May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

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May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Thu May 19, 2022 8:57 am

Hello to all of the May 2022 12-Day Program Participants! What an amazing experience this program has been!

As we dicussed in our meetup, we want to try setting up a space to check-in with each other as we continue our respective journies. This is a space to do just that! We can further discuss and clarify our goals for the group and what we hope to accomplish, and ways to help each other create accountability.

We are an open group, and welcome others who are looking for support on this journey, or who have wisdom to offer!

Let's get this thing going!

In Health,
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby PatsyW » Thu May 19, 2022 7:06 pm

Thanks, Beth for creating this.

Sybil
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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby YvonneJ » Thu May 19, 2022 8:49 pm

Glad to be on this journey with you all, looking forward to doing this a day at a time, but pretty excited about what the future holds.

Yvonne
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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Fri May 20, 2022 8:16 am

Good to see you Sybil & Yvonne!!
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Fri May 20, 2022 6:12 pm

Well, I guess it's time for me to figure out how to operate in this space to create accountability for myself. I hope for your help!! I recognize that all of our situations and goals are different. So I am going to begin to establish a few goals/guidelines that I am personally working to follow. You do you!

Dr. Lim's presentation tonight about Emotional Eating really hit home for me. I know that part of overcoming this is going to involve developing other (healthier) coping mechanisms for emotional highs and lows / distress other than eating. I love that Dr. Lim encouraged "progress, not perfection" in approach. I feel I can start by making sure my food choices are healthier, even if I am still eating at times to soothe myself. It is so important that I not be going hungry - that has always been a recipe for disaster for me.

So - I give myself permission to eat with abundance and joy of the foods consistent with Dr. McDougall's recommendations. (no animal products, no free oils). I will eat these foods in the figurative light, rather than in the figurative darkness of guilt or shame. I am totally excited about lots of potatoes!

I am in need of healthy coping mechanisms. I am going to choose a couple to work on now from this longer list - off the top of my head from Dr. Lim's presentation.

* Exercise
* Journaling
* Connecting with friends/community
* Prayer and meditation (I always type "medication" by mistake which is sort of funny and probably a freudian slip LOL!)
* Gratitude practice
* Limbic calming (i.e. deep breathing, listening to music)
* Institute an emergency plan
* Practice self-reflection and self-compassion

Developing most of these tools would be awesome over time. For now, I'm going to focus on getting a few things going.

* The emergency plan is already in the works!
* Exercise - I want to implement the core excercises that Jack Dixon recommended, so that is where I will start.
* Journaling / gratitude practice - I've never gotten any real traction in journaling, even though I have seen all the research studies that show how effective it is as a coping mechanism. I think an easy way to get going and try to devlelop a habit might be to just journal a short gratitude list every day. Once that becomes a habit, we'll see where it goes.

Reflection will be part of this - assessing how things are working and adjusting accordingly.

Meals for today - I LOVE THIS FOOD!
Oats & fruit
15 bean soup & a slice of Ezekiel toast
Baked potato and ketchup - I feel like a kid again - and steamed cauliflower.
Another potato if I'm still hungry

This 12-Day Program is completely amazing to me!
Beth

"Long-term sustainable change is what we are really after." ~Jeff Novick
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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Sat May 21, 2022 5:53 pm

Wow - I am just blown away by this 12-Day program! The McDougall team has done such a great job making a Zoom event feel up close and personal. Such a rich, rich experience!

Accountability:

*Remained connected with my emergency contact today.
*Spent time in reflection and deep gratitude today for all of the strong, beautiful, amazing women who I'm fortunate to have as part of my tribe on my life journey.
*Exercise - have not yet gotten going on Jack Dixon's program, but I DID invest in the "Body Groove" program and got some movement in that way. I'm excited because it's so much FUN it truly does not feel like exercise! (Even though I've got the dance moves of an 87 year old Grandma who is NOT McDougalling!)
* Food - COMPLIANT!! 8 days in a row!
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Sun May 22, 2022 9:16 pm

5/22 Accountability

I need to better organize this accountability list to make it easier to stay focused. One day at a time, my process will get better.

