JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Share your McDougall successes here in order to inspire others.

Moderators: JeffN, f1jim, carolve, Heather McDougall

JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Lyndzie » Mon Jun 01, 2020 10:02 pm

Welcome to the McDougall Maintenance support group! Let’s join together for support and camaraderie while we strive to maintain our successes.

Many of us have lost weight and/or reached other health goals. We’re ready for that next chapter, maintaining the gains we’ve accomplished.

This group will have Friday check ins, where everyone can touch base. Weigh-ins are optional, and will not be tracked. Please feel free to share your non-scale victories (NSV) as well.

In order to foster group participation, we do ask that only participants post, so please do join! You can join at any time simply by hitting the “post reply” button and saying something along the lines of “I’d like to join.” As they say, the more, the merrier.


Hello everyone!

Sue had a wonderful question she posed at the end-of-May check-in that I thought was a wonderful “food for thought” for starting this month off. She wrote:

I recently listened to interviews between Rich Roll and David Clark (Rich Roll Podcast Episodes 113 and 290). David Clark lost 150 pounds, overcame alcoholism and became an ultra-marathon runner. I was particularly interested in their discussion about how our narratives/identities can prevent us changing behaviours and suggesting we create a new narrative about who we are and reinforce it with behaviour. For example, saying to ourselves ‘I’m a McDougaller/runner/yogi’ or whatever and then when faced with choices or challenges, asking ourselves ‘What would a McDougaller/runner/yogi do?’ They also said there’s always evidence to support whatever narrative you create, and my experience with the yoga data this month bears this out! It got me thinking about my own narratives and whether I might change them to help me achieve some more change in my life.

Has anyone had any experience with this in their health journeys?


For me, this brought to mind how I talk about this way of eating with others. I had previously taken on a joking tone about my “weird vegan food,” which was a poor attempt to put others at ease about my different food choices, but recently I have switched to being more fact-based, simply saying something along the lines of “eating vegan right now,” which has actually been a better tactic. There have not been many get-togethers in the past few months (zilch until last week), but it actually was more comfortable for me to say strictly facts as opposed to judgements. I person who fully owns this way of eating does so without worrying about how another person might feel, it’s just stating facts when needed. I never waffled when asked about being vegetarian, it’s just who I am. And, now, I am a starchivore.

Thanks for the great, thought-provoking post, Sue!

Stay safe, wash hands, and eat starch!
Lindsey
Lindsey
My food journal: Adventures in Eating
My pregnancy journal: Maybe a Baby 2017
www.lindseyhead.coach
User avatar
Lyndzie
 
Posts: 2709
Joined: Fri Dec 16, 2016 7:24 pm
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana USA

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Suey51 » Fri Jun 05, 2020 2:24 am

Thanks Lindsey for sharing my post from last month and for your thoughtful response. :-D It's great that you have found a way of talking about this way of eating that feels more comfortable. Holding a new identity in mind this week has helped me interrupt those occasional urges to eat something off-program. When the urge arises, I asked myself 'What would a McDougaller do?' and this gave a tiny bit of space to make a better choice.

My 7 day average weight this week is the same as last week. I've been a little under my original goal weight for the past 3 weeks which hasn't happened since the Autumn. I think its the result of gradually making better choices in things like evening snacking.

Exercise-wise this week I've tried a new live yoga class which I very much enjoyed and started a Couch to 5K running program. I took up running in my late 30's and again in my early 40's and both times stopped again due to knee pain. This time around I plan to take it very gently, work on my posture and do plenty of stretching. As with my start on McDougalling, I'm treating it as an experiment as this takes the pressure off. The 'old me' was tempted to set a goal of completing it before my birthday in 8 weeks but the 'new me' reminded me that if my over-arching goal is a long, healthy and active life, then it's better to try to avoid another knee injury. So, I'm just going to enjoy the process and see how it goes.....

