The Behavioral Path to MWL Success - April 2024 Group

[Mark Cooper]

APRIL 2024 RESOURCES
This section will be updated throughout the month with links to useful resources, as they are added to the thread.

Orientation Information for Time & Adherence:
The Behavioral Path to MWL Success
MWL 10-Point Checklist
MWL Program Guidelines
Calorie Density: How To Eat More, Weigh Less and Live Longer
MWL Recipes
Some of Jeff Novick's Quick and Easy Recipes
Jeff's Simple Recipes on Facebook
SNAP Meal Template

1- 28 oz Can No Salt Added Tomatoes (or broth for those who don't like tomatoes)
1- 14 oz Can No Salt Added Beans (which is about 1.5 - 2 cups)
1- 16 oz Bag Frozen Mixed Veggies (any type)
**optional - 1/2 cup Frozen Greens
1.5 to 2 cups of a *Cooked* Starch
~1 tbsp. Salt Free, Dried Seasoning/Spice

The Road to Success: Creating Healthy Habits
The Pleasure Trap: Dr. Doug Lisle at TedxFremont
How to Lose Weight Without Losing Your Mind with Dr. Doug Lisle
Dr. Doug Lisle on The Ego Trap
Dr. Doug Lisle: The Story of Willpower – What it Is & How it Works
Dr. Lisle's Three Top Tips for Dietary Success
Jeff Novick, RD - Nutrition & Health FAQ: Answers To The Most Asked Questions
A Review of the Rules & Guidelines for Reading Labels
Passive Overconsumption: The Unintended Intake of Excess Calories
Can You Really Eat As Much As You Want?
Why We Hit Plateaus and What We Can Do About Them
Top 10 Reasons for Lack of Success
Dining Out and Travel Food
Exercise, Health & You: How Much Is Enough?
Optimum BMI? / Optimal BMI - redux
Building Self-Efficacy
You Are Not Broken
wildgoose - How I determined my "goal weight"
Finding The Sweet Spot: Balancing Calorie Density, Nutrient Density & Satiety
Calorie Density & Satiety In Action
Is long time adherence really possible?
Amy's Giant List of Links to Dr. Lisle's Lectures

[Mark Cooper]

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

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 desert
Yes

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.
Yes

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

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

6. Eliminate any added oil.
Yes

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.
Yes

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


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

10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking).
Not every day

Victories, comments, concerns, questions good week, nothing eventful
A good week, I added a lot more green lower calorie veggies this week

[Mark Cooper]

Hi MWL team!


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

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 desert. YES

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. YES

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

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). NO

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

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. YES

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

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

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

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

This week was not too bad. I’m having trouble with the higher fat foods. Right now I’m taking it one meal at a time. On a positive note, SAD foods don’t appeal at all anymore.

Wishing everyone a wonderful and healthy week!

[Rebecka22]

1.Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES
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. YES
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. YES
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). YES
6. Eliminate any added oil. YES
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. YES
8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES
10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES

A good week. I made it through Easter without candy or sweets. I did realize how hard it is for me to be around a spread of food all day and not want to eat. I stuck to my food though. I hope everyone has a great week.

[Artista]

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

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 desert. Yes.

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. Yes.

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

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). Yes except for a few Tbsps of soy milk every day.

6) Eliminate any added oil. Yes.

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. Yes.

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

9) Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. Yes. I appreciate being able to eat whenever I’m hungry. My pattern is usually to eat something every few hours. There’s been a few times lately when due to circumstances I wasn’t able to do that. It was interesting to see that I was able to go longer without eating and not feel miserable or faint. This is really new for me.

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

This was another good week. Ever since Jeff posted about not having to be perfect at this, I’ve been loving this journey. I also really like Wildgoose’s comment “don't let the goal of "perfect" distract you from the reality of "pretty darn good.” I agree. I’m really liking the Black Bean/Lentil burgers and the recipe made a lot so I was able to put a bunch in the freezer. Yesterday I had a doctor’s visit so he could recheck my fractured shoulder. My shoulder is doing great which I attribute to my healthy diet and a great physical therapist. I always get weighed at the doctor’s and I was happy to see that my weight is back in the BMI range for a healthy weight. I’m no longer overweight. I would like to lose more weight but my plan is to just keep my focus on following the checklist and let my weight settle wherever it wants to. My intention is to eat this way forever.

[Mark Cooper]

Hello MWL team. I hope everyone had a good week.

1) Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES> Breakfast is oats, spinach, flax meal, fruit. I had veggie soup in the frig all week and ate it before most other meals.

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 desert. YES

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. YES

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

5) Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). Mostly. Still eating a little tofu and avocado.

6) Eliminate any added oil. YES

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. YES. I’m proud of myself for this because these things are in the house and I remind myself that what I eat is my choice for my health. I am keeping frozen cherries on hand as a “go-to” when others in the house are eating calorie-dense food.

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

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

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES. I get lots of exercise. I row on a Concept2 Ergometer daily and have rowed over two million meters in the last 12 months.

