Attention Indiana McDougallers

[Spiral]

Do you live in Indiana?

Well, two of us, Lyndzie and I are thinking about starting a Meetup group devoted to the Forks Over Knives - Starch Solution way of eating.

I met Lyndzie yesterday and it was the 1st time I have ever met anyone in person who is following this way of eating. Lyndzie works at Whole Foods and she has been meeting people who check out groceries with zero meat, eggs and diary but lots of whole fruits and vegetables and has been discovering some have restored their health with this way of eating.

Would you be interested in joining our Meetup group? It is likely to be called Indianapolis Forks Over Knives Meetup.

There is already an Indianapolis Veggie Meetup that is not focused on a specific type of plant based diet. That group often meets at restaurants that can make things challenging for those, like us, who avoid vegetable oils and excessive sodium in our food.

Please comment on this thread or send a PM to myself or Lyndzie if you are interested.

If you don't live in the Indianapolis Metro Area but live "close" to Metro-Indy, we might be able to meetup with you too. Perhaps a meeting on a weekend when people would have the time to drive a few hours to meet could accommodate all of us.

I am going to attend the Indianapolis Veggie Meetup event at Three Carrots this Friday because I believe several of that group's members are interested in pursuing veganism from a health perspective. However, Lyndzie has warned me that the menu, though entirely vegan, is not necessarily McDougall friendly. So, I might eat my home cookin' before I go.

Peace.

[Branson]

Hey Spiral,

I'm moving to Valparaiso this summer.

[dynodan62]

I live on the line between Valpo & Indy, but it's still a 2 hr. drive. Northwest Indy (outskirts locations especially) not out of the question though.

[Spiral]

Branson and dynodan62,

We will keep you both in mind as we move forward with developing this group.

I also think that the Detroit metro area has a successful healthy plant-based group. That is more towards your neck of the woods, but regional events sound pretty cool too.

Ah, when will my enthusiasm dissipate?

[Dougalling]

Hi

You could start a group and invite people to come learn how Stachivoring is good for the heart, for weight loss, for diabetes.
Just a basic introduction.
You could end up with a group of newbies.

[dynodan62]

Just joined a 'Healthy Vegan' meetup group, and will attend a potluck get-together in Chicago this Sunday. Members seem totally in tune with all the Docs promoting WFPBNO. A 2 hr. drive, but the group is large (787), so I won't feel like such a minority.

[Spiral]

Just joined a 'Healthy Vegan' meetup group, and will attend a potluck get-together in Chicago this Sunday. Members seem totally in tune with all the Docs promoting WFPBNO. A 2 hr. drive, but the group is large (787), so I won't feel like such a minority.

I just finished joining this group. Given the weather and the limited daylight we have this time of year, I don't think I will attend Sunday's potluck. But in the spring, I'll head up to one of your group's events.

[Lyndzie]

Hi everyone! The Indianapolis Forks Over Knives Meetup site is now live.

http://meetu.ps/c/2Zf59/sYSzP/c

Hopefully over the summer when the weather is warmer we can do some weekend pitch-ins at local parks so people can drive in and join us. We'd love to get together and share delicious food!

[dynodan62]

Hi everyone! The Indianapolis Forks Over Knives Meetup site is now live.

http://meetu.ps/c/2Zf59/sYSzP/c

Hopefully over the summer when the weather is warmer we can do some weekend pitch-ins at local parks so people can drive in and join us. We'd love to get together and share delicious food!

I have joined the Indy group, and (BTW) have some thoughts to share re: my experience with a 'Healthy Vegans' group meetup I attended recently:
I am optimistic about the Indy group since it is NEW. My impression is that most long-lived 'meetup' gatherings become almost strictly 'social', and long-time members eventually lose sight of the group's original focus. Social groups are typically a cross section of society in general. There is usually a representative of most stereotypes attending (if you go to numerous/varied meet-ups, you will meet most all of them eventually). Most recently, I encountered:
1' 'Loud-talker' (drowns out attempts to carry on intelligent on-point discussion with irellevent small talk amongst other long-time group members).
2. 'Well-meaning dufus' (nice guy, but never delivers a straight answer, and constantly diverts the point of discussion toward HIS pseudo humorous/meaningless personal irrelevancies).
3. Ex-hippie/radical/counterculture types that have adopted veganism (along with yoga, tai chi, environmentalism, etc.) as an expression of protest, and are constantly diverting the group's focus from a scientific/health basis with their peripheral fanaticisms.

FYI: I DID meet a few alert/intelligent members though who were seriously interested in exploring the WFPBNO lifestyle in depth, but above circumstances tended to stifle any significant development along those lines. At worst, there was an abundance of tasty/healthy food available to sample.

P.S. I get the impression that many people likely join numerous 'meetup' groups, just to insure themselves of an active social life. For example, I finally gave up on a vintage car club's weekend get-together/tours because (aside from their SAD restaurant choices) it became difficult (like pulling teeth) to engage members in any discussion that concerned, specifically, THEIR CARS! Since this was the whole point of MY membership, it was disconcerting to finally realize they largely considered ownership as just an excuse to hang out and drink with others.

