ShoppGirl

Wow. Amazing way to start your journey!!

I have been weighing everyday and it takes like four of five days to lose a pound but I always go up a pound before I go down two. At first it bothered me but it happens almost every time so now I’m excited to go up one cause I know that means I will be lower the next day.

26 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

From reading your last couple posts, I get the feeling that you have already resigned yourself to take a baking sabbatical, and if that's what is best for you right now, it's all good.

However, I can't resist, and I will though leave you with my FAVOURITE COOKIE RECIPE OF ALL TIME, FOREVER and EVER. No regular flour and easily adapted to use sugar substitute (swerve), I've made both sugar and sugar-free many times and the fam can't tell the difference. #yum

Of course, I realize not everyone loves the taste of almonds/amaretto/marzipan as much as I do, so it may not crank your engine, but just thought I'd share, LOL #superyum

Good luck with everything! ❤️

Dessert : Chewy Amaretti Cookies.pdf

Here's a pic of when I last made them:

Those look delicious!! I love almonds. They may end up being my contribution to our annual cookie day.

I do want to follow this thread as well. I do not have one near me but have a friend that does and hope to make that a trip sometime soon.

2 minutes ago, lizonaplane said:

I've tried almond flour and it really doesn't taste good enough to be worth the calories - it can have as many if not more than the calories of regular baked goods. And the texture is still wrong.

Maybe create a post asking for low carb baking recipes? ? Maybe someone out there is also a baker and has come up with something.

4 minutes ago, lizonaplane said:

I don't worry about fat. It's carbs that are problematic for me, and it's hard to bake without flour and sugar (the substitutes just don't give the right structure/texture).

Have you tried almond flour? I am by no means a baker but I used to watch that show low carb cookworx and the two doctors on there cooked everything low carb and one thing was waffles with almond flour and they weren’t bad. Also they made brownies that were low carb that I liked.

https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/the-low-carb-cookworx-cookbook_mary-dan-eades_michael-r-eades/391039/item/12726915/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw9_mDBhCGARIsAN3PaFO3Xd7qV6NJHtvPE1z4Y_4nYwPVVpgYrwpoJxX9kB9tltWTsD2GKmEaAlV_EALw_wcB#idiq=12726915&edition=4523156

Have you tried any new hobbies. Like taking up a craft. I do crafts to distract myself and make time pass quicker when I am board or anxious.

On 4/19/2021 at 10:02 AM, lizonaplane said:

I think I'm only wondering if I'll miss having baking as a way to cope with sadness and anxiety. I baked a lot after my grandmother died and also during the first six months of the pandemic. I may be able to bake again someday, but for now I just don't feel able to bake and not eat too much of what I bake (during the pandemic I gave away a ton of what I made to my neighbors, but I still ate too much). So, giving away lots of baking supplies is a little sad.

Maybe you can find some new reduced fat recipes and bake them so you can still do what you enjoy. It’s more of a challenge to make it healthy and tasty. Anyone can make fattening stuff taste good.

On 4/18/2021 at 12:26 AM, Sassygirldej said:

The purpose of the liquid diet is to shrink the liver so they can get in there to do what they have to do. If I were in your place, I think I would do it for the week before, just to make sure. My surgeon only requires 1 week of Protein Drinks but at least it's only week. GL

For what it’s worth my surgeon said I did a really good job on my liver shrink diet and I had very minimal pain post op. I like to think it was cause I shrunk it down so small there wasn’t as much to retract and therefore I had less bruising and stuff on my Insides?? Or they didn’t have to pump me full of so much air because the surgeon had room to get in there. I could be wrong but I stuck to it 100% and had minimal pain (just felt like I did a bunch of crunches).

Interesting about Arnold. I realized it was flawed but never knew a specific example.

Six weeks out. So far so good.

On 2/24/2021 at 12:09 PM, kristieshannon said:

I’ve had a Mirena IUD for over 10 years (on my third one). I LOVE it!! No period, and no problems dropping my weight after surgery. I highly recommend it. I’m near menopause age (51) and having no symptoms. My doc recommends me keeping it in until I’m assumed to be past menopause as she states it will prevent me from having most menopause symptoms. Yay for that!

You got me at prevents some menopausal symptoms. Sounds like I may be making a switch from the pill.

Sounds like he didn’t like being around you because it forced him to look at his own choices.

Aside from the mental/emotional work that I am still doing my biggest challenge has been eating slowly/ chewing more. It’s harder than it sounds to train your mind to do it.

32 minutes ago, lizonaplane said:

It's funny, because I don't think of chili as "fancy" because it's a one pot meal and it doesn't involve a lot of chopping. I don't cook anything fancy either.

I didn't cook for about 4 years before the pandemic because I was on the road every week, but during the pandemic I have cooked all the time, so I have tried a lot of new recipes, but this chili I've been making since I was in high school.

