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At my 6 month appointment my surgeon told me to increase my meal size to 1 cup in volume (up from 1/2 cup) over the next several months and to level out at 1 cup. He suggested that I have 1/2-3/4 cup of protein and the rest crunchy vegetables. 3 meals a day. I'm at 10 months now and I seriously enjoy some vegetables.

So many......you'll stumble from one to the other and wonder how you never thought of "that" one before.... Reduced pain Ability to do whatever you want Smiling all the time Sit in any booth, chair, stool, bar, etc, etc, etc Airline flights w/o fear of having room or having to use a damn seat belt extender Walking into the gym and feeling like you belong there Ability to go to any restaurant and order from any menu......yet have the knowledge to know how to order a healthy meal Last but certainly not least.......sex damnit sex. Enjoy thyself like never before.....or at least like a teenager.

It was easier for me to decide. i was 47 years old. I'd had plenty of experience losing and regaining weight. I'd lost as much as 120 lbs in a health kick at 45 years old.....only to regain after an injury and surgical repair that kept me outa the gym for a while. I healed but turned that "while" into way too long. Anyway.....a bulging disc at T-12 knocked me on my arse. Outa work for an extended period trying to heal it and avoid surgery. Back surgeon suggested bariatric surgery and that losing a significant amount of weight would allow my back to heal itself. Suffice to say that pain is a powerful motivator. That back injury was the most painful thing I've ever experienced....and that includes knee surgeries, broken bones and two prior hernia repairs......those back spasms were a beyotch. Within a month of having my VSG my back started to heal. At five months I was taking vacations and having an absolute blast. Live was good again........and has been ever since. Weight is coming off nicely. I can eat anything I choose to eat, just choosing weight loss friendly foods now. I can eat smallish to normal sized portions at meals. Nobody I'd meet today would ever know I'd had wls if they didn't see older pictures. Nothing in my daily life would reveal this. Living like a normal person......eating normal foods......normal portions. What, exactly, is your fear ?????????????????? A better life awaits you. Get lean. Enjoy the results. Gotta run. 14 hour shift awaits me.....and I have tons of energy to burn. Will even hit the gym during lunch break. VSG life is good !!!! Edit: VSG life is GREAT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Best answered and addressed by your surgeon. You should have been provided......before surgery.....with a diet to follow and the timeline it unfolds when post-op. In that first month it is a matter of safety......your safety. Please confer with your surgeon and nutritionist and get the facts from them. I found that what I though was hunger in those early days was simply my nerves recovering in my healing stomach. Ten months out and I don't have hunger.

I can remember running into Petco not too long ago......grabbing a 50 lb bag of dog food and toting it up to the cash register. It dawned on me as I was walking through the parking lot with it tossed over my shoulder...., "Dude....you've lost 3 of these from your body". Big ole grin emerged. I'm now working on getting shed of my 4th such bag now.......and starting on a 5th before my 12 month appointment in October.

..........and that is how life is post-op.........good stuff. I found that my cravings extended to grilled salmon, chicken breasts and such. It's a most welcome change and seems to be lasting and here to stay. Good stuff.

Ten months out. Yesterday was a workday as is today. Breakfast: Premier Protein banana shake + two servings of mozzarella string cheese Lunch: A serving of chicken salad from our cafeteria Dinner: Two golfball sized meatballs that I'd grilled on Friday. A couple spoonfuls of marina sauce over them. Snacks: I don't do Snacks. I don't need them and they only contribute to thinking about food. I'd rather just space out my meals and call it good. I still have a good deal of body fat to burn. Staying low carb is keeping that going. Once I hit my maintenance level.....then I'll start including snacks if needed (nuts, cheese, fruit and crunchy fresh vegetables ). Lots of Water (120+ ounces) and 4 cups of coffee throughout the day, too.

Snack strategy ??? My surgeon was very clear on this. He advised that I avoid Snacks for the first year and stick to three measured meals per day. This is what I've done and will continue to do. Three meals spaced out helps me to maintain Protein intake. Snacks simply contribute to keep food focus thoughts. My experience anyway.....

I bought one to help as I returned to work post-op. I had zero need for it for my VSG....but thought it'd help with the abdominal hernia that was repaired at the same time. If it was for VSG alone.....no, I'd not have wasted the money.

