Little Green

I think I'm going to switch from coffee to black tea for a few days, then green tea, then herbal tea over the course of my liquid diet. That way it's both a mental and chemical switch. The hardest part for me will be avoiding my beloved Starbucks espresso drinks!!!! *cries*

@RunningLibrarian what's a starch-free diet? Just like a no-carb thing - no wheat, rice, potatoes, etc.?

The last month or so I've been really focusing on changing my diet permanently - getting my husband on board, donating or tossing foods we won't be eating, meal planning and cooking new recipes, etc. In addition to that, I'm brainstorming recipes for the post-op periods. Researching protein shakes & bars. Seeing my therapist every week to discuss fears and anxieties as they come up. Trying to be calm & enjoy the process - I feel this is a special, pivotal time in my life that I'll look back on with amazement. So just trying to be present with myself and my feelings instead of biting my nails and hyperventilating LOL... easier said than done sometimes but overall I'm feeling at peace.

I have to take Milk of Magnesia at 4pm the day before surgery, that's it.

Me too!

Yay, twins!! Which surgery are you having?

I'm RNY, not sleeve, but I'm 2/15 I told my husband we'll have to have a romantic protein shake dinner the night before since it's Valentine's Day I think I might also treat myself to a massage or something relaxing!

Thank you so much, you guys. I was so frustrated yesterday but today I decided to try again and explained the situation with my husband. He called back about 2 hours later with a date! February 15! Woohoo!

What's a participation heading? To the left of your posts I see the following: Is that's what you're referring to?

You are not alone!!!! There's a few of us who are doing a mostly plant-based bariatric adventure. I plan to supplement protein via shakes/bars for the first few months since as @Creekimp13 pointed out we do need more to get by as we heal and lose significant amounts of weight. But I definitely plan to eat as nutrient-dense as possible - focusing on all areas, not just protein alone. I'm still planning out what I want to try - and I know it will be trial and error with my new stomach anyway - but some of the things I'm thinking about are mashed bananas/banana ice cream, veggie juices/smoothies, blended oatmeal with bananas, flaxseed, and protein powder, blended veggie soups, and whole fruit sorbets as ways to get nutrients and fiber (and FLAVOR) in during the soft food phases. It doesn't all have to be ricotta bake and yogurt! I LOVE Dr. Weiner's videos. He is the first person who made me believe I could be successful at permanently changing my diet. All of the low-carb, high protein, "fruit is so unhealthy, too much sugar!" stuff that is often preached in bariatric circles was so depressing to me. Really, beans and fruit are unhealthy? Eat a chicken breast and then if you have space, a bite or two of broccoli? I just didn't think I could live that way and that was all I saw when I read about post-op diets. Now I know, thanks to Dr. Weiner as well as Dr. Garth Davis, that bariatric patients can thrive eating veggies and fruits and legumes. I also firmly believe that just because a diet helps you lose weight doesn't mean it's nutritionally adequate or protects you from disease. Fruit intake (2+ servings a day) is strongly associated with reduced risk of cancer so it bums me out reading posts from people who say they just don't bother with fruit because of carbs. Hope this post is not too inflammatory! Don't hate me, y'all! I just got excited for you, OP, cause I love where your mind is!!! I totally agree with you and hope you can find a happy place where you and your surgeon will both be happy with your choices! Good luck

Seriously - isn't ratatouille so beautiful?????????? OK I'm going to bed

^ Jeez, how many times can I say "truly enjoy," "truly savor," etc.??? Sorry for the repetitive phrases - it's super late and I need to be in bed! Hopefully you caught my drift anyway.

