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OK so today my carb count is 131grams. and its all fruit veggies and whole grains and lentils. here is the menu breakfast premier Protein snack 6 oz strawberry chobani lunch salad made with kale,spinach,arugula, and chard, with steamed lentils,1 egg, 1/4 slice avocado and raspberry vinaigrette. snack 1/2 cup of black bean Soup with 5 no sodium tortilla chips *note* 5 dinner trader joes spinach pita pizza made with olive oil,garlic, spinach/w a side of steamed kale,and bok choy. snack 1 tbsp of garlic hummus 1/2 pita bread, 1/4 cup pineapple, 1/4 cup strawberry's, and 1/4 cup soy Beans shelled. total numbers for today. cal 1127 carbs 131 protein 76 fat 37 Fiber 30 i just love eating clean that's correct no meat, I am going vegetarian

Well I was fixing to post on here as well. i must have the slowest weight loss ever!!! I will be almost a year in 2 weeks also, only down 26 pounds, but I have had fills, My dr put the band in empty and I have gotten fills little by little every 6 weeks. I reached restriction probably 3-4 months agao, but not helping much with the weight loss. I do exactly what my dr tells me. 1500 calories/day, workout every other day cardio and strength, drink all my water, 85 g protein per day. I eat super healthy, no junk! i am a vegetarian but I do eat seafood. I get my protein from fish, bars, and shakes. My sugar and carbs are always on point. I am so frustrated, I was a cash patient too, so I am still paying for this! I guess I should be glad though becuase I don't have to worry about gaining weight ever again. I don't overeat or eat bad the band has helped me with that. I started at 229 lbs and am now at 203. Been struggling to get the onederland!!! I would just love to be at 150...thats my goal...maybe one day!

This is lunch today. Homemade egg drop soup! A cup of stock (vege, cause I'm trying to go back to vegetarianism) a little soy sauce, black pepper, pinch of turmeric, a little coconut oil, a pinch of nutritional yeast. Wait for it to boil then drop a couple of beaten eggs in slowly while stirring vigorously. Warm, tasty, cures my ramen cravings and easy on the pouch! Yay, something I actually enjoy eating for once! Lol. Sent from my CPH1719 using BariatricPal mobile app

Like I was telling Puja, eat for medicine if you have too, if not for pleasure. If you put sludge in your tank, your car will run like cr@p, or die! You can do it! I do love melted cheese and peanut butter too...... Are you a vegetarian?

Following bariatric surgery, it can be difficult to get the required amount of protein following from foods alone, so many patients supplement their diets with liquid proteins shakes. While this may surprise you, people develop sensitivities or intolerance to traditional whey protein drinks and don’t even know it. I was one of them! Following bariatric surgery, it can be difficult to get the required amount of protein following from foods alone, so many patients supplement their diets with liquid proteins shakes. While this may surprise you, people develop sensitivities or intolerance to traditional whey protein drinks and don’t even know it. I was one of them! It came to pass that I suffered extreme gas and bloating within 30-minutes of consuming a whey protein shake, even high-quality whey isolates. It took a while to this figure out because I’d consumed whey protein shakes for years without a problem. But I have observed that as time goes on, I develop more and more food sensitivities. As well, people have reported low-grade chronic head colds and stuffy nose or mucous-coated tongue after consuming whey protein shakes. These are possible symptoms of food sensitivities. Recently, I stumbled upon two really good protein powders that are not made from whey. They’re now staples in my bariatric pantry. Protein Powder That Repairs Joints, Too The first product is a collagen hydrolysate from Great Lakes — a powdered form of gelatin made from collagen with 11 grams of protein and 43 calories per tablespoon. I buy Great Lakes Unflavored Gelatin Collagen Joint Care on Amazon for about 50 cents per serving. Its also available to order from the Great Lakes gelatin website. Since I’ve been using this product as the protein base in my shakes, my knees no longer hurt when I run. I’m on my third container now and have noticed a major health improvement to my hair and nails, too. Read my full product review on MyBariatricLife.org. Protein and Amino Acids for Vegetarians and Vegans The other product is a vegan protein powder. It is low in carbohydrates and packed with amino acids. This is important because most plant-based proteins are void of certain essential amino acids that our bodies cannot produce. So what this means is that in order to get all the amino acids that are needed, plant proteins will have to be strategically combined. Read my full product review on MyBariatricLife.org. Garden of Life has done all the work for us with their Raw Fit Protein for Weight Loss. Each scoop packs 28 grams of protein and 12 carbs. I buy Garden of Life Raw Fit on Amazon for around $30 for 16 oz. It’s also available at my local health food store. Living life larger than ever, My Bariatric Life

