V90X: Doing P90X on a Vegetarian Diet

Day 44: Unexpected Break

2010-07-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

Thursday is the night where I have 0 commitments. About the only day of the week, but even though I didn't have any library work to do, I still managed to skip out on working out. Steph and I made dinner then had to run to Target to get some things and to Whole Foods to pick up another batch of cookie making supplies. I brought the cookies into work to see how they were, and they ate them all. It was a dry run for Friday when we have Lisa's going away party. I expect some harsh judges of deserts there, so I wanted to make them really delicious.

Unfortunately, I apparently wasn't born with the baking gene, as my first batch I almost forgot an ingredient, and mixed it in too late, causing my cookies to be a little flat, and the second batch seemed to still be gooey, even after an extra few minutes in the oven. Oh well, it's still sugary, buttery dough, and it tasted fine as batter, so the cookies should be fine. I guess I'll have to find out on Friday.

Menu:
Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Tofu migas with beans and tortillias

Snack:
1/4 cup cashews
1 chocolate chip cookie

Dinner:
Grilled asparagus and squash

I attempted eggplant as well, but it ended up too bitter, so I had to throw it out. :-(

Fourthmeal:
protein shake
chocolate chip cookie dough

Since I didn't have very much at dinner, I got hungry when making my cookies, so I treated myself to some shake, along with a generous portion of the cookie dough. I like to eat when I get upset.

Day 43: Legs and Back

2010-07-02T09:43:00.000-07:00

Wednesday brought on the hurt, as we had legs and back to work out, along with the favorite, ab ripper routine. I don't know what my deal was, but I had nothing in the tank at the end of the legs and back routine. I was gasping and wheezing like a fat man on a treadmill. I couldn't make it through to the ab routine, and basically collapsed on the floor for a bit before managing to scrape myself up to take a shower.

It sucks to feel that tired. I wanted to make it through, but my body just didn't want to comply. Maybe that's a good sign though. Wear your body down to exhaustion, so that it can build itself up more. I guess we'll have to see if it works.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Grilled Veggies
Vegetable stir fry leftovers

Snack:
1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:
Pizza

Announcement: Fewer Posts

2010-07-02T09:37:00.000-07:00

So recently I have become pretty slammed with other responsibilities, so I've been unable to maintain an everyday log of my activities. Sorry, but I may have to tone down the frequency of posts to about one or two a week, giving a general picture of where I'm at. With everything between work, the library, working out, learning a new language, and various other side projects, I fear that I won't be able to maintain daily updates. I am working on doing an update on where I am from the start, new measurements, pictures, etc soon, so watch for that. Thanks for reading.

Day 42: Yoga Time

2010-06-30T11:03:00.000-07:00

I finally got back to working out on Tuesday with yoga, which felt so good. I know it's weird, but if I don't work out, I feel really crappy and tired. Plus I am seeing good progress, so I don't want to mess it up. Though we did bake cookies, so that might be a roadblock.

Yes, cookies. They are definitely not on the diet, as cookies are basically butter and sugar i.e. fat and carbs. I couldn't wait to try out some recipes from my joy of vegan cooking book, so I decided to do a trial run, with the hopes of making some for Lisa's going away on Friday.

I don't know what happened to them, but with every cookie I bake, they all seem to turn out thin and dense. This applies to non-vegan cookies that I would make. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, but they did not turn out nearly as good as the ones in the picture. Maybe the next batch will be better.

Menu:

Breakfast:
protein shake

I realized that I have bought more fruit than one human being could consume in a week, so I may need to start drinking two a day before all these berries and peaches go bad.

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar (what else?)

Lunch:
Vegetable soup
"bologna" sandwich

Snack:
1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:
Homemade black bean burgers
baked beans
grilled corn

My sister-in-law gave us this recipe, which I'll have to put up later, but these burgers were super tasty. We made and froze them the night before, and they held together very well. It's always tricky to get a veggie patty to hold it's shape, but the trick is to throw them on frozen, and don't touch them for at least 5 minutes. Let one side get nice and toasty, then flip them. If you move it before you get some good browning, it will crumble.