Best wishes, Sue x
User avatar
Suey51
 
Posts: 433
Joined: Mon May 08, 2017 11:21 am
Location: UK

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Ejeff » Fri Jun 05, 2020 6:49 am

Lindsey, I have found the same in regards to how I speak about my food choices with others. Originally I would joke about it, but now I provide the facts. I try to always mention that I follow Dr. John McDougall and I proudly state I eat lots of pasta, rice, potatoes, and bread. I figure there might be some people that want to look up the program later because seriously who doesn’t want to eat carbs even if they don’t want to admit it! Haha

Sue, it is interesting what you posted about a new narrative. I wouldn’t say that I’ve declared it out loud, but in the back of my mind I always picture myself as a healthy 90 year old able to bike, walk, and enjoy activities with my family. This vision of being physically able to be active until the day I die motivates me to stay on the program, Plus I enjoy all the food I eat so much why would I want anything else lol. Oh and of course still playing pickleball!

I was reading the post about cheating in the lounge as Jeff commented regarding Brand New Vegans health crisis. It got me to thinking are nuts, seeds, avacados etc okay for maintenance. I believe for myself that I will continue to have these higher fat foods as long as my blood pressure is good and my BMI is at the low end of the range. I will always still say no to added oils and don’t see that changing either. Wondered what your thoughts are regarding higher fat whole foods? Do you consume them regularly while in maintenance?

Week was good, lost the weight I gained last week probably because I did have less baked goods. My exercise is consistent and I quite often get in 2 walks which is around 18,000 steps. We have a birthday celebration tonight. Making Smokey pasta dish and baked beans. I made the beans recipe someone had posted on this forum. So delicious I will be making them again. They would be very nice over a bed of steamed greens. I also made the straight up foods carrot cake, it’s a hit with the family. So tonight will be a feast and a time to visit. Looking forward to it and the weather forecast is good so we can be outside!

No big cooking plans for this week. I’m craving fries so need to make those. I stocked up on frozen spinach as there was a good sale. I find it so handy to add to marinara or soup. Consciously adding extra greens makes me happy. Wishing you all a sunny happy week ahead. :)

Erin
"The more disciplined your environment is, the less disciplined you need to be. Don't swim upstream."
Ejeff
 
Posts: 679
Joined: Mon Feb 23, 2015 10:00 pm
Location: Alberta, Canada

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby viajera919 » Fri Jun 05, 2020 12:07 pm

I love these discussions on the mindset of a McDougaller and sharing. As someone young (33) who has always been thin, and been doing this for 10 years next month (eek!), I often feel embarrassment when sharing and only do when asked. But when someone asks I often make comments that are joking in nature to alleviate tension. One, because I’m afraid I’ll be judged as an eating disorder though anyone who knows me knows I eat out of serving bowls. But mostly, as I’m learning through therapy in more aspects of my life, because being honest then opens up your true self to people and if they judge that, it hurts! But the lack of authenticity in all aspects of my life is exhausting and while I don’t feel that I am on a path to convert the masses, I am feeling more comfortable sharing. I don’t know if anyone besides my husband really knows I McDougall and only some I’ve told I am vegan. I plan to share something on social media next months for my 10 years.

In terms of long term adherence, I don’t do high fat food because they just don’t appeal to me and also, I love to eat lots and lots and I love the not high fat food. So I want to eat more unrestricted portions. My husband on the other hand prefers restricting to allow more room for higher fat yellow light food. He is always on an up down up down with 5-10 lbs and while he’s OK with that, I don’t want to deal with that headache. We also use the similar thought of being 90 and traveling together. We want to live our lives long and together doing awesome adventures. That is motivation enough for me!

