When I was a kid, asparagus was one of those veggies I just knew I wouldn’t like without even trying it.  When I finally did try fresh asparagus, I couldn’t believe I’d missed out on it for so long.  Here is a very quick and very simple recipe that anyone can prepare! (Recipe courtesy of Mayo Clinic)

Serves 6
Ingredients
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 pounds fresh asparagus, woody ends removed and cut into 1 1/2-inch lengths

Directions
In a large saucepan, heat the water, sugar and soy sauce over high heat. Cook until boiling, and then add the asparagus. Reduce heat to low and simmer until the asparagus is tender-crisp, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Transfer to a serving dish and serve immediately.

Nutritional Analysis(per serving)
Calories 26
Cholesterol 0 mg
Protein 3 g
Sodium 98 mg
Carbohydrate 5 g
Fiber 2 g
Total fat 0 g
Potassium 229 mg
Saturated fat 0 g
Calcium 29 mg
Monounsaturated fat 0 g

It’s not about what you eat, it’s about why you eat.

Have you ever heard this before?  I’m teaching a Wednesday night class at my Church right now called “Lose It For Life” (LIFL) for the second time and absolutely buy into the philosophy of the author, Steve Arterburn.

I’ve posted before about using root cause analysis to find and eliminate (seek and destroy) the underlying issues for your weight issues.  The LIFL approach, and others like it, is much along the same lines but also includes spiritual healing to help physical and emotional healing.

For most, willpower alone just isn’t enough.  If it were as easy as identifying the underlying issue and just willing it into non-existence, it would be great!  However, for the vast majority, this ends up being an exercise in futility.

Ok, I’m confused.  For those that know me that really isn’t news.  However, this is different than my normal state of confusion. 

First we had Jared.  While I’m sure Jared is a nice guy, he isn’t exactly considered a sex symbol.  He lost 245 pounds on the “Subway Diet” which is an amazing accomplishment.  He did it in one year by eating two Subway subs every day and exercising.

Subway made a lot of money off of Jared by becoming known as a “healthy alternative” to fast food.  It was a winning formula!  In a country with an obesity problem like we have in the US, anything that gives a glimmer of hope that we won’t have to alter our lifestyles dramatically and still lose weight is sure to catch on.

You could almost hear the clock ticking while waiting for the next “Jared” to burst onto the scene.  We had to wait a while but if history serves as any indicator, we probably have the next Jared in the form of Christine.