Beyond the 12-Day Program: Beth's Time & Adherence

[squealcat]

Beth ! You look beautiful in both pictures ! So wonderful to fit into size 10's ! I look forward to doing the same at some point ! How fun !

-Marilyn

[Lizzy_F]

Stephanie, Trinity and Marilyn - thank you SO MUCH for lifting me up with your encouraging words!!! I would love to see your pictures too - it's so nice to put faces with names. I think it's so important that we have self-acceptance and self-love at any and every size. I hated my body for the longest time and really struggled to make any meaningful change and progress until I stopped hating myself and my body.

It's been a busy week once again, so I have neglected my journal! I'm still rolling along with the best compliance ever, and biding my time as the weight loss slows, but still seems to be happening.

I think I'm over-consuming fruit. I'm giving myself grace about it for now since watermelon season doesn't last forever!

[Trinity]

Mmmm yes it is always allowable to consume as much watermelon as you want in the summer in my book.

[Ruff]

Whooo Beth! What a great photo, you look amazing! Thank you so much for posting. All that hard work is really paying off, we are all very proud of you.

Fruit is amazing in fruit season, enjoy.

[Lizzy_F]

Ruff thank you so much for your kind words!

I'm glad to know I'm not alone enjoying the FRUITS of the season!!

Today is a big milestone. I weighed in at 169.0 which puts me right at the upper edge of a normal BMI instead of overweight BMI (I think technically I have to be at 168.5 but I'm claiming it anyway! ).

I just love having checkins with Tiffany. She helps me so much with the mental aspects of this journey. After years of dieting and mostly dieting failures, I am finding the mental side of this to be somewhat overwhelming, especially as I get closer to a healthy weight. I think I have an inner fear that this will all stop working, or that suddenly potatoes WILL make me fat again LOL! At any rate, my goal for the coming couple of weeks until I see Tiffany again is to RELAX and just continue to enjoy this fantastic food. When I reach a balance point where energy in = energy out and the weight loss stops, it will need to be STOPPED for WEEKS or MONTHS not DAYS to make that determination. Right now, weight loss has certainly slowed. But it hasn't STOPPED. So I'm working on letting go of my FEAR and just enjoying the food and the journey.

I feel a bit like a deranged nutcase. Please don't send someone over with a straight jacket!

I'm guessing I am not alone in this mental.....gymnastics (looking for the right cRaZy word!). I'm sure many of us find this journey to be mentally challenging after a long time of diet failure. So I would love to hear from anyone who has found ways to work with yourself to keep yourself feeling SANE!

Ok. Lunch is late today and I'm starving, so off I go for some steamed cabbage, baked potatoes + ketchup, and WATERMELON! I truly do LOVE this FOOD!

[VegSeekingFit]

Ruff thank you so much for your kind words!

I'm glad to know I'm not alone enjoying the FRUITS of the season!!

Today is a big milestone. I weighed in at 169.0 which puts me right at the upper edge of a normal BMI instead of overweight BMI (I think technically I have to be at 168.5 but I'm claiming it anyway! ).

I just love having checkins with Tiffany. She helps me so much with the mental aspects of this journey. After years of dieting and mostly dieting failures, I am finding the mental side of this to be somewhat overwhelming, especially as I get closer to a healthy weight. I think I have an inner fear that this will all stop working, or that suddenly potatoes WILL make me fat again LOL! At any rate, my goal for the coming couple of weeks until I see Tiffany again is to RELAX and just continue to enjoy this fantastic food. When I reach a balance point where energy in = energy out and the weight loss stops, it will need to be STOPPED for WEEKS or MONTHS not DAYS to make that determination. Right now, weight loss has certainly slowed. But it hasn't STOPPED. So I'm working on letting go of my FEAR and just enjoying the food and the journey.

I feel a bit like a deranged nutcase. Please don't send someone over with a straight jacket!

I'm guessing I am not alone in this mental.....gymnastics (looking for the right cRaZy word!). I'm sure many of us find this journey to be mentally challenging after a long time of diet failure. So I would love to hear from anyone who has found ways to work with yourself to keep yourself feeling SANE!

Ok. Lunch is late today and I'm starving, so off I go for some steamed cabbage, baked potatoes + ketchup, and WATERMELON! I truly do LOVE this FOOD!

Hey Beth!! Congrats!! You are doing so awesome!! Just keep going!!! You go, girl!!! (I can't even see you... you are too fast!!)

