Dave's Killer Bread Archives

April 18, 2018May 25, 2018 by Lin Carson

Week 3: Why I’m Eating Bread and Losing 10 Pounds

Why are you doing this? You look great. You don’t need to lose anymore weight.

As a startup founder, especially one that sits on the computer all day working on WordPress and editing articles, I just don’t move around much. At the beginning of my journey four years ago when I was a lone founder who worked everything herself, it was really hard to get away, let alone include an exercise routine. I spent over well over 15 hours a day sitting. If I didn’t sit, I was stress cooking or eating with my family.

Stress + sitting + startup = 10 lbs.

Like over 26% of founders, I’ve gained at 5-10 lbs on this journey.

How much weight do startup entrepreneurs gain?

How much weight enterpreneurs gain

There is little I can do about the stress level. Hey, when the bills are stacked up against you, and you have to make cashflow and still grow the company, there is little a startup founder can do with this bootstrapped system other than stress about it. Stress. It comes with the startup game, or anytime you become your own boss.

I finally found some relief in my third year of business when I was able to hire employees to take work off my plate. That meant I had more time to exercise. But I was at my highest weight ever at 145 lbs. So I took out my trisuit and went swimming, cycling and running again. Back then, I felt that I could handle a loaf of bread a day no problem. At that weight and the rate I was burning, it was easy to consume a loaf a day.

That was why the 90 loafs in 90 days experiment was possible. I was even hoping that I would lose weight, but the training period and my high caloric consumption for the Triathlons just wasn’t conducive to losing weight. I did, however, maintain my weight throughout that period with bread and for the rest of the year.

But you look good, why lose weight?

I was really pushing the upper limits of my BMI. Which means that I have excess fat I’m carrying around. I don’t need it. Not on my back, not on my knees. Especially not when I’m running the 5K of my triathlon (maybe that’s why I’m so slow for that leg – no wait, I’m just bad at running). Anyway, I’m confident that if I get rid of that 10lbs, I can be faster in the overall race this year at the HAAG lake Triathlon.

Dave’s Killer Bread Epic Everything Bagels.

This week, I added Dave’s Killer Bread Epic Everything Bagel into my diet. Can you imagine a person eating a bagel a day and still losing weight? This is how I’m doing it:

Food	Portion	Calories
Multi grain bread	4 slices	440
DKB Epic Everything Bagel	1	260
Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Orange Juice With Calcium and Vitamin D	8 oz	110
Strawberry Jam	2 Tbsp	70
Green grapes	1 Cup	65
Apple slices	1 Cup	60
Friend Egg	1	90
Steamed Broccoli	1C	55
Chocolate Eggs*	6pc	160
Total Calories		1510

*chocolate eggs are not part of a healthy diet. However, I have a weakness for Cadbury’s chocolate eggs, and if you haven’t figured it out by now, I am addicted to them.

The first weigh-in: 147.4

Week 3 weigh-in: 144.4

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June 15, 2017August 5, 2017 by Lin Carson

Is Artisan Bread Healthier than White Bread? Day 71 and 72

Centuries ago, eating white bread meant you had status. White bread was served to the elite classes while the peasants continued to suffer with crusty whole grain loaves. How the times have changed! I know everyone loves to hate white bread these days. It seems to embody the distrust consumers have of industrially manufactured foods. But are artisan breads like sourdough healthier than white bread?

The use of bleached flour and the addition of dough conditioners, emulsifiers, and mold inhibitors are seen as unhealthy and blamed for our modern health issues. As consumer preferences have begun to shift to more wholesome ingredients, artisan bread began gaining in popularity.

Dave's killer bread-white bread done right-healthier than artisan bread

But what exactly is artisan bread and is it any healthier than industrially produced white bread?

Artisan bread is loosely defined as bread that is produced using traditional methods and ingredients.

