Eat To Live: Week One
 

HERE WE GO!!!!!!:carrot: Week One of Six for the Eat2Lifers! The Basic Plan:

UNLIMITED (eat as much as you want)
raw vegetables (goal: 1 pound daily)
cooked green vegetables (goal: 1 pound daily)
beans, legumes, bean sprouts, and tofu (1 cup daily)
fresh fruit (at least 4 daily)
eggplant, mushrooms, peppers, onions, tomatoes

LIMITED (not more than one serving per day)
cooked starchy vegetables or whole grains (butternut or acorn squash, corn potatoes,rice, cooked carrots, sweet potatoes, breads, cereals) (1 cup max. per day)
raw nuts & seeds (1 oz. max. per day)
avocado (2 oz. max. per day)
ground flaxseed (must consume 1 T per day)

OFF-LIMITS
dairy products
animal products
between-meal snacks
fruit juice, dried fruit

ENJOY!

but possoms are cute just look at the possoms in over the fence and what about Nemo and Chicken Little lol
:cheer: lets go team lets go wooohoo:cheer:

I'm here! I highly recommend that everybody read the book to understand why the requirements are so strict -- it makes it much easier to follow!

Have a great time, everybody! I'm hoping to reach my "current goal" by the end of July. Right now, I'm wearing a pair of jeans that I haven't fit into for several months! :D

ok so my day has gone ok I went shopping useing the shopping list in the book. Did have a few slip ups but not bad I found this really good chili oh man it was good. I'm not really hungery tonightSo I'm not going to eat much for dinner. I hope you all had a good first day.

G

I'm doing ok! And I really NEED to lose this weight, so I want this to work!!

And about the slip-ups -- it's totally natural to have them... just get right back on the plan at the very next meal. :)

Well, I hate to say this for fear of being tarred and feathered, but I don't think I got enough calories on my first day! I have a better idea of how I'm going to achieve that from here on but it really was a pleasant surprise to be so low cal after eating so much volume. Thanks Junia for getting us on this plan! I may become a vegetarian after these 6 weeks, if I make it that long! At the very least, I do promise not to eat any animated animals.

Sarah -- ok, as for calories -- did you eat a bunch of beans or other legumes? Did you eat four servings of fruits? My problem is that I have a hard time eating all the veggies the plan calls for. I'm getting better, though, and I really do like it when the bulk of my calories come from veggies -- it just takes a lot of bulk to get the calories, lol!

BTW, folks -- it gets easier after the first couple days... keep it up team!

oh, another thought -- don't forget your ounce of nuts ;) (I have a hard time keeping it under an ounce -- I love nuts!)

As for me, I'm hoping that getting back on this plan will shake me out of this massive plateau I'm on. I want to reach my current goal by my birthday at the end of July -- do y'all think I can do it?

:carrot: you can do it Junia yes you can :hug: I'm haveing a good day no slip ups even had a veggy delite at sub way used my bread for that it was sooo good. I just know this is going to be so rewarding.

Sarah I'm glad you will not result to eating animated animals and at the end of the six weeks you'll feel so good you'll not want to go back.

Last night I had a conversation with a lady who was not a veggie and was asking me questions about why don't I drink milk because it doesn't hurt the cows. I just told her how I feel. I think it was a good thing for me to stand up for what I believe in.

Anyway I hope everyone is haveing a good day

:hug: g

I’m glad you all are doing so well!

Junia – 25 lbs is an awful lot to lose in just over 2 months, but that’s no reason to not try. Even if you don’t hit that specific number goal you will still be a winner!

gggbdomino – I’m so glad you stood up for yourself in that conversation. I’m not exactly sure what you mean exactly by “what I believe in” since I’ve not read about why you’re doing this. I mean I know we’re all here to lose weight and for better health, but I wasn’t sure if ethics is something ya’ll are concerned about. About it “not hurting the cows” anyway:

“From 1940 to 1999, average per-cow milk production rose from 2.3 to 8.9 tons per year; some cows have surpassed 30 tons. High milk production leads to udder ligament damage, mastitis, and lameness.
It is unprofitable to keep cows alive once their milk production declines. They are usually killed at 5–6 years of age, though their normal life span exceeds 20.
Dairy cows are rarely allowed to nurse their young. Many male calves are slaughtered immediately, while others are raised for “special-fed veal”—kept in individual stalls and chained by the neck on a 2–3 foot tether for 18–20 weeks before being slaughtered.”

