Good thing I can laugh at myself

Hi, I havent had my surgery yet. My doctor wants me to loose 40 pounds before he will do the lap band. Yeah right like the reason I am here is because diets have not worked in the past. But this is something I really want. So ahead I go. I am now in my fifth week of a high protien diet. First week I loose 7 pounds. Second I loose 6 pounds. Third I gain 4 pounds ( My fault We lost power for six days and it was an excuse to eat fast food.) fourth week I loose 8 pounds. Fifth week I gain 6 pounds(part my fault for having a beer to celebrate new years, and the grocery store had some fake crab mismarked I thought I was eating snow crab and I was eating fake crab spelled with a "K" they must put sugar in it so their went the ketosis) . The third when I gained I was pretty upset, But this time I just had to laugh. I am back on my diet eating just protien and hating it but hopefully the next month will go better. You guys have any idea on how to add some flavor to meat to make it taste any better plain. I miss my catsup and a-1 sauce.

Mustard....tobasco...a belt sander to our tongue...tony Chasseries good luck boss Russ

I like Cajun rubs on the meat before cooking. Make you own or buy it at the store. Garlic salt and Onion salt are other ways to go. drjco

Duane, First of all, welcome to the locker room. You will like it here and get lots of support from the guys in your weight loss journey. And secondly, congratulations on your weight loss, we all know it isn't easy. I am a believer in a low carb/high protein diet and know it works to lose weight; but for me I couldn't keep the pounds off so I opted for the tool of WLS. I see that you are learning to read labels and understanding what you are consuming. Good for you. Keep at it, as you will be doing it from now on. Pretty soon it gets to be second nature. Knowing what you are eating is the first step on a weight loss journey for anyone. Even though we all like the foods of a high protein diet, they do get old after awhile. Try a variety of meats prepared in different ways. Try spicing them up. I like a variety of spices, mustard, horseradish, Tabasco sauce, and.... plenty of salt and pepper. Also, may I suggest Googling low carb or high protein recipes on the internet. You'll find a million ideas. Good luck on your journey and don't be a stranger here. This locker room doesn't smell. May Your Lantern Burn Bright, Paul

Hi Duane and welcome, I just had the lapband done 4 weeks ago. My DR. put me on an all liquid diet for 3 1/2 weeks before surgery. I had to drink 4 Optifast Drinks per day and 1 Optifast nutrition bar. The reason he gave was that the weight loss would help to shrink the liver and make surgery easier.It did work and I quess I was really looking forward to getting the surgery because it wasn't hard to stick to. Even after the surgery it was hard to be good all the time because of Christmas and New Years, since I started I'm down 41 lbs. Now that the holidays are over it should be earier. You can do it and stick to it if you want it bad enough. Best of luck to you Dan

Hienz makes a 1 carb Ketchup that is fantastic! I put it on my scrambled egg in the morning and also mix it in with chicken broth. Give it a try. JP

Duane, Three words: Garlic, Garlic, Garlic! Seriously, I had to lose 41lbs in my program to 'qualify' for surgery. They gave me a very specific diet program of about 1200 calories per day broken down by protien, veggies, fruit, starch, etc. The program I went through is one of the best in Northern California (maybe one of the best, period); comprehensive in the sense that you meet with a shrink, a nutritionist, your primary MD, a surgeon, attend classes, etc. If you want the specific pre-op diet guidelines I used, let me know. I had no problem going from 347 to 306 to *qualify* for surgery, and I did cheat a bit, to be honest. Happy New Year, Brother, and Good Luck! Dennis

Thanks guys you make me feel welcome here. All good sugestions except maybe the sandpaper to the tounge idea. I did get some hot sauce that I am using now and I also picked up a salt and roasted garlic shaker that helps. If any of you have a good rub recipe that doesnt use sugar I would love to hear it. I have some recipe but all call for brown sugar and the fake brown sugar just doesnt do it. I have been trying a mix of onion powder, garlic powder, cheyenne pepper and paprika. Then salt to taste.