Freetofly

"Extra" skin = no fat to fill it up with. LORD PLEASE GIVE ME EXTRA SKIN! :cry_smile: Hugs, Donna

I made this with the marinara and spinach and chicken breast (cuz they were already thawed out). Very good and tender! I poured the rest of the jar of marinara over it at the end, and served it over rice. I'm sure it would be great over spaghetti, too! (My son is a super-athelete - carbs and chicken are his staple diet.) This recipe is going in my book of favorites! So easy to make, too. Hugs, Donna

Canaryqueen, I have the same problem with eating while I read. I'm trying to switch to drinking Water or Propel while I read - see if I can still have the hand-to-mouth action but with a water bottle instead. Great way to get the liquids in :cry_smile: Hugs, Donna

Savedbygrace, You should feel comfortably sated when you are "full". Eat slowly, chew well, wait until one bite gets to your tummy/pouch before deciding to take another bite. You don't want to abuse your pouch by overeating, you could really hurt yourself - stretch your pouch, loosen or slip your band. Your body will definitely tell you when it's had Too Much, or when you've eaten something that you just can't handle - up up and out! I have dinner with a friend every Monday (she cooks great Filipino food!), and she would "joke" about how her cooking always made me sick! In the beginning days before I learned to slow down and chew chew chew, I'd invariable end up regurgiating into her trash can or sink. One day, I saw her two-year-old daughter spitting into the trash can, because she had learned it from me! A big downer for me was learning that I just can NOT eat eggrolls/lumpia any more. Talk about a bellyache and a half! Oh well, I was trying to cut down on the fried food anyway, eh? :cry_smile: Hugs, Donna

You all are so great - you keep me honest and on-track!!! You are so right about just staying away from McD and about the creamy soups. Much as I love Lobster Bisque, it is definitely not a regular part of my food plan. I just have to face the fact that there are some things I just can't have, no matter how much I'm going to miss them, and that IS THE BEST THING EVER BECAUSE THAT'S HOW I'M GOING TO GET SKINNY!!!!!! (And I AM going to get skinny!) HUGS!!!! Donna

Today: B- Boost Glucose Control shake - 190 cal, 16 g protein Morning snack - Dannon Active Light Fat Free Yogurt - 70 cal, 5 g protein L- leftovers: 1/4 cup fettucine alfredo, 2 oz grilled chicken, one baby portabella mushroom I also grilled, plus an Eat Smart Carrot Crunch pre-packaged salad (julienned carrots with a little red cabbage, raisins, and a low fat orange pineapple dressing - 150 cal 2 g protein). All together the meal is about 363 cal 26 g protein Afternoon snack - fresh strawberries! 53 cal 1 g protein D- leftovers again! Yum! Probably have 1/2 cup of the fettucini alfredo and 3 oz chicken and two grilled baby bellas, I figure about 379 cal 39 g protein Even snack (maybe) - microwave apple slices with cinnamon and Splenda - 110 cal 1 g protein Day's total: 1165 cal 88 g protein I love to grill chicken breasts. I marinate them in soy sauce, garlic and a little black pepper for one day. I also marinate the portabellas in soy sauce and a little EV Olive oil so they won't stick to the grill. My kids LOVE this dinner :tongue2: Also - I pack a couple of "extras" in my lunch box in case I get hungry during the day. Most times I never eat them, but here's what I keep on hand: 1.5 oz turkey jerky - 120 cal 15 g protein 8 oz can of green beans - 20 cal 1 g protein (I love them cold right out of the can!) Hugs! Donna

Jennifer, Trigger foods, for me, are foods I simply cannot eat in moderation. Ice cream is one - I can't just get a small bowl, I usually get a big bowl, and then go back for seconds. Lays potato chips and any kind of Cheetos are another, and anything with chocolate on or in them. One bite and next thing I know the bag is empty. French fries used to be one, but the lap band took care of that haha! It sounds like I "should" just be able to "control" myself, but I admit freely that I'm a compulsive overeater and a food addict. It's humbling and humiliating and downright horrifying to admit that I don't have control over that part of my life. It's kind of like alcoholism in that manner - once I take the first bite, the compulsion takes over. And it may just take over for the whole weekend! And the most insidious part of it is.....I usually don't realize what I'm doing. I get THAT unconcious about it. I also have to avoid eating and reading at the same time. I hate that. Hope that makes sense! Hugs! Donna

