1 month on diet, 30 lbs lost - and a new challenge

[wycoff]

DELIGHTFUL ADVICE!

I just called the hotel in Spokane and requested both fridge and microwave. They added it, said it was no problem. I would never have thought to ask for either one, so many thanks for the suggestion!

The oatmeal sounds like a real winner. I'm not big on sweets, so I generally make my oatmeal and put hot-sauce on it. I've been that way for decades. Ditto cream of wheat and malt-o meal. But I'm lazy so I'll just go with the oatmeal+hotsauce.

[wycoff]

I mentioned that I'm doing vegan cooking videos. I've already got a few, but the one I'm most satisfied with posted this morning:

Aroostook Barley Soup

Its my wife's family's recipe, probably going back generations, made of mostly root vegetables, but other fresh veg that can be pulled together after the first frost. I hadn't made it in some years, so when I made it for the video, opening the pot and smelling the aroma of all the herbs that went in was a very happy memory. Took me right back to 30 years ago when I first tried it on a December afternoon, near Casco Bay, Maine (I lived in the town of Casco, Maine, at the time).

Incidentally, the wave sounds were recorded at the Portland Headlight in Casco Bay. At the very end you can even hear one of the bouys, dinging in the distance.

[Daydream]

Your Maine soup looks good! Just saw your nice video and you left out the tomatoes and green beans in the recipe list of ingredients below the video.

[pundit999]

Thank you for sharing this Pundit! When you say "- Fat free "refried" beans (from a can)", are they just refried or well-fried in water?

Don't know gracezw. I have no idea why they call them "refried beans" when they don't have any fat. May be because they look refried?

These are the Ingredients:
Cooked Pinto Beans, Water, Salt, Vinegar, Spices, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder.

[wycoff]

Your Maine soup looks good! Just saw your nice video and you left out the tomatoes and green beans in the recipe list of ingredients below the video.

Yup, I missed the green beans. oops! The tomaots are there, though:

10 Roma (Italian) tomatoes

That's the first thing on the list. Either way, fixed the green beans, thanks again

-Donald

[wycoff]

I want to thank everyone here who gave me advice on how to stick with the program even when living out of a hotel when healthful choices aren't easy to come by. As it turns out, here at the end of my work-week and the end of my business trip, I am 4.2 lbs lighter, and have now lost 60 lbs since starting the McDougall diet on July 5th.

I talk about all this in more detail in my Week 12 Roundup video. I ran into some unexpected situations in Spokane like a couple of different waiters who didn't know what "vegan" meant, let alone the McDougall diet. I was served a vegan vegetable soup with creme fraiche on top, and in a beef base. I was served a vegan calzone with Parmesan cheese on it. And my vegan lunch was left on a shipping dock on yet another one of the work days, and at sunset I'd had just over 600 calories for the day. And I ate way more salad (sans dressing) than I expected, way more oatmeal than I expected, but I avoided the traps, and here I am, 4.2 lbs lighter. And my emergency supply of peanuts did not get exhausted, but definitely was tapped on more than one occasion.

This was my first significant challenge since starting the diet, and by golly, I did it.

Next week I will get my next blood-panel, and I'll find out how much my bloodwork has changed since I started McDougall on July 5th. I feel so much better, sleep so much better, think so much better, fit into clothes that haven't seen sunlight in more than a year, all in just a few weeks. I get the feeling the bloodwork should show some good improvement.

Thanks again for all the wonderful advice! I am really starting to become convinced that I can lose the weight and find my health again!

[gracezw]

Congratulations! Thank you for sharing!

You have lost a good amount of weight. You feel and think much better because you have more blood flow and more oxygen.

I haven't figured out why sleeping is much better. Sleeping better has happened to many people who do this WOE, including me. Can anyone share what you know about this?

[EvanG]

Nice job handling the challenges of eating out.

[Lyndzie]

Hi Dan! I’ve been watching your videos. You can see the changes happening! Glad to hear you survived the work trip. Keep up the great success.

[Hal]

Congrats, wycoff. Well done. And how can you not stick with it when you feel so much better, sleep so much better, think so much better, look so much better?

[Grammy Ginger]

You are an inspiration! Yes, sometimes salad and oatmeal are it. Sometimes you don't even get those, but...you also don't starve if food is scant for a day or two. Keep us posted on your progress.

[michaelswarm]

I am really starting to become convinced that I can lose the weight and find my health again!

Funny how our opinions and tastes can and do change.

I’ve watched a couple of your update and recipe videos. You appear disciplined and organized. And comfortable in the kitchen. Got to try the pancakes and syrup soon. Look forward to other recipes.

[wycoff]

Thanks everyone! The success of the trip, in terms of diet and sticking to the program, was largely due to advice I got on this site. I really appreciate it!

[wycoff]

I started McDougall on July 5th, and as of yesterday I have lost 62.8 pounds.

Yesterday I saw my doctor and had my A1C bloodwork done. There's some confusion about the other bloodwork, but I'll get to it.

Anyway, my blog has the results, and I discuss it in my Week 13 Roundup youtube channel.

I'm pleased with the improvement, but I want to do better. Its only been 90 days, so the dietary change is definitely working.

[Drew_ab]

Keep on going! I have no idea what my HBA1C was pre WFPB, but’s now 3.8 after 8.5 years following this way of eating. It’s all about time and adherence. Great work so far! Keep sharing the YouTube updates too.