ultrametabolism

 I think I am addicted to olive oil.  That's what I said the other night at dinner to which my husband laughed and said that was the weirdest thing he had ever heard.  Is it weird to like olive oil so much? I started really consuming it after reading Ultrametabolism.  Now I am not looking to be on a diet, although I do want to shed all of the remaining baby pounds. I just wanted to read the book since it was talked of rather highly by my sister in law. So I read it while nursing my baby in the middle of the night. And I liked what Dr. Hyman had to say about food and eating.  I agree that we should eat "real" food and not waste calories or money on food with low to no nutritional value.  The only thing that would really make his plan better would be to focus more on locally grown foods. For instance, coconut and coconut milk is a staple in his recipes, but you are hard pressed to find those produced in Wisconsin.

Another reason I have made 4 or more recipes out of Ultrametabolism is that I liked what he had to say about metabolism and the human body- I finally understand how the body works and why when I eat a lot of sugar I want to eat more sugar and then I feel badly. Does understanding lead to something here?

Anyway, I have given up dairy due to my baby's eczema issues and GI troubles. Without dairy in my diet I actually feel better- more full while eating less for example.  I have accidentally and completely intentionally consumed dairy over the last month and swear I saw spots pop up on Annika's adorable face. I can't say that dairy definitely caused the first round of horrible eczema but it cleared up as soon as I stopped eating lots of cheese, yogurt, milk, ice cream, and butter. I love dairy so this is really a sacrifice of sorts! Without butter I needed some sort of bread smear, and Dr. Hyman encourages the use of olive oil for its healthy benefits. So while my daughter was spreading butter on her daddy's homemade Italian loaf, I was dipping my slices in a bowl of olive oil- and licking my fingers clean. It's really the best when my hubby makes garlic bread now. He pours the olive oil on and shakes copious amounts of garlic salt and powder. So good.

Now I am wondering what Dr. Hyman would say if he knew we grasped onto the olive oil gravy train while also eating white bread. To me homemade Italian loaf isn't white bread, but it is made from processed wheat. There is no whole grain in those chunky loaves. We should be eating whole grains and breads that you can't squeeze with your fingers at least according to the doctor. I just don't know if I could really give it up. But then I think of this really fantastic dense rye that my hubby made and I think it could work. Olive oil would taste just as yummy drizzled on a slice of that bread is it does on the Italian loaf.

I made The Best Brownie recipe from Ultrametabolism just this afternoon. They are good. Not too sweet (no sugar in these bad boys!) and have a nice dark chocolate taste to them. The only troubling aspect is the texture; the ground pecans make for a rough feel. Still, they are a very reasonable and much healthier replacement for "real" brownies. When I think about gorging myself on sweets these days I actually have more of a steely resistance. I had some birthday cake for my daughter's birthday and on the following days until it was finally gone from our fridge and I felt just awful. I think my body was happier without the high sugar doses and dairy content. Hmm.

But really, how much can one nursing mama give up?  Dairy (butter, yogurt, cheese, ice cream)-check, check, check, check. Lots of sugar-check. Chocolate with less than 70% cacao- check.  If I ever have to give up olive oil I will be in big trouble. I can't get enough!