Have hard time staying on program

[Babstitches]

I have done McDougall off and on for years, my problem is sticking with the program. I start missing my diet sodas, sweets, etc. For those who have been successful how long did it take you to get to the point that you don't miss the bad stuff any more.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Originally it took about three months. Seems like a long time, but it was getting easier all the time.

Each time I deviated from the program since then it doesn't take as long. The longer I go without nuts, nut butters, and using a tiny bit of oil, the better I do with cravings and wanting to eat off program food.

The key is to eat "legal" food when you want something, any time any place. When I want a treat, I have banana chocolate ice cream with spinach in it. Or, if I want something sweet I have fruit, even if it goes way over what the program says I'm supposed to have for the day. I figure I'm not hurting myself if for one day I eat a lot of fruit, I usually make up for it the next few days. Just EAT!

Don't let yourself get desperate if you're hungry and away from your own kitchen. I never leave home now without a cooler of food and a bag with several baked potatoes wrapped in a dish towel to stay warm. They hold their heat for a long time.

[Letha.]

I agree with Mrs. Doodlepunk that you should consider making McDougall treats. Here are links to recipes from McDougall's monthly newsletter. Best wishes.
Letha

Snacks & Deserts

Chocolate Decadence Pudding
Chocolate Delight
Baked Rice Pudding
Apple Crisp
Chocolate Cake
Chocolate Frosting
Pumpkin Pie
Apple-Prune Crisp with Hazelnut Topping
Fresh Fruit Cobbler
Brownies
Cashew Ice Cream
Banana Ice Cream
Wicked Chocolate Pie
Lemon Tofu Cream
Creamy Dessert Puddings
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Grilled Stone Fruit with Spiced Blueberry Zinfandel Reduction and Orange Blossom Cashew Cream
Oatmeal Cookies
Easy Brownies
Greta’s Gingersnaps with a Twist
No-Bake Strawberry Pie with Chocolate Chunks
Cranberry Cookies
Pear-Cranberry Crumble
Glistening Poached Pears
Healthy Carrot Cake
Lemon Maple Glaze
Jellied Peach Jewels
No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
No-Bake Pecan Date Crust
Chocolate Mousse with Raspberry Sauce

[f1jim]

Hi
A lot of the McDougallers find the transition time depend heavily on how much you snack, or sample the bad stuff. Cravings don't ever stop if you keep feeding them. You don't mention how much off plan food you are eating but it's something to look at.
f1jim

[dragonfly_kat]

I am in the same boat. This is my first time (and hopefully the only time) McDougalling and I have gotten off track but have come back to McDougall each time. The thing I have noticed is that with the cheats comes weight gains... BUT... I am not climbing as high when I cheat. It may take longer if I continue to eat this way which I don't intend on doing. Since doing the MWL program, and even when I cheat, I have not gone over 200lbs like I normally would on other diets. It seems as though the MWL program has cured me of the 200's.

So far I have lost about 13-15 pounds over about 3 months. It may not seem like much but, to me, it is important to realize that I am maintaining a weight under 200lbs and, for me, that is a small success I can be proud of.

I have been struggling to stay below 200 for what seems like forever. I know I shouldn't cheat and maybe wait until I get to a healthy weight and then I can be a bit more relaxed and have some spaghettii or a piece of bread.

My problem is sweets. I have heard that the cravings go away if you can have a strong enough will power for the first couple of weeks. I am in the process of testing that theory and am in day 4 of the trial.

I don't plan on cheating (I don't think any of us do) but it is good to know that when I do I can come back and make progress in a short period of time. It only took me the 4-5 days to make up for a 5-6 pound weight gain from a week of cheating. (Father's day weekend etc..) I have been doing some exercise as well so I think that helped.

My struggle with the diet is planning my meals and my family's meals. If I can get through that I will be very successful.

It is all trial and error and you learn from the mistakes you make and get better each time. You will find your groove just a I will find mine. It will take some time but Keep it up and you will get there before you know it. Congratulations on sticking with it. Even if you go off track you are still trying and that is why you will succeed while others give up.

