need a reality check and some advice.

[tinabru]

Thanks Clary and MaryW
Clary, I did get a chance to review the links. It surely is a clear instruction of what to eat and I have been following the program very well. (sorry I neglected to thank you earlier)

MaryW, thanks for the input. Right now, I can't do salads as I am missing 3 lower teeth in the back on one side and as of tuesday this coming week, will be missing 2 on the other side..very hard to chew raw vegetables..I can eat some, but for some reason leafy greens are harder than others..I can try I guess, if I cut them up small.
You must be right about the bloating however cause my pants are SOOOO tight today! This is what I have eaten so far today.

oatmeal, orange

2 medium sized potatoes, with BBQ sauce (no oil, no high fructose corn syrup) 1/2 cup applesauce on top of 1/2 can canned pumpkin.

Coffee with soy milk (i know, coffee is bad, but I don't think it will impede my weight loss)

Dinner will likely be brown rice or potato, frozen spinach and maybe some canned tomatos..

I am not having any trouble eating this way, I am thrilled to be able the foods I was taught to avoid on other programs..I just wish my jeans were getting looser instead of tighter ..at 220 pounds, 5' 3ish, I'm very uncomfortable..
thanks for the support.
tina

[njr1]

Hi Everyone:

tinabru mentioned that she ate "1/2 cup applesauce on top of 1/2 can canned pumpkin." That sounds fantastic!

Are applesauce and pumpkin puree allowed on MWL? I just saw a great recipe for oatmeal using those items but wasn't sure about their status on MWL.

Hi tinabru!
Welcome and good luck to you!

Ryan

[Faith in DC]

hmmm the bloated and jeans getting tighter may be you trying to get use to the fiber. Heck even I still get it sometimes when I eat too much of certain veggies. It should pass soon. This is especially true if you diet was really low in fiber before.

Hopefully you have found some MWL recipes to try.

I wouldn't think the applesauce and canned pumpkin are allowed on MWL. He really likes us to eat whole foods. I know I can eat a boat load of applesauce but try and chomp on that many apples and I'd be full. I guess with the teeth problem that is why you had the sauce. On MWL he says we can have 2 fruits a day, but I don't think you have to. One thing I put on my oatmeal is blueberries. I even can find them frozen w/no sugar. They can be consumed with not much chewing.

[tinabru]

Thanks...I forgot all about frozen blueberries! I love those and my safeway does have them without sugar, and i like them in oatmeal and even plain out of the bag...frozen grapes are also a favorite snack of mine, but i only like the ones grown in usa and not chile, so i have to wait till they are in season..

thanks.
tina

[Lilliane]

Tina,
If you are having issues with being able to chew raw things, you might try using your blender and making a green drink. A fresh mango, peeled and seeded, and several handsful of fresh spinach blended together is very tasty and would at least get some raw vegetables and enzymes into your system. You can do the same thing with salad greens and cucumber with a little garlic and tomatoes-everything fresh of course. It looks a little strange, but really does not taste bad at all, and can be flavored with fresh lemon juice and any herbs you like. I know Jeff says blended things are not really optimum because it disrupts the fiber, but I think it would be much healthier than not getting any fresh vegetables at all. Best wishes

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

I'm with Lilliane on the blenderized stuff. It's not best, but you can do it short term. Also, you can try not fully blending the stuff so that there are chunks that you still chew a bit. Be careful not to choke!

But that said, I think you are also struggling with the bloating that all of us probably had. I know I did. It is especially bad if you are going from a low carb type lifestyle where your body was used to running on different fuel. I think I remember reading something that Dr. McDougall wrote about glycogen storing itself in your muscles along with water. That might account for some of the bloating, the rest is your GI tract getting used to all this food suddenly coming through!

Just remember, it will pass, NO PUN intended. It gets better.

I was reminded of something the other day that is really REALLY good advice for weight loss. Try at each meal to front-load your stomach with the lower calorie stuff like soup or cooked greens or salad. This gets you full and when you finally move on to the higher calorie starches, beans, etc., you don't eat as much. This works quite well, I'm happy to report! I had been hanging around in a stall and got my weight loss going again doing this plus some minor exercise efforts.

[tinabru]

thanks for the help...I am getting pretty discouraged.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Tina, another thing. If you can't chew salads and don't want to eat them, then don't! Make soup instead, you can put a lot of stuff in soup like greens and they are a lot easier to eat.

Sometimes it takes a couple weeks to get over the gas and bloating, some people take longer. Don't give up! It gets better!

[MaryW]

I forgot to mention something to help with bloating. I've used pills like Gas-x with very good results. Some people also use beano. Just be aware that beano is made from shellfish, so if you have an allergy (or object to eating shellfish) you might want to steer clear.

I was also thinking that you could try some cold soups like gaspacho or something like that. Drinking veggies is MUCH better than no veggies at all.

Also, if you are having trouble losing weight, you might want to experiment with your food. I lose weight very well when I focus on potatoes. When I eat a lot of rice, though, I don't lose much. My mom is just opposite. She loses much better with rice.

If you aren't able to eat many raw foods right now, put cooked veggies in everything! When I make chili, I add frozen greens. i eat my morning grains with spinach. If a soup recipe calls for a bag of frozen mixed veggies, I add two (or more). You can't have too many veggies! Just make sure that you cook then until they are soft enough for you to eat. My grandmother cooks everything to death, but she eats lots of veggies every day!

[tinabru]

thanks MaryW. I am really discouraged today. Very sad...

[Faith in DC]

Sorry to hear you are discouraged.

The soups are a good idea. I have soup each day. It is easy to eat when you can't chew.

If you are discouraged about not losing weight, then maybe not weigh. I weigh once a week. I just keep on the routine and it works.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Tina, the thread you started over on Jeff's forum has some good stuff. One is this link to the calorie density discussion and is very good:

viewtopic.php?t=6032

I know it is discouraging, but while you are sticking to the program for these past 10 days, big changes are happening in your body. Take this time to read the threads Jeff pointed out to you and take in the information. It really does get better and you will be happier!

[CarolSoprano]

Tina, I just posted a recipe for Kale, Sweet Potato and Yellow Summer Squash stew on the Recipes forum - it's delicious and it's loaded with veggies. Also, if you send me your e-mail address (mine is soprano [at] hvc [dot] rr [dot] com) I'll send you a whole bunch of MWL-friendly recipes that I've compiled - I've already sent them to several wonderful McDougallers on this forum.

I also make a great veggie dish with onions, garlic, zucchini and mushrooms - I fry the onions and garlic in a little veggie broth (about 1 large sliced onion and 2-3 cloves garlic), add about 2 small zucchini (quartered and then sliced) and sliced mushrooms, throw in some dried basil and pepper, add a little no-salt added tomato sauce (the canned kind), and saute until the veggies are soft. It's really yummy, very filling and that lasts for a few meals at least when I have it with a potato.

I'm sorry about your limitations, and I hope the recipe and the veggie idea help. Hang in there. The weight's probably going to drop off in big chunks - I know mine does. Also, the diet soda is really not good - evidently that stimulates your appetite and interferes with insulin production in some way. You might want to try cutting that out before the coffee or soy milk...