Hi k, that sounds great. I do need a buddy for extra motivation. Back in 2006/2007 I lost 34 lbs on McDougall plan and looked great. Then I got pregnant. I was able to follow the diet without wavering even through holidays, and I felt great and ate great. I followed the plan without any trouble for about a year until the middle of my pregnancy when I started getting off the plan and slowly I gained 55 lbs during my pregnancy!
Anyway, long story short, I realize now that it was much easier for me to lose weight and stay on the plan before I had children! Here is my problem: The first time I followed this diet I read a lot, I watched the DVDs, online lectures, educated myself and I was very vigilant about doing the right thing. After children, I was ignoring everything I learned, I never read labels and although we kept the same consumption of fruit and vegetables enviable by many, we really didn't eat all that well. It took my daughter being diagnosed with food allergies that we started reading labels again! You think this would stop me! No, I only read the labels for allergens and ignored the rest. Plus I find it very, very difficult to educate my husband who is pre-packaged food buyer in this house about the labels, etc...He is in superb shape, muscular 48 year old, never been sick a day in his life, never gets colds, energy to spare, never weighed a pound over his ideal weight, actually he weighs the same as he did in high school..He honestly believes that he is eating healthy diet, - look at the life-long results...I personally think he just get great genes unlike his less genetically lucky brother...
So, he believes that it is okay to feed the 3 year old the same diet he is eating. Canned food high in sodium stupid characters pasta, more sodium I could handle. Crackers, breads, chips, beans you name it he has brought this 'healthy foods' in the house and fed it to 3 year old. Now I am not without faults. I am just happy that she is actually eating something, that with all the faults also has some nutrition. To quiet my guilt I actually eat same foods because how can I feed her what I think is unhealthy. And if I eat it it is healthy. This is - mind you just to fool myself. On the back of my mind I know better, I just chose to ignore it. On the plus side we do and always have, including the 3 year old eat ample amounts of fruits and vegetables.
Anyway, back to reading labels. I intend to have a long conversation with my husband about sodium content in foods he's been buying, plus all 'trans-fat' free with partially hydrogenated ingredients. He also knows better because we went through this before, but this time it harder. The children need to be fed and fed fast. And they are so picky. Last night I made ff sweet potato fries for her. She loves the regular sweet potato fires so I decided to give it a try. Well they were declared 'yucky' and that was it. I am re-learning the dangers of heated oils, and really I don't want them exposed to it.
So this journal will also be dedicated to what family eats not just me.
References:
http://blip.tv/file/3091025http://blip.tv/file/3193247Today's plan:
B: Oatmeal w apple sauce and few raisins
same
L:plan: kale chips w nutritional yeast, amy's bean buritos (these are too high in sodium this will have to go off the shopping list)
D: plan: Corn pasta w cream of cauliflower, white beans, tomatoes, green onions