What I'm Eating - MWL

[Qwerty988]

Yayy, a new week! Gratitude, just gratitude at being where I am, back on this program.

For whatever reason, I'm able to keep the blinders on and avoid all the off-plan foods and snacks in the house. I've been making kombucha and really enjoying that as a daily treat, which helps a lot. It's also helping with hot flashes and I'm sleeping better now, too, not waking up exhausted anymore. I'm making cherry-plum flavor and it's freaking amazing!

Monday 4/9/18

B: orange; burrito salad
L: enchilada chili w rice & greens
D: steamed sweet potatoes & broccoli
S: veggie plate

Tuesday 4/10/18

B: orange; potato salad on mixed green salad
L: enchilada chili w rice
D: potato-corn chowder
S: veg plate; cold potatoes w mustard

This potato salad was really pretty good. I had a bunch of cold steamed potatoes just laying around in the fridge and wanted to use them up -- glad I did.

So I don't forget: cubed cold potatoes, celery & onion, 2 TB sweet relish. For the dressing, I blended a cold potato with water and a tsp or so of dijon mustard. Mixed it all up and seasoned with Indian black salt, pepper and a little dill. Fresh parsley would've been nice, maybe next time.

Wednesday 4/11/18

B: oats w banana, spinach & apple
L: enchilada chili & rice
D: cold potatos w mustard
S: peppers & tomatoes; orange

Thursday 4/12/18

B: rolled oats w banana & spinach
L: burrito salad (w pineapple, w/o beans)
D: enchilada chili w rice
S: cold potato w mustard

Really missed having a salad meal yesterday -- that's a switch. Never thought I'd *miss* salad.

Anyhow, work deadlines alter the menu and lead to faster, more filling (i.e., more calorie-dense) choices. I'll have to watch that today and take the time to eat a salad!

Friday 4/13/18

B: orange
L: steamed veggies & yams w rice & sauerkraut
D: green salad; potato-corn chowder
S:

[Qwerty988]

Saturday 4/14/18:

B: rolled oats w banana, spinach & apple
L: veggies & enchilada chili w rice
D: small burrito salad (w/o beans)
S: veg plate; enchilada chili w rice

Sunday 4/15/18:

B: orange; salad; steamed yam & veggies w rice & oat sauce
L:
D: oatmeal w banana & apple
S:

Monday 4/16/18

B: oven fries w ketchup
L: burrito salad (w/o beans)
D:
S: raw veg plate; oatmeal w apple, banana & spinach; orange

Tuesday 4/17/18

B: oatmeal w apple, banana & spinach
L: raw veg plate & oven fries
D: corn on the cob w broccoli & brussels sprouts
S:

Wednesday 4/18/18

B: oatmeal w apple, banana & spinach
L: oven fries
D: corn on the cob w veggies
S: salad w sauerkraut; orange

Thursday 4/19/18

B: oatmeal w apple, banana & spinach
L: salad; oven fries
D: yam, veggies & rice w oat sauce
S:

Friday 4/20/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veggies w potatoes
D: big salad
S: raw veg plate

Aaaaaaand.... potatoes! Potatoes for a month, to speed along this process

[Qwerty988]

I'm excited to be doing potatoes & veggies this week and hoping for some good results. I still haven't weighed or measured, but can tell by how clothes are fitting that I've got a ways to go to get back to where I was last year. That doesn't feel great, but at least I'm back to going in the right direction.

Saturday 4/21/18

B: oven fries
L: more oven fries; potato-veggie soup
D: stewed veggies over potatoes
S: raw veggie plate; more veg soup

Sunday 4/22/18

B: oven fries
L: salad & potato-veg soup
D: oven fries
S: raw veg

Signs of progress: felt strong physical hunger pangs this morning -- for the first time in a long time -- while waiting for breakfast to be ready. So grateful! Of course the starches keep me satisfied between meals.... it's just really nice to be eating a meal because of physical hunger, and not just out of boredom or because something tastes good. (That's the gift of potatoes, in my experience )

Another victory: my son, who gained close to 20 lbs when our SAD-eating friend moved into the house, has recently been following my lead and eating more McDougall meals and says he's losing weight now, too.

Monday 4/23/18

B: oven fries
L: more oven fries
D: big salad w sweet potato
S: raw veg plate

Tuesday 4/24/18

B: oven fries
L: big salad w sweet potato; steamed brussel sprouts
D: oven fries
S:

Noticing that I've become a very plain eater; a little garlic salt and pepper on my fries and I don't even need ketchup or anything to dip them in. Add salsa and sauerkraut to my salad and I'm going dressing-free. I don't know why this is -- laziness? Very possibly.

