Birdy Takes Flight

[Birdy]

40 days of being vegan/Day 1 of taking McDougalling seriously (not absolutely perfect today, but a genuine switch in my resolve).

Dechen that is a great site and I bookmarked the page. I think it will help me a lot to find appetizing recipes. Mary McDougall has a lot of good ones too that I need to get on board with!

Jim, I went and watched your Star McDougaller testimonial again and I genuinely appreciate your post from a few days ago in my journal. You're so right that it's time for me to either get with a strict McDougall program or take medication for blood pressure. I'm finally waking up to the reality of my situation and that I am, as you said of yourself, in that category of people who have to do everything in order to see true improvement in my health. I'm going to opt for a committed month of McDougalling. If my bp hasn't come down to a safer level in that time, then I will go on medication. I'm curious whether or not you also had to limit salt in order to get your bp down to a normal range. You said it didn't happen until you'd lost quite a lot of weight. Did you taper off medication gradually? I'm somewhat unclear as to whether I should start the medication now or wait until the McDougall diet has time to work. It sounds like, one, Dr. McDougall takes many people off medication as soon as they come to his programs, and, two, that taking medication can be tricky when one is eating as he prescribes because the bp can drop too low. Seems like the diet is the best option for 3 to 4 weeks first before taking the hydrochlorothiazide. Thanks so much for your clear feedback Jim.

Today's meals:
Breakfast: leftover 1/4 of a vegetable tortilla from dinner out last night; tea with tsp. sugar; slice of fresh multigrain bread
Lunch: two rice wraps filled with grated vegetables with 2 Tblsp. peanut sauce*
Snack: navel orange; black tea w/tsp. sugar
Dinner: modified version of Green Cabbage Soup from FatFreeVegan website linked by Dechen (thanks!). I'm going to make a modified version only because I have cabbage but not all the other ingredients and do not have several hours to prepare the soup today.

Have a great weekend everyone!

[f1jim]

I didn't stop taking my BP meds till I had almost a year of good BP. Even then I had to insist to my doctors I was fine with daily charting. Same with cholesterol. I had to have many good blood workups showing consistent low TC before they would start chopping the meds and even now my cardiologist thinks it's a bit crazy not to take them for "insurance" purposes. But my BP remained above 120 over 80 till my weight got down to around 160(Down from around 213). I think weight might hinder many people, who knows. Just keep eating the right food and I am sure this will take care of itself.
f1jim

[sksamboots]

Birdy,

Sounds like a good plan. I also want to add that exercise might be important. I know it varies from case to case but my husband will sometimes suffer from high blood pressure and as long as he exercises he can keep it in the normal range. Maybe this might be true for you?

[Dechen]

She has some awesome recipes and you can always alter them to your liking. I have made her Beetroot & Chocolate cake for today, my boy's 13th birthday. So I will have a piece, too. I reduced the sugar though. I think it is plenty sweet with the regal icing I put on top.
I hope you will keep going and get off your meds.

[Birdy]

Jim, sksamboots and Dechen thanks for your replies. Jim, I'm going to give it one more month of strict McDougalling and, if the bp doesn't come down more to a safer level, will take the bp medication. I think you're totally right about weight being a big part of bp problems. My natural weight is about 120 which is what I weighed most of my adult life (at 5'6" and very small bone structure). Sksamboots, you're right about the exericse and I'm working on it, if falteringly. I've been going to yoga but feel really ho hum about it. I know that walking is the exercise I most love so that's a no brainer. But I also enjoy strength training and have free weights to do the Strong Women program at home. Just need to get going with that. So today, I'm resolve to dig out those dumbbells and use them. Dechen thanks again for the fatfree recipes link.

Today is 6 weeks of being vegan!

I'm feeling pretty good. Energy is good. Mood's good. I feel steady.

Lost two pounds this week which is the most I've lost in a week since starting this change. And am at the lowest I've weighed in a decade. I'm looking forward to the next little achievement of weighing in the 140 range again. Hoping the bp comes down along with the weight. Am dedicating myself to being a real McDougaller without added oils or higher fat plant foods.

I watched the documentary Food Matters last night. It's really interesting and makes a strong case for taking vitamins which I know Dr. McDougall does not recommend except for B-12. Have you seen it? Food for thought.......

Gotta get going. Wishing you all a lovely day!

[Birdy]

I'm starting to lose track of the days being vegan. Yesterday marked 7 weeks of being vegan, but I was having trouble with logging into the discussion board. Thank you Dr. McDougall for solving the problem!

I'm feeling discouraged still. My health markers haven't improved significantly in almost two months of being vegan. It seems like being vegan would have made more of a difference. It's kind of puzzling to me. Jim Brown is certainly correct that following McDougall 100% is what it takes for some of us to regain health, but I still would have expected to lose more than 4 to 6 pounds and for my blood pressure to have improved on a vegan diet, having reduced sugar and salt tremendously, switched from coffee to tea, drinking almost no alcohol, and getting more exercise (although still not enough). Forgive me if this sounds like I'm whining. I sorta am.