Choice of flour type, length of fermentation, and how the bread is made are important characteristics for an artisan loaf. Dough is generally made in small batches with a more hands on approach. With the rise in popularity, the manufacturing of artisan loaves has been scaled up to embrace some modern conveniences. Due to the minimally processed and clean ingredient declaration consumers believe this to be a healthier bread.

A recent study tried to answer the question – Is artisan bread healthier than manufactured white bread?

20 healthy adults participated in a randomized crossover trial of two 1-week-long sessions. Participants consumed traditionally made sourdough-leavened whole-grain bread or industrially made white bread widely available for the study. Test subjects ate standardized meals calculated to have 50 g of available carbohydrates.

During the white bread intervention period, subjects consumed 3 meals of 110 grams white bread, and 3 meals of 113g white bread + 30g butter. Sourdough meals consisted of 3 meals of 145 g sourdough bread, and 3 meals of 149 sourdough bread + 30 g butter.

The test showed no significant difference between consumption of traditionally made sourdough-leavened whole-grain bread or industrially made white bread on the participants. The study does point out that both types of bread had had very personal results on participants.

What are you telling me? Is there really no difference between sourdough bread and white bread nutritionally?

While one person might have a blood spike after eating white bread another may person experience the same thing eating artisan sourdough. Another measure that was dependent on individual participants was gut biome. The researchers found that the microbiota composition remained generally stable and person-specific throughout the trial.

So there you have it! There’s no nutritional difference between sourdough and white bread. This week’s white bread of choice? Dave’s Killer Bread White Bread Done Right. Mind you, their white bread has 10g of whole grains!

Bratwursts off the grill. Yum!

Here’s what I ate on Days 71 and 72 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Day 71
Bagel	1(100g)	210
DKB 21 G	4 Slices (45g)	480
DKB WBDR	5 Slices(40g)	550
Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Ricotta Cheese	1/4 C	100
Berry Cream Cheese	2 Tbsp	50
Sugar Free Strawberry Jam	2 Tbsp	40
Orange	1 orange	45
Stir Fried Vegetables	125g	36
Sweet sour chicken		275
Total		1986
Day 72
DKB 21 G	4 Slices (45g)	480
DKB WBDR	5 Slices(40g)	550
Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Lemon Curd	2 Tbsp	120
Cherries	1C	74
Roasted Zucchini	1 C	68
Calcium Supp
Bratwurst w hot dog bun	1	260
Total		1752

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May 21, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

You’re Being Paid for Eating Bread: Day 47, 48 and 49

Someone said that to me today, to which I replied, “I wish, but don’t you think free bread is payment enough?” I mean, could I not be more thankful than eating the thing that I love the most at no additional cost to me! A loaf everyday? Honestly, no one needs to pay me for eating their bread, or to get a feedback on it.

If you’re in this industry baking bread, I know you do it out of the good intention of your heart. I’ve met all kinds of bakers through the years, and the most passionate of all of them are the bread bakers. They know the art, the science and how hard it is to truly bake bread and make a successful business out of it. Bread bakers are the most hardworking food manufacturers in the world. With every bite I take from a bag of bread, I am truly thankful for their product that makes it all the way into our homes. Nobody needs to pay me for saying this.

Dave’s Killer Bread Epic Everything Bagels.

Dave’s Killer Bread Cinnamon Raisin Remix Bagels.

Returning to Derek’s Spanish Inquisition yesterday, where he said I was overdoing it: well, maybe. Even my mom tells me I’m overdoing this diet. “No rice? Are you crazy?” She shakes her head in disappointment as I skip her very special Singaporean sambal fried rice. I feel the need to push this needle on eating as much bread as I can, so that I can persuade people on the fence that bread is safe to eat. There are too many people falling onto the other side with all the misinformation.

I need to make this information available so that that they can make an informed decision on the types of diets they go on. Derek also said that a high carb diet is hurtful to people, together with that much gluten.

Seriously.

