Dissolution's Solution

[Dissolution]

So down a pound this morning. I'm actually pretty pleased with that, I was concerned I was going to have to post a weight gain for the week.

Valentines days was pretty uneventful. I have always detested going out to eat dinner on valentines day, the restaurants are always over crowded and you generally get bad food and bad service. This year I offered to take the day off and take the wife out shopping and to lunch near D.C. However she already had plans to go out today with #2 son (the E2 diet one) to help him shop for new clothes, and they are taking my mother along. My wife said she would save her valentines night out with me for one night next week, when the two of us can go out by ourselves. So when she woke up yesterday I made sure she had the balloon/stuffed animal/candy/giant card assortment waiting for her.

Having done this way of eating on two funeral trips, the vacation next week is almost a non-event as far as eating goes. We have rented a house, with a kitchen. There will be 5 to 8 or us there most nights. I know where a produce market is, although I'm not sure what they will have this time of year. I'm am now finally giving some thought into what I will be eating next week. Seems to me like it would be the perfect time to try the MWL plan. I haven't tried MWL yet, honestly because I was having so much success and having so much fun learning this new way of cooking and eating.... Actually after reading up on MWL again, I guess that is what I did the other two trips I was on...and I lost weight.

I was reading a post this week, I'm not sure if it was on here, or one of my facebook feeds. It was basically saying that almost all diets that are a major change to what you are currently eating are successful. I've also read about the body's ability to adapt to an exercise regimen. So I'm thinking about switching things up and getting out of my comfort zone. I think I ate a larger variety of things when I first started. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy what I am eating, and have no doubts what-so-ever that I can get to, and maintain a healthy weight and lifestyle eating this way. I'm just looking to shake the tree a little bit.

Things I eat a LOT of;

6+ times a week - Oatmeal (with flaxseed meal, date sugar and maple syrup)
6+ times a week - Apples and bananas
4+ times a week - Brown rice (usually with a 1/2 cup of black beans)
4+ times a week - Sandwich wrap (Kale, humus, salsa, mustard on a fat free tortilla)
4+ times a week - Steamed broccoli
3+ times a week - Mushrooms

Things I eat on a more weekly basis;

Cauliflower
Red Cabbage
Peas
Red bell pepper
potatoes

Thinking maybe I should start with swapping the rice for more potatoes...

[Katydid]

Maybe dropping the maple syrup and date sugar in exchange for a little stevia or mashed ripe banana?
Kate

[Dissolution]

Katydid That stuffed shells idea you posted on my potato thread sounds amazing, I think I'll have to make that one the next time we have dinner guests.

I tried the mashed banana in my oatmeal this morning, still needed something else to sweeten it a little. I haven't tried stevia since my atkins days, I didn't much care for it then. Of course that came from a health food store and was probably close to raw stevia. I've noticed there are brands of stevia showing up in the grocery store lately, haven't tried them though.

Hit 230 this morning, that's the 70 pound mark. Pretty happy about that.

My wife, My mother and #2son all went shopping together on Wednesday. My wife bought me a bunch of shirts that fit. XLs, most of the shirts I wear to work are 3XL - 4XL. I wore one of my new shirts in to work yesterday, had lots more people ask me about how much weight I had lost. Even had a German guy ask me, "Zar youz zhrinking?"

Had another conversation with my wife about my way of eating. Here's her "new" perspective on it. I am like an alcoholic and meat and fat are like alcohol to me, so that I can never have them again, but that shouldn't stop everybody else around me from consuming them. I guess I'm ok with that analogy. I was just kind of shocked that she's changed her viewpoint to realize that I can't go back to eating "normal", even after I lose all I want to lose.

My wife has been watching "My 600 pound life" lately. It's a TV series about the super morbidly obese. Each episode quickly goes to the person getting gastric bypass surgery. One guy only had a 50% chance of surviving the surgery! They put them on a "healthy" diet, and they drop lots of weight. Then they start to gain weight, because the body has adapted, and they have never really learned how to eat healthy.

I felt so bad for this one guy. They were bringing him home from the hospital, after a skin removal surgery, and his sister stopped by McDonald's to pick up food for his Mother!! I thought that was mean and cruel.

