Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Share your daily McDougall menus and/or keep a journal describing your personal progress.

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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Suey51 » Sat Oct 20, 2018 2:28 am

A turbulent month**

It's been a month since I last wrote in my journal and the waves have been bigger than usual. Firstly, Mum had total knee replacement surgery in September. She lives alone so I stayed with her for a few days when she came out of hospital and then my brother was on hand to support her. She is still in a lot of pain but is doing really well with her recovery. Secondly, we spent three weeks away in Southern Spain with various house guests (my adult step-children and two sets of friends staying with us at different times).

Today my weight is back to my goal weight which is a pound down on my last post here. I’m happy to be here, particularly given the more challenging conditions :)

I've been reflecting on my experiences over the past month.

• Seeing Mum in so much pain after her knee surgery has reminded me why I started doing this in the first place.

• Anxiety, stress and tiredness still trigger a desire for richer foods. Preparation and planning are key to staying on track during those times.

• Sharing home-prepared meals with friends and family while in Spain was a complete joy. We were lucky to have people with us who are happy to eat similar foods, with the addition of some non-McDougall items for them, for example a lunch with a range of salads, homemade oil-free hummus and wholemeal bread, plus some other items for the non-McDougallers. We kept any oil-based salad dressing separate and there was always plenty of McDougall foods for me. When in Spain I love shopping for local fruit, salads and veggies plus jars of chick peas, cannelini beans and lentils. There seems to be a better range of beans and legumes there and they definitely taste better in jars than in cans. Our family/friends were happy to try foods/dishes that were new to them and generally enjoyed them :) (One of the couples have since decided to try out MWL for themselves – yayyyy!)

• We ate out more often in Spain than at home, which is still tricky for me. However, I’m more confident now to ask for menu items to be tweaked to suit my WOE. Where I couldn't get a compliant option, I just did the best job I could, and enjoyed the time with people and overall experience. We enjoy going to tapas bars where they offer you a small dish of food included in the price of the drink. However, the tapas options are never WFPBNO. On reflection, I could have eaten before going out and then not eaten tapas, or asked for a salad from the main course food menu or even taken my own snacks. More strategies for me to try on our next visit!

• Some fatty/salty/sweet snacks were brought into the house and I ate them. Often this would be in the evening when my willpower was depleted, when old habits kicked in or when I was feeling tired.

• Overall, I’m very grateful and happy to be this weight and to be in good health. It feels so good to be more comfortable in the hotter weather, to wear clothes with more wear more va-va voom and to enjoy walking without knee pain :-)

Thinking back over the past few months, I’ve noticed a slight sense of fatigue with this way of eating. Or to be more accurate, with trying to eat this way within the wider context. There’s been a feeling of being on a long and tiring journey and wanting some respite (in this case, richer foods in my life). I suspect its partly down to the more turbulent environment, where I’m constantly having to use willpower to resist richer foods and partly due to trying to change other habits at the same time. As a result, there’s been a lot for my brain to handle!

So, I’ve decided to follow the MWL Program for a fortnight to help reset everything - habits, mindset and taste buds - and to resume meal planning after a break while we were away. We are at home, with less turbulence forecast so that will help :)

It’ll be good to keep company with the friends who've recently started MWL. Plus, my husband has regained some of the weight he lost earlier this year and would like to lose it and a little more, so he's going to do it too. Plus, there are all my original reasons for starting McDougalling last year - pain avoidance, general health, weight loss - and the side benefits of improved appearance and reduced impact on the environment. There are so many reasons to do this! I'm feeling a renewed sense of energy and enthusiasm and a little bit of excitement about this new challenge :)

Do any other maintainers or long-term McDougallers ever get that slight sense of fatigue? And if so, how do you deal with it?

Best wishes to everyone xx

** Using 'turbulent' in the same way that Dr Doug Lisle uses it to describe change in your environment.
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Idgie » Sat Oct 20, 2018 7:23 am

Suey, you've given me flashback memories of my childhood in southern Spain -- what a wonderful time that was! Of course, most of my food memories are drenched in oil and animal products, but hey, it was a different time in my life.

Good for you managing to navigate this food-filled world and stay mostly on track. I have been McDougalling on and off since 1983, and yes, sometimes I get tired of it, and sometimes I even get petulant and rebellious, as though someone is punishing me by taking away my potato chips. But then I remind myself that I am being loving toward myself whenever I feed my body good, clean fuel.

Thank you for your post, and for your success story, which I just read. I appreciate seeing the other end of this journey. I have lost 45 pounds and have 100+ to go, so stories like yours help with that fatigue.
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Suey51 » Sat Oct 20, 2018 8:16 am

Idgie wrote:Suey, you've given me flashback memories of my childhood in southern Spain -- what a wonderful time that was! Of course, most of my food memories are drenched in oil and animal products, but hey, it was a different time in my life.

