Day 6: Becoming One with Nutrition

I can't believe it! I did it! I went vegetarian for a whole week, without having to count the days until I could eat meat again! I really didn't miss it. I actually looked forward to the meals I made (or ordered, as was the case a few times this week), and for the most part, enjoyed them thoroughly.

What was even more exciting to me was that because I had an objective (eating vegetarian), I paid more attention to what I was eating, instead of noshing all day on junk. I keep track of my daily calories on my iPhone, and I generally am disappointed at the end of the day when I'm way over-budget. But this week, I was within range every day. Some days I could have eaten as many as 350 more calories!

The guidelines I set for myself regarding my menu-planning and shopping worked out well, too. I only shopped for 2 days worth of meals at a time, which worked out perfectly. I shopped on Wednesday for Wednesday and Thursday's meals, and because of a crazy schedule, I still haven't made the Veggie Burgers I planned for Thursday's dinner. That ended up being Pizza Night because I had a meeting to get to, then we had leftovers on Friday, and tonight was Taco Bell because we were out and about running errands around dinnertime. So maybe I'll make those Veggie Burgers tomorrow night, or maybe they'll wait until Monday. I've got a whole chicken in my freezer that my family will go gaga over while it roasts in the oven.

As an added bonus, I found that I exercised a lot more this week. I spent countless hours out in the garden digging and planting and weeding, which actually burns quite a few calories. Then I dusted off my elliptical and used it this week, too. Amazing! My goal lately has been to drop 1½ pounds a week, and this is the first week in a very long time that I've actually accomplished it! Yay me! Will I stay vegetarian permanently? No, but I think I'm going to try to throw it into my meal-planning at least 2-3 times a week. And I'm going to stick with this 2-days-at-a-time thing. It truly has been an inspired idea.