[x0xmelissax0x]

I'm kind of inbetween houses right now... moving in with my boyfriend and his family and moving away from my family. It's so difficult and causing me to have serious binging problems. It doesn't help that all of my boyfriend's family is as skinny as a rail, and they love fried southern food. So the weight has piled on and I am now up to 225. Ugh! I've decided though... that since I used to be vegan, I want to go back to that lifestyle, so I'm starting out vegetarian right now. It's easier to maintain, and will deffinately help me get in more fruits and vegetables.

I found a wonderful book called Vegetarian and it's written by Barnes and Nobles. It has all of the different fruits and vegetables and grains and rice and milk and cheeses in it... and it tells you what it is and what kinds of health benefits it has. Then it has a bunch of recipes that are all vegetarian and could easily be made into vegan. Plus... all of the recipes have pictures, which I really love. Pretty much all of the recipes are simple and don't have any outrageous ingredients in them.

So, I'm starting again, at 225. Wish me luck you guys... I'm sure going to need it.

[penpal]

Good luck with your weight loss efforts! You can do it!!!!

[sli]

I love Southern food!!! So I can 100% sympathize with you!
Good luck with you new eating habits!

[GenreGirl]

Good for you! You can make it. It's hard change habits, but it's worth the effort. I too am slowly switching back to a vegetarian eating plan. It hasn't been too bad so far. I find myself carrying little bags of nuts & veggies in my purse so I always have a healthy snack.

Best wishes~

[freiamaya]

So healthy! Way to go to make the change!

[la3y_un1c0rn_37]

Oh yea I am southern too and I know where you are coming from....Its hard to stay away from that kind of stuff. I fight it every day...Good luck and keep posting.

[shananigans]

I’m midwestern so for me it’s all about fattening dairy products and casseroles laden with cheese. Oh, and lots of beer. Unfortunately I managed to be vegetarian and eat very few vegetables for many years. Good for you for making the change, you can do it!

[punkrockgrryl]

pick up a copy of 'neo soul: taking soul food to a whole nutha' level' by lindsey williams. southern soul food reworked low fat style. make a yummy (low fat) soul food dinner for the family!

[finn]

Melissa, congratulations on taking the decision to start again and I wish you the best of luck with it. Its gonna be tough but ya know what....its soooo worth it.
We're pretty much the same weight and I'm veggie too so if you ever need someone to chat you then give me a shout.
Finn