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Nothing really new. I have been eating small mushy meals. I have eaten out twice now and I enjoy being able to eat 1/4-1/5 of the serving and not feeling the need to eat more. I do find that waitresses are obsessed with you ordering a drink. It's a hard thing to get around. Last night she asked me 3 times! I have to admit I have not eaten the healthiest but I am eating really small portions of the food I love. I hope that's ok. I need to find healthy mushy vegetarian food. Heh. Pitta Pizza I am sure is not considered diet food. But I have sworn off ever dieting again. I want to eat real food just alot less. I have not lost in the last few days. But I am way less gassy so I am a happy girl. Sarah :thumbup:

Nothing really new. I have been eating small mushy meals. I have eaten out twice now and I enjoy being able to eat 1/4-1/5 of the serving and not feeling the need to eat more. I do find that waitresses are obsessed with you ordering a drink. It's a hard thing to get around. Last night she asked me 3 times! I have to admit I have not eaten the healthiest but I am eating really small portions of the food I love. I hope that's ok. I need to find healthy mushy vegetarian food. Heh. Pitta Pizza I am sure is not considered diet food. But I have sworn off ever dieting again. I want to eat real food just alot less. I have not lost in the last few days. But I am way less gassy so I am a happy girl. Sarah :thumbup:

hi,,,thats great...congrats to you! i am 4 weeks tomorrow, and i also lost 22ibs....my port is a little sore when i bend still....but i am walking and trying to have protien...i am a vegetarian, so my choices are limited. Did you get filled yet?? do you need to, are you feeling full??

I am another really lucky wife here, my DH has ALWAYS provided well for us. I went to work when I did, as a proactive move with the lay offs looming. It allowed us to pay down some debt, pay off our car, and eliminate some payments, just in case he does end up on unemployment. He has resume's out---and an interview on tap. Fingers crossed. My best friend has ALWAYS had to be the bread winner. Her DH---is a nice guy---but as lazy as the day is long! He works for awhile, and gets hurt. Then has to wait out the injury. He DID get hurt the last time, unintentionally, he actually seemed to be liking that job. But he milked that for years! Then bragged it up that he had a settlement of over $100K. Uhhhh yeah I told him, but how many years did it take? 5? That means it was worth 20 grand a year? Meanwhile my friend works steady, has been at her current job for a dozen years---same with the one before that....while he does crap! He does not cook and clean while he is at home, she has to take care of the house too. He hurts too bad to work, but he can hunt and fish (although hunters like him are how vegetarians came to be)---and he can ride a motorcycle, but loading the DW hurts his neck. Yeah, my a$$!!! DH knows I would have kicked him out years back! If I was going to do it alone, I'd damn sure DO IT ALONE! I can totally understand where you are at Beth, and I would imagine all that time, allows for the other old problems to rear their ugly heads---with all the computer time. So sorry you are dealing with such crap! Ebony----are you documenting all this? With responses to the allegations, that are not listened to in the meetings??? I would, and you know there are REASONS some people file harrassment lawsuits or discrimination lawsuits---there ARE people who abuse the right, but there are people who deserve to be treated fair and you are NOT being! In the meantime, enjoy your time off! Well I am off to enjoy my jammies and my book!!! Night all!

Janet, agree with you. Silly to have incident reports at this age. Everything is documented these days! He did not get in trouble today. : ) Apples, have fun at the lake! Oh my... that is too many people to have for a wedding! IMHO if you are going to invite that many people- you had better be able to pay to have it catered! Where does one store 450 servings of potato salad?! Wow. You are a very nice friend to help out. Let's plan on touching base next week when you get back. Nawlinz, have you been on a cruise before? What line are you using? I was so seasick on ours that I barely ate. The patch behind the ears and other nausea pills had me loopy. That being said, I would stick to the meals that have sit down service if possible. Much less likely to overeat than a buffet. Be careful even with the healthy choices (fish and chicken) as everything was loaded with oil and butter. Always tons of salads and fresh fruit. Plan on exercising if you can! A friend of mine recently went and everywhere she goes she tells the waiter to tell the chef that she has severe gallbladder disease and cannot have fat. She would ask for hers made special. Worth a try. Great, omw... erosion, eh? I would guess that one would have to have REALLY severe symptoms for that to go unnoticed! Perhaps she could not eat any solids with the near obstruction and that's why she ate yogurt?! For dinner we had grilled tilapia, cauliflower, stuffed vegetarian grapeleaves (thanks IYSOY- since your greek stuff I have had it on the brain!). I only had one b/c they are 75 cal each!!! As it is I was stuffed with VERY little food. And I ate one bite too many and am feeling like Thanksgiving dinner right now....ugghhhhhh. Why do we do that??? when we are full but our heads tell us one more bite and then we feel like $hit after!!! ttyl...Laura

