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When I was researching the sugar addiction I came across a lot of vegetarian info, like the health benefits and what not. I figured it would be a good way to incorporate more fruits, veggies, beans, etc into my diet. So I printed up some recipes and went with it. Since I am not having the sugar and processed foods it has been pretty healthy. It's been almsot a week and I feel really good. I have lost about 5 pounds since last Thursday. I have a ton of fruits and veggies in the fridge. I am still feeding the rest of the family meat and I am still eating eggs and dairy. I don't know if this is something that is going to last forever but if I continue to feel this good it just might.

What's up with that? I was a vegetarian for 5 years and then off and on for a few years following that? Curious.......

Cali - Yeah, I know about the liver, that's why I'm scared... my doctor showed me a tape of the surgery, with them holding up the liver. I CAN'T talk to the doc/nutritionist, because they will just cancel everything. Chrisann - Olives are really high in fat - did you tell your doc about them? What did s/he say? I can't get rid of anything in the house, because I'm with others... but now that I am being strict, I'm tempted, but I'm in control (so far). Your surgery is today, right? Good luck! Type as soon as you can. Dave - see, I'd be FINE if I were allowed to eat veggies... I'm a vegetarian I do have fattening and bad eating habits, but veggies are usually what I crave.. I'm not getting satisfaction from all the liquids, but I have to do it, so whatever. Tracey - I saw your thread, and I wrote on one of your others... what I'm worried about is that it's not like I cheated once, it's that I didn't stop solids until the 30th when I was supposed to begin on the 25th. Thanks for your encouragement! Kellie - Really? Wow. Did you tell your doc? If I did that I would feel like I was putting myself in danger - but it is good to hear someone else didn't go strict for so many days.. What did you normally eat, and what was your weight? I'm around 325 right now... plus they told me I have a fatty liver. Felecia -- exactly, I need flavor, but even if I'm going to be bland, I just do not like a lot of canned stuff. Usually the cans I buy are garbanzo Beans, but obviously can't have those right now. Tomorrow I am going to make 2 Soups for myself -- one like I described to you, with onions, celery, carrot, tomato, mushrooms, parsley, and dill. I'm also going to make a pepper soup, I'll sautee shallots and maybe some garlic with peppers I have peeled (to get the skins off, because I think they want you to cut down on Fiber or something, right? I don't remember), and then I'll cut up and stick in a jar of pre-roasted peppers... I'll put that all in some Water with some boullion cubes, and then puree it, I think... I'll let you know how they come out. HSBeach - That's great news for you! I have been told that I'm just above the borderline now and so technically, I have type II too, but this is recent, and I haven't had to take any insulin. Here's hoping your diabetes dissipates even further! Anyalee - you're very right, and usually I would say the same thing, but I'm not worried about them postponing the surgery, I'm worried about them canceling it, since it was postponed once before. I am being strict now, but that means that my fast will have begun the 30th instead of 25th.. I really hate slim fast and canned soup and stuff that isn't real food, plus I don't think just to lose weight one should have to eat chemicals... so I've been making a lot of smoothies with non-fat yogurt, soymilk, bananas and frozen peaches... those are really good. I have frozen treats that are low in fat and sugar, i have nonfat yogurt that i top with a little honey, and actually i'm doing the opposite, i bought all of my favorite sodas... i will miss them.. my friends call me a diet cola addict... but it's better not to have them, because they have chemicals. What happens when you want to have soda now? The main thing I'm worried about is what I wrote above to Tracey - I'm really worried about those 5 days, even if I'm perfectly strict until the surgery... especially since they told me I have a fatty liver.

