Artista’s Journal

[Artista]

What I ate today:

Breakfast: Cantaloupe, arugula, orange, rolled oats, blueberries
Lunch: 2 apricots, raw vegetables, steamed vegetables, potato, chickpeas
Dinner: plum, raw vegetables, salad, chickpeas, potato

Exercise: 47 minutes brisk walking

MWL 10 points: 10/10

I wasn’t as hungry today as yesterday. I’m glad to see it balances out in time and I just need to follow the principle to eat when hungry until comfortably full. I’m really enjoying all the fresh produce available this time of year and so grateful for all the farmers out there!

[Artista]

What I ate today:

breakfast:
green tea
cantaloupe
arugula, apricot, oatmeal, blueberries

Lunch:
pear
salad, chickpeas, sweet potato

dinner:
raw vegetables
steamed cauliflower, broccoli, kale, collards,
chickpeas, sweet potato

exercise: none
meditated 20 min.

MWL checklist: 9 out of 10 (no exercise)

I started meditating today. I've meditated in the past and and really enjoyed it but fell out of the habit so I'm starting up again. My mind was really squirrelly so it almost felt like I wasn't accomplishing anything, but I remember that that got better with time.

In the June MWL thread Mark linked to Geo's "Some Random Thoughts on Successful McDougalling”. I was planning on reading through that but ended up reading Geo's Star McDougaller story instead. What an amazing story! I love reading success stories anyway, they leave me refueled with hope and confidence, and Geo's story was particularly inspiring. If you haven't read it, he reversed metabolic syndrome and lost 106 pounds by following the McDougall program. He ends his story with “Dr McDougall’s program has given me back my health and my life and at no cost.”. That’s another thing that I find amazing. That Dr. McDougall would make all of this life-saving information available for free, and that Mark, Jeff, and Wildgoose would give of their time to provide support and the benefit of their wisdom, knowledge, and experience at no cost. There really is nothing else like it. So grateful.

[Artista]

What I ate today:

Breakfast
Cantaloupe, arugula,
Rolled oats, blueberries

Lunch
Grapes, raw vegetables,
Steamed green beans, carrots, potatoes, chickpeas

Snack
2 plums, apricot

Dinner
Snow peas, steamed kale & collards
Mushrooms, onion, garlic, tomatoes, sweet potato, chickpeas

Exercise: 23 min walking, 10 min strength exercises

MWL checklist: 10/10

I ate more fruit today than usual. I’m still not sure if that’s a bad thing or not. I love fruit and I haven’t felt like it causes me any problems but still, I don’t want to eat too much. I usually try to keep it to 3 or 4 a day.

It’s been great to see all the journal activity lately!

[Artista]

What I ate today:

Breakfast: green tea, cantaloupe, arugula, peach, oat groats, blueberries
mid-morning: peach, oat groats
Lunch: carrots, green beans, chickpeas, mushrooms, tomatoes, onion, garlic, sweet potato
dinner: I’m not really hungry, I may not eat any dinner.

exercise: 35 minutes walking
meditated 20 min.

MWL checklist: 10/10

A different kind of day today. I was hungry more than usual during the earlier part of the day and I ate quite a bit for lunch but I don’t feel like I overate. Today for the first time since coming back to MWL I was feeling kind of a restless with my food and it was more of a struggle to stay with the program. I think I need to find some creative recipes that are simple to prepare and flavorful; and also do some batch cooking so that I have meals that are already made and ready to go. I have some recipes in mind that I'm looking forward to trying. Wishing all of you good health and beautiful food.

[Ruff]

A different kind of day today. I was hungry more than usual during the earlier part of the day and I ate quite a bit for lunch but I don’t feel like I overate. Today for the first time since coming back to MWL I was feeling kind of a restless with my food and it was more of a struggle to stay with the program. I think I need to find some creative recipes that are simple to prepare and flavorful; and also do some batch cooking so that I have meals that are already made and ready to go. I have some recipes in mind that I'm looking forward to trying. Wishing all of you good health and beautiful food.