Just wanted to follow up and say I had my first fill today. It went great! No pain, and the dr. let me watch the fill process on x-ray. The needle didn't hurt thanks to the cold spray they used, but it felt strange once it was stuck in the port. I am feeling really excited/confident right now and ready to start making some real progress and feeling some tightness from the band. How is everyone else doing? Anyone struggling with the diet? I'm curious if anyone is a vegetarian and if so, can you recommend some high Protein meals? Thanks and good luck everyone!! Keep us posted on your progress!

LOVE HUMMUS>>>I use red lentils with my vegetarian...makes a lovely sauce... thanks for the recipe

Yes Jes YOU CAN DO THIS, and you WILL, and you will be SO GLAD that you did!! Your feelings right now are 100% normal my friend :-) OMG I cannot stop pee-ing today, I think that was 15 or 16 times . . . but it is paying off, I just weighed and I am 2 lbs. less right now that I was this morning! So it is mostly water . . . I will be down another 1 or 2 in the morning, get me motivated again and THAT will be good :-) Tina, have you tried DOminex brand vegetarian meatballs? YUMMO and no wheat gluten, they are made from eggplant!! 90 cals 2.5 fat 9 carb 5 fiber (so 4 net carb) and 9 protein, NOT BAD for 5-6 meatballs! I got mine at Safeway, I am eating like a box a week!! Going to read, pee and go to bed - goodnight my lovelies!!

I have a friend who is vegan, and I went to her because I am having trouble #1 getting in my Protein, #2 tolerating a lot of meat. My body right now does not like cheese or eggs, so my options for protein from food sources has been cut in half practically. Anyways, she shared with me a lot of options that are chalked full of protein. About 20 grams per 3-4 oz. She told me that this tempeh and seitan are both easily digested, and taste great. There are millions of recipes out there to add variety, and I'm excited to try some. She has been vegan for years, and has this stuff down to a science practically. She even converted her Army "meat/potato" husband to vegan by using these recipes. I haven't personally tried any of these because I have to go to Whole Foods which is an hour away. I'm hoping to go tomorrow with my list of necessities for some of these recipes. Beans, rinsed 1 cup broth 1 Tbsp olive oil 2 Tbsp soy sauce 2 garlic cloves, grated or finely minced 1 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten 1/4 cup nutritional yeast 2 tsp fennel seeds, crushed 1 tsp red pepper flakes 1 tsp dried oregano a few dashes of black pepper Before mixing ingredients get steaming apparatus ready and start bringing Water to boil. Have four sheets of tinfoil ready. In a large bowl, mash the beans until there are no whole pieces left. Throw the other ingredients together, in the order listed, and mix with a fork. Divide the dough into 4 even parts. Place one part of dough onto tin foil and mold into a 5 inch log. Wrap the dough in the tin foil, like a Tootsie Roll (don't worry about it being shaped perfectly, it'll shape itself while steaming). Placed wrapped sausages in steamer and steam for 40 minutes. You can eat immediately, refrigerate, or freeze. They can be sliced and sauteed or even grilled whole. There are two variations of this: Cherry Sage add 1 tsp liquid smoke (easy to find at a regular grocery store) instead of the spices listed above (from fennel to the pepper) use 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp dry rubbed sage, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1/4 tsp allspice, 1/8 tsp cloves, fresh pepper and 1/2 cup chopped dried cherries. Chorizo sub navy beans with pinto beans add 2 Tbsp tomato paste and 2 tsp lemon zest instead of the spices listed above (from fennel to the pepper) use 1 Tbsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp crushed red pepper, 1 Tbsp dry rubbed sage, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1/4 tsp cayenne (optional) The cooking directions are the same for all. The nutrition information for the Italian Feast Sausage is for 1/2 a sausage: Calories135.3 Total Fat2.2 g Saturated Fat0.3 g Polyunsaturated Fat0.2 g Monounsaturated Fat1.4 g Cholesterol0.0 mg Sodium423.7 mg Potassium164.3 mg Total Carbohydrate11.9 g Dietary Fiber4.3 g Sugars0.3 g Protein19.9 g A blog whose recipes I have made in the past posted this recipe the other day, that would easily use store-bought seitan: chicken style seitan to "veal" and "pork chops". Still, some recipes you may like: Breakfast sausages and canadian bacon. I think you should look into tempeh too. The brand that I buy is about 20g of protein for 4oz. I know that is the max that you can eat, but you could always just have three ounces, and then something else for the extra ounce? Anyway, something like this might work well: Maple Grilled Tempeh Recipe - 101 Cookbooks

