BigViffer

With a surgery date of November 2016, I doubt your surgeon would want you to bother with them just yet. Once you are a little further out, then you can start to introduce complex carbs or some more simple natural carbs. Dried apricots, prunes, figs, oats, bran buds, shredded wheat... all of these were blessed by my surgeon. I have a low opinion of NUT's, so I would say get it cleared with your surgeon before introducing any of these.

It would be a good thing to have your blood work done to ensure you aren't having any vitamin deficiencies. B-12 & iron would be my #1 suspect as was already mentioned. But before you do that, are you on any regular prescription medication? If so, would it be blood pressure related? It is quite possible your BP is low and making you feel lethargic. You may have to increase your sodium intake as well as increase your fluid intake. Of course, talk it over with your doctor. Now, as for the gym; do you have a goal in place or are you just going to workout? The surest way to get bored or burned out is to workout without a plan. Set a goal, make it a hard one and put a deadline out in the future far enough that it isn't unobtainable. Maybe a pull-up, or maybe a mile in 7 minutes... anything. Working out with a goal gives you a purpose and something to maybe obsess over.

Thanks for chiming in @@RJC5197, no issue with anything you said. I am a fairly dedicated lifter and there is no way I could continue with only 60 grams of carbs a day. I would literally be on the verge of fainting during my workout when I was that low. I had to up my carb intake to about 30-35% of my total caloric intake. Protein is about the same, most times a little higher. Fat I keep pretty low. I am not concerned with my macros, I keep track of them better than probably better than anyone else on this forum. My sole question for this thread was for lifters who needed more calories for to build the muscle. Did they use "weight gainers" and if so, how were the results?

@Webapprentice Oh I have some issues, but I am trying to be positive and work through them. I cannot lift like I did before my injuries of course, but right now the problem is lack of building material post workout! If you go through some of my old post though, I talk about how weak and puny I was when I started going back to the weight room post WLS. Literally using 10lbs dumbbells. So yes, I have made progress. But I would still like more.

Oh, and I forgot to state for the newbies; I am coming up on my 2 years in February. Down 130 lbs to 198 lbs until I started lifting weights. Now maintaining and struggling to gain any weight past 215.

Nice to have you back @KindaFamiliar. 12 grams of carbs is insane! You must feel pretty damned lethargic without something in the tank to burn. Carbs are nothing to be afraid of when they are eaten properly. Oats, bran, shredded wheat, sweet potato, fresh fruits; all of these are OK'ed by my surgeon. The key is to only eat the daily recommended amount. Which incidentally is usually about the same as your Protein intake. My intake over the last week has been 100 - 200 grams per day. My protein intake is about the same as well. Of course I am also very active in the weight room and I need those carbs to give me enough energy to finish the workout. If you are trying to lose weight still, low carb is fine. Dangerously low carb is impossible to keep up long term though. Are you working out at all? Reason I ask is because I have to really try hard to gain weight at this point. Let me rephrase that, I am finding it difficult to find HEALTHY nutrient & caloric rich foods to help me gain muscle mass. If you are hitting it hard at the gym and keeping your intake the same, those last few pounds/kilos will start coming off again.

If you are on pain meds, I'd bet a dime to dollar that is what is causing your constipation. Oxycotin and Hydrocodone are like cement mixers to my bowels.

I don't remember when I started eating them, but I eat pork rinds all the time. They were on my list of recommended foods as an alternative to chips and crackers. The only chip I have ever really liked is tortilla chips with salsa, but I don't use them for that (I use celery). But I eat pork rinds frequently now with my hummus. In my opinion, when your surgeon says you are cleared for all foods, then give them a try. There is no rush to experiment right now.

Just beautiful! You've done a fantastic job. Sent from my phone. Please forgive brevity and spelling.

lol, oh man... you DO NOT want to know how bad the bathroom trip is going to be the first time you have that AFTER you are cleared for it.

Where are the pictures of the truck?!

Pork Rinds. Learn to love them. Eat them with hummus for variety of flavor.

I'll give you a piece of advice. Watch slapstick comedies and fast paced action films. Basically chewing gum for the eyes. Whatever you do, don't watch anything dramatic, sentimental, romantic, or existential. When I was recovering, I watched Paulie with my daughters. You know the movie? Has a parrot that can really talk... regardless, I was blurry eyed and lumpy throated the entire fricken movie. I didn't cry at my own brothers funeral but I am crying because a fictitious bird misses a little girl. Ugh.

@@Bufflehead - yep, that would do it for me too!

Totally agree with @@Bufflehead, Fage & Siggi's are great. But every once in a while once you are further out and if you are hitting the gym pretty hard and need the carbs, Noosa is a special treat. I love the pumpkin one personally.

See, I was cool before it was en vogue.

I think of that episode every single time. No sh_t. Sent from my phone. Please forgive brevity and spelling.

Me personally, I never had issue with either of those. But depending on how your surgery was performed your surgeon may want you to wait. That is something that the assistants at the office should be able to answer for you. Hemp hearts are an excellent choice BTW!

I am prone to my blood sugar getting too low post workout. But I have found that if I eat proper amounts of a complex carb like oats or shredded wheat about 20 minutes before working out, I do not dip so low. Those carbs take longer to break down and will not cause dumping like post workout juice.

I cannot speak from personal experience of course, but I would imagine that this would be completely unique to the individual. I've eaten too quickly and had severe gas pain from gulping air. Some people do not seem to have that issue. If you do not suffer from gas pains frequently, I would imagine that it would be fine. If like me air/gas is still problematic at almost 2 years, it's something to consider.

Many say it is a lifesaver, others say it is crap. I'm in the "it's crap" camp. Talk to your surgeon is the best advice I can give. But if you really want to know what some strangers on the internet have to say about it: http://www.bariatricpal.com/index.php?app=core&module=search&section=search&do=search&fromsearch=1 There are 37 recent topics about it. It's a dead horse that has been beaten ad nauseam.

I think this happens to all of us. All the people I have spoke with have done this very thing. I believe it is actually the disgust we have with letting ourselves get in that state being transferred to the people we see. Everything we are repulsed by stems from the seed of self loathing we may have had.

I just found this thread, don't know how I missed it really. I love cottage cheese. I love the cheap stuff just as much as the expensive stuff. I can eat it with just about anything, mixed together with just about anything too. But honestly; my favorite is just drizzled with maple syrup. Well, sugar free "maple" syrup.

Wow, necro-post revivial! I know this is in the Ladies Room, however there is somethings that were not mentioned in this thread that is actually kind of important. So please forgive the intrusion, but it is done with the best of intentions. Semen is made up of Proteins, fructose, and Vitamins. But they are in so little total quantity that nutritionally speaking they are irrelevant. The amounts of them are for the sperm, not the human digestive system to process. So the idea that it is a viable source of Protein or carbs is invalid. And the people who mentioned it causing dumping syndrome must have had the pineapple juice first! I know we are all adults here, but I shall still try to present this as tactful as possible. The other thing that is actually important is the actual act of fellatio. The suction coupled with the motion inherent with fellatio will cause gulping and swallowing of air. This can result in mild to severe stomach pain! So while I totally appreciate anyone wanting to do this for their significant other (you rock), don't be in any sort of rush. Take care of yourself and heal well first.