Hi I'm Liz... 55 from phila area. i'm 5'8", 242 lbs. I am a lifetime member but just rejoined last night. I also had gastric sleeve surgery several years ago but no matter what I did only lost 40 lbs and then regained 30

It'd be really helpful for me to see what everyone is eating daily! (i.e. menu)

Thanks!!
Liz

There are so many choices for what to eat that I think it is all but impossible to come up with a set menu. No foods are forbidden. We all have different ideas of how we like to eat. The main thing is to stay within the points.

This has been a life saver for me. I can easily alter most things I normally eat to fit WW, or I can have whatever I want in smaller portions. It has been such a relief to be able to still go out to lunch with friends, dinner with my family, festivals on the weekends (I live in Louisiana, we love our festivals!), etc and STILL lose weight. I just need to be aware of my portions. I love it. I don't feel like I've had to stop living my life and the weight is still coming off steadily. I don't feel deprived or left out, I never have to explain myself in social situations or talk about things I "can" or "can't" eat. I love it. I love this version of WW.

I don't know how many points you're working with, but I try to keep my meals to around 10 points per meal. I've been making grilled alfalfa sandwiches (bread, reduced fat swiss, sprouts, spinach, tomatoes, dijon), and it's 11 points. Turkey sandwiches on thin bread. I also make a big batch of homemade marinara, which can be paired with shirataki or zucchini noodles. It's roma tomatoes, yellow onions, orange peppers, zucchini, garlic, and tomato paste, with tons of fresh basil.

Also, soups: I make BIG batches of soup (around 20 servings), which ends up being anywhere from 5 - 8 points each. They're generous servings, super filling, and packed with nutrients. One even uses heavy cream and cheese, ahh! Delish.

I would love to know what kinds of soups you're making!

My chicken noodle soup is... 4 cups onions, 2 cups celery, 8 cups carrots, 4 chicken breasts, 12 oz. noodles, 5 64-oz cartons low-sodium chicken stock, and a low-sodium soup starter base. I use way too many bay leaves, rosemary, pepper, oregano, lemon juice, and salt to taste.

It sounds like a lot, but when you break it down into 15 - 20 servings (depending on how much you want), you end up with a serving of soup that's anywhere from 2 - 4 cups: a really full meal, packed with veggies. I spend about three hours making soup per week, and end up with enough servings for a week, + a few to force-feed my husband, freeze, and give to neighbors. The chicken soup is 4 - 6 points per serving, roughly.

I will, say, you gotta really like soup to live in my house.

My other favorite soup to make is cauliflower. It's the same recipe as above, with three heads of cauliflower instead of the chicken and noodles. Towards the end, I thicken it with one pint of heavy cream (you can use half-and-half if you want) and a little bit of cornstarch. I then serve it over a small scoop of low-fat sour cream, and sprinkle some reduced fat cheddar cheese on it. That batch makes anywhere from 15 - 20 servings as well, and is about 5 - 7 points per (very, very generous) serving.

I also make a lentil soup (I calculated that it's about 2 - 3 points per serving), French onion (whoo, that's like 8 points per serving), vegetable (also 2 - 3 points per serving), etc. I'm trying to figure out how to make a low-calorie chili I love, since kidney beans aren't free!

Thanks for all that! We DO love soup, my daughter especially. We also tend to go heavy on the bay leaves. LOVE. I can feel some cauliflower soup coming on this weekend. Thanks!

I'm 3 weeks in on WW (former lifetimer too) - tired of "winging it" this week so I'm going to plan a menu for next week.
Im down 6.4 pounds and hope to lose at LEAST 1 pound a week for the rest of this year. I have a total of 35 to lose, but I want to be in the 170's by the new year.

I will post my menu when I'm finished.

Ok, here's a few meals i plan on making this week:
Santa Fe Chicken Soup - may be for a dinner or to keep on hand for lunches
Marinated beef (flank stead most likely) with broccoli/Cauliflower salad
Roasted Turkey Breast; mashed cauliflower; fresh green beans
Pork Tenderloin Paprikash; Noodle/Cauliflower mix; green salad
Quiche and salad - try to find a SP friendly recipe

At least I have the basics there and can tweek it as I go. I usually look things up on the ap to get the most bang for my points when choosing a meat/protein recipe

Ooh, it was really interesting to look back and see how much things have changed for me in the past two months! Originally, my alfalfa sandwiches were 11 points. Now, they're 4!!! I found a healthier bread that I absolutely love (and which is made by a local bakery--score!), and I switched from full-fat cheese to Cabot Vermont 75% Cheddar, which tastes delicious. I also stopped grilling them with butter or even margarine, and now I use Earth Balance Buttery spray--same taste and crispiness, but so much better for me! This is really cool.

Did you ever end up finding menu items that worked for you?