chadgard Member

Within that framework, really, anything you do is going to be better than nothing. I'd probably look at something that can give you multiple benefits on the time. For example, running for me. It was a huge surprise that I actually enjoy it, of course, but I do. So, when I go for a run, I get several benefits: improved…

I can certainly relate to your dilemma. I don't have kids, but I teach at a boarding school. The job is 7 days a week, with 12 hour days being the easy ones, 16 normal, and 20's hit a couple of times a week, and you have to do all of your grading and prep work outside of that. In addition, I run a small organic farm - 2…

There are all sorts of good examples listed above, most of which I love. I make buckwheat pancakes, and my favorite topping is somewhat frozen blueberries, toasted pecans, shaved dark chocolate, and maple syrup. mmmmmmmm. But I most frequently just use maple syrup. I've got some friends who prefer to top their pancakes…

My favorite whole wheat bread is James Beard's "Cracked Wheat Bread." It's in his book Beard on Bread, and easily found on the internet. I substitute sorghum instead of molasses. It's not particularly low calorie, but it is very good, and has a good shelf life. Beyond that, you can do a lot of experimenting around the…

I recommend the book "Home CheeseMaking," by Ricki whose last name I cannot remember, but she's the founder of New England Cheesemaking. It's a great introduction to making cheese at home. I mostly make mozzarella, neufchatel, ricotta, yogurt, and marscapone, as I don't have a press or a good place to age cheeses....…

The type of pesticides, and the philosophy behind their use. An organic farmer -should- only use pesticides once there is an actual problem, and at the minimum use possible to achieve the needed reduction in damage. Conventional farming takes a prophylactic approach, and sprays pesticides before any economic damage occurs,…

My plan would be support traditional, diversified farming methods and local and regional food systems. Traditional farming methods are easier to do organically because the reasons one needs to use GMOs and toxic chemicals all arise from large scale monoculture farming methods. Given that those methods also produce less…

You might suggest to your prefered produce vendors that they look into Certified Naturally Grown. It is based on the original organic standards, but the standards have actually become more stringent for CNG, while a lot of the more difficult criteria to meet have been reduced for USDA Organic. So it's actually a little…

Additionally, taking an egg from a chicken is not child abduction, unless a woman having her period each month is having an abortion. A wild/feral chicken will lay eggs fairly regularly, regardless of whether she's even ever seen a rooster, and if she hasn't, those eggs could never produce a chick. And, most eggs she lays…

For what it's worth, nicotine is just as toxic to bees and other polinators as neonicitinoid pesticides like clothianadin. Using tobacco tea sprays is also prohibited illegal in many places. Also, tobacco (at least the nicotine sulfate "tobacco dust") is on the prohibited materials list for organic farmers.…

I'm a new runner as well. Injured my knee in high school, orthopedist said to do as little on it as possible, 'cause it will never heal. Orthopedist died. New orthopedist says knee will never heal, but consider running to strengthen connective tissue and supporting muscle so it doesn't deteriorate further. I like the new…

Some mis-information and vocab issues there... First off, the ability to wash off a pesticide is not determined by whether or not it is permitted organically. That's more an issue of whether or not it's water soluble if it's an applied pesticide. Of course, a systemic pesticide (which isn't available organically) can't be…

Then, when you say traditional farming methods don't produce as much per acre than large scale gmo/chemical agriculture, you are comparing apples to oranges just as much as I am. Because traditional farming methods do not grow large monocultures, if you try to say growing a large monoculture of a particular crop using the…

There is a lot of similar anecdotal evidence from throughout the world, but, alas, I'm not aware of any published studies. Most of the studies that try to compare conventional farming to organic follow the typical scientific principle of having only one independent variable. Thus, it typically means they plant large areas…

Wanted to have some data to back up my BS claim that would be much more equivalent than some of the published studies. So here we go. 112 acre field across the ditch from my organic farm, farmed by Jeff, vs. 2.5 acres in veggie production on my farm. 2012. Some Background: It was the worst drought in 62 years. Jeff had put…