BOTH! I'm a vegetarian. No, I don't cram my lifestyle down other people's throat. So, don't worry about me extolling to virtues of a veggie diet, well, unless you ask . My hubs is still an omnivore and proud of it, LOL! I still take supplements, every morning. I just have to be more careful about getting certain nutrients that animal Protein provides. I can find them in plant protein, it just means eating things that my friends raise an eye-brow at. Oh well. As far as eating veggies raw, I've only tried carrots. Once I had no problem, twice I had problems. Even though I chewed and chewed. So, it'll be awhile before I try again. As far as fruit, I found I have problems w/things like apple peels. I want to keep peels on fruits that have nutrients in them. So, I learned to cut them in small bits and I don't have a problem. I guess it all comes down to trial and error. Might I suggest getting a 'how to get your kids to eat veggies' cookbook, LOL. You can make recipes like meatloaf w/shredded veggies for added nutrition and Fiber. Fiber is food for many things. But, one of the main things is that it helps fill you up and helps keep you feeling full longer. Oh, in the beginning there is a strict diet to allow your tummy time to heal. But, according to my doc the band is not meant to restrict you from eating your fave foods. We need to learn to eat what we want with healthy portions and in moderation. By moderation, eating a piece of cake once a in a while is ok. Eating a piece of cake every night is not. I do the Weight Watchers points at home. I don't go to any meetings. But keeping a food log helps me watch what goes in my mouth and keeps myself accountable. Good luck on your journey.

I don't know if coffee is breaking a band rule. My surgeon allows coffee, which I drink every day! I'm a vegetarian. So, I need certain nutrients that people normally get from eating animal Proteins. So, I do eat small quantities of nuts like pecans or walnuts. I've found that they are ok if broken into very small pieces. last night I ate bread for the first time since surgery. I ate one slice of double-Fiber whole wheat bread. I made a BLT, using soy bacon, and raw spinach in place of lettuce for added nutrition. First bite almost got stuck. So, w/the rest I chewed, chewed, and over-chewed. The rest of the 1/2 sandwich filled me up. I'd been craving a sandwich for so long! I also eat brown rice and some seeds like flax and such. I am the only veg*n my surgeon has ever dealt with. So, he told me to be careful and use trial and error to find what works for me.

i have found myself eating more vegetarian meats like the sausage patties and chicken nuggets because i heard they are easier going down. does anyone use these products and do you find them easy to go down or do you have a problem with them. thanks for the feedback.

