'Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show' Episode 39: Talking BBQ With HPBA's Leslie Wheeler

Jimmy Moore interviewed HPBA spokeswoman Leslie Wheeler in Reno

Continuing with the interviews I recorded recently while attending the Hearth, Patio, and Barbecue Association Expo in Reno, Nevada today, I present my one with HPBA Communications Director Leslie Wheeler in Episode 39 of "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore." She talks about the state of the BBQ industry, something many people who are livin' la vida low-carb are abundantly aware of. Listen NOW:

 "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore" Episode 39 [21:50m]: Play in Popup | Download

What a delight it was to sit down for a few minutes with Wheeler to discuss the BBQ industry from the perspective of an advocacy group like the HPBA in Episode 39. She was quite informative about why grilling has become such an American phenomenon and why more and more people are cranking up the BBQ all year round.

Access "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore" by:

1. Listening at the official web site
2. Going to iTunes
3. Calling (818) 688-2763 to listen via Podlinez
4. Subscribing to the RSS feed

Do you like to grill? Why or why not? Let me know what you think about my interview with Wheeler about the BBQ industry by leaving a comment at the show's site. Incidentally, I was fortunate enough to win a free starter grill while attending this conference. WOO HOO!

Tune in on Thursday as I share my interview with one of the two BBQ Queens named Karen Adler as she discusses her company called Pig Out Publications (I LOVE that name!). Don't miss it!

Grills, Grills, And More Grills At HPBA Expo

Right now at this very moment I am incredibly frustrated with having to write this post. Why? Well, for the past two hours I have been working on a fabulously detailed account of my experience here in Reno, Nevada at the 2007 Hearth, Patio, & Barbecue Association (HPBA) Expo on Thursday. I had the entire blog post written and ready to publish when my new laptop decides to go into "thinking" mode and stayed there for 20 minutes. UGH!

So, the long and short of it is this: I don't have time to rewrite the entire post (and it was a good one!), so I'll have to give you the Cliff's Notes version since I have an appointment for an interview very soon.

Let me start with the interviews: Yep, by popular demand from my podcast show listeners, I am attempting to do more interviews with interesting people in the wonderful world of livin' la vida low-carb. And I've met a few that fit that criteria during my stay in Reno this week, so I can't wait to share them with you.

In fact, I'm gonna tease you with one of the interviews--he's probably the most famous television BBQ expert you've ever heard of and he was gracious enough to spend 10 minutes with me recording an interview on Thursday. Who is it? Put on your thinking caps, folks, because you'll definitely recognize his voice when you hear my interview very soon. He's very well known within grilling circles, though. No more hints, but feel free to guess who you think it is in the comments section below.

Speaking of grilling, man there's a whole lotta grills at this convention. Sheez, I had no idea there were THIS many different models available. But there they are in booth after booth showing all the latest gadgets and gizmos to make that food you cook sizzle! I almost hated to bring my wife Christine on the floor with me because she's been begging for a grill for about two years. It was borderline torture for her, but I promised her we'd get one.

Little did I know that time would come two hours later when we actually WON a grill in a drawing. WOW, how cool is that? I asked my wife if she had been praying for one and she said YES. LOL! II told her to start praying for a million bucks now. Hee hee! Just kidding. Make it TWO million!

Oh, and you'll be pleased to know that I have also received a very generous donation of a deluxe grill from one of the members of the HPBA who I will tell you all about very soon. But this grill is not for me, but for one of YOU who are reading my blog. That's right, you will have the opportunity to win a FREE GRILL from "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb." WHOA!

There will be other great low-carb prizes like books, resources, and delicious food in the giveaway contest I'll be conducting in April, so be sure to keep reading my blog for more details about how to enter. It's gonna be HUGE!

I hate to have to hurry on this post, but I totally lost everything I had written before and I'm just skimming you the highlights. We were able to go out to dinner last night at a very fancy schmancy restaurant in downtown Reno where I got the most tender and succulent filet mignon steak I've ever put in my mouth. Oh...my...goodness! I could eat that all the time along with the mixed veggies, spinach salad, and almond-encrusted brie. What a meal!

Who says livin' la vida low-carb has to be drab and boring, eh? NOT!

I've got at least two more interviews to conduct today and possibly a third, so my Friday is jam-packed full of activities. Then we'll be flying back home on Saturday afternoon and won't get back to nearly midnight East Coast time Sunday morning. I can't wait to get back to blogging normally on Sunday afternoon (if I'm not too pooped from the trip!) and sharing these amazing interviews and pictures with you in the coming weeks.

THANK YOU so much for your continued devoted readership here at my blog and I encourage you to always and forever stay committed to your low-carb life no matter what you are going through. A lifetime dedication to a plan that you already knows works will keep you fit and trim for the rest of your life. That's what livin' la vida low-carb is all about. SEE YA!

Do You Want A Muffin? You're Joking, Right?

You're NEVER gonna guess where I am typing this note right now. Before I tell you WHERE I am, I'm also excited to be typing this from my new-to-me iBook laptop computer that I picked up this week. YEAH! I've been wanting one of these for the longest time to use when I travel around the country. So, where exactly am I right now?

