Day 35 - I am cleansed and edified

9 lessons learned as a 3-day vegan:

1. Chicken and beef really aren't vegetables, no matter how much I want them to be.
2. Everything tastes great with chili sauce.
3. I will not die of malnutrition if I don't eat meat for 3 days, but I might be a little hungrier throughout the day.
4. I will be lighter and more energetic if not weighed down by our animal friends.
5. Just because there is free food on the table you don't have to eat it.  
• Seriously - having the willpower to avoid all animal based foods required me to turn down some mighty tasty free foods.  But if I can do it then, I can do it otherwise (not healthy, not really that tasty, spoil appetite, etc.)
6. Apples and chick peas are remarkably filling.  Humus, while tasty, is not.
7. Tofu doesn't taste like meat, but it is still tasty when slathered in chili sauce (see #2).
8. I won't smell really bad because of my diet.  I just smell bad in general.
9. Cooking creatively is a lot of fun and allows you to discover great new combinations (e.g. soy sauce + fermented soy bean paste ~ fish sauce).

Days 33-34 - Be Gentle

Yesterday was the first day of eating vegan.  Probably ever.  As I write this I am staring at my bowl of roasted red pepper hommous and thinking that veganism actually is not that terrible.  I have had more energy, felt lighter and more refreshed.  But I've also felt more hungry.  I think I tend to get fuller faster over fewer calories but then my body gives a backlash so I end up eating more frequently.

Yesterday I made a cauliflower and chick pea curry.  Proud of myself because I did it with no recipe and it was actually pretty tasty.  Today I made a spicy bok choy with pad thai noodles.  Tomorrow I'm thinking of doing something with tofu.

Today's yoga practice was the first time doing gentle yoga.  Not really my cup of tea.  Much prefer the yin yoga (which is tomorrow's practice).  I couldn't focus well, but I'm sure it didn't help that I was freezing, exhausted and running late.   Work has become insane again and I'm trying to motivate, but it is very hard without the supplements to delude me into a happier mindset.

I better get to bed and do a little meditation - starting to feel hazy and today was extremely stressful.  Glad to be ending it in a good mood.  Tomorrow I have back to back meetings all day, but I still have my Yin Yoga practice so I know I will be fine.

Day 0 - First Impressions

December 30, 2013

Just received my copy of The Ultimate Yogi and super pumped!  Came sooner than expected and looks brand new (shrink wrap and everything).  Purchased it off of e-bay so expected it to be used.  Rock on.  I unwrap the packaging and everything is intact.  Each DVD individually wrapped, the program calendar neatly folded.  Wow, this looks really professional.  I must remember to leave positive feedback on e-bay (oops - still haven't done it).

First decision - do I start tomorrow or wait a day.  Why wait?  That has always been my philosophy.  When you want to get something done don't put it off, just make it happen.  Well, tomorrow is New Year's Eve so it is serendipitous timing for this to arrive right before the new year.  Starting on January 1st has a poetry to it, but then again I'm not one for resolutions (see philosophy above).  What to do...

Second decision - do I follow the diet plan or not?  First 36 days eat vegan? I don't think I've ever gone a day vegan.  The thought of it makes me a little queasy.  I'm that annoying guy who always waves my double cheeseburger in the face of the vegans.  Well, it might be possible if we count beef as a vegetable.  Second 36 days eat raw?  Oh man, I like my foods doused in oil and/or butter.  Not sure I can eat raw.  Last 36 days juice feast? Are you kidding me???!

Well I briefly entertain it as well.  I decide to run the first 36 days by the wife.
"That's just stupid."  This from a woman who made us eat gluten free for a month (ok...well she ate gluten free while I cheered her on) and has jumped on many a fad diet or exercise craze.  Then I mentioned the second 36.  "That's really stupid.  I'm not saying you are stupid, just that anyone who wants to do that is stupid." Haha, yeah, that's what I was thinking the whole time...really. :-/  Probably best not to mention the last 36.