BrittanyAnn1

Hey guys! Hoping that ya'll can give me some insight on coffee. I am 3 weeks post op today. I miss my coffee so much. I realize I will not ever be able to enjoy a large cup of coffee because it will take so long to drink it. When did you start coffee and what about creamer? And also, dare I ask, what about Starbucks????? Thanks guys!

I am starting my workout again tomorrow morning. It is every morning at 5 am. I know it sounds ridiculous but I love it and I wouldnt have it any other way. There are absolutely no excuses at that time of the day. Anyways I am not sure what to eat before hand. Prior to surgery I would have cranberry juice and a granola bar. I am on soft foods now and need some ideas on what to eat before I go. My plan is to get up at 4 take my medicine and have a little water or no sugar added juice and then start eating something at 440 while i am driving to workout. Thanks for any suggestions!!!! Brittany

Fluids help, I put protein water mix in strawberry lemonade flavor in my water and that gives it a boost of flavor that help with cravings and also gives me 5 free grams of protein. Its made by Kellogs and I buy it at WalMart. I also keep Babydel cheese and string cheese and sandwich meat handy at work and at home, that way when I have a craving I go eat a few bites of cheese or meat and that way again I get some protein in and I am full. Hope this helps best of luck to ya!

I was sleeved 12/16/10 and wasnt able to eat more than 8 bites of spaghetti with lean ground beef tonight. You will learn what is easier to eat as you go along. Chicken is still hard for me as well. Easiest thing for me to eat is food cooked in the crockpot! Its so moist and easy!

Hi guys! I have been taking Miralax here and there to stay normal. I have been mixing it in to my smoothies but I am off the smoothie train for a while. SO I was just curious to know what yall drink it with. Thanks in advance guys!

thats great! what flavors are you liking the best?

My doctor told me to stop the 50000 units i was taking every week because of some recent research that he did. This is my regular doctor and not my surgeon by the way. I am definitely going to look in to the dry vitamin d. Also very important, the best way for your body to "soak up the sun" is thru your eyes! So lose the shades for 10 minutes a day, its easiest in the morning for me to look directly at the sun without it being too terribly painful.

yummo on the parmesan chips! ever tried them with hot sauce? i have been thinking how i could get hot sauce in my system without taking up too much room with chips and this may work! thanks for sharing! as for me I am at 5 weeks and I just do a fruit smoothie every morning with one scoop of EAS brand vanilla protein powder (23 grams) and instead of water i use milk for another 8 grams of protein and then i drink on that for an hour or hour and a half. the rest of the day i mix special K brand protein drink mix (pink lemonade flavor) into my water so that gets me another 15-20 grams there, and the rest i attempt to get from actual meat. i have been bad about journaling the actual #'s of what I am eating but I have been keeping up with my muscle mass, when i first had the surgery i lost 10 pounds of muscle in 3 weeks but now ive gained 2 and a half of it back so i must be doing ok for now.

OMG. I never thought I would see the day when I could eat steak! THat is amazing that some of you guys can handle it and have not been sleeved too terribly long. SO EXCITING! So do yall remember when you first tried it?

ive been doing the special k pink lemonade mix, it has 5 grams of protein and tastes really good!

interesting! Well maybe i need to try water and or juice before and then protein drink after. thanks for the heads up!

Does it make you sick or what?

I can assure you for BCBS of IL you do not have to have that procedure done. I have BCBS IL and I work for them!!! I am sure it is something that your doctor wants you to do to be on the safe side. My doctor required a whole slew of things and BCBS paid for it all with no questions. If you need any help with your insurance questions feel free to contact me. Brittany

THEY EMAILED THIS OUT AT WORK AND I WAS JUST SITTING HERE MAKING A GROCERY LIST FOR IT WHILE I WAS READING! ENJOY! Slow Cooker Taco Soup Serve this Tex-Mex soup with homemade half-whole-wheat flour tortillas, shredded reduced-fat Cheddar or Jack cheese, and a dollop of fat-free sour cream or nonfat Greek yogurt, if desired. Make this meatless by using a tofu or soy product in place of the ground sirloin. Ingredients: 1 pound ground sirloin (around 6%-9% fat), or ground turkey with around 6% fat 1 cup chopped onions 1 16-ounce can pinto Beans, drained and rinsed 1 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels 8 ounces canned tomato sauce 2 cups Water 2 14.5-ounce cans peeled and diced tomatoes 1 4-ounce can diced green chilies (buy mild, if you prefer) 1 ounce packet taco seasoning mix 1 cup shredded, reduced-fat cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream or nonfat Greek yogurt Preparation: 1. In a medium skillet, cook the ground beef or turkey over medium heat until browned. Drain, and set aside. 2. Place the ground meat, onion, chili beans, kidney beans, corn, tomato sauce, water, diced tomatoes, green chile peppers, and taco seasoning mix in a slow cooker. Mix to blend, and cook on Low setting for 8 hours. 3. Ladle into individual serving bowls, and top each with 1/8 cup shredded cheese and a tablespoon of fat-free sour cream. Serve with homemade flour tortillas. Yield: 8 servings Nutritional Information: Per serving: 288 calories, 20 g Protein, 37 g carbohydrate, 7 g fat, 2.7 g saturated fat, 24 mg cholesterol, 10 g Fiber, 730 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 22%. Source: WebMD

Hi there, I am Brittany from Abilene Texas. I had surgery (VSG) on December 16thin Fort Worth Texas (about 3 hours away) by Dr. Michael Green. The first 3 days were awful and then I startedfeeling great and did until just a couple of days ago. Now I feel like I cant force myself to eatanything and I am so thirsty but I am having a hard time making myselfdrink. I love ice Water, its absolutelymy favorite drink in the world but I am needing to drink my Protein drinksbefore my water and I can barely get those down. When I finally give up I go to the water andliterally want to chug it but I know better than that so I try not to but Ijust feel like im not in a good spot right now. I have to get this protein in but I need some help and ideas on what todo and how to make my body take it in. My surgeon told me I could move up to the “mush level” this week when I sawhim and I really haven’t tried anything but a scrambled egg which I managed tothrow up earlier so unfortunately that will be off my list for a while. I hate to sound like a whiny butt but I reallyneed some advice if anyone has any. I amgoing back to work Monday and need my energy and I know that comes from foodand supplements, I am also starting my workout program again January 8thand will need lots of protein for that. I am super excited that I was able to have the surgery and Ihave lost 21 pounds according to my surgeons scales. Any advice you guys couldgive me would be most appreciated.

I had heartburn one night only, and that was after I gagged up my Multivitamin. Other than that I havent had any problems but I have been taking omeprazole which is fake prilosec everyday in order to avoid it. Thanks for the responses guys, im going to try the carnation shakes for sure and i just ordered something called spark from advocare which is a drink mix and it has all the Vitamins in it!!!! Im so excited! I'll keep yall posted about it for sure. I also started today some fruit and veggie supplements from juice plus that are chewies that you eat and they give you all your fruits and veggies for the day, now i can save room in my little baby tummy for more Protein and water! Hope everyone had a wonderful new years. I went to sleep exactly at 12, lololol!

My name is Brittany and I am tentatively scheduled to have lapband in December. My paperwork is being sent in to BCBS of Illinois for the predetermination. I actually work at BCBS so hopefully I am a shoe in for approval. Hopefully someone wants to be my buddy! :tongue2:

Thanks Cheri! Look forward to chatting with you! :tongue_smilie: