McDougall Success Story for motivation

[Guest guest]

A little success story to help motivation!

I don't do the McDougall diet myself but thought this was

interesting. I might have to get the book to have a read!

I'll post the whole thing below but to see pictures go to this

address for the article online:

 

http://www.vegsource.com/articles/evelyn_weightloss.htm

 

She came for the bargain books,

she stayed for her health

by Sabrina Nelson

WebWitch, VegSource.com

 

When veteran homeschooling mom Evelyn Johnson of Abilene, Kansas

first discovered VegSource.com in March of 1998, she was looking for

some good deals on the site's busy curriculum swap boards.

 

 

Evelyn in 1998

Little did she know that an ad for a set of vegetarian related books,

tapes and videos on a " miscellaneous " swap board would radically

transform her life -- and that of her husband and children -- forever.

 

The books and videos were by VegSource's own renowned health and

nutrition expert John McDougall, MD, and included his best-selling

The McDougall Program - 12 Days to Dynamic Health. " That was the best

twenty dollars I've ever spent! " enthuses the 38-year-old mother of

four.

 

Dr. McDougall's 12 Day Program features a low-fat, pure vegetarian

( " vegan " ) diet consisting of a healthy variety of plant-based whole

foods. Evelyn says that she had " played around " with ordering

meatless selections from menus in the past, but had " never dreamed I

would become a vegetarian. "

 

Evelyn remembers well the day she " went vegan " -- December 13, 1998.

On the eleventh day of her new life, December 24, 1998, Evelyn's

husband Tom gave her a wonderful Christmas present: he decided to

eschew all animal products as well, and joined her on the McDougall

plan.

 

" We went from being a big meat and potatoes family to total vegan

over night! " says Evelyn. " I convinced Tom to 'McDougall' with me by

telling him I needed the support. He promised to do the 12 day

program, probably more to help me out than to do anything for

himself. "

 

Tom liked the idea of shedding a few extra pounds, as well, and so he

decided he would " McDougall " with Evelyn for three or four months,

then go back to " regular " eating.

 

 

Evelyn today

Instead, 75 pounds later for Evelyn, and 45 pounds later for Tom,

McDougall's 12 Day program has turned into a " Rest of Your Life

Program, " as Evelyn describes it.

 

In her glowing tribute to Dr. McDougall on his testimonial board,

Evelyn says, " Pre-McDougall, [Tom] had headaches 3 times a week. He

has not had a headache since McDougalling. And he has more

energy...it is a rare occasion that he goes from the dinner table to

the recliner (and he used to do that quite often!). "

 

Me and my swimsuit

 

Prior to McDougalling, Evelyn hadn't bought a swimsuit for 15 years.

Shopping for a new one was a delicious experience, she says.

 

" It was a major milestone for me to purchase a suit and feel great

about it. I had fun shopping this year! When I was in the mall with

Tom trying on a couple of suits, I ran into an old highschool

classmate. She didn't say anything about how I looked probably

because she hadn't seen me all these years. But I had the

satisfaction of being trim and fit. "

 

 

Evelyn and pre-McDougall jeans

As she tried on the swimsuits, Evelyn offhandedly mentioned to the

clerk that her last swimsuit was a size 14, but now she was a size

10. " The clerk was surprised, and so I whipped out a before picture

that I always carry in my purse, and showed her what I used to look

like. "

 

When the amazed clerk asked how Evelyn had dropped so much weight,

Evelyn responded, " My husband and I just started eating a low-fat

total vegetarian diet with no animal products. " Evelyn said the

clerk's mouth just dropped open. " You have to remember that we live

in Abilene, deep in the heart of beef territory. Tom and I laughed

later about her reaction. It was one of those moments that will keep

us smiling for years to come, like remembering one of those cute

things that your kids say. "

 

A family affair

 

Evelyn's four children switched to a McDougall-style diet at the same

time Evelyn and Tom did -- and have benefited, too. " My 16-year-old,

Emily, has gone from a size 12 to 7. Craig, 12, no longer has

headaches. Heath (7) and Lydia (9) tell people in stores and

restaurants, 'We used to eat that, but now we're McDougalling!' "

 

 

Feelin' good, lookin' good!

