Hello everyone. I am an overweight mother of three boys and really want to lose weight so that I can keep up with them! I did Atkins 2 yrs ago and lost about 40 lbs but after returning to old habits, gained every bit back. I recently tried it again but did not seem to work like before and I felt deprived and horrible. I found this website and I love it. I have decided to try Sonoma and am on day 5 and have already lost 3 lbs so I want to stay with it. I do not have the book yet and have been trying to use info found here for now. I was hoping that you all could answer a couple of questions until then.

1. I love whole grains (bread, cereal, etc) and alternate eggs/toast & whole grain cereal/skim milk for breakfast. The trouble I am having is figuring out what is best for lunch and dinner. I am getting bored with chicken & brocolli and was hoping for a few ideas.

2. How many snacks are you allowed per day and should they only be veggies or nuts? (I can't wait for the fruit!) I have been eating almonds for every snack and I am worried about the fat content and whether that is too much. I just can't do the veggies for snacks since it seems that I am already eating so much of them.

3. Are any salad dressings okay? I found one that has zero calories, carbs, & fat, but it pretty much has zero taste as well. I love salads and it is a quick lunch to bring or pick up while at work.

4. Are you allowed any dairy except with cereal? I am used to half and half with my coffee and have substitued about 2 tbsp of skim milk instead. It is not as tasty but will do.

I guess that is it for now, sorry for the long thread. I love this forum and you all have been very helpful. Thank you.

Hi Christine! Welcome to Sonoma. I'm pretty new as well, but let me see if I can answer some of your questions.

1. There is a stickied thread on top of this page that lists the foods you can eat on Wave 1 and Wave 2. For lunch I've been having tofu and salad, ham in a low-carb wrap with veggies, black bean soup. For dinner I've had whole grain pasta with no sugar added tomato sauce, roasted veggies, and mostly veggie burgers and tofu for protein (I'm not a vegetarian, it's just what I've been craving!) You can also have brown rice, bulghur, and other whole grains.

2. I think she recommends 1 snack per day. A good suggestion is Laughing Cow cheese spread on cucumber slices. The almond serving is 11 - not many! It does cut my hunger, though.

3. There's no need to have that zero everything dressing. Mostly I've been having a teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil (which counts as 1 fat serving) and balsamic vinegar. There are recipes in the book, but I'm lazy!

4. You can have half and half! Just a tablespoon, though.

One thing I've been doing - and it's "cheating" on Wave 1, but allowed on Wave 2 - is toasting a piece of whole wheat bread and spreading it with a tablespoon of peanut butter for a snack. It feels like a treat and keeps me from really cheating.

Good luck and hope to chat more!

Thank you for the info Kate. I am now on day 7 and am doing fairly well. I think I have gotten off track a bit as I had 2 slices of whole wheat pizza AND roasted zuccini for dinner. I skipped the grain for breakfast since I new I was making the pizza. I hope this was not too off base. I ate the zuc first which kept me from grabbing an extra piece. I have got to get the book so that I can make sure I do not overdo it. The few recipies I have tried from here were delicious!

Thanks also for the PB toast and laughing cow cheese. I bought the light swiss one and it was wonderful. I put it on six reduced fat whole grain crackers as a snack and am hoping that was not too much.

Anyway, thanks again for the help. Only 3 more days til fruit!!!!!!!