Cronometer Saves the Day
Hi! I lost about 150 lbs after having gastric bypass surgery. Many times during my weight loss phase I would get worried (unnecessarily, but that's me!) about whether I was getting adequate nutrition. I would turn to Cronometer and log my food for a couple of days and voila, would discover that I was doing just fine.
I also used Cronometer to prove to my surgical nutritionist that I'm getting adequate protein on my mostly-vegan diet. And knowing how many vitamins actually take in helps me adjust my vitamin & mineral supplements so that I'm not taking in excess (which can be as bad for you as too little).
Most of my friends who've had this surgery have regained a substantial amount (like 30% or more) of their weight. Even though this is pretty common and usually doesn't re-start the serious health problems they had before the surgery, I really want to avoid significant regain because, well, it's really fun to be slim! So I continue to weigh weekly and whenever I gain more than a couple of pounds, I use Cronometer to track what I'm eating/drinking to show me what I've been doing wrong. Sometimes its as simple as not drinking enough water, and sometimes it's eating more high-calorie treats than I'd realized.
For example, using Cronometer helped me identify a pattern that was causing me to gain weight. I eat primarily WFPB, but a few months ago started eating cheese. I didn't think I was eating that much but nevertheless was gaining weight. After faithfully tracking everything I ate/drank in Cronometer, though, the graph made it crystal clear that every night I had wine, I also went WAY over the number of calories I needed. Digging a little further into the graph data (LOVE that feature of Cronometer) proved the unwelcome fact that most of those excess calories were coming from the cheese! (Apparently a little wine has a big effect on my ability to estimate cheese intake, lol!)
WFPB + No-Added-Oil = EZ Wt Maint & Rocket Fuel for Your Health!
Comments
Wow! Congratulations @talkingmountain!
So good to hear Cronometer has been instrumental to your success!
I hear you with the Cheese! So easy to chow down - especially with the help of some wine! Sounds like you have your evenings sorted - love wine and cheese nights!
Hilary
cronometer.com
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https://forums.cronometer.com/discussion/27/governing-terms-and-disclaimer
I try to limit it to weekends only now. That's at least stopped the weight gain. May have to cut it out entirely to reverse the weight gain but I'm not sure I'm ready to do that yet, lol (even though dairy cheese makes my joints ache...)
WFPB + No-Added-Oil = EZ Wt Maint & Rocket Fuel for Your Health!
@talkingmountain do you have any good recommendations for plant based cheeses? I have seen some pretty cool looking recipes floating around the internet!
Hilary
cronometer.com
As always, any and all postings here are covered by our T&Cs:
https://forums.cronometer.com/discussion/27/governing-terms-and-disclaimer
Definitely! Are you looking for recipes or for store-bought options?
WFPB + No-Added-Oil = EZ Wt Maint & Rocket Fuel for Your Health!
Recipes!
Hilary
cronometer.com
As always, any and all postings here are covered by our T&Cs:
https://forums.cronometer.com/discussion/27/governing-terms-and-disclaimer
@Hilary, sorry it took me so long to reply! Here is our favorite cheese "sauce" recipe. What I love about this recipe is that everyone, even non-adventuresome SAD-eaters, love it (I've only made it with cashews).
This is a very "forgiving" sauce:
"Not-So-Cheese Sauce," adapted from Vitamix's cookbook
Makes about 6-7 cups of "cheese" sauce. You can make a half-recipe first to see if you like it. However, do not try to double this recipe because it won't fall fit in a Vitamix!
INGREDIENTS
1 cup water
2 Tablespoons lemon juice (fresh if possible, it really does make a difference).
1/4 cup canned pimentos, drained, OR 1/2 to 1 roasted red pepper, rinsed & drained (if using roasted red pepper paste, use about 2 Tbsp or the manufacturer's equivalent measure to 1/2-1 whole pepper)
2/3 cup whole, _raw _cashews* or almonds* (NOT roasted or salted!)
1 1/4 teaspoons onion powder
1/4 cup nutritional yeast (more or less to taste)
1.5 to 2 teaspoons salt (if used to packaged foods & dairy cheese, use 2 tsp. Can reduce or omit for low-salt diet).
1 1/2 cups _boiling _water (have simmering water at the ready, or microwave to boiling just before using)
4 Tablespoons (i.e.1/4 cup) potato starch mixed with 1/4 to 1/2 cup cold water (use just enough water to be able to soften/suspend the starch so that you can pour/scrape it into the blender).
DIRECTIONS
SUBSTITUTIONS FOR NON-HIGH-POWERED BLENDERS (OR NOT HAVING AN INGREDIENT)
*Substitutes for the pimentos or roasted red peppers:
- Use roasted red pepper paste (available in a tube in most groceries' canned tomatoes or Italian foods section).
- Though it won't taste the same, you also can substitute about 1/2-1 tsp of tomato paste plus a few drops of "smoke" flavoring , or 1/2 to 1 tsp smoked paprika (or chipotle pepper if you want spicy-hot).
*Substitutes for the cashews or almonds:
HINTS:
IDEAS ON HOW TO USE THIS SAUCE:
WFPB + No-Added-Oil = EZ Wt Maint & Rocket Fuel for Your Health!
Wow! Thanks! I'm definitely going to try this on the weekend!!!
Hilary
cronometer.com
As always, any and all postings here are covered by our T&Cs:
https://forums.cronometer.com/discussion/27/governing-terms-and-disclaimer
I can't seem to edit the post -- forgot to include the amount of nut butter to use.
If you are substituting cashew or almond nut butter for actual nuts, use about half the amount of nuts. E.g. about 1/3 cup nut butter if making a full recipe.
WFPB + No-Added-Oil = EZ Wt Maint & Rocket Fuel for Your Health!
I have been using Cronometer to adjust my diet/lifestyle since being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes on October 26, 2017. At the time of my diagnosis, I weighed 205 lbs. and had a body fat % of 25.0 (I am a male, 54 years old, and am 6'1" tall).
When I returned to my doctor for my first post diagnosis visit on November 29, I had lost 11 pounds in 34 days using Cronometer. My body fat % also decreased to 22.7%.
As of today, 85 days after my diagnosis, I weigh 190 lbs. with a body fat % of 21.2%.
I have been going to the YMCA about 3 times a week (usually 45 minutes on the treadmill) and have used Cronometer to help me achieve a 500 calorie/day deficit. These two things have been critical to my success.
I want to publicly thank the good folks at Cronometer for a great product! In the past, I had used CalorieCount.com but I found out in October when I got my diagnosis that it had gone out of business. Thankfully, Cronometer has filled its shoes (and then some).
I am very grateful to Cronometer. I expect that when I go back to my doctor on March 20 for lab tests that my diabetes and other markers (high cholesterol & triglycerides) will be much improved.
Being on the Keto diet, I am considering the day when I will be using Cronometer to bring my weight loss under control!
The Trends page lets you see how your data looks over time. You can see how your calories and macronutrients have been historically broken down mobdro.