My Daily "Weighing in"

[squealcat]

Yes ! Sugar kiss melons !! I bought one and ate the whole thing myself !! (in two days)

-Marilyn

[squealcat]

Exercise today: the forecast said rain at 10AM so I got out the door early and walked 30 minutes . Since it it Sunday, I walked without headphones and enjoyed the quiet

Breakfast: steel cut oats cooked with shredded carrots and topped with peach sections
Lunch: large salad with balsamic vinegar for dressing. My tahini is used up. Not sure if I will buy more. I should give it up. I also had a large bowl of potato and corn chowder with a little hot sauce. I think I had a banana after but don't really remember
Dinner: steamed broccoli, brown rice with beans and seasoning followed by another peach

I observed that my brain was thinking about having a crunchy snack this afternoon. I then thought about what I could have instead and just made a cup of tea and went to the table to do some zentangle drawing. I want to make that a habit. I am reading the book Tiny Habits and so now I have planned that whenever I am home and want to have something not McDougall, I will fix a cup of tea. I am not saying that that is all I will have but that cup of tea is the first part of my change. Today the tea was all I had.

I also finally got into the Rancho Gordo bean club !! Not many would know how exciting that is but I see on Facebook that all the bean club members do certainly know how exciting that is. In my box of beans there was a paper with recipes and one was for a summer time chili with zucchini (and no meat !). I think I will make that (minus the oil, of course ). It has not tomatoes, which is intrigueing. Will see ! Tomorrow I will soak those beans as I will have more cooking time on Tuesday. If any of you want to look into the bean club, just know that I waited probably 2 years to get in. It takes a while !

-Marilyn

[bunsofaluminum]

hmmm now I'm excited because I have a sugar kiss melon in my Imperfect Foods order this week! can't wait!

I also just love it that you left your headphones behind and walked in the quiet of the morning. sounds SO wonderful!

[squealcat]

Thanks for visiting Buns ! Hope you enjoy your melon !!

Exercise today: walked 1.5 miles today followed by stretches. I am finding that I cannot skip stretches. When I did (over the summer) my heel tendons got tight, my hip flexor got tight and hurt and my legs got stiff ! Once I put in my shoe inserts and started stretching (and stayed away from food that is bad for me) things started feeling better !

Breakfast: steel cut oats with shredded carrots and banana and cinnamon
Lunch: large salad with balsamic vinegar for dressing, also a sweet potato
Dinner: potato and corn chowder (finished it )

I am soaking some beans now to make soup. Since I got my bean club shipment I have been excited about beans again ! Making pasta Faggioli from Fat Free Vegan's recipes. I think I need to buy one more can of tomatoes....or use a couple of our garden tomatoes (better idea ).

I had my yearly eye exam today. I have a pucker in the back of my eye on the retina and it is worse in my right eye . My doctor said it has improved ! (the smaller pucker in my left eye has increased a bit ) He sounded like he thought it was just temporary that it waxes and wanes.....I asked about eating veggies and whole foods....if he had ever heard if it made a difference. He said eating greens can certainly help with eye health. He looked at me like he was interested in what I was saying (know that I do KNOW this guy from the hospital that I worked at ) I was just curious what he would say. I knew he wouldn't talk me down because we know each other. I just followed by telling him that I feel that eating the right foods helps the body heal and that I have already gotten off my blood pressure meds, my cholesterol med and my diabetes med . The appointment ended on a positive note. I will see him again in a year.

Anyway, that is it for today. I didn't read today and didn't do any Zentangle either. There is always tomorrow !

-squealcat

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Marilyn!!!

I think we are on same pace for eating the "Sugar Kiss"...

Your bean club sounds fun!!! Does this mean that they send different dried beans ??? Or something else??? (Curious even though 2 year wait list...)

Your soup sounds yummy and glad your eye appt. was positive.

Hope that you are having an excellent week!

Cheers,
Stephanie

[squealcat]

Stephanie: the Rancho Gordo bean club sends you a box quarterly. I think I got 6 bags of dried heirloom beans (one was lentils) and a surprise. This month was their chili powder. Enclosed is a newspaper with information on those beans along with recipes. There is also a booklet that is quite helpful too . When you are (finally ) able to join they send a link to a facebook group . I must say, that group if so enthusiastic ! Very friendly, lots of pictures and recipes ! So far I plan to stay in for a year but I will see ! One of the beans was their black beans and I have cooked up this kind before and it is a favorite ! I made a soup with their cranberry beans today that included whole wheat pasta. That recipe is on the Fat Free Vegan site. Turned out great ! The next batch will come end of November or the beginning of December. Can you tell I am excited ??

Exercise today: (I didn't feel like going out today but did because it is sort of a habit now and I feel guilty if I don't go out ). I walke 3 miles !! Once I get out there in the cool air, I am caught ! I remembered to stretch afterward. My legs are feeling better every day !