[Spiral]

Hi everyone! The Indianapolis Forks Over Knives Meetup site is now live.

http://meetu.ps/c/2Zf59/sYSzP/c

Hopefully over the summer when the weather is warmer we can do some weekend pitch-ins at local parks so people can drive in and join us. We'd love to get together and share delicious food!

I have joined the Indy group, and (BTW) have some thoughts to share re: my experience with a 'Healthy Vegans' group meetup I attended recently:
I am optimistic about the Indy group since it is NEW. My impression is that most long-lived 'meetup' gatherings become almost strictly 'social', and long-time members eventually lose sight of the group's original focus. Social groups are typically a cross section of society in general. There is usually a representative of most stereotypes attending (if you go to numerous/varied meet-ups, you will meet most all of them eventually). Most recently, I encountered:
1' 'Loud-talker' (drowns out attempts to carry on intelligent on-point discussion with irellevent small talk amongst other long-time group members).
2. 'Well-meaning dufus' (nice guy, but never delivers a straight answer, and constantly diverts the point of discussion toward HIS pseudo humorous/meaningless personal irrelevancies).
3. Ex-hippie/radical/counterculture types that have adopted veganism (along with yoga, tai chi, environmentalism, etc.) as an expression of protest, and are constantly diverting the group's focus from a scientific/health basis with their peripheral fanaticisms.

FYI: I DID meet a few alert/intelligent members though who were seriously interested in exploring the WFPBNO lifestyle in depth, but above circumstances tended to stifle any significant development along those lines. At worst, there was an abundance of tasty/healthy food available to sample.

P.S. I get the impression that many people likely join numerous 'meetup' groups, just to insure themselves of an active social life. For example, I finally gave up on a vintage car club's weekend get-together/tours because (aside from their SAD restaurant choices) it became difficult (like pulling teeth) to engage members in any discussion that concerned, specifically, THEIR CARS! Since this was the whole point of MY membership, it was disconcerting to finally realize they largely considered ownership as just an excuse to hang out and drink with others.

I'm glad you are joining us. That makes 3 McDougallers in the meetup group by my count. And thank you for providing your reflections on the meetup culture. We want our meetup group to be fun. But we also don't want it to descend into merely a social group without the focus on healthy eating. We'll do our best. Thanks again for agreeing to join us.

[Vanilla Orchid]

A bit of advice based on my experience with our Pacifca/SF Bay Area groups: Do invite your a few friends who are adventurous and open minded, but not necessarily interested in making a diet/lifestyle change. Make it a really nice party with an opportunity to mingle. Make the food GREAT to show that this WOE is not about deprivation. People will keep coming back. Some will make permanent changes, and some will just have a good time in a healthy setting with fun people. It doesn't always have to be serious and overtly educational. Include people of all ages and backgrounds. Open your home, however modest it may be. Share what you have, be it time, knowledge, or material resources.

HAVE FUN!!

[Spiral]

Indianapolis Forks Over Knives held its 2nd Meetup last night at a coffee shop on 10th Street, Rabble Coffee. We watched an over hour long Jeff Novick discussion of Calorie Density. All of us in attendance, there were about 11 of us, introduced ourselves to the group first. And I enjoyed hearing all of the different ways in which we all become motivated to become plant based. Everyone found Jeff Novick's talk very informative.

I'd say this 2nd meeting was even more successful than the first one.

[Spiral]

Today Indianapolis Forks Over Knives Meetup had a successful event. We had a Pitch-In at my house and 11 people attended. The food was delicious.

Dr. Esselstyn would be proud because the food included not one stinkin' drop of vegetable oil.

About a month ago I was almost ready to give up on the idea of having WFBP No-Oil meetups because I didn't think there was enough interest. But then I found out that a co-worker of mine was battling Type 2 diabetes with a vegan diet. She wanted to be part of a healthy diet meetup group to help her with her battle. Unfortunately, she was unable to attend today's Pitch-In and had to cancel at the last minute.

We are going to stop spending money paying for the Indianapolis Forks Over Knives Meetup group and just be part of the Indianapolis Vegan and Vegetarian Meetup group, making clear that our events are no-oil events.

I think the lesson I have learned is that there are people interested in this way of eating. It's just that it takes time and some effort to locate them and figure out the best way to collaborate with them.

[f1jim]

I would ask that you publicize your get togethers here on the forums. If we have members traveling to your area perhaps they would love the opportunity to attend and meet you.
If I were in your area for work or pleasure I would love to attend.
f1jim

[Spiral]

I would ask that you publicize your get togethers here on the forums. If we have members traveling to your area perhaps they would love the opportunity to attend and meet you.
If I were in your area for work or pleasure I would love to attend.
f1jim

Sure, Jim.

If anyone wants to get notified as to when the next Engine2 No-Oil Pitch-In is going to be held here in Indianapolis, join the Indianapolis Veggie Meetup group and you will get notified.

It is likely that the next one will be on September 3rd, Sunday at noon, but that isn't for sure yet.