Bufflehead

I just try to eat mostly healthy fats -- olive oil, grass fed butter, fatty fish, tree nuts, avocados -- avoid trans fats, and then beyond that don't pay attention to amount of fat, kind of fat, etc. I figure as long as I stay within my calorie goals and get enough protein, my fat intake will stay at a reasonable level. For cardiovascular health, avoid sugar, engage in moderate to strenuous exercise regularly, and stay away from trans fats. My cholesterol numbers have always been excellent, my triglycerides (most important IMO) are "amazing" as per my nurse practitioner, and other numbers are good too. Honestly I think it's an area where you can set more big picture goals than micronutrient goals and everything will work out well. Good luck!

I think I probably would have -- I healed quickly from the post-op swelling and didn't really have any issues getting liquid in. That's to be expected -- liquids don't engage your pyloric valve, they just flow right on through your stomach, so there isn't much of a reason for a sleeved person *not* to be able to drink relatively normally once the swelling goes down. That's why most bariatric teams will stress the importance of staying away from liquid calories once you are able to get your nutritional needs met via solids -- you could drink frappuccinos and milkshakes all day and never lose an ounce! That said, I would not have chosen to drink 32 ounces of smoothie, or any ounces of smoothie, just because smoothies are typically high calorie and high carb, and I wasn't permitted any fruit on the liquid stage, whether liquified or not (I'm assuming you made a regular smoothie with a fair amount of fruit/veggies, not just a protein shake with liquid and protein powder). 32 ounces of smoothie may be perfectly fine on your plan (no judging!) just saying it would not have been allowed on mine.

Yes, not just someone, almost everyone! You are in good company! It is completely normal to stall for a few weeks in the 2-4 weeks after surgery range. You can Google something like "3 week stall weight loss surgery" or "third week stall vsg" and you will see that it is 100% normal and you are not doing anything wrong. Your body just needs a little pause to catch up with what is going on. Stay off the scale for at least a few weeks, focus on following your program, and everything will be fine. Good luck!

Have you talked with your medical team? They might want to look at the possibility of a stricture as well as acid reflux. 20 mg of omeprazole is not a whole lot. I was prescribed 40 mg - 20 mg in the morning and 20 mg in the late afternoon.

"only" 9 lbs in two weeks? Your expectations are very very high! Yes, it is completely normal to stop and start your weight loss, at any time, but particularly in the first several weeks after surgery, when your body is focused on healing after major trauma, not on obeying whatever mechanical weight loss expectations we all have When you say "soft solid protein only" does that mean you are not allowed protein shakes? I was able to get my full 75 grams of protein every day starting within 24 hours of surgery, but would never have been able to do it without protein shakes. Frankly I doubt it is realistic to expect anyone to get in their full complement of protein without shakes so soon after surgery, unless maybe if you are just constantly eating -- which to me does not seem like a healthy habit to build up.

My team has a conservative plan - liquids for four weeks, then purees, and no high carb foods like applesauce -- on purees, we are only allowed high protein foods. All of our plans are so different!

I took two weeks and it wasn't quite enough for me, I had to leave in the middle of the afternoon the first couple of days because I was about to fall asleep at my desk. I should have taken three weeks. Everyone is different though!

Obesity causes a lot more pregnancy problems than weight loss surgery does. There are a lot of studies published in the scientific literature about pregnancy and weight loss surgery. They show that weight loss surgery is associated with *improved* outcomes for mothers and babies. One study compared women who had a baby before weight loss surgery and another baby after and found that the complication rates for both mothers and babies was lower after surgery (Weintraub et al International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics Dec. 2008). Another study looked at pregnancy post-gastric bypass and found that there were fewer complications with post-op patients than with a control group of obese pregnant women (Wittgrove et al Journal of Obesity Surgery Aug. 1998). Those are just a couple of examples, there are many more. Yes, you'll need to be careful about what you eat and taking your prenatal vitamins -- but so should every other pregnant woman. Good luck!

If people leave junk food where I can see it at work (you know -- the plate of cupcakes in the staff lounge or whatever), or bring it into my home, I throw it away. Soon enough, people learn that if they don't want to see food go flying into the trash, they don't bring it to my house or put it out for community use at work. I know that sounds really harsh and is probably a step beyond where many people want to go. Can you talk with your family about keeping doughnuts and other junk food hidden, as in, in their rooms, up on a high closet shelf, etc., so you won't know about it? That might be a workable compromise.

