Roadtripping it

So first leg of my road trip journey was from San Antonio, Texas to Mankato, MN.  24 hours almost!

So what have I learned as a bariatric patient going on a car road trip...

First and foremost, and one of the things I wish I had followed better:

 HYDRATION!!!!!

I definitely did NOT drink enough water. I have a feeling this would have made the trip a bit easier. Would it have made it a bit longer with all the pee breaks? Probably, but I wold have probably felt better and possibly more awake than I did. Here is a little pic of how water helps you function, and yes it helps with the brain very much!!

Stop and actually eat three healthy meals. DO NOT GRAZE.

I luckily did not graze however, my meals were on the go and consisted mainly of protein bars and P3 packs. DO NOT DO THIS! This probably also contributed to my general feeling of crap and sleepiness. Make sure that your meals consist mainly of protein and veggies! One great meal is a protein shake AND it hydrates you. DRINK FLUIDS! Have I mentioned that yet? LOL

Take frequent breaks to get out of the car and stretch. 

We went into a small walmart along the way just to get out and walk around and wake up for a bit. A long trip is havoc on the body and the mind. Remember, our bodies need to get up and exercise and burn off that food we are eating. Sitting in a car is not a good thing for those three meals we must eat.
One great thing about road trips is there are always things to stop and see along the way. A great site to find these destinations is called RoadTrippers. You put in your route and it will show you all the places around where you will be driving. Including the odd and weird stuff.

IF you get tired take a break and nap. 

I was lucky enough at the beginning to be good for the first 12-16 hours ( I have no idea how) but if you feel sleepy get out of the car and move or take a little nap. Your passengers AND the other cars around you will thank you for their safety.

CARRY CASH FOR TOLL ROADS!!

While we had a toll pass for Texas, we had NO IDEA there was a toll road from Oklahoma to Missouri. We learned this the hard way, had to turn around and get cash, then drive back to it. One thing to do is to research ahead of time to see IF your trip will have some then bring the appropriate amount. Luckily, we have cash for the way back LOL.

A tip from another trippers site. FOLLOW THE BILLBOARDS! 

Some of the best little hidden places are found this way. We found a great Amish store this way on the Iowa/Missouri border. We got a bunch of great jarred fruits and things from this store and at a great price. Who knows what cool places and adventures these signs may lead you to.

Check in at all the Cool and Weird places that you drive by!

Facebook will constantly update these as you drive. Just make sure the driver isn't on the phone doing this. NOT SAFE PEOPLE!!

Before you even leave your house for the road trip.....Make a list and check it twice!

I wish we had done this. We forgot my daughter's shoes for the wedding, now we have to go and spend more money to go get her another pair. Lists are a great thing. Make them LOL

And lastly, TAKE LOTS OF PICTURES!

Til Next Time!!

Summer Time!

With summer coming or here in some places, we will all be wanting to cool off with some great summer time treats. However, being in the weight loss surgery category people, we have to limit what we eat due to sugars. Here are some great sweets and other treat ideas for the summer that are great for our new bodies.


Enlightened Ice Creams: Enlightened 

These yummy treats come in 7 flavors of bars (Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl, Coffee, Fudge, Peanut Butter, Sea Salt Caramel, Mint Fudge Swirl, Orange Cream, a Toasted Almond) and 2 ice cream sandwhiches (Mint and Vanilla Bean). They range from 2-5 grams of sugar each, and the best part, 7-8 grams of PROTEIN!!!!! They are so tastey that its a good thing our stomachs are small and can only hold one.

Make your own treats:

• Roll a banana in chopped peanuts and freeze it. Mix the peanuts with cinnamon before rolling, if you want.
• Freeze melon or watermelon balls or grapes.
• Make raspberry lemonade pops by blending raspberries – or your choice of berries – and light lemonade. Pour into paper cups, stick popsicle sticks in the centers, and freeze them.
• Blend mango, peach, or another soft fruit with Greek yogurt, keeping it chunky. Freeze.
• Dip strawberries, peach slices, or cherries into light Greek vanilla yogurt. Put the fruit on wax paper on a cookie sheet, and freeze your treats.
• Mix up your favorite glass of sugar free crystal light and freeze it into ice cube trays. Not only are these great to suck on to keep cool but can be put into a glass of the same flavor crystal light flavored water and wont water it down as it melts or grind the cubes in the blender until they are more like chips.
• Freeze grapes, these are one of my favorite treats. Other great frozen fruits are blueberries. 

