Ok, so I cant control the situation but I managed to control my intake a LITTLE bit. I had about 5 ounces of pork tenderloin. My selection of toppings for the gilled loin were barbecue sauces that were laden with sugar so I opted for just salting the meat and enjoying it that way.

At least, I TRIED to enjoy it but a member of my family pointed out the fact that I have high blood pressure and shouldnt be having extra salt. My initial plans were dashed so I went to the refrigerator to look at my remaining options. Hmmm, how to make some plain pork taste interesting, with out salt and still remain low in calories. I found the horseradish. Turns out horseradish is on the list of high flavor, low cal/fat foods along with ginger, lemon and others. It also has a cleansing effect. It helps with other ailments like sinus problems (I am not surprised). I enjoyed the meat with gobs of horseradish on each bite. A small ironic alarm though: In my research about horseradish this morning, I found that it may raise blood pressure according to one article. Luckily I am on all kinds of blood pressure medications so I am not worried about a slight rise in blood pressure. I just want to warn anyone out there who reads this and chooses horseradish instead of salt. It may not be the best trade off but I still believe that if you are like me and have your blood pressure under control with medications there is no harm in training your body to need less salt by using whatever other substitutes are available. In the long run, I imagine this will ween one off of salt.

So that covered the meat. There was also spinach and a salad, both picked from the garden. Both of those options are not tasty without a little boost so I made some healthy flavor enhancers for each. For the salad I always insist using a home made dressing. This way you can know what ingredients are going into it. A simple dressing of extra virgin olive oil, vinegar and dijon mustard is a very healthy and tasty topping for a salad. Olive oil is quite good for you. It is what they call a "good fat". It is known to help prevent heart disease and lower cholesterol. It also is an antioxidant and can ease ulcers and gastritis. It goes so well with inside of your body that it even is thought to help with the prevention of colon cancer. Extra virgin olive oil (the oil from the very first press) is the most potent of this type of oil and should be a friend when dieting, not foe. You may have noticed that I have a tablespoon of the good stuff in my fruit smoothie recipe.

If you are making a salad dressing you may want to use apple cider vinegar as the vinegar too. It has great cleansing properties. You may have heard of the apple cider vinegar diet where I think you have to drink like a cup of the stuff before every meal...yikes! It is good for you but I am not going to ask anyone to drink cups of it. It's health benefits include a strengthened immune system, cured skin conditions and bladder stone prevention. It also is known to alleviate arthritis and gout symptoms, prevent urinary tract infections and balance high cholesterol. But the parts I care most about are that it increases metabolism, increases stamina and cures bad breath (which I need after all the garlic I eat on a diet!)

So I covered the salad but now to dress my plain, cooked spinach. Butter is what I want and it is what I can not have so I have devised what I think is a delicious, healthy alternative. I combine extra virgin olive oil and salt. (I cant give up ALL my salt!). This tricks my taste buds enough into thinking I am eating butter to satisfy me and even give me a hint of guilt which is always healthy ;)

So there was my meal. I feel pretty good about it even though I am dissappointed that I had to eat a larger meal right before I went to bed. I am staying steady at needing to lose 21.5 pounds in 85 days.

Today: a new batch of soup, more bouncing on my ball and tons of green tea.