Somehow you have to let work be work and to completely disassociate with the consumption of such stuff. I don't cook for a living, but I do it on my days off. I don't eat most of the things I cook for my family, but still enjoy making it for them. You can do it.....just gotta find a way to flip that "off" switch.

My surgeon told me that he advises most sleeve patients to take one week off. He likes us getting back to our normal schedules as soon as we can. He advised me a bit longer due to the abdominal hernia repair. I took 3 weeks and that was good for me. The sleeve was not a source of significant pain in any way. If that's all I'd had then a week would have been plenty. It's like he said....."Laying around the house is not what I want you doing".

After having two total knee replacements this sleeve surgery is going to be a non-event for you. I was laughing about how little it hurt....it was almost like I'd not had surgery.

Remembering to eat more slowly. Waiting 30 mins afterwards before drinking.

I'm avoiding potatoes until the weight is gone. Gonna be a while......

Outstanding results !

Good stuff !!! LMAO I think I'd lose my man-card if I wore that shirt.

For the decade leading up to my VSG you'd likely find a Diet Dew or Diet Coke close at hand. I drank them in ridiculous excess. I'd given up the real versions and thought I was doing a good thing by drinking the diet versions. I drank them right up until my wls last October. Since then I've not tried them. I simply haven't missed them and have had no desire to fool with them even though my surgeon told me that I could give 'em a whirl if I could tolerate them (during my 6 month post-op appointment). So.....fast forward to yesterday. I'm at work and attending a two hour meeting where lunch is served. It is customary for the lunches to have both sweat and unsweetened tea. I use some Splenda and unsweetened tea and I'm good to go. The meals are always catered from local restaurants and have a variety of stuff that makes it easy for a low-carb eater to select from. Yesterday it was Pappa John's pizza and 2 liter bottles of Pepsi and Diet Pepsi. I'd cut it close so not time to go find other options. I at the toppings off two slices of pizza. Done. Thirsty from all the salt. Went ahead and poured a glass of Diet Pepsi. Started drinking a few minutes later. No issues...kept on and finished the glass. My turn to speak and present some info to the group came. So did the after effects of the carbonation. Stifling burps and having the "floating away" feeling during my mini-presentation was lots and lots of fun. As far as I'm concerned, it'll be another 10 months until I touch the sodas again. One of the basics that was drilled into my head during my pre-op classes was to always have a bottle of Water close at hand. Wish I'd that bottle with me yesterday...........

I sure as hell wouldn't be waiting around. What you are experiencing is abnormal and you should have been given instructions from your surgeon on what is normal and what is not. Not taking in any Protein and nutrients for two six day periods when you are only 26 days post op is not safe. Don't wait around.

I did not. I would think that would have to do with the individuals specific medical history and health vs it being a generic practice. Blood clots were a big discussion point with my surgeon. He had me walking two hours after surgery and every 3-4 hours afterwards for the first few days. The early walking was also a practice for two other surgeries that I had the past several years (neither was weight loss related).

Definitely true, but simply want to state im only human n everyone has ups n downs n i needed to kick myself in the butt n get bk on track Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App Yup.....everyone is human. If you are going to go with that line of logic.....what everyone else is doing.......then think about those that stick it out and stay stick to their pre-op & post-op diets. If they can do it so can you. You'll get it this time. You've learned a great deal through all of this. You can do it.

You have the surgery......stick with a diet that is easy to stick with.....lose the weight over the course of the first year.....then keep it off for life by eating normal portions of normal food. It's simple in theory......and thus far I've found it's very simple in practice. We just have to get out of our own way and it unfolds easily.

Depends on the type of hernia you are having repaired. I had VSG and an umbilical abdominal hernia repaired at the same time. The hernia repair was the source of pain when I was post op. I took 3 weeks off from work to let it heal. I should have taken an additional week.

I introduced coffee somewhere around the 8 week point with the permission from my surgeon. Drinking a cup right this moment, in fact. It's how I start almost every day and have some in the afternoon as well.

I hope you can find the discipline to stick it out and reap the rewards of big scale weight loss. Your safety is what this is all about. It doesn't matter what you perceive that other have done. This is your surgery and your safety. You can only be accountable to yourself. Don't let the cop out of what "other's must have cheated, too" be justification for anything. It's all about you. You can do this.

Opened the thread thinking it would be about something else entirely....... Glad I opened it, though, as @@Bufflehead was spot on with her reply. Good stuff right there.