December 2020 McDougall MWL Weigh-In Group

[texaslil]

Weight change +/- in lbs:
+.6
Current weight: 172

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES
2. Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for dessert. YES
3. Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. This includes gourmet sugars and salts, too. If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. YES
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). ATE AVOCADO AND TOFU AT A COUPLE OF MEALS
6. Eliminate any added oil. YES
7. Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e., bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. HAD SOME BREAD AND PIZZA AT A COUPLE OF MEALS
8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). I HAVE HAD HOMEMADE HOT CHOCOLATE A FEW TIMES THIS WEEK; COCOA, SUGAR AND SALT
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. NO, I'VE STRUGGLED WITH THIS ONE..
10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). 5/7 WALKING

Victories, comments, concerns, questions: FIRST, I WANT TO APOLOGIZE FOR BEING SO EXTREMELY LATE IN CHECKING IN. WE HAD A BIT OF A SCARE THIS WEEK, AS MY DAUGHTER WAS EXPOSED TO SOMEONE WITH COVID, SO WE TURNED ALL OUR ENERGY TOWARDS DEALING WITH THAT. WE WERE LUCKY TO HAVE ACCESS TO TESTING AND WE HAVE ALL TESTED NEGATIVE, WE ARE ALL VERY RELIEVED. WE WILL HAVE A SECOND ROUND OF TESTS TODAY. OTHER THAN THAT, THIS WEEK HAS FELT LIKE A STRUGGLE TO GET THINGS UNDER CONTROL DIET-WISE. I DON'T THINK I HAVE REALLY GOTTEN BACK INTO THE SWING OF THINGS SINCE THE THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY. THIS IS THE WEEK IN THE MONTH WHERE NUMBERS TYPICALLY GO UP FOR ME, SO I'M NOT TOO SURPRISED, BUT STILL ALWAYS FRUSTRATING. I AM PLANNING/HOPING FOR A BETTER WEEK THIS WEEK.

HAVE A GREAT WEEK EVERYONE!

[Mark Cooper]

Hello to the group! I'm making my official return to the boards, and resuming my responsibilities with the group today.

I apologize for my sudden absence. A brief explanation: I suffered some sudden, and severe neurological complications from my disease (CRPS/RSD) that ultimately required hospitalization. I was in the hospital for about a week, during which time I lost over 7 pounds and dropped well into the underweight BMI category. I'm home and feeling much better, back to my old self, but still with some ground to make up in terms of my weight, strength and stamina. I'll definitely be present for this week's weigh-in (I'll post my replies Friday and Saturday evening). I do have a fairly busy schedule catching up with daily life and undergoing physical therapy, so please forgive me if it takes me a bit longer to respond to the thread than usual. I see you were in the very best of hands while I was away! My utmost gratitude to wildgoose for doing such an excellent job shepherding the group; after looking over the thread, I'd say she is MUCH better at all this than I am!

I'm so glad to be back; this group, its participants, and your remarkable journeys mean the world to me. See you all on Friday (or sooner).

Take care and be well!
-Mark

[Zoey]

Oh Mark, I'm so sorry to hear of your hospitalization. So scary! But very happy to hear that you are back home and recovering. I hope someone has made a pot of your favorite soup to aid in your comfort and healing.

And yes, Mother Goose took excellent care of the flock. I mean gaggle. Well, she'll know what I mean. You're always missed, no matter how good the hands we're left in.

Get strong and get well!

[Mark Cooper]

Thanks, Zoey!

Sorry you had to deal with that scare, Laila; I'm glad to hear you're all in the clear so far. Today seems like an excellent time to get the week off to a great start by getting back on track and choosing to focus on eating the recommended foods, in the recommended fashion.

[Growing a Pear]

Ditto to everything Zoey said, Mark! We were in good hands and are delighted you are back.

Please prioritize your health and family before this message board. We will keep. I'm sure Posey needs some quality time with her dad.

[Mark Cooper]

I'm sure Posey needs some quality time with her dad.

Thanks so much! Indeed she does.

[wildgoose]

Thanks, Mark, for the compliment, but I know your compassion, caring and dedication were missed around here. Welcome back!

Zoey, I think I’ll pick "flock" over "gaggle." This group is flying strong! And a group of geese in flight is a flock.

Goose

[josietheschnauzer]

Dear Mark, Wild Goose, and Jeff I, too, add my thanks and best wishes to you all. You help me so much, and I also appreciate the care and time you spend with your responses to us all. So very happy for you, Mark, that you are home.

[Mark Cooper]

So very happy for you, Mark, that you are home.

Many thanks, Elsa! Me, too!

