Search the Community

I just had surgery Monday! How long is a long time until I can get Protein from food? I can have drinkable yogurt right now! This is just very tough and I feel myself crying and just wanting to be normal (is that a normal thing to go thru)? I'm only 22 and I just feel like I'm never going to be normal again then I see my boyfriend eating food and I don't really feel hungry I just want something to eat and chew you know! Sorry for whining!

Surgery 4/13. Start weight 391, surgery weight 360, current weight 312. It seems like ages ago...weird. Had a major stall and weight loss has slowed...a bit depressing. So many friends have positive comments about progress but I feel like I’m going to let everyone and myself down. I’m now losing slower and even tho I’m eating less than presurgery. In the last month I have had difficulty with water, which is so strange for me cause I was easily drinking on average 100oz. daily pre and post op. Water now often hurts my stomach. Really trying to control myself but I have had no food issues, which is scary. I feel I could probably eat anything. Worst is a small bite of a cannoli yesterday Daily routine is premier protein shake, yogurt, baked or grilled chicken/beef jerky/or other meat...craving crunchy and salty, so either have a handful of nuts or pretzels or pb cheese crackers (figuring this is problem). Will have small amounts of salad/veggies/fruit but not daily. I need to get more exercise ...doing an hour of water aerobics 3-4 x a week and some walking. We are flying on vacation in September...so feeling anxiety about being comfortable on plane and dining chairs with arms. Maybe I had unreasonable expectations of losing faster? I am better off today than 8 months ago but a looooong way to go. I’m going down instead of up!

I eat quite a bit of fresh fruit like apple, grapes, cantalope, fresh pineaple, blueberries, mango, orange. I limit banana because of the high calories and carbs, I just put a few frozen slices in my shake. I buy in season and freeze where I can have them losose in a bag and keep them in the freezer. I also eat fresh peaches as we grow them locally. I am fortunate to have 28 apple trees. I love greek yogurt and cottage cheese and that goes quite well with some fresh fruit.

A bit of tough love here....are pancakes and spaghetti os on your approved list? Mashed potatoes? This is just my opinion but the choices you are making can lead to some problems with cravings. The more carbs you eat, the more you will crave them. eggs, tuna, chicken, turkey, yogurt, cottage cheese - items high in Protein will keep you more satisfied for longer periods of time while those carbs are actually the worst thing you can do in this early stage. Also eating processed pre packaged foods like spaghetti os is something my nut told me to stay away from forever. It may be why you are having so many cravings so soon. Half the battle is the head games. How much protein are you currently getting?

I am almost 6 weeks out and went to a concert and stayed overnight in a hotel. I took a little cooler with protein drinks, cottage cheese and Greek yogurt. However I did find some reasonable options at the restaurants. So used my extras for breakfast and snacks.

So I'm on day 3 post op. I was starving the first day of surgery (but they would only give me sugar free pudding that was yuck). The day after surgery I got them to give me carnation instant breakfast, some yogurt, crystal light, and pudding which was much better, but I was very weak -- they didn't give me any protein supplements. I left the hospital at 4 PM the day after and went home and had some protein. I haven't been hungry since. It takes forever for me to finish eating anything. I'm guessing that is normal?

GENEPRO is a lifesaver for me. I can have one cup of coffee so for Breakfast, I drink my coffee & 1 scoop of Genepro. 30g of Protein. Then if I am not that hungry, I will do another scoop later in a yogurt or something. It has no flavor. It mixes well if you follow directions.

Tuna, refried Beans, cheese, greek yogurt, all have protein in them... kind of why I chose them to eat... and I drink a Protein Drink in the am...sometimes in the PM as well. Am I missing something... ?

Miss Wifey 21, Welcome to the other side , hope your recovery is quick In answer to your questions my experience with protien shakes or protien in general is as follows . 1) vitacost.com is the site i get all of my supplied there. also Vitacost brands are excellent , Delivery to The Philadelphia area is approx 4 day. I buy the vanilla for my breakfast and lunch shakes . The unflavored protien comes in handy during the pureed and full foods phases. you can add it to almost anything. 4) I have added plain Greek yogurt to my shakes from day 1 ...18 Grams of protien is excellent . Just keep in mind your body can only absorb 30 grams of protien at one meal , so don't waste your money or effort try to get more that that at one time 2) G3 Gatorade is high in protien and is good later on for the pureed phase and everything after that ( My NUT recommended this ) 3) My NUT recommended unjury.com . I just have not tried there stuff but she raves about it. 4) The unflavored can be added to anything and i find it very useful in meeting my daily numbers . 5) the most important one is sugar free Popsicles to be more specific the Tropical flavored ones are off the hook AWESOME 15 calories a pieces . you will never look at Popsicles the same way again . They are also very helpful in fighting HEAD hunger . Also they do count towards you Fluid requirements . 6.) my personal experience is that all of the pre-made shakes are high in sugars or fats, I personally don't want to run the riisk of DUMPING . I have had several experiences with things getting stuck and that was enough for me . I would suggest you do what i have done get 2 shaker/blender bottles , They cost 5 buck a piece on Amazon , Leave one at work and bring a baggie of your protien mix to work with you . I always add Vanilla protien powder & citricel orange flavored Fiber mix and blend ... instant creamcicle taste Not sure if you are aware of this but add fiber to your shakes , this will help to keep you regular , and that is very important . I hope some of this helps . Its a tough choice we have made but trust me it is well worth it . I do suggest you contact your surgeon before you try anything anyone suggests on this forum ( including me ) .. no one here knows your case and you want to be sure it is reviewed. Best of luck , I'm sure you will be awesome at rockin' the weight loss Have a great day RJ

