The definition of the puree food phase is: food without chunks.  

One of my favorites is the Butternut Squash Puree from Williamsonomia.  It is available during the holidays.  I posted the soup recipe on the blog.  You can find it by doing a search over on the left, for butternut squash soup.    

There are also other selections of soups available in the soup section of your grocery store. Look for creamed soups or choose soups that can be blended smooth, your tummy is still healing.   

Remember to check the serving size...portion in relation to the fat and sugar counts.  Adding chicken, beef and vegetable stocks  will dilute these counts.  

Remember the key to this phase is to keep everything the consistency of baby-food.  Your new "baby" pouch needs help with digestion.  

The Magic Bullet and blender will be your friend! 

I try to add items to these sections when I discover new ideas and items...

Try pureeing items such as mashed potatoes, cauliflower, pears, applesauce and yogurts.  Try pureeing soft veggies and adding them into soups.  One of my favorites is the Jan's Save the Day Soup recipe.  I added it to mashed potatoes for a different flavor.  

The key is not to have it too "runny".  You want to consistency to be firmer as you progress during your food phases.  Liquids leave your tummy more rapidly, as you progress, you want food to stay in your pouch longer, but still be easy to digest.  Pureed items should be "baby food" consistency.  

Thanks you to all of you who respond under the comment section and are following the blog.   It is a real encouragement and I appreciate your input and support.  

Happy Holidays...

Julia 

this one is unusual, it was just one of those day...shopping for turkey and holiday fare...

Last evening I made chicken salad...so that was the first thing I thought about when breakfast arrived.  I don't think I've ever had chicken salad for breakfast, but why not...

Menu 

Breakfast: 1/2 cup chicken salad with 3 whole wheat crackers

Lunch: 1/2 grilled chicken breast with asparagus and brocolli

Snack: TLC dark chocolate bar nutrition bar with coconut or protein shake

Dinner:  Panera Bread Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich with turkey, no bread,  check out the Restaurant Rescue for more about this winner.  

Have a great thanksgiving...

That was until I discovered Kraft’s Olive Oil Mayo, it is a reduced fat item.  OK …it doesn’t beat Duke’s “real stuff” for sure, but it’s something I can live with.

Olive oil is one of those good fats, so I feel like I’m getting a bonus.  

Kraft’s Olive Oil Mayo has on 4 grams of fat per serving, which is a tablespoon, and only 45 calories.  Now the real stuff…has 12 grams of fat, and 100 calories…uhgggg…I’m so loyal to Duke’s that hurts…but you got to do, what you got to do. 

The rest of the family, hasn’t come on board yet, so there is still a jar of good ‘ole Duke's in the fridge…and just in case I’m having a loyal moment. 

Give it a try...

Yes, we can, we have many more miles to go.  

After the holidays?  ... I think it was the "holidays" that got me in trouble to begin with.   

Wait?  ...yes, it would be "easier" I suppose to wait...

...but would that be my best and wisest plan of choice?

My theory is that waiting to get back on track only allows more pounds to accumulate.   After all passing on bread and dessert should be a norm for me, this is about health and lifestyle.  My Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday meals should look almost identical to what I eat everyday. 

The "diet" mentality is "stink'n think'n".

By that, I mean...my food plan or what I eat on a regular basis, should be a lifestyle change, not just until I lose "X" number of pounds, or just to get into that dress for an event.  It's a permanent event, not a temporary happening. 

Yes, I did stray from my norm over the summer, I will admit.  Getting back on the right track for me means reviewing my daily eating habits NOW and looking for clues where I have allowed old habits to creep back in and exchanging my bad habits for healthy ones.   That includes activity as well.  I just had some recent surgery that kept me off my exercise routine for a while, but I'm all healed and it's time to step it up.  Yes, after some wrong choices over the summer and adding in that healing time...I have a few unwanted pounds...but "wait" ?  ...I don't think so...I've waited long enough...summer is over and it's time to get back to the plan...

Mad at me yet...stay tuned...you might get madder, (is that a word?)  ...I'm speaking from experience and I've learned the hard way...

Let's GET REAL !!! This isn't a "diet" I can take or leave anytime it's convenient...although I will say that on "occasion" I do have a bite of something that is not on my daily routine.  The key word must be..."on occasion" not "routine".  My challenge is to make my everyday meal plan as exciting, creative, fresh and appealing as possible.  