Day 41: Volleyball Night

2010-06-30T10:56:00.000-07:00

Mondays are volleyball night for me. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of also volunteering at the library on Monday nights, leaving me with a packed afternoon. The game went horribly, with our team losing both games and being down 16-1 at one point. I also tweaked my back a bit going up for a block, so I was feeling super tired that night.

I went to the library afterward to sort books and whatnot, and it was some nice downtime in comparison. I was hoping that this rest would leave me with enough in the tank to get back on the workout horse, but I was due for yoga, which is an hour and a half of pain, and I had nothing in the tank. I bagged it and just ate dinner and went to bed.

Menu:

Breakfast:
protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Salad
leftover stir fry

Snack2:
1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:
Grilled zucchini and squash
couscous
mushroom and pepper kabobs

Day 40: The Morning After

2010-06-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

So after the beerfest on Saturday, I had a slight headache the next morning. It's funny that that only happens after I drink.

I finally rolled out of bed at 10:30 and spent most of the morning making and eating breakfast, and the afternoon on the couch watching soccer. A disappointing appearance from our neighbors to the south left me feeling a little sad though. Once I pried myself off the couch, we only had time to get to the grocery store and then over to Brierty's for dinner, so no workout tonight. Though, I'm learning how nice my friends are about my whole vegan diet. They went so far as to get me some Field Roast sausages for dinner, along with some guac. Very kind of them to do, as I might have gone hungry if it was just brisket and chili dip. Plus I now have almost a whole tub of baked beans that they sent me home with. I guess no one else shares my love of the magical fruit.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Stuffed french toast

This was fabulous. Banana and peanut butter filled french toast. So easy to do as well. Instead of egg, we just used soy milk, a little flour, and some vanilla extract to coat the bread, and the filling was basically peanut butter, banana, and brown sugar. Not the healthiest start to the day, but perfect when you're feeling a bit "under the weather".

Lunch:
Honestly, I don't remember if I peeled myself off the couch for lunch. I may have had a sandwich before leaving for the market, but I'm not sure.

Dinner:
chips and guacamole
field roast sausage
vegetarian baked beans

Day 39: Beerfest

2010-06-30T10:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday was beerfest for me and a couple of friends. We went to the Great Austin Beer Festival to sample the finest brews from all around. Of course, we had so sample the best beer ever beforehand, which was my home brewed German Maibock. We polished off a couple of pitchers while watching the World Cup match, which was entirely disappointing.

So we're already 3 beers deep by the time that we got to the festival. Needless to say, it was a fun day and I think that Steph enjoyed laughing at our escapades afterward. I was not the worst off by a long shot, as Barrett kept wandering off at the festival, and at dinner, meandered down to the dock to sit by himself. I think he enjoyed himself though, and apparently I'm his new best friend.

I fortunately did get in a quick workout before the game and after brunch, even though it was a busy day. After beerfest and dinner, Stephanie and I made it out to a friend's housewarming party. Luckily I took the safe route of chugging water through dinner instead of one of the Hula Hut's delicious concoctions, but you know what they say, beer before liquor...

Menu:

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Brunch:
Tofu migas at Snack Bar

Lunch:
Grilled veggies
baked beans
Field Roast sausage

Snack2:
Many, many beers

Dinner:
Veggie enchiladas with no cheese at The Hula Hut.

Their pickings were pretty slim for dinner, so I went with the basics, just some grilled veggies with tomatillo sauce.

Fourthmeal:
2 bean burritos minus cheese from Taco Bell

After a few adult beverages, Taco Bell was always my stop of choice. I was psyched to hear that their beans and burritos have no lard in them, so as long as you stay away from the cheese, these burritos are 100% vegetable. http://www.vegetarian-restaurants.net/OtherInfo/Taco-Bell.htm

Day 38: Out To Eat

2010-06-30T10:32:00.000-07:00

For Friday, we were both feeling a little tired from a long week, so we decided to go out yet again. We tried a new greek place up north that was pretty tasty. Zorba Greek Restaurant was the name. I had the usual fare, hummus, baba ganoush, falafel, etc. Nothing to write home about, but it was close to home and satisfying.

We also had another task, which was to pick out a fan and lights for our back yard. So we headed up to Home Depot to pick out both. It was fairly successful, and we're definitely looking forward to having a nice cool patio this summer.

