meggiep

Early stalls are common ( though a stall is really a much longer time...) I stalled at 2 weeks for 8 days. Your body needs to get it together! This article really helps explain: http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.html Meanwhile your other question- how about cream Soups? I pureed them if they had solids like chicken and then strained them. You can add a little unflavored Protein powder to them too. Also sugar free pudding- yumm! Relax- I seem to have a week of really slow or no losing- 02 a day or 0- and then a good week of 4 or 5 pounds. Trust your body, start thinking about adding walking and other exercise as you are allowed, work on your protein and fluids- and relax! (I am talking to me as well as you ;-P)

Cool fact- I was allowed ground beef last week and I put a layer of ground beef under the tomato sauce and it is HEAVEN! I had to make a double batch cause my family loves it too. I have nutritional info if anyone wants it- but I have changed the original recipe as well- I use half the parmesan since I felt it was a bit salty, and then double the mozzarella for extra cheesiness on top. I add 4 ounces of ground beef to a single batch.

Relax and don;t stress this- you are only two days out! My turnaround day was day 5- get what you can in and don't beat yourself up over it. The other people posting here are much further out than you. One tip is to have a very small container- I had little plastic one ounce cups from the hospital- and set your photne time for every 15 minutes and try to drink two ounces. Just two ounces. Don't push for more. If you do that all day you will get more in than you thought you could! I marked my little cups off on a pad of paper for the first week or ten days until I was assured I could start with a liter bottle of water and drink the whole thing. I still use my timer- every 8 minutes now.But now I know I can drink two liters- yesterday I drank 3. It WILL get better!

Try some different kinds of Protein powder for your shakes. The ones I liked pre-surgery made me retch- even vomit- after but I finally found one chocolate one that I mix with decaf coffee and blend with ice in the morning for a solid 30 grams. Get some samples and you may hit one you like that will serve you in the months to come. Many companies will send you samples, and Vitalady.com will let you order a single serving of any of the powders they sell. I used the ratings in the nutrition area to decide which ones to order but you never know- I accidentally ordered one of the drinks rated lowest and it ended up being the one I love! The ready to drink shakes all disgust me- powders work so much better because you can add fruit, flavoring, all kinds of ways to fix them. I say that because I do think that it will be hard to get the protein from food for quite a long time- I can eat 1/4 cup at the most weeks out and I just can't finagle 60- 80 grams from that. If I did then I would be shorting myself on vegetables and fruit and those are important too! With such low caloric input and so little protein your body will consume muscle and that is not good! I know it is tempting to let it go when you are so excited about losing weight and the protein thing is so difficult but you are starting a long journey and getting the important components in place is important! BTW- the unjury chicken soup is one of my two daily drinks but make sure you add more than 8 ounces of water- it is way too salty that way! I add 12- 16 ounces depending on my mood ;-P and it counts towards fluids too. All the Protein Drinks do.

SInce most of us gain weight from the IV fluids that seems excellent to me! I actually did not even pay attention to my weight because I was so involved in trying to get fluids in, etc. Seriosuly- your body will chart its own journey and it is really pointless to compare yourself to anyone else or worry about your numbers. You have a tiny tummy (I call mine Thumbelina ) and you WILL lose the weight. Instead of worrying if you are losing well enough, concentrate on getting Protein and fluids as best you can. Know the pain will get better and you will suddenly find fluids easier to consume. Find Protein drinks you like, and depending on what food phase you are in , figure out things you like that you can get into YOUR little tummy. sugar free popsicles (Edys/Dreyers are great!) will go down better than almost anything. Good luck on this wonderful journey!

It will definitely get better! Also- your diarrhea may not be because of the sweeteners- I had diarrhea for the first two weeks and then it cleared up. I am ot keen on artificial sweeteners at all but I encourage you to keep trying as the Protein drinks are an important way to get the protein I got used to the sucralose.. Another way would be to get unflavored protein - unjury has it and mix some into your yogurt and Soup. The Unjury chicken soup is great- it is a mainstay for me at 21 grams of protein. However- I suggest adding more water- I use 12-16 ounces- helps with the Fluid totals and makes it less salty. If you are able to get some Protein Drinks in that will boost your calories AND your protein. You are in this for the long haul and for me the chemistry of high protein , low carbs, and lots of Water has wrked beautifully and it is important not to leave any part out. Ideas-add milk to your soups- that adds protein, and also calories. Add a dollop of greek yogurt to a spicy or savory soup- it is like sour cream. Have full fat yogurt- you need to nourish yourself and that is NOT enough calories. It is so tempting without the hunger to just let yourself have that little and think it will mean bigger numbers, but the sooner you get the habits and the chemical flow of wieght loss in to place the better- and the sooner you will have the energy to kick butt work out! Don't let your body start consuming itself.

