Happy New Year!

No, I haven't  left you, my dear dedicated readers (all two of you)!  I've simply been very busy with holiday vacation, traveling to visit family, and working on preparations for some new endeavors!

So instead of my New Year's Resolutions, I'm going to give you some of my January Challenges and Personal Goals for the coming year!

I have two new challenges for January:  (Well, one is technically for January and February, but close enough, right?)

1) No- Spend January!

The rules: No spending on non-essential things such as: going out to eat, new clothes, movies, etc. Only $1/day to spend on groceries as needed.  The only spending this month will be on bills and necessary expenses. 

My husband is totally on board, and I stocked up groceries this past Sunday.  The only potential problem I see at this point is running out of fresh fruits and veggies.  I have some frozen and canned ones to hopefully tide me over for the month, but as a vegan, I go through a lot of fruits and vegetables in an average week.

The point of this challenge is (selfishly) to save money, but also to limit needless spending and consumerism.  Sometimes I find myself buying lots of things I don't even need.  I've been making an effort this last year to become more minimalist, but hopefully this challenge will help highlight how to save money and be more conscious of spending.  Also, my husband and I love to go out to eat, which is probably another large source of spending.  So hopefully I'll be challenged to be more creative in my cooking and eat through some of the various grains and canned goods that I have stockpiled in my kitchen.

Wish me luck!  So far I have managed to spend $0, so I still have $31 left to spend for the month.

To see my inspiration for this challenge, check out these links below to some blogs of other families who've successfully completed this challenge:

30 Days of Nothing from Living the Frugal Life

Thinking About Nothing from Bushel and a Peck

Yes, entire families!  We're only two people, and I think it's going to be a little difficult.  But if they can do it, so can we!

2) Jillian Michaels Six Week Six-Pack

I know, an exercise resolution!  But this one actually seems pretty damn awesome!  I'm planning on completing six weeks of following the Jillian Michaels exercise routine.  According to Jillian, you should do the 30-minute routine 5 times/week for 6 weeks.  There are two different levels, and you're supposed to do Level One for the first 3 weeks and Level Two for the second 3 weeks. 

I've only been doing this routine for less than a week, but I feel a difference already!  My stomach looks and feels tighter.  (I should note that I've also been exercising, running, and eating healthy on the side.)  Now, I don't expect to have a six-pack at the end of the 6 weeks, but I believe that I'll be more toned and lose some fat.  I've taken a before picture, and I plan to take an after picture to show you my results of this challenge at the end of the six weeks.  So stay tuned!

Goals for 2014:

1) Complete a mini-marathon (or two)!

I'm already signed up for the DC Rock n' Roll Half Marathon on March 15th, and I've made myself a training plan for how to reach this goal.  My plan is to run at least 3-4 days/week with a long training run on Saturdays or Sundays.  The plan is kind of flexible, but I have my first longer training run this weekend (5-6 miles, depending on if I feel strong enough to go for 6 this week).  I hope the weather gets better! We just got about 3 inches of snow, and I had to do 4 miles indoors last night.  I hate treadmills, so I only did one mile on the treadmill and 3 miles on the elliptical.  The elliptical isn't really comparable to running outside, but it's better than nothing!

2) Pay down some serious student loan debt!

My 30 Days of Nothing/ No-Spend January challenge should help with this goal, but I want to make more of an effort to spend less on entertainment and fancy food and to have significantly less debt.  We recently paid off one of my Sallie Mae student loans with the highest interest rate (10.75%! Yikes!), and it felt so good!  I want to keep this up because one day, we'd like to be able to buy a house.  If we pay off large amounts of our debt, we'll have more money to put in our savings each month for that goal.

Between myself and my husband, we have about a dozen student loans and one car loan for my car that we just got last year.  We pay more in loans each month than we do in rent, and adding it all together it just becomes a staggering amount!  I've read a lot online about other people tackling their debt, and I've become inspired to be more frugal and work on this for myself.

Other News:

I've done some thinking about the purpose of this blog.  I initially started it to keep track of my 90 -day Vegan Challenge, but it's become more than just a challenge and turned into an entire way of life!  I've decided that I'd like to expand my blog to include all of my interests.  There are lots of other things than being vegan that I'm passionate about:  running, exercise, music, nutrition, and more.  I'm planning on writing more about these topics in the coming year.  I'm currently thinking up a new title to my blog and expect to see some design and layout changes this month.  I hope you enjoy it, and I appreciate your feedback!


What are your goals/resolutions for 2014?  Do you have any short-term goals for the month of January?

Tempeh Broccoli Bowl

I've been meaning to give tempeh another try for a while now. (I liked it the first time, but I wasn't yet completely sold on it.) This particular tempeh had been sitting in my fridge for about a month now. Recently, I discovered a nice smoky little marinade from Bonzai Aphrodite. She calls it her "bacon" recipe. So I decided to make a nice little veggie bowl with brown rice, marinated tempeh, broccoli, and bell pepper.

First order of business: get that brown rice started. The brown rice takes the longest to cook. I have a rice cooker, so it's a bit faster, but it still takes quite a while.

Now you have to steam your tempeh. I just added some water to a skillet and steamed it for about 10 minutes. This helps make the tempeh less bitter.

