The February Food & Drink Challenge!

How often do you have a glass of wine at night after a busy day? How many mugs of strong tea or coffee do you drink in the morning to get you going? Do you like brown / tomato sauce or a favourite jam with your breakfast everyday, perhaps some sugar coated cereal instead. Do you have mayo in your sandwich at lunch?

I’m a vegetarian who is slowly adapting his lifestyle, along with and the help of his wonderful girlfriend. Last year I lost three stone and the weight lose is still ongoing, as is the lifestyle changes. In the bigger picture the lifestyle changes are part of my journey of life, as obviously with everyone. I’m keen to make choices and decisions today that will impact tomorrow in a more positive way, as well as the impact some of those decisions have on today. So challenging myself to continue to make changes, working as a team to accomplish and yes motivating myself solely to stick to a goal is part of the February challenge.

So what is the February challenge…

I have not drunk any alcohol this year or drunk a coffee. So I mentioned to my better half I was thinking of giving up tea during February. Not a big thing you might say. Now those who know me, will realise I drink a lot of tea. Not that much in the afternoon, but in the morning and yes I am a tea snob. No not brands that others deem snobby, but I know what I like and…. don’t like and what I like, I drink strong.

Anyhow the conversation expanded from not just giving up tea for February, but also brown sauce, cheese (which has crept back in slightly into our diet) and vegan mayo. So the full list is: No tea, coffee, brown sauce, vegan mayo, booze and cheese. Not counting the items we already don’t have such as pizza’s and other unhealthy items (which you can read about in an earlier post). Now my girlfriend has joined in the February challenge, which will make a huge difference.

So why am I doing this? I’m curious and determined to push myself, to experiment in lifestyle changes. You don’t see energetic five year olds running around saying… ‘i can’t live without my morning mug of tea’. No they run around with endless energy and yes I realise outlook on life is a part of this, along with other factors. Drink and Food  can become a ‘fix’. Something people don’t like to tackle, because of the ‘larger’ issues in their lifes, but the reality is they are connected.

Will I start drinking tea and having other items in March? Probably, I don’t know. Some items are fine in moderation and even beneficial. This is the February challenge, March I will think about closer to the time. I’m looking forward to it. Withdrawl, tolerance, motivation, team work, understanding, solutions and more.

So you are welcome to join me in the February challenge and list in the comments the items you are going to give up.  It could just be one item, like a morning coffee. If you think February is not the right time and can list reasons why, it probably is more suitable now more than ever. Whatever the case, it’s going to be interesting.