Berry78

30g carbs plus 63g protein equals 372 calories. This is probably a ketogenic diet, or at least borderline keto.. and you'd have to eat 4.5oz of fat a day to bring it up to 1500 calories. Half a cup of oil, spread out on 3 big salads (That's how I imagine this working). It's not a bad idea, but it's not surprising he got control of blood sugar levels.. Basically people are getting 3 salads a day with a small amount of meat on each one, a few nuts, a bunch of dressing, and a side of corn or beans at noon and night. No dairy except cheese, no fruit, no grains. I think it'd be fun for about a day... but what can you do when you have a disease? You do what you can to make it go away (or as close to "away" as possible). Kudos to the good doctor for formulating a plan to help people. And, of course, it wouldn't HAVE to be salad all the time.. an omelet in the morning, meat, potatoes, and veg at night.. doesn't sound so bad...

I do want to point out that those studies are performed on your typical people off the street that are consuming 2500 calories on an average day. (Many of us before surgery). Not sure they'd be applicable for us.. at least not until we are able to consume a normal amount of calories again. All those benefits, we've already received from the surgery. I doubt we'd derive MORE benefit from doubling up.... but I dunno..

It would be nice to not have to count and plan.. and if we could still eat 20 cups of food a day, then maybe we would have that luxury. But, here we are, having to meet a zillion different nutritional needs into 3-5 cups of food. Heck yeah we have to plan! My hubby, with his normal-sized stomach, can easily eat 2 cups (4 servings) of beans, PLUS a nice hunk of whole wheat bread, PLUS a side of baked apples, all in one sitting. Then he can eat 2+ more times during the day. He has the LUXURY of spreading his nutrients out into massive quantities of food, and it's nearly impossible for him to not meet his protein needs (the above meal has 34g, right there). But I'm not him. I don't have a normal sized stomach any more, and if I ate the given meal, it would take all day, and I wouldn't have room for anything else. And I would only consume 34g for the whole day, which would leave me deficient. But this was my choice.. I'm exchanging a future of diabetes (and having to count blood sugar readings several times a day) for counting my protein.

My epiphany came with the concept of "single ingredient". Old fashioned cook books compile ingredients like: eggs, butter, sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon. Modern cookbooks say things like: 1 cup Pillsbury all-purpose baking mix The problem with the baking mixes and boxed cake mixes, is we lose track of what goes into the food. Occasionally I have the kids make a cake from scratch. They are SHOCKED at the pile of sugar that goes into the bowl. A cake mix has that stuff all mixed up, so you can't SEE it! When I was working on formulating my meal plan, I started with protein-containing foods. I googled, for example, "egg nutrition". A quick chart shows up from which I can select the size/quantity. I go through lists of these foods, comparing all the different types, and similarities quickly become apparent. From these similarities, I can generalize (for example, 7g of protein in an egg, a half cup of beans, one ounce of nuts, one ounce of meat or fish, 1/4 cup cottage cheese, or one cup of milk). I know I might be off a gram here or there, but it's close enough that I can now plan a day without having to keep going and looking up the protein content of the various foods. If I'm worried, I plan for more protein than I need. After protein is taken care of, then I look at the next macro. Carbohydrates. Some of the selected protein foods contain carbs, so I count those up. Do I have room for any others? If yes, then I look at fruit. A while back, I was researching fructose, and the daily recommended amount was approximately what was contained in one piece of fruit. So, that's easy. One fruit, depending on size, usually contains 15-25g carbs. I look at fruit, rather than grains, because fruit contains vitamin C, and addresses any sweet cravings. Plus, you keep a fruit bowl on the counter and grab a piece. No cooking or prep required. During the weight loss phase, that's pretty much as many carbs as we should be eating. The next place I'd look is starchy vegetables (potatoes and sweet potatoes). If I really am yamming for a sweet potato, I have that instead of fruit. (And on the super rare occasions that I want ezekial toast.. again, substitute). Veggies come in a variety of "starchiness". Leafy greens have less starch than winter squash, which has less than corn. It's good to have a sense of the variation, but I don't let any of the numbers dictate which ones are good or bad. All of them have a ton of nutrients and should be eaten liberally. I don't go out of my way to eat corn most of the time because the calorie/nutrient ratio isn't the best during the weight loss phase. But if I'm presented with a nice fresh ear of sweet corn, I'm not saying "no". And lastly, fat. We need some fat. Most of the protein containing foods also contain fat. I count up what is included in the foods that have already been selected. For the most part, it's enough that I don't have to add any (we need somewhere between 35g and 65g). But, those veggies that contain vit. A and K need to be eaten with some fat. So if I'm eating veggies alone, I add a teaspoon of olive oil or butter (or swallow an omega 3 supplement) with them. 1 t. is 5 grams (40 calories). If you want protein with it, melt cheese on broccoli. Calories: If we are aiming for 1100 calories, and 70g protein and 80g carbs (600 calories) + 55.5g fat (500 calories)... then everything works. But, when it's time to increase calories, usually protein needs don't go up significantly, so we'll have to increase carbs and fat. That's when we start bringing in potatoes, whole, unprocessed grains, and additional nuts and avacados and cheese. But, it's not a free for all, just because all the food selections are whole and nutritious, we still have to pay attention to how many calories we can handle before starting to gain. Some of us will gain on 1200 (check your thyroid!), and some can eat 2500 and maintain. The only way to know where you stand is to spend money on testing, or keep impeccable food records/plan.