This week was interesting with food. I did the Instagram challenge with plantiful kiki and high carb Hannah of eatyourvegchallenge where you eat half your plate nonstarchy vegetables. I already eat that way so was game. But since this was a toe dip in the water for me for sharing with my social circle of how I eat, I had a whole variety of starches on there. Result? I still don’t like russets. Yukons are so so. I like sweet potatoes sprinkled in and JSP a lot but I MISS RICE SO MUCH. I’m so excited to eat it tonight. I just didn’t want people to be like, there she is, eating rice and vegetables again lol. Oh well. I gotta own it.

Exercise just a daily or two a day bike ride/walk with my family, postpartum ab breathing and 7 minute arm circuit with 3lb weights. Nothing new.
User avatar
viajera919
 
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Apr 20, 2020 6:39 am
Location: Michigan

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Lyndzie » Fri Jun 05, 2020 9:45 pm

A couple carry-overs from last month due to pandemic/social upheaval/is there a plague of locusts soon?

Marsha - Summer fruits are just spectacular. We indulged in cherries as well. Thanks for the idea to try the Mexican corn salad in a quesadilla. Hopefully you’ve had some more days of lovely weather!

Glenn - Superb work on the garden! I’m wishing I’d have put more out, but at this point it will be a next year project. The weather here has been a bit of a roller coaster as well.

Sue - Thanks for the inspiring post! Your exercise programs sound really fun to do. Good luck on running, the “experiment” mentality really helps to take the pressure off and be successful. When is your birthday?

Erin - Wasn’t that post from Jeff on the cheating thread so informative? You make some good points - Brand New Vegan had multiple red flags (high BMI, hypertension, high cholesterol), and was eating off-plan food more often than he had realized, as evidenced by the fact that he dropped nearly 20 lbs and got off all meds in a month’s time of healthy eating. Nuts and seeds can definitely be part of a person’s diet, depending on their health and goals. Your walking is quite impressive. Your birthday celebration sounds so fun! Lots of delicious dishes to enjoy, and hopefully some good company as well. Where did you get to play pickleball? Is your area re-openned?

Viajera - That’s amazing that you have been McDougalling for 10 years. What brought you to this way of eating so young? We are big rice eaters as well, if just seems to go with everything. My kids are vegetarian, and we don’t keep dairy products in the house. They have eaten eggs more often since we got the chickens, whereas I have firmly drawn a line on those things - yuck! We are a little bummed that the school thing is getting put off, but we’ll just have to wait another year. Good luck with the tummy! The human body is really fantastic when you think about what it can do.

I’ve been doing quite well food-wise. I took food to both the cook out and brunch and was busy enough with the socializing to avoid the tempting dishes all around. Unfortunately, I live in one of the cities that has experienced looting, so we are under curfew for the foreseeable future. While my life isn’t really impacted (we’re home all the time now anyways), the social injustice is weighing on me. This is one crazy year...
Lindsey
My food journal: Adventures in Eating
My pregnancy journal: Maybe a Baby 2017
www.lindseyhead.coach
User avatar
Lyndzie
 
Posts: 2709
Joined: Fri Dec 16, 2016 7:24 pm
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana USA

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby JeffN » Sat Jun 06, 2020 6:51 am

Ejeff wrote:I was reading the post about cheating in the lounge as Jeff commented regarding Brand New Vegans health crisis. It got me to thinking are nuts, seeds, avacados etc okay for maintenance. I believe for myself that I will continue to have these higher fat foods as long as my blood pressure is good and my BMI is at the low end of the range. I will always still say no to added oils and don’t see that changing either. Wondered what your thoughts are regarding higher fat whole foods? Do you consume them regularly while in maintenance?


Great question


Lyndzie wrote:Erin - Wasn’t that post from Jeff on the cheating thread so informative? You make some good points - Brand New Vegan had multiple red flags (high BMI, hypertension, high cholesterol), and was eating off-plan food more often than he had realized, as evidenced by the fact that he dropped nearly 20 lbs and got off all meds in a month’s time of healthy eating. Nuts and seeds can definitely be part of a person’s diet, depending on their health and goals.


Great answer.