*Maintained the human connection again today - easily done during the 12-day program.
*Exercise - none today.
*Food - another compliant day. My support specialist in the 12-Day program has told me on a couple of occassions that in her experience, people who focus on potatoes as their primary starch have an easier time with compliance. So I'm going to up my potato game! I've been eating oats for breakfast. While I love them, I am considering switching to a potato based breakfast when this oat batch is goine to see how that feels.

Today overall felt a bit stressful. There was a lot going on around me at home while I was trying to stay focused on the course. I also had a pretty significant "to-do" list that I tackled during breaks. So I really didn't have any relaxing time for personal reflection, meditation, etc. I accept that some days are like this, and tomorrow is another day.

I am 14 years clean and sober today. This milestone feels good. I am hopeful that the coming year will see me make significant progress getting my food issues to a better place too.
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Tue May 24, 2022 7:42 am

Accountability 5/24/22

I have struggled so much to follow this program in the past. I am so grateful for the 12-Day Program! What an amazing experience (I say on repeat LOL!). For the first time probably ever, I have been 100% compliant to the Starch Solution for 12 full days.

My biggest (known) health challenges right now are excess weight, and a lot of inflammation in my body causing aches and pains and unseen damage. I don't know, of course, what blood tests will show in terms of inflammation markers, but I can say that after 12-days my body feels better than it has in a long, long time. Dr. McDougall suggested to all of us that we give this 3 months of full compliance to really see what can happen. So I can't wait to see if things continue to improve over that time!!

My high weight in November 2021 was 216. Between then and May 13 (the start of the 12-Day Program) I lost some weight with just partial compliance to the Starch Solution with a little Weight Watchers thrown in for good (bad) measure. Today I weighed in at 190.2! I lost just over 6 pounds during the 12-Day program, which is amazing to me considering that I was also tapered fully off of thyroid medication by Dr. Lim during the 10 days or so before the program started.

I really feel amazing and can't wait to see what happens when I get exercise woven in, and start to experience the benefits of "time and aherence."

Call me excited!
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Shawne » Tue May 24, 2022 6:14 pm

I just wanted to say hi. Graduation tonight was great we should all be so proud of the work we have done so far. Hope we all continue on this path to health and wellness.
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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Thu Jun 02, 2022 7:12 am

Hi Shawne!! Glad to see you here!

I feel like life has been a bit cra-cra since the 12-Day Program ended. The awesome, spectacular, unbelievable news is that I am STILL 100% ON PLAN!!! I have struggled for so many years to get on plan and stay on plan. I am not exactly sure what the magic is, but I am SO GRATEFUL that I made the investment in my health that is the 12-Day McDougall Program. I guess it was just enough extra knowledge (interacting live with Dr. McDougall, Mary McDougall, Jeff Novick, Dr. Lisle, and the host of other presenters was amazing!), extra motivation, and extra support to push me over the line to the side where I can stay on track. I'm grateful for the on-going support offered through my Support Specialist, Dr. Lim, Dr. McDougall in the bi-weekly chats, and the weekly Starchivore group. Thumbs up to the folks who can read the book(s) and be on their way. LOL, I have never been able to do anything the easy way!

Accountability report:

Food is on point. I'm keeping it so very simple right now. Simple soups, baked or mashed potatoes, steamed vegetables, fruit. Rinse and repeat. I sometimes toast a piece of Ezekiel bread until it's pretty crunchy and then break off pieces into my soup. I guess that is my extravagance! I used to load up a bowl of soup with 4967395673958 crackers. So I think replacing that old habit with 1 piece of Ezekiel bread is a huge step forward. This food is such a far cry from my deep dives into the bakery department at the grocery store. I'm full and satisfied. I'm slowly losing weight. Life is good!

Exercise - still struggling to get regular exercise going. I know it's important. I asked my Support Specialist to start holding me accountable on this front. I'm determined to do a little something every day this week, even if it's only 5 minutes. I did some walking the last two days. Not a lot, but enough to hopefully start building from.

I'm starting to pack away my clothes that have gotten too big. I want to just donate them all and show confidence that this is for real and forever. My husband, however, has seen me gain and lose and gain and lose over the years. He is wonderful and NEVER comments on my weight. He thinks I'm beautiful no matter what - he is a gem! But based on history, I can understand why he is encouraging me to box up the clothes in the basement and "wait and see." So I'm doing that for now. He is so supportive I'm not going to argue about it. I also have a goal of simplifying my wardrobe as I move into smaller sizes. As a person who can overdo anything, I overdo clothing as well. I still want to have some fashion fun. So my balance point it going to be the Outfit Formulas program. I will stick to the Wardrobe Basics capsule, and then just do each seasonal capsule. If I stick to that and don't buy a bunch of other stuff, my wardrobe will be a reasonable size (and cost).

