Not dead yet. 1 week after the end of the #BrewDiet

 

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="240" caption="Diet time by Simon James on Flickr"][/caption]

It's been a full week after the end of the #BrewDiet. You'll recall that's when I spent the month of October subsisting on sausage and beer. Yes, I'm serious. You're probably wondering one of the following:

Have you fallen off the wagon yet?

What do you mean, yet? Dick. But no, I'm not. Just hopped off the home scales. They read the same thing they did last week. The trick is portion control. And that I want to keep in mind. Always.

I bet you were sick and tired of beer and sausage, huh?

Not in the least. In fact, I'm continuing to make beer a big part of my diet. Once you get accustomed to having a beer for breakfast, it's kinda hard to go without. I've been to two beer-centric events since the end of the diet, including the fantastic RAREaffair™ put on by The Beer for Brains Foundation. Not just the best beer event I've ever attended. It might have been the best event ever.

I'm still eating sausage, though not exclusively. Now I'm experimenting with different combinations. Like madras lentils and beer-braised bratwurst. Exquisite!

What was the first thing you ate after the #BrewDiet was over?

A single piece of pizza from Otto Pizza. Very tasty. And I was full afterward.

How screwed up are your liver enzymes and cholesterol?

Not in the least. My doctor finally got off his ass found time in his busy schedule to write a blog post from the final time I saw him. He says:

... his triglyceride level dropped by half, his cholesterol dropped by a third, and his “good” cholesterol increased.  There was never an increase or a blip in any of the liver enzymes.  His fat mass dropped, the only non-fat mass of his that decreased was that tissue associated with and supporting the fat mass (I know, sounds complicated).  His muscle mass maintained itself.

You'll want to read the whole piece, as Terry takes a scientific look at some conventional wisdom we have about weight loss.

So... what's next?

I keep on keepin' on. Losing weight is easy. Keeping it off for the long term not so much. So I'm trying to keep it up. And I'm also working on some extensions of the experience. Maybe a book. Maybe a presentation or two. Maybe more things than that.

I'll check in from time to time with progress. Thanks for playing along at home!

Related articles

• Final exam results of the #BrewDiet (funanymore.com)
• First support, then rejection of #BrewDiet (funanymore.com)
• #BrewDiet: The Beginning (funanymore.com)

Eye to the future of the #BrewDiet

 

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="180" caption="Free Beer Tomorrow by Infrogmation of New Orleans"][/caption]

After today, there will be five more entries chronicling my month-long experiment of eating sausage and drinking beer. The end, as they say, is neigh.

At this point, it's a foregone conclusion that I'll finish. It's not been challenging since October 6th. That was a Very Bad Day. But now, my body has completely adapted and continues to shed weight. More importantly, FAT. Hell, look at my daily intake below! Two sausages and four beers? That's an incredibly low calorie count.

So what's next? Do I keep going, finding the equilibrium point? I can't continue to lose weight on this diet. There exists a point of diminishing returns. If not, I'd be below my birth weight by next Thanksgiving! (Do the math).

Or do I stick with the low-volume eating (call it caloric restriction if you like), adding in foods I've missed, like pizza. But instead of a whole pie (not all that uncommon previously), have only a slice? But will I be able to keep up the protein level that keeps my doctor grinning? Oh, and my muscle tissue from not being devoured for nourishment.

Maybe I keep the beer intake and mix in the idea of small portions, to see what happens? Do I switch over to scotch? Sake? Maybe mixed drinks of equal impact?

It's a damned fine question. And one I guess I'd better figure out in the next five days, huh?

Here's what I did on my #BrewDiet today:

• Breakfast was a Clementine by Clown Shoes. Very tangerine-y
• For lunch, a Brother David's Triple Abbey Style Ale by Anderson Valley Brewing Company and the remainders of my sausage/curry medley from last night
• Dinner was another Italian sausage from Costco and a 471 Small Batch IPA by Breckenridge Brewery, which you may count as two as it was a bomber

Here's to tomorrow!

Related articles

• Losing never felt so good on the #BrewDiet (funanymore.com)
• Angry #BrewDiet Day 6 (funanymore.com)
• "Your diet would never work for me" (funanymore.com)

Death of a #BrewDieter

No, it wasn't a literal death. And no, it wasn't me!

But tonight, I was saddened to see this tweet by fellow ex-#BrewDiet follower, Charlie the Beer Guy:

Charlie hit the wall later in the process than I. He also had arguably a much more difficult challenge. He's in a profession rhymes with "rule leacher", and they rather frown on day-drinking. So he didn't, which reduced the number of hours he had to consume 6-8 beers. So it is with a heavy heart that we bid Charlie adieu. Guess I'll just have to bike over to his place and help him get rid of all those extra beers!

Me? I'm doing great! Still very up from my doctors appointment, and I've seen a sneak preview of the documentary video that's being assembled  by the fantastic April Simpson. She's made of awesome, so it's made of a similar element! We'll be adding more clips, so I can't show you the final product just yet. But trust me, you're going to love it!

I took another blood test today at about the halfway mark of this month. Terry said my pre-diet levels looked good. I'm not sharing them just yet because I want this set -- and maybe a post-diet set -- to compare them with. By themselves, some uneducated asshole would jump in and start arguing why this number is high and that number is low... and I want to avoid that bullshit. We're interested in a change over time, not what any single reference point looks like. That's why I've been doing weekly check-ins on the weight, fat mass, etc.. When it's time, we'll talk blood serum levels.