The issue I was raising was about the 1%.

As I have said many time on this very topic, we see that all the time in these forums and at the 10-Day. People tell us they are vegan and/or WFPB, adherent to the program (usually with some very high percentage of adherence), yet they are not having success. In this case, there was at least 20 extra lbs, high blood pressure enough to warrant medication and high cholesterol. I would not call that success or maintenance. Yet, he stated he was 99% compliant and because he was vegan, he was “good.”

And if we didn’t cancel the March 10-Day Program, he would’ve been another example of another participant, who comes to the 10-Day and tells us they are vegan and/or WFBP, even McDougall compliant but are still sick and on medication.

If it is working for you, as it is, then including some health higher fat foods (nuts, seeds, Avo, etc) and more calorie dense foods (bread products, dried fruit etc), is fine. (Part of the problem was that his indiscretions were way more then a few of the healthier high fat and/or calorie dense foods.) But if you are still 20 lbs overweight with high cholesterol, high blood pressure and on medication, then maybe there is room for improvement and those foods should be eliminated.

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=60794&p=614009&#p614004

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=60794&p=614009&#p614009

In Health
Jeff
User avatar
JeffN
 
Posts: 9412
Joined: Tue Jan 08, 2008 5:56 am

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby viajera919 » Fri Jun 12, 2020 1:24 pm

Lyndzie - I had read in 2010 about how dairy can worsen sinus infections and allergies. I had no idea and suffered VERY VERY VERY badly form them my whole life (surgery, meds, being non functioning etc). I had already been vegetarian and then learning that sent me off to learn so much. I had had abnormal paps and seen my family suffer from strokes, diabetes, heart disease, etc. I thought it was all genetics. When I saw that I had the power to choose differently, I did. It was an easy switch for me - I’ve always preferred these foods. I’ve never had a hamburger. Meat grossed me out. Yogurt, mayo, sour cream, etc all grossed me out. I was the kid at the picnic loving the strawberry spinach salad. Haha.

This week has been great. I’m loving the 50/50 plate. My husband has been off plan this week and as of tonight all the oil containing foods are gone and I’m going grocery shopping and he wants none of it brought back. He still eats yellow light foods weekly but I think the yo yo-ing is getting to him. I told him that I’m tired of making a meal for the baby and me and then something else for him and our 7 year old since he’s been wanting junkier vegan food. So I am buying pbj and compliant cereals and if they don’t like what I’m cooking - they can have that.
User avatar
viajera919
 
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Apr 20, 2020 6:39 am
Location: Michigan

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Ejeff » Sat Jun 13, 2020 7:36 am

Lindsey, yes the pickleball courts where I play are open. There are rules that you need to play with someone from your own house etc. You are not supposed to share balls. Personally I think the rules are a bit silly because once the ball hits your paddle if there are virus particles they could now be on any ball. My personal strategy is to not touch my face at all when playing. I have no fear of the virus though and wish all these rules would just go away. Here is another virus silly for you. As a Canadian I cannot drive across the border to the USA. I will be stopped. BUT I am allowed to fly into your country. Now how does that make any sense whatsoever. As of yesterday we have moved to phase 2 reopening so gyms and pools are opening now. Not sure how or if this changes the pickleball rules. I don’t play as often as I used to, but just glad to play sometimes at this point. There is no organized league play and I am betting that won’t happen until next year.

Meals were pretty simple this week, I did have bulgar instead of oats. My hubby didn’t like it so I will probably switch back to steel cut oats. Made a really nice tofu scramble with all kinds of veggies and potatoes. I never used to add potatoes to it, but I figure it’s a good way to lower the calorie density of the meal somewhat.

Hope everyone has a good veggie filled week ahead!
"The more disciplined your environment is, the less disciplined you need to be. Don't swim upstream."
Ejeff
 
Posts: 679
Joined: Mon Feb 23, 2015 10:00 pm
Location: Alberta, Canada

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Lyndzie » Sat Jun 27, 2020 3:41 am

Jeff - Thanks for stopping by!

