Moderators: JeffN, f1jim, carolve, Heather McDougall
JeffN wrote:However, vegetables would be a better choice and/or a meal of 50% starch and 50% vegetables (and/or fruit) by volume. A meal of 50% starch and 50% vegetables by volume would have a very low calorie density. So, a bowl of 50% oatmeal and 50% berries by volume or a bowl of 50% rice and 50% veggies by volume may be the better choice. You get the starch to help satisfy you and the fruit and/or veggies to help lower the calorie density.
My feelings exactly!!Belana wrote:Eating this way is definitely going to be lifelong for me. I just don't feel good if I'm not eating like this.
Athletically, it does benefit me to eat this way.
Could a bedtime check-in with the MWL 10-Point Checklist serve the same motivating purpose for avoiding "getting lazy?"JeffN wrote:If you are trying to lose weight, I suggest that you weigh yourself once a week.
. . .
The reason that I suggest weighing yourself once a week (and not more often) if you are trying to lose weight is there are many things that can contribute to daily weight fluctuations, including changes in glycogen, water, fiber, stools and salt. Seeing those fluctuations when they go up can be discouraging. If you are someone who wants to weigh yourself every day, don’t focus on the daily weight number. Use a rolling average, which will help smooth out any daily fluctuations.
That realization is invaluable! And more practice is exactly the correct prescription. If you want to make things really easy on yourself, would it be impossible to entirely remove those troublesome, tempting sweets from your environment?Lakegirl wrote:The good thing is, I realized I just have to have my meals regularly, and just as prescribed. Those meals really are filling, delicious....and I don't give in when I've had a decent size 50/50 plate. I know this in my head, but it is not yet in my bod, and not automatic. In both cases I had not had enough of "my" food. OK. more practice needed!
That's how it is supposed to work! The no-salt added beans are the better choice, whether the difference is noticeable to the palate or not. Just FYI, on the off chance that you don't know already, butter beans are the same as lima beans, so you might often find them labelled that way in stores as well. I've usually been able to find dried lima beans in the average grocery with the other dried pulses, which is another option (requires cooking them, of course; I use my Instant Pot for that).Lakegirl wrote:I'm glad to post this week. It's clear what I need to do to do better next week!
JeffN wrote:Just a reminder, there is only one requirement to join this thread, and that is that you follow the McDougall Maximum Weight Loss program as defined by the two links below.
MWL Guidelines
MWL guidelines
10 Point Checklist
MWL 10-Point Checklist
JeffN wrote:We know that not every day will be perfect but planning to not eat or to eat off plan is not part of the MWL program.
To reiterate, we don't expect perfection, because making these changes in behavior is extremely difficult; the direction of participation for the group is important - are you willing to make an honest attempt to follow the guidelines as intended, and keep trying to work toward improvements when you are struggling? If so, you are in the right place, no matter what your starting point is, and how much (or little) success you may feel you're having at the moment. Intentionally planning NOT to follow the guidelines, or not attempting to make changes when appropriate, however, doesn't serve the individual participant well, nor is it good for the group as a whole.JeffN wrote:We only ask you do your best, not perfection.
I think people tend to underestimate how much that toxic food environment is stacked against all of us. The convenience stores, groceries and restaurants are replete with calorie rich, ultra-processed, unhealthy "foods," supported by an unceasing (and increasingly targeted) advertising machine. Untold dollars and resources are expended devising and presenting more and more insidious "food traps" to ensnare us. No wonder it's a struggle! The problem isn't you! As Dr. McDougall would say, "It's the food!" Taking all that into account, it seems essential that we stack the deck in our favor. The people who are able to successfully practice this WOE long-term, the people who make adherence "look easy" have actually invested enormous amounts of time and effort to shift the balance to be as much in their favor as possible. They have a plan for how to succeed, tested by trial and error, time and effort. To paraphrase Jeff, "things may not always turn out the way we planned, but we increase our odds of success by planning to succeed." If we take it as a given that we can't be successful, or don't try, we are planning to fail. This lifestyle only starts to feel "easy" after all that work has been put into making it so. Don't fault yourself when this is hard, but don't fool yourself into thinking it will ever get easy without putting in A GREAT DEAL of work.JeffN wrote:As Dr Lisle says, part of the problem is that when in the pleasure trap, doing the wrong thing feels so good and doing the right thing doesn't feel good." Even when one finds success, exposure to the Pleasure Trap can very easily put someone right back there.
We live in a very toxic food environment where there is very little social and environmental support for what we do. This is not always easy for everyone to deal successfully with.
JeffN wrote:People struggle to achieve their goals and when they take a close look at their diet, they see, there are too many foods that may be allowed but not ideal.
That is why many can't find success till they go on the MWL program (or some other stricter version of the program). The MWL is pretty black and white about what is allowed. There are no exceptions to it either. The regular program has a lot of gray area. And, for many, the little becomes a lot.
I'm not saying one particular path is right or wrong, but rather it will be most productive to decide what is attainable for you at present, and work assiduously toward achieving the changes that are appropriate.JeffN wrote:Know thyself.
