The Behavioral Path to MWL Success - December 2023 Group

[Drew*#]

Hi All,

Looking back over the last year or so of not being in this group except sporadically, I am seeing a pattern that needs repair! So, last week, my adherence to the following needs much improvement...maybe I was 50% compliant unless otherwise noted below:

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.****My breakfast or first meal followed this. I would count cooked non-starchy vegetables in this mix of soup, salad or fruit...
2. Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for dessert.**** I am figuring this one out as the veggies I eat for my first meal are really enough and make me somewhat full. I do not want to overdo it but also know that it would help to have 50/50 here and I did this as indicated above...not all meals
3. Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. This includes gourmet sugars and salts, too. If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. **** I need work on this due to sugar cravings. 4/7 days compliant. However I do sprinkle some salt or MSG to my veggies. Is this OK?
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). ***** 100%
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy).*** 4/7 days
6. Eliminate any added oil. ****4/7 days
7. Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e., bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. *** This is a tough one for me...I failed on this with bread or flour tortillas
8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). ****100%
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself.**** Yes for the most part. I would say better than 50%.
10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). ****4/7 (long hike and yoga tomorrow like last week 2+hours)

Hope nothing I wrote above is discouraging to anyone. I got to be honest. I have much room for improvement. My plan except on Tuesday is to do my best to follow. I am usually caretaking for my mom plus holding down a couple jobs (mostly online) and then spending time with my wife on the weekends. I am able to cook for myself when with my mom but my wife is a good cook and for the most part cooks a healthy meal that is close to the above. However it is not 100% so excluding those meals I am still able to eat virtually all meals like the above. At my mom's place, I talked her out of getting any non-compliant foods but there was still some bread in the fridge. I will need to tweak this and find some willpower with alternative prepared starch in the fridge at all times....maybe Mary's Mini would do the trick.

The catch-22 is my schedule will be reversed for this coming week. I may not be able to travel for 4 days due to a transjugular liver biopsy that will see if I have scarring in the liver or other issues causing my spleen problems. At any rate, enough said on this. I am a perfect model-citizen especially since 2021 when I gave up a certain habit...there is nothing like the fear of losing one's life that can help with getting rid of a bad habit!

So, the quote from Mark Cooper and Gimmelean seems helpful...something like Mary's Mini may be my ticket for the next couple weeks and perhaps it will get me back on track...will keep you posted. Hear is the quote....much thanks:

The Mary’s mini after multiple small detours and then a huge overindulgence was the perfect antidote for me. It was very valuable because it provided a simple, predictable, and structured way of eating. It showed me that I wasn’t really hungry and tended to eat regardless. The first three evenings were the most difficult to overcome cravings.
I felt so good after eating only the right foods that it gave me the motivation to continue to stick with it. I made sure that my foods were prepared in advance and were exactly the same every day, every meal. No extra choices. I avoided eating anything at the office that wasn’t mine because I had plenty of adherent food with me that I enjoyed. I knew I wasn’t physically hungry after eating my prepared planned meals and for me that’s the first step in eliminating recreational eating.

That all definitely makes sense to me, and may offer a useful framework for others to apply. Thank you so much for sharing!

Drew

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Time & Adherence Peeps,

1 Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.
Mostly. I missed a couple – closer to the 100% that I am seeking, but not quite there.

2 Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for dessert.
Yes. Still eating and enjoying the same easy meals.

3 Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. This includes gourmet sugars and salts too. If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them.
Yes.

4 Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood).
Yes.

5 Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy).
Yes.

6 Eliminate any added oil.
Yes.

7 Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e., bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes, puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn, and dried fruit).
Yes.

8 Don’t drink your calories especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages).
Yes.

9 Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself.
Yes – not starving or stuffing.

10 Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking).
Yes. YAY, was able to sign up for Pickleball League through early May! Still consistent with strength training twice a week and sometimes do a third session.

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

Mark – you were spot on with your comment last week – when I had a club pickleball event conflict with some work holiday parties, it was in fact win – win! Also, on the training others to know that you will fend for yourself with adherent food --- I like that and think I have (mostly) --- it’s the new events / people where this comes up for me – sometimes, not often.

Welcome back, Drew!

I love eating the thawed frozen mango too, Chesca. It is really easy for a preload (and delicious)!

Hope everyone enjoys the week! I am off work (mostly) for the year – Woo-hoo!

Best,
Stephanie 

[Artista]

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.  Yes, I did some prep work and this made it easy to get salad or raw vegetables in before meals.

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. Yes

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. Yes.

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). Yes, always all the time.

