Vegan Pledge Day 23: Nickelback in the hands of an angry vegan

So I'm back up in the game, little spiders. No angry vegan diatribe tonight. I'm happy, well rested, have swallowed yesterday's information and can now fully function in the world.  My apologies for the wrath of judgment I bestowed upon you yesterday.  I have this image of me up on the pulpit, sinners-in-the-hands-of-an-angry-God style. Remember that, ye catholics?

I feel good. Actually, I feel great tonight. I personally feel like I crushed it tonight at the wod. I have strength tonight, but it wasn't physical strength that I impressed myself with, it was my mental tenacity. I walked over to the stack of weights today and initially nagged at myself 'I can't do this.'  Then I stopped and forced my head to say "You CAN and you WILL."  And I did. I pushed.  When I wanted to quit, I continued; when I didn't want to pick up that bar anymore, that was the moment I squatted down to lift it up.  And puh-lease, can we talk about my kip? Saaaaa-weeet!  :)

My shoulder and neck are feeling great too.  It's pretty wonderful what physical therapy and hot yoga will do.  Maybe I'll turn that like-hate relationship with yoga into a like a bit more-hate relationship with yoga.

And speaking of yoga, that room was f'ing hot yesterday. I think we were running at about 100 degrees.  I kept inching my yoga mat back, closer to the supply closet door, where if you're lucky, a cool breeze of about 85 degrees will blow on you. The yoga pancake ass next to me was annoyed that I was eventually lateral to her, but that supply closet was my freedom. FREEEEEDOM.  I kept looking around at everyone to see if they too felt like we were in a sweat lodge, but the army of lululemoners yoga'd on on their fancy no slip mats--and me in my no name brand yoga gear on my cat-chewed yoga mat was stuck in the downward dog trenches waiting for the clock to strike 4:30.  

Well, I survived yoga, but alas, Nickelback did not survive me. Seriously, last night I had a dream that Nickelback was in a plane crash. For the record, I hate every single one of their stupid ass songs.  And apparently,  in my creative, vengeful vegan anger yesterday, my subconcious was killing Nickelback. Let's hope "this is how you remind me" died too.

Now, it would be disturbingly ironic if Nickelback was a group of vegans.

Signing off.

Vegan Pledge Days 17-22: The lady doth protest not enough

I'm a slacker at this blog thing, so what? It's not like the producers of Julie & Julia are knocking on my door  wanting to turn this into a movie.  If that was the case, the film would be 5 minutes long and would just feature us on the toilet.

I've been slacking for an abundance of reasons:
1) I've got nothing to say that anybody really wants to hear. See # 4 below.
2) I've been grumpy--my neck and shoulder injury is a pain in my ass and I'm watching my performance slide at crossfit.  It's been discouraging to watch everyone's weight on the bar move up, while I've seen my weight on the bar drop down significantly (and that's when I can even do any of the lifts).  I feel like I'm falling behind. The grumpiness has even impacted my cardio there.  I'm just not giving it my all. I need to get my head straight again and push it. I'm working on it.
3) I'm still vegan and there's no "omg, is she going to make it for 30 days?" Yes. I am. For life. I feel like it's the best decision that I've made in my grown-up life, the best decision to take charge of my body, my mental health, and my love for animals.  Took me years to get here comfortably.  I did my research. I'm good.
4) I don't want to proselytize (maybe I do), but I just learned a ton of shit more about factory farming that I wish I could shut out of my brain.  For tofucking sake people, learn about what goes into your mouth.  You say you love animals? I love my cats, but I bet if I had a cow, I'd love that cow just as much. What's the difference?  Learn about cows, pigs, and chickens' lives too.  In fact, look at pictures.  I just learned about these gestational cages basically, where a pig lays on its side basically it's entire life and just gets pregnant until it's no longer useful and then its killed. How great! Yay for assholes!!! How did we get here, people?

 Interestingly, I spoke with a photographer today who went to a local kimberton farm to do a piece. Well, the photographers for the magazine purposefully arrived a day early (as there were rumors of ill treatment and disgusting conditions).  The farmers made them wait two hours, while they got the animals "ready." The photographer poked around though--and that was the day she went vegan.  So in other words, a big F you to those local farms who claim they are righteous.  They're just like cage-free eggs--a big total myth.  At this point, in order to save my own head, I'm going to have to take some sort of step to turn anger into positive action.   Would you still be friends with me if I protest?  (I can hear the collective "no")

 p.s. did you know that by 2048 the worlds' supply of fish will be gone?

