I’m replacing today’s usually scheduled fitness update to talk about the whole Part Time Vegetarian thing that I am trying out. I want to preface this by admitting to you all (as if you didn’t know before) that I am a total nerd and I’m probably going overboard here but that’s me, so feel free to skip to the bottom where I talk about how the effects this whole thing has had on me.

Since the beginning of this experiment I have been tracking my diet in excel (again dork status). I don’t plan on doing this forever especially if I decide to stick with this diet, right now it’s important to me to make sure I am getting everything my body needs nutritionally and spiritually (ie. I’m not craving anything major) to function properly. It has also helped me keep track of how I feel after I eat certain types of food. Already after only a few weeks of tracking I have a good idea of how to balance my diet.

To begin with I made sure I was getting the right volume of macro nutrients (fat, protein, carbs) in my diet. For a base I used .35-.5 g/lb fat (or .4g/lb @ my body weight = 56g/day), 1-1.2 g/kg protein  (so roughly 1.1g/kg @ my body weight = 69.85g/day) and the rest is carbs. Where did I come up with these ratios? Lots and lots of research and experimenting with my own diet since college. Yes I’m such a dork I have kept spreadsheets and note books on this kind of thing for years.

We are both dorks, and he was a vegetarian. Clearly kindred spirits.

There is a lot of debate about how much protein we should actually be getting. FDA recommends .8g/kg of bodyweight, however this is for a
typical sedentary person with 20-25% bf. This is not for everyone, and doesn’t account for active people (active being a relative term, and again another debate for another day). There are a million articles that debate a million different ratios of protein to bodyweight, or LBM (lean body mass). Right now I feel the best on a 60-100g range of protein a day. What I mean when I say my best is that I have high energy while still feeling strong and being able to make slow gains in weight lifting. If I eat more protein I tend to feel more sluggish, and crave fats, whether that comes from a decrease in fat intake on
those days or an over abundance of protein I haven’t figured out yet, but maybe that will be the next experiment.

When I refer to fats I try to keep it to the healthy fats, EVOO, avocado, dairy, eggs, etc. I know there is a lot out there that says you should have a low fat diet, but in truth you need fats for proper brain function
and hormone production. A diet too low in fat can have disastrous effects. I’m not saying you should go crazy with the fried food, just be smart.

Carbs I have found it pretty easy with these, since I already made a change by trying not to get them through starches (pasta, white rice, etc..) I have been eating a lot more vegetables, which it great for my
energy and the antioxidants. I have been loving bean burritos, and potatoes, like totally and completely craving them. I hope this isn’t a phase because for the first time in my life I’m not dreaming about mounds of cheese covered pasta, and it feels good.

So far I have only slipped three times and I’m on week 5. I originally planned to only do this for 2 weeks, but the first two weeks went so
well I decided to extend it for a month, and now until the end of July. I’m going to reevaluate how I feel, and what my goals are then and see if I need to make any changes. By then I’ll have had 6 weeks under my belt.

As far as cravings go it’s been cheese pizza, and ice cream. These are two of my favorite things, and I think I will always crave them, so I
guess I’m not craving anything weird.

Things I have noticed: My abs are more visible. I didn’t expect this so I never took a picture of my stomach before, and now I wish I had. I think it has to do with bloating more than body fat but either way I will take it. The dark circles under my eyes that I have had FOREVER are way lighter!! I have been taking a multivitamin for years and it never did much, so maybe getting more “stuff” out of my food is helping. There have been a few others, but I’m going to wait until the 6 weeks is up to discuss them.

I think this is a long enough post now. Thank you for those of you who made it through!

What are your thoughts on vegetarianism, veganism, flexitarianism or pescatarianism? (did I miss any?)

How would you describe your diet?

Do you think this is the kind of diet you could do?