The usual examples were proferred, including Brendan Brazier, of “Thrive Diet” fame, Robert Cheeke, and VeganBodyBuilding.com. Somehow, these amazing specimens were seen as either too thin, too small, or too “soft” (especially, the women). What?!

There was another, one Joe DeMarco, with whom I was not familiar. Definitely ripped!

I wondered aloud whether the comparison was apples to oranges, i.e., that is were the meat eating bodybuilders to which the vegans were being held up also (or should I say, otherwise?) “natural” bodybuilders, or were steroids involved?

Anyway, regardless, the whole thread reminded me I had this short clip queued up since last year.

What better time to share it with you all?

Impressive, eh? And healthy!

I’m happy to say, this past week went very well…

An average calorie intake of 1850

Walking and working on the treadmill every day

No alcohol (3 weeks now)

Only 2 cups of coffee in the mornings

No grains (well, ok, a little corn on the cob)

No nut butters

And, lastly, lots and lots of beans/legumes!

The results of all this “effort?” (The quotes are because it’s not nearly as hard as you may think or as it may sound.)

 The plan for further improvements this week is to 1) add in more lifting with the free weights or get back on the Bowflex and 2) continue decreasing the mid-meal snacking — I’ve made some progress in this department, but could do better.

So, how are YOU doing?!

On the very first outing, I easily spent an hour on it. I thought I’d have to set the treadmill speed at something like 1 MPH to get anything done, but found I could still type competently at 3 MPH, so that’s what I did. It’s not quite ergonomically correct though, and I could feel it immediately in the wrists.

On the other hand, if you only plan on watching videos (you’ll want to use headphones, if you’ve a loud treadmill), live chess, or reading emails or books online, you could easily walk faster as there’s no jiggle to the setup.

The instructions were confusing at first, but once you get the general idea, the exact configuration of straps seems quite forgiving.

For example, in these pictures, you can see I have the strap in the front coming over the magnetic on switch, so I ended up looping it under the bar. Also, they provide a second strap in case you don’t have a crossbar at all. In that case, you’d loop one around the left arm and one around the right. There’s also a velcro strap to secure the laptop on the shelf.

Definitely a good investment and a heck of a lot cheaper than the elaborate wooden treadmill desks! Now, I just need to make sure I don’t spend TOO much time on it or I’ll rack up the electric bill.

PS – Until the end of August, they’re offering a promotional coupon code, good for $5 off (basically S&H). Highlight between the brackets for your limited-time discount [surfshelfsummer5].

I’ve been delaying an update on the first week of my Six Week Plan challenge results for a couple reasons:

1. Disappointment
2. New toy has not arrived

I’m disappointed because, despite not having a drink since Friday, the last day in July, no nut butters since Tuesday (when the opened jars were finally finished off), and a major reduction in coffee to two cups of black in the morning, I’ve actually gained 2.6 lbs from August first to today (Sunday, Aug 9th).

I hypothesize a few contributing factors.

• The approximately 145 calories in a bottle of beer being replaced by real food. (See Alcohol Calories and Weight for some references suggesting they don’t count as much.)
• Less exercise than I would’ve liked.
• Still had some corn tortillas to clean out (just one a day, but still… now going grain-free for a while to test it).

Maybe it’s all the beans too, though I don’t want to lay any blame at their feet; legumes rule!

So, what’s this new toy for which I was holding off posting an update? Well, it shipped early in the week, so I expected it’d be here by Thursday. Still no show. I’m like a kid on Christmas eve.

Anyway, I got myself a treadmill laptop holder and was looking forward to doing my update from there. Next one will be. I’ll let you know how it goes!

The good news is, if you were to have asked me how it was going, without aid of a scale, I would’ve told you great. I feel slimmer and better. Weird. Now my body just has to get the message.

You’re on top of the world and don’t understand how others don’t find it enjoyable too. Since when is exercising a chore, right? It’s fun and makes you feel good!

Then suddenly, some disruptive force throws your “mojo” all out of whack. Maybe it’s a big life change: you lose your job (hmmm), a loved one, a marriage. Maybe it’s a little thing — harder to put your finger on — that wouldn’t seem like it should matter, say, a loooong cold and rainy streak (hmmm).

Whatever it is, you notice some weeks or even months later, what used to be routine requires extra effort to motivate yourself. Or, you’ve simply stopped doing it altogether.

Well, I’m there now. Still skinny by most standards and appearance, and still eating healthy vegan, but according to my scale, my body fat percentage (and weight, to some extent) is increasing. And, I can tell.

So, here’s the plan, I’m getting back to regular, daily, exercise, even if it’s only a 20 minute walk outside or a 10 minute jog on the treadmill. (I think that’s part of it; we get to saying, “if it’s not all then it’s got to be nothing,” but where does that leave SOMETHING?)

In addition to exercise, I want to get back to calorie restriction. To that end, I’ll be doing some sort of personal food challenge as a sort of wash-out period to banish cravings. I haven’t decided yet whether it’ll be another two-week green smoothie diet or the full six week Eat To Live plan with my online friend Em.

Either way, I’m starting on August 1st or 3rd (Monday’s seems like logical start days to me, but so do the first of a month). So, anyone want to join me in putting their foot down and committing to recommitting this summer? Which challenge would you prefer I take up with you? Please leave a comment and let’s do this!