"Doughnuts..... auuuuggghhh"

You'd think with all this obsessing about junk food I'd be a blimp, but I've managed to *loose* about 7 pounds in the last 3 weeks.

How, you may ask?

Well, in honor of Jo's Midlife Crisis I thought it was high time to get braces.

Yep, 45 years old, teetering on the brink of menopause, I get freakin' braces. Just on my lower teeth, but it's enought to make chewing uncomfortable and eating has become tedious. Most junk food is pretty much out the window for the duration (about 12 months with any luck). I'm trying to eat properly, and making sure I take my vitamins, but I'm eating so slowly and carefully that my total intake has gone down a lot. Next time I go to my orthodontist I'll tell her she might want to consider marketing braces as a sure-fire diet plan

Straying marginally back to the topic at hand, the hardest adjustment has been getting enough to eat while I'm riding ! Ordinarily I'd pack some payday bars & bagels, but caramel and nuts are at the very top of the 'don't even think about it' list, and basically anything chewy is out the window. So it's back to bananas . I've actually gotten to the point where I can deal with soft bagels again, but I have to tear off tiny bits and swig lots of water so I can mush them as much as chew them (ewwww sorry). So I'm relying a lot more on the energy drinks (Cytomax) and gels like Clif Shots & Gu to make sure I get enough in me so I don't bonk.

I came precariously close to bonking on a 65 mile ride Lee & I went on last week - it was nearly dead flat but we hit a bit of headwind, and I didn't realize until nearly too late that I wasn't eating enough. So I'm packing the Cytomax and the gels now. Bleah.