I was vegetarian before surgery, so I think I'm having trouble with the high meat high dairy protein lifestyle. I was hoping to phase back in to vegetarianism, low-lacto after about 6 weeks or so, but man, the thought of pureed meat is really making me feel blugh. Guess I should try that ricotta bake everyone keeps talking about!

I had my surgery in feb 2008. Last year I was at normal weight and everything was perfect. I had 55 kg and I was happy until I decided is time to quit smoking. Since then I gain 10 kgs... so I see I am the only one who voted for 15-20 lbs. Does anybody knows how in the world should I lose at least 2-3 kgs? (I have 2 kgs over "normal limit" I have now around 63-67 kgs depending on the position of the scale and its mood (my normal limit is at 62). I havent see nowhere how to lose weight after you gain it? I haven`t found anywhere if there is any vegetarian who did this surgery? Or, raw vegan? (I know I am asking too much) ... thanks, aoa

It's actually a very interesting question and one that caused me a lot of introspection to understand WHY I put on weight. Consider my situation. 5'6, female, 47 years old, not in menopause, underactive thyroid, and acute inflammation from an autoimmune disease the latter two of which will slow down weight loss. Eats 1200-1300 calories a day most days--yes, seriously. Tracks calories religiously for years and years. You show me a food, I can tell you how many calories in it. Ate "badly" at times in one or two ways. Either starved myself on 800 calories a day for months on end, or ate 2-3 pieces of cake one week or maybe those damn little Debbie Peanut Butter things (can we say trigger foods??!). I have never eaten a whole cake, a whole pizza, a whole pint of ice cream in one sitting. I never hid my eating, binged, or purged. Never even finished my portions at restaurants. I don't drink so no junk calories there either. Could not lose weight. Could NOT lose weight. I'm not like those people that lost 100s of lbs only to put it on. I simply couldn't lose the weight (except when I was dying, two years ago). Worked out hard with a trainer for 6 months, ate 6 small meals of clean food--lost ONE pound in 6 months. I think even the trainer was ready to cry. Did Paleo, put on 10 lbs in one month. Did vegetarian diet with 2 lbs of veggies, 3 fruits, 1 c of Beans, 1 handful of nuts for 2 months, lost nothing. So WHY? WHY the hell did I weigh so much? I am not sure I know the whole answer still. But I do know one very important part of the answer. I am a sugar and carb addict. And I do not have the metabolism for it. Even today, I cannot eat a piece of fruit without being super hungry for the rest of the day. Pre-sleeve, I didn't control my carbs. Yes I ate 1200 calories, but often that was almost NO meat. Pasta, rice, lentils, veggies, fruit, no meat. I hated meat. So I think I gained weight because I ate the foods that were the WORST for me, and I didn't realize that. I do wonder what would have happened if I had eaten meat and veggies before I got sleeved. Would I still have needed the sleeve? I don't know. And notice I said I can leave them alone unless they are my trigger foods? Here's a list of my trigger foods. Cake, cake, and more cake. Donuts. Reese's pb cups. Those peanut butter bar things. Those horrid swiss cake rolls that will survive nuclear holocaust. Those things? I can't leave alone. Those, I do eat until they are gone. And notice, they are ALL sugar + fat + Flour. Deadly combination, deadly addiction. I thought I was well educated about food. I tried every diet there was--except the low carb diet because a) I wasn't sure it was good for me and I didn't want to give up my carbs--addict talk right there. There may be more to the story, it's still being written. But I don't have the "typical" signs of a food addict and therefore it's taken me a while to figure out what went wrong. I ate carbs and they caused me to crave more carbs. So I became insulin resistant, overweight, carb addicted, fat, and unhealthy. And always hungry. It was when I could no longer control the constant hunger that I gave up control and admitted I needed help, and got sleeved. Sorry for the long post but it's been an important journey for me.

