SpartanMaker

My base recipe is mostly: Either ~12 oz of a fairlife protein drink, or fairlife whole milk depending of what flavor I'm going for ~1.5 Tbs unflavored whey protein isolate ~2 Tbs instant pudding ~1 ts extract of your choice Add additional sugar substitute of your choosing if you like it sweeter This normally takes 1 spin on Lite Ice Cream and 1-2 re-spins. For me this is 2 servings, though YMMV. Sometimes, especially if I used a protein drink as the base, I'll use a little less of that and add in some Greek Yogurt to make it creamier. I personally don't like it if it's more than about 4 Tbs because it tends to be a bit tart for my tastes. Here's a more specific example I made recently (and just finished off today): 12 oz Fairlife whole milk ~1.5 Tbs Isopure whey protein isolate ~2 Tbs Butterscotch instant pudding ~6 drops ultra-concentrated Rum Extract Splenda to taste (I didn't measure) I added walnuts as a mix in Now it's your turn to share!

Love it! By the way, I also have a Ninja Creami and my latest passion is trying new recipes for protein ice cream. And yes, chunks of snickers have found their way into my creations. 😁

"Unless you stole it from an orphan..." 🤣🤣🤣 He's definitely on point with all of this, though I suspect most folks need some help and guidance on how to actually implement these things. I also agree that are no BAD foods, but there are definitely some that are better for you than others. Balance is important, and that may be the one point I'd add to what he said. Yes, eat all the foods, just make sure your "all" includes the salad and the veggies and the fruit and the whole grains, etc.

Collagen Protein by itself is not considered a complete protein because it only has trace amounts (at best) of tryptophan, an essential amino acid. As @NickelChip mentioned, some collagen protein supplements add L-tryptophan to make a more complete protein. Looking at the one your husband is suggesting however, it does not look to have any added L-tryptophan, meaning it's really not suitable. Something else to keep in mind is that whey protein has a huge number of scientific studies showing it's better at muscle protein synthesis than collagen. A protein first diet is recommended for bariatric patients due to the desire to spare muscle catabolism when on a very low calorie diet. If whey is better at muscle protein synthesis, then it makes sense to focus on whey (or alternately on lean whole foods like chicken & fish). This is the reason almost all bariatric surgeons will tell you that it's fine to take collagen, but you should be careful if you are counting it toward your overall daily protein goals. FYI, due to your issues with artificial sweeteners, you probably should be looking for an unflavored version of whey protein isolate. Because it's unflavored, it's also likely to be unsweetened. I personally like Isopure brand, but there are others that are good as well.

I also take prescription NSAIDS due to significant back issues, so I initially thought I could not go with bypass. However due to the risk of GERD (symptomatic and verified by endoscopy), my doctor did not recommend sleeve. The resolution was to go ahead with the bypass. With my doctor's blessing, I have continued to take the NSAIDS and have been successful because she also prescribed a Proton Pump Inhibitor for me. If you have any history of GERD, it would be best to at the very least have an endoscopy done to make sure you are still a good candidate for the sleeve. I don't know what the overall revision statistics are, but there sure are a lot of folks on here that initially had sleeve and had to get a revision to bypass. Some of those were due to poor results, but a lot seem to have been due to GERD.

Well, I don't fit your criteria (I was at about a 47 BMI at my highest), but I wanted to provide some overall perspective. There will always be some people that regret having bariatric surgery regardless of starting weight, but studies suggest that the vast majority are happy they had it done. The satisfaction rates seem to be about on par with other major "elective" surgeries such as joint replacement. In the studies available, there was a very strong correlation between satisfaction and weight loss success. That makes sense, because if you can't maintain the weight loss, this would tend to make you think it was a waste of time, money and that you went through a lot of hardship for nothing. Another strong correlation existed between those with eating disorders and dissatisfaction. Again, this makes sense because of the correlation between success and satisfaction. If you have an eating disorder, it's certainly possible to out eat any surgery. Those that report the highest satisfaction would tell you it was nothing short of life changing. At the end of the day, only you can decide if it's the right decision for you.