I don’t mean to be preachy, I’m a guilty lacto-ovo myself and slowly becoming more vegan. You can read more here: http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/animals.html

Off-topic, but... When people get all upset that I "can't even have milk," I simply tell them that I have made a personal choice not to support the dairy industry because of its close ties to the veal industry. I don't try to stop them from drinking milk, and I don't tell them my reasons unless they get really pushy about it -- but for some reason people can get really uptight about the fact that I choose to avoid consuming animal products. I mean, really -- I'm not bothering them about their diet, so why should they get all upset about mine? *sigh*

[/tangent]

The person was very respectful of my views(which are ethical as well as health issuses) I just don't get why people get testy aboutme not eating meat. on both sides I have know militant vegans and Militant meat eaters. I think we should live and let live. I all so think that when the opertunity presents it's self we should inform people about our life stlyes.

about the program can you have an ounce of seeds if you can't eat nuts?

domino, yes, I believe that you can have an ounce of seeds instead of nuts. I admire anyone with the courage to stand up for their convictions. As far as I'm concerned, I'm rather Scarlett O'Hara self-centered and shallow so I try not to think about things too deeply.:dizzy: I do have fond memories of going out on my friend's grandparents farm. I remember the milk there tasted quite different than store-bought. And those eggs didn't look like the ones in the store either! They didn't even have running water, just a well & an outhouse! It was always a grand adventure going there. The cruelty on their farm was part of their own survival whereas industry is about profit.

Junia, thanks for mentioning the nuts. I did eat some almonds today which is helping me reach 1200 cal. Here's my daily plan within the E2L plan:

Breakfast: 4 servings of fruit
Lunch&Dinner: salad or soup and 1 cup edamame


I know he said no snacks but if I'm hungry between meals, I'll eat almonds. It's hard for me to reach that goal of 1# cooked green vegetables and 1# raw vegetables. Amazing to say I can't eat all the food a diet recommends!

Yes, seeds are interchangeable with nuts on this plan.

And I'm glad the person was respectful of you. I've just had one too many people on my back lately about not eating meat/cheese/whatever, and I was feeling kinda ranty. :D I'm pretty much in the "live and let live" category... I've had so many people judge me for what I (don't) eat that I tend to err on the side of being overcautious. Give me awhile on this plan, though, and maybe I'll be ready to pick up my badge for the Vegan Police. ;) lol

Wow, all that fruit at once! Dang! I spread mine out (to keep my sweet tooth happy). I actually "cheat" and make them snack foods -- I figure I'm going to eat them anyway, and it helps me stick with the rest of the plan. And I don't have nearly a pound of cooked vegetables in a day, because I prefer to eat my veggies raw (I think they taste better that way).

Oh, and one other thing that could help you get the calories up if you need to: Whole grains. Don't forget you can have one serving a day, so you could add some brown rice to your soup or something. I use a multi-grain tortilla to make a veggie wrap for lunch.


I got this great salad mix -- organic blend of baby lettuces and stuff -- yummers! I'm actually starting to really LIKE rabbit food! :carrot:

I understnd what your saying about people Tripin on what you eat. I belong to a TOPS(Take off pounds sensably) group and bless there harts they just don't get it. Which is fine in July I'm doing a program on being a vegetarain. Another person who is haveing trouble with it is my mom. For Example today she had me try her potato salad and it had baccon in it. I didn't know it had baccon until it was in my mouth. Now I could have pitched a fit and spit it out but I didn't(pitch the fit) I did spit it out when she was not looking. the thing is i chose not to say anything to her because I was afraid it would hurt her feelings. so I guess I pick and chose my battles and to me reasureing a 75 year old was more important to me then haveing a bit of Babe in my mouth. Ok I'm getting off my soap box now:soap:

I had a little slip up I had some yams for dinner but man where they good they remind me of my dad.

