NMJG

Mmm, Cassoulet? Beans go down easy and you could pick around the meats. Cheese Souffle? Assiette Anglais - pate etc goes down easy. Quiche? Seems like lunch could be easier than dinner, any chance you could do it mid day instead of evening?

Hey that New Content tab works! Yay!

I've been out of it for a week or so due to life getting in the way of forums, so bring me up to speed. I assume this thread is the new place to talk since we can't see sh*t on the new site and don't know what the new posts are? BTW, missed everyone. Lips - love the new picture.

RJ, to be blunt, f@&$ them. You have done so much, they can never understand. Don't let them control you or have power over your feelings. You are strong and beautiful and you can raise your head and pass them by. We all feel your pain and send good wishes your way.

I used to be an apple, but with some weight loss, I think I'm a watermelon now. Although I don't have a nice smooth watermelon rind, more like a scrambled egg texture. I was a pear in my youth (sigh). What are you?

No problems for me. I live in New Mexico and we have green chile with everything, kind hard to avoid it. Everyone here is addicted to chile. Thank goodness Sleevette likes chile.

At 7 weeks, my snacks were about the same size as my meals, two ounces, and with 3 meals and 2 snacks a day, I was eating every couple of hours. To me, grazing is eating constantly, not eating every few hours, but that's just my opinion. Tonight (3 months out) I had my first "square" meal since I started the journey. I got down a few ounces of meatloaf, a few ounces of peas and carrots, and two bites of bread. It was so exciting LOL. Up to now my meals tended to be a greek yogurt or turkey deli meat or tuna. No room for more than a bite of veggies and forget bread or carbs at all. So, not to tell you to go against your nut's orders, but another conversation might be in order? Heck, I still can't eat fruit and sure couldn't at 7 weeks. Good luck with this, Rev.

That looks tasty. Why doesn't the protein powder get icky when you bake like it does if you use hot liquids in it?

Good luck on this one, I'm sure you'll do fine. If anyone asks, just say "I'm not that hungry" and leave it at that, like Gman says. I use that line a lot.

Oh, y'all are just too funny. I'm laughing out loud in my office. Hey Carolina Girl, you can post over here, you're pretty cool, don't just lurk

Try to stick with the "protein first" rule, it really does help because it fills you up so you are much less interested in bad stuff. For snacks, make a deal with yourself to eat some deli meat or a hard boiled egg first. I bet by the time you finish it you won't have room for the junk. Also, come here for support. This group is great at helping everyone stay on track. That said, it's a lifelong battle for many of us. I battle it every day.

Gloria Vanderbilt and Calvin Klein usually do the trick for jeans. Wear them with heels, that will help with shorter legs. Do you have a hairstyle that takes off 20 lbs.?

Hey, have any of y'all been reading some of the posts on the other forums? Yowza! I thought we were bad, but there are some real doozies over there. They are probably saying the same about us LOL.

You have plenty of carbs in that diet, but they are healthy carbs: beans and yogurt have carbs - look them up. It looks like you are prohibited from refined carbs, which many of us are. I think you are tired and cranky because you are 7 weeks out, dear, but it does get better and you will be able to add in more foods as you go along. Are you getting in all your protein and liquids? Talk to your nut about what other healthy carbs you can add in. Best wishes to you.

Count me in. In fact, I just discovered a few days ago that my denial was creeping up on me again, even logging everything in MFP. I ran the monthly report on calories and discovered that I ate over my 800 calories 8 times in the last 30 days. That's almost a quarter of the time. And here I thought I was doing so well. No wonder I'm only losing 2 lbs. a week. Sleevette helped me in that I wasn't able to eat even 1000 calories on those days, but those days wouldn't have happened if I hadn't convinced myself that a little bit of wine before bed was OK or some other stupid self justification. I will fight this forever and I'm so grateful I have Sleevette to help me, but she can't do it alone.

I recommend lots of dogs and cats laying on you. Good heaters

OP, you do as you see fit and I hope it works for you, but it does disturb me to see you encouraging others to go off plan to make you feel justified. Why do you think the national average weight lost for the sleeve is 60% of excess weight instead of 90 or 100%? I'm no rebel. I'm a sleeve goody two shoes and I'm proud of it. I follow the rules as best I can, regret my slip ups, and try to get back on track as soon as possible. My doctor and nutritionist know a heck of a lot more than I do about this and would never encourage me to eat candy or junk food, regardless of the amount. If they did, I would find another clinic, because that is just common sense. Sure, I make mistakes, but at least I know they are mistakes and try to do better in the future. I ask for help when I know I'm going to have problems, because I will struggle with food my whole life, sleeve or no sleeve. Shoot, if my opinion about diet is so great and I think I know more than doctors do, why did I end up with nearly 100 lbs. to lose? Ask yourself this question, what answer do you get?

I had a bit of cooked spinach and was OK around 4 weeks. Just try a few bites and see how it goes (don't go crazy). You can always have more next time. Maybe blend it up with some greek yogurt or fat free ricotta or low fat cheese to make it creamed? Blending it first may help, too.

Everyone has an opinion on this topic, just do a search on caffeine Here is my summary for what it is worth: Many avoid caffeine but a number don't People who avoid caffeine generally do so because their doctor or nut said no Caffeine dehydrates you (already a risk with the sleeve, especially early on) Caffeine can stimulate appetite coffee in general stimulates acid, already a problem for sleevers People do ignore their doctor's advice (or their doctor did not prohibit it) and keep their coffee habit Many on here believe that our doctor knows best and we trusted them to remove 85% of our stomach so why question something as small as a caffeine restriction Many others on here routinely do not follow their plan It's up to you to decide, but I encourage you to stick to your doctor's plan Good luck however you decide. PS I generally avoid caffeine now, however, once in a blue moon I'll have real coffee and what a kick since I'm not used to it any more.

I din't like sweet things much early on, but now at 3 months it's back The Queen Anne cherries lurking in the store aisle are going to be the death of me. On a positive note, I just discovered Good Earth Sweet & Spicy herbal tea (decaf) - it's delish and very winter-cozy. It's on sale at costco right now 3 boxes for $6.99.

This is a good idea. I will try it on Thxgiving and see how it goes. Since I'll plan to eat my turkey first, there isn't too much danger from OD'ing on pumpkin pie. I decided that this year we will go out - no leftovers! That will make it easier, too.

It’s here already, the grocery store aisles filled with a dozen kinds of cookie mixes and holiday breads, candy canes and chocolate santas, fruit cakes and eggnog, chocolate oranges and marzipan, hot mulled wine, catalogs filled with gourmet baskets and all sorts of treats. Help! I don’t want to eat this stuff. I’ve had 52 holiday seasons to stuff my face, it’s OK to miss this one. Please give me some support to get through this difficult time without giving in to my food addiction. I’m afraid if I start I won’t stop. Thank you friends!

double tickers! wow, how'd we do that? ALEX!!!!!!

Look at you and hubby! Y'all look great! Congrats...you look so happy, and you should

I eat tofu, no problems, and I like soynuts too. I don't eat soy only, though, I have fat free ricotta, kefir, almonds and walnuts ( only 1 oz per serving). I also eat a lot more fish now than ever before. I also have hemp protein powder to switch it up from whey. I eat beans 4 times a week. My nut told me to count the net carbs (total carbs minus fiber), which makes beans a great source of protein.