Pass the Salt.............. Please!

I had a routine checkup about a week ago and underwent a cardiac stress test. They shot me full of radioactive stuff and then did an echocardiogram and treadmill test. I was afraid I might glow in the dark. I certainly wasn’t about to fly anywhere. Can you imagine going through the airport security sensors and setting off the radiation detectors? I would still be trying to explain. Anyway, I passed the test with flying colors except my cardiologist told me I needed to be on a sodium-restricted diet. He recommended the Dash Diet. No salt. I don’t know how to eat without a saltshaker in one hand.

Carol Ann and I discussed diets and the fact that we could both stand to lose a little weight in addition to reducing our salt intake. I’m at 180 pounds stark naked and would like to slim down to 165 pounds. The only problem is that we eat take-out most of the time. We don’t cook very much because we don’t like cooking and aren’t particularly good at it. We also lack self-control when it comes to the right foods and portion control. For those reasons we decided to try the Nutri-System diet. They Fed Ex you a twenty-eight day supply of food at a time. All you need is water and a microwave. I know it’s not a low sodium diet but I’m not going to add any salt so will still come out much better than before. It’s not cheap, about $10 a day for each of us, but I doubt that’s anymore than we have been spending on takeout.

On Thursday of last week our first twenty-eight day supply of food was delivered. Each of us received one large cardboard box and a large Styrofoam container with frozen foods and dry ice. We began the diet on Saturday at breakfast and after tonight’s supper will have completed two whole days on the diet. We plan to give it at least a two-month trial. We’ll just have to see.

I may soon start eating the cardboard along with the food.