The Malagasy Diet – January 30, 2011

Guest Blogger: Randy Gehlert

Since we've been here in Madagascar people at home – ok, mostly my mother and grandmother – keep saying - “Oh, you look so thin!” Now, we had noticed that our clothes were too big. And just this week I finally got around to putting another hole in my belt so my pants would stay up. But until we moved to our new house we had no idea how much weight we had lost. Now, I have seen people sitting on the side of the road with a scale, and I assume they let you weigh yourself for a few ariary (Malagasy money). But we never pursued that. And it would surely be in kilograms meaning I'd have to go online and do a conversion.... But here in our new house there is a scale...one that does kilograms and pounds. So, we finally weighed ourselves. I think that when I left the States I weighed about 175 pounds on average. (My weight has been fairly steady for the past 15 years or so ranging from 168 or so up to 180.) But now I am down to 152 pounds. So, I figured there may be some of you who wanted to know the “secret of my success”. (I'll let Megan blog about her own if she wants.) So, I will offer for you THE MADAGASCAR DIET.

1. Eat the same boring cereal every morning for breakfast with milk and a banana.
2. Walk for 20 to 30 minutes to work – burning off all your cereal.
3. Don't eat anything until lunch – then have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (or nutella), an apple and some carrot sticks.
4. Walk home after work burning off your lunch.
5. Some nights have a big dinner because it is all your favorites (chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, or ground meat and great French bread) but other nights eat a small dinner because it is just pasta with vegetables.
6. Have very easy access to cheap all natural foods – fruits, vegetables, rice, potatoes
7. Find most ice cream to be of poor quality and not worth the money.
8. Have limited access to anything with high fructose corn syrup in it.
9. Find all other processed foods to be pricey.
10. Catch an occasional intestinal worm or parasite to keep your stomach guessing.

(Note: Dear Mom and Grandmom – I checked my body mass index numbers online and discovered that for someone who is 6 ft. tall 150 pounds is right in the middle of a healthy weight. (check out family pic....we're healthy don't worry) 180 pounds is the beginning of being overweight. I feel great. But you can still make me all my favorite yummy food when I come home in July!)