakfast: Organic cottage cheese (feeds me four times) @ $4
• Snack: 2 Mangos (feeds me four times) @ $.50 – $1 each
• Lunch: One bag of organic spinach @$4, one bag of organic lettuce @$4; two avocados @ $.50- $1 each (feeds me at least five lunches); organic goat cheese @ $4 (I can make it last for 8+ salads!); organic salad dressing @ $4 (That can last for 10+ salads if you use sparingly); two types of organic soup @ $2.50 each (makes about five bowls of soup); smoked salmon @ $7 (feeds about three meals); 1 chicken breast @ $2.50 (feeds for two salads)
• Total for at least ten meals and then snacks: $29 or $3.85 each (with food like salad dressing, cheese left over for the next week, so this number actually ends up being a little less)

This gives me a healthy, almost fully organic option that is cheaper than a salad at McDonalds (which runs about $4-5)

And doesn’t it look yummy?

So what do you do to keep costs down each week?

Recently, it seems that my interest has been peaked about the debate surrounding local/organic food growers and large corporations. Living in Austin, we’re pretty lucky  to have a variety of food options. From Whole Foods to HEB, no matter your price point, you can find a way to buy the goods you need. (I do recognize and have read the opposition surrounding Whole Foods and John Mackey of late – but that’s for an entirely different post)

However, I find it fascinating to learn how U.S. agriculture has changed so significantly in the last couple of decades. Earlier this week, I stumbled upon this movie on Hulu called The Future of Food. Check out the full video here.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNezTsrCY0Q]

THE FUTURE OF FOOD offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade.

Of course, when I read patent I was automatically intrigued. I am after all focusing on copyright and intellectual property for my thesis. But, in any case, it is an interesting documentary and worth the watch. Did you know there are patents for seeds held by corporations that historically pimp pesticides?

I’ve lived in several places around the world and am always flabbergasted by the sheer size of American produce when I return. Since Peru, I’ve once again become more cognizant of the produce in the States. Last Sunday, we took a shopping trip to SAM’s Club. There, I found a pomegranate the size of a softball. Odd, I thought. That can’t truly be the size of this fruit. There is clearly a trade off for mass production and freshness/quality.

Sure walking in Peru helped with the diet but it is worth noting that the food there was also fresher and “regular” in size. But, let’s be real. As much as this concerns me, I also don’t have the cash to make sure I buy only organically grown/hormone-less products. (A conundrum that plagues the poorest areas of our nation). And, according to the movie above, it would be impossible to know unless we examine produce from a genetic level.

Any tips on how to stay away from such foods and not break the bank?

I love clinging to excuses as to why I can’t lose weight. It’s hormones, it’s my husband, it’s mental, it’s genetics (I’ll save that for another day, but it involves the Sage side of the family… my mom is 118 and my grandmother on the same side is under 100… got to be the dad’s side!). Today’s excuse is a wonderful find by @fatroll follower @TommyKTse. And to be honest, it makes a bunch of sense for me (or I’m making it make sense because I’m desperately trying to figure out why I am not losing anymore weight).

The gist is this:

A recent study out of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill cites what animal studies have hinted at for years: MSG (aka monosodium glutamate) could be a factor in weight gain.The study focused on 750 Chinese men and women, ages 40-59, living in 3 rural villages in north and south China. Most of the study subjects prepared their meals at home without commercially processed foods and roughly 82 percent used MSG. Those participants who used the highest amounts of MSG had nearly 3 times the incidence of overweight as those who did not use MSG, even when physical activity, total caloric intake, and other possible explanations for body mass differences were accounted for.

Back in high school, my doctor had this theory that I was allergic to MSG. My stomach would always have an adverse reaction to eating out and this same article says that as many 30 percent of Americans have adverse reactions to MSG, including migraines and heart palpitations. The solutions involve eating organic whenever possible (check), make things from scratch (err… uncheck) and limit slow cooking because the proteins in the meat cause small amounts of this acid that makes MSG come out (I am not a big fan of the crock pot because everything comes out ruined, so check).

For me, the biggest issue is eating too much processed food. So if I stop that, maybe I will start losing weight. I’m going to give it a try this week and let you guys know how it goes.