Another month flies by all too quickly and it’s time for me to report on my progress following Dr. Fuhrman’s Eat To Live program. As mentioned in last month’s report, I planned to re-start the weight loss portion of Dr. Fuhrman’s plan after gaining 3 pounds in August (in addition to the 6 I re-gained before then-ugh), which happened because I really wasn’t watching what I was eating.
September Results
So what happened? I lost 4 pounds. While any loss is good, it’s a far cry from what I hoped for and nowhere near what I achieved the first time I followed the weight loss plan. I’m probably sounding like a broken record at this point, but I know that a very active social calendar this month hampered my ability to strictly follow the plan. This certainly is not a reflection on the effectiveness or quality of Dr. Fuhrman’s plan — it just means that my commitment to strictly follow the program is compromised outside the comfort of my own kitchen.
My Kryptonite — Restaurants
The hardest thing for me is going out to eat which happened a lot this month due to birthdays, social gatherings, house guests, etc. Even though I choose relatively healthy menu items, there is something about restaurant food that just swells me up – literally. The next morning, my eyelids are huge and puffy, I have bags under my eyes, my fingers are so swollen I can’t take my rings off, and I am ALWAYS up at least 3 pounds. This is what happens when I don’t know/have control over how much salt, oil, sugar, MSG, etc. is in my food. That means I spend the next week trying to take off what I put on in one evening. This wouldn’t be much of a problem if I was just trying to maintain my weight, but that’s not my mission right now.
October’s Plan
We have company staying with us until mid-month which means having a lot of fun going out, sight-seeing, and catching up on old times over drinks and food. I’ll do the best I can the first couple of weeks, and then push myself really hard to strictly follow the plan the last 2 weeks of the month.
I’m feeling optimistic that I’ll have a good result, so check back in a month for my next report.
Judy says
are using just the book , or did you join membership?
Amy says
Hi Judy: I’m using his books. I’ve read Eat To Live, Super Immunity, and The End of Diabetes. I also have his ANDI food scoring chart. I’ve followed a lot of diets before and I think Dr. Fuhrman’s is one of the healthiest. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
Harry says
Hi Amy,
Came across your site. Its fantastic, thank you for charting your success with the ETL program. I was wondering if you have had any experience with John McDougall’s Starch Solution. I am trying to decide between ETL and the Starch Solution after gaining weight on more a fruit based diet. Thanks and keep up the good work! 🙂
Amy says
Hi Harry: Thanks for stopping by. Yes, I have heard of Dr. McDougall’s diet, although I have not tried it yet. His book, The Starch Solution, is on my “to do” reading list. I know that he is affilliated with and speaks at events sponsored by Dr. Esselstyn and Dr. Caldwell who co-authored Forks Over Knives, another program I believe is among the healthiest. My reading list is such that I should get to Dr. McDougall’s book sometime early next year. If I try his diet, I will definitely report on it in this column, so stay tuned! In the meantime, if you have any more questions, please let me know.
Danny says
Hi Amy!
I just started the six week plan day 1 & 2 went very well!! I will be following your progress and trying your recipes. Giving up the dairy has been my biggest challenge so far I have been vegetarian for years now going for vegan!!!
Good luck!!
Amy says
Hi Danny: Congratulations on starting ETL! Dairy was very difficult for me to give up. The only way I could do it was to go cold turkey for about 6 months, but I felt great. I realized that milk, cheese, eggs and many similar things I grew up on not only made weight loss and maintenance difficult, but it affected my health. I haven’t gone 100% vegan yet as I occasionally allow myself small amounts of dairy, but my goal is be completely vegan. Good luck with your ETL plan. If I can help or answer any questions, please let me know!