My mindset has to be that the holidays offer me the addition of time spent around the table enjoying the meal with family and friends I love to be with.  After all, the main thing is to focus on the things I'm thankful for during this season.  Family, friends, health and life...more time to live life and more energy to play with that adorable little 2 year old that sits at center of our table...

I eat turkey every week, but during the holidays I get the real bird, not just that deli stuff.  Those veggies will still be on my plate, and I can still have all of the green beans and squash I can hold... the bonus will be pumpkin instead of the usual fruit.  Or better yet, a pumpkin protein shake in the afternoon, while everyone else is recovering from a "food coma"! Yum...I can even do a little whip on top... but no matter what my choices are, my portions will still be within the limits of my plan.

I'm not trying to be hard or bossy, I'm just speaking from experience.  It was my lifestyle of "stink'n think'n that got me into trouble to start with and kept me trapped into that 300+ pound body...I have learned one major truth...I might have a slip from time to time, but it's not just the food or portions that have to change, it's your thinking, your entire mindset and approach to food and activity. 

My daily tip:  look for clues of stink'n think'n...and don't let them sabotage your best efforts.  Look at the positive things you can include in your food plan and focus on the fact that you can be successful at the end of the season, and all year long.  I'm here to help...let's do it together.  Check out my menu ideas and also the new "restaurant rescue" section.  Take time to post a comment and share what works for you...I'd love to hear from you. 

Holidays don't have to set your weight loss efforts or your progress on hold or in a hole...you can move forward, make wise choices and be happier and healthier in the end...  

During my first few years after weight loss surgery, I lost weight during both the Thanksgiving and Christmas season...and I intend to do the same this year as well.  Let's start now, let's focus on the benefits that a healthier life offers...

Yes we can...we have many more miles to go!

Restaurant Rescue

You'll find it under "Basic Information" to the left of the screen...

...See ya there!

While we were waiting for the plane to load during one of our flights, I was reminded of a WOW moment, I didn't have to ask for a seat belt extension! 

As a matter of fact I had plenty of belt left over.  

WOW moments...don't forget you can share a few of your own, just by clicking on the comment box at the end of this post.  

Yes you can, you have many more miles to go!  

This morning I was in the mood for an omelet.  So when my husband announced he was taking me out to eat breakfast, I was excited. Sometimes we venture to take my grandson out to eat breakfast, which is great fun, but today it was just the two of us.

So off we went.  I ordered the egg and cheese omelet with whole wheat toast.  As usual when the food arrived it was more that I could eat.  So I proceeded to divide the omelet in a bariatric friendly portion and place all but one half slice of the whole wheat toast on to another plate.

Covering half the plate was a huge mound of hash brown potatoes, which I forget to tell them to leave off.  I have been really good this week, lost two pounds...so those potatoes have to go...I would much rather spend my carbs on the toast....but before I can scoop them onto another plate and unbeknown to me, my right hand proceeded to squirt a half bottle of ketchup on those babies and my fork was ready for the kill. Wait a minute, what am I doing? I don't even eat hash browns, at least, not anymore.  And what is with all that ketchup? What was I thinking?

It appears I wasn't thinking at all...at least not about the present...my mind was somewhere else.

It's been 3 years, 7 months, 4 days, 2 hours, 21 minutes and 8 seconds since my surgery.  Why would I, at this point, empty an endless supply of ketchup onto a mountain-sized plateful of hash brown potatoes that I don't even care to eat any longer?   

Habit.  It's referred to in the bariatric world as "mindless" eating.  This little habit was "playing 'possum" as we say here in the south. Playing dead, in hopes that I would think it's no longer an issue.  Waiting when I was unfocused and off guard to sneak up and attack.  And it almost worked.  Did I do that? I was shocked and amazed!  I really thought that habit was over and that my eating habits had forever changed.  Not so...apparently!  Besides, this week I had worked so had at losing 2 pounds of the weight that somehow attracted itself to me during summer vacation. I was doing so well, too. Did I mention how good I was doing? Two pounds this week.  