What you're experiencing is completely normal. Partly your body is simply trying to heal from the surgery, so food right now is not what a healing stomach wants. Regarding the tastes changing, it's entirely possible that some foods you used to like you may never want again. Other things you'll learn to enjoy again. This is just something we all go through. The water thing should get better over time. At this point, your stomach is likely still swollen, so it just can't hold very much. Most of us had to really be religious about drinking just maybe 1-2 ounces at a time and trying to drink every 10-15 minutes while awake. This is hard right after surgery, but as I said, it gets a lot easier as the swelling goes down and you're able to drink more normal amounts. The nausea is a little unusual this far out, so I'd honestly recommend talking to your surgical team. It could just be from overeating/drinking, but it's best to talk to the experts. Regarding weight loss, you have to keep in mind that your body is made up of a lot of other "stuff" besides just fat. You may well be retaining fluid or stool and that can mask weight loss early on. It's physiologically impossible to be eating as little as you are and not losing fat, so please just have faith in the process. The best thing you can do is follow your surgical team's post-op instructions and you WILL lose fat.

Great advice above by all. I wanted to add that sometimes people think there's something wrong with them or with the surgery, but what you're feeling is absolutely normal. Sure, some of the things you're feeling might not qualify as "true hunger", but that distinction is sometimes not nearly as clear as some people make it out to be. Much of what we call head hunger is due to hormonal responses not unlike those generated by actual hunger. This can be especially true when we're in a significant calorie deficit, like you are in right now. My point is that your body is designed to do exactly what it's doing, so don't beat yourself up for it.

I actually would recommend not buying too much of any one thing. A lot of us experienced changes to our tastes such that things we enjoyed pre-surgery became things we couldn't stand afterward. Just for clarity, part of your stomach is actually removed from your body when you undergo gastric sleeve surgery.

Welcome Kat. So sorry to hear of all the struggles you've had. It sounds really rough. I think almost everyone here has struggled with something over the course of their bariatric surgery journey and some have struggled a lot more than others. None of us are perfect. We simply can do what we can do. Please keep in mind: If the recommended changes regarding diet and lifestyle were easy to make, I'd wager that most of us would have simply made those changes without going through the surgery. My own perspective is that my weight loss surgery was a tool that helped me eat better and eventually allowed me to get to a weight that also allowed me to be more active. It's was not the other way around, where I had to do certain things for the surgery "to be successful". Please understand, I'm NOT saying you can do whatever you want after surgery. What I am saying is that the surgery itself is a tool that can help you do the things that will lead to success such as eating better and being more active. Those changes take time. You're not going to be able to make dramatic lifestyle changes overnight. Don't even try because that NEVER works. Focus on making just small sustainable changes before trying to make any further changes. It sounds trite, but slow and steady truly does win the race. I would also strongly advise you to consider finding a good mental health professional that specializes in bariatric patients. This one thing will probably help you more than anything with some of the struggles you're having. A dietitian can also help with the diet portion and is also strongly recommended. Please keep us apprised of how it's going and I think you'll find there are people here that can help with whatever struggles you may be having, whether it's being compliant with your surgeons instructions, cleaning up your diet, or finding motivation. We're here to help.

Well done, though I have to mention I'm a little confused? The title indicates 25 years post-op, but your surgical date indicates 15 years? Either way, you've done a fantastic job.

I'm reminded of something one of my mentors used to say a lot: "Progress, not Perfection". To me it sounds like you're making great progress! I personally think you need to both celebrate your progress, as well as give yourself some grace for not being perfect, since none of us are perfect. Regarding the certifications, is there a way to get the money some other way? is this the sort of training/certification where school grants or loans would be an option? If not, what about a personal loan? I'm guessing you may have already evaluated this avenue, but I thought I'd mention it, just in case.

Sorry you're feeling some pain. I would strongly advise you to talk to your surgical team. While the likelihood is this is not anything bad, the smart thing is to talk to a medical professional and let them evaluate you just to be safe. Even if someone else had the exact same surgery as you and had similar symptoms, there's no guarantee that you both are experiencing the exact same problem.