flip - you're right, having stuff in the house makes it so much harder. i'm at home home and not my apartment, so i have my family's food here too. i am going to make a section of the fridge for myself, and only look there, i really think this will help... how about you do the same thing and we keep tabs on each other? if the people you live with are really understanding, you may be able to put foil over their parts of the fridge, so you don't immediately see temptation. i'm jewish, and at passover a lot of the non-Kosher for passover food is covered up or put away, and you don't go for it, so i think it could work! what do you think? also, if you talk to your doctor about your cheating, please let me know what s/he says about the liver and everything. i think you should definitely talk to the doc. i am the first person to say this, and i would talk to my doc, i'm just so afraid since they were annoyed before that they will be like, forget it... and i want the surgery so badly. we can also trade tips here for the diet. i am a vegetarian, so i do not do chicken, but i have made the broth with noodles and then strained it, it's hard... you're like... oh, just one bite!! why don't you make a soup from scratch with your standard mirepoix, which is onion, celery, carrot, some herbs and spices... and then strain it all... it will have amazing flavor and not just some crap from a packet... i'm going to shop soon and i'm going to do that... does anyone know if it is ok to puree vegetables into soup, a la gazpacho, or if that is not ok?

The decision realy has to be our own. I went through hell just prior to wondering if I should, would I fail, what would happen if people found out etc. I know my decision in all of this was right for me - but I only know that now. I've been having a tough time of the holidays, but I still know it would be worse without my band. I am a vegetarian, so it may not be that helfpul to you to tel you about my food. I eat no flesh of any kind, so no "stuck" or "PB'ing there You can defeat the band by eating cr@p - Cookies, fast food, high calorie drinks & shakes - easy easy to do. So IMHO the first thing to pledge yourself, is to stop with the fries, burgers and fast food and sodas. That's a truck load of calories. I am eating virtually my pre-op diet, but soooo much healthier

Ugh, questions about liquid diet --- I was supposed to start Tuesday, 12/15, and I didn't start until Friday, 12/28. On Thursday I had a lot of garbanzo beans and peanuts and raisins (chick peas in vinegar & lemon w/ some olive oil is like, my favorite thing), and even last night, after starting, I had some blue cheese (basically thinking "oh, it's melting in my mouth"), and nutella! The nutella was bad... because it is insanely high in fat and I had a lot of it... and I think the liquid diet is less about liquid and more about low fat/sugar. But I can't get the straight dope on it from my doc, and I was scheduled for surgery in October but I got an upper respiratory infection and couldn't, and I was doing fine on my liquid diet, so I know I can do this just fine, but my surgery is scheduled for JANUARY 8 and it's now the 29th and I had freakin' blue cheese and nutella in the middle of the night! If I am strict for the next 11 days, am I cool? It seems so many doctors give out so many different diets, and honestly I would be OK if it were solid but just low fat/sugar, I'm a vegetarian anyway, so what I crave is broccoli and carrots and peppers and beans and fruits (which can be high sugar). Usually I would admit what has gone on to my doctor, but they were very upset when I postponed before, and I am sure about the surgery, and I don't want them to be like, that's it, we're not doing it.... what do you guys think?? Thank you so much in advance, I'm glad I found this forum!

i was not banded with Dr. Curry, but he has been my follow up surgeon since November of this year. his staff has been terrific, erin was awesome helping me make food choices (i am a vegetarian--so it can get rough). i can not say enough nice things about his professionalism and the friendly staff at the front. i am looking forward to seeing them again when i need them!

