Mutual Accountability

[bunsofaluminum]

Okay, I'm back. Took the rest of Christmas week off, for a five day break, which also means my main internet access is my phone, so I didn't post here. I think I replied in my journal, but didn't enter anything here.

Christmas Day was so bad, I had to apologize to my body. Went to bed wondering how our guts DO it. How does our body deal with the massive weight of food we dump on it during these feasty times? And why did I think it was a treat to pack my stomach with food? Everything tasted okay, but there was nothing on my plate that was "worth the calories"

The days after Christmas were better. I was so grateful to eat a plate of steamed veggies for dinner on Saturday night.

D: noodle soup
B: grits with berries; banana; oranges
S: chocolate (?)
L: chili over rice

Weight: 242
Exercise: 15 min yoga
Meditation: 15 min yoga

Goals:

1) 31 days: 100% non-processed foods, including processed fats
1a) dark chocolate allowed on Saturdays
2) 30 days: yoga
2a) pay attention and don't push too hard on my knee and feet

[bunsofaluminum]

I’m glad all the dishes are done now lol. It’s amazing how extremely greasy anything related to turkey is. On the bright side the vegan dishes were very yummy, and there are lots of those left over so we won’t be cooking much for a few days. We baked 2 versions of gingersnaps one with oil in them and one with applesauce to replace the fat. In a blind taste test my daughter preferred the fat free ones and so do I. The ones with becel just seemed super salty. There is still too much left over chocolate in the house, my plan is to not touch it until we leave in a few days. Then it is no longer in my face

Jeff’s post about the lead and cadmium in chocolate and cocoa makes me realize it’s not worth eating it. The temptation and struggle is real though.

Perhaps 2020 will be the year that dairy is something I NEVER consider eating, just like meat is. I think it’s just a matter of making up my mind.

Hey EJeff, can you post a link to that discussion about the bad stuff in chocolate? It might be what I need to get me away from the stuff permanently.

thanks!

[bunsofaluminum]

:) I could definitely handle a few of the recipes. I'm already cooking through The Starch Solution, and a few more recipes won't hurt.

Do you have any favorites yet? I LOVE love the Thai Green Curried Rice, and I have cooked it one time just exactly as the recipe has it, but I found good frozen stir fry vegs that cut back on the prep time by a LOT, so it's easy to throw together in about a half hour, as long as you already have your rice cooked. I make that dish several times a month.

I also liked the Mushroom Barley Soup, but thought the wasabi powder was kind of useless Mary McDougall must be a super taster, for 1/8 tsp of wasabi powder to make a difference in the flavor of a pot of soup!

[Lyndzie]

Here is the chocolate link, Buns.

I’ve had a busy few days and was doing really well until yesterday when I ended up being away from home for much longer than expected, and ended up getting Jimmy John’s. Definitely not recommended, and I was trying to do my best considering the circumstances. Then I ate a bunch of candy. Boo.

Thankfully dinner was on plan, and I’ve already made a batch of vegetable soup for the day. Onward and upward!

[Artista]

Sunday:

B: green tea, teff, steel-cut oats, buckwheat, blueberries, 1/2 banana, flaxseed
S: apple
L: steamed collards & mixed vegetables, corn, pinto beans, tomato, onion, sweet potato
S: 1/2 grapefruit
D: sweet potato, broccoli, collards, mixed vegetables, pinto beans
Meditation: 20 min.
Exercise: 20 min. jogging on mini-trampoline, 10 min. hand weights

Has anyone tried the Curried Rice and Broccoli Salad in the MWL book? I like curry dishes and this looks like something that could be eaten warm which would be nice this time of year. Maybe I'll give it a try.

[moonlight]

Has anyone tried the Curried Rice and Broccoli Salad in the MWL book? I like curry dishes and this looks like something that could be eaten warm which would be nice this time of year. Maybe I'll give it a try.

I made the Curried Rice and Broccoli Salad recently and loved it!

[bunsofaluminum]

Here is the chocolate link, Buns.

I’ve had a busy few days and was doing really well until yesterday when I ended up being away from home for much longer than expected, and ended up getting Jimmy John’s. Definitely not recommended, and I was trying to do my best considering the circumstances. Then I ate a bunch of candy. Boo.

Thankfully dinner was on plan, and I’ve already made a batch of vegetable soup for the day. Onward and upward!

thanks for the link Lyndzie. Maybe it'll shift things for me. The article says that chocolate is the most craved food item in the world, and I believe it. I am a statistic!

[Ejeff]

Thanks for posting the link Lindsey. Buns, I am in the same boat as you. I ate a ridiculous amount of chocolate over Christmas. And even today had one more thing of dark chocolate because it was in my purse. But that is it for me. I am even going to put a reminder in my calendar to buy zero chocolate next year. It is so much easier to avoid eating unhealthy things if I just don’t bring them into the house. But I suppose even before that, just never put it into the grocery cart. Chef AJ always teaches about keeping your environment clean. That is how I quickly reset after the holidays, I just get rid of it all because if I don’t I will end up eating it. Even though I know it’s not good for me. And when I reset I go back to very simple eating, less cooking, just potatoes and veggies that sort of thing. The easier I make it the faster I seem to get back on track. This is what works for me so maybe it would work for you also. I am going to be very focused when grocery shopping, I plan to make a list and buy only what I have written down no exceptions. I have an issue with shopping the sales too much and ending up with too much inventory. Even on healthy stuff like canned beans. It’s also much quicker to shop when you don’t browse the aisles and shop only the list. I’ve never been good at that, but I will master it in 2020.