I am not sure if you have seen my 100K + threads (responses, etc...) on the Psychological challenges of doing this... If no, ping me, and I will send you a gazillion!! Just hang in!!! Love how you are loving the food!! I do too!!! (By the way, this means that you are not deranged, etc....! )

Fruit... Always a wondering topic for me too... McD seems to say that he sees people eating 10 - 20 servings of fruit without a guilty thought... I do sometimes wonder about them!!! Loving fruit here and exceed the 2X / MWL limit (but I don't have trigliceride / IR problems OR even understand this 10-20... ) Anyway, I do exceed the 2, but don't feel it is a relevant issue for me...

HEY... Most importantly... where are your shepherd pics????

Cheers,
Stephanie

[VegSeekingFit]

Hey Beth!

Hope that you are having an excellent week!

Saw you asked for my Sloppy Lentils recipe on my journal. Below is recipe that I have adapted from...

https://www.drmcdougall.com/recipes/sloppy-lentil-joes/

Here it is --- I make in 2/2.5 Quart Crockpot --- so you may need to adjust amounts according to pot size you'll use.

1 cup Split Red lentils
1 box Pomi Strained Tomatoes - 26 oz
Water --- from 1/2 to 2/3 (I fill up the tomato box -- adjust water based on how much room left in the crockpot)
1 chopped bell pepper
1 chopped onion
1 T vegan worcestshire
1 t rice vinegar

Can add in: chopped jalapeno with seeds (for heat) and / or chopped sun dried no oil tomatoes

Enjoy your weekend!
Stephanie

[Lizzy_F]

Re-posting my T&A report here for posterity:

Report for 8-12-22:

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.

Breakfast (when eaten) no, lunch and dinner, yes. Breakfast is oats + fruit (when eaten).

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.

I usually eat the veg first, and then the starch after (so two separate plates) but yes – non-starchy veg = starch by visual volume.

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.

I feel like I am doing really well with #3! Other than small amounts of condiments, the only other added salt is from the shaker at the table, and there was no added sugar this week other than in the ketchup.

4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood).

Success!

5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy).

Success!

6. Eliminate any added oil.

Success!

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.

Success!

8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages).

Success!

9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself.

I still experience uncertainty here, but I’m beginning to think it’s just something that might take me a long time to get comfortable with. “Time and adherence” is allowing me to worry about it less frequently.

10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking).

I went for walks on Saturday and Sunday last weekend, then hurt my back on Monday (I’ve had back surgery, so am prone to having these problems). So no exercise this week and still a sore back. ☹

Victories:Still on plan!!!! YAY!!! Dr. Lim took me off all thyroid medication prior to the start of the May 12-day program that I had been taking since 2008. I just had my Free T4 and TSH re-tested and YAY – NORMAL! Both numbers came up in the middle of the reference ranges. I will of course await confirmation from Dr. Lim, but I am assuming this is great news and that I truly was over-medicated and taking an unnecessary prescription! I’m very excited about this development.

Comments: Weight loss has slowed considerably so I am now working on the mental aspects of dealing with fears – fears such as:
• Oh no! This is going to stop working!
• It works for other people but may not work for me..
• I can’t reach my goals…
• Etc.
I believe all this fear is a result of a lifetime of failed dieting attempts. I am hoping that the great coaching I am getting here and from the McDougall team, and more time and adherence will help me overcome these fears, and have confidence that I CAN do this for the long haul, and it WILL work for me as it works for others.

In the mean time, I feel like I have a handful of very simple meals that I love, and a solid food prep routine each week. That is so vital for me! I have a couple recipes I want to try - Pico in my new chopper, Yonana nice cream in that contraption, Stephanie's split pea stew and sloppy lentils. I haven't gotten around to that yet, but I'm not worried about it. Simple is working really well for me right now. I'm still eating a lot of fruit, especially watermelon, but I'm not so worried about that right now either thanks to all of your support and sharing last week - so many, many thanks!!

Questions: I welcome comments and suggestions from others as always!!!!

[Lizzy_F]

Thank you Stephanie for your lentil recipe! I can't wait to try them!

Still just McDougalling along here. Lots of sameness to my food, but I love it so I'm OK with that. Mostly focused on the mental adjustments necessary to stay on track despite the slowing of weight loss. Working on acceptance. Why am I in such a hurry anyway? This is a life long journey, so relax and enjoy the potatoes!

[bunsofaluminum]

Beth, you are doing amazing! Even the before pic, you looked pretty good, but WOW on that "during/after" pic...holy cow, girl. Looking fine! and meeting your MWL goals. Good work!