Hi to everyone out there in LapBandLand... I'm not really sure where to begin other than to give details about the journey that has me here, and the one that I expect to take over the course of, well, the rest of my life. Forgive me in advance for rambling. I'm a 38 year old male who, thanks to heredity coupled with a variety of other factors have put me on a collision course with death far before what most would consider "it's time." I don't exaggerate in this sense - at age 32 I had an acute angina attack, and was advised that I had advanced coronary artery disease, with some arteries as much as 95% blocked. Despite four angioplasty procedures and the installation of five stents, countless diets and exercise regimens, etc., my weight has done nothing but go up. Today my 5'8" frame carries more (340 lbs.) than ever - 50 lbs. more than when I was having angina attacks. Oddly enough other than the blockage and my weight, I'm in what my doctors consider pretty good shape for my age - my blood pressure and vitals are in the normal range, I don't drink or smoke, I eat a nearly vegetarian diet, all the things I should be doing... and yet the weight keeps going up, putting more and more stress on a heart muscle that, while not apparently weakened by past problems, isn't exactly saying "Bring it on!" Angina didn't bother me. Blacking out and nearly dying didn't bother me. Being something of a social misfit due to my size? Hah... who cares about petty stuff like that? Having my groin drilled like an oil well, so a doctor could run a wire up my femoral artery into my heart and put a mesh stent into it to keep me alive didn't bother me enough to go through with a gastric procedure such as LapBand or by-pass. The thought of my own death wasn't enough to motivate me to go through with this. Then something did: having a child. For some reason after my heart problems my wife and I decided to start a family. My daughter, now a rather precocious 3 1/2, brings joy and wonder into my life which I'd long ago forgotten, and I began to think, "She deserves to have a father around, and you aren't doing everything you can to see that that happens." So after years of an on-again, off-again, waffling as to whether or not to pursue a gastric restriction procedure (my wife's actually convinced I'll back out at the last minute), a few months ago I decided to go full-throttle forward. Consequently, I've gone through the hoops of the screening process (and with my history, there are some added steps involved) save a thyroid test and, provided my insurance carrier agrees (which, considering my circumstances, they likely will) I'll be undergoing the LapBand on 13 February, 2008. While I've undergone the extensive preparatory phase that most patients go through prior to their operations, including the educational programs, I'm coming into this kind of blind in a sense: I have no specific expectations, except to know that whatever I undergo, it'll be for my daughter's benefit as much (if not moreso) than my own. As readily as I'd burn in hell forever to keep her safe, I'll gladly undergo this if it means I get to spend so much as an extra day with her. I have no goal of losing X number of pounds. That may be good as a motivator for some, but in my case determining that "I want to weigh 200 pounds by such-and-such date" simply wouldn't work. Instead my goal is simple: to add X number of days to my life which I wouldn't have otherwise - days which I hope to spend with her doing things I can't do with her today because I'm too large, or because I tire too easily. I lack the joy some of you do. I know most who undergo LapBand look to their surgery date as almost another birthdate - one to be celebrated. While admittedly I'm looking forward to my date (13 Feb) and in fact am counting down the days, again I think I'm blinded by the single-mindedness of why I've finally decided to do this, to a point where I can't really enjoy it. I intend to read these forums vigorously over the course of the next six weeks and beyond - for education, insight, perhaps for support, I'm not sure. But I'm glad I found the place, and I'm glad to see that I'm nowhere near alone. So if you got this far, thanks for indulging me by reading, and hopefully our respective journeys will lead us to our desired destinations, wherever that may ultimately be.

I am a huge fan of Morning Star Farms products they are all vegetarian and very healthy their soy ribs are yummy filling and have tons of protein Morningstar Farms® - Welcome to SeeVeggiesDifferently.com

= Cream of Wheat. (Not made too thick - but just the right consistency) If I can spoon it easily, it goes in easily. A quick bowl (one Instant packet) of Cream of Wheat leaves me full a good long while. (I like the flavours, but original is OK too. I sometimes add a packet of Splenda, but either way, it totally is Band-friendly. = Quizno's Soups. One $1.99 cup (or if I'm semi-starving, a $2.99 bowl) of their new Seasonal Soups totally are like a meal. I prefer the Seasonal soups in "Green Chile Chicken" or the totally vegetarian "Mushroom Bisque". (The Broccoli & cheese is OK but the new soups, totally rock!) Both are creamy (I don't count calories) and filling. There are quick, economical and perfect for lunch or dinner. They come with packs of Saltine crackers (yuck, I hate those) but I skip those and still end up with a great meal. I'll try to think of some more quick, filling, little gems.