P.S. Just so you know, when I cheat I still do not eat any animal products. So, if you cheat on animal products like cheese or ice cream I am not sure how that effects weight gain. I would think you would gain more if eating those types of foods but not sure. Maybe that is why I haven't gone over 200 is because I stay away from the animal stuff.

Mrs. Doodlepunk:Do you have the recipe for that banana chocolate ice cream with spinach? Is it on this site?
Sounds like a kooky combination but maybe it would be good for my son as a treat instead of the toffutti cutties.

LETHA:
Are those treats on the Maximum Weight loss list of acceptable treats? Cashews (cashew ice cream) sounds like it would add fat and some of the items contain soy which I thought McDougall is against for weight loss.
I suppose eating his treats are much better than eating a Bowl of Soy delicious ice cream or some other processed sweet treat from the store. For those of us trying to stay away from the fats and sugars (to lose weight) would it be okay to eat some of these treats listed. I am new to this so it is a bit confusing to me because I thought we weren't supposed to eat soy, nuts or sugar.

I will get the hang of it soon ( I hope).

[f1jim]

Don't stay hungry. When you are hungry eat a healthy food. Hunger is problematic to staying on program. Always have something you like on hand to munch. Eat as much as you like. Also, don't have junk around the house. Make it difficult or inconvenient to get your hands on it.
f1jim

[Babstitches]

for all of the responses so far. F1Jim, I am never hungry, I stay on program for about a month and then for some reason I become so tired and I start to fall asleep at my desk that I cave and have a diet coke, I know very bad, but I don't drink coffee and this is my source of caffein. And then I start back with sweets and junk food. I have never been a healthy eater. Mornings are worse than afternoons and I get plenty of rest. I have a three day weekend coming up so I plan on getting back on program and my goal is to stay on program and not go off.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

My problem is sweets. I have heard that the cravings go away if you can have a strong enough will power for the first couple of weeks. I am in the process of testing that theory and am in day 4 of the trial.

FRUIT. Plain fruit, a banana or peach or apple, especially apples since they are so filling. Eat fruit, it's your new cake, pie, candy, etc.

The more you cheat, like f1jim says, you keep feeding your cravings. Cheat with legal things. It's OK to eat on this plan! Have a bowl of oatmeal with apple juice instead of water, that is very sweet and very filling. Pretty soon you will be thinning out the apple juice with water because it's so sickeningly sweet.

Yes, the higher fat foods are less desirable, but if you need a treat for a birthday or special occasion, or just need to acclimate your family to the program and it will help to have stuff like that, use these recipes. For instance, I'm trying to lose weight and lower cholesterol, so I don't eat desserts like these. But for my birthday in August, I'm going to make something from this list. Or develop a rhubarb cobbler or something. Something that goes with banana chocolate ice cream!

Also, did you know that Letha has compiled a clickable list of all the MWL and regular plan recipes over on the MWL list? It's at the top in stickies.

Mrs. Doodlepunk: Do you have the recipe for that banana chocolate ice cream with spinach? Is it on this site?
Sounds like a kooky combination but maybe it would be good for my son as a treat instead of the toffutti cutties.

Toffutti cutties sound like processed junk to me! Rice Dream is too. I recommend you cultivate a taste for food in it's natural wrappers and move away from toffutti cuties!

That said, here's my recipe for processed junk food.

3 frozen bananas
2 teaspoons vanilla extract - I previously said one teaspoon but lately have liked it with more vanilla, but then I don't measure anything either!
2 tablespoons cocoa powder - I use Wonderslim because it's fat free and tastes THE SAME
1 teaspoon vinegar - I use red wine vinegar
handful of baby spinach leaves

put spinach in the blender first, then the flavorings, bananas on top then pour over about 3/4 cup water. Put lid on tight and blend.

If you have a Vitamix, you're all set. Start on low, dial it up then switch to high until blended. Add more water if it's struggling a bit. If not, proceed with caution and use a little more water to make a shake rather than thick ice cream. Slice the bananas and freeze on a cookie sheet on parchment paper so they peel off easily. A Vitamix or similar high power blender can handle the thicker consistency and bigger chunks of frozen banana.

I burned out three blenders and then got a Vitamix. Would have been cheaper if I had just bought a Vitamix way back when.

