What's on your Menu today (Tuesday) RNYers?

Hi Protein Pals! How is everyone? I saw JB's post about taking a break from the menu post (JB you have done an incredible job and I personally want to thank you and I am so glad you are taking time out for yourself!) and so I am starting us off today.

Accountability: It was long weekend for us here in Ontario, Canada. So there was lots of off plan eating, such as chips & salsa, blueberry loaf, gingerbread cookies, and some toast! I accounted for it all in MFP, it did take me over my macros so this week will pretty much be CAMAW (Critters and Meat All Week).

QOTD: Regardless of what point you are post op what are you finding is your biggest struggle (if you do have one)? I am almost 5 years post op. I can eat anything now (not that I do regularly but I can). I don't dump so I can eat small amounts of sugar and small amounts lead to more and more and more. I am finding my biggest struggle right now is WLS fatigue. I have gone through this before around the end of year one. I am just tired of weighing, measuring, counting protein/carb/fat/sugar grams and have I drank enough water today. And because I am a food addict I am tired of always thinking about food. Whether its can I eat yet or why am I so hungry because I just ate. The struggle is real people, the struggle is real.

4 yrs 9 mos post op RNY - todays eats are:

B: (as always) 2 vanilla premier protein used as creamer in decaf coffee

L: 1/2 bell pepper & can of tuna with balsamic dressing

S: Gala apple

D: 1 pork chop & 1 corn on the cob

S: activia yogurt

TOTALS: 817 calories, 112 protein, 41 carbs

V: wearing Multi, Iron, Vit D & Calcium Patches and take Oral B12

E: 60 min step & 60 min muscle pump

Have an awesome day everyone!

Good Morning Daisy and Menu Peeps!

Today is a shopping day with my mom. I'm tired already. I read that someone put Miralax in their coffee and I thought that was a good idea to get things moving for me. (Since starting back on regular food it's been a real struggle) The Miralax magic started at 4 PM and had me up all night. Then DH woke me up before he left for work (5:30 AM) because the dog decided not to come in. Enough whining from me.

QOTD: My biggest struggle is drinking the water. I like water and I drink it but I just don't drink enough. I get about 50 ounces in a day and I know it isn't enough.

B: PP chocolate shake

L: TBD out with my mom shopping

D: chicken enchiladas

S; cantaloupe

Have a great day!

I use a heaping scoop of Miralax (Restoralax in Canada) in my 1st coffee of the day. I use it daily and have the approval of both my Bariatric surgeon and my Family Doctor. Miralax is not habit forming so its okay for daily and prolonged use. Glad you figured it out.

Yes water in the beginning is HARD. Protein shakes, decaf coffee, decaf tea, diet ice tea, diet juice (I still to this day drink diet Cranberry juice that I water down with water. I drink a ton of it daily. Popsciles count towards water - sugar free ones. Also Sugar Free Gatorade or Powerade. Whatever you like to drink just make sure its sugar free or diet and you are good to go. I looked at it this way, if I am not eating or waiting my 30-45 mins post a meal then I am drinking. It does get easier. But for sure getting in more liquids will help your energy and your bathroom troubles.

Thanks Daisy!

Also..always have a drink nearby. I'm almost 10 years out and every day I work to get fluids in.

Always except 30 minutes after you eat.

Morning!

we had a great long weekend, and I'm not ready to go back to work today hahah! One more day!!

qotd: mine is the slow creep of "special occasion food" back into my diet. Oh it's your husbands bday, have a little cake. It's a long weekend, have a little ice cream. Or family is all together, have some of moms amazing pasta salad, it's special etc. etc. I mean, I know I can't be 100% on point all the time, but if every meal is "special" then no meal really is. It's finding the balance of what is actually is worth the splurge. And more so, what's a trigger for a binge eating rabbit hole.

like you, it going to be a CAMAW kinda week for me!

menu

B: premier and coffee

L: leftover gyro and pork souvlaki

D: pork loin

S: boiled eggs

have a good one!

Exactly Erin, I keep justifying I can eat XXX because its a birthday, anniversary, or a day that ends in Y

Its really hard. I have to give it to the Vets who are years ahead of me and they are so successful.

CAMAW for the win!

Hello DD2! Nice to hear you start this off! It is HOT, HOT, HOT here, so outside activities can only be at the beach. I'm not a happy indoor girl, so after we get back from an appointment in Boston today, guess where we will be?

QOTD: Struggles... My biggest struggle is with leftovers from parties. People bring food and leave it for DH, but if it is a trigger food (or close enough to one), I have a real problem. Some days I am strong or my sleeve just doesn't want much, but on a day when I am feeling really hungry and not as strong, watch out! We have had a lot of company and been going out to dinner even more frequently than usual this summer so it has been a problem. And we have a lot more events coming up between now and when we go to Florida in early October so I have to be as mindful as possible.

Accountability: Great the last couple of days as I've ended up essentially CAMAW without thinking about it. The sleeve was feeling relatively small.

2 Years, 4 months post-op (maintaining at goal for 20 months)

Always lots of coffee...

B: eggs, cottage cheese and Canadian bacon

L: Tuna salad, pickles and cottage cheese

D: Lobster

S: Siggis yogurt

REPORT #2 ON IP COTTAGE CHEESE: I made it with fat-free vs. 2% milk, folded in the vinegar vs. stirring it, and used light cream as the addition. It tasted much better, and the consistency was less like ricotta, but it still seems a bit dry. On my next round, I'm going to fold the vinegar even more gently and I'm going to refrigerate the curds prior to adding the cream. I like it as is but I want to try that before pronouncing it good enough. BTW, there is really only about 5 minutes of work and approximately 2 hours of waiting. My kind of recipe!

How do you eat your cottage cheese? Just plain like yogurt? Do you season it? I've never eaten much of it unless it was blended in something else (well, there was that diet where you could have plain cottage cheese baked on diet toast but that didn't last long) and it seems like a good protein option to explore.

I eat cottage cheese ALL different ways. I cook it with my eggs and it gets all melty. I eat it as a side dish with tuna salad or meats. I eat it plain as a snack. I eat it with nut thin crackers. Sometimes I eat it with a little SF strawberry jelly. I season mine with salt only (store-bought generally has salt as well). With this homemade stuff maybe I'll try other additives in the future?