Thanks Mark! That post is so helpful and timely! I appreciate your helpful and encouraging comments!
I'm posting the text from the 2020 post here because it's so rich with helpful and foundational information for really making this program work long term. I know I've posted the latter part of Jeff's comments on my journal before, but it bears repeating here in the context of his larger post:
To reiterate, we don't expect perfection, because making these changes in behavior is extremely difficult; the direction of participation for the group is important - are you willing to make an honest attempt to follow the guidelines as intended, and keep trying to work toward improvements when you are struggling? If so, you are in the right place, no matter what your starting point is, and how much (or little) success you may feel you're having at the moment. Intentionally planning NOT to follow the guidelines, or not attempting to make changes when appropriate, however, doesn't serve the individual participant well, nor is it good for the group as a whole.
Just because you are struggling, doesn't mean you are "broken" or something is wrong with you! These are HARD changes to make and, especially in the beginning, they might not feel very good at all.
JeffN wrote:
As Dr Lisle says, part of the problem is that when in the pleasure trap, doing the wrong thing feels so good and doing the right thing doesn't feel good." Even when one finds success, exposure to the Pleasure Trap can very easily put someone right back there.
We live in a very toxic food environment where there is very little social and environmental support for what we do. This is not always easy for everyone to deal successfully with.
I think people tend to underestimate how much that toxic food environment is stacked against all of us. The convenience stores, groceries and restaurants are replete with calorie rich, ultra-processed, unhealthy "foods," supported by an unceasing (and increasingly targeted) advertising machine. Untold dollars and resources are expended devising and presenting more and more insidious "food traps" to ensnare us. No wonder it's a struggle! The problem isn't you! As Dr. McDougall would say, "It's the food!" Taking all that into account, it seems essential that we stack the deck in our favor. The people who are able to successfully practice this WOE long-term, the people who make adherence "look easy" have actually invested enormous amounts of time and effort to shift the balance to be as much in their favor as possible. They have a plan for how to succeed, tested by trial and error, time and effort. To paraphrase Jeff, "things may not always turn out the way we planned, but we increase our odds of success by planning to succeed." If we take it as a given that we can't be successful, or don't try, we are planning to fail. This lifestyle only starts to feel "easy" after all that work has been put into making it so. Don't fault yourself when this is hard, but don't fool yourself into thinking it will ever get easy without putting in A GREAT DEAL of work.
I would humbly submit that many who believe that MWL is significantly more restrictive than the regular McDougall program, are perhaps misunderstanding the boundaries and recommendations of the standard McDougall Diet. If one compares the MWL 10-Point Checklist to the 10-Point Checklist for the McDougall Program, they are remarkably similar. The differences for which the McDougall Program allows are meals comprising up to 90% minimally processed starches, and the allowances for LIMITED amounts of calorie dense foods and LIMITED amounts of higher fat plant foods. (Additionally, it omits the recommendation to begin meals with soup and/or salad and/or fruit.) So one must ask themselves, based on an honest appraisal of past history, current status, and health and weight loss goals, am I likely to be able to include limited amounts of these foods without making things harder on myself, or am I more likely to overeat these foods? What has typically happened in the past?
JeffN wrote:
People struggle to achieve their goals and when they take a close look at their diet, they see, there are too many foods that may be allowed but not ideal.
That is why many can't find success till they go on the MWL program (or some other stricter version of the program). The MWL is pretty black and white about what is allowed. There are no exceptions to it either. The regular program has a lot of gray area. And, for many, the little becomes a lot.
JeffN wrote:
Know thyself.
As this study shows, for many of us, it is that occasional lapse on a "forbidden food" that is going to start the downward spiral.
Looking at the full study, it was forbidden foods, usually consumed at home, usually in the evening, usually on the weekend. So, to be successful, we have to keep our home and our environment a safe place and to avoid feeling deprived, which we can do by eating when we are hungry until we are comfortably full of the approved foods.
As the old saying goes, "out of sight, out of mind." For many of us it is also, "in the house, in the mouth."
