Hi all,

I'm just starting on my second pre-op plan. My first was in Pennsylvania, where I was five months in to a six month pre-op program. I lost 25 pounds on WW, then got a job in New York. After a year at the new job, the weight is back on, and I'm working on a three month pre-op program -- although, actually, my dr. said yesterday that I can go after I lose 15 pounds.

To do so he says to go cold turkey off of ALL carbs.

Any good recipes out there? I'm especially hard up for good, tasty, low-fat low-carb ways to eat veggies (esp. stuff like squash, which I don't like anyway )

I do not liked cooked veggies at all but a coworker recently told me a way to cook them and i ended up somewhat liking it.

If you cut up broccoli, squash, zucchini, and asparagas into small pieces, cover with a small amount of olive oil and bake them until they are crunchy almost a little bit of black on them.

I think the bunrt taste covers the veggie taste which i like.

this website has some great low carb recipes!

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/index.html

My mother says "No wonder Americans don't eat vegetables look how they cook them!" I prefer to eat my veggies raw. You should follow your doctors orders regarding what veggies to eat. Clearly some are higher in Carbs than others. As long as I don't eat corn or potato I allow myself to eat whatever raw veggies I want. Some of my favorites baby carrots, mini sweet peppers (Come in a bag red, yellow, orange; just wash and eat no cutting!), Snap peas.

Back to my mother. Greeks love to roast veggies in the oven with a small amount of Olive Oil and LOTS of garlic. Available at my grocery are containers of garlic cloves that are already cleaned (super convenient). As long as you don't use too much olive oil it is probably the best fat you can eat. The up side is you don't need to add butter at the table.

This is great time for you to develop a new relationship with food. This is not a diet. This is a way of life. Due to medical condition that needed resolution; I had to wait almost 8 months for surgery. I lost 50 pounds. More important I reevaluated what and why I was eating.

My doctor required 3 sessions with a pychologist who specialised in eating disorders. I highly recommend seeing a therapist. I was NOT happy about the prospect of going to this woman. They turned out to be really really helpful to me.

She did not say "You're over weight you can never have dessert again!" Instead she talked about planning and making conscious decisions about food. She was a very thin woman. She admitted to having an issue with ice cream. Instead of eating low fat/cal ice cream everyday she only eats a child size cone of the full fat variety like once a month.