Actually I was just using her as a real-time example.. the other parts of the post are the more interesting MIL has gone through so many diets that she thinks she knows it all.. but is also TERRIFIED to eat. She has lost 30lbs, and wants to keep up the momentum, but also doesn't want to give up things like diet soda or biscuits and gravy. She's all over the place, honestly. I'm thinking that's how a lot of us were on diets in the past. Just not really sure how to actually make it happen. Personally, I planned out each diet to a "T".. had all my rules and parameters in place, then embarked upon them. The missing puzzle piece for me was the knowledge that a diet has to be forever. Somehow I missed that memo, and thought they were supposed to be for a few months or so. My diets were designed for maximal weight loss in a short period of time, rather than durability. Life circumstances or hunger would knock me off plan, lickety split. MIL's "plan" is to see if she can continue eating like, 500 calories a day.. and she'll make sure she gets at least 20g of protein. (yeah, I'm eating this whole ounce of pork.. because I had half a cheese sandwich earlier with a whole 5g of protein in the cheese).. psycho... Yes I'm venting here.. but I don't to her. I'm actually pretty nice (maybe a little firm). I'll mention WW to her.

Ok, Apple1, if you don't want to decrease your food.. and are just aiming for eating everything during an 8 hour window.. I don't see how that's a problem. It's hitting the goals that's important to me. I don't care what time you eat. I guess I hear "fasting", and it sounds like going a day without food, which we don't want to do during the first 9 months or a year. As for calorie consumption.. The 90+ year old Okinawans of Japan are eating around 1100 calories a day, and maintaining well on that... but they are also well under 5 feet tall and ninety! Maintenance for one person will be fasting for another. While you are losing weight, keep your calories down. When you stop losing for at least 6-8 weeks, then you know your calories and metabolism have aligned. Was it because of calorie creep, or is that your new normal at a reduced calorie load? Since I haven't reached maintenance, myself, most of these ideas are conjecture. My hope is the basic metabolic needs will stay up at least to 1600 calories, so there has to be a distinct uptick in consumption to GET THE WEIGHT LOSS TO STOP. This means that you reach goal without any extra special dieting plan, and when there, you increase how much you are eating until you stop losing and/or start regaining. There should be a sweet spot someplace. Stick around your sweet spot, and like Jess said, when the scale gets a bit stubborn, then bring in some of these fasting techniques. But if the fasting technique is just telling you when to eat, and not how much.. then that could be undertaken any time as long as it doesn't interfere with reaching nutrition goals.

Thank you for noticing this. (Kinda the reason I posted the video). He eats, oh.. I don't know.. 20 times the amount that we bariatric folk can. Of course he can meet his nutritional needs! (Should still take a B-12 supplement though).

Best guess: Plan on losing 10-15 pounds the first month, and 6-8 pounds a month after that.. and the scale will pretty much stop at 160-180lbs. (Once it stops you'll have to work extra hard for additional losses). If you lose faster, it's gravy, but keep expectations low so you aren't disappointed.

