blizair09

My partner and I went on a 3.5 week tour of SE Asia at three months post-op. It was completely fine. I follow a low-carb way of eating, so I was always able to eat within my plan and lifestyle (although I found that the food sat very heavy and I wasn't really able to eat much the entire time). I actually lost 13 pounds while on the trip. The good news about a cruise is that there is a myriad of food options available, so something will fit in your plan. I can't imagine why you can't swim or go in the ocean at your point in your journey. I was cleared to do hydrotherapy at my spa (essentially a Water coffin) at 2 weeks, so I am sure at 3 months, you are fine. Ask your team to be completely sure. Have fun!

New Orleans, LA

I have journaled every day since the beginning of my six-month pre-op diet program on March 21, 2016. I have a record of what I ate each day, musings about the journey at least once per week, a weekly weight on Mondays (sometimes weights on other days when I hit a milestone), a list of milestones and when they were accomplished, and pictures at every stage along the way. I keep everything in a word doc on my computer. It is over 150 pages now! I have mostly kept it to myself, but some of my loved ones have looked at it on my computer. I'm toying with the idea of doing something with all of it when I reach my goal, but we'll see if I have that much ambition! :-)

Happy birthday! Mine was 9 days after my surgery, but it was still a nice day. Do something fun!

At 4 months post-op, I am eating around 1000 calories per day. But I am a 41yo, 6 foot tall man who currently weighs 230 pounds, so my needs would be different than, for example, a 55yo, 5 foot tall woman. It really is variable depending on the person. I would get your team's input and then make a plan from there. I know that I have worked hard to consistently get my calories UP over the past 3 months. And it has helped my weight loss.

When I travel on a plane (short distances or long distances), I usually take Protein powder and a Blender Bottle and shake up a shake when I need it. Since it is powder, it is easy to pack in a gallon-size zip-loc and TSA doesn't have an issue with it. I just have the FA bring me an empty glass for it. I haven't had to rely on shakes or powder on an every day basis since about a month post-op, but they come in handy on travel days. (Even if I have to remind myself, on those days, that food is just fuel and I have to drink the disgusting things for that reason!!)

Everything will get better as time goes on. Days 1 and 2 post-op were pretty awful for me, but by Day 3, I started to rebound. Walk as much as you can and sip constantly throughout the day to meet your Water goals. And as much as the liquids will get old after a while, it won't be forever. Good luck!

I don't find this to be offensive at all. It is the cold, hard truth -- and something many posters need to hear over and over again!

My dad is going through a six month chemo regiment for Stage IV lymphoma right now, so I understand how you are feeling. Cancer sucks. Period. So I suggest making your weight loss journey the positive to counteract the negative of the cancer. You'll feel good physically and mentally because of the progress you are making. And remember, you can't use food as a real comfort. It will only end up making you feel worse in the end. Keep working on changing your relationship with food. It is the sole route to success on this journey. Best wishes!

