Monday, January 30, 2012

Finding Lighter Options My Way

I'm not a big fan of the low fat, low calorie diet. I'm actually a huge believer in the Low Carb/High Fat diet. In fact I'm such a huge supporter of it that I get fired up when I hear ignorant people say things like "Atkins wants you to eat bacon instead of vegetables."

Not true, my friends. Dr Atkins says to stay far away from bacon because it contains so many nitrates. Thank you very much. It seems as though any person who has something bad to say about the atkins lifestyle, has never read the book. So annoying. (keep reading, I'll stop ranting:)

So to give you a basic rundown of what the atkins lifestyle is. You eat real foods including all types of low carb protein, healthy fats (absolutely no trans fats) and lots of vegetables. After the first two weeks you start incorporating fruits, berries and nuts slowly back into your diet.

When the low fat/no fat craze took over our country, we all got pretty fat right? Right. That's because fat provides a lot of flavor to our foods. When they take fat out of our food they replace it with sugar to make it taste decent at best. Don't believe me? Next time your in the dairy section compare fat free, low fat, and full fat sour cream or anything in the store for that matter. The fat content goes down, and the carb/sugar content goes up. Can we all agree that fat free foods taste like shit and basically make you yearn for the day you can eat something real? I know that's how I feel about it.

Now, I put a lot of faith in the brains at Duke Medicine, and I've been instructed to limit my calories to around 800 a day. The band helps me control my portions but I still need to make the proper food choices.  However, I refuse to go against my beliefs. I am determined to eat real food. I refuse to eat food that is pumped with sugar just to lower my caloric intake. It's just going to take some practice.

Tonight I sauteed some mushrooms to go with dinner. Trust me when I say these mushrooms are bangin.  Per usual, I heated olive oil in a pan, added mushrooms, and then added some more oil. I don't know exactly how much oil I put in but I guessed about 3 tablespoons for tracking purposes. Well, guess how many calories 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil has! almost 400 calories!!! That added a whopping 200 calories to our dinner tonight! 4 oz of Turkey burgers were only 180 calories! Needless to say, next time I'll use less olive oil, or maybe consider using chicken broth. 

When I eat burgers I normally mix up a little mayo and mustard and use that as a condiment. Well there are 100 calories in that little mix. Yesterday I used 2 tablespoons of a bottled honey mustard sauce with my lunch. That one was 200 calories! Holy Hell!  Well, worcestshire Sauce mixed with Dijon Mustard has about 15 calories. Good swap, no sugary low fat dressing needed.

So I'm on a mission to find little ways to eat natural, real foods, while also limiting my calories. If anyone out there has any suggestions of lower calorie food choices that have not been altered to become fat free please share!! And don't knock the atkins diet unless you've read the book. Ha!

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Today's Menu

I really like when other bloggers post what they ate in a day. They always give me good ideas of what to make and what the portion sizes should look like. I figured I'd jump on the bandwagon and share what we've eaten today as well.

Breakfast: 1 chocolate sugar free jello pudding cup blended with 1 cup of water and a scoop of chocolate peanut butter protein powder. Sorry no photo!

Lunch: 2 turkey sliders with Spinach Salad and 2 sliced grape tomatoes. I used Sweet Baby Ray's honey mustard to dip the sliders in and when I went to record what I ate, the honey mustard had more calories than almost the entire plate! What a waste!

Snack: These are not for everybody, but I'm obsessed! The whole package is 60 calories and less than an ounce.


Dinner: MS asked for Shrimp and Grits so that's what we had. Marinated jumbo shrimp in lime juice, olive oil, chili powder, garlic and splenda. And mixed in some cheese into the grits.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

4 Day Post Fill Update

I think I'm doing pretty well with this fill. I definitely ate more yesterday.. Around 700 calories and felt a lot better this morning. So the other day was Probably just a fluke!

The exciting news is that the numbers on the scale just keep dropping! I AM a half a pound away from -40!!!! Holy crap!!!

We had a great workout at the y today. Monday marks 6 weeks for us, which also means we are free to start working our core muscles!! Can't wait to tighten up this flabby belly!

I'm headed out for the night for one of my girlfriend's 30th birthday. We're going to the the melting pot. Even though it's a huge waste of money for me right now I know it will be fun and the small pieces of food that need a few minutes to cook will make it easy for me to eat slow! Can't wait to put on my sequins and lots of makeup!!

update: Wanted to let anyone who was wondering how the melting pot went. I definitely ate more tonight than I have in a long time. I skipped lunch to prepare. MP is seriously the best place to eat out because of the slow pace. We were there from 6:30 - 9:30 so there was lots of time for everything to go down easily. Even though everything was bite size, I cut each piece into at least 4 before eating it. Of course the chewing was my main focus and I never felt uncomfortable until the dessert. At that point nothing had given me trouble so I was probably overzealous and ate dessert too fast. I'm going to try my best to track everything I ate. I set a limit of 3 pieces of any given item I figured that would help control portions and help me track it later.

I'm going to need a detox tomorrow and 2 really good workouts!!

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Eating After Restriction

Woah. Bring on the weight loss.

This is what I've eaten today and I don't think anything else is going to make it down besides some more water.


Spinach and Blueberry Smoothie w/ Designer Whey Protein

2 servings of Pretzel Thins w/ approx 2 tablespoons Chipotle Hummus

1 cup of hood countdown Chocolate Milk

Water

That's it. I'm serious.




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My Super Secret Hummus Recipe

I was going to keep this recipe a secret because I've never done that before. But what fun is having a recipe that no one else gets to try. Last year I started making my own hummus and people always go crazy over it. A few weeks ago one of my co-workers said, "Oh your hummus is legendary." The funny thing was she had never even had it before!

I prefer it to the pre-made stuff because it actually goes bad. You can buy a package of hummus at any store and throw it in your fridge for months and it never gets moldy. After 2 to 3 days, my homemade hummus gets great big fluffy green mold all over it.

Don't get me wrong I'm not a mold enthusiast, I'm allergic to the stuff. But when I saw that I kept thinking what the hell are we eating? How in the heck does hummus that has been made, packaged, shipped around the country, stocked on shelves and then purchased days later not get moldy after a month in my fridge? If cancer is literally cells that are supposed to die off but don't ... then maybe the chemical preservatives in our food have something to do with that.

Anyways, I digress. Here's the recipe, I made it up on a whim and it is CRAZY good. It packs some heat, so if spicy food bothers you sit this one out.

1 can chick peas (reserve juice from can)
3 cloves garlic Juice from 1 lemon
2 heaping tablespoons Tahini
About 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Parsley -or any mix of green spices you have on hand
(Everything above this line is my base recipe you can stop here and skip to the directions if you'd like)
2 tablespoons of adobo sauce from a can of chipotle peppers
Cumin
Dried Cilantro
2 teaspoons of dark brown sugar

Start by spooning the chick peas and some liquid from the can into the food processor. You'll end up with a little less than 1/2 a can of juice left over. Set the can and remaining juice to the side, you'll need that for texture later. Pile the rest in the food processor. Throw the lid on and let it process for quite a while until it looks smooth. If the texture is too thick add more juice or olive oil until you get a nice smooth consistency. Taste it right away to see if there is anything missing and add spices as you see fit. You can eat it right away, but it's so much better if you cover and refrigerate for a few hours before serving.

