Thanks MickiSue, it's interesting because I am already not craving at all, even on day 1 and 2, and I feel so much more solid eating the meat and fat :-). I was in the Health Food Store and Walgreens today and the chocolate and goodies everywhere did not even make be bat an eyeball.

And the real bonus is that I lost 2 lbs. already!!!

No coffee?? I couldn't do that either! Ask him why? Does he think caffeine is a problem? Might consider decaf, or if not the caffeine, then maybe you could drink a strong black tea. Or just do all the rest of his diet and ignore that one rule

The Eat Bacon guidelines are pretty strict too...but at least Petersen has Coffee in the am
Last night was the local LC support group and Dr Westman recommended two books for holiday gifts. The Eat Bacon book (never heard him mention it before..a funny coincidence) and the Ketogenic Cookbook by Moore And Emmerich (all the recipes are truly ketogenic)

I'll be right here helpin' you celebrate your better health and skinny-dom 'cause we have 119 days (17 weeks/4.25 months) and counting!!

Heck even at the low end of losing 1-2 lbs a week (which is realistic and do-able, IMHO), you could be down to your goal weight or really close! Wouldn't that be a super duper B'day present to yourself? Cause you really are SO Worth IT!!! I agree with you, if you'd followed her advice you'd probably would have gained more weight! It's tragic that most health care professionals are STILL advocating the SAD cause it's killing us slowly but surely!

I'm glad you saw the light and realized that the LC WOE was your ticket to better health!

Keep Fighting the Good Hard Fight, 'cause you really are WORTH IT!

HUGE Congrats on your 2 lbs ↓ DOWN! WTG!

I do drink one rather weak decaf but he says it creates an insulin response - his whole diet is "insulin reducing". He doesn't allow caffeinated tea either, or bacon!

I am going to go with the coffee for now, I'm giving up lots and that's one thing I want. He's the only one who says this and he is SUPER strict with his own diet but I'm not there yet.

And I've lost 4 lbs. in 2 days so, so far it's not slowing me down. And it's more than I lost in 6 weeks last try!!! .

I will look at that cookbook too.

Thanks Jo, now it's 4!!!! I am so happy that it's working this time!

Here's an easy one: buy a boneless pork roast--I think it's called loin roast, but basically it's a lump of meat. You can often find these on special. Look online for a "rub" recipe, or just use salt and pepper, seasoned salt, anything you've got. Rub-A-Dub that roast. Put it in a crockpot on low and cook it all day (or night). Sometimes I add a little broth--maybe half a cup. At the end of the day, pull out that pork and use a couple of forks or your fingers to shred it. Voila. Pulled pork for a week or more. I freeze portions of it, because I get tired of it before it's all gone. I eat it with a little sauce made of mayo and sriracha. You can heat it a bit and dump it in a salad. Heat it in a skillet with eggs on the side.

Bon Appetit.

Thanks Barbara, I saw a small pork loin roast yesterday and almost bought it but didn't know how it would turn out! I will try this for sure...It sounds awesome and your sauce does too!

I don't know if this helps, but, basically, a pot roast is any cut of meat that needs to be cooked slowly (or under pressure) with moisture, so that it absorbs the moisture. Otherwise it gets dry, tasteless and tough.

Think of the thick, flat top roasts you see at the grocery store--they're pot roasts, no matter what they're called. The pork loin recipe from Barb is mouth-watering, but you could even cook that in the oven--roast it--because a loin is more tender.

If you can find old copies of Rachael Ray's 30 minute meals somewhere on the internet, they'd be a great way to learn methods of cooking really tasty food quickly.

Just ignore the carby stuff that she makes, but she also makes a lot of excellent sauces, one pot meals, etc, that teach you the good techniques for easily cooking something much tastier than take out, and actually faster, if you make sure you have the ingredients on hand.

One of my favorite recipes is one I made up after seeing her cooking chicken thighs so frequently. Get a package of chicken thighs, an onion and two peppers. Could both be sweet, one a little hot, whatever you like.

I used to use skinless boneless thighs; now I use them with the skin on. Put enough oil (I use olive, but coconut or even bacon grease would be awesome) in the bottom of a frying pan or large skillet, and, when the oil is hot, add the thighs. Season one side with whatever you want. I use salt, pepper, dry mustard, paprika, coriander and dill. Turn when you can easily lift the cooking side without tearing the meat, and season the other side.

While that side is cooking, cut the onion and the peppers into good sized chunks, and spread around and on top of the chicken. Cover, and turn heat down to medium low, cook for another 15 minutes, and eat.

Thanks for sharing a bit more about your situation.

When I was single, I was fed at work but precariously employed at minimum wage. That made groceries at home a bit difficult. I really only had to make food on my days off. My fridge was a total 18-yr-old frat boy fridge: empty except for a door full of condiments, vodka, cream for my coffee, and a Brita pitcher most of the time.

My go-tos: lots in the freezer. Soups, stews and chili. When you make them, make enough to freeze in Ziploc containers in the freezer that you can easily microwave.

Something I have now and wish I had then: a clam shell/George Foreman grill. SOOOOO many easy, quick meals that way. You can buy fresh or frozen burger patties, sausages, chicken breasts, wieners; and throw a few veggie slices on that grill for an awesome meal. You don't have to call it "cooking."

MikiSue thanks for the Rachel Ray tip. Do you eat the chicken thighs with just the peppers or add any other veggies?

Kristine, thanks, I am getting better at it - I made the spinach lasagna today and am going to try the oopsie rolls and cauliflower mac and cheese.

I do have a foreman grill but prefer my BBQ!

My two ingredient pork recipe: any pork roast and any jar of salsa (I use the green or verde sauce from Trader Joe's) cook on low in crockpot all day, shred it and you have fajitas for days. Great over a salad with Mexican cheeses, sour cream, olives slices. If you like spicy foods, mix leftovers with eggs too for breakfast.

There have been so so many studies about coffee, and none have ever convinced me that the insulin response is a negative thing. I don't get a BG rise from it, and Dr Westman allowed three caffeine drinks a day, so I am sipping a big mug now as I type.

http://authoritynutrition.com/coffee-good-or-bad/

Mark Sisson answered a question specifically about coffee and the insulin response, which makes sense in context. http://www.marksdailyapple.com/coff...-workout-meals/

Ohhh, that sounds really good, I'm going to try it. Do you think I could use green enchilada sauce and green chilies? I love enchiladas!

One more question, I have a rather large crock pot, does it matter if my roast is not really big?

Thanks!

I think I need to try Janet's recipe, too. NTS: put pork roast and salsa on shopping list.

OK, I have a pork loin roast and salsa verde in the crock pot now, I' so excited. I was going to do the enchilada sauce with green chilies but I noticed there was some sugar in the sauce so I used Herdez salsa. I hope it turns out well!

Today was a rough day, I didn't feel well - not sure if it was the WOE or my thyroid. I wanted to eat something sweet as it would have instantly made me feel better (sad isn't it? but true) but alas I kept to plan!