Im feeling all decluttered after National Zero Waste Week

What a week!

I must have been absolutely out of my mind to suggest that I decluttered my kitchen for National Zero Waste Week. Nothing like pressure eh!

When I first mentioned my plans to my husband, he threw me one of his looks, accompanied by hands on hips, warning me that surely Id got the wrong idea.  That really, I shouldnt aim to chuck so much out during a week intended to slim our bin.

Having ventured nowhere near the far corners of some of the cupboards for... er... 5 years, he had a point.  I really didnt know what I would be up against!

But look!  The overhaul of the kitchen cupboards didnt impact on our rubbish at all. 

That small bin bag, pictured above, is the sum of our landfill rubbish last week, despite getting rid of a load of stuff!

If I had attempted the declutter five years ago, it would have been a different story.  Not least because I probably wouldnt have gone to the trouble of sorting it.

These bags full of unused baking equipment and storage containers would still have probably gone to charity.

But most of this junk, now destined for the reuse ecycling skips at the Household Waste Recycling Centre would have no doubt ended up in the bin! Thankfully, these days our local facilities include containers for broken hard plastics and small electricals, which helps tremendously when youre in the midst of a blimmin good clear out!

And as for this wonder drawer of mixed tat, my impatient hand would have dumped it all in a bag and got rid of it within minutes.

Instead, I set aside an hour to sort it properly, sending some random bits of plastic off for recycling and organising the rest of the stuff so it can be easily found and used.

Even the freezer, where our leftovers historically suffer a frozen death, received a visit from the decluttering hand, which helped to salvage a sausage casserole, a packet of mince, some fish, a dozen chipolatas and some bacon rashers,  This enabled me to happily avoid the supermarket for a week, using up what we already had.  I am such a lazy defroster and rarely plan ahead, the freezer proved to come up trumps as a right little goldmine during Zero Waste Week.  My aim now is to gradually work through the rest of the contents and relieve more space so that I can use it more efficiently.

But did I really achieve my overall aims last week?

Yes! I believe I did!  Working my way through this.

And creating much needed space in the cupboards to achieve this!

What pleases me most is that I am finally in control of the contents of my kitchen.  It took five days of sorting and clearing and no area has been left untouched. What helped me along were the wise words of a friend who reminded me that unwanted stuff left at the back of cupboards was just as wasteful as if it had been dumped into landfill. I am now confident that everything that I have kept will be put to good use. All the unused clutter has been rehomed and will no longer be wasted.

Of course my key aim was to create much longed-for space, so that I can put my creative culinary skills to good use again and be far better at avoiding food waste.

I can already see the return of the old me and I have been busy cooking up the random contents found lurking in the fridgefreezer. And having rediscovered a whole cupboard of flour to use up, benefiting from that space once more has really proved to be the icing on the cake!

I now wonder which room I should tackle next!

So thank you to everyone who left supportive comments as well as all the Twitter crew who cheered me along during the week. 

As well as having my head firmly in the kitchen cupboards, I have also been busy waving the flag locally in Suffolk for National Zero Waste Week.  Huge thanks to BBC Radio Suffolks Mark Murphy and James Hazell for giving me some much appreciated airtime.  And a major round of applause to Barry Peters, the editor of the Bury Free Press, for taking up the Rubbish Diet Challenge and doing a marvellous job for his own Zero Waste Week.

Well done to MyZeroWaste for an amazing awareness campaign for 2012. I was proud to support it.  For more information about what else was going on around the country, visit www,myzerowaste.com.

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Its becoming crunch time and Im scared

Okay, so remember when I said I am part of my BFFs wedding in August.  Well, I ordered the dress with a size 30 waist...and Im currently at 36" in my waist.

The dress - but with a champagne sash - d-gorgeous!

$*%&!!

I have been so bad with my diet over the last month - just eating what I want and my weight be damned.

So, tomorrow Ill be hauling my butt to the clinic for a marathon 30 lb weight-loss challenge to ensure I fit into my bloody beautiful dress.  No more BBQ, wine (which given my Canada Day pre-festivities party yesterday, I dont need the hangover!) or eating with abandon.  Im back on strict and going to look hot for that wedding.

If anyone is joining a clinic, feel free to mention my name and clinic (Bank/LEsplanade in Ottawa) - Im happy to get a free week to help me through the financial hump and kick-start my motivation!