The ONLY thing you have to do to lose weight is eat fewer calories than you burn. If you do that you will lose weight. There are lots of tools we can use to help us in this regard, like tracking, meal prep, tweaking macros, eating more high quality foods vs. junk food, and a lot more, but at the end of the day, it's calorie consumption that will make or break a diet. For some people tracking is critically important because if they don't track, they overeat badly. Everyone has a bad tendency to way underestimate the number of calories we eat in a day, so especially for people that tend to snack a lot, or eat a super varied diet (which is not a bad thing!), then tracking at least sometimes is pretty helpful to make sure they don't overeat. Like you, I just can't track reliably. It's not so much that I forget to do so, as much as I find it incredibly time consuming and boring, thus I just don't do it. Would I love to be able to track calories consistently? Sure. Really honing in on my daily calorie intake appeals to my analytical mind. I know I'll never be able to do it though. At this point, what I try to do is "spot check" my calorie consumption here and there. Sometimes I might make it a whole day and sometimes I just evaluate a single meal. This helps remind me to keep things in check.

Well, you know yourself best, but my impression is that strict, regimented meal planning would be a better fit for you. What I mean is that it's not the tracking of the food every single day that will make the difference here. It's making a simple, defined menu plan that you stick to. Determine ahead of time EXACTLY what you're going to eat every day, and set reminders to eat on a schedule so you don't go too long without eating. Again, just my thoughts based on what you've said so far.

My first question is why are you feeling like you need to track your food? I know some people find it helpful, but in your case, it sounds like it's just causing more stress than it's worth?

Hmm, that all does sound a bit like shingles (and you can have it without a rash). Were you vaccinated? Did your doctor test for shingles?

I'm going to go ahead and add another comment because I can just about anticipate the next comment (since I've heard it a lot): "I don't care about all that, I just want the scale to go down!" Let's try a little thought experiment here: If I could wave a magic wand and you would instantly look just like a fitness model, be super athletic and healthy and you'd be able to rock that size 0 (or whatever), dress. Would you want me to wave that wand? What if I told you you'd secretly still weigh whatever you weigh today? You'd still look and feel fantastic, but the scale would stay right where it is now. Still interested? I"ll wager almost everyone here would take me up on that deal. The possible exception might be the folks here that already look like fitness models. (You know who you are!) Why? Because ultimately we want to lose weight to look and/or feel a certain way, not strictly to be a certain arbitrary weight that at the end of the day really means nothing. Scales are just a really poor way of measuring fat loss, at least in the short term, so it's best we don't make them out to be more than they are.

Make a list of all those things you want to change. Pick just one to focus on THIS week. Make sure though, that it's something small that you can measure in some way. For example, you can't say "I'm going to eat better", because that's too big and too vague. Instead, pick something even smaller and definitive like "instead of eating ice cream after dinner every day this week, I'm only going to eat ice cream 4 days this week". That's probably small enough that your brain won't make a huge fuss over it, and is also easily measurable. If you successfully make that change and can keep doing it for two or preferably three weeks, then you can more on. For example, maybe after three weeks, you decide to move to only eating ice cream once a week. Again, you need to be able to successfully do that before moving on again. If you fail, no worries, just try again. If you keep struggling, you may have picked something too big and you need to scale it back. I would also recommend alternating diet and exercise goals. Thus if you successfully made a diet change that you're able to stick with, next time maybe it's "I'm going to walk after dinner 3 days this week". By alternating in this way, you'll find the diet changes are easier to adjust to and at the same time, you'll be improving your health. Just make sure to go slow with these as well. I often see people in the gym (especially this time of year), that tried to go from basically doing nothing, to working out 5+ days a week. Sadly, the failure rate for such people is well north of 90%. Here's the thing. This will take a LONG time, but if you try to go faster because you're feeling impatient, the likelihood is that you won't be able to maintain the loss, you'll fall off the diet, and before you even realize it, you'll be right back where you were before. I also want to be clear, I do still recommend seeking out counseling for a possible eating disorder, as well as help from an RD. Dieting is HARD. if it was easy, we wouldn't have an obesity epidemic. The smart play here is to stack the cards in your favor by getting help from experts.

