I was Banded March 8 2007 and I have lost 60 lbs and would l love to lose another 100 to reach my goal of 160lbs, but it has been 4 months and I havent drop as much as an pound. I have 8.5cc in my band and find it differcult to eat in the morning so I tend to be really hungry by mid morning my day starts early... at 5am.I need help with menu planning and how to balance being a single Mother of 3 and being banded and cooking for my children one of which is a teenager and the other two are schoolagersI work 12 hour shifts as a nurse so Im under ALOT of Stress:confused:

Maybe if you gave us an idea of what you are eating now in an average day---what kind of meals you have to prepare---what your kids do for food on your 12 hour shifts---what your options are during your long shifts.......those kind of things, then we can critique and tweak what you are working with.....

Like I know our local hospital has a totally separate cafeteria for personel than for visitors----employees have access to a salad bar, visitors get pre made is it.....so if we had some info into your life on a day to day basis, maybe we could help you help yourself a bit easier!!!

I understand how the first year is so much easier!!! I too lost the biggest majority of my weight in the first year.

Welcome to LBT!

Kat

When Im at work I would have an western omelette sometimes Ill eat oatmeal with raisins and hot tea with milk (thats the Yankee in me) I use Splenda.At home I tend to eat smaller portions of what I feed the kids. generally I dont work weekends and and try to cook a large meal so that the kids well have food when Im at work last week we had Roast pork shoulder with rice and mixed vegtables, the kids love my cornbread...and so do I. We dont eat alot of raw foods mainly due to price and time to get to the market

Wow--your schedule does make things difficult, it is going to be something you might have to adjust as time allows.

I too love cornbread, and can eat it without issue, but it is not exactly low cal---especially when I smother it in butter!!!

You might try some high Protein Snacks to take with you so you don't get soooo hungry at work. I take a cheese stick, and slice it length wise into 2 or 4 pieces, then roll a slice of the thin lunch meat around it. I can drop 3-4 of these in a zip lock, and snack when I want without worrying about them being bad for me....and they will hold me til I can get a good dinner together. Or in your case until your lunch break at work hits. Plus, they don't leave your breath horrid for dealing with your patients!!

Maybe a can of raw almonds somewhere that you could grab a couple of them from time to time if you are starving at work, as well. They are high protein, and will help hold you over.

If you got a few divided plastic childrens plates, you could dish you up small servings of the things you make over the weekend, and since it would be in kids plates, the real kids would know it was yours!!! I have one of Tweety Bird!!! I use it here at home, if I make a full dinner, I fix me a plate to have for lunch the next day, and it keeps me mindful of how much I am eating. I know you wouldn't want to take that to work but for eating when you get home.

Do you eat when you get home, right before going to bed? I can't do that due to reflux, but I understand it is bad for weight gain too.

I notice when I eat oatmeal of any kind, even the weight control kind, I get hungry really quick! I would have thought it would stay with me, but for some reason with me it works the opposite---so you might watch and see if you are reacting the same way.

I know prices are so much higher for healthy foods--seems so backwards!

Walmart is not my favorite place to go, but I like the ability to price match all the different stores in one place. What I do is this....our grocery store ads come in our Wed. newspaper. So Wed. morning, I sit down and look through them, make notes about what is on sale where. Then when I hit Walmart---and I try to do it at an off time so it is not so busy---if it is in an ad at another store, they will Price match it....so I get the sales from several different stores, and only have to go to one. Like I just did this....and the little baby carrots---peeled and ready to eat are on sale at several places, so I will get a couple bags of those, they are good to snack on, and my granddaughter loves them!

Good Luck----you might ask your Dr. if they have a nutritionist you could consult with....they might have some great ideas for you!!!

Kat

If you have trouble eating in the early a.m. Perhaps you could have a glass of a high Protein, low carb drink ( like Isopure clear). That might help your hunger level until mid morning so you can eat (but not overeat) when you have your b'fast later.

One glass or 1/2 bottle is only 80 calories and 20 gms of protein.

Pork and beef are higher in calories ( and fat) per oz than chicken. Are you eating the rice that you made for the kids? If yes, did you measure your portion? I find it's easy to underestimate the amount and calories, if I don't measure and weigh.

Try eliminating the carbs, they will only make you crave more.

Remember as you lose weight, it takes fewer calories each day to maintain that weight and even less to continue to lose.