I have no idea where I read it or when...or it might even have been in a lecture, but Dr McD once said that the beauty of MWL was that when people fell off it...they fell onto the main Starch Solution plan! So they might have some bread, or some plant based milk on their porridge. Or even a McD pudding. This is OK! This is a way of life. As long as we stay within the overall complaint picture things will be OK...yes it is possible to overeat on this plan, but we usually know when we are doing it! We might overeat from time to time, but if we relax we then find ourselves eating less the next few days.

I think the biggest mind shift for me was that we eat this way. We all eat a certain way depending on where we live, what our parents ate, what grows in your area etc etc. When I shifted to eating the SS way, then it all dropped into place. Want to shift a few pounds for a function...do a Mary's Mini, then come back to SS eating. Fell off the wagon at a Christmas party? No worries, just come back to your normal SS way of eating...just as we always did in the old days before we started overthinking this whole thing!

[Artista]

Thank you, Katie! that’s such great advice. I’ve found that to be true, if I eat a lot one day, I eat less the next. I don’t want to over think it. I have one of those personalities that overthinks and overcomplicates things, and tries too hard to do it perfectly. I need to keep it simple and doable or I’ll never be able to go the distance. It has to be a way of life as you said. I read your story and, wow, it reads like a movie. It’s very encouraging to see the success you’ve had and to see that you’re still following the SS.

[Artista]

What I ate today:

Breakfast
Cantaloupe, oat groats, blueberries

Lunch
Carrots, grapes, cucumber
Pinto beans, tomato, onion, garlic, spices
1/2 Japanese sweet potato, broccoli, green beans

Afternoon
3 apricots

Dinner
Carrots
Pinto beans, tomato, onion, garlic, spices
1/2 Japanese sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, kale, collards

Exercise: 30 min. Yoga
Meditation: none

A busy day today but I managed to stay on plan except for forgetting morning meditation. I went to an art reception in the evening and there was cake and champagne but I didn’t have either one. I made up my mind ahead of time to not eat anything since I wasn’t hungry and it was going to be all sweets anyway. I had a good time visiting with friends and looking at the art, that’s the important thing.

[Ruff]

A busy day today but I managed to stay on plan except for forgetting morning meditation. I went to an art reception in the evening and there was cake and champagne but I didn’t have either one. I made up my mind ahead of time to not eat anything since I wasn’t hungry and it was going to be all sweets anyway. I had a good time visiting with friends and looking at the art, that’s the important thing.

well done at the art show. Cake and Champagne at a show is not 'food' its not a 'meal' and one doesn't eat it because one is hungry. Its there to give people something to do with their hands, and to ease the social wheels. I still have difficulty with this kind of thing, even if I eat first. somehow I feel I am missing out. So well done you. I hope the art was worth looking at.

[Artista]

well done at the art show. Cake and Champagne at a show is not 'food' its not a 'meal' and one doesn't eat it because one is hungry. Its there to give people something to do with their hands, and to ease the social wheels. I still have difficulty with this kind of thing, even if I eat first. somehow I feel I am missing out. So well done you. I hope the art was worth looking at.

The art was worth looking at, it didn't all appeal to me but still worth a look. Cake used to be one of my favorite foods and I did feel a little like I was missing out. I didn’t stay too much longer after the cake was brought out. I’m glad I don’t have to be around food like that every day.

[Artista]

What I ate today:

Breakfast
Cantaloupe
Oat groats
Arugula, blueberries

Mid-morning
Apple

Lunch
Raw carrots, cucumber
Pinto beans, brown rice
Arugula, tomatoes, mushrooms, onion, garlic

Mid-afternoon
2 apricots

Dinner
Raw carrots, cucumber
Japanese sweet potato
Normandy style vegetables

Exercise: 45 minutes brisk walking
Meditation: 20 minutes
MWL 10 point checklist: 10/10

I weighed myself this morning and I’m down 1.6 lbs from June 10th, and down 3 lbs from when I started MWL on May 14th. That’s probably slow by most people’s standards but I’m happy with it. I knew it would be slow (sometimes I think I have the metabolism of a cactus plant!) but I’m happy with slow. I decided when I started out that I wouldn’t make it about the weight but about just following the guidelines the best I can one day at a time. I don’t have a schedule for how often to weigh myself and I don’t really have a goal weight.

