Vegan

Well, it's been about 3 weeks and I can say that I am now a successful vegan. That means I don't eat any food with meat, eggs, milk, cheese, anything that has come from an animal. It's not easy, but you just have to do a lot of planning and a lot of cooking at home. Which is great.

I'm not doing this because I love all the animals and I can't stand eating them. I actually enjoy eating meat, cooking it, using eggs, I adore tasting and trying out new cheeses, etc. It is about trying to eat healthier, see how my body reacts to it, and also establishing a modicum of discipline in my daily routine. It helps that we have a couple great vegan restaurants up the street and some good grocers that have everything I need. I also have a fantastic vegan cookbook called the Veganomicon, which keeps me busy in the kitchen. All the meals take no more than 45 minutes to cook, unless you're making the vegan pastries, which I haven't tried yet.

I'm learning a lot about foods of which I've never heard before, such as quinoa, tempeh, rice milk, etc. It's really so easy to make substitutes that taste similar, most people are surprised at how delicious vegan meals can be. And you feel amazingly light and fresh after every meal, you're not heavy and sleepy.

Also, becoming a vegan while surfing 4-5 days a week shows that it hasn't slowed me down in the least. I'm really digging it. The only problem is when people want to take you to a restaurant, and it turns out that the only thing you can get on the menu is a dry baked potato and a dry salad. That's no fun. You suddenly become the "difficult guest" at a dinner party.

My initial inspiration was actually watching The Ultimate Fighter Season 6. There's a vegan MMA fighter on the show named Mac Danzig. He's very well-rounded and intense, and there was something about his attitude that I liked. He actually lives in the neighborhood next to mine, which is funny. Anyway, I was impressed that he could be vegan and a totally in shape mixed martial arts practitioner.

I'll keep you posted on how it's going.