I think you’re supposed to do these sorts of posts at the beginning of the calendar year, however I obviously didn’t start this blog at the beginning of a calendar year, therefore, I’m posting it now.

That said, welcome, oh Internet friends, to my very humble foodblog. In the past, I have been the worst blogger on the surface of the planet. I have a LiveJournal in which I ramble on about my very woeful life (boys and complaining about school, mainly) and an abandoned knitting blog (abandoned only because I am a compulsive starter and a rare finisher!). Neither of these blogs showed any exemplary writing or are terribly worth reading if you’re not intimately familiar with my life (and even then!). I would like this blog to be a bit more worthwhile and it is my hope that I can connect with a few more diet bloggers in the process as well as some sassy vegan cooks!

Here are my personal goals:

+ Transition into a vegan way of life. For those unaware of what veganism constitutes, it means not consuming any animal products (meat, dairy, eggs, other byproducts including whey and certain vitamins). My primary concern is personal health (high cholesterol and diabetes run in my family), however, as of late, the animal rights and environmental arguments have meant a great deal more to me.

+ Lose anywhere from forty to fifty-five pounds. My current weight is 173.0 lbs. My highest was 212 and I started a conscious attempt at losing weight in January. I weighed 204 then. I don’t necessarily have an ideal goal weight in mind. A healthy weight for my age and height (20, 5’4”) is 108-145 pounds, based on BMI. I am taking this one day at a time, though. I’m already much happier with my body and healthier, and plan on listening to my body when it gets down to those thirty-seven pounds I could lose or keep. With such a range considered “healthy” I hope to let my body settle into a happy weight within that range.

+ Bike more! I’d like to rely more on my own body (and bicycle) for transportation versus using public transit (busses and elevated trains) when possible. I have this listed as a goal because, while I enjoy biking, I’m not terribly competent at biking great distances yet, I’m deathly afraid of biking around traffic and my excursions, thus far, have been largely recreational. My goal is to bike to school, work and all sorts of other places.

+ Leave a smaller footprint. I’d like to waste a whole lot less. Canvas shopping bags, biking, buying locally grown produce (it’s so easy to do! And fresh, locally grown, in season produce? That is a very delicious no-brainer!).

+ Last but certainly not least: eat delicious food! I’m of the belief that healthy and vegan do not have to equal bland and unfulfilling! I’ve really enjoyed the vegan food I’ve cooked in the past (I love legumes, which is convenient, ne pas?) and have found myself drooling at vegan foodblogs in the past. I’m very excited to cook all sorts of fabulous new dishes and experiment with different exotic foods!

And of course, here are my goals for this blog:

+ Pictures, pictures, pictures! I would love for this blog to be colorful and full of lovely images of vegan creations, of pretty places I visit on my bike, of all that gorgeous local produce and, of course, a handful of “progress” pictures.

+ Recipe and book reviews! I am a compulsive recipe and cookbook collector and am always trying new recipes. I’d like to post some links and pictures here ranting and raving about various recipes! Most, I bet, will be raves. I will also provide nutritional info for the recipes I am trying. I use the calculator at SparkRecipes.com to figure out the nutritional information for most of the things I make! I spend a great deal of time plucking recipes off of VegWeb.com and The PPK, as well as various blogs, so you will probably see me try my hand at some of those here. i’ve put a few links in my sidebar of my favorite recipe haunts, and more are certainly to come!

+ Some recipes of my own, once I get a bit more adventurous.

+ A record of my weight loss progress, as well as a discussion of some of the difficulties I face along the way. I will likely post two to three times a week, and will post a “Dietary Digest” at the end of each week, breaking down calories, weight, etc, for the sake of accountability. I find I do much better when I write things down and share them!

I do not wish for this blog to become very political. Granted, there is a very liberal stigma associated with the vegan/green lifestyle, but this blog is not about politics (at this point); it is about health and wellbeing and a sustainable lifestyle. I may post the occasional link to related articles online; at this time, however, I will be avoiding deeply political issues. This blog is about food and fun!

I think that just about wraps up this State of the Blog (you write one a year, right? ). If you’d like a bit more information about me or my quest, please check out my About section!

Thank you very kindly for reading,
Sara
lapetitepoire