Victories, comments, concerns, questions: I have been watching videos and reading articles this week and feel very motivated and happy with the direction I am going with my food choices, keeping good starches and veggies and fruit available and reminding myself that I am focusing on long-term habits and long-term health! Many thanks to all in the group for your posts. I find that it is very motivating to read your comments each week!

[Gimmelean]

MWL Post for week ending 4/5/24


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

2). Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals.
Yes.

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.
Yes

4) Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs,)
Yes

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

6) Eliminate any added oil.
Yes

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.
No. Breads are a challenge but much less and will focus on eliminating this week.

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

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

10) Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e.,
Victories, Questions, Comments: this was a busy week. Having basics I REALLY LIKE prepped in advance made all the difference in adhering and feeling good about it when I came home from work tired and hungry. Thank you everyone for sharing how you are planning for known challenges.
Once it stops raining, have a beautiful spring everyone !

I’m going going to review all of the resources again; kindofa new beginning.

[CUgorji22]

Happy Saturday, everyone!

I am back and hopeful my return will be a good one.

I have completed the Orientation & reviewed the Guidelines.


-Chesca

[Mark Cooper]

Happy Saturday, everyone!

I am back and hopeful my return will be a good one.

I have completed the Orientation & reviewed the Guidelines.


-Chesca

Excellent!

[VegSeekingFit]

Hi Team Time & Adherence,

Happy April!!!

1 Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit.
Still about 50% of the time.

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.
Yes.

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.
Yes – reduced not eliminated.

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

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

6 Eliminate any added oil.
Yes.

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).
Yes.

8 Don’t drink your calories especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages.
Yes.

9 Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself.
Yes. I am still paying attention to this one. Was all good this week.

10 Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking).
Yes. Walk / jogged today about 6 miles and it was beautiful outside and felt great!!! My pickleball league moves outside next week – must be spring!

Victories, comments, concerns, questions:

I always ❤️ reviewing the week and hearing how everyone is doing with different challenges. Also get so many great ideas from Mark and Wildgoose’s feedback!

Tomorrow I am going to bring my own food INTO a restaurant (where I have been and know nothing there is compliant that can constitute a meal). Will bring a Jeff burger and sweet potato and supplement with their raw veggies. This will really be my first time using this approach – but feeling good about it. I am practicing nonchalance!!! Will report back next week!



Bambi – Yay for a good week!


Starflower – Awesome that SAD foods don’t appeal!!!


Rebecka – I have to +1 your comment on how it can be hard to be around a spread of food all day. For me, it can help to keep a physical distance from certain items!! Yay that you made it through unscathed!!!


Artista – Awesome that your shoulder is doing great and you are healthy weight!! I also find removing the thought of needing to be perfect – or removing judgment – so helpful to keeping this a sustainable lifestyle.


Sarabee – Loved your comment on feeling motivated and on focusing on long-term health!!


Gimmelean – Thanks for kind comment last week! I also like to go back and refresh on the materials sometimes and check out other articles on the website. This week I’ve been reading some of the newsletter archives – have found some fun articles like Dr. McD’s one on meeting Carl Lewis.


Welcome back, Chesca!


Wishing everyone lots of delicious starch, smiles, and spring this week!


Best,
Stephanie

[Mark Cooper]

The window for reporting this week's behavioral results has officially closed.

My replies and the weekly summary will follow.

[Mark Cooper]

BambiS - It definitely seems like you had a good week to me! How did adding those non starchy vegetables feel during the course of the week? Did you enjoy the addition? Did you do anything new or different to incorporate them into your menu? Keep doing your best!

Starflower - I'm happy to know that this week didn't feel like it was a bad one! Not feeling any attraction at all to SAD foods seems like a significant milestone! Kudos! When you say you are "having trouble with higher fat foods," what does that look like? Are you finding that consuming those foods is spurring further consumption, or eating despite satiety? Are you beset with cravings and just having a difficult time eliminating those foods entirely? Are the higher fat foods replacing or displacing the recommended foods in a given meal? The best action to take will be informed by your specific goals, situation, and the obstacles you are facing. Taking things one meal at a time, as you are doing, is nearly always a helpful approach, though, as is arranging and adjusting your environment to work in support of the pattern of behavior you are trying to attain or maintain, if that is possible. Treat yourself with kindness and compassion, and keep at it!

Rebecka22 - Awesome! Navigating the Easter celebrations in a manner congruent with your plans and intentions seems like a major victory! I think being situated in a particularly challenging food environment can make it feel SO MUCH more difficult to maintain the recommended behaviors, and the longer the duration of that exposure, the harder it typically feels, right? Cheers to you for facing that down. Have an amazing week!

Artista - That seems like excellent progress, Nancy! I'm delighted to know that you are feeling empowered, motivated, and happy in your journey! I think sustainable and thoughtful PROGRESS toward a specific goal will beat rigid PERFECTION to an inflexible ideal every single time, in the long run. It's fantastic that you have recovered so well from the shoulder fracture. Congratulations! And your BMI is in the healthy range!

my plan is to just keep my focus on following the checklist and let my weight settle wherever it wants to.

I think that is an excellent plan!

My intention is to eat this way forever.