Blueberry-Spinach Protein Shake

I have been dying to try a shake with some fresh spinach in it because quite frankly I haven't had very many greens lately. When you're eating such a small amount it's hard to fit it all in. And quite frankly, my intestines are screaming for a little extra fiber if you know what I mean. So,try this, it's delicious.
1 oz of baby spinach
1 oz of blueberries (I used fresh, but read my notes below, frozen may be better)
1 cup of your favorite % milk
2 scoops of Vanilla Protein Powder
2 packets of splenda Blend until smooth.

I didn't have enough room in my little blender cup to put ice in this one, but I definitely wanted it colder. I put my fresh blueberries in the freezer to help with that and making milk ice cubes might even been another good option. Either way this was super delicious and had 45 grams of protein!

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Holy Smokes!

MyFitnessPal - Free Weight Loss Tools

That's right my friends!! Maybe my little episode yesterday burned some serious calories, or maybe this liquid diet helped me to shed some extra water! Either way, I weighed myself this morning 3 times and every time it said I was down THIRTY SEVEN LBS!! YEEHAW!! Bring it 40!!

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Filled - With Drama

We had our first fills today and man do I have a doozie of a story for you! HA! Good news is that I'm sitting here laughing as I type this, so everything is A-Ok.

My appointment was set for 1:20 today and MS had an appointment for 2:30 so we just missed each other at Dr. Yoo's office.

But let me back up even further than that... This morning I had a delicious ProtiZyme Chocolate Cake shake for breakfast but I got hungry around 10:30. Since I wasn't sure how I was going to do today with the fill I just went ahead and ate some tuna salad and crackers figuring it would be better to eat earlier. Note to self: don't do that again.

I headed to my appointment at 1:00 I wasn't nervous. I showed up on time and everyone is so nice in the office I just chatted with them for a bit. When I went into the room I talked with the doctor's for a bit and we got started. She told me that it was much easier to do the fill standing, so I stood there and watched as she located the band and then she stuck in the needle.

That was a different feeling. Not bad, just much different than any other stick I've ever had. She talked to me the whole time explaining as she was going. She emptied the band to check how much was in it, and then she told me she was going to fill it all the way up so I could feel the sensation of being completely full. That's when things got dramatic.

As she filled that thing up I started getting light headed. She was talking, but I put my hand on her wrist and said, "I'm going to pass out."  She said, "you're getting pale" and I said, "I'm going."

I blacked out for a few seconds while I was standing up but kind of came back when I could hear her saying go ahead and sit back.  I never fell over or anything they were able to hold me until i could sit down. They had me lay back and they put my feet up which was nice and I couldn't help but laugh. I apologized and felt so stupid. I was laying there with my shirt just covering my bra sweating like a pig and there was a big ass needle sticking out of my stomach. What a mess.

I asked what might have caused it and she said it could have been anything but it does happen sometimes.  She said, "the good news is, we didn't lose the needle and by the way it's poking out I can tell it's still in the port!"

We waited a bit and then I sat up so we could finish. Honestly, while she was adjusting me, it took everything I had not to pass out again. It was so funny because she said, "Do you want me to explain as I go, or do you just want me to do it?" I of course wanted her to explain. But as soon as she started talking I started getting sweaty again and I literally thought, "SHUT THE F#$(K UP AND FINISH" HA! I can't stop laughing about that! It was very cool watching the fluroscope and seeing how the band works. I focused on that screen so hard because I needed for it to be over.

She finished up and had me lie down longer and gave me a script for anti anxiety medication to take before my fills and she also told me to eat something closer to the time of the appointment.

Before I left, we all agreed that I shouldn't tell MS what happened until after his fill so that he wouldn't get extra nervous.  As I was leaving, he called me to see how it went. He was literally pulling into the parking lot just a few minutes after I had left. It was so hard not to tell him. He told me he was really nervous which made me die inside. I kind of squeaked out, "Don't be! It's not bad!"

 He was asking me questions about it and I was trying to act super cool and tried to give him a brief overview. I kept wanting to say, "I don't even remember, I passed out!" But I kept my cool.

Right after I got back to work I got a text message from MS that said, "They said we did the same thing so don't feel bad."

What are the chances of that?! We compared our stories, while they weren't exactly the same, both of our episodes were triggered by the band being filled all the way up. It made me actually black out, and it made MS feel like he was going to throw up.

He told her he felt like he was going to throw up when she filled him up. She removed fluid from his a few times and just as she got it right, he felt like he was going to pass out. She took the needle out and had him lay down. So he never really passed out, but he came close. He was given the same script and sat around the office for a bit just like I did.

MS is on liquids for 48 hours because she gave him a "very big fill". I am on liquids for the rest of the evening and possibly just mushy food for tomorrow. I'll probably eat something mushy at work  and then stick with liquids with MS.

What a dramatic day! I have a headache from the whole ordeal, but other than that we both feel fine. We're both a little hungry right now so we're going to make some shakes and call it an evening! Can you believe that whole ordeal? How dramatic!

In other huge news... MS has lost 48 lbs and I am up to 34!!!! YYAAAYYY!!!

Monday, January 23, 2012

Bunny Hill

Hi loves. I hope everyone had a great weekend! I've reached an interesting point in my lapband journey that I wanted to put out there. This is a big point for me, in fact it is why I decided to move forward with this surgery.

In my life I have lost a lot of weight. I'm talking a lot. From the time I was young up until this point in my life. Gaining it all back is a lot more fun than losing it, but for obvious reasons it is no longer an option for me.

Normally, I will put everything I have into a diet and/or exercise plan for a month or two. I'll feel awesome, I'll lose 30 or so pounds. And then I start slipping back. Slowly at first. Just a snack here or there. And then full out binge parties. I don't know why. I'm a healthy, well adjusted person. Why the hell do I do that?

There was only 1 time that I was able to lose more than 30 lbs and that was right before I met MS. I was so dedicated to the Atkins Diet and working out. Dating sucked, I was sick of being fat. I couldn't stand my roommate and I just needed a change. That really felt good. I felt like I was going to do it for real that time. MS even joined me a few months into our relationship. He lost a ton of weight as well. But then it just slowly crept back in. Lots of eating out, lots of cooking, lots of love.

So at this point in time, I have lost 33 lbs. I'm feeling good. But I can feel the old ways sneaking back. A little snack here and little extra here. I'll count out a portion and have an extra few pieces. I find myself tasting a little more as I cook. Obviously this time it's not as severe as it has been in the past. Through all of this, my caloric intake hasn't gone much over 1,000-1,200 calories in a day, but the behavior is there.

This fill that is scheduled on Tuesday is going to be a big milestone for me mentally. I need this help to push past these 33 lbs. When I get past 40 I'm really going to celebrate. It will literally be the first time in my life that I am able to defeat my own worst enemy.

These 33 lbs were just a little bunny hill. I've got a long ways to go and I need all the help I can get. In just less than 4 weeks we're going to Florida with my sister I would like to be past that 40lb mark by then! Cross your fingers for me :)

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Dinner Party Challenge

A few weeks ago one of my co-workers that I hadn't shared my surgery news with invited MS and I to a dinner party. I was a little stressed about it so I ended up just telling her about the surgery and let her know we wouldn't really be able to eat a lot.

I brought the appetizers. Since I didn't know the menu, I brought a homeade hummus trio so MS and I would have a good protein option no matter what.