Hi everyone, My partner and I made it safely back to New Orleans late last night after three-and-a-half weeks in Southeast Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam). It was an amazing trip -- enlightening, exotic, beautiful -- but I am very happy to be back home. I weighed on my own scale this morning for the first time since December 19. Preliminarily, I lost 13 pounds during this time. I say preliminary because I'll be curious to see what my weight is Monday or Tuesday after I settle back into my normal routine and lose some of the bloat from the long airplane ride and the sodium from the airplane food. Here are some things I learned (or remembered) and experienced while I was gone: 1. Changing my relationship with food is the key to this entire battle: This was the first time since my surgery that I had to come outside of my protective food bubble. While I took some Protein powder with me, it was used up pretty quickly, and once we left Singapore, there wasn't any appropriate powder available. String cheese wasn't readily available anywhere, and what they call cottage cheese over there is very different than ours. I had to work with what I could find and make it work within the parameters I set for myself. One time, we ate at a fried chicken place. I pulled the skin off and ate the chicken breast underneath. Many times, I had to get a stir fry concoction and then pick out the protein and green vegetables and eat that. The point is, I was in less than ideal food situations, and I was able to successfully get the appropriate fuel I needed (and avoid undesirable food) because of my new relationship with food. 2. A little bit of alcohol didn't cause me any problems: I gave up alcohol after the first month of my six-month pre-op diet and I abstained from it for almost nine months total. While I did not consume alcohol every day during our trip, I did have at least one glass of red wine on probably 75% of the days, and two nights (New Years Eve and the next-to-last night of the trip), I drank quite a bit. Even on the "heavy" drinking days, my carbs never went over 50, and my calories stayed nicely in check. Now that we are home, I am planning on alcohol being an every-now-and-then indulgence (meaning no more than once per week), and if there is going to be a night that we have some drinks, I'll use Protein Powder to get my protein needs and keep the calories down and in check. The point is, the alcohol didn't hamper me in any way and my stomach was fine with it (just like my NP said it would be). 3. Exercise is important, but this journey -- right now at least -- is about consumption: We walked A LOT on this trip. I mean like 10-12 miles per day a lot. I was so proud that I could do it, and I was exhausted most days by the end of the day. And the walking probably did offset the alcohol I had, but all-in-all, my loss was along the lines it usually is. I will continue to exercise like I am supposed to, but this journey is still more about consumption at this point than it is any kind of exercise. 4. I still can't do carbonated drinks -- even a sip or two: Pre-departure drinks in international first class usually are champagne and juice. On one of the flights, I got a glass of champagne and took a few sips to see how I would do with it. For a while, it was fine. I ate a little bit during the meal service, and a little while later, I thought I was going to have to throw up in the little bag. (The seatbelt light was on for an extended time and I couldn't get up.) While I didn't actually throw up, I kept having to spit up Water until I had this enormous (and loud) burp. Once that happened, I was instantly fine. As much as I miss Diet Coke, I can't have it or anything else carbonated. I'm envious of those on there who say that they can have it, but I am not going through that again. 5. Food doesn't control my life any more: This trip was about the experience -- the culture, the people, the places. It was not about the food. That was the biggest victory for me. As we New Orleanians now Celebrate Carnival season for the next six weeks or so, I will approach the celebration in the same way. I am going to enjoy the season and be out and about proudly, but it isn't going to be about food, even if it is for others. So now, I continue my journey. And I will proudly crawl back into my protective food bubble for a little while! Best to all!! Blair

Search this website (or google) for the phrase "3 week stall." It happens to everyone.

@@Holly McQuillan If I were you, I'd ask my surgeon's staff to recommend a psychologist who has experience working with bariatric patients. If you want to be successful on this journey, you will have to change your relationship with food. And that means eating what you are supposed to when you are supposed to. Now that you are post-op, these are even more important decisions than they were before because they can seriously affect your health. Maybe talking with a professional can give you some strategies that can help you understand your current relationship with food and where you need to be. Trust me, tough decisions are never going to go away. In fact, they become more numerous as time goes on. Good luck.

Take advantage of that six month period. I lost 99 pounds (from 397 to 298) during mine. It prepared me for the surgery and a very successful post-op life better than anything could have. Plus, it felt great to get on a positive trajectory from the beginning, and made the early stalls post-op (that EVERYONE has), much easier to handle. Good luck!!

Good for you! Keep up your good work and positive attitude!

I would recommend staying off of the scale for the first month. Your body is recovering from major surgery, and nothing is likely accurate regarding your weight. Also, at this point, you probably haven't normalized from all of the gas and fluids they pumped into you during surgery. The best advice is to stick to your plan. This isn't a race; you should be making positive changes for the long-term. The weight loss will come if you stick to your plan and make good decisions. Good luck!

So true! I have been faithfully tracking everything that I put in my mouth since I began my six-month pre-op diet program on March 21, 2016. I can't imagine not doing it now.

Premier Protein is my favorite of the ready-made shakes. They have several flavors, but I think the chocolate is best. 160 calories, 2 net carbs, 30 grams of protein.

Good for you for the pre-op weight loss! I lost 99 pounds (from 397 to 298) during my six-month, insurance-required diet program. It set me up for a successful surgery and post-op life. At first, I was worried that I wouldn't have as much success after the surgery, but I have. I've lost another 65 pounds since the surgery 3 months ago! Good luck as you continue your journey!

There's nothing like a nice, warm fire! Their fireplace is one of my favorite parts of visiting my parent's home in the winter.

Nutritionally speaking, it does look better than regular Pasta, but it still has carbs galore. I'd be interested if it has the same expanding effect as regular pasta once it hits the stomach. Hopefully someone will chime in with his/her experience. I love pasta, but I accepted before I began this journey that it will likely be off the table for the rest of my life.

I had some steak in Delta One on our flight from Seoul to Detroit a couple of weeks ago -- my first since the surgery. It didn't cause me too many problems, but I could only eat a little bit of it. It's not on my everyday list of foods, but I might have it from time to time. I have 2 oz of hamburger steak every day, so that gives me my red meat fix! (And, to be honest, the appeal of the steak dinner for me was always the steak, potato, salad, red wine, and dessert combination. Since all of that is off the table now, the magic is gone...)