Steph was feeling a little under the weather that night, so it was just me. It is so much tougher to work out by yourself than it is with someone else. With another person, you have to push yourself, since you don't want to be the first one to stop or let up, so I just had to push through by myself.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Vegetable soup
"bologna" sandwith

Snack:
1/4 cup mixed nuts

Dinner:
Vegetarian platter including dinner salad, falafel, hummus, baba ganoush, dolmathes, and stewed eggplant.

Day 37: ?

2010-06-30T10:30:00.000-07:00

I honestly can't remember what I did on Thursday. It's hell getting old.

Day 36: Bring On The Carbs

2010-06-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was the start of phase 2. We started at least the phase 2 diet, but not really the workout. We rested today as well because we had a few things to take care of that were holding us back, not to mention the glut of carbs that I ingested at dinner. I had a room full of donated books at the library that needed to be sorted, and Steph was working later than normal and had to run to the grocery store afterward, so no new workout today, but we did have Mexican for dinner.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
spaghetti with wheat balls

Dinner:
4 Boca meat and bean tacos
1 cup soy milk

Just from dinner I got all the carbs I needed, not to mention a huge plate of spaghetti for lunch. I think it's been so long since I didn't worry about carbs that I went a little overboard. From dinner I had 4 tortillias and a cup of beans, which left me too stuffed to really work out. I threw the whole "eat a lot of light meals" mantra out the window for this day and binged. Oops.

Day 35: The Calm Before The Storm

2010-06-24T20:04:00.000-07:00

Tuesday was the last rest day before starting phase 2. This not only means new workouts, but also a changed diet. Before my servings looked like this:

Source: Servings

Protein: 7
Vegetables: 4
"Dairy": 3
Fruits: 1
Fats: 1
Carbs: 1

For phase 2 it's:

Protein: 6
Vegetables: 3
"Dairy": 2
Fruits: 1
Fats: 1
Carbs: 3

So it's still high protein, but I actually get to eat some carbs. I don't much care about dairy, I throw on some Daiya or drink a couple of glasses of soy milk and I'll be fine. I'm more concerned about the lowered veggies, though this will give me more options for lunch other than soup and salad. Heck, I may even get to eat beans again.

Since it was a rest day, we decided to also rest from our diet, and we went out to Kerby Lane Cafe. Here's what I got:

The fried portobello steak was incredible. Topped with their homemade soysage and vegan gravy, I subbed out the sides to get their home fries and yummy spinach. That's my wife's pickle on the side there. We couldn't have gone at a better time, because this was on the Spring seasonal menu which just ended. I wonder if I could twist their arm to make it just one more time for me. Of course, I got the immaculate tofu dark chocolate cheesecake for desert, which is my favorite desert in the world last night. Maybe not P90X diet, but it's tofu, so at least I'm sneaking in some protein.

Menu:

Breakfast:

Tofu scramble

1 cup soy milk

Snack:

Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:

Spicy chikn' salad with Amy's Goddess Dressing

Snack:

1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:

Fried portobelo steak

steamed spinach

home fries

pickle

Tofu dark chocolate cheesecake

Day 34: Don't Call it a Comeback

2010-06-24T19:38:00.000-07:00

Monday was definitely a day of bringing it. Mondays are my volleyball nights, but that doesn't mean that we get to skip our P90X workout. Hell no, that just means that we get to add a little fun to our workout day! The game went great, with the team coming back after losing the first game and being down by 10 in the second to win in 3. It was one hell of a comeback for the team and left me with a high to get through our Yoga X routine. It really was the perfect day to do yoga, with me coming from being all amped up about the volleyball game, to winding down with some nice relaxing poses, like Warrior III.

Menu:

Breakfast:

Protein shake

Snack:

Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:

Vegetable soup

Grilled eggplant

Snack:

1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:

Tofu stir fry

Day 33: Father's Day

2010-06-24T19:29:00.000-07:00

Sunday was Father's Day, and like all good kids, I gave my dad a call to wish him well. Unfortunately I was treated less charitably by my dog, who bit my finger when I was feeding her at the park. I need to treat that little scoundrel some manners.