[VegSeekingFit]

Hey Beth!!

I know that you reached a milestone... and I am not sure if you announced...

Anyway, just wanted to say that you are amazing!! Keep going... You are ON FIRE!!! Keep going!!!

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=th ... ORM=WRVORC

Cheers,
Stephanie

[Lizzy_F]

Hello Journal and hello McDougalling friends!!

Buns - thank you so much for your kind words about those pictures! It's really exciting to go into a store and pick a size 12 thing off of a rack thinking "this will never fit" and then it's TOO BIG and I have to go back for a 10. That is so much fun and such a novelty to me that I've been doing a little too much of it LOL!

Stephanie thank you as always for cheering me on! You are such a positive voice in my journey! You are right about the Big Milestone!!

DRUMROLL......

I am no longer "Overweight" or "Obese" according to the BMI charts! It's been a loooooong time since I could say that. The journey continues - I would like to achieve a BMI somewhere in the 20 - 22 range and see how that feels, and how it is to maintain at that level. So that is the next weight related target - we'll just have to see what my brain/body has to say about it. I am keeping calorie density and starches at the forefront of my thinking as I meal plan and meal prep.

In other news (sad news) one of our German Shepherds had a lump develop on her belly. She had surgery Friday to have it removed, and it is breast cancer. The tumor was really bad - the vet said the surgery was complicated by 18 blood vessels feeding the tumor. They had to open her up a second time due to internal bleeding. After going through all of this, she is showing a resilient attitude which is her way. It has been difficult to keep her quietly crated this weekend. We have decided that we are not going to put her through any extrordinary treatments (radiation, chemo, etc.). Hopefully removing the tumor will buy her some time, but when her quality of life goes down the drain, then we will lovingly say goodbye. We have had many dogs over the years, and that is the hardest thing. She is 9.5 years old. The average life expectancy of a GSD is 9-13 years. She has had a good life. Her name is Bingo and that is the perfect name for her. Follow the bouncing dog! We are beyond sad - this is just so hard to go through. They are easy to love, and devastating to lose.

I continue to maintain strong compliance through it all. I'm very grateful to have developed a great routine for shoppping (including grocery pickup) and food prep. I am never without compliant food to quickly heat up and make a meal. These routines have been very helpful over the last several days.

What's for dinner tonight? The usual! Veg soup, steamed cabbage, potatoes, watermelon & some grapes. I've got some lentil chili thawed out and some new potatoes already cooked. So I will probalby have those new potatoes with a bit of chili over the top. A nice change from ketchup.

Hope everyone is doing well. I need a day for journal catch up!!!

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Beth,

I am SO SORRY for what you are going through with Bingo.. I understand / empathize how pets are our family and have been in similar situation that you depicted...

Wishing all of you PEACE .... and all of the best going forward... Seriously, so sorry!! (And you are doing great to just keep on with your eating ... doesn't help to change it...) Again, so sorry!!!

Best,
Stephanie

[Lizzy_F]

Thank you so much Stephanie for your support and kind words! <3 <3 <3 It means a lot to me! It's been a crazy week trying to keep her quiet so the incision can heal.

https://i.postimg.cc/g0j24zPq/Bingo-wit ... ollars.jpg

Hubby made Bingo a double pool noodle collar which keeps her from licking her stitches, but is much less of a PIA than the "lampshade" collar. She is a wonderful, high energy girl who loves her toys and her people. One of these days I will post one of JoJo so he doesn't feel left out. He is also a black Shepherd.

Bingo has really bounced back after the surgery. She is like her old pre-tumor self. I'm so glad she still has a few good days (or weeks or months or however long the good days last) left in her.

Food and MWL eating (i.e. pre-loading with lowest cal density food, etc.) is going well. The scale is not moving much, but I think this is actually a good thing - it's giving me an opportunity to strengthen my mental game. And you know what? If I never lost another ounce, I am SO much happier with the way I feel today mentally, physically and spiritually that I wouldn't trade this for anything. So... more watermelon please!

[VegSeekingFit]

Hey Beth!!

I am so glad Bingo is doing well... and you are best person!!! OMG!!! What a beautiful dog!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!

Don't worry too much about the scale... Seriously... You are doing the steps --- and having fantastic results!! Just don't let it get you down... I had many times up or same.... BOO!!! Scale monster!!! It will work itself out... try to trust in that... and keep your mind on stuff / starve ... Just keep going!!! You've got it!!!

I hope that you have an incredible weekend and wish you and your family all of the best!!!!

Best,
Stephanie