I can understand the idea of fasting when you hit maintenance... but during the first year postop, we are in a constant fasting state. We are already walking the razor's edge r.e. malnutrition. Hardly a day passes I don't see someone report low levels of this or that (protein, iron, etc.). Let the surgery do its thing, and if you get to the point where the scale doesn't move for 2 months, but you have more fat to lose.. then by all means, shake 'er up!

Oh, and awesome job so far!! You are lookin' great!

Ok, you gave me permission, so I'll answer. Since you are over 3 months postop, I don't believe it is dangerous for you to eat 8oz of meat. It's surprising, but it must just indicate a larger sleeve (either longer than average, or the doc decided to leave you extra room, being a tall guy). Either way, let's talk about goals. Protein goal... 120g? An ounce of meat has about 7g protein, so 120÷7=17oz. But, people can only use 30g of protein at a meal (7g×4oz=28g). So you need to limit your meat to 4oz per meal, and spread it out into 4.5 meals a day. Limiting your meat will leave more room for veggies (i.e. vitamins and fiber). And keep in mind not all protein has to come from meat. Hopefully your plan gave you calorie and carb goals to shoot for (if I had that, I could help formulate what the day should look like).

You are going to have to spend a lot of time and energy figuring out the protein thing. You can try milk (fairlife has higher protein and is lactose free) and broth.. but with a DS, your protein needs are at least 50% higher than what you needed with the sleeve. Try freezing your shake into ice cream (or warm it up) ..see if that helps. You'll want to try different brands... most have to be ordered online. At the moment, try not to drink anything that doesn't have at least a little protein (I mean, if you can stand broth with 4-8g prot. per cup... then sip on broth all day...don't fill up on snapple). If you can consume a concentrated source, then you need a clear liquid to balance it out. Goal is .75-1oz liquid for every gram prot. (Which means drink 11-15 cups of fluid for 120g protein or 64-80oz for 80g protein.... I don't know what your protein goal is).

I spent all my extra time (hours each day) on this site and others during the last couple months before surgery. I learned so much by doing that, that I was ready when the time came. Take the time to sit and read. Google is your friend. Ask for the preop and postop diet from your program. That way you have something to look at.

If you were careful, I'm sure all will be fine. You can always contact your doc for peace of mind.

Leaks can happen until the initial scar tissue has formed over the wound.. it takes up to 9 weeks to be considered "safe" from leaks. Most leaks are not sudden, catastrophic tears (those that are will most likely be lethal in a very short period of time.. like, not make it to the hospital, short). Instead, leaks frequently tend to be very small, oozing type. The pain can be minimal or significant.. but usually people CAN feel something is just "not right". Once the body realizes food is landing where it doesn't belong, fever spikes. Fewer than 5 people out of a hundred develop a leak... (which means 95+ don't). It's good to know what to watch out for, but since they are pretty rare, don't be paranoid.

16 cups is twice as much as the typical recommendation. I don't know if you have special considerations as a patient, but if you are unsure, you should call your doc to clarify. (Sometimes people are in an exceptionally hot climate and need more than usual, or you, personally, need more). Keep in mind that anything you can drink counts toward your goal. The ideal ratio of water to protein is 1oz to 1 gram. So if you get 60g protein, but only 30oz fluid.. to digest the protein you will draw water out of your body, making you more dehydrated than if you drank 30oz with no protein.

If you are only getting 8oz of fluids in, you are already dehydrated. You need to call your surgeon and go somewhere for IV fluids, today.

Super, smokin' fantastic!

I agree that everything sounds pretty normal. A leak usually will make you spike a fever. Get a good thermometer and take your temperature each day or anytime you are concerned. Fever over 100 Fahrenheit warrants a call to your doc. (102 or over, go to the ER). Fevers can also be other things, so don't panic if you do get one! I'm sure everything is gonna be fine. Push those fluids!

Your doc is concerned about the carb content of the potatoes, not the texture. Potatoes were on my plan, in limited quantities.

First class, nonstop would be my choice. You can stand up and walk to the bathroom during the flight... so that helps with stretching and changing positions. Catching connecting flights and layovers makes for a really long day. If you really want an adventure, take the train in a sleeper car. Probably takes 5 days to get there though....

What's an epilady, and how do you use it?