Tilda's Journal

[Tilda]

Hello,

My name is Tilda, I'm a 39 year old mother of five, working in the medical field. I have been struggeling with my weight for the past 25 years. I came across plant based nutrition a couple of months ago and am now ready to seriously give it a try. Emotional eating is also a big issue for me. I will tell you more about myself later - right now I have to go, but wanted to start this journal TODAY.

My current weight is 210lbs at 5'7''.

All the best! Tilda

[Tilda]

I live in Europe - so, half of my first official day as a "McDougaller" has already passed..., and I hope not to have spoiled it already...,

So far I had:

- Rolled oats with soy-rice-milk, 2 bananas and cinnamon (my standard breakfast for the past couple of months - but breakfast is always easy for me - usually in the afternoon I get tempted by ... everything...

- One small "coarse rye bread"-bun with pumpkin seeds

So far, so good..., let's see how lunch and the rest of the day goes...

Over the past decades I have made so many attempts to overcome my emotional eating and to finally lose this extra weight that I actually don't expect anything anymore. On the other hand I will turn 40 this year and I feel like improving my health is becoming increasingly important..., especially for my children I would like to be the fit, active and content mom they deserve.

For now, I will take one day at a time and "observe", what this starch based diet does to me...

[Melba76]

Hi Tilda and welcome!

I'm fairly new here too, look forward to reading about your progress in the next few weeks, sounds like you're doing great so far.

This board is a great resource for support and tips

I have a blog here too, so feel free to check it out - I'm coming up to 3 weeks on this WOE and as of today am 11 pounds down and feel I'm getting a healthier relationship with food and never feel deprived

[GlennR]

Welcome to the forums. I'm sure you'll do fine. There's no trick to this diet, eat starches, hold the fat and you'll lose weight. Some lose quickly, others more slowly but it's only a matter of time and adherence and you'll reach your goals.

[Tilda]

Thanks for your kind words, Melba and Glenn! It really made me happy to read your welcoming lines! I already stumbled across your journals yesterday and wish you all the best for your journeys! You can be very proud of what you've achieved so far!

Now I'm even more embarassed to admit that I screwed up already...., I was so much looking forward to dinner yesterday, but then I got stressed by many little things around me, still managed to prepare brown rice and vegetables for myself while I cooked pasta and tomato sauce for my kids, but somehow I really struggeled with seasoning the sauce to go with my dish - so it did not turn out tasty or appealing AT ALL..., I became mad at myself about not being able to prepare a reasonable McDougall-dinner, and watched my kids "indulging" in pasta with tomatoe sauce..., I began to pick same noodles from their plates..., one bite led to another..., soon I found myself in front of the shelf stuffed with sweets, cookies etc. - I ate so much that my stomach hurt... , plus some cheese - just to make everything even worse...

Well..., this little story unfortunately is the story of my life with reard to eating..., I really have problems to be kind to myself when making a mistake - and it often ends in uncontrolled binging until I feel completely useless...

I know that there are many people out there with the same problem - but still I can't figure a way out of this vicious cycle.

Well, this morning (after sleeping terribly - who would have guessed) I dusted myself off and started all over. I'm still embarassed about failing on the first day trying..., but I have also drawn some conclusions:

- I should have just eaten the pasta with my kids in the first place (even though it was white pasta; it would have been better to eat white pasta and be satisfied than stubbornly sticking to the rules 100%...)
- I need to get recepies for simple delicious sauces and salsas
- I should prepare foods in advance or buy some canned stuff to be prepared at all times
- I definitely need to practice being kinder to myself and shouldn't spoil the whole project whenever I encounter the first difficulty...

The hardest part right now seems to be patience - I feel so uncomfortable in my own skin that I would give a lot for just waking up 20lbs lighter and "feeling" that the path I've chosen is right... - instead I feel very insecure.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well..., today I was very cautious - I ate:

Oats with soy-rice milk and two bananas
Vegetable curry with leek and yellow bell pepper with brown rice
1 Banana, 1 Coffee

I did not have dinner today..., I know - it's not good to skip a meal..., but after yesterday I just didn't feel like it...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Good night for now - I'm looking forward to my next day "with Dr. McDougall" tomorrow and hope to "get there" step by step...