Other than the dog biting incident, it was a good day. We spent some time getting some misc groceries, hanging up a dry erase board at home, and doing some laundry. I felt like it was a very productive day for us, especially since we even crammed in some Core Synergistics, which I like a lot more than I did the first time I did it. I think with P90X, your first time on one of the workouts is like a "try to survive" mode, and when you do it more and more, you get better at the moves and strengthen the areas that you want to strengthen. This is definitely true of core, as I was feeling toasty afterward.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Lunch:
Salad bar at Jason's Deli

I asked about their muffelata bread and if it was vegan, because it sounded pretty tasty, but I guess they don't make the bread there like Panera, because they had to look on the nutritional facts, and even then couldn't tell me for sure. I'll have to call HQ to get a straight answer.

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Dinner:
Grilled portobello and asparagus
Apple Sage Field Roast sausage with sauerkraut
Bread with Texas Tea jam
Mango
2 peaches

The Texas Tea jam that we got from the farmer's market was really good. It had almost an apple-buttery like flavor, but sweeter. Steph didn't like it, but it was great on her homemade bread. A great desert in my opinion.

Day 32: Meet Me At The Oasis

2010-06-24T19:28:00.000-07:00

Saturday was our usual farmer's market trip. We got there a bit early, not realizing that the market doesn't officially open till 9, so we stood around our favorite guy's booth and picked out everything we needed. When the bell rung at 9, we were ready to check out. We even picked up some Texas Tea jam, made with Dr. Pepper and lemon juice. I asked the lady about it, thinking that most jams are made with gelatin or something, but she assured me it was just Dr. Pepper, sugar,and lemon juice. Sweet. Can't wait to try it on some of my wife's fresh baked bread.

It was truly a feasting day, as we went to Snack Bar down on South Congress. They had a great vegan menu, and I was tempted by the waffles, but I got the vegan migas, since I am obsessed with migas nowadays. They were so deliciously spicy and savory, I could have eaten three plates. They also have a vegan chocolate cake there, but I was feeling stuffed after the huge plate with beans and tortillias. The prices aren't bad either. We might make this place a tradition after farmer's market.

We were all about eating out today, as we were meeting a friend for a celebration dinner at The Oasis. Stephanie took a nap in the afternoon while I consumed one of my books from Barnes and Noble. I didn't get her up until about an hour and a half before we were leaving, so we barely had time to get in our P90X workout. Good thing for us, it was just stretching today, which I forgot was a whole hour, I thought I remembered it being only a half hour, but I was feeling quite limber afterward.

At dinner, it was a bit of a challenge to find something to eat. They have a straight up salad, but no vegan dressings. I could have done a honey mustard dressing, as I personally don't have a problem with honey, though others would argue that I should, but I have to be in a certain mood for that, and I was definitely not. The other option was a Garden Burger, which is not vegan, so nix that. I ended up with the veggie fajitas, which were damn expensive for grilled vegetables. Tasty, but $17 for some grilled veggies and guacamole? Give me a break.

Menu:

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Brunch:
Vegan migas
orange juice

Lunch:
Salad with tomato and Field Roast sausage

Dinner:
Veggie fajitas
Oasis sunset cooler
Oasis sunset shot
1 pint Fireman's Four
1/2 pint of wife's unwanted beer

Definitely a carby day, from beans with breakfast to beans and beer for dinner, but it was all delicious.

Day 31: My Wife Hates Me

2010-06-21T12:16:00.000-07:00

So Friday is our normal date night, which for a while consisted of us doing simple things like eating out and browsing at stores. Unfortunately, our date night this week consisted of working out instead. Since I was bushed from working till midnight on Thursday, I didn't want to get up early and get it out of the way, so we instead waited until after work to get our workout in. It wasn't bad, it was just Kenpo, which I really enjoy, especially since I needed to get some stress out from my project that I was working on. Nothing better than kicking and punching your problems out of the way.

Afterward we did get out to do something. We went to Barnes and Noble to browse the book section and I wound up buying a ton of books. We got two different vegan cookbooks, one for eating on the cheap, including how to make stuff like veganaise and setian at home, and another with over 1000 recipies, so I'm going to have to branch out a little over the next few weeks. A powerful combination of laziness and lack of time has produced an extremely repetitive menu lately.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Greek food at Tino's Greek Cafe

Great lunch selection of different side dishes like stewed eggplant, hummus, falafel and other Greek food.

