Month Four: Sacred Naps, Sacred Yoga

In January I began a plan to lose ten pounds in five months and feel healthier (read more about that here). Each month I am taking on a new diet/eating challenge. February's challenge (month two) was sober living. March's challenge (month three) was following a plant-strong or Nutritarian eating plan. 

Wrap-up of Month Three: What I Learned from the Vegans

First let me clarify. I am not vegan. My goal was to follow an eating plan that is very closely aligned with veganism. I make the distinction as a survival tactic: my mind needed to believe that rather than omitting foods, I was adding them, and I did. I found that vegetables were so filling and varied that I hardly felt deprived. Strictly omitting foods like meat- or any food for that matter- makes me feel deprived, and adds an unfortunate allure to off-limits treats. So on with the eggs, cheese, and pork!

The specific aim of last month's goal was to alter my daily intake to include two pounds of vegetables, four fruits, one ounce of nuts, one cup of whole grains, and one cup of beans. It also aimed to be SOS: sugar, oil, and salt-free. You must be thinking- because I was- that I would be starving/bored/pooping all day. Right? How do people eat like that? Romaine leaves for breakfast? Make my own salad dressings? Huh. But, I trusted the research and dove in. After some planning, shopping, and a lot of chopping, I proudly spent five days eating strictly from this list. There were plenty of flubs (southern style mixed greens- bleh. I'm sorry, but it's not "southern style" without pork fat), and also a few winners (cauliflower and spinach soup, almond chocolate dip). By the end of the five days, this novice cook felt a great sense of empowerment (one day I even washed Nug's peanut butter off my finger rather than lick it!) and healthfulness.

My top three challenges of the plant-strong diet:

• Seriously, I chopped all. day. long. Every spare minute was spent chopping. I neglected email, house cleaning, play time, blogging, and tv watching so I could prep and cook. Nug jumped in to help at times and learned she likes raw red bell pepper (nice), but most of the time I was chopping blindly while she pulled on my shirt and whined, "mommy come here!" Not cool. 
• The planning. I bit off way more than I could chew-- three new recipes per day is three more than I'm used to. Plus, this type of eating is not mainstream (it should be, but that's another conversation), so I had few options for eating outside my home. 
• I cook for my family, but my family wasn't on board. My wife thought the food was bland and the diet too extreme ("I don't want to live without olive oil!"). The meals were generally too sophisticated for Nug, and I worried that she wasn't getting the proper amount of fat.

My top three successes:

• Much more energy! W came home from work on a Monday absolutely peppy, and I haven't had a post-work headache since I began eating this way. Plus, I slept better.
• A great feeling of confidence, control over my health, pride, and knowledge. I have always been anxious in grocery stores, but now I can grab mounds of veggies and know that they'll be used-- no need to worry about recipes or waste. Whole food speaks for itself. 
• While there were times that I was hungry, I did not have the glycemic highs and lows that have always plagued me and kept me from dieting in the past. This was a real mental breakthrough.

My conclusion? I loved the way the food made me feel. In fact, if I eat too much sugar or salt now, I feel ill. But I didn't love how the food tasted going down. More time is needed to adjust to the flavors, but going full throttle does not fit into my family structure at this time. I will continue to prepare plant-strong recipes, but only two or three per week. While I would love to change things overnight, I am happy to go slow if that means sustainable!

Plan for Month Four

I'm super nervous to announce my goal for April, because it will be the most challenging goal yet. Ready? Ok. I'm going to practice yoga while Nug naps! I'll let you catch your breath before I continue, I know it's a shock. It's a shock to think that I would forego my hard-earned appointment with the couch and remote, or the chance to clean my house/make dinner/do laundry etc. Nap time is sacred, and as Nug grows, I don't know how much longer I will have this time. But, my emotional health needs attention, and surprise surprise, it correlates strongly with my desire for salt, sugar, and fat. After consulting with my yoga friend Kate, my goal will be thirty minutes of yoga, three times a week.

Two-year-olds snuggling in a sling are also good for emotional health.

To help keep me on track, I'm going to start reading a few books from my advice list. Here are the five recommended books that relate to emotional eating: Unprocessed by Chef AJ, The End of Overeating by Dr. David A. Kessler, The Beck Diet Solution by Dr. Judith Beck, The Pleasure Trap by Doug Lisle,  and Breaking the Food Seduction by Dr. Neal Barnard.

Stats:

End of Month Three:

weight 147.4 (my pre-pregnancy weight, finally!)

body mass index 23.8

waist 30.5

hips 41.5

Day One:

weight 155.6

body mass index 25 (overweight = 25+)

waist 33.5

hips 43.5