Eating a high carb diet will not kill you (unless you are diabetic, you should stay away from a diet like this). It gives you plenty of energy to burn fat, and it reduces your cravings. Together with an active lifestyle (mine is about 35 mins of exercise everyday), a high carb diet is beneficial to maintaining weight.

Eating a total of 2 oz of gluten per day (there is about 2 tablespoons in a pound of bread) will not suddenly make you allergic to gluten. That is much less protein, than most paleo or keto diets, and much safer because it is a plant-based protein. Honestly, many dieters are downing bacon, hamburgers and sausages in larger quantities, and they are definitely not developing allergies to pork anytime soon.

This is not to mock people who are celiac or have gluten intolerance, but to provide the fact that gluten is a protein. Like any other protein in a normal active person, it doesn’t get preferential treatment nor is it singled out during digestion as a more problematic protein to digest. Gluten is a safe plant-based protein, and you should not be threatened by it.

I can go on and on about how bread can be part of a healthy diet. I hope bread companies can use the information that I share here to educate people on how safe eating bread can be. In addition, I’m not just one data point. I am an example of utilizing the information science has given me to help me guide my diet.

Use Science. It will make you love bread and carbs again.

I received a handful of Dave’s Killer bread today. In their new line of organic bagels, the Epic Everything and Cinnamon Raisin Remix bagels are seriously awesome. Haven’t tried it? Well, true to their brand, they delivered. Packed with 27 g of whole grains and 12 g of protein in each bagel, these bagels were epic-ly delicious!

Strawberry cream Cheese with the Cinnamon Raisin Remix bagel.

Grilled Mozzarella Cheese on 21 Whole Grains and Seeds.

Fried Egg and Cream Cheese on an Epic Everything Bagel.

Honey Oats and Flax French Toast with Maple Syrup and a side of bacon.

Here’s what I ate on Days 47, 48 and 49 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Day 47
21 Whole Grains and Seeds	6 slices (45g)	720
Cinnamon Raisin Remix	1 bagel (95g)	250
Epic Everything	1 bagel (95g)	260
Mozerella cheese	3oz	240
Lemon Curd	2 Tbsp	120
Sauteed Spinach	1 C	48
Apricot Sugar-Free Jam	2 Tbsp	40
Ricotta Cheese	1/4 C	100
Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Fried Egg	1	78
Orange	1 orange	45
Berries &Mango Fruit Salad	1 C	120
Spring rolls	2	100
Bike & Walk		-300
Calcium Supp
Total		2021
Day 48
DKB Honey Oats and Flax	7 slices (42g)	770
Cinnamon Raisin Remix	1 bagel (95g)	250
Epic Everything	1 bagel (95g)	260
Greek Salad		400
Egg (for French Toast)	1	78
Pizza	1/2 Slice	300
Banana		105
Bacon	2 strips	90
Lemon Curd	2 Tbsp	120
Butter	2 Tbsp	120
Apple	1	95
Coconut water	2 C	100
Bike		-300
Run		-500
Total		1888
Day 49
DKB Honey Oats and Flax	4 slices (42g)	440
21 Whole Grains and Seeds	3 slices (45g)	360
Cinnamon Raisin Remix	1 bagel (95g)	250
Sourdough bread	95g	200
Turkey sandwich		200
Philadelphia strawberry cream cheese	1 Tbsp	35
Lemon Curd	2 Tbsp	120
Apricot Sugar-Free Jam	2 Tbsp	40
Butter	2 Tbsp	120
Cobb Salad w Steak		600
Fruit Salad	2 C	150
Run		-250
Total		2265

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May 11, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

So Many Grains, So Little Time: Day 39

I remembered asking Dave Dahl why he created 21 Whole Grains and Seeds. His answer was that he wanted to pack as much nutrition as he possibly could into one loaf of bread. Dave’s Killer Bread 21 Whole Grains and Seeds has 5g of protein, 5g of fiber and 22g of whole grains per slice! You can get a whole day’s nutrition just by eating this loaf of bread.