So let's talk about some topics that are near and dear to my fart.

Organic v. chemical veggies/fruits: What do you buy? Someone basically told me recently that I'm a jackass for buying organic as the laws around pesticides and organic-ness are loose and who's really enforcing them?  My take: buy what you want and I'll buy what I want. I do believe that there are companies out there who are trying to do good for the common good. Maybe I'm naive. I can live with that.  However, my husband is still annoyed at the price of organic foods and our grocery bill. I think I can find a way to settle that bill with him...

Vitamin D: D2 (vegan) v. D3 (non-vegan) Like most northern americans, I have a significant vitamin D deficiency (wonder if that's contributing to my energy levels).   My doctor tested me last year, advised me to take high daily dosage vitamin D and I never did.  So I'm sure that low number is even lower this year.  Being that my next physical is coming up, I ran out yesterday to buy vitamin D.  I went with D3 (only option at GNC). I've done a lot of research on what works best and D3 has been accepted by vegans and non-vegans alike, it's not the best, but....  I'm still on a search for a good form of D2. Not all hope is lost on me.

Anyway, I am too torn up about reason #4 up above to even continue. In fact, I wrote about organic fruit/veggies and vitamin D before the education around the other stuff.  But I just had to get it out. I'm not judging about meat eating (really, I'm not--I like my meat eating friends), but I'm sad, very sad for the lives that these animals are condemned to live. It's not fair. It's not kind. "It's not my problem."

Yes, yes it is. And environmentally, it will be our future generations' bigger problem.

Signing off.

Vegan Pledge Days 15 & 16: The big job of saving Princess Toadstool

Cool vegan: one who's awesome and does not bully her family into following her vegan lifestyle. One who has found the perfect balance of following her own personal path and allowing her family to choose theirs.  I know quite a few of these people, including one hobeast and one vegan pledge mentor, and I value their insight and their rejection of the Vegan police force.  That is the type of vegan I'm trying to be.  It's tough to STFU about it, though.  I've had to stop myself a few times.  BAD vegan (i hit myself on the nose).

Uncool Vegan:  this is the vegan I'm not trying to be: I thought it was wildly irritating when I called an old work friend (who is psycho raw vegan--in the nicest way, possible) and said, "guess what? I've made the change. I'm a vegan too! We gotta grab lunch together!!" Clearly, I was excited. Hence the exclamation points. And she said "Well, I guess." "Um, what?" I replied, "Have you defected? Are you no longer vegan?"  Answer, "well, no, but how can I call myself vegan when I drive to work everyday on LEATHER SEATS?"  (let your voice get higher and higher as you read that sentence)

FUCK. there's vegan levels in the vegan kingdom???? it's like freakin Mario 3--which I've never beaten--am I never going to reach level 8 super vegan? Will Bowser and his 8 children continue to stop me? Apparently so because, hell a raw vegan is better than a regular vegan, but then there's a super vegan who doesn't buy anything or touch anything or breathe in anything remotely animal-esque, and then there is super master level 8 animal rights protestor vegan which is basically untouchable--these are the people doing the dirty work so I can sleep at night.

I'm living in the vegan world, but I'm Mario with a limited time only vegan Luigi. We wear leather shoes, carry leather bags, and sit on our leather chair.   Even though we bought all that shit pre-vegan and I feel really guilty about it, it probably only gets me to level 3.  Maybe level 4 if you count our rescue of Cathy the rabbit  (who shit all over the floor and was stupid) and Kevin the cat (who I  have a co-dependent relationship with).

I hope over the years to incrementally get to level 7--and probably will stop there: I've got Luigi to focus on and feed; I've got more shitting rabbits, and emotionally unavailable cats to find, adopt and love. But I'll leave the big job of saving Princess Toadstool up to the super vegans who absorb the realities that most of us can't bear to hear.

Kudos, the world is a better place because of your efforts, but let's always strive to keep it cool. We can catch more flies with honey...damn it, see? I told you I was level 3.

