Starflower’s Journey to Health

[Starflower]

MWL post for September 1st:

Happy September!

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. NO - two sugary drinks.

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). YES

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). NO - two sugary drinks.

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). NO - I missed one day when I wasn’t feeling well.

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

It was a good week. I went to a county fair over the weekend. I got overheated and got a slushie both days. I needed the crushed ice, but I wish I’d thought to ask if they could do plain water instead of the flavored drink. On a better note, I got a funny reaction from the lady at the loaded potato stand. I had to repeat my order of a plain potato twice and she looked at me like I was crazy! I was able to get plain corn on the cob, too. Delicious! I noticed that the smells of deep fried and super sugary foods made me feel sick. It’s hard to believe I used to love that stuff. Yuck.

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

Happy birthday, Bambi!

[Starflower]

MWL post for September 8th:

Hi team!

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. NO - too much salt and sugar

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO - some avocado and edamame

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). NO - some almond milk in coffee

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). NO - none on the hottest days

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

Do you find yourself leaning more on repetition and simplicity in your meals, or do you feel like you need more variety in recipes to be content and satisfied?

Do you tend to cycle through 5 or 6 reliable favorite recipes, or are you driven to frequently test out new discoveries?

Do you find comfort in familiar, enjoyable activities or do you crave new adventures?

What have you been enjoying lately? What foods, pastimes, social activities, or recreations have been sparking joy in you?

It was a difficult week. Heat, humidity, and lack of sleep led to some old comfort foods, just because they were easy to grab. I made some poor choices. I used Mark’s questions to come up with a plan to avoid poor choices in future. Perfect timing, Mark!

I love to keep things simple, with not too many choices. Trying new things is fun, but only added to traditional foods on special occasions, like holidays. My plan includes things like containers of mashed potatoes, peas, carrots and rice in the fridge so a healthy comfort food is readily available. Lately corn on the cob and watermelon have been my indulgences. I’m looking forward to soup season! I started playing my flute again, doing sudoku and recently tried miniature golf, which I enjoyed.

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

[bunsofaluminum]

MWL post for September 8th:

Hi team!

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. NO - too much salt and sugar

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO - some avocado and edamame

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). NO - some almond milk in coffee

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). NO - none on the hottest days

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

Do you find yourself leaning more on repetition and simplicity in your meals, or do you feel like you need more variety in recipes to be content and satisfied?

Do you tend to cycle through 5 or 6 reliable favorite recipes, or are you driven to frequently test out new discoveries?

Do you find comfort in familiar, enjoyable activities or do you crave new adventures?

What have you been enjoying lately? What foods, pastimes, social activities, or recreations have been sparking joy in you?

It was a difficult week. Heat, humidity, and lack of sleep led to some old comfort foods, just because they were easy to grab. I made some poor choices. I used Mark’s questions to come up with a plan to avoid poor choices in future. Perfect timing, Mark!

I love to keep things simple, with not too many choices. Trying new things is fun, but only added to traditional foods on special occasions, like holidays. My plan includes things like containers of mashed potatoes, peas, carrots and rice in the fridge so a healthy comfort food is readily available. Lately corn on the cob and watermelon have been my indulgences. I’m looking forward to soup season! I started playing my flute again, doing sudoku and recently tried miniature golf, which I enjoyed.

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

mmmm, I'm excited for soup season, too! Enjoying the harvest currently, with tomatoes, cucumbers, apples, and nectarines.

[Starflower]

Thanks for stopping by! That sounds sooo good! A local farm stand has some beautiful produce right now. I haven’t been able to get there yet, but hoping for today. Have a wonderful week!

[Starflower]

MWL post for September 15th

Hi team!

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. YES

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO - some avocado

6) Eliminate any added oil. NO - see #8

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). NO - some vegan creamer in coffee

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

It was such a busy week I almost forgot to post! My triggers for poor choices definitely are fatigue and the need for quick decisions. I succeeded in having some compliant foods ready, but need to do more for the coming week. I sure could use a more supportive environment. The article Mark posted made me think about that, and what I can do to create one.

I plan to work on getting more sleep to prevent fatigue as much as possible. An ounce of prevention, right? Any SAD foods that trip me up are no longer in the house. I felt bad about that until I realized that they’re bad for my family, too. I’d rather not provide things that are bad for them.They can still get them elsewhere if they want. I found a local Asian market that has purple sweet potatoes and yams, red rice noodles and lots of wonderful new (to me) produce. Yum!