I'm trying to figure out how to give up the oil for sauteing (how do you spell that?) and the plant foods with higher fat. My family has done well with my change to a vegan diet. My husband just eats meat and fish whenever he eats out, and our youngest child who is 15 either eats what I'm eating or adds cheese and/or meat to her meal. I thought she might go veg with me, but no. I do feel the slight separation that eating differently creates between me and them. Anyway, I'm trying to figure out how I can make another significant change by eliminating fats. I don't have the desire to eat the cheese or meat that are in our frig., but nuts, avocados and tofu do call my name. If I have these foods for my family, it's very hard for me to resist eating these foods. At the same time, I want to make tasty meals that they like and that includes foods I should stop eating. It's a conundrum. Oh and also, I thought giving up dairy would help rid me of chronic congestion which it did seem to do initially, but that must have been coincidence because I'm just as stuffed up as ever. It may be wheat is causing this, so I also need to eliminate that. How does one eat such a restricted diet? I'm reminded of Dean Ornish's often told joke about whether eating this way makes you live longer, or just makes it feel like longer.

It's really cold here this week, but warm compared to weather those of you have in the mid-west or northeast. Spring is coming! I haven't started gardening yet because of the cold and the ground is so wet still. I walked for an hour on Sunday and am going for another long walk today. Tomorrow I'll be walking at the mall with my daughter which is really not exercise but better than sitting.

Breakfast today: Oatmeal with cranberries; coffee
Lunch: leftover potato salad* (made w/vegannaise) with vegetables
Snack: fruit
Dinner: linguine with lemon tempeh; green salad

P.S. I just reread Dr. McDougall's article, "The Fat Vegan" and I think I'll print it for myself as a reminder of where I'm going wrong, but also as a reminder of what a good choice it is to be vegan. All I need is just a little more shifting to a truly starch based diet.....

[Dechen]

Hey Birdy, I am sure nobody thinks that you are whining.
To change to a vegan diet is a big change and then the leaving out of the fatty bits, aka avocados, nuts & olives. PLUS wheat may be a problem for you ... You are entitled to vent. Yet, like with most things it just takes getting used to. It is a case of looking at the glass as half full rather than half empty.
I think it is human nature to freak at the things we can't have instead of looking at all the other things we still can have.
Rome wasn't built in a day and your health markers may take a little time to show a positive impact from the McD way of living. But hang in there and take the long view. Every step you take in the right direction is a step toward health. All your dietary challenges are great opportunities for positive change and personal development.
Adversity, albeit the dietary kind, can bring out hidden strengths you never thought you had. I wish you all the very best for your quest.
Stay strong! You can do it!!!

[janluvs2heel]

Hey Birdy,
You know, you have done amazing & I certainly dont think that you are whining, but the thing is that to really lose the weight, you have to learn how to "fry" without oil. It isn't that hard. And the food really tastes pretty good. For a long time, I used the cooking spray with my hash browns but not anymore & they taste better & are super crispy.
The other things like the Avocado, nuts, olives, well, it is easy to overeat on them, especially nuts & black olives, I love them. And olives set me off to eat other stuff that isn't any good. So I avoid olives & nuts like the plague. When you are at your goal weight you can probably add them back a few times a week, a small serving if you still want to. But until then, just dont eat them & dont fall into the mindset of poor little me. I tell myself every day that I am lucky to be eating this way. I dont have heartburn, I am losing weight, I have so much more energy. I was lucky, I didn't have a lot of health problems, but I could have. I do think this is easier to do cold turkey than easing into it, but everybody does things in their own way. Hang in there.
Jan

[Birdy]

Dechen and Jan, thank you both for the good advice and encouragement. I know it's true that being vegan is a big change. For years I couldn't manage to make even that change and thought, as I do now about giving up the fats, that I just couldn't do it. Well, I have managed the change and am feeling great about being vegan. So, changing to the very low fat version is just another step and as you said, Jan, perfectly doable. I'm definitely one of the super ease-into-it people since I've been at making these changes for years!

We woke up to about 3" of snow here this morning. It's the heaviest snow this late in the year that I recall seeing in more than 25 years living in the Puget Sound area. Beautiful! Love the snow.

I ended up taking my youngest daughter to the mall yesterday because of the forecast of snow for today. Glad we went because it wouldn't work today. So this morning I get to go for a walk in the snow. Speaking of which, if you haven't already seen it, check out the article/video of a 90 something year old woman runner on Huffington Post. It's wonderful.