Snack:
1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:
Grilled squash
Field Roast sausage

Day 30: It's Pizza Time

2010-06-19T05:57:00.000-07:00

So Thursday afternoon at work was a nightmare. Apparently I'm holding things up and I didn't even know it, so Thursday was a work night with no work out. Fortunately, it gave me the excuse I needed to order in instead of making something for dinner. I've been waiting for the opportunity to try Promise Pizza since I first heard about them last month. They offer fully vegan and gluten free pizzas. I ate the whole thing too, which was a mistake. I paused halfway through the pizza and thought to myself that I was good, but I couldn't resist the rest of the pizza, even though it wasn't the greatest pizza I've ever eaten.

As it came from Promise Pizza

After I added some Field Roast sausage.

I think it all comes back to the principle that you will eat whatever is in front of you. It's ingrained in a lot of us from childhood to finish what's on your plate, so nowadays, we can't help but feel a desire to finish off a meal, even if the portion size is out of control. That's why I usually like to set aside half of my burrito at Chipoltle before I get down to it, otherwise, I get a bit overzealous and chow down. Plus, once you make it through 3/4 of your meal, you look down at what's left, and it's not enough for lunch, but too much to throw away, so one has a psychological need to finish it off.

This is why I am trying to portion snacks and such. It sounds so dumb, but it's true, if you just ration out your portion of nuts, you will eat just that. You won't keep reaching back into the jar for "just one more handful". It's a powerful way to control how much you eat and where you are getting your calories. It's working out well for me so far, but last night I definitely fell off the wagon. No workout and overeating is not a good combination, but as the saying goes, everything in moderation, including moderation.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Tofu scramble with choirizo style setian

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Orzo with sun dried tomatoes and kale
Italian sausage

Snack 2:
1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:
Medium Whole Wheat Regular Crust Promise Pizza with Daiya cheese, mushrooms, olives, and Field Roast Sausage.

They didn't have any fake meat for their pizzas, so I added my new obsession to the dish, to give it some more protein. Looking up the nutritional information, it wasn't so bad:

582.8 calories
22g fat
622.4 mg sodium
56.4g carbs
7.2g fiber
9.2g protein

With the sausage, that gives me 35g protein in a meal, and maybe 800 calories in a meal, not too bad, since I'm shooting to get in 2500 a day, but considering that I account for burning 600 in a workout, and that I failed to do so, it wasn't a great day food wise.

Day 29: A New Workout

2010-06-16T20:40:00.000-07:00

One of the main reasons that people give up on working out is that it's boring. You get into a rut, do the same thing over and over again, and don't see results. After the initial two weeks, we've been doing the same workouts over and over again, and for the first time, we got a new workout tonight, Core Synergistics. It was a challenge, not so much in the degree of tiredness afterward, but since we have new moves to do, it takes a bit to get into the proper form, so I feel like I didn't get a very good workout tonight, but it was fun rolling around on the floor like I saw in the infomercial.

One thing I've noticed though, is the amount of equipment you really need to get the workout done right. I went with bands since that appeared to be the only thing beyond the chin-up bar that I needed, but you really do need some free weights to maintain good form on some of the exercises. I'll have to keep an eye out on craigslist for a set, as I looked at the cool adjustable dumbells at Sports Authority, and they're like 400 bones, a bit pricey for my taste.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Orzo with sun dried tomatoes and kale
Salad with tomato and avacado

Snack:
1/4 cup cashews

Dinner:
Field Roast Italian sausage X2
Spaghetti with red sauce
side salad

I have to say, I am totally in love with these Field Roast sausages. They are flat out the best vegan meat replacement I have had. They have a wonderful flavor, and are juicy and moist. On top of that, they're chock full of protein with very little fat. If you eat veggie dogs or Boca burgers, just throw them out and get some of these Field Roast sausages. I'm going to have to get some of their other products too. I've got a celebration roast in my fridge right now just begging to be eaten, and that Hazelnut en Croute looks very tasty.

Day 28: Yoga

2010-06-16T20:21:00.000-07:00

The first activity in our "rest" week was an hour and a half of yoga. You know, before ever doing yoga, I just thought of it as standing around and breathing, not something that could actually get you a workout. Yoga X has completely changed my mind. The balancing and the standing may look easy, but I was deceived in the same way that Albert Pujols makes hitting a home run look easy. Just holding these poses is a challenge that gets my whole body working and the sweat flowing like a river.

