Hello fellow Eat to Livers! I just wanted to check up with everyone and see who might be checking this or who might be still doing the diet.
Heres my update anyway...
I "started" the diet in December. I was a vegan anyway, so it wasnt terribly far off the norm for me, but it meant giving up convenience food and thinking about what was going into my body. During December I did terrible to say the least. I was baking cookies as Christmas gifts (vegan, but cookies none the less) and everytime a tray would come out of the oven I ate one cookie. Blah.
So, now Im cookied out and its a new month. Last month I lost 1lb all month. But so far this month thanks to sticking to plan, exercising regularly, and the veggie challenge thread, I have so far lost 6lbs in 10 days! Im thrilled at the results when you stick to it.
BUT, I have to admit, I deffinatly struggle with some aspects of the diet. I LOVE bread and pasta. I love hot comfort food. I love mashed potatoes and pancakes. I love things that dont fit into the diet, which Im sure many others struggle with. Ive also learnt to love almonds which is part of the diet, but I have a hard time stopping at one palm full!
How do you guys (or whoever is still reading this) eat your salad as often as you should and feel satisfied without having the comfort food. AND I miss desert....and as much fruit as I eat it just doesnt cut it. How do you guys get over that? Im sticking to it, but I just keep thinking about my craving foods most of the time. Blah.
Last edited by erinmagill; 01-12-2009 at 01:10 PM.
Just thought I'd post something I saw on a youtube video with Dr Fuhrman, it's info on how you can make ETL soups. I think you just pick one ingredient from each group (or according to your taste) to make a soup. Whenever I've "invented" a soup it's turned out tasting horrible, so I thought I'd give this a shot.
Base: Carrot juice, Canned soup, Tomato juice, Celery juice
Leafy Greens: Kale, Spinach, Cabbage, Swiss chard, Bok choy, Collards
I absolutely love the soups and salad aspects of the diet. Pasta is not an issue but bread is, I love ezekiel bread and also oatmeal every morning. My weight loss has slowed down to 2 lbs a month but 3 days of E2L I lost 2 lb which is amazing.
Sadly I'v discovered vegan treats and love belsoy chocolate pudding, I've been eating that. There was also an incident with a vegan/organic brand of oreo like cookies that I care not to think about and then the mother of all discoveries, soy ice-cream. I'm working towards coming back to it though.
One of the other ladies posted this link and the recipes are just wonderful.
I hear ya JackieRn, I have a problem with eating bread in moderation, so I've cut it out completely except for crispbreads. And yep, I've noticed there are tons of vegan treats out there, I'm really into crunchy peanutbutter and cashew nuts
Erinmagill--
Have you considered letting yourself have the occasional treat, say once a week have those pancakes or bread? I follow a vegan diet which pretty well parallels ETL, but most evenings I have about 50-60 calories worth of vegan dark chocolate (I love Endangered Species bars) with my tea. I find that just that little bit satisfies my desire for chocolate. If I feel like I need more to eat, I'll eat that chocolate along with an apple, so I'm getting the sweet taste and fiber. It does the trick every time and I don't feel deprived.
Could somebody please post a sort of summary of what the Eat to live diet is please? Like, what is the basic idea of it. And is is permissable to post a list of the allowed foods and amounts?
Thank you.
Best wishes to everybody. Looking forward to finding out more.
Could somebody please post a sort of summary of what the Eat to live diet is please? Like, what is the basic idea of it. And is is permissable to post a list of the allowed foods and amounts?
Thank you.
Best wishes to everybody. Looking forward to finding out more.
This link has a little info on the six week plan. This site also has approved recipes.
I guess I am the lone contrarian here, used to that, all part of being an Aquarian I guess.
I could not have had a more different impression of this book than the majority of the other posters. I have radically changed my eating habits by being a vegetarian most days and vegan on other days, eliminated wheat, sugar, soda..... But I must say I have never read a more bland, boring and joyless eating plan in my entire life. The thought of eating this way one day let alone the full 6 weeks he recommends is unthinkable to somebody like myself, who takes great pleasure from a good meal, particularly if from my own heritage which is Mediterrean.
