(no subject)
We got home from vacation two weeks ago today, and, naturally, I woke up the next day with the worst sore throat ever. Bad enough that I dragged myself to urgent care the next day; they didn't do a strep test, but they gave me antibiotics in case it wasn't just a virus. At this point it's pretty much settled into a cold, but, man, it's been two weeks already. I'm ready to be done with it.
On the plus side, it's given me a good excuse not to do too much this week, since it's been ridiculously hot and humid. I can't wait for the thunderstorms tomorrow.
The big news, though, is that I decided back in June that when we got home from Canada I was going to go vegan (mostly) for a while. At my last check-up, almost a year ago, my cholesterol level was right at the verge of being too high, plus I put on a bunch of weight over the last several years, and it just hasn't wanted to come off, so I've been trying to clean up my diet. And it's worked a little, but not really, mostly because I get lazy and don't feel like cooking, so we end up getting takeaway. And I was using cheese way too often. Because it's delicious.
So I figured the only way things were going to change was if I made dairy products off-limits entirely. I'm still eating eggs (so not really vegan), but I've cut out milk, butter, and cheese. And the surprising thing is, it hasn't been nearly as hard as I expected. I thought I'd be missing cheese like crazy, but if I just tell myself I'm not allowed to eat it, it forces me to do something else instead.
We did have sushi last weekend, and I had a seared ahi salad at a restaurant yesterday, because it's not that easy to find vegan options eating out around here. I need to seriously research some restaurants.
It's going pretty well, though. The first week I was always hungry--like, every second I was awake I was thinking about what to eat next--but this week hasn't been so bad.. I think my body is getting used to it, and I'm also getting better about making sure I'm getting enough fat. Avocados are the best things ever. And I'm eating tons more vegetables than I had been, which is the idea.
The plan is to keep this up through the end of July, then to start incorporating more meat (although still not as much as before) and cutting down on wheat. I'm trying not to go overboard on breads, but I've been eating a lot of tortillas and crackers, so there's room for improvement.
I just started working out again on Tuesday--thank you, whatever this illness was--so it'll be interesting to see how exercise goes. It's too soon to tell, since I'm still having massive coughing fits every time I try to do anything. Which is really annoying, for the record.
So, questions:
- Any tips? At all? Would love to hear them.
- Is there a nutrition tracker that's not a complete pain to use? If not, what's the best one you've tried? Most of the ones I've looked at have a lot of info about prepared foods but don't work so well if you're cooking from scratch. And I really do need to figure out how much protein I'm getting at this point.
Meanwhile, work is not good, for a variety of reasons, and I'm not any closer to job hunting than I was a month ago. Have *got* to do something about that, but yuck. Matt wants me to drive to South Carolina and back with him, since he promised to drive some furniture down to his brother down there, and I'm completely lacking enthusiasm. His other brother and that brother's wife are visiting this week; it's always great to see them, but they've been here for five days, and I'll be happy when they leave tomorrow. (Then I'll start missing them again in a week or so.)
Oh, and we saw an interesting production of Shakespeare's "Cymbeline" at an outdoor theater last weekend. It was set in West Virginia during the Civil War, and it was really well done. I need to go back and read the original to figure out what changed and what didn't. The name of the actor who played Iachimo was James Earl Jones II, and I've spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to figure out if he's the son of the James Earl Jones we've all heard of. I don't think he is, but if anyone knows for sure, please holler. He was very good--possibly the best actor in the bunch.
And that's it for now. Hope y'all are having a good summer--or winter, if you're down under.
On the plus side, it's given me a good excuse not to do too much this week, since it's been ridiculously hot and humid. I can't wait for the thunderstorms tomorrow.
The big news, though, is that I decided back in June that when we got home from Canada I was going to go vegan (mostly) for a while. At my last check-up, almost a year ago, my cholesterol level was right at the verge of being too high, plus I put on a bunch of weight over the last several years, and it just hasn't wanted to come off, so I've been trying to clean up my diet. And it's worked a little, but not really, mostly because I get lazy and don't feel like cooking, so we end up getting takeaway. And I was using cheese way too often. Because it's delicious.
So I figured the only way things were going to change was if I made dairy products off-limits entirely. I'm still eating eggs (so not really vegan), but I've cut out milk, butter, and cheese. And the surprising thing is, it hasn't been nearly as hard as I expected. I thought I'd be missing cheese like crazy, but if I just tell myself I'm not allowed to eat it, it forces me to do something else instead.
We did have sushi last weekend, and I had a seared ahi salad at a restaurant yesterday, because it's not that easy to find vegan options eating out around here. I need to seriously research some restaurants.
It's going pretty well, though. The first week I was always hungry--like, every second I was awake I was thinking about what to eat next--but this week hasn't been so bad.. I think my body is getting used to it, and I'm also getting better about making sure I'm getting enough fat. Avocados are the best things ever. And I'm eating tons more vegetables than I had been, which is the idea.
The plan is to keep this up through the end of July, then to start incorporating more meat (although still not as much as before) and cutting down on wheat. I'm trying not to go overboard on breads, but I've been eating a lot of tortillas and crackers, so there's room for improvement.
I just started working out again on Tuesday--thank you, whatever this illness was--so it'll be interesting to see how exercise goes. It's too soon to tell, since I'm still having massive coughing fits every time I try to do anything. Which is really annoying, for the record.
So, questions:
- Any tips? At all? Would love to hear them.
- Is there a nutrition tracker that's not a complete pain to use? If not, what's the best one you've tried? Most of the ones I've looked at have a lot of info about prepared foods but don't work so well if you're cooking from scratch. And I really do need to figure out how much protein I'm getting at this point.
Meanwhile, work is not good, for a variety of reasons, and I'm not any closer to job hunting than I was a month ago. Have *got* to do something about that, but yuck. Matt wants me to drive to South Carolina and back with him, since he promised to drive some furniture down to his brother down there, and I'm completely lacking enthusiasm. His other brother and that brother's wife are visiting this week; it's always great to see them, but they've been here for five days, and I'll be happy when they leave tomorrow. (Then I'll start missing them again in a week or so.)
Oh, and we saw an interesting production of Shakespeare's "Cymbeline" at an outdoor theater last weekend. It was set in West Virginia during the Civil War, and it was really well done. I need to go back and read the original to figure out what changed and what didn't. The name of the actor who played Iachimo was James Earl Jones II, and I've spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to figure out if he's the son of the James Earl Jones we've all heard of. I don't think he is, but if anyone knows for sure, please holler. He was very good--possibly the best actor in the bunch.
And that's it for now. Hope y'all are having a good summer--or winter, if you're down under.