I hope everyone is well
G

Hi guys,
I'm actually at home with my family, so I can't follow this plan before Saturday. But I am eating lots and lots of salad and a bit of pulses and tofu.
I'll be updating you soon.
Good luck to all!
San

I lost five more pounds!!

:bravo: 5 pounds! Way to go Junia! :cb: By the Way, thank you soooo much for inspiring us to start this diet! I am loving it! I'm still obsessing about dressings but that will change. San, I wondered where you were! I will be off the diet this weekend as I plan on drinking alcohol but I'll get back on the wagon when I return. Probably won't be able to post much after this weekend as DH will have the laptop with him for a couple of weeks. Has anyone heard from ArticAngel?

p.s., what are pulses???

Pulses = Legumes.

I'm glad this is working for y'all!

Re: dressings -- you're in the U.S., right? Well, see if you can find Maple Farms of Vermont fat-free dressings -- some of them are very low-cal. My favorites are honey dijon and raspberry vinagrette (that one I can find at Wal-Mart), which are 35 calories for 2 Tbs. But the one I'm going to try to use most often, and is also good, is their fat-free balsamic vinagrette, which has only 5 calories!!

Also, another thing that I do is buy the broccoli slaw -- you know, the pre-bagged, pre-shredded stuff with broccoli, carrots, cabbage, and sometimes cauliflower? I get that and some garlicky hummus, mix it up, and have a yummy high-protein salad.

I think I saw Maple Farms when I went to the store Monday. I plan on looking over the selection if I ever get the privilege of going without my darling sons. They are not fun to shop with if I actually have to read a label. When they go with me, I speed down the aisles, grabbing anything that looks familiar off the shelves and hope they don't see the candy, cereal, or toy aisles! I have a bag of Broccoli slaw in my fridge right now! I plan on making Tabouli today but was concerned about the oil. I may make it without oil or I may use flaxseed oil instead of olive.

P.s.- I love hummus too but trying not to get any because I usually eat the whole thing at one sitting. Of course, that's one way to up my calories!

Hay ladies wow five pounds Junia thats wonderful.

Sarah did you check out www.fatfreevegan.com it has a bunch of recipes for dressings.

Welcome to all the of the other people how are joining us.

As for me I down 2.5 this week and was the best looser :carrot: I feel really good.

hope everyone is haveing a good day. Today is my weekly egg breakfast but right after it was back on track for me.

Hi everyone! I feel like a bit of an impostor here since I’m not really doing the plan but I am so enjoying your thread. It’s nice to find some like-minded people, you know?

Junia – 5 more lbs, that's fantastic! :bravo:

gggbdomino – I really disliked that my family was so resistant to my vegetarianism when I first started. 12 years later and they tolerate it, but I wouldn’t say they “get it” by any stretch. My grandma still tries to offer me something with meat in it just about every time I visit. When I remind her about me not eating meat she acts like she is shocked I am not out of that “phase”. 12 years is a long time to be having a “phase”! Then she usually follows that up with “it’s just a little bit”, or “you can pick it out”, and my favorite “there’s no meat in gravy”. God love her, but I guess after a lifetime of farming not eating animals is just too foreign a concept. She had a stroke a couple of months ago and my family tells me she is recovering OK, but I’m afraid she won’t be doing any more cooking or offering me any more meat. Strangely enough I think I will miss that a bit, it was kind of “our thing”.

I wanted to share a recipe that I though might be suitable for you all, I made it for dinner last night and it was sooooo good! I just had leftovers for lunch. It’s an Indian dish called chana masala: http://vegancore.blogspot.com/2006/0...na-masala.html

What’s the deal with soy products (like soy milk, cultured soy “yogurt”, etc.) on your plan? Is that permissible? I use them as an easy way to get some more protein and most are fortified with vitamins A & D just like their dairy counterparts.

Shananigans: Thanks for the recipe -- I love Indian food, so that could be a great one to try. For the first six weeks of E2L, the olive oil would be a no-no, but after six weeks you can add a little back in. As for soy yogurts and stuff -- I think it would depend on the ingredients. If it had added sugar or sodium, that would be a problem (again, it's the first six weeks that are the most strict). I don't live in a place where these things are easy to find, so they're not part of my diet -- I just stick with the whole foods pretty much in their natural state, with the exception of tofu and the occasional Amy's bean burrito. :)

All Are Welcome!
 