Refresh Salad: 

Mix Arugula leaves, sliced radishes, snow peas, sliced watermelon cubes and sliced avocado cubes into a bow. Sprinkle feta cheese and ground black pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Low Fat Jalepeno Poppers: Use fresh Jalepenos, cut them in half and take out the seeds. Stuff them with fat free cream cheese and wrap up with one half piece of turkey bacon. Bake about 20 minutes at around 350 degrees in oven (temp may vary due to oven so keep a close eye on them when cooking the first time).

Cookie Dough Greek Yogurt:

Take a cup of any plain greek yogurt, mix 1 tablespoon of nut butter, 1 tablespoon of mini chocolate chips and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla into it and voila! Cookie Dough Greek Yogurt!

Fruit Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing:

Ingredients: 1 cup of peeled and diced kiwi, 1 cup sliced strawberries, 1 cup mixed berries, 1 cup peeled and diced mangos, 1 orange in wedges, 1 cup of greek yogurt, 4 tablespoons of honey, 2 tablespoons of poppy seeds, 2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice, 1 tablespoon of almond oil or a neutral tasting oil, and fresh mint.

Combine all the fruits into a bowl and chill in the refridgerator while preparing the dressing, 

To make the poppy seed dressing, in a small bowl, mix the yogurt, honey, poppy seeds, lime juice and oil. Adjust the sweetness if you desire.

Mix in the poppy seed dressing with the fruits and garnish with the mint leaves before serving.

Cumcumber, Dill and Cream Cheese Sandwhiches on Wheat Toast

Ingrediants: 6 ounces of low fat cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of fresh and minced dill, 6 slices of whole wheat bread, 1 small or 1/2 big cucumber thinly sliced, and some lemon zest.

In a small bowl mix the cream cheese, dill and some lemon zest. Toast all the slices of bread. Spread the cream cheese mix on each slice of toast and then top with a cucumber slice then cut away the sides of the bread (crust). 

JUST REMEMBER: 

• Low-fat and fat-free products can be high in sugar and calories.
• “Light” can mean light in color, light in calories, or light in something else.
• Low-carb and low-sugar products can be high-calorie and high-fat.
• Fat-free toppings, such as caramel or chocolate topping, can be high in sugar and contain 50 calories per tablespoon (that’s not a big serving size!).

Til Next Time!

Fast Food Rules and Eating Out

So you are stuck having to choose between eating fast food or going without food. What do you do?  Well first off, never skip a meal! Even a small protein filled food from fast food is better than nothing. Skipping will slow down your weight loss. So, what do you choose when visiting a fast food or sit down restaurant? Well let me first say, THERE ARE CHOICES!!! Yeah!!

First some rules.

1. Protein, Protein, Protein!!! I don't think anyone needs this rule as it should be number 1 for any sleever's guide to eating. If you can get fish, this is a great source.
2. Go grilled instead of fried
3. Get apple slices or fruit instead of fries, or if at a sit down restaurant, as for steamed veggies.
4. If you must get a drink, which is not recommended due to having to not drink while eating, make it a water or unsweetened tea instead of soda.
5. Get your burger or sand which without the bun, they will do this. I have tried LOL
6. Don't always just opt for a kids meal, kids meals are just as unhealthy even though they are smaller. It is better to customize your meal than assume a smaller version is better.
7. Ask for the condiments such as mayo or ketchup on the side so that you can control how much if any is on your meal.
8. Ask for a to-go box. Don't feel bad about this or feel the need to explain. This food can be brought home for later meals.
9. Salads are not always better than a burger. If you are going to opt for a salad, make sure the meat is grilled and its a small or half sized salad. Full sized can be as much if not higher in calories than a burger.


So lets go down the line and list off some restaurants and what are the best choices off their menus.