Oh, and two more questions, in case anyone reads this:
- what are your favourite simple selfmade sauces for vegetable dishes...?
- does anyone still drink coffee from time to time - and what is your recommendation as a cow milk substitute for cappucinos...? (I tried soy, almond and rice mik - and did not like any of these because of their sweet taste...)

[Melba76]

Hey Tilda, just chalk it up to experience, well done for picking yourself up and carrying on - there's no race here, and it takes each of us our own time to find our feet, and a lot of that can depend on what your motivation is. So it might be helpful to keep that motivation in mind .

I tried this WOE a few years ago, very half heartedly, and didn't continue with it. But this time, I am just in the right 'head space' for it if that makes sense - and really motivated to finally lose weight and reclaim my health.

I've found the trick is to find a small number of easy-to-make recipes that YOU enjoy. I started out really simple, making a big batch of brown rice, throwing in some peas and corn and storing it in the fridge for the next few days. Then you just need to add a topping - that could be some homemade red lentil or split pea dal

lots of easy recipes out there, here's one I used recently:

Ingredients

1 red / white onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 tsp minced ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups red lentils
1 sweet potato, diced
1 cup butternut squash, diced
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp cumin
1 pinch cayenne pepper
6 cups water
1/2 lemon, juiced

Throw all into your Instant Pot, leaving out the lemon juice. Cook for 15 - 17 mins at high pressure, followed by natural release. Add lemon juice and stir. If too liquid add more red lentils and simmer for 20 mins until desired consistency (or serve as soup!). Serve with brown rice

Or you could just water-stir fry veggies like mushrooms and onions and add those into your rice.

Then there's porridge of course, which you can prepare in advance for brekkie - and is also useful for a snack if you come in hungry and need something NOW, nice with a sliced banana or scoop of fruit sorbet

Then there's the baked potato - another staple, you can just have with a side of veggies, or my favourite just now is to make up some oil free hummus and spoon that on top.

Or bean burritos - make up a big pot of pinto bean, mash it and portion it out (it freezes really well) - then throw on a tortilla with your favourite fixins like salsa, brown rice, sweet corn etc.

Yep I might have to change the name of my blog to beans AND porridge lover!

I swear your taste buds change, mine did after about 1 week, and things that tasted 'boring' before, now taste yummy - honest!

Check out blogs, McDougall recipes from the newsletter, anything and everything that sounds appealing and manageable to cook (and fits in with the plan) and experiment - you'll find your go to, don't have to think about it, tasty meal options soon.

Keep us posted x

[Lizzy_F]

Hi Tilda! I just wanted to welcome you and congratulate you on choosing to pursue this healthy path. I too struggle with emotional eating, extra weight, etc. I cannot claim overall success (yet) but then again, my eating didn't get cRaZy overnight either. So I am choosing to stick around here, with all the imperfections, and just celebrate my GOOD choices each day, and stop beating myself up when I make mistakes. Want to join me?? After reading your posts and Melba's responses, I'm thinking I would benefit by spending some time tomorrow morning planning my meals and snacks for the week.

Thank you for sharing the highs AND lows in your journal. You are not alone! We will find our way eventually!

[Tilda]

Thank you, Lizzy and Melba! You are both really encouraging! Counting the good things and not the failures is a very wise strategy..., and I've been reminding myself of this clever tipp all day,

So........, today wa sactually good..., see youselves:

B - Porridge with bananas and cinnamon
S - Capppuccino with cashew milk (that was actually the bested faked cappuccino I had so far - after some quick research I decided to go for it since rice, soy, and almond milk were not really my taste) - I really liked it and am happy to have identified this opportunity to share a nice cup of coffee with my husband - someting we really enjoy from time to time as some minutes off from the family chaos...!
L - Creamy carrot soup (a recipe from the McDougall newsletter) with brown rice
S - 3 small potatoes with curry ketchup (had to try this - read it in this board..., so simple, so good! )
D - Chick pea coconut curry and brown rice

I'm especially proud that I did not "chose the safest way"..., meaning: I had the cappuccino and enjoyed it instead of forbidding myself this little extravagancy...,and I used coconut milk for the chick pea curry instaed of just water, because I love the taste of it..., Of course, in terms of weight loss those two things are probably not helping, but I've learned from the past that leaving out such treats leads to binging because I feel deprived after a couple of days...

