OKCPirate

Half cup spinach.. couple packets of approved sweetener to taste. Liquid egg whites 1 tsp cocoa powder. Mix the spinach, cocoa powder sweetener with a little Water and ice in a blender, then add PASTEURIZED egg whites, for just a little bit. (too long and it gets frothy). This is surprisingly good, high in Protein, and you can drink it from week 2. Nice way to start the day.

@@jenn1 - I am trying to boost my metabolism. I have increased my calories to 1400, and Protein to 180 a day, and then adding five days of intense exercise. Lost five pounds this week. It's a little counter-intuitive, but decreasing calories seems to slow down your metabolism. So switching my diet to get rid of crap carbs, alcohol, and other non-productive calories while ramping up activity seems to be working for me. Hard deprivation seems to work against you. I found this article which explained it to me... As a person becomes fitter and gains muscle mass, it is correct that he or she burns more calories at rest. However, some exercise enthusiasts have insufficient energy intakes, which do not meet the demands of their exercise programs. This imbalance may eventually reduce resting metabolic rate. https://www.unm.edu/...ontroversy.html BTW, several people have some good knowledge and experience and it is shared here: http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/387024-so-the-honeymoon-is-over/

@@Maidenhaze - My GF has some serious knee issues (too many years of marathons). She was able to put together some serious exercises with the help of a physical therapist while she is recovering from her surgery. Sports PT people are great resources.

Used to be my pants wore out where my upper thigh(s) met. Now they fray at the bottom because I lost so much of my backside. It's cheaper to buy new jeans than get them hemmed.

You are the new poster child for this procedure. That is a remarkable transformation. Heartfelt congratulations.

BTW, the reason I found this is I am doing this really strict diet exercise program that requires me to eat five egg whites in the morning. Egg white omelets don't do it for me. This is the easiest way to get it done.

@@Vinasu - get eggbeaters pasteurized egg whites. It is really good.

My doc tapered me off over a week two weeks following surgery. I have not needed them since...and I like it.

Nope, I didn't have that pain. Let your team know. They may want to look at your insession line.

@@Thick2Thin2016 - you know, I didn't regret the first week at all. I was scared going into surgery, and nervous the week before, but once it was done and I had smile on my face and was walking down the halls. But that wasn't free. Many months of research and prep gave me that. That said, on day 9 or so when I realized I had not pooped since surgery, well I got anxious, but not regretful.

Nope. Not one. As I gone down this road I have found that sleeve surgery isn't just about losing weight through restriction, it is a hormonal game changer. It is also a tool to help you reestablish your relationship with food and yourself if you use wisely. It has opened doors which have been closed to me for over a decade. It's not for everyone but I have gone up and down for decades. Only 4% are going to change via diet and exercise alone. That's just what the statistics say. This options certified success is over 40%. But it's a tool and what you do with it is up to you. You can look and feel like crap...probably because you eat crap food and neglect exercise. Or just grab hold and change your life.

@@computercat - based on some of the more surreal posts I've seen, not the worst idea.

@@WitchySar - yep. Esp. psychotropic drugs. Sometimes they want to shift you from generics to name brands. NEVER let them speculate on the knowable. They are paid big bucks to take care of YOUR health. If they ever say "well I think that is ok" get pissed in a respectful way. They know what to Google and they have access to databases you don't and they should know what all those words mean. Not that I'm bitter, but we patients have gotten to complacent and the docs are so dang overworked in the managed care era that we really have to make sure they are not 'calling it in' but really working for you.

@@Bufflehead "All the premade drinks basically tasted like industrial run off to me." Sometime feel free to tell us how you really feel

Wow. As a nurse, that makes me suspect some very unclear communication, either on the part of the surgeon/staff or on the part of what you understood. My surgeon has one of the most liberal diet progression plans I've seen, and she knew from our conversations that she could give me the written lists and some general guidelines and I'd know what to do with them because I'm an RN. She started me on full liquids - which on her plan includes jello, pudding, and greek yogurt and a couple of other pudding consistency items - on day 2 after I kept clear liquids down fine on day 1 coming out from surgery. There was no negotiation on that for the first 2 weeks until my first checkup. Protein shakes, and the things on the full liquids list, period. She entirely skips the puree phase, as she says it's not functionally much different from the soft/mushy foods phase if your teeth work well, and most people hate it and aren't compliant. So I had a list of soft foods that I could START introducing after my 2 week checkup. One food at a time, from the softest and moistest foods first working my way to firmer consistencies. One new food at a time, tested a couple of times before adding another new food. This was for no less than another 2 weeks. At my 4 week checkup, she allowed me to start adding in "normal" foods, except for a list of problematic foods such as raw veggies and things with seeds or small hard particles. Those were allowed after 6 or 8 weeks, I forget. I didn't actually try any of them until well after 2 months. But again, it was adding ONE food at a time, trying it several times before adding another. So if your surgeon really said just "try foods as tolerated" then s/he failed to clearly communicate what the goal of the progressive diet is, and what you're trying to accomplish. That sounds like you can try all the foods in each phase for a day or two and if nothing causes a problem, go on to the next and you're on solids in under a week. Even if that's what s/he *said*, it is very doubtful to me that is what s/he *meant*. Doctors are not the greatest at patient education, it's not generally in their training. A surgeon who is truly advocating progressing the diet that rapidly has very likely not been doing it long enough to lose a patient to a leak or abscess. That is REALLY good stuff. Well done, well communicated. If gives you a why as well as the what. May I suggest you copy that and put it in the pre-op section with, the horrible warning from the OP? Between the two, this is 90% of your first six weeks post op.