Most definitely - we all do! That was awesome for you to go to the support group. You'll definitely still be able to enjoy food; that's something I talk about with my therapist -- about changing my mindset from "enjoying food = stuffing myself on fatty food past the point of fullness" to "enjoying food = creating colorful, nutritious food flavored with herbs and truly savored and appreciated." When I'm struggling I think about my ideal self preparing my ideal meal - for some reason a colorful ratatouille is always something that I picture, or something piled high with colorful ripe berries. Setting the table and sitting down with my husband, talking and truly savoring the food - both for its taste and for the ways it nourishes my body. That image is a far cry from eating a brown bacon cheeseburger and brown fries and a brown soda, in my car by myself, with my mind numbed to the shoveling of food into my mouth. Which image portrays someone who is truly enjoying food? That's what motivates me. Yes, at the beginning I'll be limited in what I can eat while the weight loss phase is in full-swing. But once your body adapts and you leave the "honeymoon phase," if you've used your tool wisely you'll have transformed your relationship to food and you WILL be able to enjoy it, truly enjoy and savor it.

I have experience giving Lovenox shots to my husband after he was injured in a car accident. He will just crow with glee if I have to give them to myself at home I know for sure I'll have them in the hospital. Hopefully won't have to take them home with me!

I'm so thankful that my surgeon has very reasonable protein recommendations - only 50g minimum for women. That should be easily doable with protein drinks at the beginning and hopefully with food as well once I can eat more. Can't imagine having to reach 80 or 90g or risk being fussed at by the surgeon!

Yay!!! I'm so happy to read this update. Great job making it through everything, Brandi!

Huh, I've never heard that part about ketosis. I thought the purpose was calorie restriction to induce visceral fat loss around the liver. I know you can maintain ketosis long-term on up to 50g of carbs but usually it's recommended to stay under 20g to induce it for the first time. Many protein shakes and bars contain sufficient carbs to total more than 20g, right? My diet in particular is 5 shakes OR 4 shakes, 1 bar OR 3 shakes, 2 bars. I could stay at 25g carbs if I did all five servings from Premier Protein shakes. But if I added, for example, just one Pure Protein bar, that's 15-25g just right there, plus 20g for the 4 shakes. It's been several years since I was interested in keto so maybe the recommendations or guidelines have changed.

I'm so not judging you for smoking but I just wanted to caution that I don't think this is the best advice and I'm shocked your surgeon allowed you to have the surgery while smoking regularly. Smoking greatly increases the risk of blood clot which is already a very elevated risk after this type of surgery. It can also impede healing due to damage to the blood vessels. I'm so glad you made it through just fine (and I definitely understand not wanting to fight two demons at once). Just worried that this is not the right advice for OP.

Thank you for that info! I'll be on the lookout, especially since a lot of the protein bars and shakes have so many weird ingredients. I wonder if it goes by any other names in manufacturing.

Thanks for clarifying! I was so confused. You are definitely correct about the band, though. It's so funny because @Alex Brecher had the band and he was so successful that he started this website and his career in bariatrics! So while statistically the band is pretty poor, there are definitely success stories out there (just like with losing weight without surgery). But, as the statistics show, on average you'll definitely maintain weight loss better with the sleeve or bypass than with the band.

Has anyone tried this kind? I just ordered a sample kit that includes the three flavors of Veggie Elite protein powder plus a shaker bottle and a few other vegan products from MRM. I paid $10 for shipping but the kit was free, which is nice. I read good reviews on a bodybuilding website that this was the best tasting vegan powder and wasn't as gritty as some of the others. It's made with pea and brown rice protein and is sweetened with stevia. I hope the samples come quickly as I'll probably be starting my liquid diet in 2-3 weeks and want to get some products ordered soon! I do have a bunch of Premier Protein which I will happily use if needed (I want to survive, whether plant-based or not!) but if I can avoid the milk protein I'd like to try! Anyone have experience with this brand?

Omg. I am hoping to have surgery 3 weeks after my sleep study! Not sure I could even the machine in time, now. Blah.

Hey there! Could you point me to where you found this information about the sleeve? It was only approved as a standalone procedure in 2011, so the first 5-year studies are coming out now, with no longer-term studies yet available. Curious as to how it was demonstrated statistically that the sleeve performed better in weight maintenance over the bypass.