Lent 2G20
So despite managing to do an 8 week long Lent last year, I'm currently floating around my highest weight since 2G12 @_@
Katy suggested trying vegan for Lent last year, but it was too close to the start of it for me to feel comfortable changing plans, so I pencilled it in for this year and we're both doing it, starting tomorrow. Naturally, my Lent rules list is rather different this year. At least saying "vegan" is easier to convey to people than the maze of restrictions I've built over the past couple of decades.
Here's the plan that I will strive to adhere to from 26th February to 12th April~
I)
Foods:
Vegan:
Going entirely vegan, food-wise. This does mean a lot of restrictions on what I can eat, but it seems to be the best time to try being vegan, with all the new options being made available. I've tossed around ideas of how strict I'm going to be and I think I now have a fair idea. If I can't see any ingredient in the list that doesn't look vegan and/or if whatever it is is advertised as being vegan, I'll take this at face value and assume for the sake of this Lenten challenge that it is vegan. "May contain traces of x" is their to cover the backs of the manufacturers in case of allergic reactions, so unless i can see x in the food, I'll assume it doesn't contain x.
For clarification, I won't be eating anything containing meat, fish, dairy, eggs, honey or anything else that isn't vegan-friendly.
Other Banned Foods:
No Doughnuts:
This was my first ever Lent rule and it hasn't been broken for 19 consecutive years, so I'm sticking to this one for old time's sake. No doughnuts are allowed, even if they're vegan (Gregg's now do vegan ring doughnuts). No Tim Horton's, churros, 100-for-50p bags from Tesco, Fucking Diddy Doughnuts.
II)
Drinks:
Obviously, I won't be drinking milk and I won't be drinking any other drinks that contain animal-based products. I'll have to keep an eye on what's in the beers that I'm buying.
No Alcohol:
No alcoholic drinks to be consumed during Lent. This extends to any drink with a small amount of alcohol (such as shandy and de-alcoholised lager). "The Barry Rule" applies here.
III)
Exceptions:
Traditionally, Sundays are not included in Lent, but I don't see this potential weekly binging helping, so have shaped and refined my own pre-set rules over the years.
As with the previous few years, I will be allowing myself to break the alcohol rule (and the alcohol rule only) on one day per week, starting from tomorrow (the first day of this thing).
These days are referred to as "cards", and replace the Sundays during Lent. If after the first week a drinking card hasn't been used, it gets saved, and can be used later.
I'll be trying to keep as many cards as possible, and will try my utmost to not drink just because other people are and I have a spare card.
If I happen to be invited to a wedding at the last minute (it's happened), I'm allowed to borrow a drinking card from future me.
Finally, The Barry Rule, which states that if you're in an aeroplane, or another (non-UK) country, Lent doesn't count. I have no plans to leave the country during Lent this year, but if I do, I can eat all the bacon cheese burgers and drink all the semi skimmed I like.
I'll keep some form of restraint, but The Barry Rule is now a eighteen year tradition that'd be sacrilege not to observe.
Outside of this fasting, I'll aim to do a bit more fitness-related shit. I want to start jogging more regularly again. I have a bit of a dodgy knee at the moment, but will see how a jog affects it by easing it in. I also want to try to start logging stuff on MyFitnessPal again.
So yeah, those are the rules of my 2G20 vegan lent. I see the challenge mainly being convenience based here. No idea how my body and mood will react to the move to vegan, but this will be an interesting experiment, regardless.
Katy suggested trying vegan for Lent last year, but it was too close to the start of it for me to feel comfortable changing plans, so I pencilled it in for this year and we're both doing it, starting tomorrow. Naturally, my Lent rules list is rather different this year. At least saying "vegan" is easier to convey to people than the maze of restrictions I've built over the past couple of decades.
Here's the plan that I will strive to adhere to from 26th February to 12th April~
I)
Foods:
Vegan:
Going entirely vegan, food-wise. This does mean a lot of restrictions on what I can eat, but it seems to be the best time to try being vegan, with all the new options being made available. I've tossed around ideas of how strict I'm going to be and I think I now have a fair idea. If I can't see any ingredient in the list that doesn't look vegan and/or if whatever it is is advertised as being vegan, I'll take this at face value and assume for the sake of this Lenten challenge that it is vegan. "May contain traces of x" is their to cover the backs of the manufacturers in case of allergic reactions, so unless i can see x in the food, I'll assume it doesn't contain x.
For clarification, I won't be eating anything containing meat, fish, dairy, eggs, honey or anything else that isn't vegan-friendly.
Other Banned Foods:
No Doughnuts:
This was my first ever Lent rule and it hasn't been broken for 19 consecutive years, so I'm sticking to this one for old time's sake. No doughnuts are allowed, even if they're vegan (Gregg's now do vegan ring doughnuts). No Tim Horton's, churros, 100-for-50p bags from Tesco, Fucking Diddy Doughnuts.
II)
Drinks:
Obviously, I won't be drinking milk and I won't be drinking any other drinks that contain animal-based products. I'll have to keep an eye on what's in the beers that I'm buying.
No Alcohol:
No alcoholic drinks to be consumed during Lent. This extends to any drink with a small amount of alcohol (such as shandy and de-alcoholised lager). "The Barry Rule" applies here.
III)
Exceptions:
Traditionally, Sundays are not included in Lent, but I don't see this potential weekly binging helping, so have shaped and refined my own pre-set rules over the years.
As with the previous few years, I will be allowing myself to break the alcohol rule (and the alcohol rule only) on one day per week, starting from tomorrow (the first day of this thing).
These days are referred to as "cards", and replace the Sundays during Lent. If after the first week a drinking card hasn't been used, it gets saved, and can be used later.
I'll be trying to keep as many cards as possible, and will try my utmost to not drink just because other people are and I have a spare card.
If I happen to be invited to a wedding at the last minute (it's happened), I'm allowed to borrow a drinking card from future me.
Finally, The Barry Rule, which states that if you're in an aeroplane, or another (non-UK) country, Lent doesn't count. I have no plans to leave the country during Lent this year, but if I do, I can eat all the bacon cheese burgers and drink all the semi skimmed I like.
I'll keep some form of restraint, but The Barry Rule is now a eighteen year tradition that'd be sacrilege not to observe.
Outside of this fasting, I'll aim to do a bit more fitness-related shit. I want to start jogging more regularly again. I have a bit of a dodgy knee at the moment, but will see how a jog affects it by easing it in. I also want to try to start logging stuff on MyFitnessPal again.
So yeah, those are the rules of my 2G20 vegan lent. I see the challenge mainly being convenience based here. No idea how my body and mood will react to the move to vegan, but this will be an interesting experiment, regardless.