Breakfast: I changed it up today and had chopped up sweet potato and pineapple with cinnamon all heated up. It was very good !
Lunch: I am not going to say what I had but I fell into the ditch for a bit this afternoon. I could feel the negative vibes even this morning. I was able to hold it all back for a time but then it felt impossible. Anyway, I was able to stop and now I am not at all hungry. I had a peach at dinner time.

My husband got out the ladder for me and I cleaned out part of our dryer vent today leading to the outside. I have been worrying about his since last year. Worried that it was clogged up and a fire hazard. We had two house fires on our street in the last year so that just got me thinking about it too much. Well, I started the dryer on the cool setting and used a swiffer wand and a whole lot of dryer lint came out by the handfuls and some fuzzies. It kind of flies in you face ! Anyway, I got that part done and we will work on more sections this week that are in the house. The vent is long so it will be a pain to be sure. I got "the look" from my husband this morning but after I told him how much I cleaned out, the look was gone. Now, those two house fires were not related to dryers, one was lightning and the other an overheated dehumidifier (I think). But still, I am a worrier.

Tomorrow I go to my daughter's house to watch Felix. I have a plan as to what to pack for lunch but it is not perfect MWL .....but a lot better than other things I could eat. If it will keep me out of their snacks, that is good.

How are all of you doing? This board seems a little quieter lately but may be my imagination.

-squealcat

[Lizzy_F]

Hi Marilyn! Wow the Rancho Gordo Bean Club sure looks interesting! I signed up for their wait list so we shall see if I make it to the club while I'm still on this side of the grass LOL! Mean time, their heirloom beans sure look interesting. Might have to place an order and give some heirloom beans a try!

No detours - just stay right here in the middle of McDougall Highway!!! Together we can!

[squealcat]

Well Beth, maybe you won't have to wait as long as I did. Some have said they waited a year. I have ordered from them before this. I have gotten their garbanzo beans and black beans. The soup with their cranberry beans is so good ! I like the creamy beans the best !

Yesterday did not go too well. I caved and ate some of the snacks in my daughter's cupboard. My plan for next week is to heat up whatever needs heating and then get out of their kitchen. I can eat in their lower level family room and stay down there to read or whatever. Little Felix is right next door so if I hear an alarm, I can run over there. (he is on a ventilator all the time ). That way my son-in-law won't have to worry and interrupt his work and hopefully I will stay away from their snacks.

Today is going well ! Back on track but not very hungry.

exercise: walked 2 miles today. I am adding some squats every time I use the restroom (if I remember)

Breakfast; old fashioned oats and peach (I have raspberries and keep forgetting about them )
Lunch: large salad and heated up already cooked potatoes with mustard and ketchup (I just made more in my instant pot and now am cooking steel cut oats for the next 4 days )
Dinner: zucchini soup and by bean and pasta soup after that . Now about I eat some raspberries for dessert? I don't want them to go bad.

See some of you on the MWL board tomorrow or Saturday !

-squealcat

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Marilyn!!!

Thanks for sharing on the bean club!!! Also, appreciate your reference for the cranberry bean soup... I have a partial bag that I should use and not sure what to make!! So, totally checking out that soup recipe...

Be careful with your lint cleaning... Sounds like you are definitely defeating the lint and that is awesome...

Have a great weekend!!!
Stephanie

[squealcat]

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.
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 dessert.
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.
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood).
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy).
6. Eliminate any added oil.
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.
8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages).
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself.
10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking).

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:I was feeling like a total failure this morning and didn't want to post but upon looking at my weekly tracker MWL checklist, I changed my mind. I used the smiles (and frowns ) this week instead of the direct "yes" and "no" words because I feel that many areas were successful . As I look at my checklist I see an area that needs work just at lunch time (#5) and I also see that just two days were needing more work and thought (Tuesday and Wednesday). I don't know what happened Tuesday but remember feeling kind of negative on that day . Wednesday was the weekly visit to my daughter's house to watch my special needs grandson. I feel like I fall apart when in their kitchen and I feel like their snack cupboard just grabs me and pulls me in !

I have thought about my Wednesdays and will try to change up my meal next week to be either a cold lunch or have one item to heat up so I can almost avoid their kitchen. They have a tri-level house so I can just keep myself on the low level with my grandson and be just fine ! They have a fridge there too so I can store my lunch. I will do that this coming Wednesday and see how it feels.

I like how Stephanie reflected on her last year doing this ! I would love to do that one year from now. I have read a little about self-efficacy. It has been discussed a few time here on this board. I think that believing that I can do this is exactly what has been missing but this cannot happen if I just sit here feeling bad. I know I have to work this program and see success week by week.