21 whole grains and seeds by Dave’s Killer Bread.

The proteins are from a combination of grains and seeds, so its amino acid profile is undeniably superior than any other breads. It is just an incredible loaf of bread packed with all the grains and seeds you can possibly imagine. No wonder it’s rated America’s Favorite Organic Sliced Bread (Source: IRI 2016).

This is an excellent bread for an active lifestyle. Especially for me this week, as I take my training outdoors to enjoy the start of sunny spring weather in Portland. I want you to know that eating 14 slices is not an easy task. It’s not the bread (because it is a really moist, delicious bread) but the task of eating and reminding myself to not stop eating throughout the day that is rather challenging to do.

On top of that, I had a brunch meeting (of Croissant and Cranberry Sourdough) which sent me into a bread overload today. Fortunately, I had the chance to ride my bicycle and run outside.

Here’s what I ate on Day 39 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
DKB 21 Thins	14 slices (28g)	840
Croissant	40g	171
Cranberry Sourdough	50g	200
Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Nutella	1 Tbsp	100
Apricot Sugar-Free Jam	2 Tbsp	40
Ham	6 slices	120
Carrots	100g	35
Hummus	2 Tbsp	100
Milk Chocolate	230	230
Calcium Supp
Bike & Run		-200
Total		1836

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April 24, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

SAVE THE BEES!! Day 22

The Honey Oats & Flax made by Dave’s Killer Bread has a strong honey aroma. Unlike many honey wheat or grain blend breads, DKB’s Honey Oats and Flax has a light texture. Together with the oats and flax, it packs 24g of whole grains in every slice. That is why I’m delighted in consuming Dave’s Killer Bread bread—every bread I have consumed has just been packed with whole grain goodness.

Dave’s Killer Bread Honey Oats and Flax.

Guess what’s the sweetest part of this bread? When Dave’s Killer Bread launched Honey Oats and Flax, they partnered with SAVE THE BEE, a non-profit set up by Glory Bee (their organic honey supplier) to promote education and awareness about Colony Collapse Disorder.

Co-founder Richard Turanski started GloryBee Honey in 1975 due to his love of bees and his role as an active beekeeper. With the concern of declining bee populations throughout the world, GloryBee advances the SAVE THE BEE mission through fundraising and education. Join their efforts today!

Remember, the next time you crave for a honey wheat bread, reach out these Honey Oats and Flax to SAVE THE BEES!

Here’s what I ate on Day 22 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Dave’s Killer Bread® Honey Oats and Flax	11 slices (42g)	1210
Tilamook® Butter	2Tbsp	200
Smucker’s® Sugar Free Strawberry Jam	2 Tbsp	20
Skippy® Peanut Butter	1 Tbsp	95
Tillamook® sliced cheddar	1 Slice	45
Apple	1	95
Sauteed Chinese brocolli	1 C	48
Nutella®	2 tbsp	200
Ricotta Cheese	1/4 C	100
Deli Chicken Breast	3 Slices	50
Calcium Supp
Total		2063

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April 17, 2017May 9, 2017 by Lin Carson

A 5K Every Other Day: Day 15

Good+Seed+Thin-Sliced+White

I remembered running my first 5K seven years ago, after my third child was born. It was a horrid experience; I wanted to puke my guts out after the race. I found running to be extremely tedious and today it’s still my weakest leg in a triathlon. Why? Because I was never a runner. I swam extensively in high school, and my husband taught me how to ride 20 miles on the flat roads in Kansas. I’ve never done cross country, so running is all self-taught. I find the best way to kill time, is to have my friend, Diane, run with me. We’ve worked up to an easy 5K since we started running together last season. Now I challenge myself to run a 5K every other day to build my stamina for my next triathlon.

Why Triathlons? Because I can’t do marathons. I’m envious of people who can run half marathons but I just don’t have the capacity to do it. I’ve done six sprint triathlons between Ohio and Oregon. It gives me a good goal to train towards at the end of fall.