I even managed to prepare rice, potatoes, and chili for tomorrow and made a meal plan for the upcoming week. I'm very excited to see how the next days will turn out...

[Melba76]

Go Tilda! That all sounds awesome

We're all different and I know there are different views on here as to whether to just go full on mcdougall all at once, cutting out ALL the non compliant foods and fats at once, or whether it's better to ease into it by gradually reducing and eventually eliminating those things.

I would say go with whatever you feel will work best for you, but remember the goal is to drop those oils and fats from nuts /coconut especially during the weightloss phase.

Remember condiments and spices can be used freely to add some zing, and when your taste buds start changing you really won't miss the coconut milk etc because everything will be tasting good anyway, there's really no need to feel deprived!

I had chips and ketchup for breakfast yesterday, no deprivation here ha ha

Give those taste buds a chance to change and maybe next time risk trying your recipe without there coconut milk - you may find it tastes fab regardless

Also I used to think I could never do tea or coffee without milk or at least a milk substitute and now prefer it (more so tea than coffee, so I drink more tea which is better anyway due to less caffeine)

Anyway rock on lady, you are doing great!

[Tilda]

Hey Melba, thank you again for making me smile and looking forward to my tstae buds changing their preferences..., Today was a busy day and so far okay with regard to my meals, but I still feel "a little empty" inside and decided to come here while listening to my feelings baout eating more...., or not...

I had:

B - Porridge with bananas and cinnamon
L - had to skip due to work meetings - only drank water which was okay once the big hole in my stomach around noon disappeared again
S - Cappuccino with the rest of the cashew milk from yesterday
D - this was tricky - first I had the rest of the carrot soup with brown rice from yesterday, but this was only half a portion, then I had to pick up some of my kids, and when I got back home I was still pretty hungry, so I had more brown rice with some chili that I prepared yesterday (and I added some ketchup, my new favorite..., (can I really eat this?)).

Now it's 9pm and I definitly don't feel ful/satisfied - I guess I will have some porridge with fruit right now...

The thing is - if I eat something now my insecurity regarding the possible effect of this way of eating will increase because I feel like testing the limits of the "allowed"..., if I don't eat something now I will go to bed with an empty stomach feeling half cranky and half proud of not "giving in"..., but the insecurity will still increase (maybe even more...?) because if I see results whenever I step on the scale next, I cannot be sure if the weight loss is a result of eating sufficient amounts of the right food or from unintentionally restricting calories and beeing cautious all the time...., hm

Well..........., I think I'll have some porridge right now and REALLY enjoy it....! Brave..., huh...?

@Melba: do you really use condiments freely...? I'm still a little hesitant when it comes to ketchup etc. - it's really crazy how old myths about food ("carbs are bad", "sweet is bad", "potatoes are bad", ans so on) are still so present whenever I go grocery shopping or plan my meals.....

[Melba76]

Now it's 9pm and I definitly don't feel ful/satisfied - I guess I will have some porridge with fruit right now...

The thing is - if I eat something now my insecurity regarding the possible effect of this way of eating will increase because I feel like testing the limits of the "allowed"..., if I don't eat something now I will go to bed with an empty stomach feeling half cranky and half proud of not "giving in"..., but the insecurity will still increase (maybe even more...?) because if I see results whenever I step on the scale next, I cannot be sure if the weight loss is a result of eating sufficient amounts of the right food or from unintentionally restricting calories and beeing cautious all the time...., hm

Well..........., I think I'll have some porridge right now and REALLY enjoy it....! Brave..., huh...?

