LipstickLady

I am over three years out, above my goal by about 5 pounds and happy. I could (fairly) easily get down to my goal by tracking, measuring and weighing my intake, or I can eat sensibly, enjoy a daily treat and maintain effortlessly. I choose the latter for now because I have a LOT of other stuff going on in my life. The minute my size 8 AEO jeans start getting too tight, I'll go back to option one. My restriction is super great. I can rarely get in more than 2/3 cup in volume or 3ish oz of firm protein'. My oldest went off to college (go Hoos!), my youngest is a junior in high school and is busy with show choir, volleyball, martial arts, a part time job and with a new driver's license, she is rarely home. (BOOOO!) My husband gets home pretty late and is a grown man, so I've gone from making a sit down dinner every night to making sure there is something in the fridge to eat when anyone gets home and making special "little plates" for myself. I don't have @@Dub cooking for me (jerk!!), and I prefer rich, flavorful foods. Why am I posting this? I have no clue. I am going to throw out a few of my favorites and I would love to hear your suggestions for more. Most of these can be thrown together in minutes and most components are staples in my house. Seafood salad and and a few soy wasabi triscuits is an amazing combination. Cheddar, a few apple slices and a bit of good quality thinly sliced soppressata or prosciutto. Grilled garlic edamame and sriracha mayo dipping sauce. A cluster of crab legs, hot or cold. cheese stuffed meatballs, baked with whole milk mozzarella on top. (No red gravy for this half Italian. Weird!) A slice (or two) of avocado wrapped in pepper jack, turkey and (pre cooked) bacon, pan browned just until cheese is melty. Softly scrambled cheese eggs with diced onions and mushrooms. Portabella stuffed with artichoke, spinach and feta. Mini taco stuffed bell peppers. What else, peeps?

You don't fail until you stop trying. You are taking on too much, but eventually, you will be successful. I have no doubt. Tell the kid to keep his head low, his mouth shut, his room clean, and his dishes out of the sink if he knows what's good for him.

Good luck to you!! I am sure you are going to do amazing things. XXOO And you can still keep us updated here. As a side note? On the titanium thing... Most of my skull is titanium from brain surgery. I told my husband that when I die, he needs to pull those plates out. My head is worth more than my house. I'll tell him about the staples, too.

I had that issue, too. My NP said it's common. I started getting more sleep about three months out. Ask if you can take melatonin, that works for some people...

I see you!

@@lizardqueen Awwww... Thanks for the kind words. I appreciate them very much,

It's not luck, it's work! But if I can do it, anyone can. YOU CAN AND YOU WILL!

Lobster tail is small there so crab is not much more. My husband always samples. Can't imagine reheated crab legs. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App Cold crab legs are delish.

Wait! You mean we can agree/disagree like adults? :faint: You're killing my reputation!

I went by pants size personally. All I cared about was single digits so my goal was a size 8 and a medium top/dress.

I don't always do bacon and cheese'. Garlic and Parmesan, sautéed onions and peppers... Lots of options. Nothing beats a fluffy, crispy MINI potato.

Everyone will have a different experience with alcohol but I'm much more of a lightweight than I was.

Back off, botch, I saw him first. Wait! I thought you and I were dating?

@@Babbs When I have a hankering for potatoes, I roast a few dozen of the teeniest red potatoes I can find (think jawbreaker) with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic until tender. Then I smash them flattish (not to death, just enough to break the skin) with a pan and fry them up with olive oil and crushed garlic until crispy. Top 'em with bacon and cheese'? Dear gawd. I can only eat one or two, but it's heaven.

I, too, eat full fat everything. Sour cream', dressing, glorious cheese'. I eat sausage and bacon and 85/15 ground beef'. Real mayo is key in chicken, shrimp, seafood salads. The light stuff generally has more carbs, and the full fat stuff tastes better and keeps me full longer. And butter.... Butter!!

I'm not a big sweets eater so the protein' drinks', pudding', Popsicles', etc. about killed me. I mixed Ranch dressing packs, mashed avocado, French onion soup' mix, Italian dressing mix, basically any dried soup' flavor I could find, into plain Greek yogurt and ate it with a spoon. My family would use it for veggies or chips'. Everyone got more protein' and I got something other than faux chocolate'.

I don't do meal delivery but I do subsist on a lot of prepared meals from upscale markets like Wegmans, Fresh Market and Whole Foods. Normally, this would be a budget breaker but I literally buy 1/4 cup to maybe 1 cup of shrimp, chicken or ham' salad'. I buy a few slices or chunks of gourmet cheeses. The delis know I'm going to ask for three or four thin slices of good meats'. I buy 2 roasted chicken wings or 6-8 steamed shrimp. I get what I want when I want and it costs just a few bucks. I still feed my family real meals when we are home at the same time but I skip the carby stuff. My husband gets home late most nights and my kids are always on the move with work, sports, show choir, study groups, etc. My food' choices are much more "gourmet" than they use to be, but the positions are so small, I still spend less than I would at McDs or Wendy's.

Aren't you a cutie pie?!? It took me a long time to SEE my change. Try this... Put on a pair of exercise shorts and a closer fitting white t shirt. Stand in a door way and have some take your picture front, back and side profile. Do this once a week or once every other week. Same outfit, same distance from the camera. This REALLY helped me visualize what was happening to my body.

@@hova1980 Here you go! http://www.murfreesborosurgical.com/weight-loss-surgery/post-op-guidelines/dietary-guidelines-sleeve-gastrectomy/ And https://www.mexicobariatriccenter.com/gastric-sleeve-surgery-diet-postoperative-guidelines/ Good starting places for you. Sounds like you need to start from the beginning.

I'm more than happy to help. I've been helping since this thread started.

I'm three years out and I don't eat "perfectly". I certianly didn't tempt fate twice a week, though. Like I said. Interesting choice. But hell's bells. It's definitely your choice to make. More power to you!

I'm definitely curious why you think it's a good idea to try fries and chips' and fried breaded foods and popcorn and soda and bread and rice.... (...phew...) ...at five months out. Interesting choices for sure! And twice a week! You're much braver than I was. I wasn't perfect by any means but I certainly didn't want to find foods that I could tolerate that landed me in a WLS doctor's office in the first place.