Houston! We have been cleared for all foods!

Went in today for my first post op nutritionist consult. It went pretty well and I even got the go ahead to start introducing back whatever foods I want (within reason--no triple layer better than sex chocolate cake)!

We discussed my daily eating habits, what type of exercise I've been comfortable with and when I think I want to take it to the next level. We talked about ways to track my calories and protein intake. She told me to keep it around 1200-1500 calories a day and 90g of protein a day. Also, that making sure I got at least 6 glasses of water was a MUST! Lately that hasn't been a problem for me. I seem to be thirsty ALL the time.

We looked at the scale--DOWN another 5lbs, however since I gained back 4 during the intro to mushies stage, it was really only a 1lb weight loss which brings me to a total of 24lbs lost in 26 days! Im averaging not quite 1lb per day. I guess I need to step it up hahaah.

Either way it was a good visit. I go in 2 more weeks for my very first fill so of course I'll make sure to document that on here as well.

MMMMmmmm YUM!

So along with rants and raves about my weight loss I figure I can add recipes and other things that I have been trying along the way to eat better or at least attempt to eat better. One of the things that I am able to eat was found not by me, but by my wonderful husband! He has been working to eat low carb but wanted to be able to subdue the sweet cravings when they reared their ugly heads. Upon his searching he found this site that had a DELICIOUS low carb-no sugar cheesecake recipe.

Now I know that many people don't like to have to click on links, so I have gone ahead and copied/pasted the recipe for you here: ENJOY!!!!

Lemon is one of the most popular cheesecake varieties. I think it's because the acid of the lemon cuts through some of the richness of the cream cheese. The key is to get "the right amount" of lemony flavor without it being sour. One trick is to use lemon zest (the yellow part of the lemon peel), which has a lot of lemon flavor and negligible carbs. I like using a microplane grater, which makes it easy to remove the zest without getting the bitter white pith beneath.
Ingredients:

Crust:

1 ¼ cup almond meal
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
3 Tablespoons sugar equivalent in artificial sweetener (makes it no sugar)

Filling:

1 ½ lbs (3 packages) cream cheese, room temperature
1 ¼ cups sugar equivalent in artificial sweetener (preferably liquid, see below)
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
4 eggs, room temperature
¼ cup lemon juice (fresh is best)
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
¼ cup heavy cream
Topping:
1 cup sour cream
Juice and zest from 1 medium lemon (about 2 Tablespoons juice and 1 Tablespoon zest)
¼ cup sugar equivalent in artificial sweetener (powdered erythritol or liquid sweetener preferred)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation:

Heat oven to 375 F.

Prepare a springform pan. I like to put a piece of parchment paper over the bottom of the pan; no need to cut it to size, just snap it into place when you tighten the sides of the pan. Butter the sides and bottom of the pan, including parchment. Wrap the outside of the pan in heavy-duty foil to protect it from leaks.

Combine ingredients for crust. Press the mixture into the bottom of your springform pan. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until fragrant and beginning to brown. Remove from oven.
Lower oven temperature to 350 F.

Gather ingredients for the filling. Beat cream cheese until fluffy. Scrape sides of bowl and beaters. (The mixture will gradually become lighter as you add in the rest of the ingredients, and the denser stuff will cling to the bowl. If you don't scrape, you won't be able to incorporate the remaining ingredients as well.)

Add sweetener, vanilla, salt, and 2 of the eggs. Beat well, scrape.

Add the other 2 eggs. Beat well, scrape.

Add lemon juice, lemon zest, and cream. Beat well, scrape, and pour filling mixture into the pan over the crust.

In another bowl, mix together ingredients for topping and set aside.

Place a baking pan large enough to hold your springform pan into the oven and fill it halfway with boiling water. Place the springform pan into the baking pan and bake for about 60 minutes (give or take 10 to 15 minutes), until the cheesecake is mostly set but is still wobbly in the middle.

Remove cheesecake from oven, spread the topping over the cheesecake, then bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Cool to room temperature (1 to 2 hours), then chill completely for several hours before serving.

Nutritional Information:

Each of 16 servings has 3 grams effective carbohydrate plus 1 gram fiber, 7 grams protein, and 295 calories.