Viajera - How is the single meal preparation going for the family? My middle child is a “picky” eater, so trying to have food for everyone can become too labor intensive at mealtimes here, too. How is your summer going? That is really impressive that you came to this way of eating so young, oftentimes people don’t have the motivation to make changes until they are faced with their own mortality, and even then might not be willing/able to make changes. Are you going back to school this fall, or still on leave? We’re still on the fence, hopefully we’ll get that ironed out this weekend.

Erin - That is so great you’ve been able to get back to pickleball! I saw on the news that Canada is moving in the right direction regarding the virus decreasing. Hopefully Arizona gets in a better place, I’d love to head out to my dad’s house in the fall, but not when they are nearing ICU bed capacity. That is so interesting that you can’t drive back and forth but you could fly, it really makes no sense. Is it impacting your travel plans for the fall?

Trying to navigate little kid birthdays during the pandemic has been hard. We had planned an outdoor “party” for my youngest who had turned two this week, but steady rain is forecast for the next few days. Only four family members were coming, but still. These little interruptions to life’s rhythms are challenging. On the plus side, my eating has been on point, even when I really, really wanted to dive into some sweets, I made a plant-based alternative to tide me over, and that worked well.

Question: what do you eat as a side with a bean burger? I made a batch of Jeff’s bean burgers this week, and didn’t want to spend a lot more time in the kitchen, but need something quick on the side (fries take longer to cook than I want to spend). Any ideas?
Lindsey
My food journal: Adventures in Eating
My pregnancy journal: Maybe a Baby 2017
www.lindseyhead.coach
User avatar
Lyndzie
 
Posts: 2709
Joined: Fri Dec 16, 2016 7:24 pm
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana USA

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Suey51 » Sat Jun 27, 2020 4:50 am

Hi everyone,

Thanks Erin/Jeff/Lindsey for the discussion about higher fat and more calorie dense foods, it was very interesting. In maintenance I eat some nuts, seeds and bread, but I generally stay away from the highly processed vegan items. I have to be vigilant as they do sneak into my environment via other people. Brand New Vegan's story is a good reminder about the importance of staying on track with our eating.

Like Erin and Viajera, I have a vision of being a fit and healthy 90 year old. Occasionally 'in the moment' short-term urges for off-program items appear and seem more pressing, but I'm becoming more aware of those and how to manage them. The idea of asking myself 'what would a McDougaller do in this situation?' has been helpful recently.

I'm still tracking around 1 pound under my goal weight and the exercise experiments are going well.

Erin - I made the smokey pasta dish you mentioned and thought it was lovely! My husband's never been into cream-style sauces so I froze most of the sauce for future quick meals. The weather's been very hot this week, so we've been eating a lot of salads and simple meals like rice and veggies, baked potatoes, lentils and greens. We are now picking rainbow chard, cavolo nero (dinosaur kale - thanks Lindsey for mentioning that!), spinach, curly kale, radishes, lettuce and raspberries from our allotment. Hoping to pick our first cucumber this week.

Lindsey - with bean burgers I often have brown rice. For speed I keep some ready cooked in the freezer and pop it in the microwave. However, this can feel a bit dry so I make and freeze a tomato-based BBQ sauce and serve with a good dollop of that and of course, some greens!

Best wishes to everyone, Sue xx
User avatar
Suey51
 
Posts: 433
Joined: Mon May 08, 2017 11:21 am
Location: UK

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Ejeff » Sat Jun 27, 2020 8:16 am

Sue, glad you enjoyed the pasta sauce. And Lindsey it’s hard to say what will happen for travel next fall or winter, guess it depends on whether the borders open or not. Right now we aren’t making any specific plans. We may not go away as my hubby is awaiting knee replacement surgery and it’s hard to say when that will be. Pickleball has opened up even more now so it’s nice there are always people to play with. We were celebrating more family birthdays this week. Served veggie Chili with bulgar in it and corn bread. Was very tasty. I also made the soft oatmeal raisin cookies from straight up foods. They are a keeper too. As an appetizer I made hummus which is flavoured to taste like cool ranch Doritos chips. I have made it before, but not for some time and it really is good. All the SAD eaters enjoy it also. I need to remember it would be a good dip to take with veggies to a potluck.