As has been noted above, the idea that caffeine will dehydrate you is a myth. There may be other reasons to give it up, but if someone tells you it is to avoid dehydration, push back and make them show you the published, peer-reviewed, scientific studies backing their claim up (hint: they can't). In fact, coffee is just as hydrating as water is. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/06/30/milk-and-other-surprising-ways-to-stay-hydrated/ I've used coffee as my main source of hydration, or at least a significant source of hydration, for just about my entire life, and am perfectly hydrated and healthy. I've probably drunk 25 gallons of coffee for every quart of plain water I've ever consumed, and yet here I am, alive and posting, not withered and dead. I've reached goal and lost about 200 lbs, sipping black coffee all along the way. I do not suffer from acid reflux or any other disorder that might allegedly be tied to coffee/caffeine consumption. Plus, I haven't murdered anyone, which I also chalk up to my coffee keeping me happy

@@Aliel84 it worked fine for me, but it's an individual thing, ymmv.

I think you may be unconsciously cherry-picking the numbers you look at, or maybe more people who lost a lot of weight pre-op are feeling braggy and post their numbers. 10 lbs in a week is not normal or average in any part of the process, either pre-op or post-op, so don't set yourself up for failure with that comparison. 4 lbs in a week is awesome and you should be proud of yourself and happy.

@@kittykatlover it's very simple -- you just set an interval, and it chimes or beeps or whatever sound you choose on that interval. I set my interval for 45 seconds. The app chimes, take a bite, then you don't take another bite until it chimes again.

Second the recommendation for a PPI. Many people take a double dose of omeprazole - 20 mg in the morning and 20 mg in the late afternoon. Make sure you stop eating at least 2 hours before bedtime.

I found the app (Eat Slower) very helpful. The other thing is to weigh your portion beforehand -- keep it small enough that you know it won't make you sick. Don't rely on physical signals to tell you when to stop -- make it impossible to overeat. Good luck!

Try mixing orange crystal light with your vanilla protein shake for a creamsicle flavor, or a couple heaping teaspoons of instant coffee for a vanilla latte. What are you mixing your protein with? You may want to change it up. I really like unsweetened vanilla cashew milk or vanilla fairlife milk. And as hard as it is, you may just have to choke the stuff down. It's important to get your protein in. You aren't supposed to be drinking it for fun -- you are drinking it for nourishment, health, and healing. If it tastes icky, that's okay, as long as it doesn't make you physically throw up. You'll get back to a point of enjoying your food later, but that isn't particularly important right now. Good luck!

How many calories are you eating each day? And are you sure about the amount (weighing your portions, tracking faithfully) or guesstimating?

@@marchmellow no, I worked superhard pre-op to get my iron up into the normal range so my surgery went ahead as scheduled. It was tough though.

Yes -- they trigger my sweet tooth specifically and hunger generally. I consider them glorified candy bars and stay away as much as possible. There is no protein bar on earth that can meet your nutritional needs as well as a couple ounces of chopped up chicken can. But you don't see many WLS patients getting as obsessive about eating some chicken as they do their caramel chocolate peanut marshmallow fudge "protein" bars.

I've struggled with low iron basically since puberty. The things I've found helpful: --take B12 and folic acid supplements --add liquid iron 2x/day (Wellesse brand) in addition to regular iron supplementation --eat as much iron rich food as possible - seriously, eat iron rich food at every single meal, no exceptions. Liver and blackstrap molasses are your friends, no matter how disgusting they may be --cut way back on dairy and calcium supplements Good luck!

Bariatric Advantage has good numbers but I could not stomach the taste. My favorites have been Syntrax Nectar, Syntrax Matrix, Unjury, Jay Robb, and Chike.

upvote romaine lettuce

Did you guys or girls , ever thought you would be having surgery or had surgery. if I asked you a year before for weightloss? Yes, it took me over a year to meet my insurance requirements for approval. Did you regret having surgery? Why yes or no? No. Why would I regret going from a size 6x to an 8 after being morbidly obese my entire life? Do you people enjoy eating small meals and being full? Yes, except for holiday meals when I wish I could do more than take a tiny sample bite of all the dishes! Do you like the fact you have to wait to drink something after you eaten something? Yes or no explain Neither like nor dislike. It's just the way things are now, I am fine with it. nbd

My idea is stay away from protein bars, they are glorified candy bars and are not particularly helpful in weight loss. Eat some chicken instead (yes you can carry it anywhere you could carry a protein bar).

Stick with lean protein and green veggies. Protein shakes are not going to make anyone feel full except for a little bit of time immediately after surgery when your stomach tissues may be so traumatized that they are swollen and not much can pass through. And the posters above are right -- the longer you stay away from sugary, high-carb foods, the easier it will be to resist them. Why do you have doughnuts in your house? No one needs doughnuts, or other crappy food. If your family is eating them, it won't kill them to only eat crappy food away from the house for a few months. Don't be so hard on yourself -- it is incredibly difficult to resist the sugar and fat-bombs that the food industrial culture places around us all the time. If it were easy, none of us would need surgery and the majority of Americans would not be overweight or obese. Set yourself up for success, not by demanding of yourself to just have more willpower, but by clearing crap food out of your immediate vicinity. Good luck!