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). No, had some flaxseeds and edamame beans.

6) Eliminate any added oil. Yes, very much in the habit of and cooking, preparing, and eating food without any oil. Yes.

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. Yes.

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). Yes.

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full.   Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. Yes

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). Yes, I do a variety of strength exercises plus walk regularly.

Victories, comments, concerns, questions: It was a good week other than the flaxseeds and soy. I'll be working on avoiding those foods this week as well as nailing the rest of the 10 points. Wishing everyone a good week.

[Starflower]

Hi team! Thank you for welcoming me back to the group!


1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. YES

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

There were a few higher fat foods left to use up this week. I feel like I’m getting dialed back in to eating on plan. Onward!

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

[Mark Cooper]

The window for reporting this week's behavioral results has officially closed.

My replies and the weekly summary will follow.

[Mark Cooper]

BambiS - Nice! I'm glad you found Jeff's writing about plateaus helpful. Why do you think you haven't felt interested to include the preloads? Is it the extra work required or some other reason? Keep doing you best!

Rebecka22 - Not just a solid week, but a solid month so far, right? Enjoy you time off with your loved ones and the extra sleep! Wishing you the very best in navigating the holidays. Carry on as you have been, it is working for you!

Gimmelean - Staycations are my favorite! Big congratulations for the positive developments your doctor shared with you! That seems like a great victory to remember as you make your way through this often challenging season and environments. I completely agree with you about the value of having some successes to build upon and reinforce positive trends in one's behavior. Onward!

CUgorji22 - Intentionality feels great, right? Seems like you are making great progress, Chesca, staying oriented toward learning and finding solutions, and building valuable experience and confidence. I can imagine that planning will be key for your time on the road, so it is fantastic that you've gotten started with that. If you haven't already reviewed them, Jeff has great threads on travel food and dining out. May that requested kitchen exceed your expectations!

Drew*# - 2 behaviors at 100%, only 8 to go! Seriously, that isn't nothing, and having ample room for improvement means that you can reach for the "lowest-hanging fruit" and keep building on small successes. Focus on the basic things you can do or build into your routine that will support adherence to those behaviors that feel attainable.

I do sprinkle some salt or MSG to my veggies. Is this OK?

If you are just sprinkling a modest amount over the surface of your food at the table, that fits within the recommended guidelines. Let us know how things go as you test out different paths toward adherence. Best wishes for positive news from your biopsy. Take care!

VegSeekingFit - Ongoing progress continues, Stephanie! It made me smile to know we were on the same page about that "win-win" situation. Enjoy the time off from work and keep your good groove rolling!

Artista - Good progress, Nancy! I wish you the best in "nailing the 10 points"; let us know if you hit any obstacles in that regard, have any questions, or need some support from the group. Have an amazing week!

Starflower- That is a big jump in adherence from last week; nicely done! I'm delighted to know that you feel like your behaviors are getting dialed back in already. That is great. Onward, indeed!

[Mark Cooper]

Woo-hoo! Our group generally always has a very positive vibe, but it feels particularly focused and upbeat this month. I think that is fantastic!

I realized that I will be on a flight at this time next Saturday (we'll be headed to San Antonio to visit my mother and brother), so I won't be available to reply to your behavioral reports. I would very much encourage everyone to still check-in with a self-assessment if you are able, and on December 30 I will respond to the reports for both weeks. Hope that feels acceptable for everyone.

In the meanwhile, if you run up against any obstacles or tricky situations that you would like help to solve, please do post here in the group thread. Our comrades are a great resource with a stockpile of lived experiences to draw on, and getting a new perspective can help with many challenges.

As always, I'm wishing you all the very best! Happy holidays to all who are celebrating. May the weeks ahead be filled with joy, community, and peace. Take care & be well!

[BambiS]

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.
Some days, I do well at breakfast. I struggle other meals, I just haven’t had an appetite for neither soup or salad.


2. Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert some days


3. Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. This includes gourmet sugars and salts, too. If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them.
Yes

4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood).
Yes

5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy).
Yes

6. Eliminate any added oil.
Yes


7. Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e., bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. I had popcorn again

8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). Yes


9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself
Yes

10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). No intent exercise

Victories, comments, concerns, questions good week,

I’m glad this year is going to be over soon. I feel like I’ve taken time being in the group and not being successful. I intend to start off the year on a good note and focus on my health. The weight loss will follow. I have been focusing on weight loss all year and not my health first.

