I’ve been struggling to lose weight for years and the most I could manage despite a serious diet and working out with a personal trainer is five pounds.

It the last three weeks I’ve somehow managed to lose another five pounds without really working at it. Probably doesn’t hurt that I have no appetite (either because of my mood or the Wellbutrin or both) and I’ve been relying on coffee as breakfast.

I didn’t eat much this weekend either, so hopefully Cymbalta is at least weight neutral (I started taking it Thursday). I probably still have Wellbutrin in my system at this point.

I felt listless the entire weekend, but no crying spells until this morning on the bus to work. I really wish those would go away.

According to today’s Globe and Mail, the debate over what’s better for you, margarine or butter, continues.

In short, margarine has improved so it doesn’t look like radioactive sludge that glows in the dark. And it’s full of Omega-3s, but not the ones from fish.

Butter is full of saturated fat, but maybe saturated fat is not as bad as we once thought it was. The article doesn’t really come up with a verdict, but I think if I have a choice between something that is made naturally and something is made from a process, I’m going with the natural option.

A little bit of butter is not going to kill you.

I’m officially in week four of my diet and exercise regime. My goal was to stick to my meal plans and get to the gym five times a week.

I had a total of three cheat days diet-wise and I only hit the gym four times a week with some additional walking home from work, but I would say I was successful and for once I can actually proclaim I’ve hit week four.

Despite this success, I feel lousy. Halfway through the three-week window I was feeling really run-down, as if I wasn’t treating my sleep apnea, except that my hunger was under control. (Before treating my sleep apnea, I was hungry all of the time for carbs and junk food).

My doctor could offer no explanation since a nutrient screen showed no deficiencies and my thyroid is fine. She suggested it was possibly mood-related and that seeing a nutritionist might help, even though she reviewed my eating habits and agreed I was on course.

In the meantime, I’ve consulted friends who work out, taught boot camps, as well as a colleague who is studying natural medicine part-time and got differing viewpoints on the issue. About half say it’s natural to feel poorly when you ramp your exercise routine. The other half say I should feel good because I am active.

At my last session with my trainer, he created a list of recommendations. One was a reminder to get lots of protein. I always assumed I was getting enough protein because I eat a lot of meat. But with no other explanation apparent as to the cause of my lethargy, I decided to double check.

Turns out I need a lot of protein. At my age with my weight level and build I need about 100g a day if I’m sedentary and about 125g a day if I’m really active, and I would say going to the gym five times a week makes me officially very active. And based on a review of my diet, I was lucky to hit half my required protein intake.

Since Friday I have been trying to up my protein intake. I have protein shakes and bars – without them, I wouldn’t be able to hit my target, even with a protein-rich menu. I am hoping this is the missing piece to the puzzle. Already today I’ve got half of my daily protein requirement thanks to a breakfast sandwich, a tuna sandwich and two protein bars. I’ll make a protein shake after my workout tonight and hopefully hit my mark with my dinner.

I really hope this is the answer.

I’ve never been the biggest fan of fruits and vegetables. Eating them as a snack in particular has never come naturally to me, but I’m trying to change that. And while I encounter lots of debate around what’s the appropriate intake of meat and dairy or mix of carb, fat and protein, getting more fruits and vegetables is a no-brainer that everyone seems to agree upon.

Since I’m particular about the ripeness of my fruit, I often buy one piece at a time on a daily basis rather than a week’s worth of say bananas – I don’t like mine overly ripe. For example, I picked up two bananas and some fresh cut berries with some sushi at the grocery store for lunch. Berries are expensive, but I love them and never tire of them so I think it’s worth the price.

If you don’t naturally take to vegetables and fruit, here are some ideas on how to up your intake:

13 Ways to Add Fruits and Vegetables to Your Diet

This past long weekend was not a great one for my diet. Now that summer is unofficially over and it’s back to business / school I am renewing my efforts to control calorie intake with vigour.

I am making two commitments this week: Eating up what’s in my freezer and cupboards and not eating anything after dinner.

The first commitment includes frozen dinners and canned soup. By doing this, food does not go to waste, even the food I would prefer to avoid (e.g. processed and packaged meals), and I save some money.  The second commitment came as a suggestion from an old friend of mine I saw on the weekend. He said he lost weight in part by just refusing to give in to the cravings for something after dinner, which he found difficult at first, but he realized there was no reason he should be hungry after a proper meal at dinner time.

This second commitment will be a challenge for me as I am night owl and the later I stay up the more likely I will want to snack. So I suppose a third commitment will be going to bed earlier. Not snacking at night will be a major achievement I think. The recent success with the CPAP should help me with proper bedtimes I hope.

I’ve been spending too much money eating breakfast and lunch out. Sometimes those meals are healthy, sometimes they’re not. Andafter reviewing my financial priorities and obligations, I realize I have a pretty decent amount of disposal income, and perhaps I should dispose less of it.

As result, my new strategy will hopefully help my health and my wallet. On the weekend I went shopping and filled my cupboards and fridge with real food – unprocessed meats, vegetables and fruits. I will now make dinner at home every night and be sure to have leftovers for lunch the next day.

Yesterday for lunch I had a leftover pork chop with steamed rice, broccoli and cheese sauce. Today it’s leftover spaghetti with a vegetarian sauce.

In the past, I have relied on processed / prepackaged foods or food courts for my lunches. Hopefully this will be better in the long run financially and nutritionally.

The Onion, America’s Finest News Source, has been focusing on food stories, some new, some classic. I couldn’t resist posting this video, since it’s something I think on some level fast food joints have actually considered because it’s always been about eating more of their crap more easily.

New Wearable Feedbags Let Americans Eat More, Move Less

I say this without irony or sarcasm for a change.

I like what Andrea the Gastronaut has to say about the Pepsi contract renewal by the Toronto District School Board:

What the…? As a healthy living advocate and someone who reads the books (I’ve been working through Marion Nestle’s Food Politics for about a month and its always at the front of my consciousness) and watches the films, this really gets me going. The approval of aspartame by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was followed by a retraction based on demonstrated public concern over the fact that it produced brain tumors in rats!Andrea the Gastronaut, Jun 2009

This week the Globe and Mail has been running a feature on sodium. The premise is that Canadians eat way too much salt and that there is sodium in foods we wouldn’t expect to have any at all.

I’ve never really worried about sodium because my blood pressure is fine. That’s my logic anyway. High cholesterol has always been my concern and my regular gym regime has been enough to get that under control.

The real question I have is who decides what our recommended intake of anything is and how do they decide? News articles allude to “recommended intake” of all sorts of things all of the time – calories, fat, sugar caffeine and sodium. The recommendation for the latter is 1,500 mg. Why? If so many people struggle to meet that target maybe it’s because we can handle more sodium. Or it’s because we rely on it too much. I’m no expert.

I only ever salt water when I boil it. I never salt food above and beyond what’s already in it.