Hi all,
A few days ago a friend, taken aback by the kilometres in the commute, inquired as to what it was that I eat for lunch sustain myself over these distances while trucking with Silver Wing. I must say that my diet (rather lack thereof) does get some attention in the office from time to time.
Recall, that Seat Co-worker is a very serious cyclist with a strict regimen of both training and nutrition. She frequently shakes her head in heavy disapproval (all in fun, I think) of the meals I consume for lunch. I'm told that my salads from Soul Food take-away of hot lightly (?) buttered yet crunchy vegetables and lean (?) soulfully seasoned meats (potent jerk chicken, peppered beef sportly dressed with gravy, or spicy battered fish) are not salads. Visitors from other offices apparently, for some unknown reason, share her view when the subject is broached.
"Salads must have green vegetables", they say.
"Look, there are vegetables", I respond.
"Well, they must not have meat", they pronounce.
"What of chef and niçoise salads", I inquire.
"It has gravy, and salads don't have gravy", they gleam.
"They certainly do. It's called salad dressing", I redress.
"No matter, they must have some leafy greens", they proclaim.
"But potato and pasta salads don't have leafy greens", I recall.
"Those are exceptions", they instruct.
"Then your definition is flawed. A rule with exceptions is not a rule. It is a suggestion", I close.
Taking into account the flawed and prevalent salad suggestion, I decided to build my own approach to sustaining my commute. I've dubbed this system Robinson's Dianetics. It is a lifestyle system that encourages a healthy balance of both cardio and resistance training coupled with delicious fuels in reasonable proportions. In spite of its detractors Robinson's Dianetics works as I am proof positive of its success. Even now I am still maintaining my steady burn of around 1kg per month and its been 15 months. I'm developing it as I go along but one day I'll compile my extensive research and field experience into a free ebook for all to benefit. It will be my gift to commuters and serious cyclist everywhere; I'll give Seat Co-worker a bound hardback archive-paper autographed limited edition copy. Yes ... it brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it. (I promised myself I wouldn't cry.)
In reality, I'm not much of a salad fan and so only have one about once a fortnight or thereabouts. My latest craving has been for yummy sandwiches; which brings us to the catalyst of today's post. I decided that I could make a better, fresher, less expensive, and more tastier sandwiches than those found at nearby eateries. Therefore, I set about to collect the finest ingredients and proportion them in just the right ratios.
From my years of field experience with sandwiches and sandwich building I selected the following combination as optimal:
- Lightly toasted whole wheat bread
- ⅛ pound each of two types of deli meat
- Cheese
- Tomato
- Sweet pepper
- Hot pepper
- Leafy greens
- A trio of condiments
Last week this recipe was realised with smoked turkey and sun-dried Italian ham, Swiss cheese, plum tomato, orange bell pepper, jalapeño pepper, and arugula.
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| These are the makings of a beautiful sandwich. |
From these humble elements the masterpiece that is A Bicycle Commuter's Lunch is created; four times weekly (Thursday's I order Indian).
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| Say hello to my little friend. |
And there you have it; my commuter lunch. It takes me about 15 minutes to prep and construct this magnificent treat but it is worth every millisecond. There have been some cursory calorie calculations applied that suggest that this little gem approaches 650 cal. However, this is of little consequence in the Robinson's Dianetics scheme of things as it is jammed packed full of quality proteins, essential fats, vitamins, minerals, dietary fibres, and complex carbohydrates. Yes, it is a high cadence road to fitness but every now and again you get to coast a little.
Thanks for reading,
Edmund