Mr. United States, United by Christ, is surging in the polls...and to think, the following is what he believes (he does not believe in evolution): The Bible teaches (in Genesis 1:29-30) that the original animals (and the first humans) were commanded to be vegetarian. There were no meat eaters in the original creation. Furthermore, there was no death. It was an unblemished world, with Adam and Eve and animals (including dinosaurs) living in perfect harmony, eating only plants. Sadly, it did not stay this way for very long. Adam rebelled against his Creator, bringing sin into the world (Genesis 3:1-7; Romans 5:12). Because of this rebellion, Adam, and thus all of his descendants (you and me), gave up the right to live with a Holy (sinless) and just God. God therefore judged sin with death. The Bible plainly teaches from Genesis to Revelation that there was no death of animals or humans before Adam sinned. (Consider just a few of the many passages, such as: Romans 5:12; Genesis 2:17; Genesis 1:29-30; Romans 8:20-22; Acts 3:21; Hebrews 9:22; I Corinthians 15; Revelation 21:1-4; Revelation 22:3.) This means there could not have been any animal fossils (and no dinosaur bones) before sin. After Adam’s sin, animals and people started to die. It was now a different world, one of death and strife. A world that was once beautiful now suffered under the curse placed upon it by the Creator (Genesis 3:14-19). But a promise was given (Genesis 3:15) that God would provide a way for the penalty of sin to be paid so there would be a way for man to come back to God. Why Do We Find Dinosaur Fossils? In Genesis 6, we read that all flesh (man and animals) had ‘corrupted his way upon the Earth’ (Genesis 6:12). Perhaps people and animals were killing each other; maybe dinosaurs had started killing other animals and humans. In any case, the Bible describes the world as ‘wicked.’ Because of this wickedness, God warned a godly man named Noah that He was going to destroy the world with a Flood (Genesis 6:13). God therefore commanded him to build a great ship (the Ark) so that all the kinds of land animals (which must have included dinosaurs) and Noah’s family could survive on board while the Flood destroyed the entire Earth (Genesis 6:14-20). Some people think that dinosaurs were too big, or there were too many of them, to go on this Ark. However, there were not very many different kinds of dinosaurs. There are certainly hundreds of dinosaur names, but many of these were given to just a bit of bone or skeletons of the same dinosaur found in other countries. It is also reasonable to assume that different sizes, varieties, and sexes of the same kind of dinosaur have ended up with different names. For example, look at the many different varieties and sizes of dogs, but they are all the same kind-the dog kind! In reality, there may have been fewer than 50 kinds of dinosaurs. God sent two of every (seven of some) land animal into the Ark (Genesis 7:2-3; 7:8-9)—there were no exceptions. Therefore, dinosaurs must have been on the Ark. Even though there was ample room in the huge ship for large animals, perhaps God sent young adults into the Ark that still had plenty of room for them to grow. Well, what happened to all the land animals that did not go on the Ark? Very simply, they drowned. Many would have been covered with tons of mud as the rampaging Water covered the land (Genesis 7:11-12,19). Because of this quick burial, many of the animals would have been preserved as fossils. If this happened, you would expect to find evidence of billions of dead things buried in rock layers (formed from this mud) all over the Earth. This is exactly what you do find. By the way, the Flood of Noah’s day probably occurred just over 4,500 years ago. Creationists believe that this event formed many of the fossil layers around the Earth. (Additional fossil layers were formed by other floods as the Earth settled down after the great Flood.) Thus, the dinosaur fossils which were formed as a result of this Flood were probably formed about 4,500 years ago, not millions of years ago. Somehow, believing the crap above makes me worried about his ability to be the President. Call me kooky.

