I’VE BEEN A VEGETARIAN for the past seven months.

It’s something I flirted with before but it stuck this time because I decided if I was going to do it, I was going to do it right. I’d start eating healthy and nutritious food.

The featured image is far from healthy or nutritious. I’ve been a huge chicken wing fan for years (the hotter the better), and I thought I’d never get anything close to it again on the veggie menu. Boy was I wrong.

Cauliflower wings on a bed of triple cooked (why not?) chips (fries to my American friends).

Absolutely epic and eye-opening. Rare treats like that certainly keep the meat sweats away.

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Connected with my vegetarian lifestyle, I’ve also been doing OMAD – One Meal A Day, since March. This probably deserves a longer post to explain my reasons why.

I’ve never felt better. My energy levels are ridiculous. I sleep soundly and, weirdly, whether it is the meat-deprived diet, my teetotal lifestyle (no booze in 2018), my thinking is clearer than ever.

The first time I eat is around 9pm in the evening (post-workout) and my feeding window lasts for one hour. I go to sleep around midnight.

My friends and family are completely weirded out by my routine and think it’s too extreme (admittedly it’s not for everyone!). No breakfast, lunch or calorific beverages throughout the day does take a while to get used to.

When you’re limited to one meal a day, dining becomes such a joyous occasion. I make sure to pack as many nutrients and vitamin dense food into that window as possible.

As a result, I’ve lost around 25 lbs of fat – have a six pack for the first time since sixteen, and am lifting heavier weights than ever.

Go figure!

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I’m off to Colombia next week.

I lived there for a couple years on and off, and I’m excited to be going back. It seems I always plug into some creative outlet when I’m there. In fact, all my books were written in Medellin.

This time around, I’m planning to make much more of an effort integrating into the culture and making friends. In the past, I’ve been a bit of a social recluse, sitting in cafes plotting novels.

I’m going to miss my books…

My book collection is very small. I usually give the novels to charity shops, except for the timeless classics.

The books I do hold onto are usually non-fiction. Self-help for the most part.

I went through a bit of an existential crisis in my late teens (didn’t we all?) and favoured the works of Richard Bandler and Tony Robbins.

This year I really invested in my collection and I’m going to be leaving some friends behind.

There’s always the digital version of course, though it’s never the same. Not since I got into the habit of highlighting sections of books for inspiration.

If you look close enough, you’ll see just how warped my interests are…