When we arrived everyone dug into the hummus. My friend started roasting some veggies for dinner and her husband got up to start grilling steaks. Yep that's right we were having steak. OMG. Steak. The one of only a few foods that everyone says bandsters can never eat again. MS and I shot eachother holy-shit glances but we kept calm.

I got up to ask my friend if she needed help and saw she was seasoning a pan full of asparagus. ASPARAGUS? There's the other food that our dietician told us we'd never eat again. Panic set in. It wasn't about me not being able to eat, it was about manners.  I didn't want to seem rude and say, Oh shoot, we can't eat either of those things, do you have anything else? But, crap! I didn't want either of us to get stuck for the first time either! I didn't say anything, I just mentally noted the location of the bathroom and planned my escape route in case something went wrong.

Our lovely hostess did cut a couple of the steaks in half and just let everyone help themselves to the food. That was nice because we only had to take what we could eat. MS and I grabbed the smallest pieces there were and had a couple of potatoes. Neither of us touched the asparagus. The good news is, our bands are truly wide open. I was only able to eat about 1/2 of my piece of steak, I chewed the HELL out of that thing. The meat was well done, so both of us grabbed some of the hummus and made sure we put a little on each piece to give it a little moisture.

Neither of us had an issue, thank goodness. Today I'm feeling extra full. It's almost 11:30 and I really don't feel like eating anything. I'm not sick, I just feel very bloated and I don't even want to drink much. Phew. Chalk another one up for the good guys. But I think we both know that if we try that again it's probably not going to work out so well!


Friday, January 20, 2012

ProtiZyme Protein Review

I've mentioned MyBariatricPantry.com before because they have really great prices on protein and I am really impressed with fast shipping and rewards program.

It's hard to commit to a 2 lb container of protein powder if you've never tasted it. The sample packs are right up my alley because I can have a variety of flavors and if I don't really like one I'm not out very much.

Last week they had a sale on sample packs and I was able to try another really great tasting protein powder. I was intrigued by this one because it is specially formulated for bariatric patients. Check out the description from the website:

Specialized Designed Protein Protizyme from Metabolic Nutrition is a premium pharmaceutical grade engineered protein that is ideal for pre and post bariatric patients.
It is designed to increase protein absorption and that is a very important feature to bariatric patients. In scientific terms, the secret lies within the unique manufacturing process of Protizyme, which differentiates from all other regular proteins in the marketplace. Protizymes 10x ultra-microfiltered process preserves the essential protein-peptide structure which delivers greater concentrations of amino acids, glutamine and BCAAs. Each gram of protein in Protizyme is coated with only the most potent digestive enzymes dramatically increasing digestion and absorption, therefore eliminating gas and bloating. What does this mean to you? It means you can absorb more protein per meal. More protein absorption means increased protein synthesis, thus faster results than other regular proteins!"
 
 
The peanut butter cookie powder mixed with  8 oz of skim milk and some ice made a killer breakfast! Definitely a must try!!
 

Mission Act Normal - Accomplished

Today is completely opposite of yesterday. I feel good, I'm not dealing with a bunch of head hunger today. If you've been reading my blog for a while you might remember that I mentioned a co-worker  who is the slowest eater on the planet. Well he was in town today and we all went out to lunch with him. So I actually went out to a real restaurant with a few people who have no idea that I had surgery. I think that I have prepared myself enough for these situations and I think I did pretty well.

At first I ordered a burger off of the kids menu. I was going to eat half the burger w/ no bun and eat a fry or two and be done. But then I heard someone order chili and thought that sounded even better. So I ordered  half grilled cheese and cup of chili.

I started by eating the meat and beans from the chili so I had enough protein. I probably ate 1/4 of that. Then I ate 1/4 of the grilled cheese sandwich. Man I've been really wanting some bread lately and it was really good.

I was really focused on chewing because obviously I was with a bunch of people who don't know about the band. Plus it was a huge risk trying bread for the first time. The last thing I needed was to get stuck for the first time too. The good news is that when I was almost done eating I looked around the table and my slow-eating-coworker and I were the only two still eating. YAY! I ate that tiny amount and chewed so much that I didn't even realize how slow I was going.

It probably seems dumb, but I feel like today was such a win for me. I stayed within my limits of how much food I can eat. I satisfied my want to try bread and I blended in with everyone else. No one was prodding me or questioning why I was eating so little.

On another note, MS emailed me today and told me that he's up to -45 lbs.! WOOHOO! If I could only have his metabolism for 1 week.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

It's All in My Head

AHHHHH!!! HEAD HUNGER!!!! I am definitely getting hungrier as the days go on, but being a lifelong overeater I distinctly know the difference between being hungry and wanting to eat.

I do webcasts for a living . After my 11:30 webcast this morning I ripped open a chicken salad kit and didn't even take it to the kitchen to drain the can of chicken. I was starving. I chewed very well, but I literally ate that thing in about 5 minutes. There were no issues with it going down whatsoever.

That filled me up nicely and after I ate, I ran to the store to pick up a few items. Now that I'm back at my desk my head hunger is out of control! Thank God I don't have any snacks in my office because I would probably be ripping through them right now.

What in the world? Why do I feel like this? I feel like an animal or something. I feel like the strong sensible part of me is sitting here shaking my head a myself while holding back the wild child inside me that's screaming, "I WANT SOMETHING TO EAT" Wierd. Be stong sensible one, be strong.

It's definitely time for an adjustment!

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Do Yourself a Favor

People - This whole meatless thing is blowing my mind. WTF!? Tonight we had Meatless Buffalo Wings. I mean, they didn't taste like chicken wings, but they were a great tasting soft protein and the calories are ridiculous.
The normal serving size is 4 wings, but I was craving some broccoli so I only had three wings.

Look at the calories & Protein!


These meatless products are definitely making it into our weekly rotation. This is the brand we had tonight. The website shows quite a few different varieties.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Overall Great Day

Thanks for all the sweet comments! Today turned out to be pretty great. I have officially lost 33 lbs and MS has lost 41 lbs!!

We are very excited. We were given a little more freedom as far as exercise goes .. we can't lift heavy weights quite yet and we can't do ab work outs for another 2 weeks to give the stitches on the port a few more weeks to heal. We can get in the pool and do some swimming because our incisions are healed up nicely. I can't wait to possibly swim some laps for some serious calorie burning!

I talked to the PA that works with our surgeon about the possibility of an adjustment and she really eased a lot of my fears.

She said that as we lose weight, just like a belt we would wear on our pants, the "belt" on our stomach also gets looser. So the adjustment is just to keep me at the same restriction, not necessarily restricting me even more.  She also explained why some people feel tightness after sleeping and some other activities. She said that the saline is constantly traveling around the band and in the catheter (that connects the port to the band) So when you sleep, the saline may settle in the band and it feels tight until eventually that fluid starts to move back around. So I'm feeling better and we are scheduled for our first fill next Tuesday!

We also went to our first support group tonight. Honestly, I feel like all of my readers/fellow band bloggers are more of a support group for me. It was good, we'll go to a few more. During the meeting I kept thinking about how much other blogs have helped me. I really look forward to reading comments that people leave for me and love returning the favor on other blogs. It's such a cool community and I just didn't get that at the support group tonight.

So, thank you for comments and prayers today. It really helped! I'm really feeling blessed all around :) To celebrate our success tomorrow, I'll be wearing a shirt in 1 size smaller than I wore today! YAY!

