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I forgot to post my weight loss update this past Monday… good news, as my weight chart shows, I dropped a little over a pound last week. I’m now down over 10 pounds since I went vegan in late January. My wife is commenting on the visible difference it’s making for me. Pants starting to be too baggy, just about ready to move in my belt a bit. This progress is increasing my motivation to stick with the program all the way to my goal, which is now 20 pounds away.

Just did this week’s weigh-in– pleased to report that I’m down just over 1/2 pound this week. Actually, I was on track to do better than that, but I had a day off from the diet on Easter Sunday. Ham, pie, cake, scalloped potatoes, chocolate— all the things I’m not supposed to be eating. But we’re back on the stick today, and I’m glad to see that one day off didn’t cause me to entirely lose my progress from the past week.

Onwards and downwards!

After a disappointing weigh-in last week (when I didn’t lose any weight), I made great progress in this past week. This morning I was down 2 pounds from a week ago. Excellent! Glad to see it moving in the right direction.

Had a good week working out, I only took off 1 day. I strained my shoulder lifting weights, so I’ve been focusing instead on more cardio, which is probably better for getting weight down in any case. My conditioning is really starting to pick up– I’ve been boosting my treadmill speed, and also increasing the amount of time I’m spending on it. In case you’re wondering, a typical cardio workout might be:

• 20-30 minutes on an elliptical trainer (I like the low-impact aspect of it, plus it uses some of the same leg muscles as cycling)
• 15-30 minutes on the treadmill

Total amount of time largely depends on how much time I have available for the workout. Ideally I have a full hour, but sometimes it just doesn’t work out and I have to rush. I always do at least 45 minutes though.

Time for the weekly progress report…

First off, disappointing week on the weight loss front, since my weight stayed the same at just over 215. I’m not tooo concerned about that, since I think it’s just part of natural ebb and flow of weight– you really don’t ever just go straight down. Also, my clothes continue to fit me better, which is the best way to tell.

I had a really good workout week– I worked out 6 days, taking just one day off. That is likely a factor in the weight loss, since I think I’ve been putting on some muscle. Cardiovascular condition continues to improve, which is important since cycling season will be here within the next few weeks as the weather starts to warm up.

On the veganism side, I was pretty good in the past week. Breakfasts were all vegan, lunches and snacks were almost entirely vegan (I had a falafel sandwhich one day, and I think there’s some milk which goes into the tzatziki sauce they put on it). Dinners were mostly vegan, although my wife and I splurged on Friday for pizza (no meat, just cheese and veggies), and I had salmon for dinner on Saturday. All in all, I think I’m sticking with the Kinda Vegan diet program…

Something I came across which bolsters the case for using a vegan diet as a (healthy) weight loss tool.

A scientific review in April’s Nutrition Reviews shows that a vegetarian diet is highly effective for weight loss. Vegetarian populations tend to be slimmer than meat-eaters, and they experience lower rates of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and other life-threatening conditions linked to overweight and obesity. The new review, compiling data from 87 previous studies, shows the weight-loss effect does not depend on exercise or calorie-counting, and it occurs at a rate of approximately 1 pound per week. Read more…

That’s pretty much what I’ve been experiencing so far…

I’ve just posted the results of my most recent weigh-in on my weight loss page. Drumroll please: I lost another pound last week. 6 1/2 pounds gone so far. Slow and steady wins the race…

Is there any such thing as a miracle food? Probably not, but some foods are definitely more healthy than others, and one of the better things you can consume is green tea (especially if you’re drinking it instead of soda or corn syrup-laced sugar water). Check out 7 Reasons to Drink Green Tea to learn more.

One of the things that appeals to me about a vegan diet is that you don’t have to control the quantity of what you eat. Have as much as you like. You just have to control WHAT you eat. Since I’m not a fan of putting 2 peas and a tiny piece of chicken on a dinner plate and calling it a meal, this aspect of veganism is enticing. The fact is, by eliminating the meat, the cheese and the eggs, you are cutting out a lot of calories. In my case, the forced elimination of my nightly bowl of ice cream (no milk products) probably accounts for about 500 calories I’m dumping. Then, if you go further by also eliminating as much refined sugar as possible, you’re cutting out another pile of calories.

There’s no need to go crazy with a low-carb obsession. I’ve tried that before, and while it’s effective, it’s just not sustainable. You can eat carbs, just avoid simple carbs. Focus on complex carbs. Brown rice instead of white. Whole grain break instead of Wonderbread. Go to town, fill up your plate. There’s no need to go to bed hungry.

I think it’s important to set tangible goals for yourself. I’m a pretty determined person when I have a goal. It’s even better if you state your goals publicly, since then you have not only your own inner drive to motivate you, but also the threat of public humiliation if you wuss out. Ahhh, shame. What a great inspirational force.

So here’s my weight loss goal, which is my primary motivator for adopting a vegan diet: lose 30 pounds. In my case, that means dropping from 122 on the day I started the diet down to my ‘fighting weight’ of 190. (OK, so it’s actually going to be 32 pounds). Further, I’m intending to do this while maintaining my muscle mass. I have no intention of becoming a scrawny waif.

I disagree with weighing yourself daily, since it tends to encourage the wrong kind of obsessive impulses. Also, it’s not that useful since your weight can fluctuate due to things like water retention and what you happened to eat last night. So what I’ve set up for myself is a plan to weigh myself every Monday. As an additional motivational kick, I’ll start posting the results here on the blog so all you people in internet-land can follow right along.