The famous McDonald's:

• An egg white delight muffin, with or without the English muffin, for breakfast.
• A Fruit ‘n’ Yogurt Parfait without the granola topping or oatmeal with apples and without cream, for breakfast.
• A grilled sweet chicken chili or Southwest chicken snack wrap without ranch sauce and without the tortilla.
• A grilled chicken sandwich, hamburger, or cheeseburger without the bun or bread.
• A salad with grilled chicken.
• Apple slices or a tangerine on the side.

Subway:

• Egg white and ham on flat bread (or just eat the filling without the bread) for breakfast.
• Salads with lean proteins like black forest ham, oven roasted chicken breast, turkey breast, a veggie patty, steak, or ham.
• Apple slices and water to go with your meal.
• Tons veggies to make your sandwich more filling and nutritious but still low-calorie.
• Mustard, balsamic vinaigrette, or a fat-free sauce.

 Starbucks:

• Decaffeinated coffee or tea without milk or whipped cream. Use almond milk and sugar-free syrup if you want to jazz up your beverage.
• Spinach and feta breakfast wrap, egg and cheddar breakfast sandwich, or reduced-fat turkey bacon breakfast sandwich without the tortilla or bread.
• Fresh fruit.
• Chicken and hummus bistro box.

Wendy's:

• Salads with grilled chicken and without high-calorie dressings or toppings.
• Jr. burgers and cheeseburgers and grilled chicken sandwiches and wraps without the bun or bread and with mustard instead of a fatty or sugary sauce or dressing.
• A side salad and apple slices.
• Unsweetened iced tea.
• Cup of chili

Burger King:

• Maple flavored oatmeal with apple slices for breakfast.
• Ham, egg, and cheese biscuit without the biscuit for breakfast.
• Tender grill chicken sandwich, veggie burger, or Whopper Jr. without a bun or mayo.
• Side salad.
• Chicken, apple, and cranberry salad without the cranberries, or chicken Caesar salad without the croutons.

Taco Bell:

• A.M. Grilled Taco or Crunch wrap without the burrito or taco shell, if you must get breakfast at Taco Bell.
• Chicken taco or burrito without the tortilla or taco shell.
• Salsa, pico de gallo, hot sauce, red sauce, or pizza sauce.
• Fresco grilled steak or chicken soft taco.
• Fiesta taco salad with chicken or steak and without rice – don’t eat the shell.

Chick-Fil-A:

• Grilled nuggets
• Char grilled Chicken Sandwhich
• Chicken Salad Cup

Steak n Shake:

• Chili
• Cottage Cheese
• Grilled Chicken Salad

Chipotle:

• Burrito bowl: Make sure its mainly the meat and veggies. Go light on rice and if you can avoid the sour cream and guac you will be safer.

Again, these are just some examples. And remember, you can customize anything to your liking. If a place is not willing to make that exception or change for you than that place is not worth eating at!

Til Next Time!

Why was I so stupid today?

You would think that by now I would know what not to eat and drink. Well apparently not. 

In my infinite wisdom, I decided to try a new drink. Within 30 minutes I was in the midst of a dumping session. I looked at the drink and no wonder.  It had tons of sugar!   Then later for lunch I had some dippin dots, yes high in sugar but that wasn't what did me in. It was the cheeserito... Within minutes I now feel bloated and nauseous. When will I learn!

Needless to say it will only be fluids for me for the rest of this trip with my man. So not fun right now.  Hoping this feeling will pass soon enough. 

Til Next Time. 

Fed Up

So, I decided to finally watch the documentary "Fed Up". INTERESTING.

Fed Up: An examination of America's obesity epidemic and the food industry's role in aggravating it.

Here is the facts they give summed up. These are quite shocking!