Monday, January 16, 2012

Big Day Anxiety

Today is our 4 week bandiversary and tomorrow morning we go back to the surgeon for our first post op appointment. I'm pretty anxious! First off, we are both pretty sure that our scale is off in a good way. The cool thing is that tomorrow we'll be weighing in on the scale that our official starting weight was recorded with so this will be the most accurate number to date! Can't wait!

I am excited to report back tomorrow with the results but I'm really worried about the idea of a fill. I feel so good and I'm not having a problem eating anything but am still eating anywhere from 600 to 1,000 calories a day.

I'm scared of things getting stuck and being miserable.  On that same note I don't want to get to a point where I stop losing weight. We have a trip to Disney planned a month from tomorrow as well, and I worry about being uncomfortable or miserable on that trip. I am seriously more nervous about this fill than I was about getting the actual surgery.

I guess I'll just have to talk it out and ask lots of questions tomorrow. Ugh! Say a prayer for me I need some peace of mind tonight <3

I'll report back as soon as I can after my appointment tomorrow!

Saturday, January 14, 2012

My New Zen

I'll never forget an appointment we had with Dr. Yoo about a year ago. It was our first consultation with him. As we were getting up and walking out of the consultation room, he said something like, "Yeah if food is a number 1 priority in your life, this surgery is probably not for you." That was an eye opener. That statement really stuck with me all this time because food has always been a big part of my life. I told you, I'm Italian. Food is like the epicenter of life for Italians.
Well now things are a little different. Although I love cooking and eating. There's just a lot more time to do other things now. Lately to reward myself after a hard workout, I've been lighting candles in our guest bathroom and taking long hot showers. It's my new zen and it feels good. So instead of rewarding myself with ice cream or a fancy dinner, I think I'll buy myself a nice new candle or a overpriced bath goodie just for this little reward.  

Friday, January 13, 2012

Chicken Stack and 2 Types of Chicken Salad

 Tonight I picked up a rotisserie chicken at the store and premade 4 different meals with it 6.5 total servings!  (I use my foodsaver like it's going out of style. The cool thing is we have plenty of pre-portioned meals for lunches or quick dinners)

I learned how to throw together tomato sauce from my beautiful Italian mother. She used to start with tomato paste and go from there but when they came out with Ragu Robusto sauce, she would start with that as the base and add all the goodness. I love making my version of that sauce, but I'm just not there yet. I can't make it first, because it makes WAY too much sauce, but that's one thing I like to taste and taste and taste as I make it. Not worth it right now.

Well, recently I found this little jar of Wolfgang Puck Vodka Sauce that is really wonderful. It comes in a smaller bottle and I still doctor it up with garlic, onion, mushrooms, and a bunch of seasonings. But I have to admit, there is nothing wrong with that sauce right out of the bottle.

Tonight i just threw a plate on the foodscale and stacked the following on it:

2 oz of shredded rotisserie chicken
2 oz of vodka sauce - warmed up with a couple of chopped mushrooms and garlic
Topped with freshly grated Parmesan cheese
(spend the 5 bucks on a big hunk of parm, keep it wrapped tightly in your fridge - it's so worth it)

I pulled the rest of the chicken and divided it up. I didn't want the chicken to dry out too much, so I decided to dress it up a bit. Here are 2 different chicken salad recipes that I came up with:

Mexican Chicken Salad:
4 oz shredded Chicken
2 tablespoons of plain Greek Yogurt
Tablespoon of Taco Seasoning (more to taste)

Mix up the yogurt and taco seasoning to make a paste and mix with chicken until coated.
Tomorrow, I plan on serving 2 oz of this salad with cubed avocado and some of my favorite tamed jalapenos. Maybe even a touch of salsa.

Black Bean & Corn Salsa Chicken Salad:
2 heaping tablespoons of Black Bean & Corn Salsa
1 tablespoon of plain Greek Yogurt
Dash of Chili Powder
2 oz of rotisserie Chicken

Mix the salsa, yogurt and seasoning, pour over chunks of chicken and lightly toss (I just put the lid on the container and shook it up) This is what is pictured. 1.5oz of avocado, 2 oz of chicken and just a touch of sour cream, cheese and jalapenos





Almost to -30!!

Hi Friends! I have fab news. I finally broke my 1-2 lb teeter-totter this morning and I'm down 29 lbs!!!

I need to lose 1 more lb before I go back to the doctor on Tuesday for my first follow up.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Crab Cakes!

Gullah Gourmet is this wonderful little place that I found through Groupon. If you've ever been to Charleston South Carolina, you've probably seen their products. They make all kinds of low country food mixes and package them in the sweetest hand sewn cotton bags. Everything we have purchased there and fixed has been delicious.

Tonight I used the He Crab Cake mix to make dinner. Normally I would have also made their She crab soup and served them together, but given our current condition.. ha!

I know you're probably thinking that this doesn't sound like diet food, but I actually doubled the crab meat and portioned each cake out into 2 oz servings. 2 crab cakes made a perfect 4 oz serving and had 23 grams of protein!

Full Can of Chicken of the Sea Crab Claw Meat (16oz)
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons Fage 2% greek yogurt
1 packages of Gullah Gourmet He Crab Cake Mix (or whatever mix you want)

gently fold all of the ingredients together, and make small cakes that are 2 oz a piece. (use a 2 oz cookie scoop, or 1/4 cup measuring cup)  form into patties and brown in a pan or bake in the oven.

I made a remoulade sauce and used greek yogurt as the base instead of mayo. It was a perfect compliment. I honestly can't even remember what i put in it or else I'd list that too!

Here's the link to Gullah Gourmet: http://www.gullahgourmet.com/



Syntrax Nectar Roadside Lemonade

I'm still working my way through those delicious Nectar protein packets! Today I mixed Roadside Lemonade with 2% Milk and ice.

It was so delicious. If you are a lemon dessert type of person like me, this protein powder is so good.


So far out of all the flavors I've tried, I would buy a 2lb jar of Roadside Lemonade and Chocolate Truffle.

Tomorrow's breakfast is Vanilla Bean Torte. Omg. I can't wait. :)

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

I Thought They Were Nice @ the YMCA?!

Please let me vent about my morning.

Like I mentioned in recent posts, every Monday and Wednesday I meet up with a couple of my co-workers at the  Y MCA to work out at 6:30 am. Today is only the second time we've met.

On Monday morning I asked the sweet lady at the front desk where I can get a towel for the shower. She handed me a towel and I worked out, showered and went to work. The towel she did give me was a bit small. But I know it's not the Holiday Inn so whatever.

So this morning, 2 days later, I contemplated bringing my own towel, but decided against it because I didn't want to have a wet towel with me all day. I walked into the Y first thing this morning and was greeted with a scowl from the front desk attendant. I smiled and said hello and handed her my card. She just grunted at me and gave it back. I said, "is there any way I could have two of the shower towels today? They are a little small."

She stared at me blankly and said "We don't have shower towels at this YMCA, you can take as many hand towels as you want"

So I said, "Oh they were hand towels! No wonder it was so small"  (FYI the towel I had on Monday was not a hand towel. I'm 30 years old. I know the difference between a bath towel and a hand towel)

I proceeded around the counter to grab 2 hand towels only to find WASHCLOTHS!

So I said, "Wait, two days ago the lady gave me a bigger towel."

Of course she was saying something rude back, but I couldn't hear her over my rage. So I said, " I'm going to work after this, I have to take a shower, you don't have ANY other towels?"