Marilyn, here's hoping that the fill turns things around for you. I can certainly understand your frustration. Enjoy the holiday season in the Windy City, and keep in touch- us teachers have to stick together. Towens, let us know how the fill went today. Great that you chose to get it done now, even though it'll make Christmas dinner a little harder to get down. Merry Christmas! Tlwempen, that's a good insight you had about wanting meat only because you can't have it. That's right, remember: "Meat is Clay" (kind of even looks like it a bit, doesn't it?)! Look at it this way - you'll go through this Christmas as a vegetarian. Whenever I want something I can't have, another thought that comes to mind is that I spent one week on a liquid diet and came out of it just fine - so do I really need "this" or "that"? Merry Christmas! All the best,

YUM, the foods sound amazing. I am a vegetarian as well and these were some amazing food ideas. I've never heard of Spagetti squash! Also, the Wendy's Chili sounds delish and instead of meat you could use Smart Ground veggie beef, it's made out of soy and really does taste like ground beef, same texture but very good for your and loaded with Protein. I also love the morning star Veggie chicken Nuggets, loaded with soy protien and actually pretty low in calories. Tastes great!! My mouth is watering just thinking about all this food. I've been on full liquids for 10 days now, 7 days post-op. On Christmas eve I'll be on mushies and I'm already prepping my menu!! I normally didn't eat breakfast either but I learned something like 80% of obese people do not eat breakfast. Even though you may think you are saving on the calories, eating in the morning jump starts your metabolism and therefore you burn more calories through out the day. Grab a yogurt or protien shake. Anything that is loaded with protein will get your body going and help shed some pounds.. Good Luck!

this is my favorite: Morningstar vegetarian ground beef crumbles heated up in a skillet with taco sauce, then sprinkled with fat free cheddar cheese and a dollup of light sour cream. Pair this with some refried Beans and it makes a great, and filling, dinner.

I actually look healthier than my non banded peers. I am athletic, and strong with thick hair, clear skin and bright eyes. I put that down to my vegetarian diet and exercise. I look after myself better than the majority of the population.

My sis isn't vegetarian and when I made the yellow squash for her I mixed in a bit of Canadian bacon, she loved it. She won't eat anything.

Wendy's Chili 2 lbs ground beef 1-29 oz can tomato sauce 1-29 oz can kidney beans (with liquid) 1-29 oz can pinto beans (with liquid) 1 C diced onion (1 medium onion) 1/2 C diced green chili (2 chilis) 1/4 c diced celery (1 stalk) 3 medium tomatoes, chopped 2 tsp cumin powder 3 Tbls chili power 1.5 tsp black pepper 2 tsp salt 2 C Water Brown ground beef in skillet over medium heat, drain off fat. Using a fork crumble the cooked beef into pea size pieces. In a large pot combine the beef plus all the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer over low heat. Cook, stirring every 15 minutes for 2-3 hours. Makes 12 servings. Leftovers may be frozen for several months. For a vegetarian version just bump up the amount of beans, add some veggies (I would add broccoli, more onions, zucchini, etc.) and skip the hamburger.

Maybe a quality breakfast would help as well. There are lots of vegetarian breakfast options. I am a slow loser too and I can relate! The coffee for breakfast jumped out at me though. Good luck sweetie!

