The Scale... She Moves!

Today is a very good day. Aside from the fact that I get to report a weight loss of 7 lbs this week (for a total of 34.6 lbs to date), I have simply been calmer and happier in the past week. I feel as though I'm recapturing a feeling I had fleetingly when I first began transitioning to this way of eating and was eating mashed potatoes for lunch everyday. The potatoes were replaced by rice for several months and only since I've brought them back on a regular basis have I noticed this shift in mood.

Its completely unscientific but I wonder if there is a correlation between potatoes and mood?  Truly I am beginning to feel that they are "nature's perfect food" (lookout, cow's milk!)

I speculated in my last post that I needed to decrease my calorie density and increase the vegetable intake. I was also suspicious of the taco rice. Turns out I haven't given up the taco rice at all (its such a comfort food!) but I did increase (eh-hem, initiate) the vegetable intake and I think that by doing that and increasing my potato-as-starch ratio, I've decreased the calorie density as well. Of course I've also continued to leave the (vegan) chocolate chip cookies* and (refined flour) English muffins alone.

*Since Tuesday. I had some in the freezer and, as is the nature of food addiction, couldn't leave them alone so I finished them off on Sunday and Monday.

Here is what I've been eating this past week... the question marks indicate meals I forgot to record.

Sunday 2-2-14
B-carrot loaf, 2 ch.chip/walnut cookies
S-2 c.chip/walnut cookies
L-carrot loaf, mashed potatoes
D-3 c.chip/walnut cookies

Monday 2-3-14
B-cherry pie oatmeal, 1 banana
S-banana
L-shepherd's vegetable pie, 2 c.chip/walnut cookies
D-taco rice
S-3 pink fingerlings w/ mustard

Tuesday 2-4-14
B-taco rice
S-banana
L-shepherd's vegetable pie, 2 pink fingerlings w/ mustard, banana
S-2 pink fingerlings, 2 small yukons (baked fries) w/ mustard
D-taco rice

Wednesday 2-5-14
B-taco rice
S-baked potato fries w/ mustard
L-carrot loaf w/ mashed ptoatoes
S-baked potato fries w/ mustard
D-carrot loaf w/ mashed potatoes, w/ sweet&sour sauce

Thursday 2-6-14
B-taco rice
S-banana
L-carrot loaf, mashed potatoes
D-??

Friday 2-7-14
??

Saturday 2-8-14
B-oven fries from 2 large yellow potatoes
L-taco rice
D-taco rice

Its pretty repetitive and that suits me just fine. The vegetables I've been eating have been in the carrot loaf (carrot, zucchini, onion, garlic, celery) and vegetable shepherd's pie (onion, celery, bell pepper, garlic, mushroom, cauliflower, cabbage, green beans). Since I don't like beans, I substituted quinoa for the garbanzo beans in the carrot loaf and added zucchini the 2nd time I made it. Here is a picture:

Moist, yummy, delicious carrot loaf! Serve with a side of mashed potatoes for a filling, nutritious meal. Bonus: freezes well!

You can find the original recipes here: http://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2014nl/jan/recipes.htm and here: http://www.nealhendrickson.com/McDougall020400purecipe.htm


More to come!
Duffy