Shananigans, you are more than welcome here, even more so if you give us yummy recipes! In fact, Junia and I discussed doing our own individual plans but just hanging together for the support so we need all the cheers and support you can give! I wasn't on a "diet" until I started this so I'm glad for everyone's input. Aren't you doing a body for life plan? Seems like I remember something about that. How's it going?

Domino, I went surfing on fatfreevegan when you mentioned it before. Lots of recipes! Thanks for the recommendation!

I have a new cookbook The Best Light Recipe by the editors of Cooks Illustrated. It has some dressings that use less oil. Plus it has a recipe for hummus so maybe I'll eat that again soon! Let me know if anyone wants any recipes.

Has anyone heard the term pesca-vegan (vegan who eats fish)? I read it in an older nutrition book I checked out.

Junia – I believe you could make the recipe without the oil if you used a really good non-stick pan that the caramelized onions wouldn’t stick to and some cooking spray. I used closer to ½ T for 4 servings so it has very little oil. I use plain Silk brand “soygurt” and it is low sodium and has no added sweetener. I think it would be good even without the soy yogurt added, it just lends a bit more thickness and creaminess to the sauce.

SSarah - Basically I’m mapping out a modified BFL plan, right now I’m concentrating on eating more frequent (about every 3 hrs), smaller meals and making sure each of those has a protein and a “good” carb. I kind of feel like it’s a lot of work to eat that often but I’m never hungry so I can say that much for it. I plan on incorporating the four day lifting split alternating with cardio that’s recommended when I get back form my vacation mid June. Right now on a weekly basis I’m doing one day upper body lifting, one day lower body lifting, one stability ball workout that concentrates on core and usually some lower body, one non-weighted upper body workout like push-ups (cheat ones, I can't do them on my toes yet!) and tricep bench dips, and 1 or 2 hour long yoga classes. My cardio is a bit sporadic, I try to get at least one good 45 min elliptical workout at pretty high intensity every week, an hour of lap swimming or water aerobics class when I can get to the pool, and I do some walking every day. I feel like the BFL model is going to be a good change because it’s so regimented and right now it’s sort of hit or miss when it comes to my workouts.

I don’t think I’ve ever heard of “pesca-vegan” but I have heard something like “pescatarian”, as is a semi-vegetarian that eats fish. I think “vegetarian” and all the variations mean a lot of different things to different people. It can get a bit confusing!

Generally-accepted terminology within the veg*n community:

Vegetarian: Someone who doesn't eat meat (defined as any flesh from the animal kingdom, including seafood)

Vegan: A subset of vegetarian who eschews the use of all animal products, for food or otherwise.

Strict Vegetarian or Complete Vegetarian: Someone who follows a vegan diet (no animal products) but does not necessarily avoid such things as leather, wool, or animal ingredients in cosmetics and soaps.

Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian: The most common form of vegetarianism, includes eating eggs and dairy.

Lacto-Vegetarian: A vegetarian who drinks milk.

Ovo-Vegetarian: A vegetarian who eats eggs.

Pescatarian: NOT a vegetarian, but someone who eats fish as their only meat.

HTH

Hi everyone and I just read my last post and I sould have said I was the best loser at my TOPS meeting. I have a question do you think it is posable to get down to 215 by next wednesday? Or do you think thats to much?

I have heard of vegetarians that that eat fish but I'm not sure I would classife them as vegetarians really.

Tomorow I have to go to the dentest for a posable root canel or extraction so I'm not sure how I'll be feeling. If ya don't hear from me you'll know why.

gggbdomino, I think it's possible, especially if this diet is a radical departure from what you've been doing. However, it's not "advisable" to lose more than 1-2 pounds a week. However2, one usually loses a bigger amount of weight with the beginning of a diet. Now, was that confusing enough?

Thanks for the education about all this Junia. I just saw a video on vegsource.com about fish so now I'm thinking I need my own fish pond if I'm gunna eat fishies. Now, to get my husband's diet in order... Actually, he wants to do BFL in the next 6 months or so.