[carollynne]

Dissolution!! A very big huge congrats on hitting 70 lb mark!! That is just so great!! j Your weight loss is really impressive and I know it can be so contagious!! Nothing breeds more success like more succeeding, so why is your wife not on board? Just jealous of the attention you are getting and so pulling this attitude to get attention?? Could be, or just the same old, same old...... I understand that she does have a big health issue and the pains and so on, but so glad that you are doing it for yourself, not her approval! You have to do this for yourself and you are, so again congrats to you!
I will have to add that your wife, is right in one way, food can be a serious addiction, and you do not plan on going back to the SAD food, so call it what you want to, you are here to stay.
Hey, have you ever tried to make sweet potato thin rounds in the oven with cinnamon or sweet spices, it tastes like candy to me!

[Quinoamania]

Congrats on hitting 70 lbs! That's a HUGE (pun intended!) accomplishment even with family support, but getting so far despite the obstacles you face is truly inspiring. I have just finished my first week and have been very encouraged and motivated by your journal, so many thanks for sharing, and KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

Robin

[Katydid]

I've been watching 'My 600 Pound Life' too. So SAD (both meanings). The first one about the woman who actually got down to 140 pounds and was counseling other bariatric surgery candidates before spiralling back up to nearly 300 pounds again. They just don't teach enough about how to maintain weight. Its all about protein, protein, protein. So much pain and suffering and for what? Sigh.
Kate

[dlee]

Congrats Dis, that is way cool, Wow 70lbs! Imagine 70 pounds of butter stacked up! Love reading your journal,. All of your journals. Take care we're all rooting for you, even if you know who isn't. She must be proud of you on some level. The buying of the new smaller shirts was nice. Dlee

[fulenn]

Glad to hear that your wife is flexing towards your diet a little bit. You are doing wonderfully! 70 pounds! Whooo Hooo! I'm looking forward to the day that you and your wife will be one of the new Star McDougalling couples.

Have a great weekend,
Fulenn

[Dissolution]

Thanks everybody for the kind words of encouragement and congratulations.

Carollynne My wife thinks most of her problems are genetic and changing the way she eats would have no effect. She also thinks her rate of weight loss is healthier than mine. She also hates vegetables. Her mother hated vegetables and didn't make her kids eat them. They are all now fat and sick or dead.

I haven't done a lot of potato microwaving. I have made potato chips in the microwave, I enjoy those very much. I tried doing sweet potatoes that way, and they didn't turn out so good.

Robin Congratulations on completing your first week!

Kate My SIL had the gastric banding done. If she wants to eat "normal" amounts of food, all she has to do is drink liquid with her food. It's that simple. Why would anyone have surgery, to have a foreign object installed in their body, that can be completely defeated by a glass of water?

Dlee Unlike any other time that I have tried dieting or exercising, I knew I would get here. I didn't know what it would feel like, but I knew the weight would come off.

Fulenn I think she would LOVE Dr. McDougall if I could just get here to watch and listen to him. I'm hoping that at the very least this May when our friends come visit that they would be willing to sit through FoK and maybe some other DVD's.

When I started this way of eating, she made fun of me in front of friends and family. Now, 70 Lbs down, she's looking a little foolish to most of them. They're starting to ask her why she isn't doing my "diet"
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I stopped by my Mom's house on Friday, she hadn't seen me since I got clothes that fit, she was so impressed she took my picture and sent it to my Aunt. About a minute later the phone rang, it was my Aunt and her partner wanting to ask me how to be Vegan. They asked about fish and cheese, when I explained those item were not on the menu, they seemed to lose some enthusiasm.

I have a little more packing to do. Not sure if I will have internet this coming week or not. I'll let you know how it all goes, my food experiment...skiing...

[AlwaysAgnes]

I stopped by my Mom's house on Friday, she hadn't seen me since I got clothes that fit, she was so impressed she took my picture and sent it to my Aunt. About a minute later the phone rang, it was my Aunt and her partner wanting to ask me how to be Vegan. They asked about fish and cheese, when I explained those item were not on the menu, they seemed to lose some enthusiasm.

I have a little more packing to do. Not sure if I will have internet this coming week or not. I'll let you know how it all goes, my food experiment...skiing...

It's not really about being vegan. McDougall is about being starch-based. That's fundamental. Maybe you could send your aunt a copy of McDougall's December newsletter.
http://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2011nl/ ... starch.htm
Cast some bread upon the water....see who you catch.