That's just my point, you can never let your guard down, and you know what they say...pride cometh before destruction and a haughty attitude before a fall.  Someone call the meek-squad!  Ok...you possum sized habit you...you and your pride friend have been uncovered...

So my free advise today, is to stay focused and mind-full when in the presence of food, lest you find yourself saying likewise, "Did I do that?"  Old habits die hard.  Don't think it's over, it's not. Don't fool yourself into thinking those old habits are dead and gone, they may be just "playing 'possum" and when you least expect it, you could be caught red-handed with a bottle of ketchup...

Ok...lesson learned, next time, those potatoes will stay in the kitchen where they belong.  I'll give my husband heads up on keeping me honest and accountable.  I need to let him know that he has my permission to call me on any questionable behavior.  I'll keep my mind on what I'm doing at mealtime and I know that no matter how long I've been practicing good habits there is always a chance of a slip-up.  

And beside, I can be proud of one thing...I have worked hard to accomplish my weight loss and I deserve a little pat on the back once in a while...

 ...I can do this...and so can you.

yes, we can, we have many more miles to go!

Well...what can I say...

I can't even find an appealing photo of cottage cheese!  But give this one a try...it's really good.  It sounds .... well, not so much, but it is....really!

Menu 

breakfast:  1/4 cup cottage cheese on 1/2 slice of whole wheat toast or whole wheat crackers (Akmak is a good brand. one of my favorites, truly a whole wheat cracker - no enriched stuff)  Sprinkle on cinnamon, it taste more more like a cinnamon roll! 

lunch:  egg salad  or boiled egg with a pickle 

snack: dark chocolate chip protein shake

dinner: grilled pork chop with wilted spinach, apple slices warm from the microwave 

At the Holloman home, usually breakfast is on your own.  My husband usually is on the go and grabs a bowl of cereal, which he loves. Sometimes he gets lucky and I'll cook an egg, and if I'm feeling really industrious, maybe I'll add in a turkey sausage patty! Since lunch is usually solo as well, that means dinner is really the only meal that is centered around the family...the two of us together, and occasionally a guest or two.  

However, I understand the dilemma, that still leaves dinner and the rest of the family.  In the beginning of the consideration of gastric bypass surgery, I had a  heart to heart talk with my husband.  He was supportive and we made the decision that the meals would be focused on what I could eat and he would adapt.  Now he is a very picky eater, but he has been a real trooper, hasn't complained once!  He still says I have a very wonderful gift, cooking, I just don't exercise that gift enough...ok, I do love to go out...I do like to cook, too, but I didn't say I like the clean up...

Eating healthy, that is the target, not a bad idea for us both, he has even shed a few pounds as well.  

So my dinner meal usually consist of fish, or chicken, and an occasional ground meat, such as turkey or beef.  I usually add one veggie we both like, or I fix two; one he likes and one I prefer.  If the one I fix for him is a starch, I'm done, sometimes I'll add a potato for him, that his favorite.  Baked or roasted are his favorites. When I roast them, I usually add all the veggies in the pan together.  Simplicity, that's the key.  

My therory is to keep it very simple and streamline.  Roasting veggies in the oven is a great way to add a variety to the mix without using too many pots and pans.  That makes clean up simple and easy.

The way I figure, this is a way of life, and we have to eat everyday, three times as least.  I encourage you take some time to consider how to make mealtime, simple, creative and pleasant for the whole family.  Planning menu's ahead and gathering recipes both new and old can be a time saver both at meal time and in the grocery store. I'm consistantly on the lookout for new, simple recipes that are healthy and bariatric friendly. So get out those menu pages and let those creative juices flow.  You'll be glad you did... 

More on menus to come...stay tuned...yes, you can...we have many more miles to go.

looking for a great substiture for "jelly or jam?

I found a great one... baby food, Just one teaspoon or even a tablespoon does the trick.  

Peach is my favorite.

One whole jar has 70 calories, 0 fat, 15 carbs,  10 sugars, and 1 protein 

you can even try it in your protein shake or use as a glaze for grilled chicken or pork.  You might try it with the new chicken recipe under the "recipes" section as a substitute for the apricot jam.

or try it with cottage cheese! 

check out other flavors such as apricot or apple...just check the sugar content and adjust your serving size...

Let me know how it goes!