Vegan Pledge Days 12, 13, & 14: Missionary Position? No thanks.

There's a picture that I have to paint--and my vegan friends may not like the colors that I'm going to use.

Tonight we had a post-holiday dinner with friends, a dinner in place for months--before we, as a unit, decided to take the Vegan pledge. The menu had been set in stone: it was to be a traditional thanksgiving feast.  And, vegan and non-vegan friends,  that menu was carried out tonight.  

This menu had been a source of contention between myself and my vegan pledge hubby.  I, who sees no turning back from the vegan lifestyle, wanted to shun the original menu and move forward with a vegan version.  My husband felt it was necessary to honor the palates of our guests.  Well folks, here's the naked tofufuckingtruth: there a certain fights worth fighting--and then sometimes,  all that matters is keeping that marriage dashboard green.  Hence, there was a turkey on the table (and the vegan selection of homemade soup).  Majority reached for turkey (yuck- not me!). Minority reached for soup. And the soup was totally kick-ass.

Look, I struggled with this blog post and I didn't want to even admit this menu with my vegan community, but I like my vegetable soup with a side of honesty.  Because guess what? Being vegan in a non-vegan world is tough as nails and my husband and I, we're human: as a vegan, I find that non-vegan people ask questions, make comments, have opinions--and share those opinions with vigor and force, like they can't (under)stand this decision I've made. Some people think that when you turn vegan, you've also adopted the sole mission of converting everyone around you.  I didn't accept a Missionary Position when I joined the vegan community, got it? [insert military salute] But ask and I'll answer.

I'll answer even those inane questions about scenarios: "you're in the woods, and there's nothing to eat but squirrel--and if you don't eat it, you'll die."  Guess what, your stupid f'ing scenario is just that, f'ing stupid. I'll eat bear shit in the woods if there's nothing to eat and if I don't I'll die.   In fact, there's a ton of shit I'd eat in the woods if it was a matter of life and death: including, but not limited to the aforementioned bear shit, tree bark, deer piss, squirrel eyeballs, butterfly wings, etc.  Why do people just want you to say that you'll eat meat again if there's an apocalyptic occurrence? Oooohh, you've got me! I admit it! I'll eat animals then! You've found the great loophole in veganism: the overarching human deeply-hemp-seeded will to live if I was stranded with no hope in the woods forever.  

Anyway, back to tonight's menu. Yes, I was hostess to a non-vegan meal tonight. I can feel the judgement rising up in the back of people's throats--the I told you so's!, the you're a bad vegan! but do me a favor and swallow them. I don't need anyone to be a missionary to me either. I didn't like the decision that was made, but I like my husband.

I need to count and appreciate the tofu-eggs in my basket:

• My carnivorous husband agreed to go vegan (holy shit, that's huge)
•  he did it to support me (totally huge)
•  he cooks vegan meals for us (can we say convenient?!)
• he willingly and openly shares the positive effects of his dietary lifestyle (brave and touching!), and he wants to continue being vegan...(holy shit, really?)

except for holidays --christmas, thanksgiving....(and boom goes the dynamite, taking with it all my vegan dreams for a vegan household with little vegans scampering around wearing cloth diapers and citing the china study)

Do I fight the fight? Is it worth it if he agrees to be vegan the other 363 days of the year? But what message does it send if we take the two biggest family holidays and serve something so against our (my) principles for the sake of ensuring that we have guests?  And what about when we have children...?

My head is spinning....I can't answer any of these questions just yet...good thing november is a long ways off.

Signing off.

Vegan Pledge Days 10 & 11: Pass the Dutchie to the lefthand side

We've hit double digits, folks. I'm on Day 11 of all vegan, no chocolate, no candy, and no bread/carbs sunday through thursday.  I'm doing a shit-ton of protein powder in the morning and post workout. I'm a lean, mean, vegan, shitting machine.

After a crap-filled day of an all-day offsite work meeting, I excitedly got ready to leave for the wod, but alas, the ass that I am, I left my lights on all day and my car battery had died. DAMN IT. Then, I called security to jumpstart my car, they came, hooked up the cables, and then the dude got a call that there was a medical emergency, and had to disconnect the cables DAMN IT (but hope you're okay, person-with-medical-emergency!) Soooooo, a half hour later, he was back, car was started, and I missed class. DAMN IT I could have gone to the later one, but whatever--at that point, I didn't feel like it, damn it.  (Also, the person with the medical emergency is alright, thankfully--I'm not soul-less, I really do care!)