Mark, your recipe sounds delicious. As soon as I get a new oven we’re having that for dinner!

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Starflower!

Your local Asian market sounds AWESOME!!! Yum!!!

I agree with you 100% about how important it is to have / build a supportive environment as best you can. Helps a ton!!! I honestly have found that I choose to spend my time with people more who bring optimism and positive energy and have pulled back a bit (in some cases entirely) from detractors. Not sure if that is anything like what you meant --- but it is something that has been beneficial for my own well-being.

Hope that you have a terrific week!

Best,
Stephanie

[Starflower]

Hi Starflower!

Your local Asian market sounds AWESOME!!! Yum!!!

I agree with you 100% about how important it is to have / build a supportive environment as best you can. Helps a ton!!! I honestly have found that I choose to spend my time with people more who bring optimism and positive energy and have pulled back a bit (in some cases entirely) from detractors. Not sure if that is anything like what you meant --- but it is something that has been beneficial for my own well-being.

Hope that you have a terrific week!

Best,
Stephanie

Hey Stephanie!

The market IS awsome! Lots of great choices and helpful people. I love going there.

You’re right about environment. Sometimes I feel like I’m my own worst enemy, though!

You had a really good week! It’s great that you saved your post. I didn’t have a copy of mine.


Wishing you a wonderful week!

[Starflower]

I lost last week’s MWL post due to the server problem. I didn’t have a copy anywhere else. It was a good week overall.

This week is more of a challenge. Onward!

[Starflower]

MWL post for September 29th

Hi team!

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. NO

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. YES

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO

6) Eliminate any added oil. NO

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). NO

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

It wasn’t my best week. Pain from dental work and taking care of a sick family member was a challenge. Fatigue and not being able to chew resulted in some poor choices and skipped steps. Not an excuse, I know. On the bright side, a new stove and fridge will make batch cooking much easier from now on! There’s a mashed potato casserole baking now, and a big bowl of pasta and two large salads in the fridge. Progress!

Mark, thank you for extending the window because of the server problem. I didn’t have a copy of my post, but that was appreciated anyway!

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Starflower,

Hope that your week coming up is easier and that your pain is going away from dental work.

Awesome that you have some new appliances to look forward to and sounds like some amazing food prepared!

Cheers,
Stephanie

[Starflower]

Hi Starflower,

Hope that your week coming up is easier and that your pain is going away from dental work.

Awesome that you have some new appliances to look forward to and sounds like some amazing food prepared!

Cheers,
Stephanie

Hey Stephanie!

Hope you’re having a good week! Did you say winter pickleball in your post?! Too cold for me, lol!

Thanks! The pain is almost gone. This time was a doozy! I’m having fun testing out my new stove. There are so many fall recipes!

Wishing you a lovely week!

[Starflower]

MWL post for October 6th

Hi team!

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. YES

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

This week was much better. Other than some nut butter, I stayed on plan. The extra refrigerator space and cooking capability helped a lot. One step closer!

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Starflower!

Yay that your week was better!!!

Glad that your improved appliances are supporting you in health!

RE: the winter Pickleball.... interesting that a park district by me keeps their courts open throughout the winter and only locks them if there is snow on the ground. Some people play in all weather.... Personally, I go inside when it is chilly!!!

Wishing you a fantastic week!!

Best,
Stephanie

[Starflower]

Hi Starflower!

Yay that your week was better!!!

Glad that your improved appliances are supporting you in health!

RE: the winter Pickleball.... interesting that a park district by me keeps their courts open throughout the winter and only locks them if there is snow on the ground. Some people play in all weather.... Personally, I go inside when it is chilly!!!

Wishing you a fantastic week!!

Best,
Stephanie

Hey Stephanie!

They’re working out REALLY well!

I’m with you lol! I love winter, but that’s a bit much!

Wishing you a fun week!

[Starflower]

MWL post for October 11th

Hi team!

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES

2) Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50% (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches. Choose fruit for desert. YES

3) Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes gourmet sugars and salts too.  If either is troublesome for you, you can eliminate them. YES

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

7) Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (i.e. bread, bagels, muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes), puffed cereals, air-popped popcorn and dried fruit. YES

8 ) Don’t drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

This week was good until yesterday. I stayed on plan until then. I came down with some kind of virus and just ate what was easy and appealing. This shows me I need food put aside for situations like this. Onward!

Wishing everyone a wonderful and successful week!