Suzy's Egg-cellent Breakfast

The month did a lot to improve my cooking skills and creativity, especially with legumes and vegetables. As mentioned in an earlier post, I have also improved my running performance. I feel that my body works more efficiently in this plant-based existence. Although I didn't eat anything "off" the vegan diet yesterday (we have a fridge full of delicious vegan foods, and I simply didn't crave anything else), I felt a huge sense of relief at not being restricted due to the self-imposed dietary guidelines of veganism. I've always eaten pretty large amounts of fruits and vegetables but prior to this month, got most of my protein from yogurt, cheese, and meat. Going forward, I am sure I will be eating a lot more plant-based proteins. What I like about being done with the month though, is not feeling any sense of guilt about wanting certain foods. I definitely crave and will choose more plant foods going forward, but plan on indulging any cravings for dairy and meat I might have.

Like this morning, on mile 5 of 7 of my run, I began to crave nothing but an egg sandwich. Without the restrictions of June, I thought to myself, "IT SHALL BE MINE." Whole wheat English muffin, egg, tomato--I literally gasped aloud in delight as I devoured the first bite of eggy goodness. And even after the month of increased plant foods, the honeydew and blueberries still tasted just as delicious!

The hours following were less delightful as I reintegrate my body to some occasional meat. But I imagine this to be a bit of karmic retribution for having convinced Brandt to give up his favorite foods for 30 whole days.

The "Suzy Sympathy" Diet

I would like to thank Phil Devlin for his commitment to our cause. I recently found out that this wonderful father of my dear friend, Christine, has gone on a meatless diet to show his support. While perhaps this would better be titled the "Brandt Sympathy Diet", Phil's efforts are nevertheless appreciated!

I'm not a proponent of fad diets or cutting solid foods and/or entire macronutrients (a la Atkins) in order to lose weight or detox. However, making a change in a healthy and conscientious fashion, even if only temporarily, can permanently alter your dietary comfort zone. I know these 25 days without meat/dairy/eggs has done just that for me. I have become more open to new dishes as permanent mealtime staples (see the Recipes page for some of my favorites) and a much more creative cook, especially with legumes, vegetables and different spices; I also simply feel better, running more and recovering faster. I imagine many aspects of this diet will stick with me after our 30-day trial run, and it doesn't feel like a tremendous effort any longer.

I'm not saying a month of veganism is something everyone should do. And I'm not saying that dramatic dietary experimentation is for everyone. But I would encourage everyone to try at least a minor health-conscious change for an entire month. Nothing crazy--incorporate a new whole grain twice a week, switch to natural sweeteners (like summertime fruit!), skip the 3rd (or 6th) beer of the night...whatever it is for you, try it. And see if it becomes comfortable.

And Brandt, I know you still don't find veganism "comfortable" by any stretch. But at least Falafel night is something we will look forward to even when hamburgers and cheese platters are options.

Performance-enhancing veganism

Running performance, that is. I (Suzy) have noticed quite a difference in my running abilities since starting what I'm sure Brandt will refer to for the rest of his life as "the vegan incident." I on the other hand feel adjusted; my body feels cleaner (even my sweat is cleaner!), and I've noticed a significant improvement in my endurance. I am not one to jump to causative claims. But I couldn't help but notice the correlation of this diet to dramatically improved frequency and distance in my running.

One performance of mine that has not been enhanced, however, is drinking performance. As someone who enjoys the occasional (ahem...weekly...ok, maybe sometimes more than that) wine/gin martini indulgence, I can no longer drink from the bottomless glass that I've enjoyed since college. Some of this is due to lack of vegan food at cocktail parties, no doubt. Curious to see if I was an outlier, I entered the vegan blog realm. It seems others have experienced this same reduction in alcohol tolerance (clearly not a bad thing as I now am learning to be much more careful with my portions and pacing of beverages). There are also claims that this is due to increased absorption efficiency, something that seems pretty likely since my calorie-intake and the macronutrient composition of my diet has not been drastically altered.

We'll see how running and alcohol tolerance, 2 things dear to my heart, play out for the rest of the month. Halfway there!