She said no and I just grabbed to washcloths and started walking to the locker room. I got at least 30 steps from the front desk and the lady yells "MAAAAAAAA'AAAAMM!"

So I turned around and just like she was chastizing a child, she says "WE HAVE THOSE TOWELS BUT THEY ARE FOR EEEE -MMMEERR-GENNN-CIIIESSS"

Oh no she didn't.

I just stood there staring at her for a 5 seconds and then I turned and walked to the locker room. I'm so glad I woke up at 5:30 for this bullshit.

I got on the treadmill and started thumping away. Of course my co-worker and anyone with in a 10 foot vicinity heard that story. I was FUMING.

So we started talking about what I should do and he reminded me about a Wal Mart that is close to work. Luckily we do have a janky little gym in our office building with a locker room/showers that are quite nice.  That's what I was going to have to do.

On my way out I returned my Key to the lady, she politely said, "I'm sorry for the misunderstanding" At that moment no words came from my mouth. I wish I could have said, "I'm not upset about your towel policy, I'm upset about your mouth. And in my world. THIS IS an emergency. Because you have towels big enough for me to use right behind that desk, but because you're such a BITCH i have to stop at Wal Mart and BUY myself a towel."

Maybe I don't have a backbone, or maybe my guardian angel seals my lips shut when I want to say something that horrible.

So the rest is history! I had to go buy myself a towel at wal mart, go shower at work and was 20 minutes late for work. I had a wet towel hanging in my office all day.

What the heck is wrong with people? This is the kind of crap that happens in every retail store these days. Do you think that lady was going to get in trouble for giving me a towel? Don't you think she could have said, look we don't normally do this, here's one for today but bring your own next time. Do you think her boss was going to reprimand her for that? UGH!

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Trader Faux Nachos

I'm very excited that we were able to add some crunch to our diets with some crackers this week. Tonight I had a delicious dinner that had 330 calories and 12 grams of protein and it replaced an old junk food favorite.

I threw a paper plate on my food scale and added the following ingredients

1 serving of Trader Joes Savory Thin Mini Crackers (about 34 crackers - next time I'll do half a serving)
2 slices of Sargento Colby Pepper Jack Cheese
5-6 Merzetta Tamed Jalapenos
1 oz of sour cream (greek yogurt for even more protein)

The crackers and cheese weighed in at 2 oz, I popped that in the microwave and then topped with 1 oz of jalapenos and 1 oz of sour cream.

It was so delicious and even though it was only 4 oz of food I gave quite a few to MS and I threw a couple out.

Next time I'll do less crackers and beef them up with some chicken or ground turkey

Monday, January 9, 2012

The Dreaded Cookie Cake

I got up and left early this morning so I could meet my co-workers at the Y to work out and that went great. I walked the hardest and longest I have in a while. But, when I got to work I saw the dreaded cookie cake in all her glory. 2 - large pizza sized chocolate chip cookies being held together by 1/2 inch of frosting and another 1/2 inch of frosting all over the top. Son of a.....

If I hadn't just put myself through a life altering surgery, this is how my day might have gone. First I would have either grabbed breakfast on the way in eating in the car, had a bagel at the office or even an EAS Shake. Then I would have seen that cookie and grabbed myself a large piece of it for "breakfast". Then after a lunch out I would have grabbed another piece for dessert. Then around 3:00 I would have gone in the kitchen grabbed a cup of coffee and grabbed yet ANOTHER piece of it. Probably concealing it with a napkin or putting it in a cup so I wouldn't seem like such a lard ass.

Well thank goodness for the band and some self control.  I decided right away, that this is going to happen often, so I'm going to have to deal with it. If I have a small piece I'll either a) get sick b)eat it and be reminded that it only tastes half as good as it looks or c) not eat it and think about how bad I wanted a piece of it until one day I'll eventually crack and buy myself a box of cookies and eat half of them in one setting.

Here's an idea. Why don't I eat a small piece of it, AFTER I finish eating my tuna fish for lunch? Sounds like something a normal, healthy person would do right? Ok. I'm doing it.

So I did it. I ate my tuna fish slowly while the tiny piece of cookie stared at me from the corner of my desk. Then I took the tiniest bites of the cookie and chewed it to a pulp. Trust me, I made sure that every taste bud in my mouth was covered in cookie and frosting. It tasted pretty good. Awfully sweet. Now I'm done. I'm not going to think about it again because I didn't deprive myself of a thing.

I recorded it in MyfitnessPal. There's no denying it or hiding it. Life goes on. I feel pretty good about it.

Nectar Chocolate Truffle Review







Two Words:

AHH MAZING

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Mexican Beefless Strips

MS and I are meat eaters. The atkins diet has always been a little heavenly for us because we both love all types of proteins. So when our nutritionist mentioned Tofu as a good protein source I just kind of brushed it off... no thanks. I'm not against it, it just has never been appetizing to me.

Well, MS has been researching foods with the most protein and today he stopped by the meatless section at trader joes to check out the nutrition labels. He found these beefless strips that have 20 grams of protein per serving. I was reluctant, but agreed to try them. For dinner tonight I dressed them up with taco seasoning, cheese, sour cream and tamed jalapenos and I must say, I think they were outstanding.

I'll definitely try the other meatless varieties they offer. At this stage of our diet, we would not be able to eat strips of steak like that. The beefless strips were softer and easy to chew.

Check them out for sure, I was truly the biggest skeptic.

1/3 package beefless strips
Cumin
Taco Seasoning
small amount Olive Oil or Butter
Tamed Jalapenos
Shredded Cheddar
Sour Cream
Salsa
by the way, these are pretty amazing too!

Saute the strips in heated pan and oil or butter. Generously coat the strips with taco seasoning and cumin. Just heat up the strips, do not overcook. Plate the strips and garnish with cheese, jalapenos and sour cream or salsa. Guacamole would be great too!


For meals like this I just put the plate on my food scale and layer ingredients until I reach 4 oz.

Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper Turkey Meatballs

Man we ate a lot of great food today. Even though I made 10 servings of pulled pork yesterday, I didn't feel like eating it today. Since MS and I had to go grab him some smaller pants at the mall, we stopped at Trader Joe's on the way home.

I've read a lot about their frozen Turkey Meatballs so I knew  I definitely wanted to try them. Today they were giving out samples of Tomato Red Pepper soup so MS grabbed one. Neither of us really care that much for tomato soup, but holy crap, you need to try this soup.

It doesn't have enough protein to have by itself, so you could add protein powder. Or... duh... put some pre-cooked meatballs in it.

This is going to be one of my favorite go-to easy meals for a while. In fact, I don't think I'll go very long without having these two ingredients on hand for the next year.




For 1 serving, Place 3 Turkey Meatballs in a deep bowl and cover with Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper Soup. Cover and microwave for 3-5 minutes until it reaches the desired temp.

3 meatballs has 18 grams of protein and 150 calories.

MyFitnessPal.com

Yesterday, on Lapbandtalk.com, I asked what the best web based food tracker was and I had two main responses. Myfitnesspal.com and Sparkpeople. Being the serial dieter that I have been, spark people is old news to me. But MyFitnessPal.... now this is something to write about.

Pros: The mobile app is awesome. I can read a bar code on anything I'm eating and it will add the nutritional information for me. No bar code? The database is crazy. I mean they even have every kind of kroger brand cheese the place sells.

You can track your food and fitness. I still like having Endomondo for the GPS in case I walk outside.

