Longmont, Colorado is the perfect epicenter for a mountain adventure, whether the priority is hiking, beer, food, bicycling, coffee, or photography. It’s 16 miles from Boulder, 30 miles from Fort Collins, 39 miles from Denver, and 43 from Rocky Mountain National Park, but it’s a suburb entirely worth its own visit if you want a hub from which to access these locations.
I knew I would like Austin, Texas, but I had no idea how much I enjoy the city nor for what reasons. Everyone knows Austin as the live music capital of the world, but I soon discovered a mind-blowing food and coffee scene in the Texas capital as well. Apparently, I’m not alone in appreciating the city. Austin Demographer Ryan Robinson has document 150 people moving to Austin each day and 40 leaving each day, for a net gain of 110. Can you imagine the U-Haul business?
I recently spent 16 days in Asheville, North Carolina. I housesat for a couple and their dogs, which gave me a really affordable way to explore the city slowly and from a location just a few miles from downtown.
I’ve heard great things about Asheville. One coworker just returned from the area and another was heading there. It also popped up on my radar screen a few times as a burgeoning beer and food mecca while I was learning about the hiking opportunities in the area.
Raleigh, North Carolina is a quietly bustling capitol city. On the surface, things are quiet. But once you plug into the scenes Raleigh has to offer (food, beer, coffee/donuts, art, history, politics) you’ll quickly find that a lot is going on.
I recently spent five days in Raleigh, visiting friends while working remotely for two clients. My work kept me at the laptop part-time, but the rest of my days and nights were fun and relaxing.
This Food Stamp Challenge, called 3SquaresVT here in Vermont, to live on $38/week of food was not at all easy. I blew it in so many ways.
Day 4 (Wednesday) was a relative good day. I ate half an apple for breakfast, with coffee, cream and sugar. I ate the beans, rice and veggies that I’d prepared in advance for lunch. I skipped snacks and sodas at work, and then had sesame tofu for dinner.
Unfortunately, I had a coffee pot malfunction in the morning and lost a lot of coffee. I looked at the bag of grounds and looked at what was left in the pot of coffee. I decided I couldn’t really waste the coffee, so I filtered the grounds out of the pot and drank what I could.
My 21-day Quantum Wellness Cleanse ended on Friday. For three weeks, I abstained from sugar, caffeine, alcohol, meat, dairy and gluten. I developed a surprisingly delicious diet of vegetables, rice, beans, tofu, tea, water and assorted gluten-free products.
On Saturday morning, I weighed 6 lbs lighter than I did 21 days ago and lost 1.5 inches from around my stomach. The most dramatic effects were in the first week, although finally being able to get back to the gym this third week nudged along further weight loss.
You can read more about the journey in these blog entries:
This past, final week, I actually had to give up my watered-down decaf coffee. I could even feel the effects of that minimal amount of caffeine on my heart. I switched to decaf tea and the jittery feeling went away.
I also came to terms with the fact that when I’m upset, I want to eat junk food. A lot of it. I didn’t crave anything so much as I craved the idea of lots of it. I abstained and rediscovered that going to the gym, working up a sweat and spending some time in the sauna provided not only the exertion my stress needed, but also an excellent and spacious transition from work to home.
I feel relieved that a lot of my unhealthy food habits seem broken. I enjoy making and eating breakfast at home now, instead of grabbing something on the go. I’ve stopped snacking at work, even when I’m working on an exciting project, which is an odd habit I discovered in Week 1. I haven’t craved Diet. Mt. Dew or too much coffee or sugar in the 21 days. The fact that this is an all-or-nothing type of cleanse really worked for me.
I ended the Quantum Wellness Cleanse yesterday, by having lunch with a friend at August First in Burlington. I ordered a Tofu Salad sandwich and nibbled on the bread. Surprisingly, the bread held little charm for me after this cleanse, although I could taste that it was good bread. The tofu was much more to my liking. Later that evening, I had a beer from The Alchemist (a Heady Topper) and about 6 oz. of Nutty Steph’s chocolate at home.
And while The Alchemist never ceases to amaze me, it was all rather anti-climatic. My taste buds have come to appreciate much more subtle flavors, textures and, especially, spices as opposed to the overwhelming nature of caffeine, sugar, alcohol, animal products and gluten. I wouldn’t have been able to learn that had I just cut back on sugar or breads. A whole-system reset was in order for my body to actually taste and feel the negative affects of, say, caffeine (heart-stopping!).
So it looks like much of this Cleanse has become a lifestyle! For my own health, I’m excited, but it’s also exciting because of the environmental and other positive effects a mostly vegan, gluten-free lifestyle can have. Here are some fun resources I’ve found on my journey:
My next indulgence will be a (decaf) Maple Latte and some toffee from Espresso Bueno, but I’m not in a rush. I actually need to make breakfast now: a tofu scramble with lots of veggies and spices!
Sixteen days down on the Quantum Wellness Cleanse! I’ve lost a total of 4 lbs and about 1 inch around the waist, 1.5 inches around my thighs and 1 inch around my upper arms.
Week 2 was more difficult than Week 1. Returning to work after vacation, I found that we have new chefs – actually, new bakers – at the College cafeteria! I’ve resisted the cinnamon rolls and homemade bread, but it was an epic battle.