I would suggest going and reading this thread: Everything discussed over there also applies to you.

Not to dis on your friend, but that's just not how this works. The ski slope chart itself may be about what your weight loss looks like for many people, but I promise you, you are losing fat the entire time. You just can't overcome basic physics. Think about it. If you eat less calories than you burn, your body has to make up that difference from somewhere. Even the leanest people on the planet have something like 40,000 plus calories of fat stores. This is what your body uses to stay alive when intake is less than output. Do the math: Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE), is made up of your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR), your Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (EAT), and your Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT). The average normal sized person has a resting metabolic rate somewhere between 1200 and 1800 calories. It's even higher for overweight and obese people. This is just an estimate, but yours is probably somewhere around 1900-2000 based on your height and current weight. EAT obviously can vary quite a lot from basically nothing if you don't workout, to well over a thousand calories per day if you exercise a lot. NEAT is important as well. The basic idea is that very few of us are completely sedentary. We are moving around cooking, cleaning, doing chores, etc. This is what we sometimes call "Activities of Daily Living". This tends to add another 15% to 20% to your overall calories for most people. The point of me adding all that is because very few people really understand how many calories their body needs per day just to stay alive. If your body needs 3000 calories per day and you are only consuming 800, then the rest of your energy needs for the day have to come from your tissues. If we do things right, the vast majority of that will come from fat, though no matter how hard we try, some of it will come from muscle tissue. Regardless, (and here's the point of all this), there is never a period of time when eating a very low calorie diet like we do after bariatric surgery, when you just lose water weight, or stop losing fat. Early on, you will lose a lot of water weight, but what you are losing is not JUST water. Later, you may experience stalls, but that's not a period of time when you stop losing fat. Instead, you may be putting more water weight back on (this IS part of the healing process), but you're still losing fat underneath that water gain. Note that there will be other times when your weight plateaus or even goes up some. This is 100% normal and not a cause for concern. If you are following the diet plan your surgical team sent you, you WILL lose fat. It's impossible not to. This is why I said it's just not healthy to weigh yourself daily. Scales LIE. They don't measure our amount of fat loss, they just measure weight, and weight is made up of so much more than just fat.

This is all excellent advice! Of course not everything above will work for everyone. It's just a matter of finding what works for each person as an individual. Take it slow, pick one thing to work on at a time and make sure you really have that part down before adding more changes. The worst possible thing anyone can do is try to completely overhaul their diet and fitness overnight. That almost never works.

There are things I could suggest to help you get back to your goal weight, but my fear is that until you address the reason you regained weight, you're just going be back on the diet yo-yo. My suggestion would be to seek out a mental health professional that specializes in eating disorders. I'm not saying you definitely have an eating disorder (that would be up to them to diagnose), but it would appear on the surface that you may at a minimum suffer from disordered eating. I'm basing that on your post that seems to indicate that you may be self-soothing with food. Once you've got that under control, my next recommendation would be to seek out a Registered Dietitian to help you with a sustainable diet. There is no shame in seeking help from professionals and they will be in a better position to assist you than anyone here that can just give general advice.

@AmberFL Thanks for the additional detail! I agree with @ShoppGirl that localized swelling and postoperative edema may be causing a lot of your gain. I do also totally understand the concerns, though! I recently had a procedure done on my proximal hamstring to treat a partial tear. While not nearly on the same scale as your plastic surgery, I wasn't able to workout at all for a full month and even now almost 2 months later, I'm still having to ramp back up really slowly. For example, I'm still not allowed to do any lower body strength training and my running mileage is only at about 50% of where it was before the procedure. Like you, I also saw my weight go up during this time. Even though I knew edema was the likely initial cause, it still messes with your head. This was especially true for me because my workouts are frankly a form of therapy for me. It felt like a double blow. It really sounds like you've got the diet mostly dialed in for now. I suspect one of 2 things will happen as you heal. The most likely eventuality is that your swelling and edema goes down and you find you're happy with where you're at weight wise. If so, be sure to up your calories as your workouts resume. If you find that you are a little heavier than your ideal, then no worries. Once you are working out again, the easiest solution would to only eat back about 50%-75% of your workout calories. This will be slower, but is super sustainable, compared to a drastic cut in calories that would get you leaner quickly, but is also a lot more likely to cause some rebound weight gain. I also noticed something you said in an earlier post and I wanted to commend you for it. You mentioned something about maintaining around 1700-2000 calories. This is something a lot of people don't understand, but you can successfully maintain across a range of calories. Many people think they've got to be EXACTLY at a certain number to maintain. That's just not true. The reason is that most people will subconsciously be a little more active when the calories are higher and a little less when they are lower. Please check in every few weeks and let us know how it's going? I'm sure you'll do great, be we are always here to help if needed.

