catwoman7

I started walking right after surgery (they usually have you up and walking the day *of* surgery - but not very far!). By four weeks out I was doing practically everything except weights. I think I had to wait until I was 6-8 weeks out to do weights.

I've heard that a lot. I'm not sure what causes it - but it should be temporary

I did those three plus thigh and upper arm. My thigh is now smaller than my arm was when I first started!

we were told not to worry about calories early out. With all the Protein we were required to get in and the other rules we had to follow, plus the fact we weren't physically able to eat that much, the dietitian said calories wouldn't be an issue. She said just focus on fluids and getting the minimum protein requirement. after the first couple of months, I was eating around 800 calories - then closer to 1000 as I got closer to a year out.

Dr. Vincent DiNick, in Ypsilanti, MI, he was fabulous! Thanks! I'm starting to look at surgeons, that's why I asked. Thanks for the recommendation!

I agree with both of you!!

it's a fleur-de-lis. It makes your waist much smaller, but unfortunately, it also leaves a scar. Not sure which way I'll go with this (I haven't had plastic surgery yet) - I can see both sides (smaller waist vs. vertical scar)

who did your surgery?

Greek yogurt, unsweetened cashew milk, 2% milk (I also make some of my own yogurt), berries (I put them on top of plain or vanilla yogurt), Dannon Light & Fit Greek yogurt (I sometimes eat this as a low-cal snack at night, since it's only 80 calories and has 12 g of protein), boneless chicken breasts, pork chops, herbal tea, Crystal Light (I drink it plain and mix it with fruity protein powders), fresh veggies

check out the blog "World According to Eggface". She has lots of recipes on there for all stages, including the Ricotta Bake one that jrpinkard mentioned

I've never heard of either surgery being done outpatient - with either one you're usually in the hospital for a night or two - so that's odd. if you have reflux, I'd strongly consider the bypass. It usually cures reflux. The sleeve often (but not always) makes it worse.

not really. Both sleeve and bypass are done on "lightweights" and heavier folks. It's really a matter of personal choice - although the bypass is a better option for people with reflux.

I remember eating a lot of refried beans and pureed omelet. Also a lot of Greek yogurt and pureed cottage cheese.

Quark isn't quite the same as yogurt, but it's similar. It's actually considered a cheese. I've had it occasionally. I think it's supposed to be more nutritious than yogurt. some of the sugar in yogurt is just milk sugar (lactose), which is even in plain yogurt (or in milk), so I just worried about it if it seemed really high in sugar or had the word "sugar" in the ingredient list. I eat Fage, Chobani, and Dannon Fit & Light, mostly - although I've had Dannon Oikos and that's good, too

oh - if you're eating less than what they say, then you can come up a bit (if it's possible). I thought you already were eating what they said and wanted to increase a bit.

that's because soup's a liquid - it goes right through you. The above poster is right - you'll feel restriction once you move to solid food.

I wouldn't increase calories unless your surgeon's office tells you to. You'll start dropping again...

hi Whit - it could just be a long stall, but if you're not weighing/measuring and logging things, do it for a few days just to make sure you're still OK. I actually have to do that all the time because I know I'm very susceptible to "portion creep". If your eating is still OK, you're probably just in a long stall.

I just stuck to my program. Stalls are just a normal part of losing weight. I know some people try to shake things up, though

I had two of them. They happen to about 5-8% of RNY patients. They're almost always within the first three months after surgery. They're very rare after that. It's an easy fix - they just do an upper endoscopy and stretch the scarring out a bit. You're knocked out so you don't feel a thing - and you'll feel 100% better afterward. I had them at four weeks out and eight weeks out - so you're in the right range. Of course, I'm not 100% sure that that's what it is, but those are the symptoms. I'd call your surgeon's office and see what they think.

everyone loses at different rates depending on a lot of factors - age, gender, starting weight, metabolism, whether or not they lost a lot of weight before surgery, etc. It's pointless to compare yourself to others. As long as you stick to your plan, you will lose - whether fast or slow. that being said, 30 lbs in six weeks is on the high end of the range. Even though you're going to see some people drop 30 lbs the first month, be aware that the average range is more like 15-25. You're on the high end of that. I was a slow loser (I dropped 16 lbs the first month, and seemed to be behind the curve for the first six months or so), but I've lost 223 lbs - 100% of my excess weight. So being fast or slow at the beginning has no bearing on how much you'll ultimately lose. Working hard and being committed to your plan *does* make a difference. Not everyone dumps. The number I see thrown around a lot on these boards is that 30% of RNY'ers dump. I don't know if there's any scientific research behind that, but suffice it to say, not everyone dumps. I don't. I still drink a protein shake every day at 19 months out, because if I don't my pre-albumin levels tank. Lots of people drink them the first few months or even the first year. Surgeons have different opinions about this. But I, for one, need the extra protein, and it's hard for me to get my requirement (at least 100 grams a day) through food alone. Food tolerance - it sometimes can take awhile. At about six months out, you'll probably be able to eat just about anything, but until then, it's trial and error. Sometimes something won't sit well, but then a couple of weeks later, it suddenly will. So just keep trying.

sounds like a stricture. Call your surgeon's office.

I didn't lose any. Or if I did, it was so little that I didn't notice it (I'm 19 months out, so it would have happened long before now)

yes, I could have lost weight on a <800 calorie diet. And I would have gained it back. I've done it more times than I can count over the last 40+ years. This is the only thing that's worked for me. That being said, I've had to work very hard to get down as low as I got (I've lost 100% of my excess weight), but the surgery made that easier, and it should be possible (although not easy...) to maintain. A lot of people have a 10-20 lb rebound, but those who gain back a ton of weight (or even all their weight) aren't sticking to their program. They're letting bad habits slip back into their lives and/or aren't following the rules.

almost everyone experiences their first stall within the first month or so after surgery. It's so common it has a name (at least on the internet forums) - the "three-week stall". It often happens during the third week out (hence the name), but not always. I had mine weeks 2 & 3. For some people, it's at a month out or even six weeks. But that's what's going on. About all you can do is just stick to your plan and it *will* break. When mine finally broke during week 4, I dropped like 6 or 8 lbs within a couple of days. Just hang on!!!