I used to be over 300 lbs. I'm still over 200 lbs, but at 5'10" I carry it pretty well on my frame. My mom, bless her heart, tells me I look "pretty normal from the front or back". Men have started treated me differently now - they talk to me, men at work will hug me, I occasionally get doors opened for me. Ironically, I find it disgusting. I NEVER want to date again. I can only surmise that the attention is based on the physical, not who I am inside, and my barriers have gone up stronger and higher than ever. I'm determined to stay single until I die, but if God decides to put a good man in my path, I've promised Him to at least take a look. :biggrin: Hugs! Donna

Congratulations Susan - that's great news!!!!

Chica - I have to admit, I LOVE lobster bisque! I know it's loaded with cream and calories, but at least it's not a trigger food. Yeah, it was definitely worth the splurge. I never do it more than once a month, though heehee! Hugs! Donna

Ticker test take 2:

Ticker test, hope this works :thumbup: Poop :thumbup: How do people do this?

Bergdorfblonde, REVENGE IS SWEET!!!!!!! Hugs to your sexy hot self! Donna

Oh thank God, somebody else lives on this thread! Yay! Tricia, so great to see your message. Yes, the meeting went well. Very eye-opening and sobering. This week so far, five days, I've lost 3 pounds and I'm feeling better already - just by abstaining from my trigger foods! I realize that 100-calorie packs and portion control does not work for me. I've got to accept that I'm a food addict and compulsive overeater. Hugs! Donna

I keep little cans of pineapple juice. 6 oz of juice has 22g of sugar. I drink it however slowly I need to, then sit down for 15 minutes to let it work. I've tried apple and orange, but the pineapple works the quickest and most effectively for me. You're definitely going to have to have your meds adjusted, Susan. I've cut my gluco-whatever-I'm-taking down to 1/4 what it was. Yay! One day I hope to be off them altogether, since none of my meds are on the $4 list. Hugs! Donna

I don't hate people moving out of the way excessively as much as I do the people who won't move AT ALL just to watch you try to squirm past them or wait until you say Excuse Me like you were some kind of slimy lower life form asking for a favor from the ever-so-condescending Lord or Lady Bony Butt!!! LOL, Ok, I've said my piece. Hugs! Donna

I read this thread, and laugh, then cry, then laugh, then cry again. Wow! Once a kid at the pool (about 8 years old probably) told me I looked just like Ursula from the Little Mermaid movie. My little girl, when she was about 5, would tell me she didn't want me to lose weight, because she liked my comfy pillow belly, and that if I lost a bunch of weight I wouldn't be the mom she knows and loves so much any more. My son, now 16, tells me rather regularly that soon I'll be so skinny, and I am obviously losing lots of weight. Mr Charm :frown:

I have the same problem with the "good stuff". I found myself eating compulsively. Even though I had the Magic Band installed, life was not Happily Ever After. I lost a bunch of weight, then stalled out for five months. The thing about "trigger foods" is that I just can't control them. Once I put that first bite in my mouth, the compulsions take over. I started going to OA meetings. Now I have the band and I'm working on my behaviors. It's made all the difference! I broke my plateau, and my guilt and self-loathing are starting to fade. I don't think I could have done any of this without the band, and I would do it again in a heartbeat! Hugs, Donna

Thanks Debbie - I'll be careful! I thought the McD parfait was 160 cal, 4 g of Protein. It was one of the pre-choices I made if I ever found myself in need of food and trapped at a McD (like my last road trip with the family). Went to Red Lobster last night for my birthday. Had a skewer of six shrimp, bowl of Lobster Bisque and one Cheddar Bay biscuit. Total calories for the dinner were 622 and protein was 17. I prepared my day for this, and totaled the day at 1396 calories and 71 grams of protein. Not bad! I didn't eat any of my trigger foods, either. All in all, a very nice evening.

