Is calorie monitoring worth the effort?

Honestly, I want to believe that I can control my body composition by tracking calories in and out. I may not have a great track record at this game, but it makes sense to me. 


In her book Health at Every Size, Dr. Linda Bacon says that calorie monitoring is focusing on the wrong thing. Her position is based on the simple premise that the best way to improve health is to honor your body. It supports people in adopting good health habits for the sake of health and well-being (rather than weight control).


I find this theory interesting and potentially useful, but not everyone embraces it. Fb friend Jane brought the following exchange to my attention, in which an irate reader named Ms. Harmony challenges Dr. Bacon by calling her everything but a charlatan. 


Dr Linda Bacon on calorie monitoring.


Dr Bacon's measured response to Ms Harmony's hostile question is a lesson in balance and poise. Ms Harmony is resistant and skeptical. That's commendable. She challenges the opinions of others in the quest for truth. Bravo! But Ms Harmony's spite-filled tone and method are not helpful. Rather than respond emotionally to the ad hominem attacks, Dr Bacon replies with science; not with advocacy nor opinion, but fact-based reason. She ends with an open door, inviting Ms Harmony to come back with facts if she wishes to continue the dialog. 


Masterfully done. Reason wins.

Rachel Maddow Slams GOP, Obama Administration Over Don't Ask, Don't Tell (VIDEO)

Maddox does a good job of shredding both the GOP's stated reasons for filibustering the Defense Authorization Bill and the administration's lack of leadership on this issue. 


That said, I differ on two points:

1. I do not agree with Maddox that the point of DADT is "keeping gay people out." Rather, it is designed to prevent gay people from expressing their sexual orientation. (This is also problematic.) 
2. Maddox cites public opinion polls but unfortunately does not mention polls taken from within the military which have different results. The difference in the results is not irrelevant to the issue! Many military leaders are concerned about the impact on readiness of changing policy in the midst of two wars. 

Maddox does not mention in this 12-minute spot the single most powerful comment I have heard on the issue. Adm Mike Mullen, CJCS, has courageously asserted DADT should be repealed because it forces gay service members to lie about who they are. It's not about Republicans and Democrats, or left vs right, or even gay or straight. It's about integrity.

maddow-dadt-filibuster

Gallery of Harvest Moon / Autumnal Equinox Photos

There's even s bit of Jupiter in opposition in the mix. Click here > Photo gallery

OK Go - White Knuckles - Official Video

Another OK Go video goes viral. I enjoyed this video, and I support OK Go's cause of finding homes for shelter dogs. As you watch the talented puppies and jam to the Prince-ish / Flaming Lips-y music, listen for these lyrics: 

"Nothing doesn't ever change, but nothing changes all that much."

[click and be amazed]

For Stargazers

JUPITER AT ITS BEST: Tonight, Sept. 20-21, Earth and Jupiter converge for their closest encounter in decades. The giant planet will soar across the sky at midnight, outshining everything except the Moon itself. Although big, bright Jupiter will remain close to Earth for weeks to come, tonight is the closest of all. (Via Fb friend Renee.)

Keep Moving Forward

God speaks to each of us as he makes us, 
then walks with us silently out of the night. 

These are the words we dimly hear: 

You, sent out beyond your recall, 
go to the limits of your longing. 
Embody me. 

Flare up like flame 
and make big shadows I can move in. 

Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror. 
Just keep going. No feeling is final. 
Don’t let yourself lose me. 

Nearby is the country they call life. 
You will know it by its seriousness. 

Give me your hand. 
—Rilke’s Book of Hours, I, 59

You Are the Work of a Committee

Insightful snippet from Odile W. Husband's recent interview with Elvis Costello:

OWH: What then are the craziest perceptions or greatest misconceptions people might hold about you?

EC: If you are on the stage for while, all you can hope is that these lie somewhere between the falsehood of slanders and the implausibility of compliments. 

We are all assembled from experience and circumstance and seen through the eyes of our loved ones and enemies alike. 

For all we know. Mrs. Husband, you too are the work of a committee, just a series of curiosities and enquiries, prompted with the whispers of lovers, the jealousy of rivals, the echo of your own loathing and dread or whatever else you pull out of that Hessian postal bag of yours.

http://www.elviscostello.com/#/news/Elvis+Costello+In+Conversation+With+Odile+W.+Husband+The+Epilogue/73