Laura Corin Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 I'm waiting for my book to arrive, but from the descriptions, I don't think it will be hard for me to follow: I like to eat a lot of fruit, beans and veg anyway. There are, however, three things that might make it hard for me to stick to: my four small squares of chocolate at the end of the day; my four large cups of decaf tea with 2% milk each day; my gin and tonic of an evening. Does it make sense to follow the programme if I still have those things? I have about ten or fifteen pounds to lose (I'm 140 and am more comfortable at 125/130). I have hereditary high cholesterol and am on statins, so I am very interested to see if the regime will help with this, although I already eat pretty healthily. Thank you Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 23, 2009 Author Share Posted June 23, 2009 Bump. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lighthouseacademy Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Start with the food and then work on the vices :) Can you substitute one of your cups of tea with an herbal tea? Red Raspberry leaf, if you buy quality leaves like those from Mountain Rose Herbs, is often a good substitute for tea. Can you substitute some almond milk or something else instead of milk? Baby steps :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 24, 2009 Author Share Posted June 24, 2009 I guess I don't think of those three things as vices.... They seem like fairly moderate treats in a healthy life. I will try substituting the milk but I don't really want to give up the single drink and the 'line' of chocolate. Will the diet still work for weight loss if I don't? Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I suggest that you sub out some of your coffee for green tea, which helps with weight loss. Obviously, in order for you to lose weight, your calories go down and your metabolism up. If you can do that with your treats, then go for it. If your diet won't change much because of leaving the treats in, then it won't work. I think it is hard for anyone to answer because the way you describe it makes it sound like it won't Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 24, 2009 Author Share Posted June 24, 2009 Thanks: that makes sense. I guess I was thinking about it this way: eating nothing but fruit, veg and beans all day seemed like the majority of my intake, and one cup of semi-skimmed milk, a few squares of chocolate and a drink wouldn't detract much, but maybe I'm wrong. I was hoping that other 'cheaters' would come forward so I could see how much leeway there was. I'm not keen on green tea just because I have problems with sleeping, so I avoid caffeine - do they make decaff green tea? Best wishes Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tress Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 (edited) Laura, Dr Fuhrman would say that anything is better than nothing. Sure, following his program 100% is optimal, and he *very much* want you to go for 100%, but if you really can't give up certain things..then don't (Eat to live, pag 243 'if that one drink a day will make you stay with the plan much more succesfully, then have it'). If you follow his program for 90% of the time you are good. Substituting the milk in your tea would be a good plan. And I can't find it, but I'm not even sure that he finds chocolate (in moderation) bad. We are not talking *milk* chocolate, right? Edited June 24, 2009 by Tress spelling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 24, 2009 Author Share Posted June 24, 2009 Laura, Dr Fuhrman would say that anything is better than nothing. Sure, following his program 100% is optimal, and he *very much* want you to go for 100%, but if you really can't give up certain things..then don't (Eat to live, pag 243 'if that one drink a day will make you stay with the plan much more succesfully, then have it'). If you follow his program for 90% of the time you are good. Substituting the milk in your tea would be a good plan. And I can't find it, but I'm not even sure that he finds chocolate (in moderation) bad. We are not talking *milk* chocolate, right? Okay, that makes it sound worth a try. No, not milk chocolate: yummy, very dark, fair trade Divine chocolate. I'll look into substitutes for milk. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer in MI Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I just started trying this, so right now, I'm following it to a T!! But, I can already see where I'm going to be "cheating" regularly. (Although I prefer to see it as making this work for me and not cheating. :001_smile:) I plan to add eggs back to my breakfast and I may or may not add a cup of coffee back. I also plan to add a glass of wine at night again. Maybe we should start a ETL thread. There seem to be quite a few of us on it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I just started this too. I started reading the book last week. He really explains why no dairy in ways that will make you at the very least want to severely limit it. Of all animal products, I see them in this order of importance to remove from the diet: Dairy, meat, fish and last of all eggs. I kept 2-3 ounces of meat at dinner until I figured out how to add in the beans, nuts and seeds. I added the raw veggies first for a couple of days, then added even more cooked veggies than I was already eating, and yesterday was my first full-fledged following the plan day. I think I even went over on raw veggies a bit. (I had a tomato for a mid-afternoon snack. :D) I did it! What a lot of dang vegetables! :willy_nilly: Oh, and I've already lost 3 lbs just sort of following it. Get as close to the plan as you can stand. More (whole!) plant foods overall & less animal foods = better diet. Period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 24, 2009 Author Share Posted June 24, 2009 I just started this too. I started reading the book last week. He really explains why no dairy in ways that will make you at the very least want to severely limit it. Of all animal products, I see them in this order of importance to remove from the diet: Dairy, meat, fish and last of all eggs. I can certainly do it temporarily (a month or two) but I just like the taste. My standard lunch (before starting the plan) is steamed veggies with a small chunk of cheese on the side. I'm very much a cook-from-scratch no-junk-food kind of eater already; we'll see how I do with no dairy long term. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I can certainly do it temporarily (a month or two) but I just like the taste. My standard lunch (before starting the plan) is steamed veggies with a small chunk of cheese on the side. I'm very much a cook-from-scratch no-junk-food kind of eater already; we'll see how I do with no dairy long term. Laura I know what you mean. I cook from scratch too and we're taught all our lives that certain things are healthy in reasonable quantities so it's kind of a lot to swallow all at once. I'm still working on it... I don't like what he has to say about coffee at all. I'm trying to cut back but... geez. Can't I have just one vice? :tongue_smilie: I'm sitting here with my coffee and small bit of Coffee-mate in it right now. I'm not giving up dairy 100% either as if I did, I can pretty much expect to be lactose intolerant later (Your body stops making enzymes when they're no longer needed.). My sister is lactose intolerant w/out ever stopping dairy, so it may happen anyway but I'm going to instigate it (not today :D). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 24, 2009 Author Share Posted June 24, 2009 I'm not giving up dairy 100% either as if I did, I can pretty much expect to be lactose intolerant later (Your body stops making enzymes when they're no longer needed.).. When I lived in China, the older generation mostly couldn't drink milk, but the younger people could, just because they had always drunk it. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 I'm not giving up dairy 100% either as if I did, I can pretty much expect to be lactose intolerant later (Your body stops making enzymes when they're no longer needed.). I didn't know that! And now I feel better...I'm not multislacking, I'm learning stuff from the Hive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumping In Puddles Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 (edited) I add a 3 oz portion of alaskan salmon to my dinners and sometimes, sardines with my lunch. I also have a bit of dark chocolate now and again. I also have some kefir with fresh fruit and nuts for breakfast. Parmesan Salt eggs sometimes. I think that's it. Edited June 25, 2009 by Jumping In Puddles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 They do make decaf green tea! It is an ingredient other than the caffeine that aids weight loss. I like mine with some caffeine in it though. :tongue_smilie:I get the Chai flavor and I usually add some soymilk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loupelou Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I just started this too.. a thread might be good for all of us. So far I've stuck with most of it pretty well. But, I am not a big meat eater or dairy fan. My downfall is sugar, I love my chocolate, milk chocolate, I can't stand dark chocolate, call me crazy. We had the bean enchiladas for dinner last night, I loved it, I added some couscous in. Today I added the leftover bean mixture to my salad. I also ate out at Chili's Tuesday, I ordered the Guiltless Grill Black Bean burger, and ate it with half the bread, no dressing. Can you tell I love black beans??:D I love that we can eat fruit- it helps me with my sugar cravings. Anyway, I've lost 4.5 lbs. since weighing myself on Sunday! I can do anything for that kind of weightloss. Anybody have a good recipe using Bok Choy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janna Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I agree with what everyone has said so far. I want to just add that when I followed this diet to a T, after the 6 weeks, I started to feel kinda "frail", if that makes sense. Like there just wasn't a lot of strength to me. I don't know how to describe it. It has nothing to do with exercise, just a feeling. Similar to a lack of energy. Anyway, I also started to plateau in the weight loss which was highly frustrating. It turns out that I wasn't eating enough fat (I wasn't even using olive oil in the pan for the cooked veggies - it was a nonstick pan so I used nothing). So I added in some cheese and it made a world of difference! I am back on this diet for the most part, but I still eat some cheese, and I also can't seem to go a day without a dove mini chocolate. No, I'm not losing weight as quickly, but I feel pretty good and I'm Ok with it. I would definitely say that the majority of my diet is fruit and veggies, both raw and cooked. Truly, and not to be cliche, but everyone's bodies are just so different. This is what is working for me at the moment. I know when my dad did this, he really needed an egg in the morning, so he did. Before you start to wonder too much, just wait for the book and read it. It will make sense after that happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumping In Puddles Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I also add a little parmesan cheese to some dishes. One thing I love, is Pasta e fagioli so I just make Marinara sauce, a few whole wheat ditalini pasta, white beans, and topped with a little parmesan cheese and I'm happy. Without the cheese, it is too bland for me. Sometimes I eat eggs too. So, yeah, I tweak quite a bit. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lvbnhome Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I think one thing this plan is helping me to do, is to eat tons more veggies and fruit, instead of filling up on bread, cheese, meat, dairy...however.... ds made some AWESOME rich brownies just now...I'm eating one, with a small glass of milk, and a few walnuts :) sorry, but it is really good! Last night though, everyone went out for ice cream, and I had some pineapple (they serve it too)..I'm glad I waited for the brownie. Isn't it more about being aware of our choices and making the best ones 90% of the time??;) lacy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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