tiffnie

Hello all Well I am a little over 3 weeks out and I have lost about 25 lbs post op BUT I am starting to get back into my habit of snacking at night -to the point of fullness several times. I dont necessarily go over my calories; I usually eat about 700-800 a day total, its just that most of what I eat is at night. Today I had 8am - 1 hard boiled egg (75 cal) 12 pm - 3-4 oz hummus with tofu blended in (guessing 200 cal) 12:30 1 laughing cow light (35 cals) 1 pm - 2-3 oz beef and barley Soup (w/o the beef, 70ish cals) 3:30 pm - 1 string cheese (70 cals) 4 pm - 4 oz low fat cream of mushroom made w Water (guessing 50 cals) 5 pm - 3 oz beef broth w a piece of carrot - (guessing 50 cals) 8 pm - 1 laughing cow light (35 cals) 9 pm - 1 carbmaster yogurt (80 cals) 10 pm - SF Jello - 4-5 oz guessing (10 cals) 10:30 - SF pudding w NF milk- 2 oz (guessing 20 cals) 11 pm - 1 tbsp of mashed potatoes (guessing 50 cals) 11 pm - 3 oz imitation crab w light mayo, (guessing 80 cals) 825 cals total, which isnt too bad (I think) but how does this compare to what other people are eating at this stage? Should I be eating less foods but with a higher Protein content?? I know that technically Im still within my calorie range but is it a bad habit to eat the majority of food at night? Will this become a problem later when I have more leeway with foods? Most important, will this hurt my sleeve?? Is there anyone who is going through this or has gone through it who can help me clear my head, I have that food-denial confusion going on and Im really trying to fight my bad habits. This is the 4th or 5th night in a row that this has happened. Another thing is that Im not getting in all 60 g of protein. Could that be a reason why I always want to snack? Lastly, I have been at a little standstill with the weightloss, Im gathering from other posts that its kind of common around the 3 week mark, but could my nighttime habits have to do with it? And SORRY for all the questions! I dont really have guidance from my surgeon and my PCP relly isnt much help either. Just any words of wisdom, any little tricks or certain foods that are better to eat at night would help THANKS!

HIEE! I am in your exact situation I lost 26 lbs post surgery getting me to 236, but Ive been stuck there for the past 2 weeks. I lowered my cal intake from 800 a day to 600 a day a few days ago, dropped 2 lbs since, but I was expecting a bit more. BUT like Im reading on countless posts, stalls are common at this time, and the weight loss will continue!! Logically, there is no way that we can be eating what we are and not lose, so just hang in there, we'll get through it! As for the grazing, I had the same problem and really had to take control of that. I log my food meticulously, and make sure I always know where Im at calorie wise. If I absolutely feel the need to eat and Ive hit my 600 cals, which usually happens at night, its ONLY Jello, which does make me feel full after 6-8 oz and it helps w Fluid intake. Also, Ive heard from many people that sometimes when you are feeling hungry just increase fluids and it will help. Ive been doing that the past few days and it DOES. I dont know how many cals you are on a day, Im hearing anywhere from 500 to 800 a day is normal, but if you are feeling hungry and want to eat, it probably wouldnt hurt to just have a piece of low fat string cheese or maybe a tbsp of Peanut Butter in there. I am definitely a snacker, but as long as its good for me and within my cal limit then I don't feel bad at all. Good luck!

Yay for you! I weigh myself every morning and It does frustrate me that I keep losing and gaining the same two pounds. :/ I might take your advice and just STAY AWAY! lol

LOVE your list Think Im gonna try some meatballs w spaghetti sauce and maybe some cheese - sounds so good! Also maybe some turkey chili In my fridge right now: tuna salad w low fat mayo chopped up slow cooker chicken whole black olives - yum! carbmaster lowfat yogurt fat free cottage cheese Laughing Cow light cheese Muscle Milk light SF FF chocolate pudding mixed w a little PB SF Jello 2 hard boiled eggs guacamole (just avocado, tomato and lemon) Deli turkey slices I love to cook but right now Im trying to stick w the basics. I find it so hard to get into a recipe and make a bunch of food, then just have to toss it a few days later, cause I hate leftovers. On another note, yesterday I saw an episode of Everyday Italian where Ms Giada made some pizzettes - mini thin crust pizzas w goat cheese and prosciutto and they looked so awesome. I can see myself making them but cutting the fat back a bit.

Thanks It wa smostly out of boredom and not logging my food. It went on for a few days but it was pretty easy to just form meals and cut the snacking, now Im at about 600 cals a day. Just old habits sneaking back up but I cut them out pretty quick. Thanks for the advice

HAPPY (almost) BIRTHDAY! How about some low fat or fat free, sugar free frozen yogurt? Or maybe you can freeze some SF chocolate pudding? Ive never tried it but it should work. Top it with some fat free cool whip if you want to get fancy Im sure you can find some healthy desert ideas online, bariatriceating.com or allrecipes.com, maybe even weightwatchers.com Good luck!