My body feels really good right now. A lot of aches and pains and stiffness have faded substantially! Potatoes really are the MIRACLE FOOD!
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Sat Jun 04, 2022 10:58 am

Accountability 6-4-22

High weight sometime last winter: 218.0
Current weight: 186.0

I'm pretty excited about that!! I lost some weight between January and the start of the 12-day Program on 5/13/11 via partial compliance to the Starch Solution, and frankly, due to the "orthodontic diet" that happened as a result of getting braces on my teeth! :lol: :lol: :lol: I started the 12-Day program at 196.4 so as of today, I've lost around 10 pounds in a bit over 3 weeks. Of course I have zero expectation that this pace will continue, but I will take the positive progress and not look a gift horse in the mouth! I haven't been super hungry and haven't really been eating a lot. I need to make sure I'm not forgoing food when I'm hungry, with the subcounsious goal of losing weight "fast." That would backfire on me.

I have taken Armour (or NatureThroid) thyroid medication since 2008. Working with Dr. Lim, I fully tapered off of all thyroid medication. We are going to test again in a few months, and see if I really need to be on it. If so, I will make the switch to synthetic thyroid medication per Dr. McDougall's recommendations which he has published in various places. I am AMAZED that I have been feeling great, losing weight, not feeling exhausted or "crashy." I wonder what's up with that? Perhaps I never should have been put on thyroid medication? I guess that will get sorted out all in good time. I'm just grateful to be feeling so good!

Excercise: I'VE BEEN WALKING!! I got up to a mile each of the last two days. Progress, not perfection. Today I am going to walk a mile, and also start on Jack Dixon's recommended functional exercises. I need to review the materials and dig up the recommended videos. My goal will be to start with 1 exercise, and add a new one each day until I am doing his basic recommended routine. Including those planks!

Food: Simple, delicious, on-plan. I've had a few mild "stinkin' thinkin' type thoughts while in grocery stores this past week. I immediately re-direct my thoughts to a baked potato with ketchup. MIRACLE FOOD! :P 100% compliance continues.

During the 12-day program I cut salt way way way back. I started having leg cramps at night. Nobody program-wise (Dr. Lim, Support Specialist) was willing to attribute the cramps to the salt. However, when I add some salt back in I don't have the cramps. If I go back to extremely low/no added salt, the cramps are back. So I've been sprinkling my food with salt and not worrying about it. I would be interested to know if others have had this experience.

The 12-day program is absolutely the best investment I have made in myself, probably ever. I'm so glad I did it. I would encourage others to do it. Not sure what else to say about that. Dr. McDougall is one of the largest personalities I have ever encountered. He is just FIRE and I feel so blessed to have experienced his wisdom and presence live - even over zoom. I have also never attended anything over zoom that felt so personalized, and like being there. What a great job this team has done! I'm guessing Heather is the FORCE behind the Zoom success - a large presence like her Dad in a slightly different way. Mary is also a force to be reckoned with! How could she NOT be, married to Dr. McDougall all these years? She keeps up with him and keeps him on his toes!

OK - enough rambling for now. I need to do some food prep today - nothing too fancy. Cut some veg, make a pot of veg soup, cut some other vegetables so they are ready to steam as needed. Simple and delicious! :nod:
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby YvonneJ » Sat Jun 04, 2022 5:02 pm

Hi,
Finally re-found this, good to see the notes below. Just want today hello and hope all are doing well and eating lots of potatoes. I still am :-D

Wishing everyone the best,

Yvonne
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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Sun Jun 05, 2022 7:15 pm

Hi Yvonne!! :-D Good to see you! Would love to read about your journey here if you care to share in this forum!

Accountability 6/5/22:

Food: On plan! Lunch was a little on the salty side - I had what I consider at this point to be a "treat meal" which was bean burritos on corn tortillas. The tortillas, the fat-free refried beans, and the salsa were higher in salt than I've been used to eating. So if the scale is up tomorrow I'm not going to worry about it. I made a big pot of vegetable soup this afternoon. So dinner was a bowl of soup and a baked potato with, you guessed! Ketchup! :D :D :D I also had some grapes for dessert after lunch, and a banana + some strawberries for dessert affer dinner. I love this simple food! It is so satisfying and I feel like my brain (mood, temperament) just LOVES this food!