At the end of each day it tells you your calorie count and gives you a message that says something like "if every day were like today you'll weigh XYZ by this date" I think that's cool

Cons: It doesn't let you track what you want to track like Spark People. For instance, I want to see how much protein I've had on my phone. But it only shows calories. I have to log into the website to check my protein.

On that same note, Myfitnesspal figures out what calories I need. My nutritionist told me to try for 800 a day but not to worry so much about that yet, and just too focus on getting protein from real food. Myfitnesspal says I need 1400+ calories and keeps giving me a warning for eating too little. I think it would be cool if these sites let you pick your weight loss method.

All in all I'd say it's pretty cool!!

Tagged!

My friend Jen from Tales from an Arizona Lap Bander tagged me! Here are my answers:
The Rules:

1. Post these rules.
2. You must post 11 random things yourself.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post.
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
5. Go to their blog and tell them that you've tagged them.
6. No stuff in the tagging section about ‘you are tagged if you are reading this.’ Blah blah blah, you legiti­mately have to tag 11 peeps!


Random things:


1. I wish I would have paid more attention when my mom was teaching me how to sew as a kid. Now she's too far away to teach me.


2. My husband and I rescued a little black and white shih tzu. I treat him like he's my first born.


3.  My grandparents are Italian immigrants. I never met my grandma, but I feel like I know her very well.
4.  I was a Delta Zeta in college.


5. Diana Ross has been my favorite celebrity since I was a little kid
6.  If I won the lottery I would give my dad a lot of the money, because in this life he's worked so hard to give me so many wonderful things.


7.  I have a sister who is 7 years older than me and we're very good friends. I love traveling with her.


8.  I was a makeup artist for 7 years. I did makeup on some bullshit independent movie and actually walked out because the "lead actress" was such a bitch. I told her to have fun doing her own makeup. I've done countless weddings, drag queens galore, and did makeup for a lady who was going to be featured in US Weekly. When I got the magazine, they just quoted her - no image or picture!


9.  I love birthdays.


10.  I love creating things. Fancy Cakes, Paintings, Photo Books, Dinner parties, you name it I like doing it.


11. I need ice water in the morning like a lot of people need caffeine.




Rachels Questions:


1. What is your favorite reality tv show? Real Housewives of BH, Atlanta, & NJ
2. What three things would you want with you if stuck on a desert island? Husband, Dog, tool box (Remember the movie blue lagoon? I always wanted to live in that hut they built)


3. What is the best way to spend your birthday? On a fancy date with my husband - One that I can take 3 hours to get ready for.


4. If you could win a lifetime supply of any one product, what would you want to win? Clinique Superdefense for combination skin - if they even make it any more


5. What is your favorite workout song? That's tough. Today it was Beat it.


6. What is the most important thing you wish someone would have told you before your wedding? Don't worry about what anyone else wants, wear flats, go to 100 bridal shops and don't settle on a dress.


7. What is your biggest regret, if you have one? No regrets. Even the bad stuff has brought me to where I am today.


8. What do you do to relax? I find something to make on pinterest and make it.


9. How long does it take you to get to work in the morning? 20-25 mins


10. If you could live anywhere for one year, where would you live? on the water somewhere


11. How many people do you consider to be your best friend? I have 1 best friend right now, but I consider my core group of college friends my very best friends always.

 
MY Questions:


1. Paperback, nook, kindle or other - paperback - but I wouldn't turn down a kindle


2. Favorite place to vacation? tropics


3. Mommy or daddy's girl? both


4. Tomboy or girlie girl?  both


5. Did you play sports in school?  yep I was an all state softball player and a decent basketball player


6. PC or MAC? PC


7. Favorite band or singer of all time? Michael Jackson


8. Favorite movie of all time? Goonies


9. When you go to Vegas...slots or tables? tables


10. Beer or wine or none? Beer... oh beer how I will miss you old friend.


11. Favorite reason to blog? Meeting and relating w/ people going through the same thing




People I am tagging!


1. Jewely_5


2. bandedwithfavor


3. transformingtracy


4. Andrea


5. JazzingupJackie


6. Diane


7. Sandyb


8. Sarah


9. ChrisN


10.Melissa


11.Kiki and Kids

Single Servings

In the past I would actually scoff at the high price of these single serving foods. The price was entirely too high for 2  people who could easily eat 2 or 3 of these in one setting.

Well, not anymore. These little pre-portioned gems bring happiness to my new life.

We are at the point where we can try some crackers to see how they go down! Another perfect lunch.

This is perfect for 1 lunch - The whole package has 25 grams of protein!
I don't know how I feel about the premixed chicken salad, but I'll try it once.
30 Grams of Protein Per Can

Four Cheese Flavored Mashed Potatoes Cup
Add a little protein powder - I get 6 servings out of this cup! Ridiculous.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork

I found a pretty simple recipe for Crock Pot Pulled Pork Sandwiches on Pinterest and tried it yesterday. We obviously skipped the bread on this one, but I did serve 3 oz of the pork with 1 oz of mashed potatoes

Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce is my absolute favorite out of a bottle, but I normally make homemade BBQ sauce to lower the sugar for MS. This recipe was great, but I did  doctor it up at the end and make a thicker more flavorful sauce out of the juice.

Here's the recipe inspired from Sweetandsavoryfood.com:

Boneless Pork Butt
Can of Diet Coke
1/2 Bottle of Sweet Baby Rays
Seasoning Salt (I only had Tony Chachere's Creole so I used that)
Cook on low all day, pull the meat with a fork, remove pieces of fat and return to the sauce for a bit.

If you want a thicker sauce:
take a cup or two of sauce out of the crock pot and place in a large bowl. Wisk in Mustard, Ketchup, brown sugar, garlic salt and pepper. Return to the pot or just pour over pork and serve.

We liked it, the meat was very juicy and easy to chew up. This whole recipe cost about $11 and I was able to get 10 - 4 oz servings from it.  I wrapped up most of the servings in my foodsaver so we'll have pre-portioned lunches and dinners that can be heated in the microwave.




Saturday, January 7, 2012

Foodie

Remember how I said if I were skinny, I'd call myself a foodie? I feel like I can't say that now, because that may invoke thoughts in skinny hateful people like "More like Fattie." or "Yeah, I can tell." haha. I don't want to set myself up.

I've always been so envious of those tiny people that cook and eat the most amazing foods. For instance, have you ever read picky-palate.com? How does a beautiful skinny mom like that make that much glorious junk food and stay skinny? Welp, she probably doesn't eat the entire time she cooks like I used to do.  Duh.

I adore walking through gourmet grocery stores. Any Michigan readers? Nino Salvaggios? Man I miss that place. High priced gourmet everything, yes please. Have you ever walked through Grand Central Market in NYC? I could pass out from happiness right in the middle of that beautiful market.

The only problem for me was that MS and I ate way too much food in one setting to be able to afford shopping at these little gems. It would be nice once in a while if I was making a special meal. But that one meal could rack up a price tag of $50 or more. Might as well go out!

So maybe I had little non-scale victory today. I went to the gym and needed to pick up something to make for dinner on my way home. I set the garmin to take me to Kroger. After I made a wrong turn despite her, I realized exactly where I was. I thought. I saw the Fresh Market up ahead and figured I'd stop there instead of trekking to Kroger. I figured I'd probably spend 5X as much on the pork I needed, but oh well.