[texaslil]

Dear Mark,
I had never heard of CRPS/RSD and it does sound difficult, I'm sorry for any suffering you might have felt. I'm happy that you are back home, feeling better and getting back on track. Wildgoose kept us going and her encouragement was much appreciated! Here's wishing for much health and wellness for you now and into the new year!
Best wishes,
Laila

[Mark Cooper]

I had never heard of CRPS/RSD and it does sound difficult, I'm sorry for any suffering you might have felt . . . Here's wishing for much health and wellness for you now and into the new year!

It can definitely be a very challenging condition; I will say that, in general, I'm very fortunate to suffer much less than the average person afflicted with CRPS (I believe this is largely due to the anti inflammatory nature of the MWL diet and my diligent application of various therapeutic modalities). Thank you so much for the well wishes, I really appreciate it. Are you feeling like you are back on track with your daily routine and food choices?

[Mark Cooper]

I'm looking forward to tomorrow's weigh-in and seeing everyone's reports! Friday is this group's weigh-in day, and participants have until noon pacific time (19:00 UTC) on Saturday to post a report of their result for the week. Reports posted outside that window of time won't be included in the summary that I compile for Saturday evening. This group is all about changing patterns of behavior, so it seems reasonable to me to expect those who choose to participate in the weekly weigh-in to honor that time frame for reporting. In addition to reporting your weight change in pounds, more importantly, please be sure to evaluate your behaviors within the context of the MWL 10-Point Checklist, as discussed at the beginning of this thread. I will respond to everyone's reports in a cumulative post on Friday evening and Saturday evening, and the summary for the week will be posted Saturday night.

For more information on why participants are recommended to weigh themselves once a week while in the weight loss phase, check out this excellent and thorough article from Jeff - To Weigh or Not to Weigh

[Expat in NZ]

Mark! So glad to have you back and feeling better. Wildgoose was amazing while you were away. Thanks so much to you BOTH for all you do.

Happy NZ Friday!

Dec 4 - 180.4
Dec 11 - 180.2 (-0.2)
Dec 18 - 177.8 (-2.4)

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. 95%
2. Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals. 100%
3. Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. 100%
4. Eliminate all animal foods. 100%
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods. 100%
6. Eliminate any added oil. 100%
7. Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods. 95%
8. Don't drink your calories. 100%
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. 100%
10. Avoid being sedentary. Always!

Finally lost that bloat and am below my previous low - adherence is amazing!
The one non-compliant thing I ate was a taste of some baked falafel I attempted. It wasn't terrible, but in need of some adjustments. haha


Baking a cake for my daughter's 5th birthday on Monday and I am not worried in the least that I will be tempted. Sweets have lost their power over me

This week I actually avoided rice and stuck to potatoes and oatmeal, which seemed to help. I am eating more than the 2 servings of fruit per day (more like 4) but I think reaching for an apple from my bag when I get hungry while out and about is much better than getting hangry or caving and eating something totally off the rails. I usually go for a small apple and I feel okay with this. I also bring carrots etc when I can so that I cut back on the fruit a bit. That's the part I find the hardest actually - 2 servings of fruit is easy to get through just in my morning oatmeal. I am going to work on backing off the fruit a bit.

I hope everyone has a great holiday, however you celebrate or don't celebrate. We're starting 2021 lighter and healthier! Let's keep it rolling.

[Noella]

Hi Mark,
Yay!! Welcome back!!! I feel relieved and happy to open the MWL discussion thread and see your smile and read your posts again! I REALLY missed you last week! I felt a bit like a fish out of water without your support. I SO appreciate reading, and rereading, every word that you write to me and all of the others. I’m very glad to hear that you are getting stronger every day.

I am concerned and worried about your sudden illness and week of hospitalization. I hope that the pain is manageable and subsides steadily. It’s good to know that you are recovering at home with your family close by. Thank goodness you know about the best anti-inflammatory foods and therapies to restore your strength, health and weight.

I send you my warmest regards and prayers as you continue to get well over the days and weeks ahead.

All the best,
Noella

[PonysPlants]

Mark! I’m so sorry to hear about your hospitalisation and I’m so glad that you’re back home and on the mend. Wildgoose did a great job of babysitting us but it’s lovely to have you back.

Lost 0.8 lbs this week. Feel ok with that. Ate off plan a little as I had a killer headache for a couple of days and ended up just grabbing bread. Even making potatoes seemed like too much to cope with. Ha!

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES
2. Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. YES. It’s just automatic for me now to decide on a starch and base my meal around that.
3. Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. This includes gourmet sugars and salts, too. YES.
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES Easy. Vegan for life
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados,) YES
6. Eliminate any added oil. YES.
7. Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e., bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. NO. Had some bread on a couple of occasions when I just needed to eat and get back to lying in a dark room.
8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES.
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES
10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily. NO. Been a bit tricky to get it in every day but I tried my best!

Thanks Wildgoose for the ideas for the Christmas main, really appreciate it!

And as always, thanks so much to everyone who looks after us around these parts!

Naomi