No, Gracias

I've been reading a new fitness book called "The 4-Hour Body" by Tim Ferriss, and learning lots of interesting things. I really admire this guy (he wrote "The 4-Hour Work Week" which I read a while back), who strikes me as something of a genius with obsessive compulsive disorder. He puts all his energy and curiosity to work researching/trying all kinds of things and documents what works (and what doesn't). He's a self-described "human guinea pig" testing/enduring all kinds of things so the reader doesn't have to experiment and can go right to what Tim has found to work.

We will be buying some kettlebells (weights with a handle) when we get home to do the recommended "kettlebell swing" that he claims is the best overall exercise you can do. I've already incorporated a few of his moves into my regime (air squats, and a hip flexor stretch that is supposed to eliminate the female abdominal "pooch" problem).

We're also doing our best to follow his recommended "Slow Carb Diet", which is a lot like the Atkins diet, but with more beans and legumes (which, oddly enough, are very hard to find in Mexico!). The stores are full of canned "bayo" beans and refried beans (too much lard and sodium for us), and that's it. But "Mini Super Beto", the best corner store ever, came through - John found red kidney beans, white beans and pinto beans there...hate to say what we paid for these imported goodies in what you would think should be "Bean Land."

Basically, 6 days a week we are supposed to avoid anything white, meaning no refined carbs of any sort, nor potatoes and rice etc. The 7th day is a "cheat day" and you are supposed to eat forbidden foods in order to keep your metabolism from getting complacent (you have to read the book - he provides all the science behind it).

We were enjoying the beach yesterday afternoon, fending off the vendors wanting to sell you everything from silver, to clothing, to blankets, carvings, pottery and candy. We just wave them off with "No, gracias" and they move on.

The fellow came by who will "write your name on a grain of rice" that gets put in a little glass bauble and hung around your neck on a leather cord. I knew John had taken the new diet regime to heart when he dismissed the name-on-a-grain-of-rice-guy with the comment "No, gracias, too many carbs."

Todo bien. (It's all good.)