Wednesday 4/25/18

B: oven fries
L: potato salad over greens
D: oven fries
S: raw veg

Thursday

B: salad; oven fries
L: oven fries
D: stewed veggies over potato
S: raw veg plate

Friday 4/27/18:

B: oven fries
L: potato salad over greens
D: stewed veggies over potatoes
S: oven fries

Saturday 4/28/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veggies over potato
D:
S:

Sunday 4/29/18

B: potato salad w greens
L: stewed veggies over potato
D: stewed veggies over potato
S:

[Qwerty988]

Well, I've removed my weight ticker from my signature line. The truth is, I'm not ready to weigh myself yet. I know I've gained weight over the winter, but facing how far I've set myself back won't be helpful with what I'm doing now, which is just trying to keep my focus on daily compliance and moving forward.

I know myself. If I ever start with the negative self-talk... that quickly spirals down to "why bother anyway?".... and before I know it, I'm going off-plan and sabotaging the longterm goal.

Monday 4/30/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veg over potato
D: oven fries
S: raw veg

Feeling on a good, steady course for now.

It's still a challenge to navigate past all the SAD food in the house, but it seems the plainer and more monotonous I make my menu, the easier it is to ignore temptations. I guess that's about avoiding the pleasure trap.

Anyhow, I'm all for taking the easiest way -- and for me, potatoes + veggies strike that perfect balance of being good enough to enjoy eating while not being so good that I get pulled back into cravings.

Tuesday 5/1/18

B: leftover stewed veg & potato + oven fries
L: --
D: big salad w sauerkraut; steamed yams & brussel sprouts
S: raw veg plate

Wednesday 5/2/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veggies over potato
D: more stewed veggies over potato
S: raw peppers & tomatoes; more stewed veggies over potato

Woke up feeling really good today and happy with the progress I'm seeing in the mirror.

Of course I credit the potato/veg regimen for my good mood, but I'm also thinking maybe the daily doses of probiotics are having an effect too? I was pretty skeptical but I'm seeing big results from just a few forkfuls of sauerkraut and a bottle of kombucha a day -- no more hot flashes, better mood and less gas/bloating.

Also I'm having zero interest in other food and I've been reading that your gut population can influence the kinds of food you crave. So, if you have lots of bacteria that thrive on sugar and alcohol, you crave sweets and alcohol. Then if you repopulate with bacteria that thrive on veggies and starches, you crave that. I'm not sure if this has been proven or not, but it does kind of make sense to me, just on an instinctive level, given the gut-brain connection. But who knows?

Oh well. Onward!

Thursday 5/3/18

B: big salad w sauerkraut; oven fries
L: stewed veggies over potato
D: more stewed veg & potato
S:

So I don't forget -- really enjoying this simple stewed veggie recipe over microwaved (and smashed) yukon gold potatoes:

1 can fire-roasted tomatoes
1/2 can water
1-2 zucchini, chopped
1 cup chopped mushrooms
1 bag frozen mixed veggies
chopped kale or broccoli

Simmer zucchini and mushrooms until tender in tomatoes, water and these seasonings: low-sodium soy sauce, garlic powder, Italian seasonings, smoked paprika, red pepper. Then add frozen veggies and greens, cover and heat a few more minutes until greens are cooked.

Friday 5/4/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veggies over potato
D: big salad w sauerkraut; steamed yams, brusell sprouts & kale
S: oven fries

Saturday 5/5/18

B: leftover stewed veggies w potato
L: cabbage-potato soup; oven fries
D: salad; yam & brusell sprouts
S:

Half-way through and starting to miss oats and rice! Full disclosure, there's corn in the mixed veggies I use and I still put corn in my salads. But generally I'm very proud of myself for maintaining a pretty good ratio of veggies to starch.

When I'm done with this 30 days of potatoes, I'm making it a goal to have a big salad meal once a day, with either cold cooked yams, rice or potatoes as starch. And I need to start grinding flax meal again to throw in there!

Sunday 5/6/18

B: salad w yam & brussels sprouts
L oven fries
D: stewed veggies w potato
S:

[Qwerty988]

Monday 5/7/18

B: stewed veggies w potato
L: salad; yams & brussels sprouts
D: oven fries
S: oven fries

Tuesday 5/8/18

B: leftover stewed veggies w potato
L: salad; oven fries
D: steamed yams, brussels sprouts & broccoli
S:

Wednesday 5/9/18

B: oven fries
L: salad w yams & brussels sprouts
D: stewed veg over potato
S:

Wow, this must be really boring for anyone to read! I'm really only eating the same few meals over and over.

Sorry.

Thursday 5/10/18

B: stewed veggies over potato (w sauerkraut, yum! )
L: big salad w yams
D: oven fries
S: stewed veggies over potato

Friday 5/11/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veggies w potato
D: more stewed veggies w potato
S: sweet bell peppers

Saturday

B: oven fries
L: brussels sprouts; salad w yam
D: salad; potato w stewed veggies
S:

Sunday 5/13/18

B: potato salad over greens
L: oven fries; raw veg plate
D: stewed veggies w potato
S:

3 weeks down, one to go!

