Day 78: One Week Vegan :)

Well, I have hit the seven-day mark for my veganism. I started last Wednesday after feeling rather convicted (and ill from my lactose intolerance) that I should do something to fix it. And so far, so great! I have felt more awake, energetic, and for the most part in a better mood. :-) Some days are better than others, of course (as the previous post so engagingly pointed out) but there is at least an upward trend. I don't really feel deprived from not eating meat or dairy, sometimes I do crave it a little bit, but most of the time it is easily resolved. Granted, I am losing weight more slowly due to my gut healing up and not rejecting everything I put in it, but I'll take that kind of weight loss over the annoying interruptions that I had before.

I am starting to heal up also from the emotional beating I took the other day. I have been reading more into ASDs and this really cool book called Living Well on the Spectrum. It has some of the more subtle symptoms of ASD and how they effect your daily life. I noticed that a lot of it fit me really well, especially the forgetfulness and lack of coordination, as well as just not knowing how to make small talk or assert yourself socially. I like the author's perspective on ASD, that it is an alternate way of thinking rather than just a disorder that needs to be eradicated. That's kind of cool to think about I suppose, but they give enough practical coping strategies that it's not just flowery-hippie idealism about how we're different but all the same. Not that I'm knocking that notion, just that it isn't very realistic in practice. But that's a whole nother novel and I'm sure you're not really that interested. :-)

One thing I noticed today too is just how ridiculously offendable people are. One of my favorite companies posted something from Thug Kitchen, which is profanity-laced gloriousness and has some pretty good recipes too. But there were several spoilsports in the bunch who wanted to complain about the swearing. To the point of alienating people on the website, and just being plain ridiculous. C'mon, people. The company itself swears all the time and is not a traditional company, and no one bats an eyelash. But people just love to make a stink, just for the sake of making a stink. I have met so many people who are just deeply offended if you use "bad" words. Honestly, do you really think I care if someone calls me a "vegangelical" or a "veganazi" or even a "granola?" I don't care! I call myself that, because I am devoted to being a vegan and yes, I can be a little preachy about it. Don't like it? You're welcome not to, I don't judge. But for me to say I'm offended because someone thinks I'm a radical? So what, they're right! :-) And damn proud of it. And I really think people should take this attitude more. Let the smut roll off your back and just GET. OVER. IT.

/END RANT

Sorry, I saw this today and had to say something. :-) Ah well, glad to get it out there. Pick it apart if you must, but remember to be kind and mindful. Namaste, and enjoy the journey.

Day 72: Busy Bee and 199 LBS!!

I finally hit 199 lbs.

Granted, I hit 198 yesterday and went up a little bit today, but considering I haven't worked out in awhile I'd say that's pretty good. I got a little bit discouraged when I couldn't hit the 30 minute mark and decided to take a break from running for a little while. I am looking forward to getting back into it soon. Anyhoo, I hit 199 lbs and am excited to report I am still there today. I took some progress pics but am a little disappointed with how they looked. My hair was kind of all over the place and I wasn't wearing any makeup. So I will be sure to retake them tomorrow and post them on the blog.

I have been dealing with a lot of things outside of the blog and the Facebook page, none of them being particularly bad or good. I have decided to work within my original degree and try to find a technical writing job through Career Services at the community college. They have been very helpful thus far and have given me a few leads and suggestions for how to find more. I plan on getting some sort of degree while I'm working, but I'm not sure how that will pan out. I will keep up with my classes and do some job-searching while I'm not in school. It will be difficult but I am positive about the future. Plus, my fiancé is starting his first job out of college and the hours are a little bit wonky, all nights for now. I am not concerned about it but he is, he's worried he won't get to see me and everything, but I think it will all work out.

I have been dealing with a lot of family issues, which are positive for the most part. My parents and I are starting to reconcile our relationship after it being rocky for years. I don't think it's necessarily that either one of us are at fault, it's just that we are SO different in personality and because I am disabled (I have mild autism) I want to be independent from them and start my own life but I just tend to do things a lot slower than most people and sometimes that is frustrating. And I think I carried a lot of that frustration with me and just had a lot of anger about it. But I am glad I am starting to get some help for that through my church. I have an outlet and it feels a lot better.

Wow, this is a pretty deep post tonight. If you waded through it, I appreciate it and I hope you will continue to read subsequent posts. Trust me, it will be a lot lighter fare than tonight, lol! I will have my photos and hopefully some running news and it will be awesome.

Blessings to ya'll, enjoy the journey, and enjoy the beautiful fall weather!! xx

Day 23: And It Was A VERY Good Day

Oh my goodness! I saw 212 on the scale this morning! It was on my gym scale that always measures me a little light, but I am so ridiculously excited! I screamed (quietly, as I was in a public place, lol) when I saw that number. Plateau has bitten the dust and 19 lbs along with it. I also ran 1.24 miles, 23 minutes, and burned 133 kCals. I'm so proud of my progress and I'm one pound away from 20!!! :-)

I was happy to see my first piece of motivational mail today. I heard from this wonderful person at a forum I have attended for over 5 years. She told me she had read my blog and that she was inspired by me and that I had motivated her to go work out. I almost cried, I was so happy to hear that. That has been my goal all along, to help inspire others and now I'm getting closer to doing that. Because it's great fun to go running and lose weight, it's so much more fun when you can take a few people along with you. :-)

I will get to see my little sis ride horses for the first time today. For those of you who don't know, my sister has a severe form of autism and although she is very even-tempered and easy to get along with (and one of my best friends!) she is completely nonverbal and is prone to depression because she can't communicate effectively. But from what I've heard from my mom, she feels very much in her element when she rides horses, she smiles and is excited and her depression lifts. That sounds great and I can't wait to see her ride! I will definitely take pics with my cell phone camera and play proud sis for a little while. Then my sister will ride home with me and we will hang out for a bit. I think she will take a snooze for a bit and I will work on my chemistry homework, but I love hanging out with her. :-)

Well, I have to get ready and throw some makeup on before I go to Wentzville. I wish you guys the best in your workouts and thank you to all my new patrons! So excited to see more traffic to the site. Have a fantastic day all!