Blueprint cleanse: Day 3

Today was more or less like yesterday - I felt mostly good. Energetic, clear-headed, and just kind of clean. Not to mention skinny - I've lost 4 pounds since I started! Maybe it's water, but it is motivating.

I did feel hungry at times. I've found my definition of "hunger" has really changed. When I do feel hunger pains, it's a more of an empty feeling (probably because my stomach is actually totally empty for once!) than a pain. I have had some random cravings for food, usually when I smell it, but it doesn't seem to trigger actual hunger. It's more of a passing thought that sounds good at the time but is quickly dismissed. I have discovered that I probably eat out of boredom a lot. At times during work, I would have an impulse to go to the snack cabinet. For no reason. I wasn't particularly hungry or experiencing a craving.

This experience has been an interesting one. I do feel "cleansed". I am looking forward to CHEWING again! I don't think I could do it every month, as the Blueprint Cleanse people recommend, but twice a year would be perfect! The first day is rough, but the glowing skin and numbers on the scale make it worth sticking out the three days!

The vegan experiment: Day 3

Day 3

Breakfast - Woke up...sore. Very sore. Apparently I forgot to stretch before my little run yesterday. Hobbled into work armed with a soy yogurt to try for breakfast. My enthusiasm for experimentation had been dampened a little by yesterday's rice yogurt disappointment, but I was determined to try. I opened it, and was disheartened to find that it was a dingy beige color (it was strawberry flavored). The consistency was encouraging, though - it actually had the thickness of regular yogurt. I braced myself and took a bite. Not...half...bad! If you don't actually look at it while you're eating, it's pretty decent! I tried to tell myself that years of artificial coloring had twisted my perception of what color food actually is - it doesn't have to be pink to taste like strawberry. After I crossed that mental hurdle, I actually enjoyed it. I had some raspberries, too (hm...noticing a trend here...)


Snack 1 - Had an apricot and a mango. Then an apple with some honey. I am kind of burnt out on almonds at this point. I'm lucky because there's a fruit stand downstairs at my work, so I can change things up when I get bored (but I'm pretty loyal to the raspberries).

Lunch - Had the same salad as Monday, but today added some beans and avacado. After chatting with a vegetarian co-worker, she suggested I add more protein to my salad. There must be something to that, because I didn't get hungry until I was home! No real "snack 2" today!

Dinner - Had hummus and 1/2 a pita, then some potato and leek soup. Oh yeah, Frank and I bought a watermelon at the store, and we both ate a bunch of it when we got home. I also picked up an Amy's frozen meal in case I have trouble tomorrow...

...which brings me to my first real challenge - tomorrow night's dinner. I'm hoping they have some kind of vegetable that hasn't been cooked in butter, but I'm not going to count on it. I wonder if I can fit some raspberries in my evening bag...

A funny side note - tonight Frank came home from work and had one of those gross rice yogurts. And he actually liked it! Gah! Lucky for me, he wasn't a huge fan of the soy yogurt, so I guess I'll take that off his hands (we can swap). Also, a co-worker of mine lent me her copy of "Skinny Bitch", which has been a really funny, quick read. I thought it was just going to be about healthy eating and exercise, but it actually promotes a vegan lifestyle! I just finished the chapter on dairy, and to quote them directly, "You will pee in your pants when you see how much weight you lose from giving up dairy." (Yeah, they're not exactly shrinking violets, so be warned before you pick up the book - they really like the F word, and they will make repeated references to your "fat/sorry ass" and "shitty/horrendous diet". Not for the feint of heart.)

The vegan experiment: Day 2

Day 2

Breakfast - I woke up early and hit the gym. I was feeling pretty good so I ran for 2 miles on the treadmill. Then I rode my bike into work (another 2 miles), so I was ravenous by the time I got in. I brought some rice yogurt to try for breakfast, and eagerly opened it up. Gaaa! Gross! On every possible level - gross! Looks - like mucus! Smells - reeeally, reeeeally yogurt-y. Very pungent. Tastes - just like it looks and smells. Totally nasty. I had to toss it. I ended up having a Gnu Fiber bar and some raspberries for breakfast...

Snack 1 - ...which kept me feeling full for all of about 45 minutes. So I had some blueberries I brought in before breaking into my lunch (soy cheese sandwich) early.