Luckily my son knows better than to suggest eating out for Mother's Day

[Qwerty988]

Monday 5/14/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veggies w potato
D: more stewed veggies w potato
S:

Tuesday 5/15/18

B: big salad; oven fries
L: yam & brussels sprouts; stewed veg w potato
D: more stewed veg w potato
S: raw veg

Wednesdayf 5/16/18

B: oven fries
L: stewed veggies w potato & sauerkraut
D: big salad w sauerkraut
S: raw veg

Just a few days to go on my potato-veg regimen. I'm still afraid of that scale.

I just don't want to get discouraged. I know I'm still far from my goal. I'm probably far from where I was just a few months ago. And I feel stupid for fallling off the wagon and giving in to all the SAD foods and treats that have come into the house. It feels like it only took a few weeks of high-fat holiday eating to regain everything I worked so hard to lose!

Oh well. For now, I just need to keep plodding along day by day and take it as a lesson learned.

But even as I write this, I have a freezer right now that is full of ice cream and pizzas and all kinds of tempting junk food.... even more insidious are the calorie-dense vegan cheats I could rationalize away like vegan mayo, oil-free bread, cold cereal, peanut butter. The only way I know to combat all these temptations is to be super-strict with myself and allow NOTHING but potatoes and non-starchy veggies... is that crazy? I hope not, because that's all I got.

Thursday 5/17/18

B: oven fries
L: brussel sprouts; big salad w yam
D: leftover big salad w yam
S:

Considering another 30 days of potatoes/yams/veggies. Why not? It's pretty easy at this point, I'm pretty much on auto-pilot.

I'll just keep it up until it stops being fun.

[Qwerty988]

Friday 5/18/18

B: stewed veggies w potato & sauerkraut
L: more stewed veg, potato & sauerkraut
D: bok choy & oven fries
S:

[bunsofaluminum]

Just a few days to go on my potato-veg regimen. I'm still afraid of that scale.

I just don't want to get discouraged. I know I'm still far from my goal. I'm probably far from where I was just a few months ago. And I feel stupid for fallling off the wagon and giving in to all the SAD foods and treats that have come into the house. It feels like it only took a few weeks of high-fat holiday eating to regain everything I worked so hard to lose!

Oh well. For now, I just need to keep plodding along day by day and take it as a lesson learned.

But even as I write this, I have a freezer right now that is full of ice cream and pizzas and all kinds of tempting junk food.... even more insidious are the calorie-dense vegan cheats I could rationalize away like vegan mayo, oil-free bread, cold cereal, peanut butter. The only way I know to combat all these temptations is to be super-strict with myself and allow NOTHING but potatoes and non-starchy veggies... is that crazy? I hope not, because that's all I got.

OMG, isn't it the truth. I was so fit and losing weight, looking and feeling so good. It took more than five years, and I kept it off for more than three years...and I gained everything back in six months when I started allowing high fat foods back in. But you seem to be doing real well with what you're doing. And phooey on the scale. How is your energy? That's what I go by. Being calm and cheery, with level-headed energy, and a healthy functioning bowel means easily as much as losing weight.

well, anyway. You're doing great. I'm rooting for ya!

[Qwerty988]

OMG, isn't it the truth. I was so fit and losing weight, looking and feeling so good. It took more than five years, and I kept it off for more than three years...and I gained everything back in six months when I started allowing high fat foods back in. But you seem to be doing real well with what you're doing. And phooey on the scale. How is your energy? That's what I go by. Being calm and cheery, with level-headed energy, and a healthy functioning bowel means easily as much as losing weight.

well, anyway. You're doing great. I'm rooting for ya!

Thank you so much for the kind words!! It's so nice to hear I'm not all alone out here.

And yeah, losing the weight and then putting it back on... it's the worst!!!! It's awful. I guess the only thing that feels worse is giving up completely.

But you're right and I SO agree there are other markers for success and I've got them too! It's easy to forget those. Because I do feel about a million times better just in the weeks I've been back on the program. And a good healthy gut. And just a general feeling of peace and well-being. That's worth a lot!

[Qwerty988]

Okay, almost done w the 30 days -- time for a new plan!

Once I finish up the last of the potatoes, I do an extended rice MM: 30 days of rice, non-starchy veggies and 1-2 fruits a day.

My meals should go pretty much like this: breakfast: hot brown rice cereal w fruit; lunch: big salad w cold brown rice; dinner: stir-fry veggies over brown rice.