Oh the wonderful food in Fresh Market. I enjoyed perusing so much. And to my surprise the pork was a reasonable price. I only spent $17 on all of the groceries I needed. No basket, just a few items. This is how skinny people live. This is how Foodies shop. Yay! I'm getting there.

Is this Really My Life?

I am officially a member of 2 gyms. WTF? Never in my life would I have ever thought I'd see this day. Don't get my wrong I absolutely love working out, but for whatever reason I have a history of working out for a few weeks and then never going back.

Honestly though, the reason I've decided to do this will make sense when I explain it. I work for an awesome company. They offer a wellness plan and as long as we as employees commit to visiting the gym 10 times over a 3 month period the company will subsidize gym memberships. It just so happens that I can join a group of YMCA's for $4 a month that automatically deducted from my paycheck. We didn't look to this option first because it was still close to $50 a month for MS.

This is perfect for me, because the YMCA offers hundreds of fitness classes every week and that is where Planet Fitness is a bit weak. MS and I can go together to planet fitness to work out for the rest of the year but if I feel like going to a Zumba, Yoga or spinning class first thing Saturday morning I can. In fact I have to go to at least 10 of them every quarter!

The group of people that I work with is super close, we all get along really well and have a blast together. There is a small group of us that have committed to each other that we'll be meeting at the YMCA before work 2 days a week. If someone doesn't show we'll give each other hell about it. I'm going to curse myself when I actually get up and go, but it will be worth it when I fit into a smaller pair of jeans.

All that being said. If anyone ever tells me that I took the easy way out with this lap band, I'll probably punch them in the face....and it will probably hurt because I'll be ripped.

Friday, January 6, 2012

Fast Foods For Bandsters!



Check this out! I just saw on the news that Chick Fil A is offering a healthier kids meal option and it looks like a really fabulous option for anyone with bariatric surgery. Yay!

Even in our soft food stage all of this food would be acceptable. Heck if the chicken is too dry, even a half container of chick fil a sauce would be fine.. I looked on the website and can't access the nutritional information yet. But I did see that you can order this meal with a lot of other options.

Of course there is White Milk and Chocolate Milk, you can choose from 6 grilled nuggets or 4 along with . The healthy  sides are Buddy fruits or a Fresh Fruit Cup.

While I was looking at the Chick Fil A website, I noticed a few other great options for us if ever caught in a bad situation.  Or heck, if we just want to go out for lunch with our friends.

Chicken Tortilla SoupChicken Tortilla soup looks amazing, just skip the tortilla strips if you can't have those yet. I don't know how many ounces are in the medium cup, but we can probably get two meals out of it. There are 230 calories and 19 grams of protein in a medium serving. Looks like this one is a limited time offering.

There's also chicken salad that is available in a cup. The whole cup has 28 grams of protein! It is a bit high in calories (350) because of the mayo... but if you split it into two meals, it's a great option.

I'll make sure to update this post when I know what the serving sizes of the soup and chicken salad are.

I'm guessing both are 1 cup, which would be 2 meals for us now, but after a year or so that would be a perfectly portioned lunch packed with protein.

Chicken Salad CupThis is great if you're busy shopping and realize you really need to eat something. Or you just feel like going out to eat with your family or friends.


Skinny Dance!

I had to get into work super early this morning so I had the pleasure of visiting with MS while getting ready instead of snoozin. He's about a day behind me with the cold so he was still feeling pretty bad. But ...........that didn't stop us from doing the skinny dance! As of today, 18 days post op, MS has lost 36 lbs. and I have lost 27 Big Ones!!!

Can you believe it?! I can't! Now that we've slowly worked our way up to eating about 4 oz with every meal I feel like the weight is really coming off :)

I can't wait to celebrate with a little time at the gym or a walk outside tonight!

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Special Delivery

I'm so excited!!!! Remember how I was saying I was sick of chocolate protein powder? The other day at the store I saw 2 lb jars of  a brand of  protein powder called Nectar but it was close to $40! Now i don't know about you, but I'm a sucker for packaging. This is what the description says on the back of the jar:
"Gone are the days of low quality whey protein. Gone are the days of those blah-tasting protein drinks that promise much but deliver little. Nectar once-and-for-all breaks the mold by combining Promina, the highest quality whey protein isolate ever developed, with a flavoring system that is so fruitilicious that you will never drink another whey protein shake ever again. If you like the refreshing taste of fruit juice, you'll love Nectar! With its mouthwatering fruit juice flavors, Nectar is truly a protein drink you will look forward to drinking each and every day. Whether it be Chocolate Truffle, Roadside Lemonade, Caribbean Cooler, Strawberry Kiwi, Lemon Tea, Fuzzy Navel, Strawberry Mousse, Vanilla Bean Torte, Twisted Cherry, Apple Ecstasy, or Cappuccino Latte. Nectar will keep you coming back for more. What's more? Well, Syntrax did something totally amazing by engineering Nectar to be so delicious that you can eat it right out of the container. Imagine putting a protein powder in your mouth and it tasting like candy. Imagine this protein powder having zero carbs and zero fat."


Are you kidding me? Is that not the best sales pitch for protein powder you've ever heard in your life? I wanted to buy one so bad but my inner cheap skate kept telling me it was a rip off. So instead I bought something I didn't want for less. boo. (that's getting returned of course)

I've come to realize that you should price shop protein powder. Like I said in an earlier post, we paid $26 for the same 2lb container of body fortress powder at kroger that was $14.99 at wal mart.

When I got home I searched for Nectar online and not only found 2 lb jars for $26 but I found this fab little variety pack for $16!!!! Reviews on a few Bariatric websites were all excellent, so I ordered my variety pack.

The package arrived today and it was like christmas all over again. I can't wait to try them

Look at all these flavors!

Just as I was typing this, I searched for that packaging message, and found this sample pack for $3 less than what I paid. Go figure! Here's the cheaper link:

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Check In!

Hi! I've been a little quiet the past two day, MS and I are still doing good, we just got slapped in the faces with some bug that's going around. Have been taking the work outs easy because we're feeling so crappy. Hopeful we'll be back on track in a day or two.

I had my first panic feeling today. I cut a Tylenol in half so it wouldn't get stuck so I had four small pieces. I took 3 of them a little fast and I felt like i was going to projectile vomit those things right back out. I stood up and walked around my office just kind of dealing with that weird feeling that everyone talks about on forums and blogs. Nothing came up, it ended up settling after a few minutes. Close call :)

Also wanted to let anyone who is interested know that there is a coupon out there right now for slimfast premixed low carb shakes Buy One Get One Free!!! Brings the cost down to less than 75 cents a shake!
There are also $1.00 off Atkins shake coupons as well. If you don't get the Sunday paper you can get them online just look up printable coupons!

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

2 More Protein Ideas

As a follow up to yesterday's post I have some good news. This morning I mixed 2 packets of the Designer Whey 2 Go with 12 oz of milk in my little GE blender. I was pretty pleased with the results.

Although the Designer Whey has a funny smell. If you can just kind of stop your self from smelling as you drink it, the taste is actually quite good. I drank all of the liquid but there was quite a bit of foamy texture left on top of the liquid. I didn't want to waste the protein, so I grabbed a spoon and to my surprise the foamy stuff was quite satisfying. It's like a mousse lemon dessert.

I'm not going to go out and by a bunch of Designer Whey because of it. But drinking/eating it this way was much better than drinking it with water.