I'm not saying one particular path is right or wrong, but rather it will be most productive to decide what is attainable for you at present, and work assiduously toward achieving the changes that are appropriate.
The lengthy thread on Compliance on a Healthy Diet provides a fuller picture of important ways one can set themselves up for success. Near the end of that thread, Jeff provides some valuable recommendations.
JeffN wrote:
I had 3 Q&A Sessions and this topic came up in each one, especially in the last one. I reviewed most of the things in this thread with the group but they still wanted to know what were the 3 most important things I recommended for their best chance at success.
Here they are...
For the first 6 months to a year....
1) Simplicity
Keep this as simple as possible and resist every influence to make this complicated. You don't need 5 versions of oatmeal, and 15 dinners, and fancy pots, pans, utensils, etc. Just use what you already have and keep it simple. Oats, fruit, rice, beans, veggies. They dont have to be organic, Non GMO, fair traded, imported, etc. Eat sweet potatoes, not imported Japanese Satsumas. They can be fresh, frozen, canned, etc, whichever makes it easiest. You just need oatmeal, brown rice (Starch), beans and a few veggies and fruits you like.
2) Focus
First, on this program
You invested a huge amount of money, time, effort and energy in Dr McDougall, his program and his staff. Trust your decision and the process. For the next 6 months to a year, if you have a question, ask Dr McDougall, Mary, Doug, Alec or me. We are all accessible. If you need a recipe, Mary has about 4000, if you have a question, most of them are answered in the forum or our hot topics. If you need reading material for support, we have a dozen books, 100's of newsletter and articles and videos going back about 30 years. Read the Hot Topics and this website and my forum and the Education material at the website and the FAQ here in my forum. When done, re-read them. If you need, email us, we are all responsive.
It is not that others WFPB Health Professionals are wrong, it is just that there are some slight differences between them all and you are just going to get confused. I would tell you the same thing if you picked one of the others but you are all here and made this choice. And, there are many WFPB "experts" that have little to no clinical and patient experience but you may not be able to know that about them. You are spending this week with a bona fide, licensed, credentialed professional team that each has over 25 years of direct clinical experience helping people. Get the most out of your investment.
Second, on yourself.
Until you have put the time in over the next few months and understood the program and been able to achieve and maintain your own success, keep the focus and attention on yourself. Do not worry about telling your spouse, your parents, your daughter in law, your cousins, your neighbor, your hairdresser, the local school, your church group, the food industry, the USDA, the FDA, the FTC, your doctor, the neighbors kid, etc etc or anyone else about the program or trying to get them to do it. Keep the focus on yourself, understanding and implementing the program and getting yourself well. We are not asking you to become a evangelist or preacher of this way of life or to try and convert anyone. We are only trying to help you take care of yourself.
This is not selfish, this is self nurturing and right now, you need all your focus and attention on you.
3) Avoid the vegan trap
Fully explained in this thread...
When Vegan is not Enough
As predicted, vegan is now a trend, and while this is a good thing for the animals and possibly the environment, for most of us, this is bad news as most of the vegan food in grocery stores and restaurants is not healthy. The Pleasure Trap appeal of this food is very very strong and hard to resist.
However, no one has ever come to the 10-Day program to save the animals or save the environment. They made the huge investment of time, money, energy and effort for one (and only one) main reason, their health is suffering. And, almost always, this is a major health issue and not a minor one. They come to my classes with the primary goal of learning how to address, treat and reverse their health issue through diet and lifestyle, not to be a vegan.
Don't mix them up.
This has turned into a lengthy post, but let me finish with the reminder to eat when you are hungry.
JeffN wrote:
When hungry (regardless of whether you may think it is true hunger, appetite, or something else) just eat. Eat of the recommended foods as outlined in the 10 point checklist.
Over time, it will work itself out.