Sorry that youre feeling down, Im feeling that way just a bit as well. I am a little worried about my stall, but from what I see here the 3 week stall is pretty normal, its just the body adjusting. One person in a different forum mentioned that she had stalled for a couple months, but now she is down about 100 lbs or so! It WILL pass I decreased my cals and I see that you are increasing yours, so hopefully one of us sees results! Either way its nearly impossible to NOT lose with the intake that we have, so hang in there!

Hey all! I was sleeved on 12/27 and am down 35 lbs total, 10 pre op and 25 post op. I am doing well with my protein, not so much with my fluids but I'm working on it. I was fighting my grazing urge for a few days and hit about 800 cals per day, but for the past couple days I scaled it back to 600-650. I have been at a stall for the past week and a half, so Ive increased my exercise and hopefully the combo of the lower cals and exercise will help me get over that. Otherwise everything has been good. I do still have head hunger and I love to cook, so Im trying to find a way to satisfy my cooking urge but not feel the need to sample everything. The whole sleeve procedure has been so much easier than I thought it would be, but it is still a conscious effort to control my eating. That said, I almost never feel deprived at the end of the day, I go to bed satisfied and when I look back its almost surprising how little I need to eat to feel okay. At the 1 month mark (Monday) I can start my cardio, so Im gonna hop back on my beloved bicycle and look forward to more losing. BTW if there is anyone who lives in the Pasadena or Los Angeles area feel free to contact me if you want to be workout buddies

Hi folks So I am in the mushies/pureed stage, but my stomach violently protested my pureed dinner. The only thing that I could tolerate besides Clear liquids was my SF chocolate pudding. I had a few bites but I wanted to jazz it up a little so I decided to add some Peanut Butter, stirred it up quite a bit and viola - delicious and creamy snack Im eating it now lol I used about 4 or so oz of SF chocolate pudding with roughly 1 tbsp PB - about 150 cals total. It is SO GOOD You can also try eating it with a banana.

I agree that there are many different plans out there. Personally, I am a snacker BUT I am seeing that I do need to keep myself in like or I will just snack - and snack and snack lol. But knowing that I have a schedule and that in an hour or two I will be able to have some cheese or something is ok. And what also helps is that I can snack on Jell and know that its going to my liquids I also think that when I am able to eat things with some texture that will help satisfy me too.

i have started to get a little lax on the food journaling. I am sitting at the table right now, having finished about 2/3 of my Breakfast - an egg w a piece of deli ham and a tsp of low fat cheese spread- and I have a pad of paper and pen sitting right next to my plate. AND I have a plan for today. So 3 meals, 2 small Snacks (one as a Protein shake) and maybe a small night snack if Im good with my cals. AND 16 oz of Fluid x 4 stuck in there. Im gonna see how this works for, but it looks so simple. I think my problem is that I dont take the time to just PLAN.

I think I am grazing a bit, and I think the reason is that I prefer to eat then drink, so I end up not getting all of my fluids in either. Also, I really need to kick my Protein intake up a bit, with shakes, etc. I am staying at my calories even with the grazing, but its just a bad habit in general. Thanks!!!

He does seem a little strict lol I know that at this point I would not be able to get in enough food to sustain me throughout the day without snacking, but I think when I am able to eat poultry/meat and can fit a bit more in my tummy at one time I might try to go on just 3 meals a day. Is that the food plan that you are following? Thanks for the advice!!!

THANK YOU for the advice I was sleeved at about the same time as you, but Im not able to eat chicken/meat until Monday. My surgeon literally did not give me any instruction about how to model my meals after the clear liquid stage, only said to get my protein and liquids in. Im going to start myself on a meal plan similar to yours. A couple questions: how long does it take you to eat each meal? Also, do you literally eat only 1/4 chicken breast - what I would assume to be around 2 oz - for dinner and thats it, no cheese, veggie, etc? How do you feel about snacking on things that are very low cal ie SF Jello or SF pudding? Also, how many calories are you allowed a day? I do think that focusing more on getting my liquids in will definitely help me with the snacking. Once again, thanks for the advice:)

Hello! I am right behind you! My 1 month will be on Monday. Im not sure how much we should be eating at that point but right now Im hitting about 700-800 cals a day. And like you I have been at a stall for about a week! Frustrating!! I was 258 at surgery, now I go between 233 and 236 but I just want the scale to go down and stay there! Question: how often do you eat? Do you have set meals, or do you snack throughout the day? Im only asking because in order to get my 800 cals in I need to have like 5-6 small meals a day, or just snack throughout the day with no set mealtime. Otherwise, I would eat tiny 4-5 oz meals then be starving until the next meal 4 hours later. Is this how it is for you as well?