Hmmm, well, I'm not in my hometown of Spartanburg, South Carolina, but I'll give you a hint. I lying on a queen-sized bed looking outside my window at a picturesque view of the most gorgeous mountains you have ever seen (well, maybe not what YOU have ever seen, but they're absolutely beautiful to me). In fact, I'm clear across the country in what they call "the biggest little city in the world"--that's right, I'm in Reno, Nevada!

I'm in town through Saturday as part of the Hearth, Patio, & Barbecue Association (HPBA) Expo taking place this week as the largest such event in the world. It's gonna be so cool and I can't wait to check out all the sights and sounds of this amazing event. And, in case you were wondering, YES there will be LOTS of BBQ to chow down on while I'm here. WOO HOO! Did I die and go to low-carb heaven? :)

My wife Christine is also here with me and I'm so glad she got to come with me since she doesn't get to do these kind of trips very often. She deserves getting as much attention as I do for putting up with me when I was morbidly obese and then lovingly being there for me since 2004 as I worked out my diet losing over 180 pounds to take back control of my life. She's as much a part of my weight loss success as me!

Anyways, I wanted to blog about some interesting stories that happened today during my flight to Houston and then to Reno.

On the trip from Spartanburg to Houston, our plane took off around 6:30am our time so the flight attendant went around shortly after departure asking the passengers if they wanted an apple spice muffin. "Do you want a muffin, do you want a muffin?" she said to everyone as she pranced down the aisle with these high-carb morsels of pure unadulterated RAT POISON!

So she gets to us and asks her now infamous question, "Do you want a muffin?" Already knowing what my answer would be, I assumed my wife would tell the lady she'd like one but her husband will pass. But that's not what happened. Do you know what Mrs. Livin' La Vida Low-Carb did instead? She leaned over and asked me with a straight face, "Do you want a muffin?"

If you could have seen the look I gave her when she asked that ridiculous question, I'm sure you would have laughed your head off! LOL! I responded, "Say what?! You're joking, right? You know I can't have a muffin." Christine said she got nervous and just forgot I was livin' la vida low-carb. Forgot? Oh my, how in the world did that happen? :-~

With that answer the stewardess moved on to the next victim...er, I mean, passenger to offer them one of these carb-y breakfast items to begin their sugar-loading for the day. ARGH!

When they came back around a few minutes later offering drink service, she asked what we would like to drink and I responded that I would like a Diet Coke. But when she went to pour my drink she picked up a regular Coke instead. She saw me gazing at her with a look of concern on my face and she immediately responded, "Oh my gosh, you said diet didn't you?" I smiled and said, "Yes I did. I haven't had sugar in over three years, so I probably shouldn't start back now."

Her eyes grew really big when I said this and she retorted, "No sugar at all for three years? WOW, you must be adding years to your life." I grinned back at her and exclaimed, "Yes ma'am I am."

Isn't it funny how so many people universally accept the idea that consuming sugar and high fructose corn syrup in drinks like regular soda is bad for your health and yet they keep on guzzling those products down along with stuffing their faces with high-carb junk foods like muffins? Where is the disconnect here? We know it's bad for us, but do we not care about our health enough to make better choices? Apparently not.

There were a group of college students flying together on our trip from Houston to Reno and you couldn't help but hear every word they were saying. We've all been that young and acted foolishly in public, so their apparent disrespect for everyone around them was not all that surprising. One of them screamed out, "Did you bring the cookies?" even before we got off the ground for our four-hour flight. Someone answered, "No, but I've got some sour gummi worms." The young man quickly shot back, "Oh, but I wanted the cookies."

Sigh. So young and so incredibly ignorant about what those "cookies" and "sour gummi worms" are doing not just to their weight, but also their health. One of these days it's gonna catch up to 'em and they'll wish they had learned better nutritional habits earlier in life. How can we get this message across loud and clear to a generation that thinks they are invincible?

Finally, the most disturbing observation from my flight today was when I saw what they were serving as breakfast on the flight from Houston to Reno. Are you ready for this menu because it shocked the boo-boo out of me:

Whole Grain Cheerios - 15g carbs
2% Reduced Fat Milk - 12g carbs
Apple Spice Muffin - 25g carbs
Banana - 30g carbs
Glass of Orange Juice - 25g carbs

GRAND TOTAL CARBOHYDRATES: 100+ (EEEEEEK!!!)

I can't remember the last time I've had that many carbs in one DAY, much less one MEAL! What's most upsetting is the fact that so many people who ate this breakfast thought they were eating "healthy" because of the whole grains, low-fat milk, fruit, and fruit juice. What a disturbing sham on the American people who have no idea they are consuming gobs and gobs of sugar that is literally destroying their health.

Will we ever wake up to this reality? Can we convince people of our message?

That's why I created the "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" blog and will keep sharing the truth every opportunity I can get. I'll check in as much as I can while I'm here in Reno, NV and look forward to recording several interviews for my podcast show in the next couple of days. It's costing me $10 a day for Internet access, but worth every minute of it to be able to answer your e-mails and blog about livin' la vida low-carb because that's my commitment to you.

I'm already getting sleepy now since I got up at 4:00am EST and it's now 9:00pm in my body although the clock show 6:00pm here on the West Coast. I'm gonna sleep good tonight because I'm really, really, really tire...zzzzzzzzzzzzzz...(shhhhh, Jimmy will be back tomorrow with more updates. Nighty night!).