Dear Plumpy Pad, So things are going really well. I am actually drinking the amounts of water you're supposed to drink on a daily basis, and I feel like my body is happy with that! I used to only drink when I was thirsty, and then I was drinking mainly diet soda. I have a feeling I was never really hydrated, seeing as I only peed like once a day... MAYBE twice on a rare occasion. The other thing I've realized is that it is actually simple to be a vegetarian. When I think back on all the times I tried to be a vegetarian in the past and failed because it was "too hard" I want to slap myself! The vegetarian part is simple... It's the vegan part that is going to be tricky! I have yet to find real vegan cheese, because the soy cheese they sell at the store has niacin (which is apparently milk protein) in it. I am going to have to make decisions soon as to what foods I will accept as vegan, because it seems niacin is in EVERYTHING! The other thing I am super excited about is my detoxification fast I am going to begin this Wednesday. I will start the fast with 3 full days of only eating raw fruits and vege's along with fresh pressed juices (I borrowed mom's juicer!). Then on Saturday I begin the water fast, where I will consume nothing but water for 10 full days. This is supposed to give my body a rest from digesting foods so it can focus on digesting damaged, diseased, or extra cells... The super cool part of this is that the final day of the water fast is on December 31st! This means I begin the new year fresh... LITERALLY! After the 10 day water fast is complete, I'll do 3 days of juice fasting followed by 3 days of raw foods and juice to get my stomach used to food again. I am very excited, because I am doing it for the right reasons... The weight loss will just be an extra bonus!! Anyways... I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Dear Plumpy Pad, So things are going really well. I am actually drinking the amounts of water you're supposed to drink on a daily basis, and I feel like my body is happy with that! I used to only drink when I was thirsty, and then I was drinking mainly diet soda. I have a feeling I was never really hydrated, seeing as I only peed like once a day... MAYBE twice on a rare occasion. The other thing I've realized is that it is actually simple to be a vegetarian. When I think back on all the times I tried to be a vegetarian in the past and failed because it was "too hard" I want to slap myself! The vegetarian part is simple... It's the vegan part that is going to be tricky! I have yet to find real vegan cheese, because the soy cheese they sell at the store has niacin (which is apparently milk protein) in it. I am going to have to make decisions soon as to what foods I will accept as vegan, because it seems niacin is in EVERYTHING! The other thing I am super excited about is my detoxification fast I am going to begin this Wednesday. I will start the fast with 3 full days of only eating raw fruits and vege's along with fresh pressed juices (I borrowed mom's juicer!). Then on Saturday I begin the water fast, where I will consume nothing but water for 10 full days. This is supposed to give my body a rest from digesting foods so it can focus on digesting damaged, diseased, or extra cells... The super cool part of this is that the final day of the water fast is on December 31st! This means I begin the new year fresh... LITERALLY! After the 10 day water fast is complete, I'll do 3 days of juice fasting followed by 3 days of raw foods and juice to get my stomach used to food again. I am very excited, because I am doing it for the right reasons... The weight loss will just be an extra bonus!! Anyways... I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Wow... thanks so much for this info. I am not vegetarian, but this sounds delicious! I am going to try the baked squash!

I totally relate to your comment that you don't know what you'll eat. When I first became vegetarian I realized I was pretty darn hungry, there was nothing I liked that I could eat. It took a lot of trial and error but I eventually learned all kinds of things I really liked. Yellow squash, slice them the long way, scoop out the middle, replace with diced celery, garlic, bell pepper, onions, whatever you like. Put it back like a twice baked potato, bake, sprinkle with favorite cheese, you are done. It's cheap, it's healthy, it has flavor, and it's GREAT. Do the same thing with Zucchini. Spaghetti Squash... use like you would pasta, just try to avoid high cal cheese. But if you have to use cheese to get used to it, just try to find a low fat cheese. Again, cheap, healthy, band friendly, filling, and good. Salad w/o lettuce. Take all your favorite veggies that you would usually top a salad with and cut them up, marinate in Italian dressing, enjoy. Cheap, healthy, band friendly, filling, and good. Veggies & eggs. Veggie Chili. I have a recipe for Wendy's Chili. Make it without meat and add extra beans or veggies of your choice. There are all kinds of ideas. Just get the veggies you like best and start working with them and see what you come up with.

I agree with Wasabb pretty much - I don't eliminate all white carbs as i do eat 1/2 cup rice with dinner which is fish & veggies and will have wheat toast or a sandwich every now and then - but yes 2 cups pasta seems like a lot - I had 2/3 c last nite - whopping 230 calories just for 2/3 of a cup.. but I had room in my 1000 calories for the day and I wanted some as it's been 5 month since i had some - and you know what it wasnt that good - i enjoyed my cauliflower more.. A calorie is a calorie - but your body reacts differently to carbs fat and protein ... If you ate 1000 calories of lettuce or 1000 butter - i bet you on the lettuce only you would lose weight and with the 1000 butter you would gain - try the experiment yourself - do as Wasabb suggest and I bet you will lose... all calories are not created equal... Sorry... Add Unflavor protein powder to your coffee - let it cool a bit first You state you are a vegetarian - do you each chick or fish - how about beans... Eggbeater is great for protein and low in calories.

