Oh, a side note. I just found out that today is "National Vegan Day." I had no idea. Call it serendipity.
First and foremost, I'm down a whopping 6 POUNDS after 6 full days! Granted, I've been flushing my system of lots of retained water due to sodium levels, etc., but at least the numbers look good. I started at 203 pounds and this morning I weighed in at 196.3. Since I'm about a quarter of the way through this challenge and have a nice head start, I think a goal of 12-15 pound weight loss is within the realm of possibility. Clearly I won't lose 6 pounds next week, but if I average 2 pounds over the next three weeks, that'll put me at 12 down overall.
My energy levels are fantastic. I just have to remember to eat often. One thing that my body has to get used to is that meat and grease tend to satiate quite a bit longer. The "roughage" tends to go right through my stomach, leaving me feeling quite hungry within an hour or two of eating. So, it's been nibbling on fruits, veggies, and sipping tea in between my home-made soups, salads, vegan tacos and mushroom burgers.
Speaking of recipes, although I planned on following the Engine 2 28-day challenge diet meal plan, that's proved a bit problematic. I have two young children, and their schedules are quite busy, along with my wife's full-time work schedule and my long commute. I have been able to create some fantastic dishes, however. My batch of peanut-butter cauliflower soup actually tasted creamy due to the potatoes in it. My wife absolutely loved it. Our vegan tacos have also been wonderful. I love those uncooked corn tortillas from Costco, by the way.
Vegan tacos (black beans, cilantro, tomatoes, corn, avocados)
For breakfast, I've been having primarily steel-cut oats with a little soy milk and agave sweetener or a bowl of grape nuts. For lunches and dinners, it's been spinach salads, miso soup broth, veggie stir fry with brown rice and portabello mushroom burgers in addition to the soups.
Tofu stir-fry with brown rice
I'll have to get a little more inventive for week 2. I still have a very large bag of broccoli and collard greens that I need to use before they turn. We have consumed quite a few apples, a vat of spinach, a huge bag of cauliflower, many tomatoes, onions, potatoes, carrots...the list continues.
Cauliflower soup
One side effect, that seems to be calming down thankfully, has been the horrendous, well, how do I put it delicately...odors that I've been putting off at regular intervals. My wife has had to kick me out of the bedroom for several nights because of my offensive rituals. I also "hot-boxed" my daughter in the car the other day. She was laughing and crying at the same time. Rotten eggs do not even begin to describe the smell. However, into day 7, this afflictions seems to be abating.
Vlog entry coming soon!
Chad
