How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it: a simple way to lose weight and be healthier. 

Leodegar or Liévain was born around 615 to a noble family in Sarcing, Burgundy [now Reulle-Vergy]. He lived with his parents and brother Guérin [Warin] de Vergy for only the first few years of his life — Leodegar was destined for the Church, while Guérin was to inherit the family’s lands and titles. Little Leodegar was educated in Paris, in the court of Clotaire II, Frankish king of one portion of not-yet-France. The young man went for further study at Poitiers, and rapidly rose through the hierarchy of the church. As Bishop of Autun, Leodegar rebuilt churches and reformed the clergy. Meanwhile, Guérin married and fathered children. [One of those children is my direct ancestor] Both brothers always supported the king, but then another faction entered the game: Ebroin, Mayor of the Palace [Chief of Staff] of a rival Frankish king. Ebroin was violent and vicious as he played the ‘game of thrones’: killing rivals, spreading rumors, deposing rulers to gain his ends. When Ebroin became too dangerous, Leodegar opposed him, earning the eternal wrath of the Mayor. A new leader, Childéric II, united the various regions, and was crowned King of Frankia by Leodegar. Childeric wanted the death of Ebroin, but Leodegar sued for mercy. Even Childeric proved capricious, imprisoning both Leodegar and Ebroin, but they escaped. After much back and forth, Guérin and Leodegar went into battle against Ebroin — and lost. Guérin was stoned to death in 674, near the Chateau de Vergy. Leodegar was the victim of Ebroin’s cruelty for several weeks before being beheaded on October 2, 679. The would-be king-maker was assassinated by his many enemies in 681, but that wasn’t the end of the rivalry. Ebroin lived on in infamy due to the book Life of Leodegar the Burgundian, commissioned by the Bishop of Poitiers three years later. Ebroin was condemned as an ‘enemy of God’ for all his actions. By comparison, Leodegar was canonized by the church as Saint-Léger.

Our meals today are from France and might have been typical of a plant-heavy, close-to-the-land diet of the 7th century.

Garbure Bake: 134 calories 6.5 g fat 1.5 g fiber 9.5 g protein 7.5 g carbs 53 mg Calcium NB: The food values given above are for the egg bake and fruit only, not the optional beverages.PB GF ‘Garbure’ is a favorite casserole of Southwestern France. Now you can enjoy it at breakfast.

1 two-oz egg ½ oz cabbage, thinly-sliced ½ oz leeks, thinly-sliced ¼ oz small white beans [I used garbanzos, but I sliced them in half] 1/3 oz pork, shredded or thinly-sliced ½ tsp duck fat or bacon fat 1¾ oz strawberries/blueberries   Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]  Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait[65 calories]

Prepare the cabbage and leek, and put in one bowl. In another, put the beans and pork. Heat a saute pan and add the fat with a few Tablespoons of water. Saute the cabbage/leek until they are limp, adding more water if needed. Then stir in the pork and beans and cook until warm. Put the cooked mixture into a baking dish which has been spritzed with non-stick spray. Whisk the egg with salt and pepper to taste and pour into the dish. Bake at 350 F for 15+ minutes. Portion the fruit and plate the bake. Welcome to Gascony.

Mediterranean Vegetables with Brown Rice: 281 calories 7 g fat 10.4 g fiber 16.4 g protein 40 g carbs 332 mg Calcium   PB GF  Here are those wonderful mediterranean vegetables again, served with brown rice for more fiber and complex carbs.

2 cups eggplant, peeled & cubed -OR- 1½ cup bell peppers, cubed 2 cups tomato, cubed 2 cups zucchini, cubed 2 cloves garlic 1½ tsp oregano ½ cup canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained   per serving: 1 oz mozzerella, shredded ¼ cup brown rice or whole-grain couscous, cooked 

Prepare all the veg, and put them in a saucepan. Simmer, covered, until cooked through. If watery, remove lid and continue to simmer. Add oregano, salt and pepper to taste, and the chickpeas, and keep warm. Prepare the brown rice or couscous and place it on one side of the plate. Spoon 2 cups of the vegetables next to the rice/couscous. Top with cheese and tuck into it!