Exercise: Yesterday I increased my distance walking, and also increased it a bit more today. So I'm up to 1-2/3 miles. I'm pretty happy with that in these creaky old knees. This is outdoors too, which involves quite a bit of incline/decline. Once I get up to 2 miles, which shoudl be in the next few days, I'm going to hold at that distance for a bit and concentrate on adding the Jack Dixon functional exercises and planks. I really want to develop a solid routine and schedule around these basics.

In other news, I am frustrated with these braces on my teeth. EVERY time I go for an adjustment, I end up with wires brutally digging into my cheeks. EVERY time I have ended up having to go back in to have them try to cut the wires down closer so they are not killing me. I use wax, but I can't leave the wax in while I'm eating and the wire that's digging into my cheek right now is making eating a miserable experience! I've lost 20 pounds since March 10 when the braces went on. My orthodondists name is Dr. Red. I keep telling him the Dr. Red Orthodontic Diet is the best thing going, and he needs to write a book and advertise this thing LOL! OK. Enough venting on that topic. We all know it's the McDougall food leading to weight loss anyway! :nod: :D
Beth

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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby VegSeekingFit » Tue Jun 07, 2022 9:05 pm

Hi to Beth and All May 2022 12-Day Graduates!!! :)

I am November 2021 Graduate... :-D I LOVED this program and would HIGHLY recommend to anyone. The Program itself was amazing and the support model is impeccable...

I LOVE the energy and positivity on this thread!!! All that I can say is, KEEP GOING!!! You can all do amazing things!!!

I have no wisdom, but one thing that I would offer up as an idea... Our class did our own weekly Zoom call --- which has been an amazing experience... It is no cost... We just scheduled a repeating meeting and same folks who joined in the Program have joined for this call. I've made some great McD friends... Priceless.


Cheers,
Stephanie
"Just put one foot in front of the other and don't worry about the length of the path.
Once you get on that path, and the longer you stay on it, there eventually will come a time when you will not turn back." - Martina Navratilova
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Re: May 2022 12-Day Program Graduates Accountability Journal

Postby Lizzy_F » Sat Jun 11, 2022 3:02 pm

Hi Stephanie! Oh I so agree with you on the value of the 12-Day program!! Interesting that your group is doing a Zoom call. We talked about doing that, but haven't put one together. You are motivating me to check-in with the peer group and get it going. If you don't mind sharing, I would love to hear a summary of what has changed for you in the time since you completed the course in 2021.

Accountability:

Weight - Current weight 185.0. High weight was 218 last winter sometime. Weight at the start of the 12-Day program (May 13 2022) was 196.4. So a 11 pounds and change in almost 1 month of strict adherance.

Food - I haven't been posting daily as planned, but I have been on plan! Food has been totally on track. POTATOES RULE! I have eaten some other starches, but it is becoming more and more clear that potatoes are the best starch for me personally. They seem to work best for satiation, weight loss, and ketchup! :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Exercise - I finally feel like I am getting in a groove. I have done some exercise (mostly walking outdoors) 8 of the last 10 days. Today I walked 3 miles outside, plus did a short (very short) stint on the ellipitacal. I feel that is good for my knees - that rotation. I can tell the inflammation in my body has been going down, based on how my joints feel, which is so exciting! I also did a little bit of balance work today, which I really do need. So much that needs to be added, but at least I am doing something almost every day, and that is a long way from where I was.

I am starting to pack away my biggest clothing - and that pile is getting pretty big. I am also putting quite a bit into the donate pile. My intention is to never open those packed away boxes again until I am confident just donating those clothes too. I have ordered a few basic items in smaller sized. Torrid has been my favorite store for a long time for fun, trendy, often age inappropriate ( :D :D :D ) clothing. I am sort of sad that I am starting to wear their smallest size in tops, and will soon be there in bottoms as well. I don't know what I'm going to do next for my 70's band tees, destructed jeans, and all that kind age inappropriate stuff. A good problem to look forward to!

Another day, another potato. :nod:
Beth

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