I gained 12 this last year. That's why I'm doing my 6 week 20 pound challenge. I'm going to have to work and sacrifice to get it off, and I think I can do even better by getting my focus back on my health again. It helps my girl friend is joining me on this Quest.

Hey, you want to be an oddball, be the guy who actually likes Isopure Clear. http://www.gnc.com/Natures-Best-Isopure-Zero-Carb-Variety-Pack/product.jsp?productId=41842836&network=g&device=c&product_id=15327232&creative=125833957874&c3ch=PLA&c3nid=15327232&matchtype=&adpos=1o1&gclid=Cj0KEQiAhs3DBRDmu-rVkuif0N8BEiQAWuUJrzcTXiPlORiG8yO-FW5ngHzmUCqAATlef_owk3Z2Zq8aAoOd8P8HAQ&eesource=CA_DF%3A19758526%3AGNC&flavourID=19758526

@@JerseyJules - Well the cool thing about WLS is it is more than portion control. It will help reset your hunger signals and changes some critical hormonal balances. SEE: http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2014/03/26/the-humble-heroes-of-weight-loss-surgery-stomach-acids-and-gut-microbes/#comment-3309413 As far as the other issues dealing with food, may I suggest this book, which I worked through during my research... https://www.amazon.com/Emotional-First-Aid-Kit-Practical/dp/0976852659

@@Malin - no kidding. For anyone who doubts it, watch this:

@@vegbeth - I was cleared to go back to gym after 4 weeks. I just did light workouts for two weeks and then week 6 started kicking things up. I worked with my NUT to make sure my diet was adequate for the extra work. I only increased my weights 10% per week until I hit failure and then would wait two weeks to check if I could do 10% more. This will go by like a flash. The hardest part was week three with mush. I hate eating that slow, and had to use a plate warmer to keep my food less than horrible. But it was important to teach my stomach to eat again.

@@Malin - I don't know if you are Tide fan, but looking forward to the game tonight. I like Sabin, but I think they are going down tonight.

Ask him to suck the CO2 out before he glues you up. @@Dub's surgeon did that and it helped a great deal. Take a look at the recovery rooms to see what you can realistically bring and charge. Get your diet for the first two weeks and purchase all that stuff this week. You need to prepare for the first two weeks post op which is the hardest and depending on where you live it might be difficult to get out with winter weather. You don't want to risk slipping and falling during the healing. If you are really new at this, have him show you what the inside of your stomach looks like post op. And have him explain what the post op diet does to promote healing. I found that to be really motivating to FTDI (follow the damn instructions). Oh, and bring your meds with you. Some won't be absorbed the same with a sleeve. He will probably know more about this than your PCD.

@@Momcat - You are quite welcome. We are here to help you succeed, as others who came before me helped me out.

@@JerseyJules - I applaud you in researching this up front. When I was considering it, I read blog posts, watched videos of real patients, and tried to figure out all the worst case scenarios. I wanted to figure out who failed and why. And I had to wrap my mind around what I was going to eat since I am a foodie. What I figured out was those who failed kept eating the same crap they were eating before, albeit in smaller servings. It is vital you follow the instructions, and most of the worst cases were people who would not FTDI (follow the damn instructions) but the great news is after the first month you slowly add in new foods and test to see what you can tolerate. I can eat everything I used to...but I can now afford the really expensive cuts of meat because I only need 4oz. So I'm not including pictures because it would be everything. But I would suggest testing which Protein powders you like in advance. You will need them. Try Isopure Clear (you can pick them up at GNC). Not to everyone's taste but I loved the green tea formula, which was 40g of protein plus hydration, and I could do it during my clear liquid phase which was great. Two of those a day kept my energy level high all the time. It was so good that I had my surgery on a Tuesday, and by Saturday I went to an OU football game with my son. So keep poking around until you have your head wrapped around this.

You will eventually. It is important to watch your calories and protein the next two months. Read the article on metabolism and it might motivate you. Just remember Protein first always.