LOL!!!!!! I am just nibbling off my husband's and son's plates when we eat out! My refrigerator is full of 1/2 consumed Greek yogurt containers and plastic storage containers filled w/ Beans and chicken.

Have gotten GENEPRO in the mail today, and used it in some Greek Yogurt. Impressed with it so far; it mixed in well and did not screw up the taste. It's a bit pricey, but if it works I'm sticking with it. Will definitely be worthwhile if it gets me out of the stall. For the first time in a while I'm meeting my daily Protein goal of 60 g.

Hi Lisa, I'm on my first week of soft foods and I don't want to eat most of the time either. I just set my timer and slog through it. I really want to get away from the Protein drinks so I've been eating 3 oz of protein per meal. I just can't face anything to solid first thing in the morning so I have 1/2 cup of greek yogurt (10 grams protein) for breakfast. I also have a couple of slices of peach, which I enjoy. Then I have a low-cal string cheese (8 grams of protein) mid-morning, 3 oz of turkey, chicken, ham, fish, or shrimp for lunch and dinner, and a Protein shake before bed. I've been making these with 4-5 strawberries, 4 oz of ice, 1/4 cup unsweetened soy milk, 1/4 cup Water, and a couple of spoons of splenda. I am eating only my favorite foods, but it is still hard to eat. I'm mot worried though because I've read of lots of people have problems early out and they resolve with time. I feel like my stomach is still healing, so I'm not surprised it's a little cranky when food gets shoved down there. Lynda

Thankfully I haven't had much issues with it, but a few of the people at my 6 month post-op were having some problems. The NUT suggested that they mash up the vitamin into a powder and then mix it with something easy to eat, like a bit of yogurt or applesauce. Don't know if it works or not, but seems like a good idea, and worth a try. Good luck

Surgery the 28th so 5 days post op and I was hungry till I added Greek yogurt and soft egg. Can't deal/handle just protein shakes. Maybe try that with doc approval.

I was advised to eat breakfast with protein mid morning protein snack yogurt or nuts lunch afternoon protium snack and dinner. I don't know if this helps

Greek yogurt

No, I haven't, but I'm very very tempted - getting really sick of yogurt, protein drinks and milk!

i get it - totally - but i eat all the time - ok well at least it feels like it. I graze, like a cow but i really try to graze on almonds, or protein bar but sometimes i want something sweet - i go for a yogurt or a no sugar added pudding or even a no sugar added fudge cycle. Should I be having these things - oh i don't know but it curves whatever is going on. At least its not a candy bar right??? I am doing what i can. I too am almost 6 moths out July 12th is 6 months. What will the dr. say??? Oh who knows. I have lost about 70 lbs since my surgery so i am thinking i might be doing something right.

Try vanilla yogurt. .. its really good... warm things seem to really feel good going down... have you tried cream of wheat?

