I (like a few others I see) are swithcing from Flex to Core. I am not certain what to do about a few of my favorite things to eat though. I have not been able to have them on Flex b/c they are just too many points but I checked all of the indgr. and I thought they might be core. I love Olive salad and it is made with virgin olive oil, so it the marinated artichoke heartts. Is it ok for me to have those and do I need to make sure I use only say a Tsbp.? I had them on a salad last night and I felt totally guilty b/c I didn't measure them out. I didn't freak out and eat the whole jar either.

I guess like most of us tha switch I am concered about the "you can eat as much of ______ as you want as long as you eat a core food". Is there a liknk that will esplain this better? I can honesty say that when I joined WW in Jan I didn't pay attention to the Core explanation b/c I just knew that Flex would be the way.

Thanks for listening.

I'd like to add to that line of questioning... Is any lunch/deli meat a core food? Why or why not? Do any of the frozen WW or LC meals work as core foods? I noticed in my big Food Guide book that some things I use regularly (and count) like the packaged pre-cooked grilled chicken strips are not checked as core foods. If lean chicken is core, then why wouldn't this be core?

Deli lunch meat is not a core food. Most of the WW or lean cuisine meals aren't core because the don't use whole grains. Look at the ingredients on the chicken strips. If it's just grilled chicken, I'd say they are a core food. The rule about fats is that you have one tbls of evoo a day. That's the rule. If it's more than that, I think you have to count the points.

The most important point, though, is that the line is not "You can eat all you want". The line is that you should eat until you are "satisfied". Not stuffed. Not full. "Satisfied".

It's been a while since I've done ww, so someone else might have more up to date information. When I was doing core, I tried to stay away from any processed foods. When you make it yourself, you know exactly what's in it.

First of all, to all of you. I hope that you will find our little corner of the internet to be helpful and encouraging!
Kateful did a good job of answering your questions. Core is confusing at first, but once you get the hang of it it's very liberating!

Ok, I am still a little confused about the olive oil thing. I can only have 1 Tbsp of it but I can have FF dressing s for my salad? I would think it would be better to have the olive oil instead of the processed dressing. I really don't like the taste of the FF stuff either so I have no idea what I am going to do on my salad. I am trying to have 2 a day (1 is small) and I have to have some sort of dressing or I can't eat it.

It is kind of frustrating b/c my book from week one doesn't really tell you all the ins and outs of Core. I am so used to measuring everything I don't know how to let go and just eat. Plus, I am still worried I am eating the wrong stuff.

Any info you guys have I will use I am ready to get past this platue and move on with more weight loss.

You have 35 WPA to use for whatever you want. You can also eat whatever APs you earn. So if salad dressing is really important to you, you could use your extra points for that. It'd be great motivation to exercise everyday knowing you need salad dressing on you lunch salad.

I don't have my ww stuff at work. Since we moved recently, I might not even have it at home. I don't like ff salad dressing either, as a rule. However, I have made my own with FF sour cream and ranch mix (which is all core). I've also used picante sauce or just a little lemon juice. You could probably mix ff sour cream with lots of different spice mixes for other salad dressings.

Google "fat free salad dressing recipes" and compare w/ core food list. Select those that fit and make your own.

P.S. You can only have 2 teaspoons of good oil daily. There are 3 teaspoons in a tablespoon. I hate to be the bearer of bad news! I love Henri's FF honey dijon dressing. Wishbone also makes a yummy FF italian. In our recipe list I also give my Mom's thousand island salad dressing which I converted to Core. I guarantee that you love it. I also recommend that you buy the Daily Food Companion (or whatever it's called now). It has brand names and all kinds of helpful information. Don't buy the Dining Out guide though since there's hardly anything in there that is Core.

Good Luck!

Vickie I got the kit when I joined but I didn't even look at the dressing section. I just though that all of the FF dressings would taste bad. It has been a few years since I have tried them. I do like the idea of using FF sour cream and ranch and I totally forgot about salsa. I love that on salads.

Also, you are right about the dinning out guide. It is depressing to look thourhg it and only see that salsa is core. It really makes you want to eat at home more. I guess that would be a good thing. If I am going to make this work I have to figure out what to eat for lunch when I am at work. I made Flex work I am sure I can do this.