As this study shows, for many of us, it is that occasional lapse on a "forbidden food" that is going to start the downward spiral.
Looking at the full study, it was forbidden foods, usually consumed at home, usually in the evening, usually on the weekend. So, to be successful, we have to keep our home and our environment a safe place and to avoid feeling deprived, which we can do by eating when we are hungry until we are comfortably full of the approved foods.
As the old saying goes, "out of sight, out of mind." For many of us it is also, "in the house, in the mouth."
JeffN wrote:I had 3 Q&A Sessions and this topic came up in each one, especially in the last one. I reviewed most of the things in this thread with the group but they still wanted to know what were the 3 most important things I recommended for their best chance at success.
Here they are...
For the first 6 months to a year....
1) Simplicity
Keep this as simple as possible and resist every influence to make this complicated. You don't need 5 versions of oatmeal, and 15 dinners, and fancy pots, pans, utensils, etc. Just use what you already have and keep it simple. Oats, fruit, rice, beans, veggies. They dont have to be organic, Non GMO, fair traded, imported, etc. Eat sweet potatoes, not imported Japanese Satsumas. They can be fresh, frozen, canned, etc, whichever makes it easiest. You just need oatmeal, brown rice (Starch), beans and a few veggies and fruits you like.
2) Focus
First, on this program
You invested a huge amount of money, time, effort and energy in Dr McDougall, his program and his staff. Trust your decision and the process. For the next 6 months to a year, if you have a question, ask Dr McDougall, Mary, Doug, Alec or me. We are all accessible. If you need a recipe, Mary has about 4000, if you have a question, most of them are answered in the forum or our hot topics. If you need reading material for support, we have a dozen books, 100's of newsletter and articles and videos going back about 30 years. Read the Hot Topics and this website and my forum and the Education material at the website and the FAQ here in my forum. When done, re-read them. If you need, email us, we are all responsive.
It is not that others WFPB Health Professionals are wrong, it is just that there are some slight differences between them all and you are just going to get confused. I would tell you the same thing if you picked one of the others but you are all here and made this choice. And, there are many WFPB "experts" that have little to no clinical and patient experience but you may not be able to know that about them. You are spending this week with a bona fide, licensed, credentialed professional team that each has over 25 years of direct clinical experience helping people. Get the most out of your investment.
Second, on yourself.
Until you have put the time in over the next few months and understood the program and been able to achieve and maintain your own success, keep the focus and attention on yourself. Do not worry about telling your spouse, your parents, your daughter in law, your cousins, your neighbor, your hairdresser, the local school, your church group, the food industry, the USDA, the FDA, the FTC, your doctor, the neighbors kid, etc etc or anyone else about the program or trying to get them to do it. Keep the focus on yourself, understanding and implementing the program and getting yourself well. We are not asking you to become a evangelist or preacher of this way of life or to try and convert anyone. We are only trying to help you take care of yourself.
This is not selfish, this is self nurturing and right now, you need all your focus and attention on you.
3) Avoid the vegan trap
Fully explained in this thread...
When Vegan is not Enough
As predicted, vegan is now a trend, and while this is a good thing for the animals and possibly the environment, for most of us, this is bad news as most of the vegan food in grocery stores and restaurants is not healthy. The Pleasure Trap appeal of this food is very very strong and hard to resist.
However, no one has ever come to the 10-Day program to save the animals or save the environment. They made the huge investment of time, money, energy and effort for one (and only one) main reason, their health is suffering. And, almost always, this is a major health issue and not a minor one. They come to my classes with the primary goal of learning how to address, treat and reverse their health issue through diet and lifestyle, not to be a vegan.
Don't mix them up.
It should not require Holmesian levels of attention to know when you are full. Do you feel uncomfortable? Are you stuffed? If you overshoot the mark, take note and do your best to slightly adjust next time, but don't spend energy fretting and beating yourself up over that - if you stuffed yourself on MWL suitable foods, the calorie density was low and it seems unlikely that you will be continuously stuffing yourself at each meal, each day, on an ongoing basis. Don't overvalue the importance of these episodes, or think you need to perfectly manage hunger cues, as compared to the impact from including troublesome foods in your menu or planning not to adhere on a consistent (or occasional) basis. If you are over consuming problematic foods, the problem isn't your appetite, it's the food, and you can direct your efforts accordingly.JeffN wrote:When hungry (regardless of whether you may think it is true hunger, appetite, or something else) just eat. Eat of the recommended foods as outlined in the 10 point checklist.
Over time, it will work itself out.
Mark Cooper wrote:
Zoey - Woo-hoo! Pound-a-week club! It is delightful you're feeling that your efforts are paying off, succeeding at something one has deemed important is always a proud moment. 9/10 "tuned in," with one target for that "laser focus." Do you have a strategy for stopping drinking those calories?
Mark Cooper wrote:Zoey - Maybe a splash of lemon or lime, or a slice or two of either, might work as a transition, for flavoring the sparkling water?
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