Hi! I was just wondering what everyone was eating. Are you sticking to a lo carb diet or do you just eat anything you want as long as you eat just a little?

I do try to stick to low carb, but I find the protein hard to get down. I do know people who eat anything they want in limited portions and have done great with it. I will try to keep the protein going as long as I can, but I'm not finding it really easy.

I did not find that I could eat whatever I wanted in just smaller portions. I think it is VERY important to CHANGE your eating behavior. Very little of the food that I eat today is what I ate 9 months ago. Yes you will lose weight just by keeping smaller portions, but unless you were eating HUGE portions of very healthy meals, you probably are eating foods that are unhealthy and full of calories. My doc told me that you could lose 25-30 pounds alone by just cutting down on the portions...but if you wanted more...you HAVE to change your lifestyle. One of the greatest things that I did was to take my old recipes (I love to cook!) and turn them into something healthy. That way I could still eat what tasted good, but in a different manner.

1. Substitute White cannelini Beans for Pasta or rice (good way to get Protein and cut calories)

2. Use fat free evaporated milk instead of cream

3. Eliminate butter and oil in cooking...believe me you really can't taste it

4. Use lowfat or FF cheeses (6 pounds under goal and I still do this because I can't taste the difference)

5. Eliminate untasted foods (In other words...if you eat something and you close your eyes and you can't taste it... you don't need it. I learned this from Subway...I would just order the veggie sub because you couldnt' taste the cheese and meat)

6. Substitute ground chicken/turkey for hamburger. Last night was the first night in months that I have had hamburger...and it wasn't that great. I grind my own chicken in my Kitchen Aid grinder. Also this makes chicken easier to get down.

If chicken is tough to get down smother it in a spaghetti sauce, or use dark meat. Beef is tough for a lot of people. Other "hidden" Proteins include tofu (add silken to Soups and you cant taste it), beans, quinoa. I stay away from Protein drinks because they are full of calories and don't keep me full. I used Pure Protein Bars (got them at wal-mart) to supplement if I needed to.

As for the low carb, I did stay fairly low carb but did not eliminate ANYTHING from my food except rice because even completely unfilled I still can't do it. I would just eat the carbs in moderation. 1/4 serving of pasta or 1/2 piece of bread. I was an Atkins girl to the core so giving up that stuff was never a problem for me!

Hope some of these ideas helped

I am staying fairly low carb...but I can sometimes eat a pretzel or cracker and so I eat it and enjoy it...but I have one or two vs days of old when I had two or three handfuls.

Rain

I eat whatever I wanna eat most the time. I can't eat much of anything, so I may as well enjoy it! I avoid bread/rolls, they fill me up too quick then let me down and make me hungry, or get stuck.. And I avoid fast food, which goes to chewing a lot, most fast food is pretty gross if you have to chew on it a lot.

Whatever I want in smaller portions - but I'll qualify that by saying if I want cake every day I dont allow myself that. I dont find wanting too much rubbish food a problem though. Many days I"ll have a glass of wine. And I hate McDonalds and greasy fast foods like that and always did to a degree.

But I eat carbs etc, I dont do any *diet*

Hi Boobar:

Since my lap band surgery (Feb. 26th) I have modified my diet by

eating lots of Protein (73 gr. a day). I eat about two tablespoons

of stewed veggies(lightly salted w/sea salt and 1 tsp. promise).

I pressure cook my meats. These are boneless chicken breasts,

rump roast, lean boneless butterfly pork chops. I use Mrs. Dash

for seasoning and 2 tsp.(sea salt only). I also add minced

garlic 1 tbs. to my meats before cooking. Also light salt Kikomann's

soy sauce (about 4 shakes) This adds lots of flavor.

I usually get grilled or broiled fish when eating out.

I used to weigh my food portions, but as you get into the 2nd

month you begin to eye your portions. You can use your palm size

to measure, and put on a small salad plate size. I do not eat breads

of any kind. Maybe a cracker or corn chip sometimes. No sugar

of any kind, it only causes you to crave more! I have done well

eating out. I have the carry-out container brought with my meal

and I dip most of it out first(except for about 1/3 the meat and

three spoons of the veggies).

I will have two more meals from that. It saves money that way!

The most difficult to do is drinking with my meal. I used to drink

before, during and after. Now, I just get a childs' to-go cup.

I drink some small sips when I get home-within 1 hr. of when

I had my meal. You just learn to drink in between meal times.

With my exercising, it isn't a problem to drink my Water amounts.

So far I have lost 39 lbs. I look forward to buying new clothes

soon! My husband really likes the new me!!

Hope this helps!

Judie

I basically eat the same things as I did before surgery but am much more particular because of the small amounts. It is really important to eat highly nutritious foods because you are eating so little. I concentrate mostly on protein because it is so important nutritionally. I do eat vegetables and fruits, which are carbs, but I don't eat much rice or potatoes or white bread. By the way, I notice a lot of people on here who are having trouble eating chicken and other proteins. It shouldn't be that way. If you are too tight to eat chicken you might be too tight. I will also admit here that I often have a bite or two of dessert. I had a little piece of cappuccino fudge cake after my mother's day dinner and it was delicious and I was down 1/2 pound the next morning anyway! It is hard to not lose weight with such small portions. I think the main issue is getting the vitamins our bodies need.

Mostly what I eat is lean meats and fruits/veggies. That fills me up without needing to add in a lot of filler foods like bread, rice or potatoes. (and no, this is not even remotely low carb)

Notice that "mostly". Because it's OK to have some of the other stuff; just watch the calorie & nutrient intake to make sure you're giving your body what it needs. It's OK to have a bite or two of dessert once in awhile, or an alcoholic drink... it's just a matter of planning to incorporate it and not making those sorts of things a big portion of your daily diet.

Thanks for posting everyone...This is very helpful as I approach my Band Day!!!