• Daily recommended amount of sugar (max/day) 6-9 tsp. 1 tsp=4 grams so 36 grams/day
• Daily percent of sugar no more than 10%, however due to lobbyists, daily sugar percent is NOT listed on packages.
• When they took fat out of foods to make them low or no fat products, they had to add something to make it taste better, so what did they add? Sugar!
• In 2012, Americans consumed an average of 765 grams of sugar every 5 days, or 130 pounds each year.
• A 20-ounce bottle of soda contains the equivalent of approximately 17 teaspoons of sugar. 
• Number of kids with type 2 or adult onset diabetes in 1980, 0. Number in 2010, OVER 53,000
• More than 9 Million adolescents(children and teens 6-19 years old) are considered overweight.
• It will take a 110-pound child 75 minutes of bike riding to burn off the calories in one 20-ounce bottle of soda.
• One in five Black children ages 2 to 19 is obese, compared with approximately one in seven White children.
• Almost 45 percent of overweight or obese children ages 10 to 17 are poor
• When Michelle Obama started her Let's Move campaign, food producers/companies got scared, so how did they react? They "volunteered" to help. Stating they will help to reduce the amount of calories in foods sold, but sugar amounts still stayed the same. Now Michelle Obama pushes the exercise instead of enforcing action on food issues because now with the food companies backing her, she can't really go head to head with them anymore.
• Junk is still Junk, even if it's less junky.
• In the United States, it is estimated that 93 Million Americans are affected by obesity
• One soda a day increases a child’s chance of obesity by 60%
• Latino children see 49 percent more television ads on Spanish- language television for sugary drinks and energy drinks compared with their White counterparts
• Individuals who drink one to two sugar-sweetened beverages per day have a 26 percent higher risk for developing type II diabetes
• In schools, french fries and pizza sauce are considered "veggies".
• School lunches were suppose to be serving better healthy options yet they are Horrible!!! In 2012, more than half the US schools served fast food, IE: McDonald's, Papa Johns, etc...
• 80% of schools have deals with Coke or Pepsi
• Regan cut the budget to school lunches to save money in economy. Schools had to figure out how to save so they sold their cooking equipment and turned to food companies to make easy to serve just reheat foods.
• Kids watch an average of 4000 food-related ads every year (10/day). 98% of food related ads that children view (3920/year) are for products high in fat, sugar, sodiumThere was a law on cigarettes that for every cigarette ad on TV their had to be equal air time for anti tobacco ads. Kids now don't see ads for veggies and fruits, they only see ones for unhealthy foods. Why cant it be the same way it was for cigarettes?
• Kids in kindergarten/first grade don't know what veggies and fruits are, cannot name them when shown a picture of them. 
• An attempt to cut ads for processed foods was attempted however food companies fought. One even stated "Ronald McDonald never sells to children. He informs and inspires through magic and fun."- Shelly Rosen
• If we keep it up at this rate with food, In 20 years, 95% of people will be overweight or obese, and by 2050, 1/3 of people will have diabetes.
• How can we fix this??? Get off sugars, get off processed foods, steer clear of ingredients you don't recongnize, added sugar hides in places, avoid kids meals.
• WHO has issued call for 50% sugar consumption
• Diet related disease is the biggest killer of people today

For more information on the documentary and information from the documentary go to  FedUpMovie.com

I would LOVE to hear your reactions to this documentary and information. Feel free to comment or email your comments.

Til Next Time!

Houston, we have a problem...

Well, the last two days have been interesting...to say the least.

First I was able to sign up for my certification classes for Pharmacy compounding, chemotherapy and sterile iv that take place in Houston in August. I'm very excited and cannot wait. I booked my hotel and i made sure it was one with a kitchen so that I can cook my own dinners to make sure that i am eating healthy the week that I am there. Totally worth the price in my opinion.

Yesterday started out like any other day, except for the horrible headache...Then work, crazy as usual except that around 1130, I start to feel a pain in my lower right side. As the day goes on it gets worse and starts to radiate to my back where my kidney is, great just what I need. I took some pain meds but nothing helped. I ended up counting down the minutes til work was done and headed straight to Urgent Care. My luck it was going to be something serious. Appendix, kidney stones, problem with my stomach from surgery or something.

I get there and they decide to take blood and urine to see if there is an infection present that would suggest appendix. In the mean time they load me up with a bag of fluids since I very well could be just dehydrated. Well my body sucked down that fluid bag and the pain lessened. Did it stop? Nope, but it did not hurt as much.

So they did not see any infection to make them suspect that I appendicitis or any other infection. They told me that if the pain got worse over the next few days to come right back and sent me home with a script for pain meds, which I did not fill. Obviously I was dehydrated. At least I'm hoping it was that. Since that bag of fluids I feel tons better although there is still a bit of pain every once and a while by my stomach. I tried to keep hydrated today but I know that I didn't do the best that I could....For some reason I just keep forgetting to drink water. I will have to figure it out I guess.