Apples, I think you did a great job of catching up...it took me three posts to get there. Linda, yeah, how did we live without the cell phones...are truly are we better off being that connected? Sometimes I wonder. Of course I love my computer, but I don't want my email on my cell phone either. Charlene, it's great to hear your DH is doing well too. And I too am interested in if it's any easier with both of you doing the WLS thing? Janet, I'm so sorry you had such a crappy day. Isn't it weird that all the stuff seems to pile up on one day and we end up losing it...especially after a short night. I'm not going to tell you food isn't the answer, because you already know that. I also don't know if I can say anything that will help. Going to the gym will help you burn off some of the negative energy that is building up....maybe try a completely different exercise will get your mind off of it for a while. This too shall pass. Lori, sorry to hear you are having a bad day too. Yeah, that trying to do the right thing and being squashed really pisses me off too. I hope that everything works out for you. Fritos are a good fire starter, but not one for you. Anybody you need to have us knock off for you? Hey, that's really cool that you get to talk about your weight loss. It's not easy to do and you excelled at it. Cheri, glad your second fill is going alright. You may be right about the hotel....there may be a small hotel that we can book a bunch of rooms. I usually don't want to share a sleeping chamber because I snore. I really don't want to torture everyone else. Laura, no we didn't get the extra insurance on the Volvo...but we did the following week on the HHR. Go figure. Really happy to hear your Dad is doing better and may get to go home soon. I bet your Mom is ecstatic. Cracker Barrel is one of my MIL's favorite restaurants. I always cringe when we go there for anything but Breakfast. Last breakfast I ate there (in Arkansas with the dented Volvo) I actually was able to order 1 egg and toast. My DH ate the rest of the toast. That worked out well. Julie, I hope you are feeling better. So sorry everything feels bad. Well, today was a full day on solid foods again, and I don't have much restriction. I will be making another appointment for next month when I'm in San Diego again. I will have to do this on will power....yuck, I'm just not very good at that for extended periods of time. Tomorrow is the last day of house sitting for a while. All I have to do tomorrow is put the trash out for pickup and my friend will be home tomorrow night. My friend went to Spain for two weeks and sounds like she's had a great time. She's emailed a couple of times. We have a bi-monthly Friday night gathering and I'm hosting Friday. I'm thinking of taking the day off and going to Willcox to pick some fresh veggies at a u-pick-it place. We'll see if that actually happens. I have a recipe for an eggplant dip from Andrew Weil that I think I'll try. I might also do a stuffed poblano chili...stuffed with zucchini and mushrooms with wild rice (this is for my vegetarian friends). We'll just have to see how far I get and how busy I am at work. I hope everyone has a good evening (although most of you are already asleep) and a better tomorrow. Eva

anyone tried this: NATURE'S WAY, Alive! shake SOY Protein-VANILLA 2.2lb PWDR A comprehensive, Whole food Multi-Vitamin Shake with added benefit of Solae™ Soy Proten in vanilla Flavor. (Larger View) Email this to a friend MSRP $40.99 VALUE PRICE $24.59 Quantity: Manufacturer: Nature's Way Item#: NWAY-15390 UPC: 033674153901 Product Details Alive! ® Ultra-Shake™ is the ultimate nutritional energy source. It?s also a comprehensive, whole food multi-vitamin with the added benefit of Solae™ soy Protein. Each serving contains more invigorating nutrients from more natural sources than any other supplement. Delicious powdered shake mix version of the Alive! “mega nutrient” formula found in tablets and capsules Available in both Vanilla and Apple-Cinnamon flavors Complete protein with 18 amino acids Good for your Heart: 25 grams of soy protein a day, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease; Each serving provides 15 grams of soy protein. Better digested than other soy Proteins Vegetarian, non-dairy alternative to whey protein Naturally filling to lessen appetite More Fiber and less carbs than other whole food energy shakes Easy to mix, no blender required; Just add Water, juice or milk Quickly absorbed Once daily potency Alive!® supplements are the ultimate Whole Food Energizers™-- with more invigorating nutrients from more natural sources than any other product. 29 Vitamins & Minerals 24 Fruits & Veggies 14 Green Foods 18 Amino Acids 12 Digestive Enzymes 10 Essential Fatty Acids 12 Organic Mushrooms #1 Mega Nutrient. Alive! represents the new thinking in supplements for daily health and energy, with a greater diversity of specially balanced nutrients from three important areas: daily essentials botanical energizers system defenders including antioxidants Quickly Absorbed. Alive! products are specially formulated for easy digestion and absorption into the bloodstream. Even the tablets break up quickly in the digestive tract. In comparison tests with other whole food brands, Alive! tablets were the only ones to completely disintegrate in 20 minutes or less (the proper time to ensure uptake into the body). Other brands took up to 5 times longer.

