Vegan Slippage

Yikes – I went “Vegan” over 15 months ago.  No animal products.  No cheese, eggs, meat, milk.  Lost about 8 pounds in the first 3 months.  Kept it off for another 6 months.  All my health markers improved (Cholesterol, glucose, etc.)  Then I started eating fish and some dairy.  Then Thanksgiving and Christmas came.  Then I realized that French fries and bean burritos are vegan! Then cheer season arrived.  Weekend travel, budget hotels, and vendor food makes it impossible to eat healthy, let alone vegan.   All of a sudden I gained back the 8 and another 4.  I’m only 5’2” people.  That’s like 2 dress sizes.  My closet can’t handle all that.  Neither can my wallet.  Mind you, I’ve been walking/jogging 3-4x a week religiously since September.  I can only imagine what I would weigh if I hadn’t been exercising.

 

So here I am in the month of June switching gears yet again.  (I must have burned out a clutch or 2 by now)  Back to vegan.  Fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds.  I’ve been following this for about a week.  Aside from some birthday cake (for my daughter) and some sushi, I have not detoured.  I am not hungry, have no cravings, and am losing weight.  I’m only 7 pounds away from my lowest of 2012.  I’m still jogging/walking and I’m trying to fit in some weight training now that regular baseball season is over and cheer is slightly abbreviated this summer.  I had been previously swayed by the shakes and pills, but I firmly believe that real, whole foods are the best foods and I’m staying away from processed anything.  I’m feeling a little tired, probably because I’m off of my daily caffeine.  But no headaches and I’m sleeping really well.

 

I’m so glad that some of my favorite fruits are in season.   I hit Costco for mangos and peaches.  My breakfast secret is a cherry/banana drink.   I take 1 fresh banana and about 6 cherries and freeze them overnight.  Then add them to the blender with almond milk and some flax seed.  Watch out with the flax seed, though.  Add too much and you’ll end up with cherry/banana gelatin that is totally gross!  I also made a veggie stew in the crockpot that’s good for a meal each day.  Just lots of veggies – cabbage, carrots, onion, green pepper, celery, tomatoes in a vegetable broth with 2 cans of beans.  Third meal is a huge salad with mixed greens, green pepper, cucumber, sliced strawberries, avocado and crushed cashews.  No dressing required.  Snacks include an apple or orange and some cashew/pumpkin seed clusters.  It’s about 1200 calories per day.  Sometimes less because I’m truly not hungry.

 

So stick with me to see how this all works out.  I’m guessing if I keep this up I should reach my goal weight in about a month.  Not sure what happens then.  I want to continue to eat this way – I guess my body will decide to stop losing when it’s at its happy weight.