smg

So I adapted a couple of recipes to come up with this, but you can adjust however you want based on your stage/needs and of course, taste! This is great to make in a large batch and freeze some for ready-to-go meals on busy weeknights. However, if you have 2 teenage boys at home like I do, having anything leftover might be difficult My wife thought that this was one of the best Soups she's had, and she's not typically a Soup lover so I took that as genuine! I did make the taco seasoning homemade, as well as the enchilada sauce, but feel free to sub store-bought if you don't want to make them or don't have the time. ** NOTE - The picture shows corn in the soup, but I don't usually add corn (except for the kids as they love it) and you can or cannot depending on your taste and where you're at post-op. (The recipe does not have corn in it so if you want to add, I would add about half can, drained) SOUP INGREDIENTS 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1.5 pounds) 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock 1 1/2 cups red enchilada sauce (RECIPE BELOW) 2 14oz cans black Beans, drained and rinsed (if you want a mixture, add 1 can black beans and 1 can pinto beans) 1 14oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes with juice 1 4oz can diced green chiles 1 Jalapeno, diced, seeds and ribs removed (optional) 3 cloves of garlic, minced (you can use 2 if 3 is too strong - we love garlic) 1 medium onion, diced 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder Salt & Pepper to taste Garnish with chopped shallots, green onions, cilantro or sliced avocado DIRECTIONS Add chicken to the bottom of your slow cooker. Add other ingredients (except garnish) and stir to combine Cook on low heat for 7-8 hours Shred chicken with 2 forks, stir, garnish and serve hot You can refrigerate or freeze the soup for quick leftover meals (if there's any left!) ENCHILADA SAUCE INGREDIENTS 1 28oz can of whole peeled tomatoes (plus one empty can of water) 3 tbsp Ancho chili powder (regular chili powder works fine) 3 tbsp taco seasoning (salt free/sugar free recipe below) 1/2 white onion, roughly chopped (it's going in the blender) 3 cloves of garlic 2 jalapenos (seeds and ribs removed) - (add more or less to your taste) 1/2 tsp cumin 1 chipotle pepper with seeds removed and 1 tbsp of adobo sauce from the can (OPTIONAL) 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp black pepper DIRECTIONS Add all ingredients to a high quality blender and blend until smooth SALT FREE/SUGAR FREE TACO SEASONING INGREDIENTS (big batch to save for future uses) 8 tbsp ancho chili powder (regular chili powder works fine) 1 tbsp chipotle chili powder (optional) 1 tbsp garlic powder 1 tbsp onion powder 1 tbsp paprika 1 tbsp dried oregano 4 tbsp ground cumin 1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less to taste) 1-2 tbsp black pepper (more or less taste) DIRECTIONS Add all ingredients to bowl. Mix well and store in air-tight container. I use old seasoning jars for this and make labels for them. You can make more/less of this but this amount will last you some time.

Where are you on your journey? Pre-op? Post-op? If post-op, how far? I would normally say not to worry too much and just to get right back on track but if you are super-recently post-op I would REALLY be careful with things like croutons that can be kind of "rough" and/or "sharp"...especially on a healing tummy. Moving forward, if you are looking for something crunchy...try nuts or Quest Protein chips. Best of luck!

I've said this in previous threads, but I will reiterate it here. I have a wife and 2 teenage boys who are not in need of the surgery that I was in need of (sleeve). I asked them to support me through encouragement and positive reinforcement. At no time did I or would I ever expect them to change their lives because of mistakes that I made. It wouldn't be fair to them to ask them to do that. Do they try to give the meals I make a chance? Sure. Does it always work out? Of course not. The bottom line is that I am the one that has to watch what I eat. Since I make dinner most days, I try to make things that the entire family can eat or that I can modify a bit for me while still maintaining something easy for them. For instance, I'll make crockpot meatballs where I can eat a few meatballs, yet for them I can make complete meatball sandwiches. Everyone's happy. Other days I'll bake some fish and steam some veggies. If they don't like it....tough...make your own meal (they eat it...lol). I always make sure I grill or bake enough chicken to have around for Snacks so that if there are days where the wife and kids want to eat out they can and can do so knowing I have options at home if the place they choose to eat doesn't have anything that I can eat or would want to eat. At the end of the day, you have to do this for yourself. It would be great if everyone around us would change their diets and eating habits because we had surgery, but that's not realistic and it's certainly not fair to them for us to expect it. Take care of you, seeing the changes in you will lead to positive things for everyone. Once they see those changes, they will quickly realize the positives that your diet and new lifestyle has made and fall more in-line or be more open-minded when it comes to food and/or exercise. Additionally, if your wife is having surgery in August, it's probably not the best idea to be going through McDonalds in June, but that's just my personal opinion. I'm a little over 60 days post-op and I've lost 75 lbs so far and I truly believe that part of my success so far was because I did my best to prepare and get into a healthy diet PRE-OP. At the end of the day, place your energy in the one person you can control the success of......YOU! Best of luck!

