What's on Your Wednesday Menu, RNYers?

Karen I am someone who cares about you and your success.  I am quite frankly shocked you eat TWO Cliff bars a day.  I had no idea they were 280 calories each!  So you are eating 560 calories a day in two protein bars!!!?????  How many calories a day are you eating??  You wrote that its just easier to eat protein bars instead of cooking.  You don't make meals for you and your daughter?  Even if you are a horrible cook (I don't know, I have never had your cooking) there are a million better things to eat other than Protein bars.  I am struggling to wrap my head around this?  If you don't want to cook how about a rotisserie chicken that you and your daughter can share?  Don't want to cook how about deli meat? Don't want to cook what about cheese (not moon cheese), yogurt, kielbasa, tuna salad, egg salad (you can buy already cooked hard boiled eggs)?  You went from eating a ton of Microwave meals to now eating a ton of protein bars.   If you think you are struggling now, wait until you hit a year out and you have not even come close to your goal weight and you are here on the menu thread asking how do I get to goal? Why can't I get to goal?  I will tell you why because at 5 months out you eat like this.  Do you think this gets easier????? Quite the opposite!!! It gets harder!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Why do you think you see so many people post they never got to goal and they have regained weight.  Its so much hard as you get farther out.  

I am not going to apologize for being harsh Karen, you keep saying you are going to ditch the crap processed store bought food and "try better" and you are good for a day or two and right back at it.  Why are you spending your hard earned money on processed food?  I like quite a few others worked my ass off to get all my weight off in under a year so that when that year mark hit and all the cravings came back and I can eat anything and everything I was already at goal (actually below goal).    Ask any of our menu posters who are more than a year out how much its a a daily conscious effort to stick to plan and eat protein forward. 

Yes I addressed this post to you but its also for anyone else reading this that is struggling early out and is not eating protein forward. Karen love me or hate me for this post, I just think you are headed down a really bad path and you need some advice & direction.  Please take it how its intended that I want to help, if I didn't care I would not post, plain & simple.

Good luck, you deserve the best of health and I want to see you successful.

Daze 

Thank you, Daisy.  I do know you are saying these things because you care and want me to be successful.  (See more under NYMom's post).

~ Karen  

Besides what Grim said... it has 29g carbs and 21g sugar. That is a lot of sugar. I am in Maintenance, so I figured I'd take a stab at it... but weight loss it is really not a good choice. I know you know this protein bars aren't the best choice early on ... especially not daily. Keep trying new things! You can do this!

Also I second what Daisy said... we want the best for you!

Thank you, Daisy and Cynthia!  I do know you are saying these things because you care.  I did kick the microwave meals to the curb, eliminated the daily protein shakes and I will work on getting rid of the protein bars.

~ Karen  

You are a trooper for being able to take the advice with grace :)

Don't forget that you have the benefit of being in charge of what gets brought into your house, unlike many others who live with other people that do the grocery shopping. If you are going to try to kick these to the curb, YOU HAVE THE POWER to stop bringing them into the house!

Also, I get that cooking is hard. I am often out of the house for 14+ hours a day! Can you start making week-long plans that include a whole lot of cooking on a weekend, so that you can portion out the meals you'll eat for the week, and only have to cook once? Do you have a crockpot? Meat that is cooked in the crockpot is usually nice and moist, and you can make a week's worth, easily! There are a million websites with great recipes that could not be easier to make. One that I like is putting a few jars of salsa into the crockpot with some fresh chicken thighs. That's it. Come back a few hours later, and you have a week's worth of freshly cooked, moist, tasty chicken. Grabbing a pre-portioned  container of that is just as easy as grabbing a Clif bar, and about a million times better for you!

One of the hard things about surgery is that there is very little that you can do to NOT lose weight in the first year while you are malabsorbing calories, so it is giving you a false hope that what you are doing now is right for your body. But there is literally no way that you will continue to lose long term without making some significant changes. And all of us who have been though this, know that waiting to make long-term changes NEVER works. Do it now, while you still have a diminished appetite!

I am glad you post here honestly every day! It would be easy to lie and pretend you aren't having the bars to appease us! But we are all here to help and support... I will happily share more recipes and ideas if you want them--just ask!

Dear Julia,

Thank you SO much for your feedback!  Yes, I am overly-sensitive and it's hard to be criticized, but I DO know you all are my friends and the feedback is because you care about me.  It's very embarrassing to admit that I don't cook much at all.  I have severe Depression (which I take medications for), that seems to sap my energy and I have Fibromyalgia and fatigue.  I do have a crock pot, though, so I will get that out and see if I can figure out how to work it.  (LOL).  Yes, I am always honest on the menu board.  Today I am going to have to admit that I had a Clif protein bar yesterday morning before I posted and got the barrage of feedback against them.  Yikes!  

~ Karen    

Ok, last peice of advice on this... It really changed me when I started using My Fitness Pal not to track what I DID eat, but to plan for what I WILL eat. You probably notice that most of us do that on the menu thread. 

Being planful instead of reactionary is a huge part of how to get this right, long-term.

I know that I'm blessed not to have to deal with depression or heath issues so I can't really put myself in your shoes. But I think that those cir****tances probably make it even more important to be super proactive about doing things right. XOXO

Thanks, Julia!  That is good advice.  I have tried to get on My Fitness Pal several times and it won't let me.  It says my password is wrong.  When I ask for an email to reset my password it doesn't send me one.  It says if you don't get the email to check your spam folder (not there) and otherwise contact them, so I try that and they never answer.  

But yes, I can start pre-planning what I am going to eat each day, rather than logging what I ate the day before.  Good idea, thanks!

I woke up this morning with a renewed sense of purpose.  It's probably from lack of sleep.  I finished my recent crochet project yesterday and stayed up until after 1 working on my new one.  THEN, my toddler, who has been sleeping to at least 7 or 8 every morning, decided to get up at 5am today.  Hubby was at the gym, so here I am on less than 4 hours sleep.  There is no calling in sick from motherhood, now is there?  But seriously, I am feeling pretty good foodwise today and I'm going to be good and deal with my food addictions.  this is my plan for the day

1 year since surgery

B 1 egg, 2oz of ham and a slice of velveeta and coffee with cream and sf coffeemate

L tuna salad with tomatoes on half a flat out wrap.

D: shrimp and ****tail sauce

S: Protein drink with almond milk and a light and fit crunch

totals:

calories 890 Protein 112 carbs 44  fat 31

Stay beautiful and strong!

 edited to add the QOTD: the last person I called was my hubby.  I also am not one to talk on the phone.  It just annoys me because I can't play on my phone when I'm talking on it.  Don't judge my smartphone addiction!

Good morning menu gang!!!
Something I have eaten has not agreed with my stomach. It sounds like a herd of lions roaring.

So yesterday I told my 16 y.o son look at my dang turkey neck! He says "mama would you rather have a turkey neck or three chins". You gotta point their son.
I'm up three pounds. Not sure what's up with that! This too shall pass.

QOTD- I despise to talk on the phone. If you can send a letter or text do it. lol. Last person I talked to was my son this morning. He forgot his lunch money and wanted me to meet him to give it to him.

Time since surgery 5 months almost 6
B- Premier Protein Shake
L- Grilled Chicken
D- Premier Protein Shake (they are having pizza at church)

I hope everyone has a fantabulous day!

***AV I have videos of the rodeo. Shoot me your email and I will send them to you.