Breakfast: Buckwheat pancakes with blueberries; coffee
Lunch: Quinoa salad made with vegies; leftover collard greens
Snack: fruit
Dinner: Wild rice, tempeh, vegetables

Also, one silly thing I figured out is that, in the past two weeks, my weight was fluctuating between 153 and 151 pounds. It was weird. Then yesterday I realized that one particular nightgown I wear weighs about 1.5 pounds! It was the nightgown causing the fluctuation. Who would guess a nightgown weighs that much?

At the mall yesterday I bought a copy of a book by vegan nutritionists Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina titled Becoming Raw. It's very informative and will take me quite a while to read, but the general take home message I get from it is to eat a lot more raw vegetables and salads. I'm not interested in being a raw foodist, but the nutritional information is fascinating.

Have a great day where ever you are....

[Anna Green]

Hey, Birdy! Congrats on the being vegan! Looks like you are eating a lot of whole foods as well. You are definitely headed in the good direction.

Get nekkid girl, when you weigh.

Glad to see you doing well.

[bunsofaluminum]

Hey Birdy

I just read through the last few pages of your journal, and when I read about your nighty gown, I LOL'ed hee hee hee.

It's strange that your health markers haven't changed much after such a long time being true to vegan eating, but IMO, it is probably the high fat foods that are keeping you from losing weight and seeing your BP drop. Eating a few walnuts every evening, along with a pistachio binge one evening, completely stopped my weight loss, over the holidays.

I'm excited to see what happens as you stick to a stricter McD plan...

keep it up, girl. You're DOING it! yah!

[Birdy]

Just erased another post. I'm technologically hopeless.

Hey Anna and Buns! Hope all's well with both of you. Anna I miss your posts!

Today is 2 months of being vegan. BUT, this morning I had a whole wheat croissant and a cup of coffee with creamer at a bakery (neither of which are vegan or low fat) After being 100% vegan all this time, I'm not sure why I did that?

Buns, you're right about the high fat plant food/oils. I'm not losing weight or bringing down the bp because, one, I'm taking in too many calories (from fats) and, two, I'm not exercising enough. I started two months ago with the express plan of getting the vegan thing down before I tried to also go low fat. When I stop to think about it, I realize I could have lost probably between 10 and 15 pounds by now, instead of only 5. And the bp would probably have come down more. SO...the thing is how to get myself to eat a la McDougall? Last night I made a rice and lentil casserole from Dean Ornish's cookbook that had no added fat. It tasted terrible to me. I know that it takes time for one's taste buds to change. Also, soups, salads and some whole grains taste good to me without the fat. Pasta doesn't. Bread is a tricky food because I overeat it. Ok, enough about the food. I know what I have to do.

I did at least get the weights out this weekend and get started with strength training. Went for a little walk around town doing errands in the freezing cold rain this afternoon too.

The first article in Dr. McDougall's February newsletter about world hunger is one of the best he's ever written. I so appreciate his newsletters!

[Dechen]

Well, Congratulations on the 2 months vegan.
So, you slipped up and you knew it. At least you are not in denial about it. So that is a positive right there AND you have identified where you need to make some more changes. Another positive thing. AND you up-ed your activity level!

Methinks, you are doing good!

Bread, I can identify there. I will be honest with you, I don't eat it because I can quite easily eat a whole loaf of bread, especially when I have been baking for my family. Today I made some banana bread (contains 1 egg), and banana ice cream (vegan) to go with it. I chose a bread recipe with egg so I won't even be tempted to have a slice.
I know, that is desperate tactics!

[Birdy]

Hi Dechen,
Yeah, I definitely messed up, but it was a small and contained mess up. And I really didn't want to post that it had happened, but I know full disclosure with oneself is the only way to go.

Me thinks you're doing well also! Look at you go with your weight loss.

Today I had
for breakfast: leftover vegan pizza & one cup coffee w/soy creamer & tsp. sugar
for lunch: a medium sized bowl of brown rice with about 1/4 cup of roasted vegetable soup on top, and a banana
snack: black tea
dinner: Mary McDougall's potato & kale soup with diced marinated tofu added

Exercise: walk 30 minutes; strength train

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

[StarchBeet]

Hi Birdy. I've read the last few pages here and it seems like the topic I was just reading might be helpful to you too. I'm trying to think more about the "calorie density" of the food you eat. If you eat more of the less calorie rich you'll be getting closer to where you are aiming.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Weight-Loss-thr ... Sparseness

Oil is the most calorically dense food on the planet at 4000 calories per pound. Green and yellow vegetables (kale, lettuce, spinach, broccoli, carrots, summer squash, etc.) comprise the least calorically dense group of foods there is, averaging around 100 calories per pound. That's a ratio of 40:1. Oil is 40 times as calorically concentrated as vegetables.

There is a lot more on that link regarding what will keep you happy but help you drop off weight.
I hope things seem more clear for you.

-Julie