Tonight Hubbykins and I went to Kimberton whole foods, where we bought ground flaxseed, organic canola oil (has a great 2-1 ratio of omega 3s to 6s...very important, google it), and hubbykins purchased his protein powder. He went with hemp, which if you don't know, is basically weed in a plastic container.  And I'm okay with that--as long as he passes his protein shake to the left.

G'night yall.

Vegan Pledge Day 9: pancake ass

I've got a like-hate relationship with yoga.    

I hit the mat today after more than a month off and was met with some major inflexibility (definitely need to work yoga back in my life more.) My goal was to help out my shoulder so I can get back into my regular routine on Tuesday, but I actually spent most of the time checking out yoga bodies in there.

Let me begin by saying that yoga is a great way to get yourself into shape, and it's a major component for success in my mind.  It's full of relaxation-breathing techniques-and forces you to focus on one task at a time and keep calm.  It forces you to lengthen your muscles and can help correct muscular issues.  You can certainly become psychotically flexible, and do some pretty cool shit, but alas, you can also wind up with  pancake ass. And that's what I saw in there, a lot of flat butt.

So what's my point? If you asked me 5 months ago what my idea of beauty was I'd probably point to the slender yoga girl in class.   She looks like most of the people who walked the Golden Globe red carpet last night--and said to have an "enivable figure" by People magazine. But turn that girl around, you see major pancake.  You don't see much muscle.  Sure she's skinny and can fit into an itty bitty dress (bitch!), but what's missing is that "healthy" look.

Now my way isn't the highway, but crossfit has slowly changed my personal perception of what beauty is--and trust me, that's a hard as hell habit to break.  Look at the runways:it's still full of the heroin chic look of the 90s (I still love you Kate Moss--and if that's the natural you, or anyone else, God bless ya, but you shouldn't be the norm, cause you're not).  Crossfit weirdly challenges you to focus less on weight, and more on what you see in the mirror, a.k.a pump up that butt. 

Gotta bring Veganism into this.  Being vegan challenges  me to do the same: focus on health, and not dieting.  I'm not in this to lose weight. I'm in this to eat according to my personal morals, and also to align my nutrition with my fitness goals.  When you're eating clean, I don't think there's a point to think of much else.  Virtually everything I'm consuming is a nutritional, conscious choice so that I can perpetuate my new idea of beauty--and go after muscle. But to get muscle, you need protein.

I gotta say that I'm questioning the vegan community about protein intake.    A lot of vegans laugh it off and say, " on the vegan diet, you don't need to worry about protein, you're getting enough,"  but I've tracked my protein intake:  On days when I don't consume my raw vegan protein powder, I'm short of the minimum recommended intake by vegan standards. I'm eating bunches of kale, spinach, beans, lentils, quinoa everyday.  My husband just tracked his daily average and he too is far below what he should be ingesting and his caloric intake is high enough.  We're going to have to find him a vegan protein powder as well.  Luckily,  the vegan president of the pledge group I'm a part of is athletic and she too is a vegan protein powder user.  Vindicated.

Anyway,  my idea of beauty isn't the red carpet girls: it's the girls in my crossfit class, the ones slowly taking off body fat, developing new muscle, and kicking ass. You girls are my new celebrities.  So I'm rollin out the red carpet for you and I'm putting the maple syrup away, cause ain't no pancake butt on my girls.

And speaking of pancakes, here's a recipe!
1 3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup garbanzo flour
1 banana
1 tsp vanilla
2-2 1/4 cups water.

Preheat your waffle maker (if you have one. I don't, so I guess I'll never make these anyway)
Place all ingredients in blender. Blend thoroughly.
Pour mixture on waffle maker. Takes about ten minutes. If you open it too soon, it will pull apart.

Now who's got a waffle maker...Can I come for breakfast?

Vegan Pledge Days 7&8: You down with TVP? Yeah, you know me.