I do best having the same meals over and over.... until I get sick of them.... then finding new meals and doing them over and over (until I get sick of them )

I can over-eat rice, though, so I'll measure out portions not to go past 2 cups cooked rice per meal.

I think (hope) it will be fun!

[moonlight]

Hey there! Congrats on your eating plan. So, are you finishing up a month of only potatoes for your starch? Next, you're switching to a month with rice?

[Qwerty988]

Hey there! Congrats on your eating plan. So, are you finishing up a month of only potatoes for your starch? Next, you're switching to a month with rice?

Hi! Thanks so much for dropping in!!

Yeah, today's my last day of 30 days of potatoes. I'm planning on 30 days of rice + veggies next, and I'll let myself have 1-2 fruits a day too like a MM.

Mostly I'm just trying to keep the foods as monotonous as possible -- being a volume eater and a foodie, I can get ridiculously over-excited by the smallest amount of variety.

[Qwerty988]

Saturday 5/19/18

B: stewed veggies w potato
L: raw veg plate; oven fries
D: brussels sprouts; salad w yam (& flax! )
S:

[Qwerty988]

5/20/16 Sunday

Aaannnnd rice! Wooo hoooo!

Went to the Indian market and picked up a 20-lb bag of brown basmati, which I love. I'm not really set up for rice cereal, though. I have to do more shopping today.

B: stir-fried veg & rice
L: the rest of the stir-fry veg & rice
D: big salad w rice
S: raw veg

Yow, I'm out of practice with rice! Not the greatest stir-fry. Ordered some mirin to hopefully make a tastier sauce as I'll be eating this a lot this coming month.

Still nervous about whether 6 cups of rice plus veggies can really keep me full all day.

Later: Okay, I have to admit, I wasn't physically hungry between meals. I need to tweak my recipes and find a standard breakfast, lunch and dinner that strikes that "just good enough" balance so I'll enjoy eating it, but won't be tempted to overeat.

It's a process, that's for sure!

Mondady 5/21/18

B: rice w banana, flax & dried cranberries
L: big salad w rice
D: brussels sprouts; SNAP stewed veggies w rice
S:

Breakfast.... hmm. It was barely okay, tastewise, and not very filling. I heated up some cooked brown rice with banana milk and added cinnnamon, coriander, flax & dried cranberries. Firstly, dried fruits aren't MWL. Secondly, blended foods aren't allowed either on McDougall. But I figured it's better to blend up a banana with water and use that instead of using a commercial nut or soy milk. Overall, it was edible but didn't have the bulk from fresh fruits and greens I usually add to oatmeal.

For the rest of the day, I'm doing a SNAP and salad. Still not 100% happy with rice, which is so weird!

I made this salad dressing, which was pretty good:

Asian-y orange-y dressing:

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 Tb minced garlic
1 Tb minced ginger
juice from 1 orange
2 Tb orange marmalade

Next time, I'll add a zucchini or some cooked rice and see if I can make it thick & creamy! Also will replace the marmalade with a date.

Dinner: Finally got it right!! That was filling and delish.

[Qwerty988]

Tuesday 5/22/18

B: rice cereal w banana & flax
L: brussels sprouts; SNAP veggies w rice
D: big salad w rice
S:

Breakfast: a little bit better today. Just brown rice heated with 1/4 small box of raisins, a little soymilk, cinammon, vanilla and a mashed banana. While not as good (imo) as oatmeal, I could comfortably eat this every morning for a month.

Thoughts on the day: I do better eating a bigger lunch and smaller dinner. Also, started using the Instant Pot to cook brussels sprouts -- so much easier than stovetop! I just dump them in with a cup of water, close the lid and hit Steam for 1 minute. By the time I've finished cooking up the SNAP veggies, the sprouts are all done, perfectly steamed and ready to eat!

Wednesday 5/23/18

B: rice cereal w banana & flax
L: SNAP veggies w rice
D: more SNAP veggies w rice
S:

Thursday 5/24/18

B: stir-fry veggies w rice
L: 1 lb frozen broccoli + 1/2 lb. frozen mixed veggies + 2 cups rice (my favorite meal so far! )
D: more broc + veg + rice
S: raw veg

Today (I think) I'm just going to have stir-fry veggies (mostly broccoli) with rice. I'm going to keep at it until I nail a quick and tasty sauce. I have a massive 2-lb bag of frozen broccoli florets -- that looks like lunch and dinner to me.

So, the stir-fry sauce I'm using right now is: equal parts water and soy sauce (1/4 cup or so), a few tablespoons mirin, a splash of rice vinegar, 2 teaspoons ginger powder, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 tablespoon corn starch, 3 cloves garlic minced.

Then I just dump the frozen veggies in a pan with a lilttle water, cover and let it steam-defrost for 5 mins. Add a little sauce and let it simmer another 5 or so minutes. Dump it all on the rice and instant meal!