Is it possible to return from a week-long sunny vacation without unwanted extra pounds?

That was my quest. As I had just embarked on the 28-day Whole Foods Health Starts Here Challenge before leaving, I was faced with many plant-strong diet killer obstacles and food black holes. Who goes on a health kick right before vacay?

I know, it wasn't smart or timely.

Picture numerous generous all-you-can-eat buffets — or buf-fats as I call them — an unlimited flow of cool beverages, hammocks under the warmth of the Dominican Republic sun and even a golf cart to lessen any effort to walk more than a few feet from my comfy digs to a beach bed.

But life seldom clears a path of least resistance to any sort of lifestyle change that takes work. There's never a perfect time to go on a wellness routine. We can call on excuse after excuse to justify naughty habits, and I can claim my rightful spot as not only a member, but president of that club.

Well, not me, not this time.

I had made a commitment to my partner, to Gwen Marzano, Whole Foods' healthy eating maven, and most importantly, to me, and I wasn't about to go back on my word.

You know that feeling when you acknowledge you've let yourself down? Defeat.

And do you know the feeling when you didn't allow yourself to fall trap to old destructive habits? Awesome.

The Health Starts Here Challenge is based on independent goals with support from numerous lectures, fitness events, cooking classes, tastings and opportunities. In the island, I would have none of that and knew I would be surrounded by wicked sustenance everywhere I went.

My goals were: Consume more nutrient dense foods, eliminate refined and extracted fats and engage in some of physical activity three times per week.

How did I do?

Pat me on the back

I stuck to my plant-strong eating regime while avoiding, to the best of my abilities, refined oils, alcoholic drinks and nutrient-void carbohydrates. The snacks I had brought along — individually packaged nut butters by Artisana, Larabar snacks and fruit leathers — saved me during times of hunger when nothing other than evil edibles were lurking around. Sparkling water was my hero, trumping diet sodas, piña colada and bloody Marys.

Yes, there was the fateful Mediterranean night during which hummus and baba ghanoush swimming in oil begged for plain-ole white pita bread consumption. I gave in.

One chef was so curious about my requests — mainly, chop whatever raw veggies available, pile them on a dish with a side of balsamic — that we engaged in long conversations about local foods, exotic fruits and island veggies, and I had the opportunity to explore new tastes and textures.

When I thought my requests would be viewed as inconvenient or unreasonable — the last thing I want to be is a righteous veg in the butt — a please, thank you and a warm smile was ammunition enough to get my way.

The end result? Minus three pounds in a week, a lovely tan and a restful disposition.

Spank me in the tush

Remember the beach beds, hammocks and huge beach poofs? In lieu of enjoying a jog in the company of lush vegetation, walks along the sand or yoga on the beach, my behind was glued to anything soft enough to coddle me tender.

Knowledge is power, right? I took advantage of leisure time to catch up on reading about nutrition and wellness. Learning more about the benefits of minimally processed plant-strong nourishment — and the dangers of excessive refined sugars, fiberless carbs and animal proteins — was enough to encourage and gently terrorize me to stay the course.

Need help? Here's my reading list.

Rip Esselstyn's The Engine 2 Diet

Gay vegan porn? A triathlete turned fire fighter turned plant-strong advocate, Esselstyn's book chronicles the transformation of his Austin fire unit from eating an anything goes American diet to a method that would reduce cholesterol, blood pressure and weight in addition to giving the men prowess to do their risky work.

The book is more anecdotal than scientific, albeit he does make an effort to provide as many statistics, studies and figures without making the copy read like an academic journal.

If you are looking for quick, easy and delicious recipes that satisfy, Esselstyn is the man. There's even a section on fitness which schedules out a work out routine that anyone, at any level, can partake in.

Mark your calendars. Esselstyn will be the featured speaker at the Health Starts Here Challenge Graduation Day event, set for 6:30 p.m. Feb. 20 at Whole Foods Market Montrose.

Joel Furhman's Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss

Don't expect this book, coming from a physician, to be a feel good, sappy story of love, recovery and encouragement. It isn't. Furhman debunks many popular diets — Atkins, South Beach, Mediterranean — and explains the dangers of isolating one aspect of nutrition in hopes of finding the golden ticket to eliminating diseases of affluence.

His premise makes complete sense. Health equals nutrition divided by calories. What does that mean? Eat as many nutritionally dense foods as you can and your body will be satisfied. True hunger, he says, is not a function of calories but micronutrients. It is felt in the throat and mouth and not in the gut.

His formula is simple. Try to eat one pound of cooked veggies, one pound of raw and greens rule the world. Forget counting calories.

Make animal proteins, refined oils and bad carbs less than 10 percent of your caloric intake. He includes recipes, too.

T. Colin Campbell's The China Study

Decades of study led to the publication of The China Study. Growing up in a dairy farm, Campbell did a 160-degree turn when he discovered that his prior belief that animal protein and milk could solve Third World hunger problems was flawed.

Casein, the protein found in milk, was the villain that could activate cancer like an on and off switch. Yet not all proteins behaved similarly, like those found in broccoli (45 percent protein), spinach (30 percent protein) and any plant-based form of the macronutrient, which seemed to squash cancer growth.

There's much more information that will make you think twice next time you crave a filet mignon. As the New York Times remarked, The China Study is the "Grand Prix of epidemiology."

The Health Starts Here Challenge is an overarching initiative during which participants will receive health and fitness tips, participate in cooking classes, tastings, and score gift bags and prizes. Exercise TV fitness expert and CultureMap contributor Cari Shoemate gives tips on staying fit at the Montrose Whole Foods at 6:30 p.m. Monday night.

For a complete list of Challenge events, click here.