Last night I was too tired to write, so I'm combo-ing days. We had a dinner date with a couple at Birchrunville Cafe. Knowing that the menu was basically all game meat, I called ahead to let them know about my dietary restriction.  At first they said that they couldn't really accommodate me and I was probably only going to eat a plain salad and some veggies (shocker). 


Fast forward to the night of: my dinner far surpassed my expectations.  Their idea of accommodation was fantastic: I had a light pear, walnut, spring mix salad drizzled with a balsamic vinaigrette.  My entree: delicious artfully plated vegetables, including a cherry tomato/diced squash medley, mushroom crepes, broccolini, and green beans sauteed in olive oil and garlic, with pistachios.  My description is far from doing it justice. 


The couple at my table scarfed down their ostrich (vomit) and rack of lamb (puke) and I could tell that they were down with OPP, and wanted a taste of my meal. After all, it was pretty and perfect.  And the added bonus of being vegan, instead of the $30.00 entree, mine was $10.00.  HELL YEAH, cheap and yummy. 


Today was our 2nd Vegan Pledge meeting (or as a friend has termed it--vegan church). The hubs shared with the group that he has never felt healthier & doesn't crave meat. His digestive system has calmed down and all stomach issues that he regularly experienced have disappeared.  Now he just deals with constant shitting.  


Today, I ate something called TVP--and it was pretty darn good! It's defatted soy flour and contains 12 grams of protein per serving. Now, I wouldn't eat this on a regular basis, since it's processed and soy is a food that can be a digestive allergen (and I should know b/c if I take in too much, I have issues), but for a once in a while meal to please my non-vegan family and friends, not too bad.


Taco-licious
1 cup of TVP                              taco shells
1/2 white onion                           guacamole
1 TBS garlic                                salsa
2-3 TBS of Mexican spices         lettuce
1 bouillon cube
1 can of black beans
1 TBS oil


1. Cook TVP according to packaging with a cube of bouillon in water (super easy and quick)
2. Saute the onion and garlic in skillet
3. Add the TVP once onion is translucent
4. Add the spices according to your taste
5. Once TVP looks ready, add beans and stir


Keep moving the TVP mixture moving until it's brown and dry looking.


Now move on outta here. 

Vegan Pledge Day 6: yum yum uranium

The hubs called me today after a mini panic attack.  He had neon yellow radioactive piss, like something off the charts of the elements. Oh my God, he was thinking, "I have some weird vegan deficiency--something's wrong." But it turns out he had taken one of my B-2 vitamins that I take for migraines.  Not as scary as beets, and not as smelly as asparagus, but still pretty gross to see it glow in the bowl.

Later, he texted me and wanted to know "where all this poop is coming from?"

I'm too tired to write tonight, but never too tired to share the hub's observations on bodily fluids.

Signing off.

Vegan Pledge Day 5: I really don't want to vomit on you

I forgot my sneakers on a really hard wod (workout of the day) today and rocked my terribly cool lettuce-colored socks at the box.  On my last round of knees to elbows on that pull-up bar, I could taste it: the hummus-avocado-tomato-cucumber-collard wrap (and that means collard greens were the actual wrap part, not in the wrap) was coming up. Not because it was particularly gross, but because I was particularly fatigued--most likely a bit calorically deficient--working to failure, and there was a part of me that I had to silence: the part that said "just quit."

Instead, I mustered the breath to say to my fellow crossfitter "I really don't want to vomit on you." Cause I didn't. I can't imagine how cucumber and hummus looks on the way back up.  The response was simple, "you can do it, 5 more reps," and my fellow cf'er proceeded to count the reps and follow me through on finishing.

That show of support in a wod is just natural to the crossfit community to which I belong, yet I still find myself taken aback at times. I can't believe that you're all really rooting for me, but doggone it, you really are. You like me, you really like me!  Look, I'm neither the best nor the worst cf'er.  I struggle with any wod that requires upper body strength, yet before each and every wod, my comrades assure me that I can "crush it"--and the strange thing is, they really mean it. I don't believe it, but they believe in me.