I grew up with a mom that was a neurotic clean freak that did not allow me in the kitchen as a teenager because I made too much of a mess then I married a southern guy who liked meat and potatoes so I learned to cook that way. Now I am finally learning what I like and learning how to make it (so I got a little late start in the cooking department). I can follow a recipe though.

2 minutes ago, lizonaplane said:

Well, it's actually super fast to put together since it's all dumping ingredients out of cans. You can buy pre-chopped frozen onions or get them in the produce section, I always use pre-minced jarred garlic, and you can use all frozen veggies, which is what I almost always do.

You can also BUY chili premade at Wendy's, but you asked for a recipe lol!

Yea I like to do it homemade. I was just joking. I don’t cook fancy very often but every now and then I get an urge and like to have a good recipe on hand. I have just been craving Chili for like a week. I think it’s my body knowing I need the Protein (weird how it craves what we need if we listen).

I agree with arabesque. I remember asking a similar question to you and being embarrassed to even type it. Now I talk about my bowel habits as comfortably as talking about the weather. Lol.

I added benefiber (the generic powder at Walmart) and also with dr permission I cut that down a little and instead added two servings of vegetables each day when I was on soft foods.

Now I go every other day and if I don’t I take milk of magnesia and that works in like 30 minutes for me (have only needed that one time). As I can get more Fiber by diet alone I will cut back the supplemental fiber even further.

1. Did you feel the same way? For the most part I feel the same but I am only 30 pounds down so far (6 weeks post op)

2. Are you glad you did it? I am very glad I did it. Wish I had done it sooner

3. Do you have any regrets? Absolutely not. I tried everything and could not do this on my own. Drastic measures are needed at times.

4. What’s one thing you wish someone had told you before you had surgery? I think I was told everything beforehand. I don’t think I realized how much my life would revolve around my surgery and the fact that I had surgery for a short time (getting in fluids and Protein, Constipation and Fiber, etc) but it was all worth it. I am 6 weeks out now and cleared for regular food (within reason) and I am hopeful and excited for the future.

Wow. That’s amazing.

If you are talking about the steri strip you should be okay. I’m surprised they stayed on for two weeks.I did not have any glue though?

I was not instructed to do so either. I am curious why though.

I am wondering if my breakthrough bleeding was less surgery related and more coincidence time wise. It started right after surgery but it has now been six weeks since surgery and I have had it every single day. Should I call dr? Does breakthrough bleeding mean anything if prolonged and continuous?? I cannot possibly be pregnant if that’s the only concern. I know I could Google this but I tend to drive myself crazy when I go that route since every symptom googled is a sign of some cancer or deadly disease. Lol

When I quit it helped me to carry the pack (with the lighter taped across the top to remind me) in my purse with me. It helped me to know that I was in control and I had cigarettes and could have one any second that I wanted to but I chose not to. To this day I still have that unopened pack of stale ass cigarettes in my top drawer to remind me that I never want to start again. Before that I tried to quit and just knowing that if I really started jonesing that I had to go to the store and buy them still would make me panic and want them more. It’s a mind game but it worked for me. Ooh and I used dum dum Lolly pops to occupy my hand and mouth.

23 minutes ago, ChubRub said:

https://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=233278

Can tweak it with different veggies, but basically any veggies take on the chili flavor so you can go crazy with the squash!

That looks good too. Guess I will be having a chili cook off over the weekend. Lol. Thanks.

3 hours ago, lizonaplane said:

Sautee 1 cup chopped onion in 1-2 T oil. Let them soften.

Add finely diced carrots and celery if you like (I don't) and cook until softened. Sometimes I'll add sliced mushrooms here.

Add 3 or more minced cloves garlic and cook 30 second to one minute

Add 1lb ground turkey (or chicken or beef), stirring until no longer pink

Add 2-3 T chili seasoning (I like Penzey's Chili 9000) and 1tsp or more cumin, plus 1-2 T unsweetened cocoa powder, and 1 tsp cinnamon and stir to coat. 1 T of brown sugar is a nice addition but not necessary

Add 1 28 oz can of crushed or diced tomatoes

Add 1 1/2 to 2 cups of broth

Add 1 15 oz can of Beans, rinsed (kidney or black Beans are both great)

I like to add about a cup of frozen corn and a bag of cauliflower rice right from the freezer at this stage, but you can add a lot of different frozen veggies. I love the sweetness of the corn, and the texture.

Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, adjusting seasonings and cook for at least 30 minutes, but it gets better after an hour or so.

Serve with plain Greek yogurt and shredded cheese (and onions if you like).

Ooh wow. That’s fancy chili...lol. That’s what I call anything with more than five ingredients. I will attempt to make it though. Sounds great. I just made a Mexican cauliflower rice bowl recipe with black beans and cauliflower rice that is pretty good.