Not sure where the op got his stats from, but they are not even close. In fact, I can't even find that stat when doing crazy searches to find it. According to a study done at Stanford University, the mortality rate for Sleeve Gastrectrlomy is 0.08%. I would suggest you sit down with an actual surgeon and go through some of the beginning steps and actually gain an understanding of what the procedure entails before worrying about statistics you got from who-knows-where.... SOURCE: http://asmbs.org/resources/studies-weigh-in-on-safety-and-effectiveness-of-newer-bariatric-and-metabolic-surgery-procedure

I have had several fitbit devices and have loved each one of them! I've used the fitbit zip, fitbit one, fitbit charge and (currently) the fitbit blaze. I love the app and the interface between the app and MyFitnessPal which I also use every day. The blaze is more of a watch than a simple fitness tracker, complete with continuous heartbeat monitoring, GPS via connection through mobile device, exercise tracking and more bells and whistles than a simple step counter. If a simple step counter is what you're looking for I would recommend the charge as it's relatively low profile and tracks steps accurately enough for daily use. Of course, if you're looking for something that does more yet still looks stylish enough to wear on a daily basis, I would recommend the blaze to anyone. I love mine! Best of luck!

I often wondered about stomach "stretching" during my pre-op research as well. Then I came across this video and it explains a little better what actually happens, and how to prevent it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_aahPETzH0

Honestly, I think if you are getting your sugars from WHOLE foods like fruit, I wouldn't worry too much about it as doing so includes the Fiber in the fruit as well (as long as you're not juicing it). The fiber helps slow the absorption of the sugar and that's why sugar from eating fruit is a lot different than eat sugar extracted from fruit (fructose) or table sugar extracted from beets or sugar cane. I try to keep my servings of fruit to the size of a tennis ball, and I haven't had any issues. As far as the high fat is concerned, I have a different opinion on that, but mostly because it doesn't agree with me. I try to make lean Protein choices and stay away from processed meats like bacon, bologna, or sausage. It works for me. Glad to hear you are figuring out what will work for you! Best of luck!

I found mashed potatoes to be far too "heavy" for me post-op. If you're looking for that "taste" you can try steaming some cauliflower and then mashing that as you would potatoes. That works great for me. I use cauliflower to sub for potatoes and even rice...

Can't say I've had the same issues that you are having, but perhaps it's because I have been taking probiotics from about 3 weeks pre-op....not sure. Not all probiotics are the same, though, some have label inaccuracies, and some have more/less and/or different strains in them. A good resource to compare and see how clean and accurate their ingredients/labels are is labdoor. Here's a link specifically to the probiotics section -- https://labdoor.com/rankings/probiotics best of luck!

Then get cashew milk or coconut milk...or drink regular milk if you desire. I have 3 almond trees in my back yard in Las Vegas and I water them the exact same as my african sumac trees and pomegranate trees and palm trees and I get almonds every year. I don't use any more water for my food-producing trees than I do for my non food-producing trees. Perhaps it's different in a commercial environment? If we're going to blame the food itself for environmental issues (and not the farming practices) then I guess we should blame the California drought on avocados and not the avocado farmers and stop eating them too? Some other interesting facts about how much water it takes to produce foods: - >5 gallons for a head of broccoli - ~5 gallons for a single walnut - 3 1/2 gallons for a head of iceberg lettuce - ~3 gallons for a single tomato - Just under a gallon for a single pistachio As you can see, a single almond uses less water than a lot of other, more popular produce. That being said, I don't think we can blame the actual food but rather focus on the over-commercialization and farming practices...just my 2 cents