Next marinate your tempeh. The marinade consists of tamari (or soy sauce, if you prefer), apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and liquid smoke. If you don't have liquid smoke, it will still taste delicious, so don't worry. Pour all of those ingredients into a dish and add your tempeh. Cut it up into smaller pieces so that it will absorb the marinade better. Don't forget to flip the pieces over halfway through so that they're coated on all sides!

Next, chop up your broccoli and bell pepper. You can use different vegetables if you prefer, but I had some pre-chopped broccoli handy from a previous meal and added an orange bell pepper for variety. Steam your veggies in water. Feel free to add a splash or two of tamari or soy sauce while they are steaming to cook in some extra flavor. Once your veggies are done, cover them to keep them warm while your rice and tempeh cook.

Add a little bit of oil to another skillet and drop your tempeh pieces into the oil. Cook until browned. They'll turn a nice dark shade of coppery brown.

Final step, assemble your bowl with brown rice, topped with the veggies and tempeh, and drizzle some of the leftover marinade over the veggies and tempeh for more flavor. Enjoy!

Post-Thanksgiving

I was all smug about Thanksgiving before it happened. I thought it would be super easy to stay on track with healthy eating because most things at the meal weren't vegan. (My cousin hosted and the only things that were vegan were the two dishes I brought.) She's super cool about it and was really excited to try the food I brought. I was planning on bringing 3-4 dishes so that I could have more variety and told her that she didn't need to do anything special, but I didn't have time to make the Lentil Loaf. So I ended up bringing Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Pumpkin Pie Brownies.

The recipe I used for the Pumpkin Pie Brownies is from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. Follow the directions! I thought the pumpkin pie layer looked too liquidy before it was cooked and added some extra pumpkin puree, but it wasn't necessary. It still tasted great, anyway. My cousin said it was really rich, and she was surprisingly the only one who asked any questions about my new dietary preference. (And they were nice questions, none of them concerning my protein intake.)

The previous weekend, I went to see the other side of the family for my grandpa's birthday. My uncle was very persistant in his questioning, but that's just part of his personality. He's very nosey and likes to know all of the gossip. He does this to every single one of my cousins, usually about significant others. He also isn't afraid to question the significant other and tell embarassing stories if they're in attendance. I felt like it was a good discussion, though, and he wasn't defensively asking questions. It was more curiousity since they've all known that I've been vegetarian for years, but they hadn't seen me since the switch. (Technically, I was flexitarian for most of that time, but only in relation to the farmer's market and eating fish sometimes at restaurants. So it was easier to tell them vegetarian.) I also didn't give prior warning about the change since it was a pitch-in affair, and I'm trying to keep a low profile. My uncle brought me out of the closet when cake was served, though.

Anyway, so Thanksgiving was fine. I ate fairly healthy and ate a little bit more when I got home that evening since I didn't have many vegan options at Thanksgiving. It was the 3 free days after that really did me in. I don't do the whole Black Friday thing, especially since I live right next to the 5th largest mall in the U.S., and it's just a hot mess there during the entire season between mid-November and January 1st. I sat around on the couch and watched Netflix and snacked on the food from the Second Thanksgiving that I made for my husband (since he had to work during Thanksgiving). There weren't many vegetables or fruits left in the house at that point, and I didn't feel like going to the store since there was already plenty of food. Bad idea. I kept telling myself I would go exercise or at least get out of the house and go to the store, but then another show would come on. I did walk my dog, but when you eat that much food and remain sedentary for the majority of the day, a dog walk doesn't really count as exercise. Also, it just ruins your mood. I was feeling pretty happy during the beginning of the week, but I was majorly depressed and upset over the weekend. It was just a vicious cycle of overeating --> sitting still and feeling tired because I ate too much --> eating more.

Oh well, now I'm getting back on track, and I know that next time I should probably volunteer for overtime, plan on going out somewhere, make an exercise date or attend a class when I have that much time off in a row. Everyone has times that they fall off the wagon, but I certainly fell off the wagon a little harder than most. I feel so much better yesterday and today since I exercised and ate better. I didn't realize how much I'd gotten used to the routine of work and exercise. I probably should make a game plan for Christmas break because I'm taking a whole week off to visit family.

It's amazing how much of a mood boost you get from doing something as simple as using an elliptical machine! You don't even have to go outside! I like to run outside, but I hate treadmills! I'm a wimp when it comes to rain, snow, and cold weather. (The fact that it is dark outside before I even leave work doesn't help matters.) However, I really enjoy the elliptical because I can read while I'm doing it. Yeah, I'm not working as hard, but I like to read and stay on the machine longer when I'm really into a story. I also listen to music to block out the sound of the television and other exercise machines. I know that's a lot going on, but it helps me to concentrate and speed up when a new, fast song comes on. I prefer to set the program to hill or intervals so that the incline is constantly changing, too. That way you can't just stay at a steady pace, and you'll probably work a little harder.

If you want to use the elliptical and think that you'd like to read on it, I'd recommend starting with a magazine because they're usually easier to read while exercising. Short snippets, less attention needed. I also have a friend who watches TV shows on her iPhone. Most ellipticals have a small stand for reading materials that will hold a smart phone, magazine, e-book reader, or small paperback at eye level. Sometimes you can find one of those clear plastic holders to hold a larger book, depending on where you are.