SUMMER RECIPE ALERT!

As you guys know I don't eat Animals.  I do love to eat.  What do I eat in the summer?
CORN and CORN and More CORN on the COB ~ yes, I am a junkie.  I eat it for lunch and dinner mostly ~ If I could figure out how to add it to my breakfast shake, I would.


 I also roast tofu and tempeh ~ best trick ever is letting in marinate in coconut oil (1tbs), water 1tbs and soy sauce 2 tbs. And then toss in the oven on a baking sheet for 15 minutes.


Back to corn ~ I made a kick ass corn salad the other night ~ 3 ears of kernels, 1 basket of small heirloom tomatoes -chopped, 1 can black beans ~ cilantro, salt n peppa, and a dash of balsamic and a splash of EVOO. I tossed in some Oreccheitte  for the fun of it. YUMM.

Sideways corn and roast tempeh 

Epic Ride

First ~ Thanks for all of the love on my new blog design ~ gotta give Jen @ just foolinblog design a huge thank you!  If you need some design help go see her  ~ she ROCKS!


I also want to thank Ronnie  and Samantha  for reminding me how important the WHOLE Journey is.  I will never forget where I came from and will try and be compassionate toward the old me ~ its a process...


Today!  I havea long mtb ride with my biker budd, Jflatts ~ a nice 25 miler out and back.  J and I had done the VT50 last year and were often out on these long training rides.  Its been a while since we both had the time to commit to an epic endeavor.  The thing I love most about these Epic rides is the emotional roller coaster and the pure bliss I feel at the end of it.  I am addicted to that spent feeling after pushing it balls to the wall.   The long ride is usually made up of three parts: 1 - the psyched empowered beginning - sense of adventure embarking on a 4 hour journey. 2- we get really quiet and try to just grind it out and push through exhaustion.  3~ the home stretch, we are sloppy tired and giddy, lusting after the post ride Beer  lemon water.


Oh and the best part of this day .... Going to get my VEGAN cake and EAT it too!  I'll post pictures soon.

Easy Vegan Life....

Being vegan is not hard for me.  I never liked eating flesh and would force it down because I thought I had to.  Now, most days I forget that I am vegan because my food choices are what I enjoy and I never feel like I am missing out.  I start every day with a shake - blueberry or chocolate and peanut butter.  Lunch is pretty easy for me too - I work near a chutney place and have Indian style veggies over rice with chutney ~ very easy .. or i'll grab some roasted tofu or have half of an avocado tomato sandwich with sprouts or left overs from dinner - like coco rice with cilantro and black beans (mmmmm).  Even when I go out with friends there is generally something on the menu that is vegan and I will have that - most of my friends are veggie too so there are no funny looks.

But every once in a while .... I get a hankering... for fresh mozzarella ~ oh my I'm already drooling just talking about it.
I try and stop myself.....
I try and remember all I learned from the China Study and from what I have seen on Food inc  and read in Skinny Bitch.
Cow's milk  is for cows!
The protein casein that is in dairy is a trigger for cancer....  was the cow factory farmed? Was it's calf kept in a tight stall for veal? Are there hormones in the cheese? Am I contributing to global warming?  And by the time my brain has started to explode I will look down and see the cheese has a huge bite out of it....urgh ~ mindful eating ~ Not!

I think life is about averages...I am vegan 99.9999% of the time.  A bite ( thank god for the lap band or it would be the whole ball)  of farm fresh mozzarella will not kill me and does not mean I have compromised my values.  Next time I should just skip the head drama and kick back and enjoy me some cheese.....

Here's to averages and not beating ourselves up over the little slip ups!

Hello out there!

My first post in Blog Land.  Thank you Lap Band Gal for inspiring me to blog!  A bit about me and my Journey so far:
I am an obsessive mountain biker who just took up running.  I am vegan - who knew it was possible to be vegan and fat!  I had Lap Band surgery 12 weeks ago April 6, 2011.  My highest weight was 241 and I am now 192.2.  I'm pretty stoked!
I have always loved being active - although it was pretty hard to ride my bike at my highest weight.  My surgery went well and recovery has been easy.  I think that's because I was already active and had no co-morbidity symptoms.
My journey has little to do with what size jeans I'm wearing (although its fun to shop for smaller ones) but instead it is about becoming an athlete.  I am proud of being active and getting in my daily exercise but now I want more!  Now I want to win.  This blog, I hope, will help to keep me accountable and track my goals over the next year.  First goal - July 3rd 8K race.