(Actual) lunch - Had some spicy thai soup, which was okay. Had to eat some almonds to stave off hunger, though.

Snack 2 - OMG I LOVE SOY PUDDING! This stuff is GREAT! As in - I could probably swap it with regular pudding and no one would be able to tell (except for the fact that it has "Zen Soy" printed all over the package). Also had a little vegan snickerdoodle cookie, which was totally decent. After work, I grabbed some pita and hummus and fixed some edamame, which I shared with Frank when he got home. Frank (who is also going vegan this week) wasn't feeling that great today. He said he had a headache and was feeling tired. I thought it was stress. He thought it was lack of meat. Meat withdrawl, if you will. Hm. For the record, I feel swell.

Dinner - Headed across the street to my local falafel joint and got a falafel salad. Frank had some fake vegan chicken (he let me try it - it was pretty good! creepily enough, they actually emulated the texture of cooked chicken very closely!), which seemed to help with his meat withdrawl. Frank hit the soy ice cream, but I'm pretty full.

When I tell people about my attempt to go vegan, I often get the response - "Wow. That's going to be really hard." So far, I've been kind of surprised at how easy it's been. It's only been a couple of days, though, and some real challenges lie ahead (a fancy dinner out on Thursday - it's a sit-down corporate affair, so we'll be lucky if there's even a vegetarian option). However, I'm determined, and as anyone who's ever seen me dig my heels in knows, this means I WILL do this.

On a final note - last night, I saw something on television that said, "If God didn't want us to eat animals, He wouldn't have made them out of meat." Huh? What are humans made out of?

The Vegan Experiment: Day 1

Exhibit A: The Fuzzie-Wuzzies

For most of my life, I equated veganism with an image of an under-nourished, over-educated, smelly population of preachy hippies/militant activists. Over time, my worldview has expanded somewhat (although I am still annoyed by preachiness...and smelliness), and I now realize that there are some perfectly normal, healthy vegans out there. Today, I am becoming one of them.

My reasons for attempting this experiment are twofold: First, I'm interested to see if I experience an improvement in my overall health, and second, because I watched the latest episode of "30 Days" and got upset about the treatment of the fuzzie-wuzzies. So, for the next week (at least), I am setting aside my deep attachment to cheese and all things cheese-related (oh yeah, and all other foods originating in or having anything to do with animals). I will be documenting my efforts here for the education and/or amusement of the masses. Bon appetit.

Day 1:

Breakfast - Stood with my coffee (with soy creamer), examining the ingredients list on a box of Life cereal before realizing I had no soy milk at my disposal (and hazelnut-flavored soy coffee creamer might not blend well with the delicate flavors of Life cereal). Abandoned Life completely for instant oatmeal (prepared with water).

Snack 1 - Around 11, start rooting around the snack cabinet at work. Find some raw almonds and a plum. Eat them while thinking longingly of my usual snack (string cheese).

Noon - Realize with no small amount of horror that chocolate is made with milk and thereby is decidedly not vegan. Fight the urge to weep.

Lunch - Mixed greens salad with cherry tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts, cucumber, and tofu. Yes, tofu. Tossed with enough balsalmic to disguise disappointing blandness of tofu.

Snack 2 - Am distraught to learn that my favorite flavor of Pop Chips contains milk. Exchange them for the much-less-flavorful (but still satisfying) "original" version. Eyeball the Babybel cheese mini-wheel in the fridge covetously, but resist. Must...think...about...the...fuzzie...wuzzies...

After work, I walked home and perused the contents of our fridge while having some pita and olive hummus. Other than that, there wasn't much in the way of vegan food in our place. When Frank came home, we took a field trip to our local health food store and loaded up with...SOY! Lots and lots of soy. Soy ice cream. Soy yogurt. Soy cheese. Soy milk. Some of it is going to be necessary to get through this week, other stuff we thought sounded cool and just wanted to try (vegan cookies! why the hell not?). We came home, inspected our pile of vegan booty with satisfaction and dove in. I had an Amy's Indian Burrito for dinner (weird, but good - spinach, tofu and Indian spices). I was thinking earlier that I might cap the night off with some soy ice cream, but I'm kind of all set with soy right now.

So far, so good! We'll see what tomorrow brings, but tonight, at least, I can sleep the sleep of the morally superior (Ha! Just kidding! Not preaching! No preaching here!)...