My first post

Tiny54

O.K. I'm 58, happily married (35 yrs) Male. 6'9" and ideally would like to lose 68 more pounds. In the last 6 months I've lost 50 lbs. And I've kept "fine tuning" my food intake these last 6 months to a point where I am trying very much to NOT consume ANY processed foods which pretty much limits you to fruits and vegetables. I haven't yet gotten away from the "processed" salad dressings but hopefully in time I'll find all the good homemade recipes that will taste as good as the honey mustard, ranch and blue cheese I've always loved. Perhaps I'll try forcing myself to like vinaigrette dressings (i dont know how that can be possible) but to make a long story a little shorter I think it will help me if I get involved with a group of you folks that are trying as i am and get some egging on and support that can help.
Later.
Tiny

Steve_ApexNC

welcome and great job on the first 50. Keep it up.

You do sound down like fresh cooking limits you. I think it is processed foods that limit you. You can twist and tweak any flavor you want when you do it yourself. Try to see it as having total control over the entertainment of your tastebuds. As to vinaigrette....my guess is you are thinking in terms of the basic Italian vin. Vinaigrette is nothing more than a bit of acid and flavors whipped into an emulsion with a fat (typically oil). The variations are endless - use lemon as your acid instead of vinegar for example. Add some fresh herbs if you want - say some poppy the already mentioned lemon. Have fun with it. If you just don't dig that base, you can do homemade honey mustard (dijon and honey is a great start) and I make a killer ranch that the kids demolish over any bottled stuff. And, yes, there are ways to skinny 'em up a bit. The point is, you can make great tasting dressings at home that are way better than what is in the bottle. Use fresh ingredients and give yourself a little time to learn how.

Anyway. good luck on the rest of the weight loss and your continued journey.

_incogNEATo_

Do you have any medical conditions that would cause a need to cut out certain foods? Why would you force yourself to eat something that you don't like?