Let me quote a conversation from two days ago: Me: Hey, Larry. Saw you spraying yet again yesterday, and you haven't even planted yet. Whatchagonna plant in that field this year? Larry: Popcorn Me: Really? Two years in a row? Larry: I got a 10 year lease. I'm going to plant popcorn until the lease is up. Longer if I can…

In general, i agree that arbitrarily banning things is bad. It merely forces people to comply with someone else's conclusions about an issue. However, in some cases with GMOs, allowing them with no restrictions, which is the current status quo, is de facto arbitrarily banning non-GMOs. For example, GM salmon. Studies by…

Yes, indeed. Everyone tries to make data match their view, particularly lobby groups. One always hopes that he looks at the data first, then makes a decision. In truth, I imagine we all fail at that more than we would like to admit. Throw on top of that piles of conflicting studies on a topic, and it can get overwhelming -…

The second article is blocked by the firewall (I'm at work, and teach at a boarding school. Sometimes there's no telling what will get blocked). But I should have been more specific. I've seen similar meta-studies to the one in the first link (which I admit to just skimming - have to teach in just a minute), and they have…

Campylobacter contamination comes from food processing, not agricultural methods, so it is irrelevant. Why is it mentioned here? Meanwhile: Limitation: Studies were heterogeneous and limited in number, and publication bias may be present. Conclusion: The published literature lacks strong evidence that organic foods are…

Actually, on a per acre basis, organic and traditional farming methods produce more food than modern agricultural techniques. And only one crop in one year of a GMO crop (if I remember correctly, it was a weevil-resistant corn, and it was only 1 year out of 7 in the study) outyielded a previously-available…

There is a current lack of evidence that GMOs are healthy. There is a growing body of evidence that there needs to be more study on the impacts of GMOs, but we're rapidly passing a tipping point where if we're wrong about them being safe, we won't be able to go back. It's Monsanto's stated goal to have their patented genes…

cyanoacrylate glue (ie, superglue) was actually developed for surgical purposes, and is often used for that purpose. Not sure it would be safe for the controler, but imagine it would be. It would be safe for his skin. and, really, if it ruins the controller, what's the loss? Maybe he spends some time with you instead of…

Lots of good advice on here. Just a couple of additional thoughts: 1- as many others have said, you really should raise your fat and protein intake. In as much as many foods higher in fat and protein are also higher in calories, focusing on that could likely go a long way to also raising your total calorie intake (as more…

German chocolate (though not all stores have it), or banana split made with chocolate ice cream...

In addition to the day job, we run a Certified Naturally Grown farm. The veggie garden is about 2.5 acres, with a separate dedicated salad green garden that is 60x96 feet. This year we're growing 107 different varieties of veggies, with many on the Slow Food Ark of Taste and/or endangered varieties. Outside of that, we…

Starting weight: 270 lbs Starting date: 27 December, 2012 Current Weight: 244.3 lbs Calories/day: Varies widely. My activity level varies as much as 2000 calories on a day that's busy at work, and on the farm (I run a small organic farm), and is a hard workout day vs. a day that's more computer driven at work, frozen on…

I prefer MapMyRun - it seems to have a larger local user base, I like the interface more, and it's nicer for tracking cycling. But it doesn't sync with as many of the other apps I use, which is more important to me, so I use RunKeeper...

I think we need to back up a bit here and look at things in a more basic way. I'd like to hit several points individually: First off, you want to run a 5k to test a theory. Let's start there. What is the theory? Why is running a 5K your chosen method of testing it? Is there another way to test your theory? Second, you have…

The best running shoes are the ones that fit. I third (fourth? whatever) the suggestion of going to your local running store. In my case, that entailed a 90 minute drive each way. But I couldn't believe the difference the right shoes made! The folks at my "local" store spent well over an hour fitting me for shoes,…