TracieCat

I don't recall ever trying myfitnesspal.. Do they have forums and such or is it just a food and fitness tracker? I suppose I could just go and investigate.

I am another person that started wearing brighter clothing once the weight started coming off. I always did like dark clothing, but with such extreme weight gain over the years, I pretty much HID behind it all as a way to hopefully not be noticed as much. It is funny though in that through the years, I didn't really consider that aspect of it until the weight loss started. I HATED pink in my old life, I had a cousin joke that she would be having me wearing pink in no time and I told her NO NO WAY. Guess who now wears pink in addition to every other color out there now? lol... Times sure do change. I care about my makeup now as well, didn't really care to even bother with it much in the past. Now I make sure I at least throw on some base makeup and powder if I am going out of the house, more makeup if I am headed out to eat or to visit someone or to Doctors, etc. And I always make sure to keep up with keeping my hair dyed now too, I hate when my greys start coming in and never really worried about it much before. I also have been picking up some newer, prettier jewelry, plus I inherited a whole armoire completely full of pretty pieces from an Aunt that sadly passed last year and I have been wearing her things as well. Not that I am particularly vain now, at least I hope I haven't become overly vain. But I do care about looking like a vibrant woman again, and that feels wonderful. Add to this the fact that I feel more assertive than I have in YEARS, I gained a backbone.

I love so many of the ideas here! I'll have to try the hummus in hard boiled egg halves, sounds great! I have Greek yogurts when I'm extra hungry or I have a Wasa cracker topped with tuna salad, soy Protein crisps ( I like the BBQ flavor), smoked almonds, a Protein Bar, Protein shake made into frozen smoothie in the blender, teriyaki flavored beef Jerky, cottage cheese, a cold piece of grilled chicken. Those are some off the top of my head. BUT that being said, I happen to have a lapband doc that is hugely against snacking as a rule and would prefer I make one of those things a meal instead of a snack. He says I should rely on Protein shakes if I feel some true hunger between meals. I need to start living by that rule again, I have sadly been slipping where that rule is concerned.

Want you to know that I am wishing the best for you. And I don't think that anyone here meant to be deliberately cruel verbally. They speak out of concern and care for your health and many I'd them have been there so they speak from experience. I will likely have to have some of my Fluid removed as well soon as I have been having some "stuck" issues lately with many foods. Anyway, best wishes to you....

It was the vanilla for me too, maybe that is the problem but I also didnt like how it changed the consistency of the food I was eating, seemed to make it too gummy for me and I didnt like that at all. Maybe will try to invest in some unflavored, add it to things here and there and see how it goes.

Hey you never know, you might like it. The nurse at my Lapband Doc's office was the one that recommended putting it in the yogurt or oatmeal. Obviously not a good idea for me personally but some may enjoy it.

Don't order anything, you can find out all the info for free by Googling 5 day pouch test....

Thanks so much, will keep my eyes peeled for them!

Congrats to everyone that was recently banded!

EVERY flavor of Cho makes me happy. My current favorites are the Passion Fruit and the Pomegranate, I love the little pop of the seeds in there. Raspberry, Peach and the Apple Cinnamon Flavors are wonderful too. I DO always put a little packet of splenda or a bit of agave nectar in each cup to up the sweetness a bit or I have been known to put a teaspoon of sugar free Jam in with a particular flavor. I tried adding some Protein powder to my yogurt, ugh, will never do that again, also tried it in my oatmeal, horrid. lol. Lesson learned the hard way. Anyway, some sugar free jam in a plain yogurt would be good, I also liked the suggestion above to add some sugar free pudding powder into it for flavor.

I measure same as zinhaa, although I also add in measuring my upper thigh. I haven't done it in quite awhile though, this is a good reminder for me to get the tape measure out and see the changes.

Congrats!!!

I think the nutritional info on that one looks fine. Only one carb, less than the protein shake powder I use here even, and you are getting a higher protein amount.

My surgeon currently has my protein level at about 80 to 90 grams a day. I TRY getting in at least two protein shakes to get this amount up, along with chicken or whatever other food based protein I am eating on a particular day. I dont always succeed at the higher protein amount I am supposed to get, but am working on it. My metabolism has slowed dramatically and my surgeon says that the higher protein, along with some weight training I will soon be starting should get the ball rolling again weight loss wise. I sure hope so, am tired of staying at the same weight for months now.

You're doing great, congrats!

I've lost 17 bags of sugar, whooo hooo!

Thanks for the heads up on the NewWhey product, I sent the link for the main site to my Lapband Dr. to see what he thinks of it and discuss it with him at my next visit. Kind of pricey but I am amazed they pack that much protein into such a little shot....

I have some here and haven't tried it yet either, although I have many recipes for it saved, just need to buckle down and take the plunge to try a new food. I imagine you could use it in place of anywhere you would have normally used any small type grain product. I did read to rinse it well before cooking to release the resins from the product that would affect taste. Here is what I read on another site... " put it in a pot, fill with Water, swirl the quinoa around, pour the water out slowly, repeat.".... also said you can rinse it through a fine cheesecloth but some brands of Quinoa come already pre-rinsed.

What I do is to toast some Steel Cut Oats with a bit of olive oil in a pan, just till lightly toasted, then I cook them as directed on package and freeze them into little serving size portions. If you make alot at one time, you will have a quick and easy Breakfast on days where you dont feel like cooking, can just pop one from the freezer to microwave for a few minutes. The Steel Cut variety take longer to cook, about 45 minutes or so but the taste is SO worth it and you can customize it any way you want to once you go to serve it. Add some fruit or Agave nectar or a bit of natural Peanut Butter. I also like them with some sugar free Maple Syrup mixed in. LOVE my Steel Cut Oats! Someone recommended that I try adding my Protein powder into my oatmeal. MISTAKE, I wont ever do that again, ruined a perfectly good bowl of oatmeal. lol.

Ah I have never been inside a Trader Joe's but I think there is one about 45 minutes north from where we live, not sure if there are any others closer but might be worth looking into. Speaking of new places, I finally went inside a Sam's Club last Fall and I did see lots of meats and things there that we could use here but I didnt think the membership versus how much we would actually shop there was worth the cost. Now if I had a BIG BIG house with lots of storage space, maybe. lol.

Whoo Hoo, congrats to everyone!

I would wonder if maybe you are not getting enough Protein in that will keep you adequately satisfied between meal times? I am not sure how much your surgeon has recommended for you. I know that mine started me on 64 grams a day as a minimum but I quickly found that I had to keep that a bit higher in order to feel more satisfied. I am at 80 grams now and that seems to be a good level for me when I get it in properly. If you do not have much in there fill wise at the moment, it would not be too unusual that you would be able to comfortably consume more food at this time, that will definitely change for you the more fill you get in your band.