hi Mari,

Glad to hear you're doing so well!! And feeling better about things too...

For breakfasts, try steak and eggs, extra-large omelets with ham, cheese and mushrooms, etc....... probably a big breakfast would help tide you through the coffee breaks, when everyone else will be snarfing muffins and donuts. Depends too if the lunch is provided with the conference. But a salad bar could be advantageous, as long as there was a good protein selection - roast beef, cheese, ham, shrimp, etc...

About the hot flashes. Two possibilities. One is, estrogen gets stored in body fat, so as you are burning up your fat stores, the hormone is being released into your system. This might explain too, why some of the other members are feeling a little more "PMS-y" than usual. Another factor, is that some of us - both male and female - have been obese for a while, with sluggish metabolisms, and slavishly eating the pasta and lowFAT. Now, we're feeding our bodies REAL fuel, lots of good protein, good fats. The fat's a burnin', the metabolism is rev'ed up!! It's like the oven cranked up to 450! Your liver, thyroid, everything is affected by the fat loss. Eventually your body will adjust.

Take care, and enjoy your time in Winnepeg ..

Doreen