The headache continued, as it would with any great dehydration, so i got an ice pack out of the fridge and fell asleep with it under my head.

I woke up this morning feeling GREAT! A lot better now that i had a bag of fluids to rehydrate me. I saw my doctor today and he said i was ahead of the game when it came to my weight loss so that made my day. He also said that everyone gets dehydrated and forgets to drink water. He also suggested downloading a water drinking reminder app. There are sooooo many out there. So i downloaded a bunch to see which one i liked the best. I found that I liked is called Drink Timer.

Unfortunately I was only able to find it for iPhone. I looked to see if they had it for Android but i did not see it so i am not sure what is a good one for Android phones. If you want to check the app out, just click on here --> Drink Timer and that will bring the page up. If you are an Android user and have a great app to recommend, let me know and I will post on here.

My doctor also gave me some advice on hunger and eating. He said if i feel hungry, drink some water. If that does not help, I am allowed to have a PROTEIN snack. Has to be protein. Also, if you want to know if you can eat something ask these two questions. 1. Is it protein? 2. Is it a vegetable?  If it isn't either than its probably not something you want to eat. Fruits tend to be high in sugar. This isn't saying that you can never have fruit, just to be careful because of the sugar in them. Also, I need to start adding greens. Now when you eat, you have to eat protein first and a lot of times this will fill you up. So he said that after an hour if I am still hungry or if I did not eat any veggies or greens with the meal I can have some. This gets those into my diet also.

Now, as you probably ready from before, we tend to be tired and brain dead now. He said this is our brain going thru withdrawals from all the sugars and bad foods we use to eat and that it will go away after a few months. I'm sure that once i start going to the gym, that will also help with the exhaustion and brain function. *crossing my fingers*

The rest of my day we pretty good. Went and got my badge and shirt for my volunteer job at the Homeland Security Administration Conference next week, went and got 2 bras that fit (big triumph), bought two books to read, set up our new pool in our back yard and spent time with my family and my man.

Overall not a bad day.

I did hear a song that fits perfectly with how I am feeling lately.

I still fall on my face sometimes
And I can't colour inside the lines
'Cause I'm perfectly incomplete
I'm still working on my masterpiece
And I, I wanna hang with the greats
Got a way to go, but it's worth the wait
No, you haven't seen the best of me
I'm still working on my masterpiece

Maybe that will bring a smile to some of you today.

Til Next Time!

Slow.....Brain.....Need.....Vitamins.....Supplements.....

Lately, or I should say since I got back to work FT I feel like my brain is working at a slower pace, that its not up to par. I use to be super speed and great at my job but I feel like it's taking my brain longer to process things some times. I wonder if this is due to the smaller amount of food coming into my body. Maybe I need to take some kind of brain pills lol. I know they have ones... hmm.. let me do a quick search....

OK, search done and this is what I have found, supplement wise. Obviously we need to be taking our multi-vitamins specifically designed for Bariatric patients. That's a "no-brainer". They also say that eating broccoli will help (small gag on tons of broccoli). Don't get me wrong, it's a good veggie, but i just cant see myself eating a lot of it to keep my brain going...  According to one site, these are the most likely vitamins we are not getting enough of if we don't take our supplements...

Calcium deficiency – leads to osteoporosis.

Iron deficiency – can cause anemia (when your body does not have enough red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body), increased feelings of fatigue and hair loss.

Folate (folic acid) deficiency – can also lead to anemia.

Protein deficiency – protein is one of the most important components of your body as it makes up most of your major organs. Not getting enough can lead to a myriad of problems, including muscle deterioration, organ failure, gallstones and even death.

Thiamin (Vitamin B1) deficiency – affects the heart, digestive system and nervous system. If not caught and treated quickly, learning and memory could be permanently affected. Ultimately, coma and death could be the result.

Vitamin A deficiency – can lead to night blindness and increases the risk of disease and death from severe infections. During pregnancy after weight loss surgery, it increases the risk of night blindness and child mortality.

Vitamin B12 deficiency – can cause fatigue and tingling in the hands and can eventually lead to anemia and neurological disorders.

Vitamin D deficiency – can lead to liver and kidney disorders and bone softening diseases.