Happy Holidays everyone

[Rebecka22]

1.Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES
2. Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for dessert. YES
3. Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. This includes gourmet sugars and salts, too. If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. NO
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO
6. Eliminate any added oil. NO
7. Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e., bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. NO
8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). NO
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES
10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES

The holidays got me this week. It started with a mocha, then holiday sweets and eating out. I’m taking it one day at a time and trying to remind myself I feel better when I eat better. I hope everyone is having a great holiday season.

[Starflower]

Have a safe and wonderful trip, Mark!

Hi team!


1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES?

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. YES

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). YES

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). NO

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

It was a good week. The foods that were tempting me are not appealing anymore. After last month I associate them with pain and poor mobility. I missed one day of exercise, but walked and stretched on the other days. I added light strength training a few times, too. Estimating 50/50 was hard for some meals, like stew, but it was at least close. I’m making Christmas dinner in a buffet format with lots of compliant choices. Onward!

Happy holidays! Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

[letsfixmyheart]

Okay, today is the day I stop messing around and do this thing right, not just here and there. I think I'm gonna need this group.

My plan is to plan out my food in the morning when I'm getting ready (I have a half hour after I take my morning meds before I can eat, so that's the perfect time to plan) and then keep track of what I actually eat. I have a nice notebook for it; I'm not always online. And I set my alarm to check in here every Friday at least. Hopefully will find time every day or two to check out the boards.

I'm eating oatmeal and cherries for breakfast, and I have a few Japanese sweet potatoes in the oven to have for lunch. My husband made his "McDougally" chili (that's our word for "compliant") for dinner. And I'm planning to whip up some pasta sauce to have over whole grain pasta if I run out of other quick stuff to eat.

[CUgorji22]

Hello, Everyone!

My reporting will be short and sweet.

I am very sick, which has put a damper on our trip.

I haven't had an appetite for several days. Minimal eating. It is not ideal but I have been drinking plant-based protein shakes to achieve some nutrients. I can feel my body changing from not eating.

I hope to be back on track with better health soon. Taking meds, getting rest.

Happy holidays to each of you!

-Chesca

[Mark Cooper]

Hi, all! We are preparing to head to the airport, but I just wanted to drop by to say best wishes for a successful and happy holiday season and end to the year! I'll see you all back here in this space a week from today.

[wildgoose]

Have a great trip, Mark!

Happy holidays and best wishes for a festive, low-stress end of December to the group.

Goose

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Team Time & Adherence,

Hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season and successfully navigating through the myriad of events!

Here in Chicagoland we have warmer than normal weather – approaching 50 degrees today and foggy --- unseasonable for sure. Going to take advantage of the relative warmth and go to the woods for a walk after this post (instead of inside at the gym)!

1 Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.
Mostly. Again, I missed a few. I am looking to move to 100%. It should be easy to do. If nothing else, I have a huge bag of apples.

2 Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for dessert.
Yes. Mostly the same meals, but I am also really loving vegetable sushi right now. I can purchase brown rice veggie sushi from a local restaurant and add extra veggies (OMG, so cool!). Anyway, I am going to attempt to learn how to make my own --- would make a great lunch to take to work and a perfect snack.

3 Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts. This includes gourmet sugars and salts too. If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them.
Yes.

4 Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood).
Yes.

5 Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy).
Yes.

6 Eliminate any added oil.
Yes.

7 Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e., bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes, puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn, and dried fruit).
Mostly except last weekend I had a French bread roll (plain) at a party. My bad that I didn’t bring something starchy in my purse or to share. I did bring fruit and veggie trays, but I was still hungry! We always stay at this event longer than planned and I need to bring something more substantial/starchy to avoid this same scenario next year.

8 Don’t drink your calories especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages).
Yes.

9 Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself.
Yes – not starving or stuffing.

10 Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking).
Yes for 6/7 (took 1 rest day). Walking and strength training consistently. Still loving pickleball and was able to pick up a few matches this week since I am off work. My buddy teaches at my gym and I got to fill in at his class too, which was amazing. Have signed up for 2 more tournaments for early next year with partners – so need to practice!!

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

Mark – Hope that you have safe travels and enjoy a wonderful time with your family for the holidays. Thank you so much for all that you do here to help us!

Bambi – I am also looking forward to starting 2024 on a good note! Let’s do it!!

Rebecka – Love that reminder about feeling better when eating better. So true!

Starflower – Your Christmas dinner buffet sounds awesome!

Shannon – Great to have a plan and to track what you eat. It helped me a ton to write down (on paper) my plan and actual food especially when I was getting started.

Chesca – I hope that you feel much better soon! Take care.

Wildgoose – Hi and Happy holidays!!!

Wishing everyone the best of the season!

Stephanie