It is also a calming experience as well. After the cool-down period, I generally feel pretty mellow, which is a lot different than after I finish something like plyometrics and am still a bit amped up. It's good that it calms me, since by the time we were done working out, it was all but time for bed.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Soy scramble with chorizo style seitan (over 50g protein in this meal!)

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Tofurkey wrap with mustard, tomato and arugala on wheat pita
orzo with sun-dried tomatoes and kale

Snack:
1/2 cup cashews

Dinner:
Mexican-style field roast sausage (spicy and yummy!)
Grilled peppers and mushrooms
Roasted red potatoes with rosemary

I went a little crazy with the carbs today (pita, pasta and potatoes all in one day), but I think I'll survive. The orzo I used actually had 6g of protein in it, so I'm sneaking in the protein wherever I can.

Day 27: Is This Ever Going to End?

2010-06-16T20:20:00.000-07:00

Monday had a whole host of issues. We had to pick up the car from the shop before work, I had a volleyball game and a board meeting after work, and didn't get home till 9 that night and Stephanie was trying to get some work done. It was another day of a missed workout, and I'm beginning to think that this 90 day program is going to be more like 120 days. With what we have been doing, we should be on day 22, so we're way behind, but that's ok. I think that the results are already beginning to manifest. I checked myself on the scale last night before bed and I'm down to 158.2 lbs with 10% body fat. I can definitely notice a change in both muscle definition and with strength, so I'm guessing that this is working out so far. Now we just have to stick with it for a couple more months.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Chef salad
Stir fried vegetables

Snack:
1/2 cup cashews and peanuts

Dinner:
Guacamole salad

Snack:
Cole slaw
Bread with margarine
handful of olives

I had a light dinner, as the board ordered in some Mexican food, but I'm still leaving beans out as much as I can until next week, so I opted for a salad. I was a little light on my carb intake and calories, so I decided to have a little snack when I got home with some of my wife's awesome home made bread.

Yum

Day 26: Meet the Neighbors

2010-06-16T20:19:00.000-07:00

Sunday is the day we like to either have people over for dinner, or go over to other's houses for dinner. Without family in Austin, it's nice to have friends to break bread with on a regular basis, and Sunday is always a good day to spend cooking and hanging out with those that you love.

I ran into our neighbor on Saturday while he was walking his dog and it was the perfect opportunity to invite him and his wife over for dinner on Sunday. We always seem to see them when we are out gardening and we've talked to them a few times at our property owner's association meetings, but we wanted to get to know them a little better. After all, we're going to be living next to them for a while, so we should probably get to know, and hopefully like each other.

Unfortunately for my wife, this added a little stress to our evening, as we want to make a good impression, so the house needed to be clean and we needed to make some extra special goodies for dinner. To add to that stress, I went golfing on Sunday morning with Steve, so I didn't get back home till after 2. Even worse, the roast that we picked up at the farmer's market was still frozen and needed so long to cook that we wouldn't be eating till Monday morning. Oops.

She called me after my round of golf and asked me to drop by the store to get basically a whole new menu for dinner. Needless to say, it's a bit nerve racking to not have a menu for dinner at noon when you have people coming over. I think it all turned out well though. Of course, she's the one that did pretty much everything, I got home after dropping by the store and mowed and trimmed the lawn.

I think it all turned out well though. Casey found it amusing that he'd never grilled ribs before, and here was the vegan out there with three huge slabs of meat, grilling it up. I found that even with the meal we were making, it was pretty easy to substitute things for myself. Bruschetta was made with vegan mozzarella, cole slaw with veganaise, margarine on my corn, and my favorite apple sage sausage instead of ribs.

Of course, with new people always comes the question of why I'm a vegan. I think every time I answer that, I get just a little more clear. When first asked, I had thought about it a lot, but never had to articulate it in a short period of time. Now it's getting easier to boil it down to 3 points: animal welfare, the environment, and the moral implications of excess. Basically, I don't eat meat because animals are treated poorly in the process, CAFOs are basically toxic wastelands which pollute the water supply and lay waste to air quality, and if we instead ate vegetables, we would have enough food to end world hunger tomorrow. I of course, wasn't that succinct, but with time maybe I'll be able to transmit this message more clearly.