@Melba: do you really use condiments freely...? I'm still a little hesitant when it comes to ketchup etc. - it's really crazy how old myths about food ("carbs are bad", "sweet is bad", "potatoes are bad", ans so on) are still so present whenever I go grocery shopping or plan my meals.....

Hey Tilda Don't sweat it girl, I say listening to your body is your first port of call, if you're hungry eat something - I usually make enough steel cut oats for two days, but sometimes it turns into enough for one day and two snacks

Honestly you shouldn't have to worry about feeling hungry with this WOE ever! I'm not sure I've mentioned it enough on my blog, cos now I think about it, it's one of the biggest changes for me - my blood sugar seems sooooo much more balanced, I eat when I'm hungry but rarely get the dreaded 'munchies' - you know, that feeling when you could just fancy a little something - like that pack of biscuits in the office lol, it just doesn't occur to me, as breakfast fills me right up lunch does the same - I often bring some fruit and eat it after lunch as an extra, but I don't always feel the need for it.

I've had days when I've wanted 'dessert' every day (usually some steel cut oats with fruit sorbet for me) and others like today when I just don't feel like it.

Re: condiments, Dr McDougall says use them freely, and if it's good enough for Dr McD it's good enough for me I think it's really to encourage people to stick with the plan, I mean I wouldn't add 1/2 a bottle of ketchup or anything, but a dollop to dip my chips into is just fine.

When you start to see the pounds dropping - and they will, and in less time than you think if you stick with the guidelines - you will start to feel more relaxed with your food and with this WOE in general. I know I do. When I started I was like - um can I really eat porridge every day? with a spoon of jam in it? And for snacks too? and maybe for dinner and dessert? LOL

Make starch the main part of your meal, add some veggies or fruit, steer clear of all added fats and eat enough to feel satisfied - if you come back an hour later and feel peckish, eat some more until satisfied. Re-read or dip back into The Starch Solution (have you read it?) if you need to reassure yourself. You got this xx

[Tilda]

Hello,

very quick report for today - another busy day...

B - porridge with banana and cinnamon
L - 1 1/2 slices of WW-bread - no time for a proper meal
S - cappuccino with soy milk (tasted surprisingly okay..., tried a different brand, or did the magical taste bud change begin...? )
D - mushroom stir fry with oven baked potatoes and a vegan brown instant gravy (...not convincing, though...)

Good night...!

[Tilda]

I just decided to use another color to make clear: today was unintentionally NOT a McDougall day.......
But I would like to quickly tell you all about it, so I can learn...

The day startetd out well with a breakfast as usual, porridge and banana..., and even before breakfast I noticed on the scale that I had already lost 2.5kg (in 5 days?!?!) - I was of course pleased but at the same time I started to judge myself for maybe eating too little..., this has often been my problem with changes in WOE..., eating too little on the new regime, having quick success, but failing rather soon, probably due to hunger....

After breakfast, the day became very hectic..., around noon I realized I would not be able to have a "proper" sit down lunch..., but I stopped by a bakery and baught a perfectly McDougall-compliant whole wheat rye bread. When hunger pangs started shorly after, I enjoyed a slice..., but one slice led to another, and while already feeling "guilty" because "bread - even whole wheat - is not good for weight loss...", I had more and more bread until I feeled stuffed. Still, I felt okay..., I prepared a good dinner with vegan oil-free tsatsiki and oven potatoes, but soon after I wa sled by such a pressure to spoil the day that......I did........., I ended up eating more bread with butter and cheese although I was not physically hungry at that moment..., and rounded up the day with lots of sweets...





Yeah..., well..., nothing to add right now - let's se how I get back in the saddle tomorrow.......

I hope everyone else had a good day today...,

[Tilda]

So, day 7 is a "black day" again, meaning: I'm back in the saddle and no problems today!

Very quick:

B - porridge with bananas and cinnamon
L - brown rice and kidney bean chili
S - soy milk cappuccino
D - stir fry of string beans, peas, corn and carrots with sprouts and brown rice, soy and sweet & sour sauce

Did not step on the scale this morning...,

[Melba76]

Hi Tilda

How's things going? Hope all is well with you, keep us posted if you can