Discussion Board

I wrote this as part of another thread and because of how important it is to understanding how to keep this program simple and easy, I wanted to repost it here again, so it could stand on its own.

Remember, Keep It Simple!

In Health
Jeff



Let me expound on this.

If you follow a starch based diet with the addition of fruit and green and yellow veggies at each meal, and consume enough to maintain your healthy weight then your day "may" look something "generically" like this...

(using averages for calories and serving sizes)

Breakfast:
Intact Whole Grains (2 cups) 320 calories
Fresh Fruit (1 cup) 120 calories

Lunch
Starchy Vegetable (2 cups) 320 calories
Legumes (1/2 cup) 120 calories
Veggies (2 cups of salad, soup and/or steamed veggies) 100 calories
Fruit (1 serving) 60 calories

Dinner
Starchy Vegetable (2 cups) 320 calories
Legumes (1/2 cup) 120 calories
Veggies (2 cups of salad, soup and/or steamed veggies) 100 calories
Fruit (1 serving) 60 calories


That's 12 servings of Starchy Veggies/Whole Grains and 960 calories
That's 2 servings of Legumes and 240 calories
That's 8 servings of veggies and 200 calories
That's 4 servings of fruit and 240 calories

that's 12 servings of fruits and veggies but only 1640 calories.

Of course, you could adjust the fruits, veggies, starchy veggies, etc up or down somewhat to fit your own preference and caloric needs, but the end results would be fairly similar.

And for those who want, add in a serving of nuts/seeds or avocado and that's another 175 calories and you are at ~1800 calories.

Not bad! And simple and easy.

BTW, those are also some fairly large sized and filling meals.

In Health
Jeff

PS when neighbors, friends and families ask me how many servings of fresh fruits veggies, starchy veggies, intact whole grains and legumes they should eat or feed to their children, my answer is always the same ...

...as much as you can.

Thank you. I will keep this on file. Just what I needed.

kimba

Thanks for this Jeff. I'm going to print it out and tape it to my cupboard door. Its going to be a huge help. I tend to over think everything so from now on K*I*S is my new motto. (keep it simple)

This reminded me of a story I just read:
Complex Weight-Loss Plans Erode Dieters' Resolve
http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20100120/hl ... ersresolve
Mata suggested that people considering going on a diet should look at a number of diet plans and consider how many rules a plan has and how many things a dieter needs to keep in mind while using the plan.

I don't think it gets much simpler than Jeff's plan!

That is actually the study that inspired me to repost this by itself!

You can see my discussion of it at my last post in this thread here..

viewtopic.php?t=8179

In Health
Jeff

Sometimes it seems that the most complex task is keeping this program simple. Many of the questions Jeff gets deal with the minutiae of nutrition. The great fact is that this program is so simple it is almost unbelievable.

Eat whole plant foods, avoid added oils or fats, avoid excess sugar and salt, control weight by adjusting the amount of green and yellow vegetables that you combine with your whole starches. Take some B12. That is about it.

You don't have to be a rocket scientist at all to succeed on this plan. I agree, the simpler the better. Who needs more complexity in life?

I have a suggestion for a sticky post at the top of this forum. I think it would be helpful if Jeff summarized his general recommendations in a simple and concise statement. I realize that this would be a general recommendation, and that some people would need some tweaking. But unless I have missed it, I am unaware of such a simple and concise statement that might be available for people new to the plan, or those that a confused by some of the complex issues discussed in this forum and board.

I agree.

The program is simple.

However, it seems that for many, keeping it so, seems to be extremely complex.



I have always refrained from making such recommendations because;

1) the problem that was discussed in detail in the thread on Nasoya mayonnaise and how some (if not many) people (mis)interpret such a set of general recommendations and the purpose of them.

2) They may not really apply to any one person specifically as we are all individuals and will need it tweaked based on some many things, not only the current health situation, but also their personal preferences, tastes, lifestyle, allergies, etc.

However, this one seems fairly good...



Except I might add in the following edits...