I cooked up a huge batch of marinara sauce. I roasted the peppers first in my air fryer. The sauce is jammed full of veggies and I froze most of it. It’s funny I was reading on the MWL thread how Mark and others use the same bowl to eat their huge salads from. I do the same although mine is glass not metal. I was just thinking the other day I would be quite upset if that bowl broke. I like how it is nice and light! Interesting how not only are foods repeated, but also how we serve them up.

We ate lots of mashed potatoes with cauliflower and cooked carrots this week. All smothered in veggie gravy. :-D

I have noticed when buying greens that bok choy is much cheaper than say Swiss chard. Wonder why that is? I should do a comparison in Cronometer to see if one or the other is healthier. Not that I care much just curious. I think eating a variety of all veggies is the best anyways. Wishing everyone a great week.
"The more disciplined your environment is, the less disciplined you need to be. Don't swim upstream."
Ejeff
 
Posts: 679
Joined: Mon Feb 23, 2015 10:00 pm
Location: Alberta, Canada

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby wildgoose » Sat Jun 27, 2020 8:52 am

Erin, I’ve tried for a long time to make a Ranch-flavored hummus and haven’t had much success. Would you be willing to share your recipe?

Add me to the big-bowl club. I eat almost everything out of a big Pyrex mixing bowl. I’m not a huge salad eater, but I love to put cooked rice in the bottom of the bowl, add tons of veggies, and steam.

Goose
My story: MWL works!
How I determined my "goal weight"
User avatar
wildgoose
 
Posts: 409
Joined: Thu Nov 08, 2012 11:01 pm
Location: central Illinois

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Ejeff » Sun Jun 28, 2020 7:00 am

Goose, I used this recipe for the ranch hummus:

https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/cool-ranch-hummus/

I used 3 cups chickpeas. Instead of oil I added some aquafaba. And I didn’t use all the vinegar, perhaps 3 tablespoons. The nooch is optional and I did include 2 tablespoons. Hope you enjoy it.
"The more disciplined your environment is, the less disciplined you need to be. Don't swim upstream."
Ejeff
 
Posts: 679
Joined: Mon Feb 23, 2015 10:00 pm
Location: Alberta, Canada

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby wildgoose » Mon Jun 29, 2020 9:50 pm

Thanks, Erin! The recipe is definitely something I want to try. I always put aquafaba in my hummus, so I will sub that for the oil, as you did. Probably will take your advice on the vinegar too, since I tend not to like things overly "vinegar-y." I’m not a fan of nooch, so I’ll probably leave that out, at least for the first go-round. But I’m out of hummus, and I have a huge bag of baby carrots with nothing to dip them in, so this recipe is very timely. :-D

Goose
My story: MWL works!
How I determined my "goal weight"
User avatar
wildgoose
 
Posts: 409
Joined: Thu Nov 08, 2012 11:01 pm
Location: central Illinois

Re: JUNE 2020 Maintenance Thread

Postby Lyndzie » Fri Jul 03, 2020 7:38 pm

In case you missed it...the July thread is up!
Lindsey
My food journal: Adventures in Eating
My pregnancy journal: Maybe a Baby 2017
www.lindseyhead.coach
User avatar
Lyndzie
 
Posts: 2709
Joined: Fri Dec 16, 2016 7:24 pm
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana USA


Return to Testimonials and Success Stories

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 4 guests



Welcome!

Sign up to receive our regular articles, recipes, and news about upcoming events.