BTW I so feel for you Kelly that you still get hungry! I am NEVER hungry- occasionally I will smell something wonderful and have a sort of of nostalgic feeling wanting it but I actually have to remember to eat. I pray that happens for you as I think it would be a harder path for sure with hunger! Also YAY for ONEDERLAND!!!!!!!! That is HUGE! I have 36 pounds to go and I can only hop I can get there in a few months!

Dear sweet RV's! Kelly and MIchelle- I miss you both. I took a little break from here.... but seeing this post made me realize how much I missed you two! But I am rocking my sleeve! I added hamburger last weekend and actually made Eggface's ricotta bake with a layer of ground beef- had to make a double batch cause the family loves it too! Next comes beef and regular food in the next couple of weeks. If you do that I calculated the nutritional values so let me know if you want it. Its delish! I am really happy now- walking an hour a day PLUS doing Water aerobics...still not able to eat more than a 1/4 cup but I am used to it. I still have a Protein shake in the morning- my fave chocolate with decaf- plan to transition to regular coffee soon cause I miss it! Then I also have an unjury chicken Soup late afternoon/early evening so I can really vary what I have at my tiny meals and don't have to feel like it has to be all protein. My nutritionist said she fully expects me to have 2 drinks a day during the weight loss phase. I can proudly say I have gotten at least 60 grams of protein and 64 ounces of water every day since day five. I STILL set my phone alarm for drinking but the warm weather finally coming to our area of NO CA has helped- yesterday I drank 3 liters. I lost 5 pounds last week to bring my current total to 43 pounds (including my 2 week pre-op because I really do consider that my start date!) I am thrilled with that. I feel GOOD- I feel so much more energetic and I feel really IN my body- do you know what I mean? I felt kind of numb before. My husband says I have my sparkle and prana back. It is just what I hoped for. I am so happy I get to meet you Kelly- say you will come to Hayward on the 9th! We MUST hug in person instead of just cyber hug. My biggest NSV is that I took a leap of faith and made plans to go to The Gorge in Washington in September to see Dave Matthews Band- my family has seen them all over the place but I never dared go there as it is camping and hilly terrain and I finally feel that I can do it! I am thrilled that my sleeve sistah's the red velvet girls are doing so beautifully! Red Velvets forever! ps in whisper tone- my birthday is Saturday and I admit I plan a few bad girl things- my husband is buying all the new Ben and Jerry flavors and I will have a teaspoon of each spread through the day so I can try them, plus a little bit of movie popcorn since my son works at the theater. I figure I can't do too much damage! ;-P

For example- when I first weighed after avoiding it for 10 years I was shocked to my soul. You see, I had been 260 pounds when I was fully pregnant and I was sure I would never be that heavy again as I gained 60 pounds during my pregnancy. Well there I stood- surely the blood drained from my face- I was 277....and not pregnant. So my first goal was to be lower than 260. I did that five days after surgery. My next goal, also a little different- is to be able to use the scale I grew up with, which I ended up with and used all my life. I was devastated to be over the 250 maximum it weighs because it was so shocking to me what had happened since my back surgery. I am at 251 today ...so hopefully any day! This is a bit wacko as I am sure it is probably not even an accurate scale any more- and I have two other scales now ;-P I just want to be able to use it...because! My final goal- of course besides getting to my goal weight- the main goal! is to weigh less than my husband. I have weighed more than him since we met almost ten years ago(I think) and it just feels so wrong to me- especially since he is 6 foot 1 and I 5 foot 7! (The man Snacks constantly- of course since my sleeve it seems like he has really stepped it up so that he seems to eat ALL THE FREAKING TIME ) but he never goes over 210 and is generally at 207 so my next goal is 205. Anyone else have personal goals that might vary from the usual fitting into movies seats, fitting in to airline seats etc. - NOT that I do not share those too!