I think they understood though, and Lauren and Kevin are really nice people. It was great having them over and I hope that they enjoyed themselves. I felt a little bad about dinner being so late. We had appetizers at 6, but didn't get everything on the table till 8. I felt bad, because Kevin needed to walk Walter after dinner, and it was getting pretty late. It was good getting to know them a little better. I just hope that we didn't scare them off. Though who can resist a neighbor with a keggerator in their garage?

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar
Protip: Don't leave these in a golf bag, they get uber melty.

Lunch:
"Bologna" sandwich
cashews

Appetizer:
Bruschetta

So simple, just dice tomatoes, toss in balsamic vinagrette and olive oil, lay over sliced bread with a slice of vegan mozzarella and broil till the cheese melts. So tasty though. We made ours with yellow, orange and red tomatoes to add color.

Dinner:
Field roast apple sage sausage with sauerkraut
Corn on the cob
Cole Slaw
Baked beans
2 pints German Mai-bock

Desert:
Indian mango

Found this a Central Market over the weekend. They suckered us in by giving us samples, which were so freaking good. This was the best mango I've ever had. It was perfectly ripe, juicy and full of flavor. If only they weren't so expensive. This is a rare treat if you can get it.

Day 25: Rest Day

2010-06-16T20:13:00.000-07:00

Saturday was our rest day, which couldn't have come at a better time, since we, as usual, had a lot to do. Mostly errands and such, but some fun stuff as well. We went to the Austin farmer's market down at 4th and Guadalupe in the morning. We've started making this a bit of a ritual each week, because they have such good produce and a lot of really good artisan food as well. It is totally worth the effort to make it down there.

Beyond that, it was running to Central Market to get some of the stuff they don't have at the farmer's market like setian and tofu, getting some golf supplies, and returning a bunch of stuff that we found out that we don't need. Once we got back to the house, we were dog tired, but pushed through to plant the flowers in the back since we were done repairing the sprinkler system. By the time we were done, it was almost 7:30, which is a shame, because we were planning on doing dinner and a movie that night, but it wasn't to be.

Instead we just did dinner. Stephanie was nice enough to indulge me in one of my favorites, Kerby Lane Cafe. I have to say though, their vegetarian selection is out of this world, and with a few substitutions, a lot can be made vegan, and their vegan pancakes are amazing. So I had some brinner and we headed back home to pass out. For a rest day, I felt surprisingly tired.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Panera Black Bean Soup
Apple

Dinner (@ Kerby Lane Cafe):
Tofu scramble with soysage and blueberry pancakes
Some of my wife's French fries
Dark chocolate tofu cheesecake

Restaurants: Kerby Lane Cafe

2010-06-16T20:10:00.000-07:00

I'll be honest, I am a little biased toward Kerby Lane. As a big lover of brinner, I love a place where you can get pancakes and home fries any time they are open. They have several different locations in Austin, each with a bit of a different feel to them. The one I usually go to off of 183 is newer, and has a less worn in feel to it than the original, but it still captures the vibe well, with an expanded seating section and a nice outdoor area.

The menu has a little something for all types of eaters, from queso and migas, to burgers, to hummus and tabbouleh. It covers all the bases with the constant menu, with an addition of a seasonal menu that keeps you coming back to try their new flavors. On right now is a portabello fried steak, which sounds amazing. I didn't ask if the gravy was vegan, but it's soysage gravy, so it might be, but the guy behind me at dinner was vegan and he ordered it with a change of sides, so maybe it is meat free.

If you are vegetarian, everything is clearly marked on the menu, and unlike many places where this is maybe a couple salads and a veggie burger, they have a wide selection. Even if you are vegan, there is a good selection, from basil pecan pesto pasta to the always popular vegan pancakes, there will be something for you. Any of the scrambles like migas can also be done with their tofu and nutritional yeast, which is really good if you have never had scrambled tofu before.

