Happy Sunday MENA

[Nasturtium 500]

Julianna, I know what you mean; I've gained about 20 pounds since my husband's been here. He loves to eat, especially at night and does not want to eat alone (without me). I've got to think of a way to stop this; it's getting out of hand.

Oh lordy-- exactly. I gained 20lbs exactly since he's been here and I had gained about 10 or so since i had seen him last... add to that the 9lbs off i was form my goal and I was freaking out when I realized I was 39lbs over what I want to be. I got right on my stairstepper and did 30 minutes for the first time! Ammar loves bread, rice, and soda. He also only wants to eat with me, and sometimes wants me to eat off the piece he's eating off of, so I just had to explain to him I cannot do that anymore and why. I forget who posted the cinnamon roll recipe, but they are evil I made them for him and have made them every single day for teh past 2 weeks. He;s the only person I know who can eat a dozen cinnamon rolls every day for 2 weeks and still be thin.

[hollyw 0]

He;s the only person I know who can eat a dozen cinnamon rolls every day for 2 weeks and still be thin.

:::jealous:::

The same thing happened to me.. I was used to eating yogurt, chicken, brown rice, steamed veggies and drinking sparkling water and when Medy showed up that all went out the window. After a a month or two I had to admit myself that I just can't eat loads of carbs, drink soda, and eat a pint of ice cream every day.

[Nasturtium 500]

He;s the only person I know who can eat a dozen cinnamon rolls every day for 2 weeks and still be thin.

:::jealous:::

The same thing happened to me.. I was used to eating yogurt, chicken, brown rice, steamed veggies and drinking sparkling water and when Medy showed up that all went out the window. After a a month or two I had to admit myself that I just can't eat loads of carbs, drink soda, and eat a pint of ice cream every day.

I know. Why do we have to suffer so? I made Ammar weigh himself and he's 170lbs at 6'2". I am going shopping today for more veggies. I like them, but I just don't like having to make 2 things since he doesn't like cooked vegetables and wants rice.

[hollyw 0]

He;s the only person I know who can eat a dozen cinnamon rolls every day for 2 weeks and still be thin.

:::jealous:::

The same thing happened to me.. I was used to eating yogurt, chicken, brown rice, steamed veggies and drinking sparkling water and when Medy showed up that all went out the window. After a a month or two I had to admit myself that I just can't eat loads of carbs, drink soda, and eat a pint of ice cream every day.

I know. Why do we have to suffer so? I made Ammar weigh himself and he's 170lbs at 6'2". I am going shopping today for more veggies. I like them, but I just don't like having to make 2 things since he doesn't like cooked vegetables and wants rice.

my husband's the same way.. he won't eat veggies unless they're cooked into a soggy, mushy mess We have also had to resort to making two meals most of the time... at least until i join a gym

[ya falaha! 0]

Sorry for intruding in the conversation but I really can relate. My husband doesn't like cooked vegetables either unless it's a potato and usually it has to be fried. I've also had the same problems about gaining weight since my husband's been here. He loves burgers and red meat in general. Doesn't really care for "healthy" foods like stir fry or salads..unless they're covered in ranch dressing, lol. It's a bit frustrating having to cook two seperate meals. He has gained a bit of weight but seems to be losing it now that he's working over 60 hrs a week and not eating as much as when he was sitting home.

He;s the only person I know who can eat a dozen cinnamon rolls every day for 2 weeks and still be thin.

:::jealous:::

The same thing happened to me.. I was used to eating yogurt, chicken, brown rice, steamed veggies and drinking sparkling water and when Medy showed up that all went out the window. After a a month or two I had to admit myself that I just can't eat loads of carbs, drink soda, and eat a pint of ice cream every day.

I know. Why do we have to suffer so? I made Ammar weigh himself and he's 170lbs at 6'2". I am going shopping today for more veggies. I like them, but I just don't like having to make 2 things since he doesn't like cooked vegetables and wants rice.

[hollyw 0]

Sorry for intruding in the conversation but I really can relate. My husband doesn't like cooked vegetables either unless it's a potato and usually it has to be fried. I've also had the same problems about gaining weight since my husband's been here. He loves burgers and red meat in general. Doesn't really care for "healthy" foods like stir fry or salads..unless they're covered in ranch dressing, lol. It's a bit frustrating having to cook two seperate meals. He has gained a bit of weight but seems to be losing it now that he's working over 60 hrs a week and not eating as much as when he was sitting home.

Yup, unless it's fried, covered in some kind of really fattening sauce, or straight sugar he doesn't like it! He also eats potatoes about 5 times a week and it's either fried or mashed with a huge amount of butter.

I've also had to start buying 2% or whole milk for him and skim milk for myself. Butter for him, magarine for me. Full fat for him, fat free for me. Even for breakfast we have all kinds of eggo waffles and toaster pastries and croissants for him and I get a yogurt... *maybe* some granola... And I won't let him cook north african foods for me anymore because I have sat in the kitchen with him while he cooks and have seen how much f-ing olive oil he puts in the food!!! He puts in 1/2 a cup of oil to saute some onions when, really, a tablespoon or two is pllllenty..

He's put on a little weight since being here, but is by no means fat. Although the button on his favorite pair of jeans won't button I have to admit I kind of enjoy that

[Nasturtium 500]

Pshaw, you're not interrupting or intruding. We can fast make this the "how much weight did your husband cause you to gain when he moved here from the ME" thread.

My husband only eats raw veggies which is good, but sometimes a lot of raw makes my stomach hurt.. so I do stirfries. He feels SF are not good at all, because they involve a bunch of cooked vegetables. He does love fried potatoes of any kind. He does not liek things which he defines as being "wet" in texture, so no mashed potatoes, no pastas, no matza ball soup, etc. This is both good and bad I guess... but stirfries are "somewhat too wet" in his opinion as well, and I have to be cautious about what I decide to make. He did decide he adores chicken cut up and fried like a stirfry in soy sauce.

[Nasturtium 500]

ave seen how much f-ing olive oil he puts in the food!!! He puts in 1/2 a cup of oil to saute some onions when, really, a tablespoon or two is pllllenty..

You know I have gone thorugh more olive oil in the past 6 months... jeez! He says that we could use canola instead, but somehow i don't think it would taste the same (and I'd probably even gain even more weight.)

[ya falaha! 0]

Oh God don't even get me started about the vast amounts of sugar the man uses. Let's just say he likes a little tea with his sugar. He's a candy/cake/cookies freak. He'll eat M&M's by the handful while sipping on a regular Coke.

Sorry for intruding in the conversation but I really can relate. My husband doesn't like cooked vegetables either unless it's a potato and usually it has to be fried. I've also had the same problems about gaining weight since my husband's been here. He loves burgers and red meat in general. Doesn't really care for "healthy" foods like stir fry or salads..unless they're covered in ranch dressing, lol. It's a bit frustrating having to cook two seperate meals. He has gained a bit of weight but seems to be losing it now that he's working over 60 hrs a week and not eating as much as when he was sitting home.

Yup, unless it's fried, covered in some kind of really fattening sauce, or straight sugar he doesn't like it! He also eats potatoes about 5 times a week and it's either fried or mashed with a huge amount of butter.

I've also had to start buying 2% or whole milk for him and skim milk for myself. Butter for him, magarine for me. Full fat for him, fat free for me. Even for breakfast we have all kinds of eggo waffles and toaster pastries and croissants for him and I get a yogurt... *maybe* some granola... And I won't let him cook north african foods for me anymore because I have sat in the kitchen with him while he cooks and have seen how much f-ing olive oil he puts in the food!!! He puts in 1/2 a cup of oil to saute some onions when, really, a tablespoon or two is pllllenty..

He's put on a little weight since being here, but is by no means fat. Although the button on his favorite pair of jeans won't button I have to admit I kind of enjoy that

[sarah and hicham 3]

This is making me laugh. Hicham constantly says he's on a diet. The other day I made some mini chocolate cakes for a Christmas party and I had about 8 left over. He ate them all and said it was ok because they were "mini".

Hicham will eat pretty much anything I make and I got him to eat vegetables that are cooked, but crisp. That was quite a breakthrough.

[chaishai 1]

I have actually gotten to the best shape of my life after having two babies and since meeting my husband. I eat much healthier since I have known him. I used to eat fast food, pizza, tons of carbs, tons of processed food but since meeting him and getting into North African/Middle eastern food I have lost so much weight. My normal weight used to be in the 160s and now its in the 130s. We only cook with olive oil and my husband has learned over time to just use a small amount vs. a large amount. We eat tons of veggies and fish and the occasional meat. We never eat processed snacks, we indulge in chocolate alot but high quality chocolate. We only use real butter nothing fake at all. Since I have been eating this way I have soooo much more energy and better skin and the weight loss. We are also working out together when possible but encouraging each other since my baby was born 7 months ago so that also helps. I also practice portion control so for example if we are eating couscous he might eat 3 scoops of couscous and 3 spoons of soup whereas I will eat 1/2 to one scoop of couscous and 2 spoons of soup. But I gotta say, much healthier since I married him!