Hi everyone, I'm 35 yo. I am married, no kids. I live in a small town outside of New Orleans. I go to a satellite campus of a New Orleans community college. There is no cafeteria, microwave etc. I go to school two days a week and I am there ALL day. Tuesdays I'll be there from 10 Am to 8:30 PM. Thursdays will be 10 AM to 2:45 PM. I was banded 6/8. This coming semester will be my first back w/the band. Finding healthy, nutrition-packed Snacks that will stand up to the heat of my car (even in the cooler) is going to be frustrating. Consider the fact that I'm a *vegetarian and things get stickier, LOL. I like my fruit cold, my Protein bars NOT-melted and my Water ice-freaking cold, LOL. I'm glad this thread is here! *Please note I'm a vegetarian for health reasons, not ethical. I am NOT going to lecture anyone for eating meat. Your food choices are you own, as are mine. My hubs is a meat eater, so it doesn't bother me. I sat that because I've met people who find out I'm a vegetarian and they think I'm gonna lecture them for eating a hamburger. NOT my style, LOL.

My doctor's clinic has two in-house nutritionists. I do think it's very helpful. I would have had no idea how to navigate meals and supplements without their guidance early on. The sleeve is just so different from anything else one has experienced prior. But, I would be very sure to find a nut that not only has sleeve specific experience, but vegetarian sleeve also. I am a "flexitarian" and used to eat 50 - 75% vegetarian. I found that very difficult to continue with the sleeve and Protein requirements of 75-80 grams a day. It can be done, but your options are limited. If you search on here, there have been threads in the past from veg sleevers that I'm sure would be helpful to you.

