I realized that I had not posted in a while. I am way overdue!
I buy a 2lb block sharp cheddar cheese instead of regular. Then I shred it myself. I use less cheese because of the strong flavor. Also, what a great work out for the arms by shredding myself!
Things haven't been great for the past few months. I had the ERCP done, finally got the g-tube out, and still have the same pains. GRR. But anyways, I have picked up the pace recently and thought I would share some ideas.
Portion, Portion, Portion!
One of the major lessons I have learned from gastric bypass surgery, is portion control. When I go out to eat, it confounds me how much people consume in one meal.
That's like my food intake for a day or TWO!
I have gone through everything in my fridge and freezer and broken it down into portion appropriate sizes.
I don't sit there with a scale, everything is eyeballed. 15 months out, I know what I can handle.
-Seal it up in a snack size baggie
-Squeeze out as much excess air as I can
-Put those small bags into a 'real' freezer bag
-Stick it in the freezer. Out of sight, out of mind. It also makes it less accessible. Now I have to plan what I am going to have so that I can defrost it.
Utilize your freezer and sharpie!
I love certain foods but because I don't consume as much, they have a tendency to go bad before I can use all of it. Read the label to be sure product can be frozen!! Make sure you label the freezer bag so you know whats in there. BUHleieve me.. it looks different frozen sometimes!
Examples:
Avocados/guacamole. I buy Wholly Guacamole (or whatever is on sale) and I break it down into portion sizes, then freeze.
Roasted red peppers. Again, portion size and freeze.
Cheese. Any kind. I either cube, shred or slice, then freeze. Except for Laughing Cow cheese. Those six little wedges go too fast to freeze.
Ground beef. Depending upon how much I buy, I usually cook ASAP. If not, portion out, freeze. Make some with taco seasoning, cool, portion out, freeze.
Bananas. Whatever starts going south, peel, portion out, freeze. Awesome for smoothies, pancakes, etc.
Bread. Bagel thins, Ezekial Sesame bread, Whole wheat bread, Flaouts, etc. I always freeze at least 1/2 the bag. This stuff doesn't fit into snack baggies, obviously. I usually wrap in wax paper first. Keeps everything from sticking together. If I freeze half of it, I have more of a variety to choose from when the urge hits. And no white flour. ONLY whole grain/whole wheat. None of that 'enriched' bull.
Chicken./Turkey. Depending upon time and umph, I may stick some in crock pot with chicken broth, shred, cool, portion out, freeze. Grill, cube, cool, portion out, freeze. Marinate, cook, cool, portion out, freeze.
Frozen veggies. I break down into smaller portions, label, stick back in freezer.
Turkey or chicken sausage. Cook, cool, portion out, freeze.
You get where I am going with this. I try to make the most of out of everything and let nothing go to waste. The possibilities are almost endless.
Other little things....
Leftover coffee...Wait, what's that???! LOL. When it cools, I dont dump it down the drain. I put it in my watering can. My plants are huge now that I do this. Great for rooting plants too.
I make a huge batch of waffles or pancakes. Cool, wrap individually in wax paper, freeze. Awesome for when my son is in the mood for it and I don't feel like cooking.
I buy a 2lb block sharp cheddar cheese instead of regular. Then I shred it myself. I use less cheese because of the strong flavor. Also, what a great work out for the arms by shredding myself!
Medicine/vitamins. I take buttloads. So once a week, I break out my little cheat sheet and put in old medicine bottles (I have TONS, which are cleaned first) Then fill according to day and time of day. This has been the only effective way for me to remember to get daily dose of calcium. (Body can only use 500mg at a time, 2-3 hours apart. Thats for everyone, not just bariatric patients.) I programmed my cell phone to remind me as well.