Vitamin E deficiency – causes neurological problems, anemia and can cause wounds to heal more slowly.

Vitamin K deficiency – increases the risk of osteoporosis and heart disease and can cause you to bruise more easily.

Zinc deficiency – will give you brittle nails and can lead to hair loss.

- See more at: http://www.bariatric-surgery-source.com/bariatric-vitamins.html#sthash.FE9ixMVd.dpuf

YIKES! Yes so lets take those! OK, so what about things we can ADD to this daily regiment of our vitamins and calcium supplements we have to take? Another site lists these: Creatine, Caffeine with L-theanine, Dark Chocolate (OK, i like that one lol), Piracetam and Choline, Omega-3 Fatty Acids (which is something we need and can actually get by eating fish), Bacopa Monnieri (from India I guess), Ginko Bilboa Extract, Panax or Asian Ginseng, Rhodiola Rosea, and last but not least Spanish Sage. Am I the only one reading this and going "What the heck are half these things????"  Good, I'm glad I'm not alone. LOL.  Another site not only advertises a brand, but also goes on to list Piracetam supplements, Oxiracetam Supplements, Phenylpiracetam, Noopept, and Adrafinil. Yeah, still noooooo idea what they are taking about. Apparently we need to be taking a whole slew of these together into one supplemental package to be able to think about WHAT we are actually needed to take LOL. However, ones that keep getting brought back up are Ginko Bilboa, Choline, and a fish oil supplement of some kind so maybe they have these in one small package?? Wouldn't that be nice. And CHEAP please if we can. 

Web MD goes to state one DUH comment, Caffeine. Obviously will help, but majority of us on this fun new life style are told to limit our caffeine intake to small or NIL so that one can be a bit tricky. Glucose, not table sugar can help, but again, something we are told to limit ourselves on so that wont help. Eating breakfast. This is a another "no brainer". One of the first things we are told to do is have a breakfast even if it is just our protein shake. This will help. Apparently anything high in fiber is a great way to fuel the brain in the morning. Fish oils of course... OH! They say we need a daily dose of nuts and chocolate. I like where this is going LOL. BUT of course DARK chocolate which has less sugar, fat and calories than our lovely milk chocolate I'm sure you are all drooling over right now. Come to think of it I have a bar of that upstairs..... 

NOPE! 

Can't eat it. MUST RESIST! 

OK, resisted lol.

Back to concentration. Avocados and whole grains. Now the only thing we have to be careful of with avocados is that they do have a higher fat content so we need to eat sparingly. I believe I heard a half of an avocado will do us just fine but more can be a no no in the fat department. BLUEBERRIES!!! Apparently these are a "SUPER FRUIT" according to Web MD. I like blueberries so I wouldn't mind.. Again, we need to look out though because fruits are sugary and we need to limit ourselves. Remember, too much sugar can lead to "Dumping Syndrome" (Hint: Click on the link for more information). Last but not least they suggest a good night sleep, staying hydrated and exercises which for a bariatric patient all are givens. 

So obviously there will never be a magic pill when it comes to BRAIN POWER, but more of a regular dose of healthy life style and some much needed supplements coming our way. A vacation wouldn't hurt either. LOL. 

NOW. I do want to add my own little newly learned bit of information. There is a new, OK well not new, but I just discovered it, tea called Matcha Tea.  It is a green tea that is in powdered form and when drank is great for the body. Not only does it boost concentration, but its great for the immune system. Click on over and have a looksee for yourself. CLICK ME!!! 

If you look at that chart of nutrients you can sea that it has some of the things listed on previous sites that help with concentration and brain efficiency. Truthfully I have only been drinking for about 2 days, but with some splenda it is great tasting and did help me stay away this morning. Yes, it does have caffeine but I found that my body has tolerated it very well, and WITHOUT the jittery feeling, as long as I also keep myself hydrated through out the day with my 64 ounces of required water/fluid intake. If it was not 1215am right now i would be thinking about making myself a cup, but alas, i do need sleep to aid with the concentration part of my day. 

Well, once again, I hope this has been an informative blog about what we need to not become bariatric zombie patients lol.  

PS: I love writing post like this with lots of odd words. My screen lights up with yellow after spell check LOL


Til Next Time!