[Artista]

What I ate today:

Breakfast
Cantaloupe
Oat groats
Arugula, blueberries

Lunch
Raw carrots, tomatoes from garden
Corn, pinto beans with tomatoes, mushrooms, onion
Kale, collards, Normandy style vegetables

Mid-afternoon
Mango, 1/2 sweet potato, apricot

Dinner
Raw carrots, cucumber
1/2 sweet potato
Green beans

Exercise: 35 minutes brisk walking
Meditation: 20 minutes

The meditation is getting easier. I don’t feel so much like I’m just sitting there watching my thoughts whirl around, I’m finding more moments of stillness. I’ve settled into a groove with food and eating. I still want to do some batch cooking, I just need to set aside some time to do that. Tomorrow I go in for annual lab work and I’m curious to see if there’s any change since last year especially with 5+ weeks of MWL. My labs are usually pretty good but my cholesterol has always been a little high even with being vegan and mostly whole food, low fat. It may take more weight loss to see a change in cholesterol. My plan is to be here a year from now and still McDougalling when I repeat the lab work.

[Ruff]

Good luck with the blood tests tomorrow. Let us know how it goes.

[Artista]

Good luck with the blood tests tomorrow. Let us know how it goes.

Thank you, Katie, I'll do that. It'll be a few days before I get the results. I don't have any reason to think it will be any worse than previous ones but there's always that wondering time while I'm waiting.

[Artista]

What I ate today:
Tues June 21, 2022

Breakfast
cantaloupe
blueberries, apricot
rolled oats

Snack
apple

Lunch
cucumber, carrots
rice & beans
steamed green beans, kale, collards

Snack
1/2 sweet potato
carrots, apricot

Dinner
cucumber
steamed California blend vegetables
1/2 sweet potato

Exercise: 20 minutes rebounding, 10 minutes strength exercises
Meditation: didn't get to it this morning

I made a commitment to myself when starting this journal to record everything I eat regardless of how not pretty it is. Sometimes I feel a little embarrassed because I eat frequently rather than just 2 or 3 times a day. But it seems to work for me so I guess I won’t change it if I don’t need to. I don’t eat a lot at one time. I spent a few hours painting today and it was nice to have that time. It used to be if I got frustrated with how my painting was going I would find myself in the kitchen looking for something to eat. I just realized I don't do that anymore. There were more than a few times when that would lead to overeating. Glad to see that isn't a habit anymore. I really have to work to have a block of painting time. It competes with all the other things I have to do. Putting in the hours it takes to become a better painter is similar to the work and time and attention it takes to achieve a healthier diet and lifestyle. I think I read somewhere here on the forums that it's like swimming against the current. It feels exactly like that. But it’s worth it.

[Artista]

What I ate today:

Breakfast
cantaloupe
blueberries, strawberries
oat groats

Lunch
apple
salad
chickpeas, sweet potato

Snack
1/2 sweet potato

Dinner
raw vegetables
steamed vegetabes (carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, collards)
bean/mushroom/onion/tomato dish

Exercise: none
Meditation: none
MWL 10-point checklist: 9/10 (I didn’t exercise today)

I saw the posts about thinking of the MWL Program as the Maximum Health Program. I really like that. I think of myself as more on a journey for maximum health than just weight loss.

I got the results of my annual blood tests back. My total cholesterol went down 10 points but is still in the borderline high range at 213. So I still have some work to do. I read that Dr. Esselstyn says that if a person doesn’t eat anything that damages the arterial endothelium then they’re safe even if their cholesterol isn’t below 150. I'm hoping that that's true. Meantime, I'll continue on with my maximum health program I see my doctor next week and I’ll see what he has to say. Their office supports a plant based woe and lifestyle. I'm also open to any suggestions from people here on the forums.