Hey BariatricPal Members! Spring is just around the corner, and it’s time to shake off the cobwebs and plan a little spring cleaning. If your diet and exercise routine need a little cleaning up, too, you’re in luck. This newsletter can get you motivated to get back on your feet so you’ll be all set for spring break. Here’s what you’ll find this month. Polls ‘n’ More: Your Opinion Matters Member Spotlight: Meet TheRealMeIsHere! Something to Celebrate in March So, take a few minutes to read the newsletter. Then log on to BariatricPal so you can give your opinions about it and talk about whatever else is on your mind. An army of BariatricPal members is waiting to help you out on your weight loss surgery journey, so don’t be a stranger. Sincerely, Alex Brecher Founder, BariatricPal Polls ‘n’ More: Your Opinion Matters BariatricPal is a pretty busy place, between the polls, other conversations, and member blogs and photo galleries. Not sure where to start? Here are a couple of places where your opinion is especially valuable! Something to Help You Decide About Weight Loss Surgery We asked members about their complications after weight loss surgery, and it turned into a hot topic! This poll may help you make your decision if you’re still up in the air about getting weight loss surgery or if you’re not sure which type is for you. Hint: the answers are pretty encouraging! Interested in answering and reading other members’ answers to more polls? Go to the BariatricPal Polls Forum and chime in! Should BariatricPal Launch an Online Store? BariatricPal is here to help you through your weight loss surgery journey. The social part is a big deal, and that’s what the forums and other parts of the community are for. But the diet is also important, and BariatricPal may be able to help out with that, too. We are thinking about opening an online store to sell bariatric nutritional products at competitive prices. Before we do, we need to know whether you like that idea. Please let us know what you think and give us your suggestions! You can either post on this thread or PM Alex Brecher. Thanks! Insure Nutrition We are always thrilled to welcome a new newsletter sponsor into the BariatricPal family, and this month, Insure Nutrition is giving us the pleasure of doing just that. Our latest sponsor, Insure Nutrition, is an online company that specializes in getting health insurance coverage for nutritional supplements. Its Post-Bariatric Surgery Nutrition products includes Premier Protein shakes in chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry flavors and OptiSource High Protein drinks in caramel and strawberry flavors. Checking if you are eligible is easy. Insure Nutrition encourages you to use its online form to find out if you qualify. Our sponsors help make BariatricPal newsletters and other services possible. We encourage you show your thanks by considering them first for your bariatric needs. Exciting News – We're welcoming Unjury and Opurity to BariatricPal! BariatricPal is proud and excited to announce two new sponsors for our newsletters. The new sponsors are powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury, a supplier of wonderful tasting, highest quality protein supplements, and Opurity (from the makers of UNJURY), highest purity Vitamin supplements for bariatric surgery patients. Their support lets us keep BariatricPal newsletters coming to you each month. Unjury was founded by a master’s degree dietitian who has been helping patients since 1974. It is committed your health. You know the importance of getting enough protein after weight loss surgery, but you also know that meeting your protein goals can be challenging. Unjury makes your task not just easier but actually enjoyable. Product flavors include Chocolate Splendor, Chocolate Classic, Vanilla, Strawberry Sorbet, chicken Soup Flavor, and Unflavored. These ready-to-use protein powders come in single-serve and multi-serve containers, and contain high-quality whey protein to keep you full and nourished. Launched in 2007, Opurity is dedicated to using the purest ingredients in its supplements. Opurity Bariatric Multivitamins have two unique big advantages: First, each Multivitamin requires only one tablet per day*. Second, Opurity is so dedicated to quality that it is unique in using no ingredients from China. Choose from chewable orange-berry multivitamins for gastric bypass and gastric sleeve patients or for lap-band patients.Opurity also sells chewable Calcium, vitamin D and folic acid/vitamin B-12 chewables. All supplements come with a 100% satisfaction guaranteed. They return policy is: “Yes you can return it.” Support from Unjury and Opurity helps us continue to bring you the services you enjoy on BariatricPal, so please support these two brands! When looking for your bariatric surgery supplements, first visit Unjury.com and Opurity.com. Purchasing from these companies helps support BariatricPal. Thanks to Unjury and Opurity for your generous sponsorship, and thanks to BariatricPal members who support our partnership! *You still need calcium and sublingual B-12. Member Spotlight: Meet The RealMeIsHere! This month’s member spotlight is on TheRealMeIsHere from Ferndale, New York. She spent most of her life bouncing between 115 and 275 pounds. Life was great when she was closer to 115 pounds – she had energy and confidence. At her higher weight, she sat on the couch a lot, drank, ate, and talked on the phone. TheRealMeIsHere was not able to lose weight on healthy diets, and she developed eating disorders. She was anorexic and bulimic at times. When she gained weight, she developed high blood pressure and severe sleep apnea. She stopped breathing nearly 50 times an hour! Her orthopedic conditions kept her in pain and prevented her from moving much, turning it into a vicious cycle. When TheRealMeIsHere got health insurance, she researched weight loss surgery. She chose the gastric sleeve