I hope you have a great time on your trip. Stay warm.

[carollynne]

Have a really great trip, Dissolution. I think it is so nice how you try so hard with your wife, it should work and soon. You would think anyways. My hubby is as stubborn too. But then I suspect that he is very happy with how I have lost wt and inches. We made the trip to Whole Foods in MD and it was a nice day for the drive, as we have a lot of pretty country til it get to I - 270 and the heavy traffic. All 3 of us went and son loved it!!
Can't wait to see you as a Star McDougaller, and that should say something to your wife at some point. She may be onto a conversion moment, and will surprise you too.
OH, BTW, the sweet potato rounds I made up were in the oven, on parchment paper, I hate to do anything in microwave except heat up water anymore!!

[Timkerbelle]

What a read!
I'm new to the forums (junk food vegan here, trying to swap to low fat, whole foods), and found this thread when I was doing a search.
So glad I did!
Read the whole thing in one sitting, and it's seriously like a gripping novel! I'm not trying to trivialise what you are going through by saying that by the way.

It has been amazing to follow your new found health - and what a remarkable turnaround it has been! - and equally interesting to hear about your family life.

I must admit that throughout I have swung back and forth between deepest sympathy and total outrage when hearing about your relationship with your wife.
While I strongly object to the abuse (I know others used this term, and can't but agree) you have been subjected to by your wife, I can't help but feel for the poor woman who is trapped in her own insecurities and problems.

One thing that kept popping into my head while reading is the Swedish proverb "Love me the most when I deserve it the least".

For you this seems to be making a difference.

I look forward to hearing about your continued success!

Oh, btw, I just have to comment on your photos, your "before" and "during" - the difference in age is simply astounding. I hope I cause no offence if I say that to me you looked like a man well into his forties in the first picture, and in the second I would seriously have taken you for someone in his early to mid twenties. Amazing.

[Dissolution]

AlwaysAgnes I included a link to that newsletter along with some other information I sent to her. She has not replied, I'll call her tomorrow to ask if she received the email I sent her.

carollynne That's the closest WF to me also. I was even on I-270 Thursday, my relatives few out of BWI and we went with them to DC for the day.

Timkerbelle Thanks so much for your kind words. I'll post a picture from this weekend and we'll see if I look as young, I think it had something to do with me not smiling. However the wife did get upset a couple of times this week, when strangers asked her if I was her son.
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I went skiing last Monday. Things went MUCH better than 10 years ago. Conditions were bad however, it has been too warm and the slopes were very hard and icy. I did take a nasty fall about halfway through the day. It's been 30 years since I had the wind knocked out of me, can't say it was any less fun than when I was a kid. I skied a few more slopes after the fall then took off the rest of the day. Pretty sure I bruised my ribs and maybe pulled some muscles. Still pretty sore, even almost a week later. But I had fun fun and will go skiing again, would have gone yesterday if I wasn't so sore.

We ate out more than expected, so my theory about showing the wife how to eat only stuff she would eat had less impact than I planned. I stayed on plan for all the meals. I did however drink a fair amount of beer and I did do some snacking on candy and cookies and stuff I don't normally have sitting out in the open. Sweets are clearly my downfall. Most meat and dairy I find repulsive, but throw some chocolate on top of stuff and I can't resist. Will do a weigh-in on Wednesday, probably up a pound or two as of right now, we'll see.

We went snow tubing with my cousins on Tuesday, it was lots of fun. Then my niece and great nephew came up Friday night, and the wife and I went snow tubing with them on Saturday. The short version is my wife suffered an avulsion fracture of the ankle. Wound up spending most of the day in the emergency room. She'll be in an air cast for 2 or 3 weeks, and can't put any weight on it. I've been teasing her, telling her that since I'll be preparing all her meals, that she's a vegan til she gets better.

So before I posted the picture from tubing, I wanted to post a different "before" picture. This is from our Son's wedding in 2009.



And this is the one from Tuesday night.

[carollynne]

wow, cannot believe the difference in your whole self. you look so much healthier and vibrant. fun loving etc. Your dear wife, she looks like your aunt maybe!!
Looks look you had some fun too!!

[Katydid]

Holy cow! I see now why your wife is jealous. You look like the son in the bottom picture. Great job! Sorry about the wife's ankle.
Kate