APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Share your McDougall successes here in order to inspire others.

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Re: APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Postby Suey51 » Fri May 21, 2021 9:53 am

Hello everyone,

Today I started a 10 day MWL experiment. My weight has been a couple of pounds above goal for a few weeks so I'd like to lose those and improve my overall compliance. It's four years this month since I first tried an MWL experiment, weighing 24 pounds more than I do today! It was useful to recap on the MWL guidelines and 10 point checklist which Jeff Novick shared in the MWL Weigh In thread recently. I've restarted some of the habits (having pre-prepared raw veggies in the fridge) that I've neglected and have the fridge well-stocked with cooked starches, fruit and non-starchy veggies so I can prepare meals quickly. I'm also paying more attention to whether I actually feel hungry and trying to eat more slowly.

This week I tried a McDougall recipe for Baked Millet. We don't buy tomato juice so I used some frozen tomatoes from last year's crop, reduced in a saucepan and then blended them. I've not cooked with millet very much so it was a pleasant surprise to learn how tasty this recipe as! The oven was already on to cook some baked potatoes so this went in at the same time. Not only saving electricity but giving us a backup starch option if we didn't like the millet ;-) As it was so good, we had both at the same meal, with some spring greens. It makes a pleasant change from our usual starches and there was plenty leftover for the next few days.

What have other people been eating this week? Have you tried any new recipes?

I loved the video of Chef AJ's surprise birthday tribute for Dr McDougall. Great to see all the contributors and to hear their respect and love for Dr McDougall. I'm now watching Dr McDougall's conversation with Nathan Pritikin which was mentioned and is fascinating.

Best wishes xx
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Re: APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Postby Ejeff » Fri May 28, 2021 6:53 am

Sue, good for you doing the MWL experiment, I will be interested in your results. The scale has also been up for me, currently 3 pounds over my “maximum”. I should also do a MWL, but I can’t quite get my head around committing yet. I have been trying to focus on eating only until full which does help.

I haven’t tried any new recipes this week, but thanks for the link to the millet I am going to make it today. We have a family birthday next week so I will be trying a new butternut squash risotto and a lemon blueberry cake.

We had a nice few days near the mountains camping with the kids. Did some hiking and biking and the weather was perfect. Ate some junk food with oil, and it sure is true...takes effort to get out of that pleasure trap. For me I find cold turkey is the best, just get back to simple starches and veggies as quick as I can.

Have a good week!

Erin
"The more disciplined your environment is, the less disciplined you need to be. Don't swim upstream."
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Re: APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Postby Suey51 » Sat May 29, 2021 1:14 am

Thanks Erin. Your camping trip sounds delightful! Re: Pleasure Trap. It does take effort doesn't it :eek: Looks like you have a good strategy for escaping. Your birthday party recipes sound yummy!

Yes I agree with you on only eating till you're full. It took me a while to get around to doing the MWL Experiment, but other strategies didn't seem to be working :? Its been an interesting 8 days so far :-D My 7 day average weight is 1.5 pounds down so I'm within half a pound of goal weight :-D Some of that is likely to be water weight as my salt consumption has reduced. I'll do a longer write-up as a separate post.

Made the baked millet again this week, although it wasn't planned! Defrosted an unlabelled tub that we thought was soup and turned out to be pureed homegrown tomatoes :lol: My husband had a bowl of them with some boiled new potatoes and chilii flakes, I used the rest for the baked millet recipe. Made a pumpkin chilli yesterday which was quick to cook and very tasty.

My husband watched a TV programme on ultra processed foods called What We Feed Our Kids this week. He found it very interesting and has decided to cut some of the highly processed foods that have crept back into his diet over the past year. He even watched it right to the end which is unheard of, as he is a dedicated channel hopper! The presenter switched to a diet of 80% ultra processed foods for a month and encountered various health problems -poor sleep, heart burn, unhappy feelings, anxiety, sluggishness, constipation and piles. He also had a brain scan which showed that the areas responsible for reward had linked up with the areas that drive repetitive, automatic behaviour. Probably not a surprise to those of us familiar with Dr Lisle's work!

have a good week, Sue x
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Re: APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Postby CindyD » Mon May 31, 2021 9:00 am

Hello! I think this must be the April-May-(and maybe June?) Maintenance Thread? I would like to join, if this is the right place to do that. I was doing MWL through the end of May, but because I'm in a normal weight range (142-144ish), and have remained so for about three months, and I would like to experimentally add tofu (partly because I just started weight training), for a month and see how it goes, and because it's still nice to check in with like-minded folks, here I am.

I don't know if I have a goal weight. My new trainer suggested 145 which will hopefully mean a bit less fat and a bit more muscle than I am currently carrying. I am about 5' 8.5" (yes I have to include the extra half inch. I always thought I was 5'9" but no!) I am 52.

I would also like to use this space to confess that I did my first every vegan baking a few days ago (banana bread with chocolate chips, no oil), for the first social gathering in 18+ months. I ate the entire tester loaf. Also holy cow it was so easy and delicious! I worried I would have to futz around with a "flax egg" but all I had to do was add ground flax to the mix. Anyway, I'm mostly sticking to the MWL guidelines but with some Starch Solution approved detours.
(the recipe: https://shaneandsimple.com/best-vegan-banana-bread-recipe/, recommended!)
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Re: APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Postby Suey51 » Tue Jun 01, 2021 1:35 am

Hello CindyD and welcome! Yes, you've come to the right place. We usually have one thread per month so we'll set up a new one for June. Check-in is Friday but feel free to post here whenever you like. Many congrats on getting to a normal weight range and I look forward to hearing how the tofu experiment and weight training go for you :)

Well done on your first vegan baking! That recipe looks great - like you say, easy and delicious sounding! I enjoy baking but tend to eat more than I plan to so haven't done any for a few weeks! :eek:

Best wishes, Sue x
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Re: APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Postby Ejeff » Wed Jun 02, 2021 8:31 am

Hi CindyD, nice to have you on the thread. I have been doing some weight training also. I’m 58. I’ve recently been adding more beans and some tofu to my diet as I don’t think I’m getting enough calories generally. One thing I find is beans sure are filling. Good luck in your weight training program, I will be interested in hearing your progress.

Sue, that’s so great your husband is very focused on health improvements also. It’s nice to be able to chat about it and work together in achieving your best health. And great you are already seeing some results on your MWL experiment. I did make the baked millet, super easy and tasty.

Erin
"The more disciplined your environment is, the less disciplined you need to be. Don't swim upstream."
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Re: APRIL 2021 Maintenance Thread

Postby Suey51 » Wed Jun 02, 2021 10:46 am

Thanks Erin :) Glad you enjoyed the baked millet. I made it for a 3rd time today as there was some leftover passata lurking in the fridge!

The June thread is now up!
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