Hello! I am 27, was sleeved on 12/27/10 and am down 25 post op and 35 total. Struggling a bit with the night eating, wondering if anyone else has the same problem?

HELLO! I live in Pasadena, and I would be more than happy to get out and walk with you I completed Options at Sunset, and they definitely give you a lot of good info. Let me know if you want to meet up one of these days, even though my schedule is a little crazy right now. But I think thats everyone

I am not alone!! I am almost at 3 weeks, I lost 25 lbs the first 2 weeks then the scale just stopped moving! I was thinking wither starvation mode since I get in about 600 or so calories a day - but Im working on that - or I thought it was because I wasnt doing my 30 min walking a day, even though I do walk a lot period. Maybe it is a little of both plus the 3 week stall. Either way I dont feel so bad anymore. BTW lately I have only been getting in 30 g or so of protein daily - is this a huge deal?

I tried adding a little extra chicken boullion which made it saltier but much yummier. I also experimented with soy sauce, lemon (even though its kind of discouraged I never had problems with it) and also the french onion soup packet (strained). I found that chicken stock tasted better than the broth, and I think it had a little bit more protein. I also alternated beef and veggie stock. I think the best suggestion is to boil some chicken, veggies and maybe thyme or some other spices and strain. You can keep the chicken and veggies and freeze for the mushies stage.

I really like the attitude that you are taking. I havent even started mushies and Im already stressing over how much liquid I am drinking at one sitting. I think it would be safe to say 8-10 oz in an hour, when I was told 4 oz would be max. I think I will spare myself the headache about worrying how much is too much. As long as it is somewhat within the range given by the dr, not in the extreme, I feel satisfied, I stay active and Im losing then I will (try to) not worry about it. Maybe easier said than done?

Regular use of NSAIDS can also cause stomach ulcers :/

I was super hungry 4 days post op, and it bugged me cause I would never ever feel satisfied and I had serious head hunger! I am now on day 8 and it is getting easier. I do get hungry but I know to carry a protein shake or some liquid with me EVERYWHERE, because it hits about every 20 min or so. I have a couple sips, then it goes away, and on and on. It is tough, I wish I could stay full for longer than half an hour but maybe it will change when I get to mushies. Good luck

1. how much liquid can you drink in one sitting at this point? how many sips or gulps can i take? also, how long do i have to wait to drink more? when do the liquids leave my tummy so more fits in? - Personally I can drink maybe 3-4 oz or so in one sitting, but after about 15-20 min I can take another 3-4, and so on...I think that you are just supposed to try and sip as much as you can until you feel full, then start up again when it feels like there is room...? I dont know if that makes sense lol... but then again I do still get hunger pangs and feel full very strongly but I know not everyone does 2. when do the crazy tummy noises stop??? the doctor said i should take prilosec for a month...should i do it for longer if the noises continue? I dont get these so I cant help here 3. whats the difference between mushy food and solid food if you chew chew chew both? wont solid food become mushy once you chew it to death before you swallow? I think they prefer us to start with the mushy so we dont HAVE to chewchewchew for a long time, theyre just keeping it simple, cause our tummies are super sensitive and they dont want to risk a chunk passing through 4. will i ever be able to eat a salad before my meal? before surgery, we'd have salad before our main course for dinner...it seems my tummy will always be too small to do both? and in the mushy stage, can i have cold non pureed veggies like red pepper strips, spinach or cucumbers if i chew well? I dont think that raw veggies in the mushies stage would be such a good idea. Just stick with the mushies until they tell you otherwise, its for a reason and the drs know what theyre talking about. Once again even if you chew well there still might be pieces that are too big and we need to be nice to our tummies. THE TIME WILL COME when we can eat all that crunchy fresh deliciousness 5. how do you know when you're full. i just stop eating because im scared of throwing up but i dont know what "full" feels like with the sleeve. I really cant help much b/c I get a very distinct full feeling. It feels almost the same as when I wasnt sleeved, its just stronger and comes on a lot more suddenly. 6. splenda can be gross to me sometimes...is it really that bad to add a little bit of reg sugar to my oatmeal? If you wish...but just be careful with your exceptions Once again just my opinion, its a slippery slope back to our old eating habits, but little things here and there do make a big difference in helping us feel "normal" 7. how is it possible to drink 64 oz a day while having to stop a minimum of 30 min before and after each meal (and also including the supposed 30 min it should take you to eat your meal)??? how often and how much do you drink during your day? It is possible if you chug it down all day or drink throughout the night, but my dr said to just drink as much as I can Hope this helps a little:)

I was at the store today and I came across some flavors of Naked Juice with added protein. They each have about 30ish grams, both soy and whey proteins. I know some drs dont approve of too much juice, but if it helps you get the protein in it might be worth it. There are also vitamins and lots of other good stuff in Naked Juice, and its so good