This support has translated itself to my veganism.  If I look at the majority of blog responses on my facebook, its the crossfit community, friends I've known for only 3 months, telling me to "hang in there" while I'm detoxing in this diet, and then the next time they see me, asking me if I'm doing better, and really caring to know the answer and how I feel, and more than willing to share their experience with whatever change they've done!  It's the person saying, give me a call anytime-- I can help you with this, it's tough, but live it, love it and embrace it! It's the person who says, "you can do it, really, you just lack confidence--and we'll work to build it up." Or here's a vegan mexican chocolate muffin recipe-this should satisfy that sweet tooth (that's from a non crossfitter that I gots to show some love for!)

So I'm standing at the intersection of crossfit and veganism (please God don't let someone slam into the back of my car)--and who do I see? Someone who's here to build you up, someone who's here to count your reps, share a dietary anecdote, share a recipe,  advice and laughter.  Someone who is willing to risk a little vomit so that they can help you succeed because that's what matters most.

Thank you, my dear friends. I'll risk some vomit for you so you can get that muscle-up, chest to bar, or handstand push-up, anytime.

Vegan Pledge Day 4: Over faster than that fembot & veganphries

It's Day 4. I've had the same salad for lunch for 4 days. I'm hungry, I'm cranky, and despite what the title teases, still 100% vegan.  I have no craving for meat and dairy, but I do miss bread and the occasional sweet. You don't get it, I mean, I'm fucking cranky.  Fruit is bullshit. The larabars aren't satiating the sweet tooth.  Neither is chewing 1 raisin really, really, really slowly.

Essentially,  the honeymoon's over. I've lost the euphoria of making this lifestyle change, I no longer want to explain to people my choice with a smile on my face and hold up the "I love animals" flag, It's a pain in the ass to plan what to eat, I'm tired of chopping veggies, roasting veggies,  it's emotionally draining to think of all the tortured animals at the hands of factory farming, and it's only effing day 4.   For example, I read up on why honey is bad, oh my, seriously? I'll spare you the details, but I realize that humanity has developed a strange sense of unquestionable entitlement to this earth.  Not everything around us is for us (or for our squadron of annoying fembots), Mama Kardashian; Some things are here for themselves.   I digress. 

Dinner tonight?  Let me clearly & sarcastically excite everyone! This may knock your socks off!!!!! Well, I haven't had cruciferous vegetables in a bit, so I had some quinoa, broccoli, and marinara sauce with a side salad.  Quinoa is like little teeny tiny balls of monkey brains.  Oh and 1 (regrettably tiny) Thai vegetarian spring roll. Socks off? Thought so.*

Well, I'm not going to go through divorce proceedings with veganism, but I'm going to call to the forefront an understanding between us: some days, Kris Veganphries, you are going to annoy the piss out of me, but I'm in it for the long haul.  

*On a side note, I hope your feet smell better than Tom's All Natural Deodorant in Lemongrass Scent. Bad, bad, bad purchase. Good if you want to smell like shit though.

Vegan Pledge Day 3: Ice, Ice Babyshit

Well, since only my facebook friends read this, you all know that I was rear-ended today and I'm ice-ice-babying my neck since it hurts.  motherf'er. And you all also know that I was planning on rx'ing those pull-ups tonight.  again, motherf'er.  So how does this relate to veganism? It doesn't. I just wanted to bitch and reconfirm that I swear that last night I strung 3 pull-ups together. Anyway.

What does relate to veganism is that the hot cop who came to take the accident information was a vegan.  He saw some vegan paperwork laying next to me in the passenger seat and asked about it.  How great is that? And you know what's even greater? That's a total bullshit story I just made up.  What really happened is that I silently prayed-- as the cop was leaning in my window asking me questions-- that he wouldn't notice the cup of green smoothie baby shit in my cup holder.   

Lesson learned: you have days where you're proud to be vegan--and days when you're not so proud because it has the potential to make you look weird, but you gotta get over it, get in the car,  and keep drinkin that green baby shit (too cold, too cold...)

Word to your mother.

Vegan Pledge Day 2: Not for the faint of fart

Text Message #1 from hubs: I feel bloated from all these fruits and veggies
Text Message #2: Something died in my ass

We were warned about this happening.  The first week can be a real detox, as you incorporate more and more vegetables, you expel more and more "stuff."  I, of course, am perfectly fine since I've been gearing up for this, just like roses over here....  And that's the scoop on poop.