Evelyn says the changes in her family have gone beyond the

physical. " My daughter Lydia and I were at the store one day, when we

came to the meat department. I stopped and looked and for the first

time it occurred to me just how many animals were killed to fill the

case. Then I walked past the freezers filled with all the turkeys and

fish, then on to the TV and frozen dinners, and so on. I thought how

this was just one store, and there was another store just down the

street, and another one after that. And it hit me: That's a lot of

killing. "

 

Evelyn says that before that moment she had never even given a

thought about how all these animals had gotten there. " It sounds

crazy, but I don't even think that I had thought about them as

being 'animals' until that point. I remember suddenly thinking to

myself, 'I will never eat an animal again.' "

 

Evelyn says her children are " so much more aware than I was at their

ages -- they have a different attitude towards nature than most

people do. I believe their becoming vegetarian has something to do

with that. "

 

Helping others, by example

 

Evelyn has also inspired other VegSourcers to follow in her

successful footsteps, as she leads a mini-McDougall support group at

the HomeSchooling Breakfast Nook board.

 

Vicki Walker, one of Evelyn's protegees, started " McDougalling " in

February, 2000. " I have lost 9 pounds to date, and feel great, " says

Vicki. " Evelyn was a big part of my deciding to do this. She offered

her support early, and has kept me focused on the long term goal. She

continues to be there whenever I need a swift cyber kick - or a hug.

It really helps to know of someone personally who has tried and had

such success with the program. It makes you think, 'I can do it too!'

and makes you work harder to meet that goal. She is an inspiration to

all of us, and I hope we all can meet one another in person some day. "

 

Another homeschooler Evelyn met on VegSource, Michele Teal, decided

she'd give McDougalling a try, too. Changing her eating habits has

paid big dividends for Michele. " I no longer take medication for

Lupus and I don't have many 'bad days' without it, either, " she

says. " Also with all the hormones they have had to place me on due to

Endometriosis, I have actually lost about five pounds instead of

gaining the 10 to 15 that most people do. "

 

Like Evelyn, Michele's family has benefitted as well. Evelyn told

Michele that shortly after she started McDougall's program, she would

find herself enjoying physical activities with her children

again. " It was so true. We now have mountain bikes and ride often

with the kids and all of us have benefited from the diet change --

even my hyperactive daughter has improved. "

 

Another friend Evelyn made on VegSource, Renee Crites, said, " Never

in a million years did I expect to be a vegetarian! It still makes me

laugh! Especially since I am so wonderfully content with it! " Prior

to starting the McDougall program, Renee had high blood pressure --

but now it's normal. " Also, my acid reflux is doing better, which has

been a big problem for me over the past few years. I need to lose a

lot of weight and have lost 35 pounds since beginning the McDougall

program in December. "

 

Dull eating?

 

 

" Kiss my size 8's! "

So, do Evelyn and Tom find low-fat vegan food " boring? " The question

amuses both of them.

 

" Last weekend we had a getaway with just the two of us, and had

dinner at a sushi restaurant. As we ate our veggie sushi rolls and

udon noodle soup, we discussed how if we had been served this a year

and a half ago, Tom would have turned up his nose. But of all the

vegan food we ate that weekend, his favorite was the sushi! "

 

Evelyn said that before McDougalling they had never had a lot of

different foods, like sushi, and so this was just another example of

how fun and exciting sampling new foods has become for her. " We're

much more adventurous when it comes to food, I'd say. Now you want to

talk about burgers -- that's boring! "

 

" I am so grateful to Dr. McDougall and to VegSource, " Evelyn

concludes. " Becoming vegetarian has made my family happier and

healthier than ever, and I cherish the wonderful, close friends that

I have made on the VegSource boards. "