Great recommendations! Personally, I *try* to stay away from anything with sweeteners, including stevia. I say *try* because it's near impossible to completely cut them out unless you literally never eat out or only eat raw whole foods. I do, however, grow stevia in my garden and add whole leaves to my smoothies or juices quite often. I do try to stay away from the stevia powders though as they are highly processed. The other reason I try to stay away from foods with added sweeteners (natural or artificial) is that, for me, it just makes me crave it even more. Then I find myself saying things like "Well, I guess just one cookie won't hurt"....and I'm doing everything I can to steer clear of that as we all know what happens next!!! Sugar is a natural food. Most of the white sugar we have today comes from beets. If you eat a bunch of beets, your body will certainly thank you for it, but when that sugar is extracted and ingested without all of the other nutrients and fibers of the original food (in this case -- beets), it can cause a lot of the issues we see today. Same concept with fruit juice. If you separate the juice from the Fiber, you're basically drinking sugar Water (regardless of the Vitamins and nutrients in the juice). If you're in the mood for a "juice" that's sweet, I would opt for a smoothie because when the fruit is blended you're keeping the fiber with the juice so you get the complete food. So I guess the answer would be yes and no, I do and I don't have a problem with Stevia...just depends on what form it's in. When given the option, I will use the whole stevia leaves from the plant itself. These plants are easy to grow on a windowsill just like other herbs also, so they're great to have around...and if you're craving something sweet...you could just eat a leaf by itself...it's like candy!

Luckily I didn't have this issue but have heard from many who have. I will preface this by saying make sure you speak with your surgeon about it right away to rule out any serious issues or complications. That being said, I have heard from a lot of people who had issues with gas pains that the pain would get really bad in their shoulder. The only advice I can give would be (again) speak with your surgeon first, and then make sure you are walking absolutely as much as possible to try to work out that gas. The gas that's used to inflate your abdomen creeps into the surrounding tissues and can cause moderate to severe pain. Walking helps relieve that pain. So walk as much as you possibly can and make sure you're getting enough fluids as well. Best of luck to you!

I should have probably qualified the almond milk addition. Obviously homemade is the best way to go (I've been on a homemade cashew milk kick lately), but it's on there more from a lactose issue than a simple replacement issue. Straight dairy milk didn't agree with me post-op, but almond milk has been great. If I buy it, I try to find ones with the smallest list of ingredients as possible. I always make sure the brands I buy are Carrageenan free. If you are not lactose-intolerant and like cow-milk, then I would stick with local, organic milk from reputable farms.

21 pages long now and still nothing solved, nor has anyone given in to any others points....so I have to ask....was this post REALLY worth it? What a waste of time