Tamz- be careful! Just because it goes down does not mean it can't do damage in your young sleeve! You are not even at two weeks and you need to let it heal. I suggest you google VSG leak and find out what you could have happen- seriously girl why are you doing stuff like this? This is the time to show you have what it takes for the long haul. That means following the rules and not succumbing to cravings and whims about what you can do to push the envelope. I need a break from this place. That is what I just figured out. Then I wont have to worry about you any more when you post stuff like this.

Are you allowed banana? I wasn't until soft foods. I still am wary because of the carbs- plus it is part of the BRAT diet when you have diarrhea- which to me means it does the opposite- gack!!!! I am also cautioned against having cream of wheat too often as it essentially carbs. You want to keep yourself on Protein with minimal carbs so you don't have trouble keeping on the path once you add food. Mmmmm....grits....too bad I love my grits with butter and brown sugar. Not on my list right now! I am happy you found out you get real food right after your five weeks Tamz! That is awesome.

If you had eaten it without blending I would say yes ;-P But blending and straining and satisfying the craving? No way!

The other night when my husband was eating his fifth or sixth huge meal of the day (ok it just seems that way) we decided to sign him up for fatsecret.co and log his food. I just have to share that this morning after logging Breakfast my husband is at 897 calories, and 129 carbs! Only 29 grams of Protein so far. It really made me realize how my frame of reference has become so very skewed- I have not eaten that many calories in a day for 8 weeks, and I have less than 1/4 that amount of carbs per day. Wacky- and it is only breakfast!

I use my magic bullet a lot too. My first mushie food was one scrambled egg with 1T of cheddar cheese- and it went down well though many have problems with scrambled eggs. Cottage cheese is good too. I puree soup and add Protein powder to it too. Refried Beans are great- I have made a fabulous little 1/4 cup casserole with a few T of the beans, a T of shredded cheese, a little avocado and a little sour cream. Yummy! I also pureed fruits like peaches, and soaked dried apricots - very helpful for constipation. Also of course vegetables, cooked soft. There is also a wonderful recipe on The World According to Eggface for a RIcotta Bake that is great for the mushies! I have done the nutritional value of it too if you need it, as Eggface does not include those. The great thing is tonight, my first night adding ground beef, I put a layer of ground been on top of the ricotta in this recipe, under the tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella- and it was fabulous! The beef went down great thankfully! (I am at six weeks) and my family loves it too! So it is a wonderfully adaptive recipe. I did the nutritional stats on that too! My doctor has aan approach to adding each new food, pureed or otherwise. Take one small bite, chew it very very well. Wait 2 minutes. If it goes down well and feels fine then take two small bites- wait two minutes, then three, etc. until you have eaten to your capacity. In addition- don;t start with much! A scant 1/4 cup at the most. Good luck! Enjoy!

I just realized that with my two weeks of Protein shakes pre-op and my three weeks of thin liquids post-op I actually did do five weeks! Wow! Hon it is a short time in a long life. It is for your better outcome, for your healing sleeve, and you need to trust your doctor. I think the concept of it training you to not give food the same emphasis you did pre-surgery is a sound one- and I am hoping you are one of us who don't ever get hungry. I wasn't really realizing you are only nine days out- girl you do NOT want to cause yourself a leak and end up back in the hospital - give your new thumby a break and just go with the thin liquid flow!

He Snacks all day and is at most 10 pounds over "ideal" weight at ay time! Sigh. He is so suppotinve though, I can't complain. Brings my first Protein Shake of the day in every morning with an ice bucket with Water and propel in it to start me off for the day.