Cheers - and here comes the bride - smaid.

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Im fat and want to lose weight does my provincial health care system or employer care that Im trying to get healthy

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When I started Dr. Bernstein, I knew the cost of the program. If youve read my other posts, I have no problem rationalizing why I support paying the $150 per week for the program (since I was paying the same amount per week ingesting fatty foods and imbibing in sugar-laden booze and pop.)

When you register, the clinic tells you that your private employer health insurance, or your province, might cover your costs.

All excited, I checked with my plan. Unfortunately, in 2006, my health plan decided cancel covering supplementary injections, though it had provided for it previously.

Shoot - three years too late...

This poses a theoretical debate in my mind.

As we Canadians and Americans expand our girth exponentially every year, and head to our graves in highest numbers due to heart disease (caused in large part by our horrid diets) we are implored by health officials, government promotional campaigns, education systems and a multi-billion dollar consumer industry, to lead lives of good health and practice prevention.

Eat our balanced meals from the Canadian Food Guide they say - the good balance of foods. Just dont look too intently at the rest of the contents such as MSG, preservatives, sugar, sodium and fat levels...

Here I am, for the benefit of my health, investing a sizeable sum in active weight loss and future health prevention activities and education.

Doesnt my provincial government and employer care?

Will I be able to deduct my expenditures in my annual tax return as a medical expense? I dont know yet, but Ill certainly be including it for my accountant to scrutinize.

Can I be reimbursed from my employers health plan? No - not anymore. Not for a plan that over the course of my 12 years with the same employer, and all the premiums I have paid, would have easily paid for the total cost of the program a few times over.

And would I support our public health care plan to cover these costs? Youre darn right I would. To support mine, my neighbours, my familys and my colleagues efforts to get healthier and lead more productive lives.

You cant tell me that by investing in weight loss programs and medically supervised supplements, that the productivity of our provincial and Canadian workforce isnt a good investment!

I guess for employers they dont care that I may have missed work and taken sick leave or extended medical leave for, upon reflection, what were certainly weight-induced illnesses such as:

• back pain
• gastrointestinal flare-ups
• totally lethargic and lack of energy
• a leave of absence for 3 months due to depression

Dr. Bernstein, a Canadian physician, supports government monitoring of weight loss programs - even his own.

Like him, I agree that like provincial and territorial governments in Canada should focus less on the debate to scrutinize programs, but support the public who are taking an active step forward in reaching health targets that are advocated in public policy, espoused in public outreach campaigns, and envisioned in long-term strategic health objectives.

For those of us taking an active step to improve our current and future health, and paying the hefty provincial and private premiums for the health insurance and medical plans, I expect this to be covered!

I was incensed to learn that I could receive a variety of other medical services and prosthetics that, in all likelihood, I will never need to access. However, for a service that has obvious immediate and long-term benefits, I cannot get any relief.

Now heres an issue that Ill be taking up with my union.

Better yet - heres the basis for a good public policy and program. I could easily draft up a logic model, policy framework, grant and contribution program guideline and results-based accountability framework on this one....

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Im on my way!

What a thrill to see on Friday that Im back to a solid 142 - yahoo!  I was quite perturbed last week with the plateau of 146...I just wasnt budging.

Ive found for me, that Im fine with protein in the morning and lunch, but I cant have it at night.  If I do, it seems to slow progress down.

So, I have my Proti Vanilla shake with 5 oz strawberries in the morning; sometimes have a Bon Matin slice of NoFat/No Sugar whole wheat bread (very similar to my husbands Bon Matin 14 grain bread) which is half the calories of my husbands brand.  My full slice ties me over - or

Ill save it for lunch with my 100gr PC honey maple turkey.

For supper, Ill load up on the veggies - a nice 16oz heap of zuccini, bean sprouts, mushrooms (enoki are my current fav), celery, broccoli and cauliflower with soya sauce, fresh garlic and ginger.  Yum!!  A heaping flavourful plate of goodness.

I must say, on Tune Up, and having been on the program before, Im not too worried about the processed foods/salt factor as much this time.  Though I know its definitely slowing down the rate of loss, I am wanting the flavour.  However, its also "that" time of the month too, so it could just be my biological craving for the menstrual salt lick...

I have 135 as my two week goal.  Doctors appointment is Monday, and measurements on Wednesday. 

Heres to Week 3 on Tune Up!

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