I just realized you said you are a vegetarian. I can relate to not liking many veggies, I was a vegetarian for many years as well. Thing is, you are using fillers now instead of quality food. Ever read about dog food? It's full of fillers and not much nutrition. So the idea is to buy a better quality dog food. We need to do the same. Skip the diced chicken suggestion on your salad and throw a few black beans in there. If you like pasta you will likely enjoy spaghetti squash. I love it and I hate everything. Instead of meat sauce, marinara sauce. Even Alfredo sauce if that is what it takes to get you used to better foods vs. white carbs. Do you eat any fish? Or is that out too? The veggies.. it's hard to get used to eating them but if you work with it and don't try to choke down what is gross, you should be able to find things that are good. It does take trial and error. Yellow squash raw... on top of salads. Try a variety of dressings such as Chinese Chicken Salad Dressing for a bit of flavor, it's still veggie. If you stick to better quality foods you can eat a much larger quantity of them. And quite frankly, you need to do that due to nutrition issues right now. I have known people that were obese and suffering from malnutrition. My sis was one of them. Malnutrition doesn't mean a lack of calories, it means a lack of nutrition. I think we eat in such a way for so many years that we don't really know how bad we feel anymore. I'm just throwing out thoughts here. I've been where you are, I fully understand. I'll do anything I can to help. Sometimes when making big changes to your diet you need to do it in steps. Gradual steps. Changing everything over night doesn't always work. So take it one step at a time. Also... what about a fill? Do you supposed a fill might be in order?

Here are some sample menus from the past week (from low cal to high cal). I rarely eat exactly 1200 calories per day. I might do 800 calories one day and 1400 the next. But my weekly average is consistently 1200 per day. I rarely eat Breakfast, I never did prior to being banded and I’m just not hungry in the morning. I’m mostly vegetarian (I do eat fish, dairy and eggs). I might eat chicken breast or ground beef once a month. <o></o> 838 calories, 93 carbs, 34 fat, 25 Protein Breakfast: Small coffee, one cream, one sugar 113 calories Lunch: President’s Choice Indian vegetable biryani rice (0.8 serving), 200 calories Dinner: President’s Choice cheesy macaroni (1.25 cups) 425 calories Snack:<o></o>Orville Redenbacher's Smart Popcorn Mini-bags 100 calories<o></o> <o></o>1213 calories, 161 carbs, 39 fat, 68 protein<o></o> Breakfast:<o></o> Small coffee, one cream, one sugar 113 calories<o></o> Lunch: Slice of cheese pizza 345 calories Dinner: 2 cups of spaghetti with parmesan cheese (no meat) 595 calories Snack: Atkins Advantage Bar chocolate Mocha Crunch (0.9 serving) 198 calories<o></o><o> </o> 1620 calories, 141 carbs, 85 fat, 60 protein Breakfast: coffee with cream 90 calories Lunch: tuna wrap 500 calories (purchased at my work cafeteria) Dinner: President’s choice cheesy macaroni (2 cups) 600 calories Snack: cranberry muffin 350 calories <o></o> I live in <st1><st1:country-region w:st="on">Canada</st1:country-region></st1> so some of the brand names are different. I don’t have any problems health-wise except that I’m chronically anemic. <o></o> Looking at my menus I do see that I still eat a lot of Pasta, breads, and cheese, all of which I used to binge on prior to being banded. I used to be able to eat a WHOLE cheese pizza - now I can only eat 1 slice. I now eat much smaller quantities of these foods. I do recognize that my diet is short on fruits and vegetables (I really don’t like many – I know that’s ironic coming from a vegetarian). I usually have a cup of fresh strawberries 3 times a week and a salad about once a week. I'm still struggling to get to a good fill - I know I probably shouldn't even be able to even eat pizza and rice.