Yesterday’s food:
B: healthy cookies (no added sugar or fats)
L: wrap with hummus, veggies, black olives, Franks hot sauce. Raw celery and carrot sticks
S: Granny Smith Apple, super tasty and tart
D: another wrap, raw celery and carrot sticks

Today so far:
B: healthy sweet potato cookies
L: oatmeal with cinnamon
S: dark vegan chocolate from Purdys. No more chocolate for me!
D: will be baked potatoe topped with salsa, beans and corn

[Artista]

Has anyone tried the Curried Rice and Broccoli Salad in the MWL book? I like curry dishes and this looks like something that could be eaten warm which would be nice this time of year. Maybe I'll give it a try.

I made the Curried Rice and Broccoli Salad recently and loved it!

Thanks for the recommendation, Moonlight! I'll definitely try out that recipe as soon as I can get some broccoli.

Here's what I ate today:
B: steel-cut oats, buckwheat, blueberries, 1/2 banana
S: 1/2 grapefruit
L: pinto beans, kale, collards, sweet potato
S: apple, carrots, oats
D: rice, mixed steamed vegetables
Meditation: none
Exercise: about 40 minutes walking

It helps me to get all the food I don't want to eat out of the house. The only noncompliant food I had left were some nuts and seeds that I didn't want to eat but didn't want to throw out either. I ended up taking them to my Mom's house while visiting her over Christmas. She follows a high-fat, low-carb diet and always has a dish of nuts in her house. We're polar opposites diet-wise.

[Ejeff]

My hubby and I are polar opposites right now also. I’m never tempted by the dairy, meat or cheese. It’s when it’s hidden inside sweet goods that I somehow allow it into my mouth. Chef AJ says to have others lock up the junk if they must have it in the house. At the very least I think it helps to not see it, so if it’s placed in a different cupboard where you don’t usually look, or in a non see through bin in the fridge it could be helpful. I often find I’m not even thInking of junk unless I see it.

I too hope my hubby joins me, I do think it will happen at some poInt as I’m the eternal optimist. In the meantime, I enjoy all my healthy food very much and I feel great.

[bunsofaluminum]

One last "My Diet Starts Tomorrow" incident. Buttered toast with breakfast this morning. And I have Wylie's gravy and french fries feast is planned for today. That will be the last off plan ANYTHING that I eat.

D: raw cauliflower florets; a nuked sweet potato; a piece of bread
B: Moroccan sweet potato stew; two pieces buttered toast; 1/2 avocado
L: chili

Exercise: 15 min stretching (not quite yoga, but definitely stretchy)
Meditation: quiet on my way to work; some visualization

[AnnetteW]

My hubby and I are polar opposites right now also. I’m never tempted by the dairy, meat or cheese. It’s when it’s hidden inside sweet goods that I somehow allow it into my mouth. Chef AJ says to have others lock up the junk if they must have it in the house. At the very least I think it helps to not see it, so if it’s placed in a different cupboard where you don’t usually look, or in a non see through bin in the fridge it could be helpful. I often find I’m not even thinking of junk unless I see it.

I too hope my hubby joins me, I do think it will happen at some point as I’m the eternal optimist. In the meantime, I enjoy all my healthy food very much and I feel great.

I'm not going to expect junk to be locked up in the house. The funny thing for me is that the junk isn't the issue, it's the nuts/seeds and raisins lately. That's what I'm munching on. I keep telling myself when the weight is gone and I'm stable, I should be able to eat those items, at least I hope I will be able to, only time will tell, right.

Oh well...if that's the worst thing I eat at home, I'm not going to beat myself up too much about it.

Yesterday I had the following:
Whole grain cereal, apple, soymilk, stevia powder
dal, rice, salad with vinegar
mixed roasted nuts (full of crap oil and salt...why do I eat that?) and raisins, and a pear
bowl of oatmeal, soymilk, apple, and for some reason I poured on a ton of brown sugar...once again, why?

Yesterday was a bit of a rough day. I've had a cold for a long time now, and then yesterday it felt like I was getting another one. I sneezed a lot and my left eye was running and my nose was running, and I was so upset. I'm not recovered from the last cold. We missed a party because of that. I took benedryl and went to bed. This morning I feel fine, well still sniffly a bit from the original cold. So I think it was just a sinus infection thing and it let loose. Let's home. But I do know I was "treating" myself, trying to make myself better, and food is a way to do that.

[moonlight]

I want to chime in on living with someone not on this food plan. I have found that if I just don't look directly at the food, it helps. My husband has moved quite a bit of stuff out of my site in the cabinets and fridge, but it's impossible to do that with everything. Our house is small, too. While I was painting my living room I could not resist what he was eating when he was sitting next to me. Now that he can sit in a separate chair, not too close, it is easier. I just try not to look at his food directly.

[AnnetteW]

Officially Jan 1, 2020 weight is 148.2

I had oats, apple, soymilk, flax for breakfast
Kale salad for lunch with the ranch dressing from hemp seed recipe I saw online (it's okay but I prefer vinegar)
leftover beans and a sweet potato
Had the munchies and ate too many of my husband's crummy nasty never to be eaten again roasted nuts
cuties
a few veggie sticks and fruit pieces at a party

Hey all...it's GAME ON for me.

[Sandy Sue]

A New Day, A New Decade and a New Year!

First off let me say Happy New Year to everyone and Happy McDougalling

My resolution for this year is to lose 96 lbs. That is 8 lbs. a month or 2 lbs. a week.

So far today I have eaten:

B-2 c. oatmeal with chopped apple and cinnamon

Snack-Sweet potato with cubed pineapple

L- Salad with lettuce tomatoes and avocado dressing

D- Probably baked potato, broccoli and a salad