[ya falaha! 0]

Hey thanks for reminding me of fish! We eat it so rarely but the husband does love it and ate it probably 3 times a week back home. Really good fresh fish isn't so easy to come by where I live. Maybe this warrants a trip to the fish market this week. I've gotta get out of this cooking rut I've been in lately.

Edited December 10, 2007 by moody

[hollyw 0]

Oh God don't even get me started about the vast amounts of sugar the man uses. Let's just say he likes a little tea with his sugar. He's a candy/cake/cookies freak. He'll eat M&M's by the handful while sipping on a regular Coke.

I will forever be in awe of the amount of sugar my husband can consume. I swear he must put 5-6 scoops of sugar in a his mug of coffe in the morning, which is not so much coffee, but half coffee half cream.

One thing I've been super excited about is he has liked every kind of international food he's tried... we eat a lot of mexican, chinese, thai, spanish, indian, vietnamese, japanese, etc.... hence.. the extra poundage

This is making me laugh. Hicham constantly says he's on a diet. The other day I made some mini chocolate cakes for a Christmas party and I had about 8 left over. He ate them all and said it was ok because they were "mini".

Hicham will eat pretty much anything I make and I got him to eat vegetables that are cooked, but crisp. That was quite a breakthrough.

Medy does the same thing!!! "I'm only going to eat half of the large chocolate almond tart because I should really watch my weight" ......... riiiiiiiiiiiight.

man I wish we were making that kind of progress with vegetables... we're not even close.

I've gotta get out of this cooking rut I've been in lately.

I've also been in a rut... I've been desperately searching for new recieps because I feel like I make the same things over and over.

[Nasturtium 500]

I have actually gotten to the best shape of my life after having two babies and since meeting my husband. I eat much healthier since I have known him. I used to eat fast food, pizza, tons of carbs, tons of processed food but since meeting him and getting into North African/Middle eastern food I have lost so much weight. My normal weight used to be in the 160s and now its in the 130s. We only cook with olive oil and my husband has learned over time to just use a small amount vs. a large amount. We eat tons of veggies and fish and the occasional meat. We never eat processed snacks, we indulge in chocolate alot but high quality chocolate. We only use real butter nothing fake at all. Since I have been eating this way I have soooo much more energy and better skin and the weight loss. We are also working out together when possible but encouraging each other since my baby was born 7 months ago so that also helps. I also practice portion control so for example if we are eating couscous he might eat 3 scoops of couscous and 3 spoons of soup whereas I will eat 1/2 to one scoop of couscous and 2 spoons of soup. But I gotta say, much healthier since I married him!

He generally wants about 3 cups of cooked rice, a few raw vegetables (as in 2 cabbage leaves and a carrot), and then about a deck of cards sized piece of chicken or fish per meal. I do alternate chicken and fish with him. Portion control is entirely my own fault... it sounds like your diet is like our diet now but with working out involved and portion control. I started back working out... and I cut out my carbs now. I'm just a quick gainer and not good with handling rice/pasta/soda kinds of carbs--whereas I do well with vegetable carbs. I'm actually glad he's not too bad in teh food department, and it's just unfortunate that I know myself well enough that I have such a difficult time with control that it's better for me just to not have it. I eat like crazy! I am always hungry it feels like... I could eat a whole large pizza by myself I also only buy natural/whole foods and ingrediants because I just feel better about them.

That's really awesome about your weight loss since the babies! i am worried about that, but my mom gained 20lbs and lost it in under 3 months... maybe I can take after her...

Hey thanks for reminding me of fish! We eat it so rarely but the husband does love it and ate it probably 3 times a week back home. Really good fresh fish isn't so easy to come by where I live. Maybe this warrants a trip to the fish market this week. I've gotta get out of this cooking rut I've been in lately.

Here too-- totally land-locked. We have one fish place here with good quality fish-- and it's very expensive so we can't afford it.

[sarah and hicham 3]

Have you guys tried roasting vegetables? I always roast carrots, broccoli, potatoes, and green beans so that they are flavorful and crunchy. I hate boiled vegetables! I like the crust on roasted vegetables and Hicham likes it too, thanks God.