I’ve never been described as “skinny.” Even when I was a devout Weight Watchers follower back in 1992 and lost a ton of weight, I still didn’t feel skinny. I’ve always been known as the smart one, the one with the brains. I guess in a way the extra poundage fits that bookworm stereotype.
But I’ve been unhappy about my weight for awhile. Thanks to my vegetarian diet, overall I feel extremely healthy. I’ve never had any major health issues. But I’ve always been overweight. It’s always been “I’ve gotta get back on my program and start eating better and exercising”… without walking the talk.
Then I got a kick in the ass from my husband after I moved in a few weeks ago. He flat out asked me to lose weight. Talk about a slap. Ouch. It hurt. I was pissed. He’s never brought up my weight the whole nearly three years that we dated. Guess he felt cushy in his new role as hubby. I told him I’d lose the weight, but that he’d better be careful what he wished for, because he just might get it!
I immediately ordered Skinny Bitch and Skinny Bitch in the Kitch from Amazon.com. I had heard a lot about them, but never got around to ordering them till now. They came in the mail yesterday.
I’ve been teetering with a vegan lifestyle for awhile… always eat vegetarian, but a good chunk of what I eat is vegan already. Sometimes I feel lazy and I don’t check ingredients as well as I should… or sometimes I just flat out crave cheese. Real cheese.
But I sat and read Skinny Bitch yesterday… it was an easy read, and didn’t really provide any new info… I already knew that taking dairy out of my diet would be healthier…. etc. etc. But the book did inspire me to get my act together and be more choosy about what I put into my body. I liked the no-nonsense tone of the book. Would definitely recommend it to others.
I’m terrible at keeping New Year’s resolutions, which is why I never make ‘em. But I do have a feeling that this could be my year. My year to eat healthy… the way I truly long to cook. But it won’t be easy.
We’ve already knocked heads on the price of soymilk. He has no problem drinking soymilk… and that’s part of the problem: he’ll pour half a carton on his cereal each morning! I told him I’d buy cow’s milk for him when I go shopping, but he said the soymilk was OK. It’s the little things like that that we’re still working through.
So, I laid the Skinny Bitch book next to my hubby’s computer yesterday and asked him to read it when he gets a chance, so that he’ll have a better understanding of why I’m buying and cooking the food that I am. I reiterated that I will lose weight, but he’s got to be on board and support me on this. I’m done dieting. I want to make my (and his) everyday lifestyle healthy. In many ways, he’s semi-vegetarian now that I’m doing all the cooking at home for the two of us.
I had to giggle yesterday because my hubby experienced his first real evidence of a vegetarian diet… a healthy bowel movement. He and I have been off work for the holidays, so we’ve both been eating veg*n several meals a day for two weeks now. His body isn’t used to that. In the past, he’s been a fast food, eat out type of guy. I was wondering how my cooking would affect him, and now we know! LOL We both had a good laugh about it last night. 
Anyway, this year will be a challenge for me… not only adjusting to living and cooking with my hubby, but also in the personal goal I am setting for myself to become a healthier person. My sister had a baby in September and I’m in awe of the entire process. I know I won’t be too far behind now that I’m married. I want my body to be in the best shape possible for bringing another human being into this world. Which is why I hope to be a (healthy) “skinny bitch” by the end of this year.
Wish me luck! You’ll read all about my struggles and bitchiness here! LOLOL
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I plan to do some catching up this week… I’ve got several food posts that I’m behind on… will get those posted this coming week!
I’m really excited for you!! I didn’t read Skinny Bitch, but I have “in the Kitch”. I never really make a lot from the cookbooks I have (even though I have 20 or so), but I do really like their tofu “feta”.
As far as cheese, I think that once you cut it out for a month, you’ll find you don’t crave it anymore. And hopefully you’ll find some decent cheesey substitutes. Personally, I don’t like any fake cheese. I’ve tried a few different kinds, and none of them are even palatable for me. I’ve had a lot of success with cheesey sauces though, made from nutritional yeast and stuff like that. My omnivore family even likes them
My husband is deployed right now, but he’s expressed some interest in trying to be vegan/vegetarian when he comes back. I’m trying not to get my hopes up, haha. I’m glad your husband is feeling a difference!
Do you mind me asking why you became a vegetarian?
I just started reading your blogs a few months ago and I enjoy it. It gives a real look with no sugar coating, into the life of a veg and omni couple, and it gives me hope for myself.
I’m curious what your standing would be if your hubby wanted you to cook meat? I don’t think I’d be able to do it. I don’t have a huge problem cooking vegetarian for those who won’t eat the substitutes (mainly because they’re a lil costly, and I’m not going to waste my money if people aren’t going to take the time to learn why I am vegan), but I don’t think I can deal with meat anymore.
I was a lacto-ovo vegetarian for about 2 years before reading Skinny Bitch. I bought Skinny Bitch, and SB in the Kitch, and after reading SB, I decided to do a cleanse (cabbage soup diet) for a few weeks, and then try to eat more towards vegan, but wasn’t sure I’d be able to commit fully.
It wasn’t as hard as I thought. I was a mojor egg lover, and still have yet to try any tofu-scramble, but I’ve been vegan since Nov 4th/08 and feel much healthier.
It seems kinda harsh how your hubby made his request. He could have at least made the offer to work together towards a goal.
Good for you for vowing to be more healthy! To me, that is the key. Dieting never worked for me, but eating healthy did. Looking forward to reading more.
Good luck in the new year! I started WW about a month ago and it’s been working really well for me… I know what you mean about the husband and the price of alternative options… then they just down them in one swoop! Ours in the multi-grain light englis muffins and the diet soda!
Hi all, thanks for your comments!
Just to clarify… hubby was a bit blunt in his ask, in my opinion, because we were actually talking about an unrelated topic when it came out. But he and I are definitely going to work on this together. This actually stems from me being concerned about HIS health… he’s on some meds, and I guess I’ve come off a bit preachy in declaring my opinion that I think he could go off some of those meds if he changed his diet… in other words, ate more vegetarian. Which he is doing now, of course, so only time will tell if eating more vegetarian meals will help him shed some meds. He’s already lost some weight per doctor’s orders. So this is something we’ll do together, and he’ll be the first one to tell you that.
He has concerns about my weight because we hope to have children soon, and he’s known people who’ve had complications with their pregnancies because of extra weight, so I definitely understand where he’s coming from and why he feels as he does.
No one ever likes being told–straight out or implied–that they’re fat. Obviously my post is very biased based on my feelings of being the chubby chick! But all’s good. This has really motivated me to make a change!
Vegwife, I know exactly how you feel. Someone I’m close to told me I looked fat in my jeans yesterday. I know I’m carrying a few extra pounds/kilos but think I look OK considering I had a baby 4 months ago. But to be told you’re fat, even in the most caring and diplomatic terms, is still hard to hear