Thanks, Joanna. Yes, I'm not anxious for open knee surgery!
To answer your earlier questions, all told I lost about 25 pounds. I exercised a very large amount throughout most of the time, but I also lost weight when I wasn't. I am addicted to exercise, and it really makes me feel and look my best, but for actual weight loss I am a great example of how much more important eating habits are than exercise.
So on a typical day here is what I might eat:
Breakfast:
*Coffee
(only decaf, with skim milk)
*Oatmeal
(I eat plain oatmeal with some combo of frozen or fresh fruit--peaches, berries, bananas, mangoes, whatever--and nuts or peanut butter)
OR
*Multigrain bagel with egg and cheese
Lunch:
*Salad
(to me, "salad" means a huge affair with dark green greens (mesclun, spinach etc) with some combo of protein and fat (tofu, tuna, cheese, nuts, seeds, etc) and tomatoes, carrots, and other fresh veggies. I don't really like most regular salad dressings, so I make my own--either a blend of cottage cheese and salsa or soy sauce and brown mustard.)
*Fresh fruit
(apple, orange, banana, peach)
*Bread
(sometimes I have a piece of bread or a roll or something--always whole grain or whole wheat)
OR
*Tuna on whole wheat
(I don't like mayonaise, so I make my tuna salad with mustard and Old Bay, plus chopped celery and artichoke hears. A slice of tomato is a must).
*Fresh fruit
Dinner
*Stir fry
(veggies--might include broccoli, mushrooms, asparagus, carrots, peppers, etc--and again, some kind of protein, like fish or tofu. I say "stir fry," but this is just as likely to mean a Mexican or Italian "stir fry," so salsa and cheese or diced tomatoes, balsamic, and basil, as it is soy sauce and asian spices).
*Fresh fruit
(apple, banana, berries, peach, orange)
*Bread
(again, sometimes, the same as lunch)
OR
*Pizza!!
OR
*Sushi!!
I don't like juice or soda, so I drink seltzer water, coffee, and herbal tea.
On S days, my treats are usually cookies and frozen yogurt!!