@ShoppGirl I hear you. Yes I saw the articles from HSS and a few others that quoted that amount, but I've found that sometimes things like this often become an echochamber, even among doctors and other healthcare professionals that should know better. All it takes for this to become the "standard", is for a 50 year old medical textbook or two to print this (based on old data or beliefs), and an entire generation of doctors come to accept it. Look no further than BMI as an example of a well meaning, but ultimately wrong calculation becoming the standard by which we judge obesity and you can see how this sort of thing may not be based on science, but on "generally accepted knowledge". Back to the subject at hand. We do know that RMR can and does increase during recovery, but the amount is not always the same and is highly dependent on both the injury/illness, as well as the individual themselves. As a general rule of thumb when talking about athletes like @AmberFL, the number of calories needed during recovery is typically a little higher than maintenance, but quite a bit lower than what they might have needed when working out. That said, we also need to recognize that Non-Exercise Energy Thermogenesis (NEAT) can vary by many hundreds of calories between individuals. This is important, because even though RMR may increase, it's logical to assume people will have a concomitant reduction in NEAT when ill or injured. The net effect of that may mean the calorie balance may not really change that much if at all. Here's an example: Let's use a 3 factor calorie model, meaning RMR, NEAT & Exercise. (I'm going to ignore TEF for now since it won't make a lot of difference here). Let's assume an RMR is 1500, since this is around the average for all humans. Let's also assume a NEAT of 600 for a total calorie burn before exercise of ~2100. I've selected this since it also is fairly close to the median. Obviously these are just averages and every individual will be different. At an RMR of 1500, if we use as an example a 25% increase due to illness/injury, that would mean the new RMR would be as much as 375 calories more. We would expect NEAT to drop in most people when ill or injured because they tend to sit/lie down a lot more, walk less, etc. Especially in people that have a high NEAT amount to begin with, a drop of 375 calories per day or more is easily within normal ranges when they don't feel good. The net result in our "average" person here is that while their RMR went up, their NEAT went down by the same amount, thus completely negating any need for additional calories. At the end of the day, like you pointed out, we all have to decide for ourselves what we believe and what we think is right. I'm certainly not opposed to anyone consulting with their doctor regarding nutritional needs, as long as you recognise that most doctors get, at best, a single course in nutrition in medical school. Many get even less. I'd tend to suggest a Registered Dietitian instead, especially when dealing with chronic or acute injury or illness. Full disclosure, my background in this area is in nutritional needs for athletes, not people that are unwell. The flip side of this is that I find there are very few RDs that have the requisite knowledge to properly coach athletes, since so much of their training goes into how to help with weight loss, or assist with the nutritional needs of diabetics, cancer patients and the like. We also know that there are some really lousy RDs out there as well, so caveat emptor. (Otherwise, why would we see some of them trying to get very active bariatric patients to stay on an 800kcal/d diet.). Any RD that does that is, i'm sorry to say, an idiot. I'll close by saying that I don't doubt you in the least that you needed to up your calories by a significant amount due to cancer and chemo. I'm sure you recognise that's really in a different league to what most people are going through when recovering from an injury/illness or even surgical procedure. In your case, you have both the fact that cancer cells are effectively using calories that should go toward healthy tissue, as well as the fact that chemo is incredibly destructive to the rest of your body. Best of luck.