because of its permanence – unlike the lap-band. She also liked the fact that it did not cause malabsorption since she has ulcerative colitis. She got the surgery in 2012, as soon as her insurance covered it. TheRealMeIsHere just had her two-year surgiversary – and what a difference two years makes! She has maintained her weight at 115 pounds. Her sleep apnea and hypertension have diminished, and her energy has exploded. Other great moments have been realizing that she had the ability to get back to the weight she wanted, and getting a panniculectomy/abdominoplasty after reaching goal weight. food does not control her, but she still loves it and is able to enjoy in healthy ways. Instead of acting on every craving, she might make sleeve-friendly versions of her favorites. She loves salads and lean meats, and thinks of cauliflower as the “chameleon” vegetable that “can masquerade as Pasta, pizza crust, bread, or potatoes.” She delights in tricking guests with her healthy dishes. TheRealMeIsHere has figured out how to enjoy restaurant outing within her gastric sleeve diet restrictions. From the beginning, getting enough liquids and protein was difficult. She could not drink much without cramping, and she did not start hitting her 80 daily grams of protein until 18 months post-surgery. Her stomach was so small it was difficult to eat enough, so she had to stick to nothing but high-protein foods. TheRealMeIsHere was definitely grateful to be able to eat salads again! She mostly eats meats and vegetables now, and her sleeve holds about ¾ to 1 cup of food. She found out recently – the hard way – that eating too much still gives her severe diarrhea and cramps. Not worth it! TheRealMeIsHere came to BariatricPal before surgery to see success stories, learn about concerns, and look at pictures. Later, the site helped keep her focused on the goal and get feedback when needed. She also finds it helpful to answer others’ questions. TheRealMeIsHere has some tips for other weight loss surgery patients. Follow your surgeon’s and nutritionist’s guidelines. Keep your carbohydrate intake low. Stay hydrated. Stick with an exercise routine by being specific about your goals. Acknowledge and fix your mistakes. Use the surgery as a tool. Make one small change at a time. Enjoy the journey and the new you! Those are all great pieces of advice, and they are clearly working for TheRealMeIsHere. Congratulations on your weight loss surgery success, and thanks for sharing your story with us! Please let us know in the Member Spotlight Forum if you or someone you know would like to be in the member spotlight. We want to hear from you! You can also send Alex Brecher a PM to nominate yourself or someone else. Something to Celebrate in March In like a lion, out like a lamb. That usually does hold true, but it’s hard to believe that winter will soon be over when it’s been around for so long. Waiting for the sun to come back and the last bits of snow to melt can make March seem dreary, so we wanted to find something to celebrate. What’s special about March? Lots of things, it turns out! Here are just a couple of national food days in March, and some ideas for celebrating them. March 1: National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day Peanut butter…packed with antioxidants, Fiber, healthy fats, and 7 grams of protein per 2 tablespoons. And, of course, with a taste to die for. If you haven’t jumped onto the peanut butter bandwagon yet, this may be a good opportunity for you to do so! Of course, it’s high in calories, with 180, so don’t overindulge! Here are some peanut butter ideas. Make a shake with Protein powder, almond milk, and ice - and you can enjoy this when you’re still on your liquid post-op diet! Eat it with celery sticks or carrot sticks – lap-banders, be careful of the stringy celery and sticky PB. Spread it on a half of a whole-grain, high-fiber English muffin or some whole-wheat crackers. March 19: Poultry Day If you’re a weight loss surgery patient who struggles to get enough protein, you already know that chicken and turkey can bail you out. A 2-ounce serving of white meat has about 13 grams of protein and 60 calories. Vegetarian? Try soy bacon and low-fat vegetarian chicken! Add a serving of poultry morning, noon, and night, and you’ve already got 39 grams compared to the 65 to 80 you need for the day. Try: Turkey bacon with your egg whites for Breakfast. Low-fat white chicken chili with Beans and broccoli for lunch. Turkey roll-ups with low-fat cheese or fat free cream cheese and tomatoes for a snack. Ground chicken burgers in lettuce for dinner. March 28: National Something on a Stick Day You could celebrate this day with traditional fair food…fried Twinkies on a stick, corn dog on a stick, or cheese on a stick. Or, you could celebrate this day with something healthy and fun. The following can keep you on your weight loss surgery diet while you feel like you’re celebrating. Ham and eggs on a stick: Alternate slices of ham or any lean meat with quartered egg whites and cubes of melon. Grilled eggplant on a stick: Slice and salt eggplant, dip in a mixture of low-fat grated parmesan cheese and ground Fiber One Cereal crumbs, skewer the eggplant slices, alternating with low-fat mozzarella cheese, and grill. salad on a stick: Coarsely cut a head of lettuce. On your stick, put pieces of lettuce, grape tomatoes, cucumber slices, grilled chicken or shrimp, and whatever else you like in your salads. To enjoy, dip it in dressing. Of course, you can also celebrate non-food celebrations. For example, mark your calendar for Good Samaritan Day on March 13, and everyone deserves to celebrate National Everything You Do Is Right Day on March 16! And, to be honest, every day is a cause for celebration when you’re getting healthy, whether you’re dancing on the scale or congratulating yourself for a non-scale victory (NSV). Don’t forget to tell us about it at BariatricPal!

