getting better and better

i am becoming more and more creative in working the post op diet and as a result i am getting better with my weight loss.

i get a kick out of looking in the mirror at the changes i am experiencing. i can stand straighter. i guess because there is less of me for gravity to pull down on. i can feel my body becoming trimmer.

having said that though i don't want to over do it. I have a long way to go. this is a journey that is just beginning, but i love seeing changes in my face, hips, waist, stomach, arms, etc. it is so good.

                                                  
                                                      

Congratulations!!! It seems like you are doing really well. I'm trying to get the hang of this thing all over again, but I'm not that creative with the food. I have got to figure out ways to fix things that I'm going to want that are healthy. I need things to taste good with lots of flavor and being able to do that and the food be healthy is a struggle for me. I'm really getting tired of eating the same things over and over again just because it is healthy. Feel free to share any ideas you have. Congratulations once again.

My fav is:

Tomato/Basil tostada shells topped with:

Home made refried beans (pinto beans YOU make and not canned so ... no lard)
Cheese

Bake a few minutes until heated through

Top with:
Pico de gullo you make (onions, tomato, cilantro, lime juice, chilis if you want)
Taco sauce

Full of protein, calcium crunchy, has as much flavor as you want.


Steamed veggies...

Whatever your preference
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Bell peppers
Zucchini
Yellow squash
Green onions

Steam in a microwave steamer bag

Drain liquid, add soy sauce and a tiny bit of sesame oil (a little goes a long long way, too much and you'll gag) and garlic powder.

Yum!


Twice baked yellow squash or Zucchini

Slice the long way, scoop out the middle like you would a twice baked potato.

Make a mixture of stuff you have in your frig.  Diced bell pepper, onion, canadian bacon, whatever you like.  Celery... anything.

Take squash/zucchini shells and sprinkle with parmesan or ramono cheese, fill with mixture, bake until desired tenderness.  Five minutes before they are done sprinkle with grated cheese of your choice.


Stuffed bell peppers

Small bell peppers
Cooked hamburger or leftover shredded pot roast
Bruschetto Sauce in a jar (Fresh & Easy has a great one if you have that store chain near you)

Mix Bruschetto with meat, add cooked wild rice if you want the carbs, don't add it if you don't want carbs
Fill Small bell peppers (with tops cut off and cleaned out) with mixture
Top with cheese and/or bell pepper tops

Bake until heated through

Yummmmm

I suck at cooking and even I can do the above in no time.

Keep Pico de gullo around, if you sprinkle with lime juice it will last 5-7 days.  Use it in soups, on salads as a salad dressing, on tostada shells, anything you put refried beans on, heck... I get a fork and eat it like a salad.

Pico de gullo

1 very large very hard tomato, you don't want soft and juicy - just the opposite
1/2 med yellow onion
Cilantro to taste, I love it so I add a LOT but maybe start off with 2 tablespoons finely chopped
Sorrono (sp?) chilis (adds a little kick but not hot) 1-2 with seeds scraped out, every single seed needs to be removed unless you like hot
Sprinkle lime juice, will make this last for days so you don't have to make it but once a week

Chop everything small, drain juice from tomato, mix everything together, add a bit of salt to taste.

Put this stuff on everything.

Monique, take a look at a post I just posted today titled 'update on my revision lap band'. it is still on the first page. i talk about some of the food choices i am making now.