Kudos for hubbycakes b/c he's continuing with vegan, not turned off, but rather intoxicated by the challenge (just not by the smell.) That's alright, I got nuthin but love for ya. (heavy d reference? saaaa-weet!)

I am finding myself hungrier--and I think it's a mental war (I know I'm restricting myself, so I immediately want to test that, fight against it).

This morning at work...ugh, I was just about ready to throw a fit over not having chocolate (didn't take a friend's advice to get the vegan chocolate. epic fail. next week, put on grocery list.)  And then there were all these muffins that looked so good.  And then pretzels. Vegan as they may be, still empty calories and carbs. I had a few--and felt guilty.  I was probably overzealous in nixing carbs/grains from my diet, but I am trying to be as vegan-paleo as possible. Why? B/c aside from our difference in beliefs over meat and eggs, I fly the same flag with paleo-ists over dairy, processed foods & sugars, and grains.

Until manana, friends.  

p.s. um, need a new blender. my smoothie has chunks of kale in it. when you have to eat your smoothie with a spoon, not so good.

Vegan Pledge Day 1: Man, this is for the birds!

I don't even know where to begin, except on a reflection on what today really meant.  This was day 1, meeting 1.  We sat in a circle, we shared our "whys," talked essential nutrients, recipes, experiences, met people at all different stages of life, lifestyles similar to and far different from our own.  It wasn't granola kum-ba-ya (spelling?), it was educational, provocative, and downright eye opening.

What I loved about the group is that nothing was physically or metaphorically shoved down my throat: no soy products, no vegan junk food, no animal abusive treatment stories, nothing.  It wasn't preachy.  I know that's what matters most to my husband. If he feels like you're selling him something, he automatically wants to buy the opposite, even if it's a super bad decision, like a universal studios fanny pack (god, I had one as a child). 

I don't want to get ahead of myself, but this 30 day vegan quest is more like a 30 day measure of my first 30 days as a vegan.  I'm going to experiment, probably have some tough moments, and then keep on keepin on.  This lifestyle appeals to me in every way possible, from the environmental and animal life impact to the health benefits.  I've got quinoa, sunwarrior, and kale by side, so don't ask me how I'm going to get my protein. I did my research. I'm good.  A vegan mentor of mine says "you do you" and that's what I'm going to do. 

Something that really stuck in my head was about dairy.  The growth and sex hormones in the milk that a cow produces is meant to bring a 40 lb calf to a 1,000 lb cow teenager in one year.  Holy shit. I wonder what that does to humans. Life without dairy feels great--its amazing when you do a mini-detox, then follow it up with a re-introduction of the product, what you learn about your personal self.

Day 1 was discussion, food tasting, cooking demonstrations, etc. Ate a fantastic salad with crisp spring mix leaves, apples, raisins, red peppers, cucumbers, and a delicious white wine vinegar maple mustard dressing.  I immediately went out and bought everything after the meeting.  For those coming over my house soon, expect that salad. :0)

The lifestyle will be tough. It takes a bit more planning, a bit more cook time, certainly a real commitment. It's so much easier to grab a few pretzels, than it is to grab and slice that apple.  But since pretzels are vegan, I can still have some. See, even my vices align with veganism.  

Day 1 was also a re-examination, a reaffirmation, of my personal why. Why make the change? Why introduce something that sets me apart from those I know, that makes eating out with others a bit more challenging? 

I hear people criticize and na-say, "Man, that's for the birds."  

And to you I say, well you're right: Man, this is for the birds. I'm doing this for all the birds, chickens, cows, cats, dogs, lambs, all those "Kevins" out there.  

Laugh away, I did my research. I'm good.

Twas the night before vegan-mas...

It's Vegan-Mas eve. In the hubs stocking was  a giant cheesesteak. In mine, was a bit of dairy, in a small dessert (which honestly couldn't compare to a fresh apple sprinkled with cinnamon and almond butter.)  For the last two weeks, I've detoxed from dairy, a mini preparatory advent.  Today taught me that that was a good decision: not too long after the dairy, I felt bloated, sluggish, and just not great and hours later, I still feel it in my stomach.