Fab, how about cottage cheese, yogurt and pureed vegetarian (I can't have meat yet) chili. Other more filling or substantial soups? Some on here also do mashed potatoes. Also hummus is good. Good luck, hope this helps a bit!

Just had the sleeve surgery done 6 days ago.. I've been vegetarian for 22 years without any problems with dairy. I've been using Premier Protein and am having the worst G.I. reaction to it ( like within 10 min of drinking it) Anyone else get the cha-chas from this brand? I'm going to see about switching to Syntrax nectar tomorrow with almond or soy milk. Oh.. I'm so afraid of being lactose intolerant. Any suggestions/advice is greatly appreciated!

here is the story, I had a Dr in November who recommended me for the surgery at that time i lost my insurance and my PCP is no longer with the practice. I am now 50 pounds heavier and 5 pounds away from not having to do the 6 month requirement. I have a new Dr who is a all natural person who pushes vegetarian on me all the time. I want to cry everyday all i want is this surgery so i can have a life with my 16 month old i cant even get on the floor with him. I need help is anyone in grand rapids who may have priority health *** and a primary care physician that helped them?????

I had my surgery the same day and I am down 20 lbs. I lost 13 during the pre op liquid diet. Today was my first dayof pureed foods. I have had half of a scambled egg and a few bites of refried vegetarian beans and I am completely satisfied. I think we are where we are supposed to be.

You are not a freak. I had this same concern and some kind soul put it to me like this: If you need a knee replacement so you could walk would say no because it is man-made? If you needed a new heart valve so live would you turn that down? Having this thing inside of you is what you need to have to be healthy, and it's made of a better quality material than Tupperware. You’re freaking because of nerves. Organic and all natural is fantastic. I was a vegetarian for years and certainly understand your point of view. But the flip side is we live in the 21st century and there is something to be said about better living through technology. (Bless tech's ability to get this message to you.) No one can question your commitment to environmental or sustainability concerns, or kick their asses if they do, because you have a lapband. No one is allowed to question your integrity aside from yourself, and it seems like you've weighed all the pros and cons and have determined lapbanding is the best option for you to gain control of your life. If anyone calls you a hypocrite let me know, I’ll kick their ass. You got people.

I'm vegetarian so I can't help you with the chicken/fish recipes. As for exercise, I got some light handweights 2, 3, 5 lbs. and did arm reps while sitting down. You want to start light and be mindful of your incision sites. I have poor upper body strength and it's one of my goals to improve that.

Sorry I didn't answer all your questions. Dr. Kelly's wife and Anaid picked me up from the airport, they have a large new van that they use for transporting the patients. Anaid is Dr. Kelly's assistant so she does a lot of the coordinating, making sure you get where you need to go, etc. My sister came with me, She was pretty bored. She brought her laptop so played games, read, etc. I was pretty out of it the first day. The one thing I would caution -- the cafe at the hospital is geared towards cancer patients, and it's an all vegetarian meal plan. Your husband might want to think about bringing Snacks for the room unless he is a very healthy eater, that's the one thing my sister didn't care for. There is a Starbuck's I saw nearby, and also a pharmacy where they might sell snack foods. Ana and the dr's wife will also take him out to get anything if he needs it. The day I arrived we were early, so Ana (Anaid) and Dr.'s wife took us to a nice restaraunt where I had broth but everyone else ate a great meal. It worked really well, they are very nice people and accomodating. Please feel free to email me if I can answer any additional questions for you. I am not trying to advertise for Dr. Kelly, but I did personally have a great, positive experience, and believe me I was as hesitant as anyone about having the surgery in Mexico.