He recommends no ( or very low salt ), no sugar, no dairy, meat, fish, fowl, 2 pounds of veggies a day, no oil. And for 6 weeks anyhow, you are too live on 1 cup of beans per day for protein. That is a total joke, even when I was a couch potato and now walking the 2 hours a day that I do now, would that ever in a trillion years be enough.
I do not wish to disparage anybody who enjoys eating this way or who is doing it to improve their health, but man alive, if I had to live on 2 pounds of veggies a day, no pasta, bread, oil, salt or sugar, I would rather be dead.
Sorry, please no slinging of veggies or fruit, just me, if it works for you, then God Bless.
MissPossum, I was a meat eating, cheese eating omnivore when I read eat to live. After finishing the book, I gave up animal products and started the program. I was on the program for 2 months. I went off the program due to going on vacation although I kept the program as a general guidelines for how I should eat.
Basically, you get creative with the food choices. Green shakes are good breakfast, various beans and various veggies fill your day with fruit as well. The 1 cup of beans is a minimum. You should also remember that veggies and fruit have protein as well. Oh and I was lifting weights and had no issue with getting enough protein.
Now my diet is a bit different, I eat some whole grains but honestly not a lot. I rarely eat bread and pasta is even rarer. I eat some avocados but not a lot, I usually use some olive oil when I roast veggies, I don't really use salt although when I eat out, my food generally has sodium, I don't use sugar but I have gotten into the habit of using limited amounts of stevia.
Honestly, I've never loved food more than I do now in my life after becoming vegan and part of that joy was experienced during my first couple months following eat to live. I won't say its an easy plan to follow but I think its a good one to use as a generally guideline.
If you look through the book at the recipes and try them, they are delicious also the website with the approved meals has really great veggie dishes. The plan allows for use of herbs and spice so its not bland. Also there are recipe options in his book for people who want to use lean meats, eggs, and fish.
I've never eaten more healthy tasty food in my life. Also the 1 cup beans is the minimum requirement, I get 60-80 grams of protein following this diet by eating broccoli, chickpeas, lentils, kidney beans, black beans, and tofu.
The plan allows for canned beans so I don't do much prep and there are really great organic brans like Amy's and Eden of soups and beans that are approved. Also he allows for one cup of grains so for me I do 1/2 cup of oatmeal and have 1/2 cup of Brown rice that I cook with lentils and am able to have the rice without overdoing it.
I don't find it joyless at all but not having bread is probably the toughest part. Like with any other plan it works for some and not others. Also I think he encourages no added salt and use of Mrs Dash like alternatives because a significant number of the people who do his diet, a good number of whom are his patients, have high blood pressure they have to limit their salt intake anyway so this actually a great recommendation and helps obese or overweight people reduce their risk of stroke, heart disease, etc. So if you don't have high blood pressure and associated symptoms of water retention etc. it probably means you would be able to have a little bit of salt if you wanted I do. The same goes with olive oil he says that for 1 tbsp daily for people who are physically active is no big deal. I cook my veggie dishes with 1/2 tsp and use non stick pots. The only veggie I steam is broccoli.
As long as you have a plan thats helping you lose weight then thats cool. For me personally I lost 2 lbs the first 3 days I did it and thats what I've been losing in an entire month so for me it works especially as I get closer to goal and the weight is harder to lose. Also if you read the last few pages of the book in the question and answer section he addresses the fact that he doesn't expect everyone to be able to adopt the radical change he proposes. He also suggests the 90% /10% option by which you follow the plan most of the times but can allow yourself some of the other less nutritious foods. If you really read the whole book you find that the plan is doable but only for those who are willing to give it a try, there is no doubt it works.
Also I forgot to mention that the book talks about protein and protein needs, reasons for giving up salt, sugar, caffeine, etc. If you've read the book, its easier to understand then people giving snippets of information.