My approach post-op has been one of "simplicity". By simplicity, I don't mean it has been easy (it hasn't), but rather the food choices that I make now are ones that are "as whole as possible". I try to stick with foods and ingredients that have little to no processing and are as close to their natural state as possible. If you're sticking with whole foods that aren't (or are minimally) processed, chances are you're eating things that are healthy (or healthier) for you than pretty much anything processed. Sure, Protein powders are processed, but are a necessity in the beginning. I do believe, however, that most surgeons would rather you get your protein from natural lean sources once you're able to. I do still use Protein powder, but I try to stick with brands that have the shortest ingredients list. If I stick with whole foods, I tend not to worry about carb counting as much as if I were eating things like tortillas (low carb or not), because natural sources of carbs like fruit are dealt with a lot differently by our bodies than carbs from bread. I only eat fruit in it's whole state (not juice -- with the exception of lemon juice over veggies) to be sure that the Fiber contained in the fruit (that helps our bodies deal with the sugar) is intact. As far as "replacements", I would stick with whole-food replacements. Use a swiss chard or collard leaf as a tortilla. Is it the same? Of course not. Is it the better choice? Absolutely. After doing this for a while I actually learned to love the taste and texture of it and actually prefer it as there are so many different things you can make! You will have to find what works for you to replace the things that helped get you to the point of needing surgery in the first place. Whole foods and short ingredient lists is what's working for me. Some whole food subs I use are: Processed Food => Replacement - Pasta => Spaghetti Squash - Pasta => Spiralized Zucchini - Tortilla => Swiss Chard or Collard Leaves - Bread Crumbs => Ground nuts and seeds - Bread Crumbs => Flax Meal - Rice => Quinoa - Rice => Caulifower blitzed in a food processor - Mayo => Mustard - Mayo => Mashed Avocado - Croutons => Almonds or Pecans - Just about all salad dressings => Balsamic Vinegar - Sugar => Unsweetened Applesauce - Sugar => REAL Maple Syrup (limited of course) - Mashed Potatoes => Mashed Cauliflower or Celeriac - Canned Beans => Dry Beans (No preservatives or salt!) - Bacon => Prosciutto - Beef => Bison (If you can get it -- higher in B Vitamins and typically raised better) - Milk => Unsweetened Almond Milk - Soy Sauce => Coconut Aminos - Potatoes => Sweet Potatoes - Ice Cream => Whole Fruit Sorbet (directions below) Obviously, this is just a partial list but it's what I use most often and honestly I really don't miss the originals that much. The time after surgery is the best time to re-train yourself on making good food choices, and the best way to do that (IMHO) is to simply cut ties with the foods that helped get you here... For the Whole Fruit Sorbet you will need a juicer that has a "blank plate" attachment like an Omega auger-style juicer or something similar. I simply cut and/or peel the fruit I want to use (mango, banana, berries) and place the fruit into a zip-top freezer bag, freeze overnight and then run it through the juicer the next day. What comes out is basically no-sugar added 100% fruit sorbet and it's delicious!!! Even the kids love it! What's even better is that because you are using the whole fruit, you are preserving the beneficial fiber in the fruit. The other thing that I do because with such a small stomach now it's near impossible to get enough veggies in as I would like and so I juice my veggies. I will add either a half of an apple or a single lemon to the juice to help cut the bitterness of the greens, but this way I can get in far more veggies than if I tried to eat them. I can typically get in 1-2 pounds of veggies per day through a combo of juicing/eating. If it were eating alone, I'd be lucky to get in a few ounces so that has helped me tremendously also. Best of luck!

Well, I certainly can't speak to singing as my singing was just as bad pre-op as it is post-op (just ask my wife ), and everyone will heal at a different pace, but I couldn't see why you wouldn't be able to sing just as well as before. As with any surgery, there are certainly risks and I would encourage you to speak with your surgeon about them before doing the surgery. If it's a question of "breathing", I can tell you that personally, I have had more endurance and have been breathing much easier post-op...especially after sessions of being active. When in doubt, ask the surgeon! Best of luck to you!

There's actually an entire section of the forum dedicated to those who have gone from band-to-sleeve. You can see it here -- http://www.bariatricpal.com/forum/394-band-to-gastric-sleeve-revisions/

I think it's normal to be nervous at all stages of the process. It's a big step, but I think the nerves come from knowing you will have to make changes more so than from fear of the surgery. I went the self-pay route to avoid the waiting times for just that reason....I would have probably overthought things during the waiting process and didn't want to do that. Now that I'm about 2 months post-op I'm glad I went through with it. It's been the best decision I've made. I've lost 70 lbs, feel better than I have in years, have my confidence back, have more energy and am able to be active with my kids again without my knees feeling as though they're going to give out....and without having to take a break to catch my breath every 3 minutes! Stay focused on everything positive that will come from this...don't over-analyze. Research is good, but don't sabotage yourself by searching out the few who have had bad experiences. Look at the thousands who have had good experiences. The biggest *plus* for me was my team. The entire team at my surgeons office was there for me...I really felt as though they were in my corner and made me feel at ease throughout the entire process. Stay positive and you'll do great. Best of luck!

