blizair09

I haven't had any sugar in over a year, and I don't plan on having any in the foreseeable future. You have to decide what you can live with yourself, but since you are just 4 days post-op, I you shouldn't be having any sugar any time soon anyway. Once you are in maintenance, then you'll probably want to find a balance of calories, carbs, protein, fat, sugar, etc., but only you can know if sugar will lead you down a path of bad habits. (It would for me. I was a terrible carb addict, so I will have to minimize sugars and carbs for the rest of my life.)

Did your surgeon not give you a plan to follow? I would say you are probably still on clear liquids at this point, but every plan is different.

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I wouldn't focus on full; I would focus on consuming specific amounts of allowable foods and weigh everything to the ounce using a scale. Long term, we are supposed to focus on being satisfied, not full. But even that is difficult in the beginning if you have been used to gorging yourself all of your life. That is why the food scale is SO IMPORTANT to this journey. Also, if you're just a week post-op, I would imagine that you are still on liquids, or purees at most. Things will change drastically when you get to consume more dense protein. Even at nearly 6 months post-op, I can't eat more than 3 oz of chicken, 3.5 oz of salmon, and 2 oz of hamburger steak at a time.

At 6 weeks post-op, I was between 800-900 calories per day. (For reference, I am 6'0" and at that time I weighed about 260.). I was at 1000 the next month, and now, at nearly 6 months post-op, I am around 1100 most days (now I weigh 215 for reference.) I'd be interested in what you are eating to get those calories. Dense protein is going to go much further than carbs. I would recommend getting your carbs to around 20 grams per day, your calories around 900-1000 per day, and your protein around 100 grams per day, and try to get to 1100-1200 calories over the coming months. You can't live on sub-800 calories forever -- sleeve or not.

I have to ask a couple of questions: 1. What would you say that this woman weighed at that moment she was talking to you? Just a ballpark answer will do. If she weighed 400 or 500 pounds, that might explain something. 2. Did she specifically say that she had lost the 100 pounds since surgery day or did that count pre-op weight loss, too? That also would say something (especially if coupled with #1). And I doubt seriously she hasn't had any stalls. But, if she says so... Context is so important in these stories. Lack of context is why there are posts on here all the time from 230 pound women that are devastated that they didn't lose 40 pounds in the first month post-op. They read a post that someone lost 40 pounds, but they failed to mention that person weighed 500 pounds on surgery day.

I eat 7 times per day, about 2 hours apart. And I eat the same thing every day. Meal #1: 1 scrambled egg with 1/2 piece of American cheese and 2 oz of chicken or pork loin (scrambled in the egg) Meal #2: 4 oz cottage cheese with 1 T sugar-free strawberry preserves Meal #3: 2 oz salmon or chicken, 1 string cheese, 10 ParmCrisps Meal #4: 3 oz chicken, 1 oz green Beans, 5 ParmCrisps Meal #5: 2 oz hamburger steak (90% lean), 1 oz green beans, 5 ParmCrisps Meal #6: 3 oz salmon, 1 oz green beans, 5 ParmCrisps Meal #7: 4 oz cottage cheese with 1 T sugar-free strawberry preserves I drink 32 oz of Water after Meal #1 and Meal #2, 16 os of water after Meal #3, Meal #6, and Meal #7. I always allow 30 minutes after eating before I drink and at least 30 minutes after drinking before I eat again. (It is almost never time to eat again 30 minutes after finishing the water, so that is never an issue.) This comes out to 1000-1100 calories, 20 carbs, and 110-130 grams of Protein depending on the day. The only time I ever have to have Protein shakes is if I am traveling for work. And even then, I usually only have to have 1 since I can't drag food around with me everywhere I go. Good luck!

I eat 7 times per day, about 2 hours apart. And I eat the same thing every day. Meal #1: 1 scrambled egg with 1/2 piece of American Cheese and 2 oz of chicken or pork loin (scrambled in the egg) Meal #2: 4 oz cottage cheese with 1 T sugar-free strawberry preserves Meal #3: 2 oz salmon or chicken, 1 string cheese, 10 ParmCrisps Meal #4: 3 oz chicken, 1 oz green beans, 5 ParmCrisps Meal #5: 2 oz hamburger steak (90% lean), 1 oz green beans, 5 ParmCrisps Meal #6: 3 oz salmon, 1 oz green beans, 5 ParmCrisps Meal #7: 4 oz cottage cheese with 1 T sugar-free strawberry preserves I drink 32 oz of water after Meal #1 and Meal #2, 16 os of water after Meal #3, Meal #6, and Meal #7. I always allow 30 minutes after eating before I drink and at least 30 minutes after drinking before I eat again. (It is almost never time to eat again 30 minutes after finishing the water, so that is never an issue.) This comes out to 1000-1100 calories, 20 carbs, and 110-130 grams of protein depending on the day. The only time I ever have to have protein shakes is if I am traveling for work. And even then, I usually only have to have 1 since I can't drag food around with me everywhere I go. Good luck!

I have found that nutritionists are very hit or miss. The one in my surgeon's practice is actually pretty good, but I figured out a long time ago that she couldn't help me very much. I know exactly what I need to do, and I just do it. That responsibility is on me...

Congratulations. It sounds like you have an excellent mindset. It gets better and better with each passing day and week. Good luck and keep up the good work!

I told anyone and everyone from the moment I decided to move toward sleeve surgery (including before my six month pre-op diet program began). That decision has, continues to, and will keep me accountable. That's powerful. As @smg said, the cat is out of the bag now. Embrace it and use it to move you in a positive direction. The journey is long and hard enough without adding resentment and negativity to it. Good luck!

You might start by searching for nutritionists that are in your insurance network. I know mine has several in my area, and yours might as well. Once you see if any are in your network, then you can look for reviews for that specific person/persons.

I can't speak to the estrogen, but I can tell you that almost everyone experiences a stall at about the 3 week mark. Search "three week stall" on this forum or in google and you'll find tons about it. My advice is to stay off of the scale for the first month. Your body is desperately trying to begin the healing process and that takes priority for it over losing weight. Your job is to meet your protein and water goals everyday and stick to your plan regarding your food stages. If you do everything you are supposed to do, the weight will start to come off eventually. Good luck!

A lot of people feel this way. Once you move away from the liquid portion of your food stages, it gets better. @Sleeved3 made a good point, though. Nothing about this journey is easy. NOTHING. It is hard, grueling work that requires patience, grit, and perseverance on a daily basis FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. And you haven't really even begun the real work yet. That comes later when it is much more about the choices you make than it is about the sleeve itself. Hang in there. Focus on meeting your protein and water goals and work your plan. That is all you can do at this point if you want to be successful.

Yep. Everything is fine. And his staff is amazing. But I won't let him profit off of my success after he treated my family and me like that.

My surgeon showed up 3 hours late to the hospital with no explanation and no apology. (This after they called me 3 different times the day before the surgery to change the time I should arrive at the hospital.) I was the last surgery, so we waited for hours and hours in the waiting room. When I finally did get to go, he never spoke to me or my family. After it was over, he talked to mom on the phone because he wanted to leave (meaning that my dad and my parnter had to get information secondhand). He didn't go out and speak to them in person as he had done with every other patient's family all day. And, to top it off, when my mom (a sleeve patient herself) asked some questions, he was condescending and rude to her. He is an incredible surgeon, but, based on that experience, he is not a great person.

My surgeon definitely needed a lesson in not being a douchebag. But I hear that is the case with a lot of surgeons. I appreciate the fact that he is talented and did a good job on my surgery, but I'll never forget what a horrible person he was to my family and me on that day. (And I won't allow them to photograph me and use me in any of their advertisements because of it...)

I do agree that the surgery is the main point for so many people. I have read so many posts on here where people can't wait for the surgery "so that they can get on the loser's bench." And the "so" is the key word. They believe the journey doesn't start until the surgery happens. For me, the surgery has been a supporting player since the beginning of the second half of my journey. It is not the star of the show!

At 3 months post-op, I was taking in about 1000 calories per day. (For reference, though, I am a 41 year old man, 6"0" and around 250 at that time). I have followed a low carb/highish protein/high healthy fat way of eating all along (pre-op diet program, through the food stages, and now). So, I eat around 100-120 grams of protein per day, less than 20 carbs per day, and probably around 100 grams of fat per day. At nearly 6 months post-op, I eat between 1100-1200 calories per day. I weigh 215 now, so that number is still working for me. I don't imagine it will get much higher during my weight loss phase. I have about 35 pounds until goal.

This is a great post, and so true! Once you work through your food stages (that was 2 months for me), the overall situation is much better. That being said, you have to be super conscious of what you eat forever, but the overall physical "yuckiness" goes away. Also, the fatigue was a real issue for me for 2 months post-op. I took 6 weeks of medical leave from work, and I still battled the fatigue for my first 2 weeks back. Between that, the physical healing in the first few weeks, working through the food stages, and the need to devote myself 100% to my water and protein goals, there is no way I could have gone back to work any sooner.

Chicken breast is 24 grams per 4 oz serving. 90% lean hamburger meat is 22 grams per 4 oz serving. Wild-caught salmon is 20 grams per 4 oz serving. While not as protein rich as meat, cottage cheese is 13 grams for a 4 oz serving and puts a little bit of carb-friendly dairy in my life.

I was told 85% was removed, but I sure that is more of an estimate than an exact amount. It doesn't really matter to me as long as the sleeve as a tool is effective for me. And it is!

I agree with @_Kate_. Stay off of the scale for the first month. Your body is healing and making the necessary adjustments, so your weight will fluctuate. Also, almost everyone experiences the "three week stall" (search the forum for countless threads on it or just google it in general for more information). Concentrate on meeting your protein and water goals over anything else right now. If you follow your plan, the weight will begin to come off. Patience is really important in this journey! Good luck!

I eat 1 oz of green vegetables (usually green beans) three times a day. I don't eat fruit at all because of the sugar and carbs. I had fatigue issues for the first 2 months post-op, but at almost 6 months post-op, I don't have energy issues anymore.

I started this amazing weight loss journey on March 21, 2016 with my six month pre-op diet program, so tomorrow marks the one year anniversary of the day that I began the journey to get healthier and to take back my life. As I wrap this year up, I have lost 182 pounds (99 during the pre-op diet program and 83 since the surgery on September 28, 2016). The time has just flown by, and it amazes me every day how much my life is different. I had my annual physical with my PCP last Thursday, and my labs came back this morning. Everything is in the normal range. That is also so cool. The bottom line is that all of the hard work is worth it. My relationship with food is now a healthy one. I am no longer obese. Life is good! I have 35 more pounds to lose, and my journey continues. But I am proud to stop and reflect for a moment about this past year of working on a better me, and to look forward to getting the rest of this weight off by summer, and then entering the world of maintenance. Best wishes to all, wherever you may be in your journey!