Amen to all the above posts. I think what we have in common is: 1) A serious committment to exercise. Find something you like and do it consistently. It doesn't have to be anything elaborate; I mostly walk in a park near home. There is a 2 mile nature trail and I carry peanuts for the squirrels. I try to do a minimum of twice around (approx 4 miles) and when I can 3 and even sometimes 4 times around. Until I have daylight again after work, I do Curves and some Water aerobics. 2) Follow the doctors recommendations. Utitlize the resources. Go to group support. Call your doctor if something doesn't feel right. Come here for more support. 3) Make sure to get your Protein in. We all may approach that slightly differently (different brand preferences for Protein shakes for example) but get protein first, then healthy carbs and fats. Be sure to take your Vitamins, Calcium (citrate not carbonate) and B12. 4) Read nutritional labels. Some people like to low carb, others not. I shoot for the lowest sugar and fat first, ideally little or no saturated fat, then I try for the lowest salt and then lowest carbs. I like Cereal, and that is carbs, so I look for the lowest sugar/salt/fat content, as in plain Cheerios, Joe's O's from Trader Joe, or high protein cereals from Kay's Naturals. 5) Find healthy substitutes for old fattening favorites. I am a reformed pizzaholic (I would work out at Curves, pick up a pizza on the way home, and eat the entire thing 12-15 inches!). I now make a crustless pizza (meal portion microwavable dish, cover bottom with 1/3 to 1/2 jar of Ragu Homemade style pizza sauce, cover that with Hormel Turkey Pepperonis, top with (if you like these) peppers and onions (I keep Birdseye Pepper Stir Fry in the freezer for this) and top with Kraft fat free Mozzarella (or Cheddar). Nuke in microwave for 2 minutes to heat and melt cheese. It may be hard to believe, but that will satisfy my craving for pizza (and I live less than a block from a pizza shop). 6) To repeat what someone else said, the band is a tool. For me it helped me control the amount I ate. What I ate was still up to me. I have a quote hanging over my desk from a book I have that says "The band is not around your lips. It is around your stomach. It cannot keep food out of your mouth. Only you can do that." I stay away from concentrated sweets (occasionally I will have a finger full of that gooey icing from commercial cakes--on special occasions or holidays I may have dessert), pizza, subs, junk food (I buy my Snacks from kaysnaturals.com--protein chips and snacks, and cereals). I eat variations on a chicken caesar salad (romaine--use those green bags from TV to store; grilled chicken breast in olive oil or PAM; cut up hard boiled egg, parmesan cheese, light caesar dressing and fat free croutons--sometimes I substitute julienne cut turkey or ham that I find in Mars supermarkets. You may hear light as opposed to fat free in regard to dressings and mayo and that is because for some reason the fat free ones have more sugar, so they feel a little fat and less sugar is the way to go and fat free mayo doesn't taste like mayo, so I use Kraft Light. I recently compared skim milk to light soymilk and the soymilk has less sugar so I switched to that for smoothies and cereal. I plan to try a switch to Greek nonfat yogurt with some sugar free preserves added for the fruit. Most of the yogurts have a lot of sugar. Some foods you may find don't digest as easily after surgery. I don't eat much bread because of that. Other things I eat but carefully, making sure to chew. In restaurants I tend to stick to an appetizer and salad, or Soup and salad rather than a big entree. For me it didn't take a lot of fills. My first fill of 3ccs got partially unfilled 24 hours later and several months later I got a slight fill of 1.5ccs, so I maybe have 3ccs or a smidge more. For some people it takes more. Everyone is different. I have gone from 2X to medium tops and small pants (I wear scrubs at work) and in numbered sizes from women's 22 to misses 12. I am broke from buying clothes (I even found a pair of designer jeans at a thrift store--paid $3.49 for Ann Taylor Loft in size 12) but it is a good kind of broke. Think about thrift stores or outlets for transition sizes to save money, or catalog sales with free shipping specials. If you remember the band is a tool to aid in portion control, and you use it for that, and commit to regular exercise, plus eating healthier and staying away from concentrated sweets, you should do well. Good luck with your journey.

i asked this exact question to my nutritionist. First you can't possibly get enough protein on 1/2 cup of food. She told me to try and aim for 80-90 grams. She said the focus is healing and the important part is to eat the pureed food and I can eat 1 cup if after i eat the 1/2 cup I am still hungry. I love love love lemon sole pan fried w/ a pat of butter and a whole lemon - this yoou can eat just mash it up. noodleless lasagna - low fat ricotta, mozzarella and Pasta sauce (its a bit high calorie though another poster told me i can find lower calorie ricotta) tuna but not loving that Soups - lentil, potato leek (blend the lemon sole in the late) egg salad or scrambled eggs greek 0% yogurt I am going to make chili (burger beans and spices then blend it) refried beans w/ melted cheese

Thanks everyone! i am feeling much better today but very hungry! not stomach wise but mentally i want to eat something!! pain is better, gas is gone, almost threw up earlier because i had some yogurt and was forced to run around after my dog that got out. NOT A GOOD IDEA! i was very upset. i have been sleeping A LOT! i guess it is part of the healing process...im not sure if i am getting enough food in my system. its hard to judge!

I had "The Last Supper" before I started my liquids only. It was a grilled steak, baked potato and salad and I didn't feel guilty one bit. I was super strict for the liquids after that and ended up losing 20 lbs pre-op. It didn't affect my surgery at all. You'll probably be surprised and not be able to eat as much as you used to. And you're right, it's gonna be a looooooooooong time before you eat that kind of food again. I'm almost 2 months post-op and still eating soup, yogurt and oatmeal. So far I'm down 67 lbs and going strong. (So enjoy you're meal today (and have a little bite for me please)!!!

Clairabellleee, check out the food Forum here, there's loads of recipes there. For the thick/full liquids stage I started blending anything that sounded good and adding whatever liquid would go with it it make it more soupy. For example, for July 4th I blended a small can of baked Beans and a fat free hot dog, I added some catsup, a little BBQ sauce and some tomato juice to make it more soupy, it was GREAT. I peeled and removed the seeds from some cucumber and blended it with a little Fage (greek strained yogurt, lowfat sour cream would work, though) and some spices (little salt, pepper, dill) and made a cucumber Soup. For the mushy stage I was directed that if you can cut the food or mash the food EASILY with a little pressure on a fork, that's mushy. Good luck!

That's more restrictive than my diet. I'm on day 1. same as your diet except we can have sugar free fudgecicles, popcicles and must have 70g of protein a day. We can have dannon light and fit yogurt and fruit juice and low fat cream Soup. I'm diabetic so wont be drinking fruit juice( unless I have a low blood sugar). Today has been really, really hard.