Also - one of my fab followers, Bandedwithfavor left me a great tip that I wanted to share:

bandedwithfavor said...


I found this drink at GNC...it is called Isopure it is a liquid drink in a bottle 20fl oz with 40 grams of protein...many flavors and they are good...I figure after surgery this Friday those 20 oz bottles are going to be a good friend to me...will probably take all day to sip but at 40 grams of protein I am ok with that!! I would post a picture but I have no clue how to do that..sorry


I saw this too - it ran about $4.00 a bottle and all of the flavors sounded good. You can also buy this online. The link is below the picture.  I wish I could be one of those people who drinks and eats the same thing day in and day out, but I'm just not. I need variety in my life! Now that I have a few followers that have been banded for a while, please let me know any of your tips. I'll take any advice I can get!

Monday, January 2, 2012

Meat Head

We all know at least one crazy meat head who can't seem to talk about anything other than body building. Bless your heart if you have to deal with more than one at any given time.

I happen to work with one of the most annoying meat heads that I have ever met in my life. He's terrible at his job, but man he'll tell you how much more he knows than you if eye contact is made. He also assumes you want to hear about his diet and body building competitions without even asking.

This commercial kind of reminds me of him, actually:



If only the guy I work with was as lovable! Anyways. This post is more for some laughs, but trust me, I'm spending my time blogging about this idiot because I'm a little stressed.

A long time ago this guy left a diet plan in my office. Unsolicited of course. I didn't know who left it there, and I thought, "Wow that's kind of a mean thing to do" but I had no idea who did it.

Low and behold, 2 days later he comes by and says "Did you see the diet plan I left for you?"

I said, "Oh that was you. I was wondering who would leave that in here."

So he responds, "Oh yeah, it's great it talks about good fats and bad fats, and I LOVE FATS!"

I just half smiled and nodded thinking "GET THE F$*% OUT OF MY OFFICE"

Then he just walked away. What a weirdo.

Honestly, people all over tend to be pretty mean to fat people. Its like this strange hatred. A lot of people will  just wait for someone who is overweight to walk by to spew poison on. I'll never forget walking into a bar when I was 25 and being called a fat bitch by some random as I walked by.
To be completely honest with you, I'm kind of immune to it at my age. I've been fat for the past 10 years. I've heard it all. So this meat head didn't necessarily hurt my feelings per se. I mean I already couldn't stand him because he's worthless at his job and has zero social skills.

Anyway - fast forward to today. I had the day off, MS went to work and I was looking forward to just spending a day running errands and doing a little shopping. My last stop was the Vitamin Shoppe. I was amazed by all of the protein powders and being kind of a novice, I got lost in all the labels. And then I heard his voice.

 I just stood there frozen, as he talked to the guy at the counter about how much more he knows about supplements. I wanted to clear out a shelf and actually climb into it.  As soon as he was about to leave he yelled bye to me and I knew I was caught. Damnit Damnit Damnit. He must have seen my car. I turned around and acted as though I didn't even realize that it was him spewing useless information at the cashier.

Since I made eye contact with him, he must have thought i needed help me selecting my protein powder. He grabbed mine out of my hands and started asking what I was trying to buy. I said that I was sick of chocolate flavor, that is why I was shopping for a new flavor so he went straight to the chocolate fudge powder and said, "This is great. I get the craziest chocolate cravings, you know that's why I'm always looking for sweets around the office."

I stared blankly at him. This dude is a sales person. Did he not just hear what I said? Nope. So I said it again. Don't want chocolate. Thank goodness the VS employee came over and started talking to him again. I quietly slipped away as he started questioning the guy's knowledge again.

UGGGHHHH!!! This event doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but what stresses me out is the onslaught of unsolicited advice he's going to spew on me over the next few weeks. Diet advice. Work out advice. Sick.


2 Weeks Post Op! - Another Protein Option

Well, today is officially our 2 week bandiversary! I lost a little more today - but I can't remember the number. I think it was about 1/2 or 3/4 of a pound. This whole weighing myself everyday will probably stop soon, but it's fun to see it drop!

This morning I woke up and I actually dreaded the thought of having another chocolate protein shake. But I made one anyway. Man did it go down slow and hard. So after running a few errands I went to the Vitamin Shoppe, because I think that's the only place we haven't looked. let me tell you, Protein powder is expensive! I'm definitely sticking with the body fortress brand because it doesn't break the bank and it is doing the trick.

I did find a cool new product though! Designer Whey makes individual drink mix packets that you can mix with water.  Each packet has 10 grams of protein and 50 calories. It's a little pricey, I think the regular price was $9.99 for 5 packets. But I bought it on sale for 50% off. I bought the lemonade flavor and I think they had a mixed berry flavor as well. I mixed it up in a bottle as directed and it took quite a long time to dissolve. It's pretty good it doesn't taste like refreshing lemonade by any means, but it is tolerable for me. If I could explain it, I think i would say it taste more like a milky lemonade. In fact I might even try mixing it with skim milk to see if it gives me more a dessert like taste. My recommendation is to only buy this if it's on sale! Here's a pic, (please excuse my ugly nail polish testing):

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Listening to My Body - Protein

At our pre-op appointment on December 8th, the nurse went over how we were to drink our protein and hydration fluids after the surgery. She explained to us that Protein was the most important thing for us to get down post-op because it would be the only thing giving us energy and helping us heal.

Since the surgery, each of us has consumed the proper amount of protein we were told to and some days we've had more. This past week I settled into a nice routine. Every day I'll drink about 58 grams of protein in my morning shake. I'll go for a 1.5 - 2 mile walk at 11:30 and I don't even feel hungry until about 3:00 pm. I'll eat something then (with more protein, because I don't want a repeat of that super hungry day) and then I'll eat dinner around 6:00 with another walk somewhere in there.

Well, yesterday I deviated from that routine and I paid for it dearly. Since we are transitioning to soft foods now, MS and decided to just have a slim fast shake (20 grams of protein) and then go to the gym. I felt pretty tired after the gym and decided to eat some salmon salad for lunch. I mixed 2 oz of salmon with a touch of mayo, dill and lemon. I started by eating too fast, and I knew it was happening. I told myself to slow down and when i didn't, I just got up and walked away from the table for a while. That really screwed me up because I was full and had only eaten less than 1 oz of salmon which is only 8.5 grams of protein. It was close to 1:00 at that point and I had only consumed 28.5 grams of protein and 178 calories for the whole day. Needless to say, I started to feel pretty icky.

We went on a little shopping trip until about 5:00 or so. It felt like 8:00. Just as I was about to say, "I think I'm going to go to bed." I asked MS what time it was, and he said 6:00. What the heck? I continued to feel worse. As I sat there I started to get agitated and actually a little angry.  I didn't have the brain power to read anything let alone blog about anything. I knew that wasn't like me at all. That scene from Steel Magnolias where Julia Roberts flips shit because of her blood sugar flashed in my head and I definitely knew I needed to do something. MS got up and made me a full protein shake and very quickly after I drank that I started to feel a lot better. Within an hour I felt good enough to write 3 or 4 posts and we stayed up past midnight. How crazy!

When you only have so much room in that little pouch above your stomach you have to put the right things in your body and you have to eat very slowly. I can see why people have issues with this surgery if they are not getting enough protein. I don't want to feel the way I did yesterday ever again. So if you are getting banded and you take anything from this blog, please let it be that you get enough protein every single day!