My nutritionist is great. I had a lot of dietary issues to tackle. I'm a vegetarian and I have multiple food allergies. That means I can't eat artificial sugars, stevia, and food dyes to name just a few. Crafting an eating plan was challenging. Our sessions had to be very conversational as I needed to ask a lot of questions to figure out what I could safely eat. I also like that my program utilizes a patient email portal. When I needed to increase my calories or share info and it was not time for a follow up appointment I could shot an email and get a response either by email or a phone call within 2 days. The fact that I have no had an ER visit or hospitalization because of my allergies since surgery has a lot to do with how helpful my nutritionist has been.

Dear Kiwi, First be nice to yourself you havent failed until you have quit. I advise you to deal with your health issues and get those under control before worrying about your weight! Once that is all done and under control I would say two things: 1. Proably get a fill to reign in how much you are eating. 2. Beans are the cheapest best food for all humans and I think they are perfect for a bnder. Super high protein and kind of mushy and very filling. I LOVE the vegetarian refried beans in a can with some sour cream and salsa!

I think a lot of eating meat after surgery involves getting past the hurdle that it might hurt. I make sure that I have some kind of sauce/moisture for meat and that I cut it into small bites and chew well. My sleeve (Rex) still won't tolerate anything remotely spicy, but I can now eat almost any meat without issues. As Meg said, there are many alternatives for Protein without eating meat. We have quite a few vegetarian sleevers around here. I love to check their group for new ideas. I personally eat a lot of cheese to help boost my protein intake, and I like a babybel in the morning before my Vitamins so that I don't get nauseous. SleevedMom, if you're getting nauseous from just putting the meat in your mouth, do YOU think it's a head issue or do you get sick once you chew up and swallow the meat? If it's a head issue, it may be time for a chat with your nutritionist or doctor about whether you're really ready for meat. It might even be a good idea to talk to a therapist about the meat issue. If it's a physical issue, for instance your tummy gets upset when you eat meat, you may just need to eat more vegetarian for a while. I've seen people who have continued with only protein bars/shakes long-term, and they do lose weight. IME, though, those people are the ones who never transition back to "normal" life. My late friend's sister in law is one of those and the sister in law ends up in the ER regularly because of malnutrition and dehydration. The sister in law says it's "too hard" to get in her Water and to eat normal food. Each time she goes in the hospital, they work on getting her into a routine where she's eating regular food and drinking water. She will comply long enough to get out of the hospital, then she's right back to only eating protein bars and drinking very little. Personally, I think the woman now has anorexia or something similar. It is really important to try to transition to getting your protein from food, but you may need some softer Proteins and some guidance from a nutritionist or therapist to get to that point. I think that is a very natural reaction since we've had such restricted diets before and after surgery. Add in that none of us want to damage our new sleeves and leaks are a terrifying complication, and it's a wonder that any of us ever manage to transition back to "regular" food after surgery! Good luck!! Please let us know how it goes.

I'm no longer vegetarian either, but I tend to eat less meat still. I'm not allowed carbs at all, so on veggie days my diet has been lots of eggs, cheese (low fat sting cheese is my favorite), cottage cheese, beans/lentils, and Greek yoghurt. Looking at my food log, I can get 60-70 grams of protein those days.

If you don't eat animal Protein, then substitute the protein of your choice. If you are vegan or vegetarian you are should already be used to this.