I like using my weekly tracker as it shows me that my week is mostly successful. I track meal by meal, day by day so there are lots of checks in those little squares. It also pin-points the areas that need attention and what days need attention. Then I know how to make those small changes to make it work.

Have a wonderful week everyone ! See you next week !

Marilyn
squealcat

[squealcat]

On the MWL group, Mark posed some interesting questions and I have been thinking about them. I think I am confusing myself a bit but it has been valuable to ponder .

what is success to me?
what are the markers of this success?
in what context do I rate my success?
how am I doing now ?

Have any of you been thinking about all of this? I checked on the board and it is silent so far. A lot of pondering going on maybe.

Is success merely a weight loss number or is it more than that? What if I don't achieve that number goal? Am I still successful? I really just want to live my live best I can and not think about my weight or my food but I don't think that is going to happen. My health is important if I want to actually live to a ripe old age and what I eat is a big part of that .

Yesterday went very well and today is a lazy Sunday except for a few things that I always get done on Sundays. Book club tomorrow so I have to finish "The Book List" (I think it is the title). It is about a list of books that makes it's way around to various people who then read the books and learn about themselves .....it's pretty good !

-Marilyn

[bunsofaluminum]

On the MWL group, Mark posed some interesting questions and I have been thinking about them. I think I am confusing myself a bit but it has been valuable to ponder .

what is success to me?
what are the markers of this success?
in what context do I rate my success?
how am I doing now ?

Have any of you been thinking about all of this? I checked on the board and it is silent so far. A lot of pondering going on maybe.

Is success merely a weight loss number or is it more than that? What if I don't achieve that number goal? Am I still successful? I really just want to live my live best I can and not think about my weight or my food but I don't think that is going to happen. My health is important if I want to actually live to a ripe old age and what I eat is a big part of that .

Yesterday went very well and today is a lazy Sunday except for a few things that I always get done on Sundays. Book club tomorrow so I have to finish "The Book List" (I think it is the title). It is about a list of books that makes it's way around to various people who then read the books and learn about themselves .....it's pretty good !

-Marilyn

I would say with this plan, there are so many other benefits that we enjoy beyond the mere number on the scale. For me, an almost immediate reversal/remission of IBS, reduction in depression, increase in mental clarity, cheer, and calm inner life, complete absence of PMS or any other cyclical symptoms. AND some poundage gone. And even though I've gained so much back, I still enjoy the health benefits of this food in recovery from major surgery x2. It will be wonderful to see the fat go away, but it is already wonderful to have what I currently enjoy by eating this way.

Have fun with the book club!

[squealcat]

We did have a fun book club get together last night ! As we get to know each other more and more there is more laughing and sharing. That is good !

I am enjoying reading what some folks are writing on the "time and adherence" MWL board and appreciate what "buns" has said on my journal . It all makes me very appreciative of what I have not and can accomplish in the future. I am glad it doesn't make me sad or depressed and feeling like I cannot be successful. thank you everyone !

Today is a cooking day. I am just taking a break right now because I have been standing quite a while and need a break. Sweet potatoes cooked, melon cut up, potatoes ready to be peeled and chopped for mash, hot peppers rinsed and ready to be put in freezer bags ..... I still need to make steel cut oats, cook those potatoes for mash and cook some more to just have in the fridge for the week. I am also hungry so probably better chop up stuff for my lunch salad ! If I wait, I will be sorry !

-squealcat

[Lizzy_F]

Hi Marilyn! All your food prep sounds DELICIOUS!! I have to do some batch cooking tomorrow. I love having a fridge full of cooked food ready to go!

I am contemplating the MWL questions that Mark posed. So interesting to think about, and will make a great journal entry - a great entry to come back to again and again. It is so easy to "forget" how much better I feel eating this way, way beyond just weight loss. And it's so easy to take some of those new good feelings for granted after a while!

Your book club sounds like fun! What would you say is the best book you have read this year? I'm always looking for recommendations!

[squealcat]

Watched my grandson today . As some of you know, this is when I usually get in trouble (eating-wise). I did what I planned and took a lunch that was all cold and stored it in their downstairs fridge. I just stayed down there and moved to their downstairs living room at lunch time. It worked very well ! I did pack a couple of things that I really like that are not actually MWL but certainly better than getting into their snack cupboard and then continuing to binge eat for two days after that. I feel pretty good about today ! I will do the same next week and then change it more toward MWL the next, taking it slow with slow changes and getting my brain to forget what I used to do.

I started with my usual oats and fruit for breakfast, then had a large salad for lunch and a sandwich for lunch (no meat or cheese ). Had some sugar sweet melon for dessert too ! I have thawed out some zucchini soup (recipe on this site ) to have before dinner, then a plate with tomato and cucumber, then potatoes for the win !!

Getting my covid vaccine tomorrow along with the flu vaccine. I waited for this new one. I will be glad when that is done.

-squealcat