First Meal Out and The First 10%

First meal out was a success!

In my last post I mentioned that I was meeting up with a friend for lunch on Saturday and was a bit nervous about it as it was my first meal out since surgery. I checked out the menu online and selected my meal. I went with grilled portabella mushrooms, roasted red peppers and crumbled goat cheese on a bed of baby spinach with balsamic vinegar dressing on the side. It was yummy and easy to eat and because we were talking so much I could have small forkfuls and take my time between bites. It was great to see her and catch-up, we had a great time and have planned to try and see each other at least once a month.

I’m still fighting hunger in between meals and know that this will be the case for the next couple of weeks until my first fill. I’ve primarily stuck with either water or a hot mug of green tea. I try to avoid snacking because if I did I would end up grazing all day. I stick with 3 meals and have a bit of added protein in between if I’m really hungry. I usually have either ½ - ¾ cup of yogurt or cottage cheese or a couple of rye crisps with a bit of cream/goat cheese spread.

I think what has helped me the most is eliminating sugar. I have found that my cravings for sweets have been significantly diminished since pre-op. I try to stick with complex carbs and still haven’t had any bread. There were many bandsters that mentioned staying away from bread and I thought that was just not humanly possible for me. Six weeks later and can’t say that I really miss it. Strange, and maybe that will change but I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.

I’m less than 2 pounds away from losing 10% of my body weight. I didn’t set it as a written goal as I prefer to stick with 10 pound increments, but I know it is an important number. Studies have shown that losing 10% is enough to see changes in certain health indicators such as blood pressure, diabetes risk, and heart disease. Although I didn’t have any of the co-morbidities that others with over 100 pounds to lose may have, I was certainly on the road there if I didn’t make changes. I’m hoping to hit the 10% loss by this time next week.