:omg:I was banded in May of 2005. No loss until 2007. That's right no weight loss until May 2007. I was tortured with my sense of failure. I kept throwing up the protien--I followed faithfully what my nutritionist said to do. Then I began to think--this happened to me before I was banded. I followed Weight Watchers before that and I followed everything my nutritionist said and my doctors. Finally my heart doctors wanted me to go back to the surgeon and find out why I was not losing. I gave up and did not and kept praying and praying. I kept coming back to this site. I did contact the support person through my surgeons office and she kept encouraging me. I began to think radically. My health was in radical trouble and I needed radical change. I thought the band was that radical change but it didn't matter. I exercised every day. Soooooo I went total vegan. Yes Vegetarian. I have not lost my hair. I learned to eat the things my body needed especially protien in the form of nuts and veggies and since May 25, 2007 I have lost 25 pounds. I do not eat sugar, I do not drink any caffiene in any form, I do not eat dairy in any form, I do not eat soy in any form. I juice 5 pounds of organic carrots per day to receive nutrients that my body must have that translates to 1 quart ever two days. I follow the Hallelujah Acres Diet which you can google and get it for free. I truly know that my body was so dieted out that it could not possibly loose weight no matter what I did. I will never ever let doctors treat me like a liar again. I doubted myself for so long I lost hope. I hated myself. I was desperate. I am none of that now. But I will never buy into the doctor mentality that ignores my sincere efforts again. It takes consistent work and it will come around. The band works but doctors and nutrionists do not have all the answers. I juice or eat only one fruit a day. The rest is vegetables and 3 starch servings per week only. I love the band now it tells me when I am full but I do not throw up any more. Only you can do it. The band will help but you must participate in your care. Self hate does not accomplish any thing except keep you where you presently are. What I do is not a cure but another way to becoming the beautiful person God meant me to become. Do not give up hope ever. My heart goes out to those who don't dare to say they haven't lost. I was one of those people. Speak out now do not hide, I thought I was the only one who ever did not loose maybe I am not please speak out now.:clap2:

I have a pot of Penne Pollo cooking---Penne pasta with chicken ----a sauce with chicken & veggies. It makes a HUGE pot, inexpensively. I began making it probably 25 years ago, every Halloween, and everyone who come by would have a bowl, no one had to worry about dinner. Well, in the intervening years, the numbers have dwindled, and one would think with a vegetarian DD it would have been a memory only----but NO! The ones still around, still expect it! Becky and Gary hang out here on Halloween, their boys and their families make this home base, several people come by with kids, that come in for cookies, or a bathroom break. And Kinsey now thinks it is her special Halloween meal!! LOL She should be here in about 30 minutes. She trick or treats the places Manda takes her. They have done a couple of carnivals, and did Safe Treats down town---but she sold her candy last year. Local dentists do a Treats for Troops thing, they buy it for a buck a pound, and send it to the troops overseas. She is not a huge candy eater, it has always been readily available, so she doesn't see it as a treat....doesn't gorge herself. Our son, on the other hand seriously keeps the candy away from the boys, and when Connor gets it, he shovels it in---it is cute, but I try not to laugh and encourage it! I talked to him a little while ago, he was going to eat chicken, and then go Trick or Treat, he was very excited! We went and did some Christmans shopping this morning. We have 2 weeks to get it done to take to Texas for the Louisiana kids. Bought Garrick a little Step2 motorcycle!!! He loved the little 4 wheeler thing, just a push with your feet one, same as this is. We still have to figure Connor out. Got Lenny a new buckle, it is such a chore....the figuring out! Sizes for DIL are impossible for me to figure, so no clothes......she is not a jewelry wearer. Although I am thinking maybe one of the Mom necklaces, with the boy charms on it. She wears a cross on occasion. Well, better get things going----kids will be knocking soon! Need to put batteries in the witch and the skeleton outside, they are motion activated. Wondering how Izzy will do with all the craziness. Took her into Beck & Garys and they had their 2 dogs---a rotty cross, and a Rhodesian Ridgeback, and they are dog sitting for their sons boxer----and the dogs accosted her, scared the crap out of her (not literally thankfully!) she jumped on the couch with me! She never gets on furniture, she was shaking. Rick took her back to the van---poor thing was scared! Would have scared me too! Kids here----see ya!! have a SAFE and FUN night all!!!