Love for the sport

I can’t really explain the triathlon spirit, but every triathlete I’ve met on course has always been helpful and inspiring. Well, it’s not inspiring when a 30-year-old over takes you at running or biking (for those unaware, participants in triathlons have their ages written on their legs, so we can see each other’s age).

However, there is something to be said about running up to an 80-year-old woman, and encouraging her to keep going. Then hearing her story of how she has run 40 Triathlons starting in her 40s. True story! I’ve been in situations where I’m almost out of gas and triathletes would just slow down and encouraged me. These athletes are about the nicest people in the world.

Triathlons, as a sport is very inspiring and rewarding, and that is why I will keep doing it. However, for me to not crash and burn on race day, I have to keep doing my 5K every other day, and swim or bike once or twice a week.

Fuel up!

What better way to fuel this activity than with a loaf of Good Seed Thins from Dave’s Killer Bread®! On checking its nutritional statement, I was pleasantly surprised that its protein was higher than its sugar content. This is good. All the nutritious grains and seeds that would meet my dietary needs for the day is in 16 slices of bread. I’ve also learned that it is a lower calorie version of one of their best-selling breads. Although it may be low-cal, it is still packed with whole grains, protein, fiber, and omega-3. So, I laid it all out below to show you what a day’s worth of consumption looks like.

My day’s worth of bread laid out.

I did leave two slices untouched, for dinner to accompany my home made spaghetti meat sauce.

I folded them onto a pile that sat next to my desk the whole day.

Here’s what I ate on Day 15 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Dave’s Killer Bread® Good Seed	16 slices (28g)	1120
Weight Watchers® Whipped Cream Cheese Spread	2 Tbsp	60
Apricot Sugar-Free Jam	2 Tbsp	40
Lox	2oz	120
Artichoke Bruchetta spread	2 Tbsp	67
Pine nuts	0.5oz	90
Capers		5
Nutella®	2 tbsp	200
Apple	1 pc	95
Skippy® Peanut Butter	1 Tbsp	95
Orange	1 pc	45
Ice cream	1/2 Cup	210
Home made spaghetti meat sauce	1 Cup	350
Run		-340
Total		2157

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April 9, 2017May 9, 2017 by Lin Carson

Could Sodium be the Culprit? Day 7

I woke up today telling myself that I need to drastically cut sodium and drink more water to flush out the excess sodium I consumed yesterday. So, I removed deli meats from my diet today, and went with just a fried egg sandwich. I got my sodium down to a reasonable level (about 2,600mg) and I drank a truck load of water. By the end of the day, the pain in my finger was gone.

I wonder if many people felt the same way I did, and self-diagnosed themselves with gluten inflammation. Could eating products containing gluten (sandwiches, hamburgers and pasta), also mean that you are overloading yourself with sodium? Could this reaction to too much sodium in the body give the ‘bloated’ feeling that some people feel after consuming gluten containing products? I really think so. If a healthy person like me reacted this way to sodium, I can’t imagine how other people would react. Especially those on medication, and/or a higher stress life.

Analyzing my diet

I analyzed my diet again, and realized that the sodium source came from bread, deli meats and soup. I had overdosed on sodium and sugar every day. Therefore, I really need to keep an eye on these as I go along this diet, whether I reach my target weight or not.

Now, this is really challenging, as not only do I need to count the calories, I need to look at both sodium and sugar. I mean, I should be able to do this. It’s like raising three boys, you just can’t take care of one, and leave the other two alone. I’m good at juggling. I can do this.

Dave’s Killer Bread® 21 Whole Grains.

Today, I chowed down on Dave’s Killer Bread® 21 Whole Grains: the loaf that made them famous. I had no problem eating the 21 Whole Grains bread by itself. It was so delicious, I ate all 6 slices without any spreads.