[dragonfly_kat]

Barbara,
I heard that an apple will wake you up better than a cup of coffee. I am not sure if it is true but it is worth a try.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

for some reason I become so tired and I start to fall asleep at my desk that I cave and have a diet coke

Have you had your thyroid checked? I had similar symptoms for a long time but my thyroid test was "normal". Look up Dr. McDougall's article on thyroid. Anemia and pregnancy can cause tiredness too, but I'm sure you know that.

[dragonfly_kat]

Mrs. Doodlepunk,
The toffutti cutties are for my 4 year old son. I don't eat them and I know he shouldn't either but I am compromising until he shows interest in the foods I make. I am strugglling with making the changes with him because he has texture issues and veggies are a big texture thing with him. He doesn't eat the cutties often but if he wants something other than fruit he gets that. They are small and don't have animal products in them so I feel a bit better giving him that instead of ice cream or some other chemical, artificial, colored treat. It is a means to an end, I hope. In the long run I hope he will take my lead and eat the foods I am eating.

Today I think my husband finally made a commitment to the program because he is having such pain and stiffness in his hands that he is now desperate for relief (we think he has rheumatoid arthritis from over 35 years of window cleaning). NO more treats and junk being brought into the house by him anymore (I hope).This will make it easier for me now because I won't have the off limit foods in the house anymore. He said he would try the program strickly for 2 weeks to see if he gets any relief.

I didn't know there was a sticky list for MWL I will see if I can find it when I get the time.

As far as the fruit goes, I was wondering if anyone else has difficulty eating fruit. I start eating an apple (for example) and am fine until I am about half way through it and start feeling nauseas. What is that from . It happens with just about every fruit I have tried. Am I just not tolerant of the sugars or other components of the fruit?

P.S. Doodlepunk:
Can I use my food processor for the recipe instead of the blender?

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Good for your husband on being willing to try the program! My mother has osteoarthritis and in just the first week her hands felt a lot better. I hope he has great success!

My husband and I had really amazing health improvements when we started this. He lost about 25 pounds really fast too. Of course, he has gained it back because he indulges in snack foods when he's not at home.

I didn't mean to sound so totally against the junk food, it is OK to use it a little bit in the beginning. That was what Dr. McDougall told me once about that stuff and the fake meats too. But you can gradually get him to like plain fruit and use less and less of the processed food. My son has issues with texture too, and smell. He smells everything, and usually vegetables smell bad to him. I am still figuring this kid out 12 years later!

I think you could use the food processor but might end up with chunks of banana, not that it would be bad. If you were making a bigger batch it might be better in the food processor. I've never tried it in my FP so not sure.

I should have mentioned that the 3 banana size batch is what I share with my younger son.

[stitcher]

I am just back here today...after many months away. I need to lose so much weight it is mind boggling to me. May not seem a lot to some, but it is a lot to me!!

But I wanted to say that the one thing I learned back in 1999 when I took a McDougall course for a week was. My first day home, the first thing I did was to clean out the kitchen of all non-program foods...ALL!!

When I have a craving, even when I know there is nothing there that I crave, I search the cupboards anyway and when I have confirmed there is nothing there I have to say to myself...okay, to bad. And get something that I can eat or a glass of a Crystal Light flavor I like.

If it is not in the kitchen...well I have to just do with what is there.

I do agree though that is discipline is the hardest part.

[f1jim]

All good advice and worth noting. Having a house empty of junk food was very valuable to me. If it was there I would have eaten it. My willpower is like a giant marshmellow. I have learned never to rely on it. Planning and perseverence are much stronger.
f1jim

[TominTN]

Dr. Lisle's book The Pleasure Trap and his videos have been very helpful to me in making sense of my cravings and the social pressures to eat that I feel sometimes. I highly recommend his work. The book is available through amazon and his videos are available here in Dr. McD's online store.

I've also noticed that with time my tastes have changed so that the things I once thought of as bland and uninteresting are now yummy and things I once thought I couldn't do without no longer appeal.

My experience has been that the more I stick with the program, the better my results. If I slip up, the world doesn't end, but there are consequences -- weight gain, lethargy, remorse, etc.