I felt the same way, until my second fill. I don't think I'll go for a third. I do know I need to go for a check up at 3 months. But, I am getting full and staying full, most of the time. I have those days where I feel like I could eat a horse ( and I'm a vegetarian ). But, then there are those days I feel almost too restricted. Most days, It takes about a cup of food to fill me up and to stay full for a few hours. I'm afraid if I go for the scheduled third fill, I'll be to restricted and need to go back for an un-fill. Don't fret to much about it, you'll get there. May I ask if you are working out? Working full-time and being a full-time student, I don't have a lot of time. But, I try to do 2 miles I the treadmill 3 times a week. And remember, the band is supposed to be a slow and healthy weight loss system. Good luck!

Yes, I eat carbs. The body needs carbs. It all comes down to what carbs you choose. In December, I switched to a vegetarian diet. I was reading the post about diet for blood types. I'm A-, LOL. So, I guess being a veg is best for me. As far as carbs, it all comes down to choices. Use brown rice instead of white rice. Try sweet potatoes instead white potatoes. If you want bread crumbs to fry chicken or fish, toast a couple pieces of whole wheat bread and throw them in the food processor. Season the bread crumbs to your liking. Also, use soy flour instead of all-purpose flour. If you want a crunchy texture, put some pecans in the processor w/the bread. Yesterday, for lunch I had split-pea Soup and threw in some brown rice for texture. Remember, the band is not about depriving yourself for the rest of your life. We need to learn to eat the things we enjoy, in moderation. Also, learning to cook in different ways is a big part of it, too. Also, when you eat out, if you don't see something you like, look at the sides. When available, I substitute a sweet tater instead of fries. Or, sub steamed veggies instead of white fries or mashed taters. I went out a few weekends ago w/some friends to Outback steakhouse. I ordered a dinner salad w/vinaigrette, seasoned veggies and a baked sweet tater for dinner. I was full and did not feel deprived. I could of ordered a creamy Pasta and asked them to hold the shrimp. But, it's about the choices we make. Don't deprive yourself, just make different choices and substitutions.

Hi, I'm a vegetarian. I embraced the diet in December on '08. I hadn't seen my mom in 4 years. I knew she'd switched to vegetarian then vegan lifestyle. She has Lupus. When I saw her over this past Christmas, she looked great and was off of most of her meds. So, I thought there had to be something to this diet. I couldn't go vegan, though, lol. My surgeon didn't freak at me being vegetarian. But the nutritionist did, big time! After all, we need meat for Protein, don't we? I just had to ignore her. Right now I'm eating my Breakfast. It's oatmeal with ground flax seeds (for the omega's 3 & 6), goji berries (they have the texture of raisins but contain B vit's and many trace minterals that we need). I put in a bit of cinnamon some splenda and more milk than it calls for, I want it runny. After it's done cooking, I put in 2 tablespoons of vanilla Protein Powder. Viola, I have 30 grams of protein in my breakfast, alone. I should note that me and large amounts of dairy don't get along, so I use soy milk. You don't have to. Look for Greek yogurt. Most walmarts now sell it. One serving has 80 calories, zero fat and around 8 grams, or more, of protein. It's super thick so it's super filling. It can be a bit tart so I mix in a little honey. I work full-time and am a full-time college student. So, I basically cook one or two big meals a week. Last week I made chipolte, black bean and sweet potato Chili and served it over brown rice. My non-veg hubby loves stuff like that. But, I also keep frozen meals for that quick dinner. Healthy choice and lean cuisine now make vegetarian options. They don't say vegetarian, you have to read the ingredients. Lean cuisine makes an awesome butternut squash ravioli that has lots of veggies that go w/it, as well. They make some pretty good pizzas, too. Like cheese and mushroom. Iwas really surprised. Sorry for the long post. It's just that many people thing being a veg is sooooo boring. It's really not. Oh, there's a a line of Soups and frozen dinners by Amy's. Her frozen dinners can be high in fat, but are good for a treat every now and then. Her soups are good but are high in sodium. She's coming out w/a low sodium line. But I haven't seen in walmart, yet. Aslo, V-8 makes some really good vegetarian soups. I find them thick and good. Don't be afraid to ask any questions. Also a bit of advice my mom gave me, don't get stuck in the salad rut. There is so much more out there than salads. I've got some veg cookbooks. If you want their names, let me know and I'll get them for you. I'll say that my surgeon has been amazed at how fast my incisions healed. He said it has to by my diet because he hasn't seen anyone heal as fast as I did and I have little scaring. Happy heating!

