Day 36: Bring On The Carbs

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.