I also rewarded myself at the end of the day with my homemade strawberry cake. OK, I did bust my sugar intake with that cake, but that was worth it!

Here’s what I ate on Day 7 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Dave’s Killer Bread ® 21 whole grains	12 slices (45g)	1,440
Egg	1	78
Favorit Cherry Preserve	1Tbsp	50
Nature’s Hollow Sugar Free Strawberry Jam	4 Tbsp	80
Skippy ® Peanut Butter	1 Tbsp	95
Justin’s Almond Honey Nut Butter	1 Tbsp	190
Kale and mushroom Soup	1 C	48
Strawberry Cake		300
Run		-100
Swim		-200
Total		1,981

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good about white bread-white bread-eb90-sliced bread

April 3, 2017August 10, 2017 by Lin Carson

What’s Good About White Bread? Day 1

Believe me, I was like a kid in a candy store looking at all the fresh loaves of bread that was kindly delivered to me in the first week – loaves from Dave’s Killer Bread, Jenny Lee’s, Franz Bakery, Klostermann’s Bakery and more! It was hard to decide where to start but I had to pick one. So I finally chose the innovative Dave’s Killer Bread – White Bread Done Right®.

Dave's killer bread-white bread done right

Really? What’s good about white bread?

“I don’t want white bread for my sandwich, it doesn’t have substance!“ says Dean, my beloved husband of 20 years.

“But it’s good for you, honey. It comes from whole grain white wheat. It’s as nutritious as eating whole wheat bread, but it looks white so it will fool the kids!” I felt like a sales representative for Dave’s Killer Bread. The real question is, why is Dean eating my bread, when the whole loaf was mine? Because he just might be a little envious? I think so.

My analysis of a variety of loaves revealed I can safely consume one pound of bread (454g) every day with other food items, without going over my daily intake of 2,100 calories. It comes out to 14 slices out of 17 slices, leaving three slices of bread left for my hungry husband.

Yep, that’s 14 slices of White Bread Done Right® for my first day.

How did it go?

White Bread Done Right® was delicious and surprisingly hearty. I should have eaten two in the morning, two at lunch, and two at dinner, with slices consumed at regular intervals all throughout the day. My meal plan included sandwiches, toasts with Nutella® and strawberries, cookie butter, cream cheese and butter.

bread-spread-fruit-daves killers bread

So spreading out the slices seemed logical.

But that wasn’t the case. I ate a slice with a spread every time I felt hungry (But man! This white bread really kept me full!) or when I could break from work to eat. By 5 p.m., I had seven slices left. SEVEN SLICES!!! I usually don’t eat past 7 p.m. and I needed to go for a run. So now I was faced with shoving seven slices of bread into my face within 1.5 hours? HORRORS! Bad planning, Lin. Bad planning!

Now, you all know that you have to drink water (or some kind of liquid) when you eat bread. So the more bread I ate, the more I had to drink. My first day of this bread eating challenge ended with me just feeling so bloated from shoving five slices down (with two used for a sandwich) before 7:30 p.m. By 10 p.m. I still felt like a beached whale. Was it the bread? No, it was bad planning. Like any diet, not having a proper menu in place was bad strategy.

So to summarize, what’s good about White Bread Done Right®? It is an awesome loaf of bread. I just don’t recommend eating most of it in one sitting—definitely not a good idea.

Here’s what I ate on Day 1 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
DKB White Bread Done Right®	14 slices (480g)	1540
Weight Watchers® Whipped Cream Cheese Spread	1 Tbsp	30
Almond Breeze® Chocolate Almond Milk	1 Cup	100
Boar’s Head® Smoked Ham	2 oz	60
Nutella®	2 tbsp	200
Strawberries	1C	47
Wild Friends® Honey Peanut Butter with Pretzel	2 tbsp	180
Biscoff Cookie Butter®	1 tbsp	85
Orange	1 orange	45
Calcium Supplement		NA
Run 5K		-325
Total		1962

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