Carry on!

sarabee - Great progress! I think your success in eliminating the calorie rich foods is really significant given their proximity; your strategies and tactics are working for you! I LOVE frozen cherries! That seems like a wonderful "go-to" for those times when your "willpower" is being tested. It is lovely to know that you are feeling motivated and happy about your choices.

I am focusing on long-term habits and long-term health!

Spot-on! Continue!

Gimmelean - Continuing progress! That is what matters most, right?

Having basics I REALLY LIKE prepped in advance made all the difference in adhering and feeling good about it when I came home from work tired and hungry.

That is a really salient point, and something we should all keep in mind for those busy weeks or other trying times. I got really tired of rain this week, but the last few days have been dry, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Cheers for a new beginning to go with spring renewal!

VegSeekingFit - Happy April, Stephanie! I'm so thrilled with your bravery in being willing to experiment with bringing "outside food" into a restaurant! Please let us know how that goes! (I'm sure you will manage it well ). Nonchalance for the win!

[Mark Cooper]

What an awesome way to start April! A big THUMBS UP to all of you!

Continuing our "tour" through the checklist,

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

This post tells us one reason for this recommendation:

Higher Fat Foods
As the percentage of calories from fat goes up, we are more likely to over-consume calories, especially from added fats/oils. Adding fats/oils to food increases the overall percentage of calories from fat and the overall calorie density and decreases the overall satiety (per calorie). On a WFPB diet, the foods that are higher in fat are peanuts, soybeans, avocados, nuts, seeds and oils.

And from Dr. McDougall himself we're told,

Avoid All High-Fat Plant Foods:

Nuts, seed, olives, avocados, and soy products (unless they are manufactured to be fat-free) are high in fat, which you will wear. Vegetable oils, like olive, corn, safflower, canola, and flaxseed oil are 100% fat that will be transferred effortlessly to your chin, buttocks, thighs, and abdomen. Avoid these as if they were poisons for your personal appearance.

Program Protocol: These delicacies were not served to our guests during our Maximum Weight Loss Live-in Program.

Practical Tips for Home Compliance: When I was growing up, nuts were something you had for special occasions, like Christmas. These richer foods should be kept for holidays, and then, only after you have lost all of your unwanted body fat.

I've included several other relevant posts below. If you have other favorites articles that are pertinent, please feel free to share them in the thread.

I apologize if this has already been asked but I am wondering why tofu isn't included in the calorie density chart. It's around 350 calories a pound so it seems like it should be...

Good question.

Tofu (like the soy bean it is made from) is a high fat food (around 47%) and while it is lower in calorie density , it is limited on all programs and especially on the MWL because of its fat content.

Understand that while the MWL program is based on calorie density, calorie density is just a number and there are several other things that come into play, all of which impact “the passive overconsumption of calories,” which is the real issue. Some of the other issues include the percentage of fat, the amount of fiber/cal, the satiety per calorie, the degree of processing, liquids vs solid, etc, The two most important things in determining the passive overconsumption of calories are the calorie density and the percentage of fat of the food.

The higher the % fat, the more likely one is to overeat on a food. In addition, the higher percent of fat, the lower the satiety per calories as fat doesn’t trigger the satiety mechanisms. That’s the issue with tofu. It is very easy to overeat on due the very high percentage of fat and low satiety and amount of processing. All animals in nature will “passively over-consume calories” on high fat foods.

That is why on the MWL program, we not only avoid foods high in calorie density, we avoid foods high in fat. We also avoid liquid calories even though their calorie density is very low.

We do not recommend a specific amount of fat or counting fat grams because it misses the essential keys to the program, especially the MWL program. The MWL program is based on calorie density, satiety and the related principles of the "passive over consumption of calories". Just knowing fat grams doesn't help with any of this. Two foods can have the exact same amount of fat grams yet vary widely in the calorie density, the satiety, and the passive overconsumption of calories

For the MWL program, we recommend avoiding all higher fat foods because they increase calorie density, decrease satiety and increase the passive overconsumption of calories. Very few make it here, especially to the MWL, because they can do a "little" of anything food related.

There are so many recipes for hummus without added fat or high fat foods.

For the regular program, we allow for some addition of foods higher in fat if you have no weight or health issues and they don't impact either.

May your week be extraordinary, renewing, and restorative! Take care & be well!

[BambiS]

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

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 desert
Yes

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.
Yes

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

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

6. Eliminate any added oil.
Yes

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.
Yes

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


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

10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking).
Not every day

Victories, comments, concerns, questions good week, nothing eventful
Another good week, still eating more green lower calorie veggies. The scale finally moved. I am taking whatever I have and roasting the veggies with seasonings like garlic, onions. They have been keeping me full longer. I do have starch as well, but probably more 75/25.

[Rebecka22]

1.Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. YES
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. YES
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. YES
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). YES
5. Eliminate all higher fat plant foods (i.e., nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu, soy). YES
6. Eliminate any added oil. YES
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. YES
8. Don't drink your calories (especially from juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). YES
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself. YES
10. Avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). YES

A good week with solid planning to stay on track. Trying to take the time to recognize and be grateful for all the beautiful fruits and vegetables I am blessed to eat. Hope everyone has a great week.