"Eat whole plant foods, base the majority of your caloric intake on unrefined/unprocessed starches, avoid animal products, added oils and/or fats, limit high fat plant foods (nuts, seeds, avocados), avoid excess sugar and salt, and control weight by adjusting the amount of green and yellow vegetables that you combine with your whole starches. Ensure regular and adequate sunshine and if vegan, take some B12 and maintain a moderately active lifestyle. That is about it."


In Health
Jeff

In my opinion, I think some (many?) people like to make things complicated--maybe it makes them feel like they're accomplishing more.

I like to make things complicated sometimes.

I have, over time, come to realize that I can make this program as complicated as I like. And it would do me no good.

I've done a "Mary's Mini" a couple of times and it has been an eye opening experience. A starch and veggies! That's it. So simple!

My parents grew up during the Depression. My Mom was a farm girl (I'm a city kid, however). The combination of the Depression and growing up on a farm for my Mom affected the amount of food in the house. She made BIG meals. Basically, growing up was lots of rich food - Meat, potatoes, veggies (with butter) and dessert.

Overcoming the desire to make huge meals has been an issue for me. You should see what I've made on prior Thanksgivings - its frighting! It was like a weird challenge with myself to see how much I could make. One pie each? That works, right? NOT!

Since starting to really follow the plan back in October, I keep having serious talks with myself sometimes. I only need a starch and some veggies. And, heck just a 'tater itself makes a lovely meal.

A couple nights ago, I made hash browns and salad (chopped lettuce). I felt kind of bad, like I didn't make a "real meal". I asked hubby about it, and he said no, it was okay.

I can see how the McDougall plan can be made difficult! There is a lot of letting go involved. Letting go of ingrained habits and ideas of what should be on the dinner table.

The program is simple. Everything you need is in your produce isle at the grocery store. (Imagine how small stores would be if people only shopped the produce isle?)

It does take time to get used to. And I have had to change a lot of my ideas on food. That's something that I continue to work on.

Oooo, I like this:



So simple.

Connie

My own thought is that many people refuse to believe the simplicity of the program as a form of denial. If it were really that simple, they would have no reason not to do it, and there is something inside of us that does not want to admit that we could be in so much control of our own health, because that would mean we had to change.

Re the general principles, I think that just because they could be miscontrued, or would not apply 100% to everybody should not prevent them from being easily available. A general working description, with proper qualifications, would be enormously useful.

Without a working set of general principles, many people (including almost everybody who knows me) confuse the program with veganism. Junk food vegan diet, here we come.

Many people come here with the same confusion, and many fail because they don't even have a proper set of general principles in mind. Some people may need fine tuning, but this definition of general principles would be useful IMO.

Of course, the guidelines could be misconstrued or misapplied. But, as always in life, the fact that perfection is unattainable should not stop us from doing the best we can.

Yes, I was actually thinking about homeschooling when I wrote that!

Fair enough.

Let me think about it and work on some rough guidelines.

In health
Jeff

Since Pollan's book In Defense of Food was selected for "Silicon Valley Reads" and consequently by book club, I rephrased his subtitle to explain to my colleagues my approach:

Eat FOOD
ONLY plants
As MUCH as you want

It works for me, but my colleague the South Beacher still has a blank stare.

I love to cook and try not to make it too complicated by playing around with lots of spices. It is fun and I am not tempted to make anything we shouldn't eat and it satisfies my need to make a nice meal. Added advantage is, that spices are really good for us

I love this. It clarifies a lot for me. Keeping it simple had to come only after I could justify putting the starch at the center of the meal. It took/is taking reading everything I could to believe it was the healthiest way to go and that I would get enough nutrition. Meantime I steered the boat in that direction, had a few falls, and got back on the horse. (Sorry for the mixed metafores) Anyway, it isn't bc I was resistant or in denial, or anything like that. For me, it was that I have tried so many things and most recently had been raw. I was afraid to let go of some of those beliefs, even tho I was not thriving. Go figure. Just to say that it's hard to say what each person is going through. That's why this forum is so good. It's really been important for me to see what other people are doing. It has helped to see your posts that summarize the simplicity of the diet. It is quickly getting simpler and I finally get the starch as the center of the meal and that I'm getting enough nutrition (for the most part.) Thanks for that Jeff. It really has made a difference. Lynn