I think of the concepts- protein for example- as guidelines. If I miss my 60-80 grams one day then I refuse to stress because my thumby already RUNS me but there has to be a limit. Yesterday, for example, I missed a meal because of my schedule. Oh well! Some of the stress may also have to do with our particular doctors and their instructions. Mine fully expects and endorses having up to two Protein drinks a day throughout the weight loss period. No way can I get enough protein from these tiny meals and I need at least two hours (3 is better) between meals or I wont be able to fit anything in. That small capacity is what we wanted! And in actual fact most of these "rules" have to do with maximizing our weight loss and getting to goal. I have absolutely no doubt you will be quite free to eat as you like, sooner rather than later. Small amounts, of course! But it gets easier and easier, and your capacity increases. You could ignore the guidelines now- they are only there to help you achieve your goal- but you are the captain of the ship ! The first three months are the worst, I think- and in fact I feel as if I have taken a part time job taking care of monster thumby! But I also have learned to chill when I don't meet my goals as I am very goal driven but I just can't be beating myself up when I don't get my protein, or eat a few too many carbs- this is a journey, and it has a steep learning curve! We can do this!

Have you started logging your intake on an application? I use fatsecret.com. You will find you are taking in very few calories (unless you hit that sugar free ice cream too much! ) My doctor recommends 600-800 calories for the entire weight loss period. I imagine your doctor will recommend certain amounts once you add real food.

Tamz you are not really asking us to give you permission to do something your doctor is not allowing ? nice try girly! ;-P Your doctor gave you instructions for a reason- and you should follow them, you know that! That said- things like Jello, pudding, etc. are Snacks and don't need to be meals. I am surprised you are limited to 1/4 cup three times a day though- I could easily have a cup of thinned cream soup- to limit you to full liquids for five weeks AND only 1/4 cup at a time, 3 times seems way too restrictive. I really suggest that you talk to your nutritionist about exactly what to do. Also- make sure you are looking at labels- sugar free ice cream is not the best choice...

I have weighed only things that seem to be impractical to measure- i.e. sliced turkey lunch meat. I weigh things like that but I always eat something like that with something else like pureed apricots and only will weigh 1 ounce. I also always put the things I eat in my pretty china bowl my husband got me after surgery that is 1/4 cup in volume so that even if I have weighed it I can tell if it is going to work or not!

I don;t know a lot about glycemic index but this sounds interesting. My question is -do you know how many carbs would be considered a surge? I am limiting to 40 cers/30 net carbs a day but sometimes I might have 12 or so at once in a yogurt or something like that...

Oh- I did not mean everyone should aim for ketosis- the only part I was addressing was that you had said if your calories are too low your body will feed on itself in an unhealthy way- and I wanted to point out that if you are taking in the recommended protein it will feed on fat cells and not muscle! Ketosis works for me- and I actually felt so dumb to not have been doing low carb in my most recent diets. I was doig lo calorie only- and it never worked. I should have thought back with my aging brain to the times I did Atkins- it always worked well for me! That was back during the FIRST craze! Bought the ketone strips and everything ;-P We all have to decide what works for US- that is absolutely true! I have actually upped mycarbs a little to account for my two workouts a day. Interestingly my nutritionist , when I brought it up, said the concept of "starvation mode" or shocking the body in to action again, etc. has no scientific basis and in her life as a dietician makes no sense. She basically said we all entered that "mode" when we had our stomachs amputated and we will lose weight if we stick to the rules. Interesting!

Hi Renee! One thing- the 60-80 grams of Protein you take in is what drives your body to consume fat cells and not itself. That is the principle behind the high protein intake - it protects your muscle while you are taking in so few calories. I am also one who does not lose on low calorie diets. I never really realized it until my pre-op diet! All of a sudden pounds were falling off! For me, at least, ketosis is the way. Luckily that is also my particular surgeons plan- he is very strict- 60-80 grams protein- 64 plus ounces of Water, 30 grams net carbs, regular exercise, and supplements.600-800 calories a day. Firm rules for optimum weight loss, according to my Dr. Feng.

You have lost 56 pounds in six weeks? WOW! Congrats and may there be many more lumps to come!

One reason I can see having to think about eating is that you probably wont be hungry and may need to remind yourself. There is no rule about "you can't eat crackers between lunch and dinner" or "you can't eat a cupcake for dessert" However- two to three months out- do you really want to? Don't forget you have a wonderful 6 months or so for optimum weight loss- use it girl! Get to your goal and then work some things like that back into your life. It seems to me that everyone who did the best around hear was pretty strict in the weight loss period. That is my plan anyway! Of course you will be eating a wide variety of foods into your future- and you will be the rule maker. Just remember crackers and cake are slider foods- they reduce to nothing in your mouth and go right down- and hence the possibility of gaining the weight back after all that work.