Question:
Which foods yielded you the best success? Mind sharing your menus?

I'm sorry, but I asked this question once before and rec'd 2 responses, so I thought I would try it again~~maybe it was overlooked...I'm REALLY interested in hearing from those post ops that have had TREMENDOUS weight loss. What do you attribute your success to (in which foods and in what amounts)? Would you mind sharing your menu and or fitday.com journal? I'm considering using fitday    — yourdivaness (posted on December 30, 2002)

December 30, 2002
I don't know if you are considering a 155lb loss as TREMENDOUS, but it's been 10.5 months and I am almost at goal and a lot further than I would have imagined. I know some people out there hate to consider people they call Anti-Carb zealots, but I truly beleive for me that has been a huge part of my success. Now I am not a total zealot though. I eat some fruits and veggies. Even wheat thins, and when things are backing up, a little shredded wheat. But, no white bread, potatoes, pasta or rice. Which means none of some of my old faves: bagels, pizza, any kind of pasta dish, peanut butter and strawberry sandwiches... But, in the end, I don't really miss them all that much. I do eat a ton of cheese. I try to eat low fat, but don't overly concern myself with that. I am able to supplement each meal with a little cheese and get in that extra protein. String cheese, baby belle cheese, cottage cheese, cheddar cheese cubes, goat cheese, 2% American singles. I do eat protein bars, and enjoy them, and I have a 26g protein drink each weekday morning. For the most part I eat a very varied and healthy diet. Chinese, Italian, Mexican...you name it. Just in smaller amounts. I eat steak, shrimp cocktail, lots of chicken dishes in different sauces. But I have to give a lot of credit to cheese and leaving out the carbs.
   — PaulaM

December 30, 2002
i am 1 year post op & have lost 120 lbs so far. my surgeon instructs his patients to eat whatever they want after they r discharged from the hosp. i couldnt tolerate any protein supplements & knew i had to get all my protein from my food. i cant tolerate beef or turkey, but, boy do i love my fish & seafood!! i also love cheese. i enjoy chicken & pork sometimes & every now & then i make my own chili with ground turkey & kidney beans. but, most of my meals consist of cheese, fish & seafood. i can only eat 3-4 oz at meal time so altho i try to eat balanced meals, i make sure to eat 1oz of my protein first, then i eat a bite from my veggies & then 2 bites of protein. i do this until i am done with my meal. if i dont finish my food it hits the garbage immediately. i stay away from simple carbs...bread, pasta etc. i also try to eat a minimum of three raw fruits a day. my honey does the grocery shopping & he makes sure to keep the freezer stocked with lots of fish, shrimps, cheese blintzes & a package each of pork loin & ground turkey. i drink ice water, coffee & 100% juices not from concentrates & no sugar added. my dr ran my nutrition blood tests 2 weeks ago. he called me & said...'whatever ur doing...keep doing it'. i did not have this surgery done so that i could 'diet' the rest of my life. if i want a piece of candy, i have it, but only one. i will take a spoonful of my honey's ice cream or a forkful of his cake. after dieting my whole life, i deny myself nothing. when my surgeon asked me what i eat i told him...anything i want! he laffed & said...'good for u! those were my instructions.' if u would like some of my recipes please email me. good luck to u hun & god bless u.
   — sheryl titone

December 30, 2002
I've lost 114 pounds in 8 months. (That's tremendous to me!!) I still have very limited capacity within my pouch so I eat 5 small meals a day. I also drink water ALL day (plain and flavored) and if I get in all of my water, I will treat myself to a glass of defizzed soda after dinner. My typical daily menu looks like this: Breakfast - Protein Shake (1 scoop Carb Solutions, 1 scoop Isopure, sugar free flavoring and ice...blend)... Mid-morning snack - 2 crackers with 1 ounce of cheese.... Lunch - 2 oz chicken, turkey, ham or seafood (I do Shrimp Cocktail quite often). Sometimes I will have a 1/4-1/2 cup salad as well. I rarely eat carbs with lunch. I don't do well with bread so I may order a small sandwich and just eat the meat and veggies out of it. If I am on the run I will get a grilled steak taco from Taco Bell and just eat the meat and cheese. The meat is very lean and tender and tastes out of this world!... Mid-afternoon snack - 1/4 of a protein bar.... Dinner - 2 oz protein ( I do great with pork, chicken and fish/seafood. If I do lobster or fish I can often eat close to 3 ounces), few pieces of veggie du jour and sometimes 1 TBS brown rice or very small amount of potato. If we are having pasta it needs to be well done and I can only eat 1-2 pieces of pasta before I am totally full so I tend to avoid it. If I can consume this entire menu in a day, that is a good day for me. This whole menu (shrimp or chicken for lunch and lobster for dinner) is 515 calories with 77 grams of protein, 8 grams of fat and 31 grams of carb. (63% protein, 22% carbs and 15% fat). I would have to say that the only things that I completely stay away from are sugar/sugar alcohols (dump easily!!!) and breads. Other than that, I can eat just about anything as long as its lean and moist. I also work out at Curves 3x's a week and do Power Yoga, PowerBands and Kickboxing at home 3 days a week. I've lost over 80 inches and have gone from a size 28/30 (3-4X) to a size 14. 44DD to a 36D (Victoria Secret!!) and a size 8 wide shoe to a regular 7. Everyone's definition of success is different, to me...I'm a success story. Not just because of the weight and inches that I have lost but because of the way I feel. I feel younger and more engergized than ever! My son has a fun Mommy now! To me, that's success!! I still have 45 pounds to go, but I am well on my way! If you have any specific questions please let me know. I hope that helped!
   — pam29922