My favorite dish is the vegan platter, which comes with their fluffy, moist, delicious pancakes, tofu scramble, and house made soysage. Everything here is made from scratch each day so it's fresh and delicious. Pair this with a glass of OJ and you have yourself one great breakfast (or lunch, or dinner, or fourth meal). They also serve my favorite desert here, which is a dark chocolate tofu cheesecake. It is simply to die for, with a graham cracker crust and smooth, chocolaty center, you can't go wrong with this one. It's one of the best deserts that I've had, vegan or not.

Sorry, I couldn't wait to dig in, so the picture is of the half-eaten cheesecake.

I can't give this place anything less than a perfect score. Like I said, I'm biased and it's in my top 10 restaurants list. It is quite simply the perfect place for people who love breakfast anytime of the day, with a well-rounded and unique menu and one of the best deserts in Austin.

Score: 4/4

Location: 4 locations in Austin, TX

Day 24: Early Morning Routine

2010-06-14T07:26:00.000-07:00

So Friday was going to be a crazy day. I had accounts to balance at 8, then work, then we were off to the Texas Stars game. Looking at our schedule, we decided that we had to get in our workout before my 8AM meeting. So we got up super early for us, and worked out at 6. It was strange, but nice. We are so used to doing our workout at the end of the day that it was nice to get it done and out of the way early so that it's not hanging over us. I don't think it's a trend we are likely to continue, as we are definitely not morning people, but it was a refreshing change of pace.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Vegan lasagna
salad

Snack:
30 pistachios

Dinner:
Stir fry

Stars Game:
20 oz Bud Light

Day 23: Good News

2010-06-11T10:53:00.000-07:00

Well, good news is that I have finished repairing my sprinkler system in the back yard, so it's now working again. What a pain in the rear end that was. If you ever need to fix some straight PVC pipe, pick up one of these bad boys, you'll save yourself a lot of time for just a few bucks. It worked awesome, and it only took a few minutes to perform the repair, which was awesome, since it left a lot of time to get in a workout and even for a few minutes of down time, if you can believe that.

The workout last night was arms and back, which kicked my butt. I was gasping and wheezing at the end, and was light-headed enough to skip most of the ab routine. It was enough to get me to basically collapse on the floor after we were done. Needless to say, I slept really well that night.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Vegan lasagna
side salad

Snack 2:
Pistachios

Dinner:
Grilled tofu
grilled zucchini and squash
1 cup cherries
banana

As you may notice, I've been increasing my intake of fruit lately. It's crazy for me to limit myself to a single serving of fruit, especially when I have so many tasty peaches in the fridge.

Day 22: Seriously?! That Thing is Huge!

2010-06-10T11:29:00.000-07:00

Since we had two days of rest, it was a pretty good day to get down to business and do some yoga. Our schedule wasn't quite as busy today, just work, library, dinner, then workout. No digging up crazy broken pipes in the ground or planitng gardens, just a straightforward day. It was a nice change of pace for us. The only thing unusual about today was my wife's trip to GNC to get some protein powder. I was going to get the chocolate soy powder this time, but she was nice enough to go get it for me from the store. When she got back, I saw this on the counter:

Holy moly! That's a huge container of protein powder. It makes me look like I'm training for the Mr. Universe contest or something. The one I had before was a small container that fit nicely in my cubbord, the new container's like the previous one's big brother packed with enough steroids to kill a large horse. Seriously, this thing contains 1.275 kg of protein. That's more protein than some animals have in their whole bodies.. I guess it's a good thing, since it will last till the end of my training, but damn that thing is huge. (That's what she said.)

I guess there was one lowlight of the night. My wife was cleaning out the freezer and put a tub of homemade vanilla ice cream on the counter for me to empty out and wash. The call of it was too much for me to resist, and I rationalized it to myself that it would be even worse to throw away perfectly good and delicious food, so I chowed down on it. Tasty, but I didn't need the additional fat right before the workout. On a side note, I wonder if I could make vegan ice cream some time. Damn, they've thought of everything.

Menu:

Breakfast:
Protein shake (Natch, going to be drinking a lot of these for a while.)

Snack:
Cliff Builder's Bar

Lunch:
Vegan Lasagna
Side salad

Snack 2:
30 pistachios

Dinner:
3 veggie dogs
sauteed spinach
roasted red potatoes
3 small peaches

An odd dinner, but it was leftover night and I didn't want to have lasagna three times in a row (lunch, dinner, lunch), so I had to get creative.