Every Surgeon and NUT will have their own recommendations, but I would definitely do some research as not all Protein powders are created equal. A lot of the *good* brands that truly believe in their products will offer sample sizes either for free or a small fee. This will give you the opportunity to find what you like without having to buy a 2lb tub of each. There are some Proteins that are much *cleaner* than others out there so pay attention to ingredient lists. Less is always better. My big things (recommended from my NUT) are to keep the carbs/sugars under ~5g per serving and the protein at or over ~20g per serving. I've tried several brand but have settled on a couple different brands, depending on the delivery method I'm using. Quest is what I use for flavored and non-flavored powder. The flavors are very good IMM, the powder is very fine so the shakes are not "gritty", and the unflavored is wonderful for cooking. For liquid proteins, I buy About TIme Pro Hydrate. About TIme drinks have over 20g per bottle (20oz). A good resource is a site called labdoor. They independently test all kinds of supplements for purity, label accuracy, heavy metals, ingredient safety and efficacy. It's really help me choose better supplements including protein powders. Just go to https://labdoor.com and click on view rankings, then check out what you're interested in reviewing. What I do when I find something that I *think* is good is then take that question to my NUT and get confirmation on the product from a professional. It's been a really great resource for me. Best of luck!

I was permitted to drink crystal light pure, Vitamin Water zero, and sobe lifewater zero, HOWEVER, the first two weeks I really did my absolute best to stick with water because it's not super easy in the early days to get enough down...not because of taste, but because the sips you need to take are so small. I used that time to try to break myself from the overly sweet things (including stevia)....even though there's no sugar in them and with stevia it's considered "natural", when I drank liquids with those sweeteners I had a couple of issues. (1) Anything sweet made me crave more sweet things...which is bad. (2) Simply put after surgery most of those drinks were just too sweet for me. Obviously you are going to want to absolutely stay away from diet coke or ANYTHING carbonated for some time, but water and unsweetened tea have done it for me. I do have the occasional zero carb Isopure but I have to cut it with water because it's too sweet...but it has 44 grams of Protein per bottle so worth it....

Are you taking what we say as literal?I've found that people who make irrational statements tend to be irrational. And irrational people tend to behave irrationally as well. "When all is said and done, usually more has been said than done. " Did you ever consider the fact that because people have the opportunity to vent on here is part of the reason he wasn't actually punched in the face? Hard to believe you defend the guy who directly insults someone with blatant disregard for their feelings....but somehow the "irrational statement" is what you choose to cling to....how ironic.

@@GinaCampbell That's great news! Congratulations....enjoy the ride...it's a wild one!!!!

@@Tee's Journey congrats on 2 days post-op! It's a weird feeling...never knowing if what you're doing is enough or too much...lol. The plus side here is that "your sleeve will guide you." Listen to it! Keep repeating the mantra....Sip, sip sip, walk walk walk. Get those fluids and steps in and the rest comes a lot easier!!! Best of luck!!

Still, right now you need to focus on you and you alone. During the "honeymoon period", you have the opportunity to train YOUR body and re-train yourself on making better food choices. Don't let the actions of others "muddy the waters" on your own journey. Focus on you...the example you set and the changes you make will become evident and when he sees the changes with his own eyes, he may come to the conclusion you want him to on his own

I wouldn't say you're being a brat about this, but I don't think you can or should control what those around you eat (or don't eat). Yes, things would be easier if my wife and kids didn't eat foods that I cannot eat, but I would never dream of asking them not to. They didn't need the surgery, I did. It wasn't their fault that I got as big as I did, it was mine and mine alone. My life is my responsibility and I refuse to blame my issues on those around me, just as I refuse to hold those around me responsible for my success or failure moving forward. This is my journey, and just because they are eating foods that I can't doesn't mean they don't support me. In fact, they have been my absolute rocks as far as support goes. They have been "mindful" of what they eat around be, especially in the beginning, but I would never expect them to do that long-term. They also do their best to try new, healthier foods, and they do that for me. Support and encouragement are something you should expect from your family, but for them to make complete life-altering changes because it's easier for you is not fair to them...or to you for that matter. You are going to be exposed to foods you cannot or should not eat. Hiding from that at home doesn't make it go away. Remember what you went through to get to the point where you could give up these foods, and then think about this: why would you have gone through it all if it were as easy as "just deciding" to give those foods up? Your significant other, so long as they aren't reveling in the fact that you cannot or are choosing not to eat these foods, is really doing nothing other than what they've probably always done. Your best bet is to focus on what you can (and should) control, and that's you! Stay strong, and fight the urges....best of luck!