For now? It's time for today's stats, again courtesy of Untappd:

• Trying a little  Coconut Cream Stout by Battered Boar Brewing Company for breakfast! Way over-carbonated, but very tasty in the AM!
• Lunch was a kielbasa and a Pale Ale by Stone Brewing Co., possibly the only Stone I'd not yet checked into!
• My late dinner was a hot Italian sausage and an Old Monkeyshine by Nimbus Brewing
• Tonight's nightcap was provided by Mandy, who shared with me one of her favorites, a Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel by Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan. You can see the note she wrote me as the image that accompanies this post!

That's it. A few loose ends to tie up, and I'm calling it a night. A low calorie day, really. But I'm plenty full!

Related articles

• Losing never felt so good on the #BrewDiet (funanymore.com)
• Boundary Bay Brewing gets it right on a #BrewDiet (funanymore.com)
• First support, then rejection of #BrewDiet (funanymore.com)

I'll see your Vienna Sausage and raise it a Tapatio on #BrewDiet

I'm marking today's #BrewDiet in the WIN column. Loads of things to do, and all of them done smashingly well, fueled on nothing but beer and sausage.

The highlight of the day had to be Ruth's I-passed-the-bar celebration where her mom made me a special sausage dish... by opening up me a can of Vienna sausages! They paired nicely with some Tapatio hot sauce, oddly enough.

The next two days will be a bit of challenge. I've got a conference to attend tomorrow and clients to entertain the day after that. Expect massive smuggling to get me through the coming days!

Also, I check in with The Good Doctor tomorrow, so I'll report back on my (or rather his) findings. Here's how today shook out:

• Breakfast was a American Amber Ale by Rogue Brewery
• Lunch was a G'Knight by Oskar Blues Brewery and the remains of the maple sausage
• Started Ruth's party with an Anchor Steam Beer by Anchor Brewing Company to wash down the Vienna sausage
• Ended the party with BridgePort India Pale Ale (IPA) by BridgePort Brewing Co.
• Capped my evening with 1/2 a sausage and a bomber of  Southern Hemisphere Harvest Fresh Hop Ale by Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Great stuff!

 

Related articles

• #BrewDiet Day 1 Recap (funanymore.com)
• Return of the #BrewDieter (funanymore.com)

#BrewDiet Day 1 Recap

Well that was pretty easy. This is going to be a piece of cake!¹

Today was rather busy. I had to fill in for a talk Jeff Moriarty was supposed to give. But he needed a vacation. From not having a job. Whatever. Then my physician decided I needed to come drink his beer and eat reindeer sausage at his house. Fine, I'll do it. And finally, there was the sneaking in of my dinner beer to the theater. Which I didn't drink because I was watching Contagion. Sorta spoiled my appetite. And desire to touch anyone. Or anything. Ever.

But yes, a good day. On to the digits:

• Beer 1: Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse by Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu
• Beer 2: Dale's Pale Ale by Oskar Blues Brewery, accompanied by half a mild Italian sausage. Protein, FTW!
• Beer 3: Porter Czarny Boss / Black BOSS Porter by BOSS Browar Witnica S.A. courtesy of Dr. Terry Simpson & his lovely wife April. Oh, and their 1 year old, JJ. Fantastic people.
• Beer 4: Artisan Golden Ale by Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, also courtesy of Dr. & Mrs., with a reindeer sausage. No, not a half. The whole damned thing. Because it was made of awesome. And Rudolph.
• Beer 5: Calico Amber Ale by Ballast Point Brewing

According to MyFitnessPal, that was just under 1600 calories, which is about 100 shy of my goal. Great! I'll bank it for tomorrow when I'm meeting beer judge and home brewer Thomas Vincent and his new bride Kris up in Sedona. Rumor has it there are presents. For me!

And don't forget, you can follow along with my beer drinking as-it-happens the entire #BrewDiet month on Twitter and Facebook. And yes, you can support my cause by sending me the two things I need this month. Sausage and craft beer!

 

^{1 - Those are what we call "famous last words". Ask you parents.}

 

Related articles

• #BrewDiet: The Beginning (funanymore.com)
• Beer and sausage for a month? Are you nuts? (funanymore.com)

The realities of compatability with #BrewDiet and a day job

The reality of #BrewDiet hit a few people at the office a little harder today. A typical exchange went like this:

Really, you're not just drinking beer and eating sausage the whole month, are you?

No, really. You're not just drinking beer and eating sausage the whole month.

No, I'm serious. You really are not just drinking beer and eating sausage the whole month.

No, you're not.

Er... yes I am. I fought a little misconception at the day-job today. We have an alcohol policy (throw back to the Mad Men-esque years of my current profession) and I'm willing to follow it to the letter. I reminded them that it's not all that unusual for me to have a beer (or two) at lunch  and I manage to get through the afternoon just fine. This will be just like that. Only I'll have a beer before I get to work. See? Virtually no difference at all.

The team I manage is going to do their own little play-along, documenting my mood and attitude toward them as the month progresses. I think that's an excellent data point to have! But being the cut-ups that they are, I fully expect to have surreptitiously filmed videos appearing, in some mocumentary of what it was like to work under The Monster Who Only Drank Beer and Ate Sausage For a Month. That's OK, kids... bring it!

#BrewDiet is going to be awesome. You can be awesome and contribute some of your local fare -- that's quality craft beer or fantastic sausages -- if you want to  get involved. You can also follow my beer-as-it-happens antics via Untappd. And of course, I'll keep blogging, tweeting and Facebooking the whole thing as it unfurls.

Related articles

• First support, then rejection of #BrewDiet (funanymore.com)
• Beer and sausage for a month? Are you nuts? (funanymore.com)
• #BrewDiet: The Beginning (funanymore.com)