Sassafras

I have been wondering this same thing but didn't know quite how to word it. Thank you for asking this!

8 month update Sleeved 8-17-12 SW-217 CW-153 I am down 64 of the 81lbs I needed to lose to be at normal bmi...only 17 more pounds to that goal! Although that feels slower than everyone elses losses, I have lost 80% of my excess weight in 8 months and I am ecstatic about that. I stopped losing for about 2 months and thought I was in a stall but once I finally started tracking my food again I realized I had gotten off track and, while I wasn't being really bad, I had let the calorie and carb count creep up enough to be the cause of my stall. I have been back on track with my protein, water, carbs, calories, and logging everything on MFP for about 25 days now and have lost 7 lbs in that time which I was very pleased with. I know that when you get close to goal it slows down so as long as the scale moves in the right direction im happy. I really wish I had done what I'm doing now the first 6 months instead of letting the sleeve do all the work, but better late than never right? I even started exercising 3-4 times a week FINALLY...who woulda thunk it! I eat 900 calories or less a day. Try to keep my protein around 80-100g a day and my carbs between 30-50g a day. My primary high protein low carb staples I've been eating lately are Gortons Simply baked tilapia or salmon with a little bit of green beans or kale. These pepper jack bacon stuffed chicken breasts called Cravers (think). One of those is pretty filling so I don't eat anything with it. Gound turkey taco meat. Spaghetti sauce with ground turkey and turkey meatballs. Eggo protein waffles. I throw a bunch of chicken breast tenderloins in the slow cooker with some green enchilada sauce and a can of the healthy request cream of chicken soup and cook it until it falls apart and shred it. I eat that with just some cheese on it. For snack I love the ostrim ostrich and beef sticks from gnc 14g protein 2 carbs 80 cals and tastes similar to a slim jim. Plus it actually fills me up where yogurts and stuff just leave me hungry 30 mins later. If i want something high protein but crunchy and salty the microwavable hot and spicy pork rinds but you have to watch the sodium. If I want a little dessert I eat a weight watchers dark chocolate and raspberry ice cream bar for 80 calories.

I just want to mention some things that I didnt see mentioned in the other replies that may help someone in the decision process, since we all have different things that are important to us. I had my surgery with Dr. Kelly at Mi Doctor last August and didn't have any problems with the beds, nurses, or any noise. I was very pleased with my experience and care. When I was released, my coordinator needed to stop and check on another patient who was at florence, and since she and I were sleeve buddies off here, he took me and my hubby with... so I have been in both hospitals. My initial impression from the courtyard of Florence was that it was going to be very nice but when we got inside I was happy I had Mi Doctor. Nothing was bad about Florence, but her hallways and room felt darker and gave me kind of a closed in feeling. I felt like Mi Doctor had a brighter happier healthier feeling. The other thing that my friend was not happy about was that she had trouble getting more pain meds at Florence even though Dr. Kelly had authorized it. The coordinator told me that was a common problem there and seemed really ticked of that it was happening again. I have also read that a few other times on here. I was very fortunate to not have much pain, but the nurses at Mi Doctor were constantly asking if I needed pain meds. I said yes once immediately after surgery but never needed any more, but they were there at the drop of a hat. My hubby is having surgery June 1st and we requested Mi Doctor again, because we were very pleased and because he is a big baby and wants to know that there is pain medicine readily available lol. Oh and few last things we really appreciated at Mi...the free wifi, t he AC, and the satellite tv. The AC (with remote) in our room was fantastic, as an obese person that was VERY important to me...now my hubby will probably freeze me lol).And when we compared notes with our friend it seemed like our satellite tv at Mi had more channels (many in English) which is probably more important to your guest but its nice to have. I know these are little things but they made my hospital recovery easier. (Sorry for the weird font change I typed this on my tablet.)

Thats so funny! Well if your an alien then I'm an alien because those thing are dang good! I was curious about it before I tried it but I guess I never thought about ostrich being odd since we eat so many other kinds of birds.

I really love the peppered flavor Ostrim ostrich and beef sticks. They are heavy enough to fill me up for a while and are quite tasty (to me they taste like a healthier version of a slim jim).They only have 80 calories plus you get 14g protein and 2 carbs. I buy 10 packs on Amazon but they have single sticks at GNC. There are also other flavors (bbq, applewood, maple brown sugar, and teriyaki). I have only tried the pepper and teriyaki and they were both good but the teriyaki has 3 carbs so I always get the pepper. Hey anywhere I can cut a carb I'll take it

Woah! What a comment!! I felt it and shes not even my friend:( I cant imagine and am sorry she put a damper on your success

So after 2 days of keeping my calories under 1000, protein around 100, carbs below 40, and water above 64 ozs... I am happy to report I have dropped 3 pounds. I really am the girl who cried stall. I will never stop tracking my intake again! It is so important!