Essy's Diet Recommendations & Personal Experiences

August 13, 2009

just to let you all know all Nori (roasted seaweed used in sushi) Is made with oil. : ) and Also I lost about 30 of my 45 lbs without doing exercise, so it can be done without exercise, but I think exercise is important.

On Thu, Aug 13, 2009 at 10:45 AM, Mark Sutton <msutton wrote:

For me, it wasn't easy the first several weeks with the no added oil, even though I was already not using it for sautees and the like.

But, after around 12? 13? weeks, I really no longer had any fat cravings. I've been on it for 2 years and six months, almost to the day. Lost about 15 lbs. or more, feel fantastic.

Once in awhile (like, twice a year since I started this!), something with added fat gets into the diet (usually at a friend's who've shown such consideration and love trying to at least make something vegan, I'll have some), but I definitely feel it, and it's not great. Reinforces avoiding the added oils.

I'm in the process of transcribing my interview with Rip Esselstyn (it'll be posted when the next Mad Cowboy Newsletter comes out, probably next week, I'll let the List know), and at one point I asked him about this " no fat craving " issue and his father's advice.

Essentially, Rip said that he wanted to reach as many people as possible, and that his pilot studies showed solid low cholesterol results after 4 weeks, with no significant change afterwards (already bottomed out). His goal is to encourage people to go beyond that period and not freak if they have a little non-vegan something. He feels that too often people berate themselves (my phraseology) when they " go off the wagon " and have something with a little bit of milk in it.

I would liken his attitude to a " big tent " approach. He also notes that both tracks (Cadets and Fire Fighters) are essentially vegan after 28 days. He also doesn't use the word " vegan " or " vegetarian " in the book deliberately due to some of the negative connotations/stereotypes associated with those terms.

Bottom line for me, though, is that the " no added fat " works really well, and it's nice to eat as much as I want (especially with all the garden/field work), I don't miss my addiction, and hope more people catch on.

I get tired of getting flack for my agreement with McDougall that " moderation kills " and the mis-understandings of the Mediterranean Diet's value and non-value (as Essy put it, they merely arrested heart disease, not eliminated it... imho, much like the recent study regarding the Med Diet and Alzheimer's... the analogy he uses of " put people in a car, drive it at 30 miles per hour into a wall (think 30 grams of fat per day), and some survive... " but if you do the same at 15 miles per hour, 15 grams of fat per day, ALL do).

As to eating out, it's tough. Vegan sushi is a safe bet, though. Pasta often has oil, as do any of the sauces. Depends upon the ethnicity and type of restaurant. I don't eat out that often, preferring to cook for friends, and haven't had to deal with the issue enough to speak more about it.

FYI, Mark

http://www.soulveggie.com