My husband and I have been together for more years than I care to admit. He’s seen me through many a diet, and he’s even joined me on a few.

We have a good and fair arrangement. He does the shopping, and I do the cooking. And he LOVES it when I cook.

But my decision to go vegan was alarming to him. Sure, I’d still be preparing his meals, but how tasty could those meals possibly be without meat? Or eggs? Or cheese? Or milk?

At first, he augmented his dinners with various meats and cheeses. I’d make vegan burritos, and he’d add roasted chicken and mozzarella. I’d make vegan chili, and he’d add kielbasa and sour cream. No big deal, because he wasn’t forcing me to eat it.

Then after eight months of being vegan, something strange happened to me. I started getting compliments on how much healthier I looked. Not only that, but my husband could tell how much better I felt. I had more energy and was getting up earlier and staying up later.

So, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise when he told me he wanted to become pescatarian (vegetarian + fish) and give up all other meats. But because eggs smelled yucky to me, and cheese and butter were still tempting, I talked him into taking it one step further. I asked him to go vegan + fish instead, which I call pesca-vegan. He said he’d give it a month.

It should be noted that my husband is within his weight range, but the pounds were inching up, and he wasn’t happy with how his clothes were fitting. The stats after the first week? He lost over six pounds! It was enough to keep him motived.

We’ll see how the remaining month goes, but because it’s been so easy for him (with me packing his lunch and preparing dinner), I think he’ll continue even after the trial period is over.

Honestly? I never thought he’d make it this far.

Update: He gave it the month, and he plans to commit to another month again soon. No pressure from me.