I had my brown rice protein shake this morning. Nothing to rave about (a bit like chalk-- or crap) but that's my fault for ordering the unflavored version. I'll get used to it and choke the chalk down b/c I gotta admit that I felt freakin fantastic after it.  When your ethics are in line with what you ingest, though, it's hard not to feel freakin fantastic.

Let's get one thing straight: you can be vegan and eat shitty, and carb load it up.   I'm attempting to be as raw vegan as I possibly can. I'm not going to eat cereals, breads, and frozen shit in the vegan aisle. I'm going to juice, blend, salad, and experiment.  (I will deviate once a week with homemade tomato pie, tortilla chips and salsa but even that is pretty darn healthy.)  As far as chocolate, what the hell is the substitute? Maybe I'll finally nix my chocolate need.

It's almost officially Vegan-Mas.  It's quiet, peaceful, and warm for January.  I'm happy and hopeful. The  tree is no longer up, but there's still a present to be unwrapped. I know what it is.   It's from me, to me: it's the gift of health.

Merry Vegan-mas to all and to all a good night.

How much spinach does it take to ruin a smoothie?

So, I took the plunge. I made the commitment to go vegan for 30 days. I tried committing last year, but ditched it last minute. I was most likely too influenced by others as to "where in the world would I get my protein?" I think I was convinced that I would die if I went vegan--or completely eat bags and bags of vegan tortilla chips and blow up like Pavorotti.

For the last few years, I've been a committed vegetarian, feeling pretty good about my decision. I knew that I was making an impact by not eating animal flesh, but I didn't realize what goes on in the egg/dairy world. But you don't need me to tell you, go educate yourselves.

Exploration and new friends led me to actually believe that there are ways to (gasp) get protein without meat/dairy/egg consumption--and so now here I am, only a mere 4 days from day 1 of my challenge. Can I do it?  Can I really live without the chocolate I shove in my mouth daily?

Hence the blog. I can't eat if I'm typing right? Wrong. I'm eating now. Anyway, I'm hoping that this blog keeps me accountable about my commitment in the vegan challenge.    Holy shit, I have no idea what I'm going to eat, but I'll figure it out.  Every sunday there's a vegan meeting/support group where we're going to get together and talk recipes, go grocery shopping, and whatever the hell else a vegan support group does. Someone asked if "dreadlocks and patchouli" were a pre-requisite to joining. I'm just glad to be with peeps who love animals as much as me!

In preparation, I've starting making almond milk, banana, frozen blueberry smoothies with protein powder (it's whey protein, shut up, the challenge doesn't start yet and I've got vegan sunwarrior protein on the way in the mail to me) and have been adding spinach. I'm basically trying to find the number of spinach leaves it takes where the smoothie tastes like shit, and then I'll minus 1 leaf.

To sum it up Einstein style,
Smoothie=1 banana + 1/2 cup almond milk + 1/2 frozen blueberries + 2 scoops of protein powder + (the minimum number of spinach leaves it takes to ruin a smoothie-1 leaf.)

In case you're wondering, I'm up to 12 leaves.

stay tuned.....

I'm a warrior now, baby!

It has arrived upon my doorstep.  It's here! My vegan sunwarrior protein, my life force, the miracle that  will keep me from keeling over at crossfit.  Initial thoughts: for being 47 (don't judge) bucks, the bag is surprisingly (or unsurprisingly) small--and probably will taste like shit (or brown sprouted hypoallergenic shit). The colorful bag mocks me, "I'm just as disgusting as you'll expect, sucker."

I feel like I can do this now (I think.)  I'm going to have to eat a hell of a lot of greens to make up the protein deficit from nixing eggs and whey.  How many protein shakes do I have to drink? Well, my formula is simple: how many vegan protein shakes I will have a day=how many times I feel like going poo that day.  (TMI, I know).

I have to admit going into this challenge coming off a wicked cold and cough, and not having worked out for 4 days is rough.   I'm getting one hell of an ab workout from coughing though...there is a silver lining!  Take that hollow rocks.

Well, my two followers (one of which being myself), I'm signing off, but happily am letting you know that I'm officially up to 20 spinach leaves in my smoothie. Tomorrow, I'm going to get bold and add carrots, possibly one of the most disgusting veggies of all time. Here's another formula, carrots=puke.

I need a vegan warrior name, any suggestions?..................