It should not require Holmesian levels of attention to know when you are full. Do you feel uncomfortable? Are you stuffed? If you overshoot the mark, take note and do your best to slightly adjust next time, but don't spend energy fretting and beating yourself up over that - if you stuffed yourself on MWL suitable foods, the calorie density was low and it seems unlikely that you will be continuously stuffing yourself at each meal, each day, on an ongoing basis. Don't overvalue the importance of these episodes, or think you need to perfectly manage hunger cues, as compared to the impact from including troublesome foods in your menu or planning not to adhere on a consistent (or occasional) basis. If you are over consuming problematic foods, the problem isn't your appetite, it's the food, and you can direct your efforts accordingly.
Also, based on Jeff's comments that I highlighted above, regarding the differences between MWL and the regular McD program not really being THAT different, I have decided to continue on the path of MWL with a new mindset...one that is not focused on deprivation, rather one that sees this as being my best hope to achieve my goals and restore my health. MWL is the tool I need to make this lifestyle change. Others may have had success with the regular program, but I do "know myself." My brain is tricky and will use any grey area as to convince me that certain "allowed" foods are harmless, but they quickly become quite harmful.
TRIGGER WARNING-DON'T READ FURTHER IF YOU WILL BE TRIGGERED BY MENTION OF OFF PLAN FOODS!One recent example is avocado and fresh baked whole wheat bread. Before I rejoined MWL most recently, I had come out of juice fasting and and ADF that was a disaster... then tried to follow Dr. Fuhrman for a while. Of course, I did his strictest, "emergency" plan which was very low calorie and pretty complicated (and expensive). Then I stumbled upon this adorable YouTube couple who both lost 130 pounds eating whatever they wanted (not at all vegan) by just calorie counting and exercising. I had the brilliant idea that I could do that, too, but I would just keep it vegan. So, I began eating vegan food, but whatever I wanted - with the only restriction being that I had to stay under a certain (low) calorie total for the day and exercise everyday. I thought this would be "freeing" because I was loosening up the rules of what I could eat, I just had to control how much...and it would be better than fasting, right?
Well, during this time, I had gotten into the habit of having some very "healthy" avocado toast for breakfast...Whole Wheat bread from a local bakery (organic, no additives, vegan, and delicious, but expensive-$8 a loaf), avocado, red onion, arugula (so much delicious arugula, it was practically a salad) and fresh tomato slices and Everything Bagel seasoning sprinkled on top...definitely very healthy. Problem is, what started out as one piece of bread with 1/4 avocado for breakfast soon turned into 2 pieces with 1/2 an avocado, which eventually ended up regularly being 4 pieces (and including the whole avocado). Once this habit was ingrained, I started toasting and eating the bread with peanut butter. and sometimes jam ( organic, all-fruit jam, of course), first a measured amount that I counted. Soon, I wasn't measuring it anymore. Often times, I would eat all this in the same morning...not right away, but maybe an hour later because the bread and the avocado and eventually the peanut butter (which I keep in the house for my very thin husband) were calling my name and I couldn't rest until it was gone. Then it wasn't just in the morning anymore...you get my point. The slippery slope in action. WOW! writing this all out is really embarrassing. But, it is the truth. And not an uncommon progression of my overeating/binge eating progression. And because I was counting calories, I often used up all my calories in the morning and then could eat barely anything the rest of the day...but I usually would cave in and eat anyway.
END OF TRIGGERSo, when I opened Dr. McDougall's book and read Chapter 2: THE POWER OF HUNGER, I literally read it like I was reading my own story! It practically made me cry. Had I heard/read this before? Yes, but I read it from a completely different experience, a personal one. More importantly, I
believed it for the first time!
" What everyone who wants to lose weight must first realize is that the hunger drive was not meant to be ignored or suppressed. It was designed by nature to be POWERFUL, sometimes overwhelmingly so, in order to keep you alive. Therefore, the longer you go without food, the stronger the hunger drive becomes." (p.15)
I'm not flawed or morally weak or "addicted" to bread and avocados, or powerless to change, as I have believed for so long...I am NORMAL. My body behaves normally and predictably when faced with a lack of food. My hunger drive is powerful and predictable and doing it's job to keep me alive! AND...it ALWAYS WINS! And when it does, which it will and always should, I am filled with guilt and shame instead of gratitude for a body working normally to protect me. WOW! This changes everything.