Congrats on being the best loser at your TOPS meeting! 215 might be a stretch, but it's possible... just eat according to the plan, stay active, and see where it goes -- any loss is good, and you're off to a great start! I think 2 pounds a week is a reasonable goal, but for the first several weeks on this plan, you can lose more.

Yeah, there are people who eat fish and call themselves vegetarians, but vegetarians don't call them vegetarians. :dizzy:

I hope it goes well at the dentist tomorrow. Take care of yourself. :hug:

Yeah, fish would be a lot healthier if it weren't for the water pollution... which, truthfully, would keep me from eating seafood even if there weren't the ethical reasons behind it. eek.

How are you all eating your legumes/pulses? See, I'm not the biggest bean fan in the world, but I'm learning to like them... I recently added refried beans to my list of foods I'm willing to eat, lol. I eat tofu and veggie stirfries. I also make veggie wraps with hummus, red-lentil dal, or refried beans. How do you add beans and such to your diet? What's your favorite kind to eat and way to eat them? Any tips on "disguising" them for someone who isn't a big fan of beans? Thanks!

Warning: Food Porn!
 

I feel like my upbringing made me a fan of beans, lots of baked beans made it to all those potlucks that we in Arkansas seem to throw. Plus Pot of Beans (Great Northerns, Navy, black eyed, purple hull, or Pintos) and cornbread was a staple in our house. Plus Cajun red beans & rice. And a Spanish black beans & rice called Moors & Christians, I think. And Chili with beans. All those beans always had some form of :ink: in them however. I"ll have to learn to modify the recipes! Is there a good, well-seasoned bacon fat substitute out there?

On E2L, I am loving my edamame! I take the shelled soybeans out of the freezer and barely cook them. Then I eat them like a snack and pop them in my mouth. Oops, no in between meal snacks on E2L! If I continuously eat all day, where is the in-between?

Unfortunately, I have no knowledge about disguising beans. Could they be pureed and used to thicken soup? I think I have a bean patty recipe somewhere, not disguised in taste but doesn't look like beans. I have a black-eyed pea salad recipe too, cold with vinagrette. I used to hate green peas but now love them out of the freezer and barely cooked. What is it that you don't like about them, Junia?

What do you use instead of oil in your stir-fries?

I don't know of any fake-bacon-fat products, but then again I haven't looked for them. I'm not big into the "fake" stuff, but I know there are a lot of things out there for folks making the transition.

For my stir-fries, I use a non-stick pan, so oil really isn't necessary. Plus there is moisture from the tofu and from the frozen veggies, so there's almost a stir-steaming thing going on. I flavor it with lots of garlic and Mrs. Dash.

Ok, what don't I like about beans? Well, the beaniness of them, lol. The texture mostly, but also the taste.

Junia, you might try green peas or edamame (green soybeans) fresh out of the freezer and lightly steaming them in the microwave. I like them b/c they're not "cooked to death" as a lot of southern foods tend to be. They taste fresh and clean like that! And not all smooshy like some beans texture. But you probably already know that and don't like them that way either. Hmmmm...

I've never tried edamame, but peas are ok -- I try to add them to pastas and soups and things. Of course, not eating any pastas these days! I'll try the edamame and see how I like that, thanks!

Hello ladies,

I'm back I was reading the post's about beans and personally I'm a chilie kind of person myself. And I love beans any kind I just found lentels in a can which was good because I'm not sure how to cook dry beans they always end up not right. But I did find a recipe that I really love for you with refried beans its a soup so here you go.

1 chopped onion
3 garlic crushed cloves
2 cups veggie broth
1 large can fatfree refried beans
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can diced tomatoes

Saute (with whatever...water, oil spray, broth) onion and garlic in a soup pot until soft. Add remaining ingredients. Mix and simmer. To liven it up, you can top a bowl with various things....corn, salsa, etc.

I made this last night and it is to die for so good. I even put some on my salad as a dressing. Hope you like it have a safe weekend.

:hug: G

Thanks for the recipe, gggbdomino!


How are y'all doing? We're nearing the end of Week One... have you gotten past that initial "oh wow this is too hard" feeling? Keep at it!