I am going to my first OA meeting tonight. All day long I've been overwhelmed with all my feelings of self-loathing, and it's driving me crazy. They say the program starts the minute you commit, so I guess I'm in for a wild ride. I didn't think overeating would be an issue anymore after I got my band. I hoped the band would be a little magic ring, and I'd be surviving on four bites of food every day and living happily ever after. *groan* It's been a year since my banding. I can't believe how I have so unconciously worked on finding the foods that my band will let me binge on. Ice cream. Lays. Cheetos. Chip and dip. Buttered popcorn. When did I ever learn that I could do a whole bag of Lays with no problem???? Talking to another person and being able to list the foods I can scarf down in limitless quantities was a shock to me. I have become so mindless in my eating!!! Nothing has changed. I lost forty pounds, then plateaued at my current weight for the past five months. This weekend I got frustrated and totally pissed off - I ate whatever I wanted and I didn't care. Self-destuction at it's worst. Then called up my local OA and asked if I could come to a meeting. Then I got on the website and started reading - some of it scarey, some of it breathtaking. Mostly scarey - but also with the hope of having hope. I hope I can get back to the band as a tool - not a magical implant. Hugs, Donna

LOL Anne - hubbies usually love to be the knight in shining armor to their princess brides :thumbup: They don't get many chances these days with all us modern self-sufficient women! And how many chances do we get to be coddled and fussed over? Enjoy it!

Get some cornbread mix and dredge the fish in it, then fry it in a little extra virgin olive oil. Not very much of the cornbread mix actually sticks to the fish, so it's not very "bready", but it does give it a great flavor. One of my kiddos' favorites. Hugs! Donna

I tried to take off just a couple of days - surgery on a Monday, aiming to be back to work on Wednesday. I have a desk job, nothing strenuous, thought it seemed de-able. The thing that got me the most was 1) the post-op lethargy and 2) the pain in my shoulders from the air that got into my abdominal cavity during the surgery. OUCH! I ended up taking one week off. Also, my doctor fitted me with a morphine drip directly into my belly that I had to carry around in a little bag everywhere. It finally ran out after 6 days, so I didn't have to wear it to work. I had my surgery one year ago - I was 46 then. Please don't push yourself too fast - even though it's minimally invasive, it's still surgery. Hugs! Donna

Lani, my doctor warned me about chicken. Chicken is so easy to overcook because it has to be cooked thoroughly! I have found, however, that if I grill it to the point of doneness (when the juices run clear) and don't overgrill it, the breasts come out very juicy and tender. I can also eat chicken in Soups, or in chicken n' dumplings, because it's very tender there, too. Roasted chicken, like you can pick up in the grocery store, I've found has very tender breast meat, too. One thing is certain - chew, chew, chew! Chicken is one of those foods that I can get to my satiety point easily. I guess because I really chew it well, and I wait until each bite "hits bottom" before taking another bite. Shrimp cocktail does that for me, too. Everybody is different! Gosh, I can eat ice cream until the tub is empty, whereas others just can't do ice cream at all. Maybe chicken is just one of those things you can't do, who knows? Hugs! Donna

I haven't found a restaurant yet that I cannot find something on the menu. Soup is always a good one, easy on the band. Baked or grilled fish. Filet mignon I find is tender enough, although I can never eat it all. My friends and family joke that they can get all the way through desert before I'm done with my dinner! Fast food takes a little research. Wendy's has a chili, McDonal's has a fruit and yogurt parfait (although I much prefer their vanilla cones!), Taco Bell has a side order of pintos and cheese that is a perfect size all by itself. When I go to a Chinese-type fast food, I can usually get a sample of their offerings, and then I can find something that's tender and just get the entree - no rice or noodles. My lap band keeps me in check. I don't have to worry about overeating anything. I just chew slowly and leave my fork on the plate a lot. Lucky me - there's not a way in the world I can eat a french fry any more More for eveyone else! Or I just substitute mashed potatoes. Hugs! Donna