I was wondering if anyone has adopted a vegetarian lifestyle a few years post-op? I've been banded of 1 1/2 now and am about 30lbs away from my goal weight. I don't enjoy meat as much as I used to and find that I have problems digesting it. It 's hard to go down even if I let it cook to the point of the meat falling off the bones. I'm curious to know if anyone has started a vegetarian diet and how it's been, the struggles, and any suggestions for someone thinking of abandoning meat. Kin

LOL OMG THAT IS SOME FUNNNY FUNNNNNY STUFF!! Candra you need to type more often lol, you always help put a smile on my face. Im planning on telling him, because its either a panic attack on the way, me hitting menopause at 24 lol, or some stupid diabeties that uhm SHOULDNT HAPPEN AFTER LOOSING!!!... Im super emotional, so i believe the first two.. for instance.. who went to the fair lately and visited the pigs?? well i did, and i cried the whole time, those poooor piggies.. already set up to die:( they were only 6 months old! Yeah sob story of my life. But candra you crack me up!!! DOnna.. DO NOT be nervous! Seriously! You are AMAZING, you make us all feel better, and you are a wonderful woman! Tina.. hmm wish i had the reading power you have.. time to write your own book. Pam. that guy is it the same guy from a while ago that was supposed to go to i believe its six flags?? Hey atleast you know your daughter is going to get an A!!! And your kids are ADORABLE! Heather.. your new teacher is about to have a heart attack, get out now! Candra thanks for the nutshell helps me respond:D I do see how people become vegetarian though because seeing those piggs, its so sad they are so inocent and so happy. All they want is their food damn it. Then you got these 4h kids cryin cause your cryin, and they are layin in the pen with their pigs.. yeah poor piggies. No i didnt go to the cow area next.. that was enough.. OH but i did see the horses from TV...

So it is true...How yucky. Even more worrisome, read this article: Vegetarians in Paradise/BSE in Gelatin/Gelatin and Mad Cow Disease/Gelatin History/FDA and Gelatin I'm going to look at the FDA website to see the source document...always like to be sure of the source... Have you noticed how often "hydrolyzed protein" is included in foods? Could from a vat of boiled cow hides. Icky Icky Icky.

OMG Tina, the dried ones don't taste ANYTHING like the real ones...I don't like the dried edamame either. You should really try them! As a vegetarian, it would give you a great, EASY, high protein and fiber option. I bet you'd like them.

I was born and raised in California. I left two week after high school. When I left, I realized how much I took In-n-out for granted! My hubs who grew up in Florida had never heard of them. When we went home to visit my mom, I introduced him to In-n-out. He fell in love! When he thinks of Ca, he doesn't think beaches and such, he thinks In-n-out, LOL! When my mom moved to AZ, he nearly cried at the thought of no reason to visit Ca, anymore, LOL! I visited my mom over Christmas and reported back that there was an In-n-out by her. He went from mourning to being ecstatic! In Dec, I made a drastic dietary change and became vegetarian. But, when I read your post this morning, I started drooling and craving an In-n-out double cheese w/fries. That's a dinner that is almost better than sex! To bad you couldn't send me a a burger via e-mail! I'd gladely forfeit all my weekly points and starve the rest of the day for an messy in-n-out better-than-sex (almost) meal! Oh, and don't worry about eating badly for one day. We need to learn to eat what we love, but in moderation. What's the purpose of not enjoying food?

Riley you coming to Reggies this weekend? You are the only other vegetarian that I know of!! Ok making lentils and cottage cheese. Going to SF tomorrow and need to take my own food this time..........tried the resterant thing today but I really do better at home........I PB'd a salad..........and garden burger........I would rather eat my own food for awhile I KNOW what works no guessing and having problems.....

Oh than I am there for sure this weekend!! I am so happy it is earlier than I thought.............. My daughter is trying to make plans for this weekend with friends so she may not be with me................... I am lacto ova veggie so dairy is fine and i can always bring something veggie to add to the mix for use veggie people. A salad or some kinda of vegetarian meatloaf thing............ Let me know!! Excited I can come!! Yahoo!!