Wow! I'd love to hear more about your experiences! We love the area and would happily migrate there each winter if we didn't have family in the UK.

Idgie wrote:I have been McDougalling on and off since 1983, and yes, sometimes I get tired of it, and sometimes I even get petulant and rebellious, as though someone is punishing me by taking away my potato chips. But then I remind myself that I am being loving toward myself whenever I feed my body good, clean fuel.
Your words are spot on. I was at a yoga class yesterday and our lovely teacher was talking about self-care and said try to be a friend to your body rather than an antagonist. It put me in mind of this WOE.

I feel a whole lot better for having got my earlier post 'off my chest', had a chat in the real world with a good friend, this chat online with you and enjoyed a rather delicious MWL meal ( brown rice, a veg and bean soup from the freezer, curly kale, sweetcorn and some extra chili powder)! Am about to start making a couple of McDougall recipes for meals over the next couple of days. I'm hoping that having some yummy food easily available, and just sticking to my habits in the less turbulent home environment will work their magic. In fact, I think its already started!

Idgie wrote:Thank you for your post, and for your success story, which I just read. I appreciate seeing the other end of this journey. I have lost 45 pounds and have 100+ to go, so stories like yours help with that fatigue.


Thank you for your kind words :) I do enjoy reading your posts and am inspired by your success. Although I sometimes find this WOE tricky, the effort is certainly worth the results :)

Cheers, Sue
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Idgie » Sat Oct 20, 2018 2:46 pm

So glad you're feeling a little better! I'm feeling really motivated lately, but I wish I could bottle it for those hard days!

I grew up on and off the Navy base in Rota, near Cadiz & Sevilla. We were there for several years, and it was a magical time for me and my family. We all still look back on it really fondly.

I think the only food traditions that have survived all these years back stateside are:

1) I still make tortilla española for my daughter. I grew up on it, and she calls it "mom food," because I've been making it for her since she was tiny. Haven't made it in years, but she knows how to make it herself, so now that she's not living here, it probably won't come up again.

2) We had a carer/nanny when my mother was busy with officer's-wife stuff. Her name was Maria. When I was sick, she would make me either chamomile tea (if I was nauseated) or "Maria's soup" (tomatoes, onions, potatoes, salt water, olive oil) if I had a cold. I still want those things when I'm sick.

Other than that, Spanish food is mostly just a fond memory. But now I kind of want to make some MWL gazpacho. :-)
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Suey51 » Sat Nov 03, 2018 2:18 am

Thanks Idgie! Yes, that would be good wouldn't it!

How wonderful to have those shared memories :) Making MWL gazpacho and Maria's soup (Without the oil) are good ideas, we have a glut of (mostly) green tomatoes from the garden. If they ripen, I will try making the soups!

We made Spanish food for lunch on Christmas Day last year. I had veggie paella, salads plus a couple of tapas dishes that were plant-based but had a little oil or nuts so weren't McDougall-friendly. My husband makes a great veggie paella, without oil and has recently adapted it to use brown rice as per Mary McDougall's recipe :) He doesn't follow recipes so chucks in onions, garlic, paella spices, saffron, tinned tomatoes etc. plus whatever veg we've got on hand. Somehow, it always come out delicious!

Congrats on your compliance project and your fab weight loss results!

Best wishes, Sue xx
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Lyndzie » Sat Nov 03, 2018 8:09 am

Sue (and everyone else) - what’s on your menu this week? I did a grocery trip yesterday and restocked some staples (pasta, sauce, beans), plus ingredients for:
- Barley and fennel stuffed acorn squash
- rainbow noodle salad and spring rolls
- chili and cornbread
- pineapple sweet and sour stir fry

I LOVE Spanish tortilla. (We did a road trip through Europe once, starting in Barcelona, and ending in Florence, and visited six countries). Anyone try to McDougall-ize it yet?
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Idgie » Sat Nov 03, 2018 8:33 am

There's a tortilla española recipe in the new FOK cookbook (Flavors); I'll go see if it is McD-friendly in a minute. [EDIT: tofu and chickpea flour]

I learned yesterday that the combination of exhaustion and not having any cooked starches in my fridge is a great way for me to show poor judgment at the grocery store. I had another off-plan dinner, but I woke up this morning with no desire to repeat that today, so I'm going to cook a big mess of sweet potatoes today. Sweet potatoes are my friend!
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Lyndzie » Sat Nov 03, 2018 10:09 am

Thanks, Idgie! I just requested the book from the library. Good luck with egos choices today. I’m a disaster in a store when I’m hungry.
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby moonlight » Sat Nov 03, 2018 12:23 pm

Hi Sue,

Good to hear from you! I hope you are doing well and still riding the wave!! :)
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby verde » Sun Nov 04, 2018 6:55 am

Lyndzie wrote:Thanks, Idgie! I just requested the book from the library. Good luck with egos choices today. I’m a disaster in a store when I’m hungry.


