Summer Body Prep Time
This week culminates with the first outdoor holiday of the summer season, and for many of us, the first family cook-out in over a year. Next week I’m going to review a study on the benefits of intermittent fasting, but I want to challenge you to mimic part of the study before the weekend to see how you do. Here’s the task.
For any two consecutive days, cap your eating at 1,200 calories. If you can get by on 1,000 calories, great, but no more than 1,200 and no fewer than 800. The second part is to make them vegan days as well. Don’t think only salads and carrot sticks: beans, legumes, nuts, root vegetables, and every other vegetable and fruit you can think of as well as whole grains. Two days—that’s all. Then you can resume your normal eating if you want. That will give you at least part of experience of the subjects in the intermittent fasting study I’ll review.
The irises in the photo are from our yard. Two years ago, we dug up entire iris beds and replanted them until we ran out of space. This year, they produced more flowers than ever, and they’re just beginning; the ones pictured are hand-me-down yellow ones we got from Paula’s dad and another called “Red at Night.” There are more colors to come, including an electric blue called “Blue Suede Shoes.”
All those flowers don’t happen by accident; neither does a healthier and fitter body. It takes work and it may take a while to see the benefits, just like the irises. Take the vegan-fast challenge and see how you do. Just remember: no lower than 800 calories and no more than 1,200. It will give you a sense of how the subjects initially felt in the study on fasting, the microbiome, and blood pressure.
Paula and I are going to spend this week putting flowers in containers, so this is the only Memo this week. Enjoy the outdoors and if you’re traveling, be safe. See you next week.
What are you prepared to do today?