I think we all are! If I go to the store hungry and on top of it tired, I come out of there with too many unnecessary groceries, a high bill to pay, and then I'm home with more uncooked food than I know what to do with. Yes, cooking in advance can be a freaking pain sometimes (especially when you're tired and feeling lazy), but honestly, it's crucial for success in making good choices in this WOE!

I like to have at the very least a big batch of hearty soup in my fridge at all times. I have to make it every three or four days, but it's absolutely worth the trouble. I've even had it for breakfast or as a late snack before bed. Eating before bed may not be the best practice, but if you're going to do it, it better be with compliant food, so you don't feel like crap about yourself the next morning! XD

You can even make the soup taste sweet if you add in carrots, sweet potatoes (or winter squashes), and beets. That combination is delicious!
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Suey51 » Fri Nov 16, 2018 3:21 am

Lindsey - Your menu sounds great!

Over the past few weeks we've made:
- Puy lentil and root veg stew
- Chick pea salad
- Mushroom fajitas
- Veggie burgers
- Veggie paella
- Veggie hot pot
- Various soups - root veg, spicy tomato and lentil

We're still using the meal planner, although we generally don't do a week's worth of planning in one go. It really helps clarify plans for the week, such as, do we need portable food for packed lunches, plus make decisions on who's cooking what and when. It also helps me to review what ingredients we have on hand that we'd like to base a meal around and what shopping we need. At the moment we are finishing up potatoes, courgette / zucchini and tomatoes from the garden and are starting to use seasonal root veg from the supermarket.

Wow - love the sound of your European road trip! Which other countries did you visit?

Thanks Idgie for the tip-off about the tortilla recipe in the FOK Flavors book! What do you think of the book so far?

Thanks moonlight! All is well with me :-) I'm still balancing on the weight maintenance wave - currently tracking about 0.5 above my goal weight which I'm very happy with. Hope all is well with you!

Hi verde! You're so right about shopping and batch cooking. It's Autumn in the UK so we are making soups and stews with lots of root veg - yummy!
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Idgie » Sun Nov 18, 2018 12:34 am

Suey: My plan is to read through the whole book and see how many MWL-friendly recipes there are. Might cook through them all.
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Lyndzie » Sun Nov 18, 2018 1:34 am

Hi Sue! I’m down to the last few pounds before I’m “riding the wave” as well. Yay! On our road trip, we started in Barcelona and traveled through Spain, France, Andorra, Monaco, and Italy, ending in Florence. Meal planning this week before the big Thanksgiving holiday here: Heather McDougall’s noodle soup (as featured on the Forks Over Knives website), barley stuffed acorn squash, probably taco night, and something else, maybe a stir fry of sorts.

What does everyone else have going on?
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Suey51 » Wed Nov 21, 2018 11:19 am

Hi Idgie! Sounds like a great plan. Look forward to hearing how it goes x

Hi Lindsey Yayyyyyy indeed! Congratulations on your progress; there's plenty of room on this weight maintenance wave for you :D Your European road trip sounds fab!

This week 's meal planner features some of the spicy tomato and lentil soup from last week, plus jacket potatoes with garlic mushrooms and asparagus, stuffed mushrooms with root veg mash & roasted carrots and rice with veggies.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and everyone who's celebrating this week xx
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Re: Keeping the weight off: riding the wave

Postby Suey51 » Fri Nov 23, 2018 3:51 am

My weight is still holding steady at 0.5 over my goal weight. I've been having some higher fat pant foods. Re-reading the McDougall guidelines this morning reminds me that they are to be considered delicacies and for occasional consumption only. Note to self: 'occasional' isn't every day :lol:

My husband has lost 10 pounds in the last 5 weeks (since he started MWL) and is delighted with the results. It's been another interesting chapter in my McDougall story. We are sharing more meals together which is wonderful and he is getting more involved in the menu planning and batch cooking. We're now talking about this way of eating in a different way and it's so interesting to hear him talk about his experiences. The only downside, is that he burns way more calories than me as he's been working out at the gym most days, so I have to watch that I don't get drawn to eat the same volume and calorie density of food.

This way of eating is settling into being a lifestyle. I'm enjoying the life it gives me and am grateful for all the information and support that I continue to find here.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who is celebrating!
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