Search the Community

If you lose the weight relatively quickly, this summer is very possible. The waiting is also dependent on if they hire a new psychologist soon or not. They have been shorthanded for a while so I would hope that they are getting close to finding someone new. Other kaisers were helping out by doing some of the psych evals for fremont but last I heard, they pulled back and said they couldn't help anymore. I didn't start losing weight until a week AFTER I met with my surgeon(I met him the day before Christmas eve so enjoyed my holidays before getting serious). I lost 40lbs in my first 7 weeks. Once 1/1/17 hit, I went straight down to 1200cals. I have not had a soda, carbonated beverage, caffine, alcohol, fast food etc since. I added in a lot of the staples that they say are helpful post surgery, Greek yogurt, string cheese, eggs, etc and made sure i got my protein in from a lot of different sources. You could probably cut carbs and lose quicker but I didn't. I went high protein, low carb. I tracked my protein intake but not my carb intake, just kinda avoided excess carbs. I still have a piece of toast every morning but I don't usually have a carb with dinner. 2 thing to remember. 1, the most important part pre op is to build the right habits. A lot of people who do extreme dieting to lose weight preop quickly, really struggle with post op. You are dropping to 1200 cals, you will lose weight quickly regardless if you cut out all the carbs or not. 2, you have to maintain and continue to lose weight throughout the whole process. Especially because they are backed up, you can't gain weight after you hit goal. If they don't see you under your goal weight and continuing your weight loss progress, they won't approve the surgery. So however you decide to lose weight, it has to be sustainable.

If you lose the weight relatively quickly, this summer is very possible. The waiting is also dependent on if they hire a new psychologist soon or not. They have been shorthanded for a while so I would hope that they are getting close to finding someone new. Other kaisers were helping out by doing some of the psych evals for fremont but last I heard, they pulled back and said they couldn't help anymore. I didn't start losing weight until a week AFTER I met with my surgeon(I met him the day before Christmas eve so enjoyed my holidays before getting serious). I lost 40lbs in my first 7 weeks. Once 1/1/17 hit, I went straight down to 1200cals. I have not had a soda, carbonated beverage, caffine, alcohol, fast food etc since. I added in a lot of the staples that they say are helpful post surgery, Greek yogurt, string cheese, eggs, etc and made sure i got my protein in from a lot of different sources. You could probably cut carbs and lose quicker but I didn't. I went high protein, low carb. I tracked my protein intake but not my carb intake, just kinda avoided excess carbs. I still have a piece of toast every morning but I don't usually have a carb with dinner. 2 thing to remember. 1, the most important part pre op is to build the right habits. A lot of people who do extreme dieting to lose weight preop quickly, really struggle with post op. You are dropping to 1200 cals, you will lose weight quickly regardless if you cut out all the carbs or not. 2, you have to maintain and continue to lose weight throughout the whole process. Especially because they are backed up, you can't gain weight after you hit goal. If they don't see you under your goal weight and continuing your weight loss progress, they won't approve the surgery. So however you decide to lose weight, it has to be sustainable.

Thin out greek yogurt with a bit of milk (or milk substitute). Hopefully you find a protein source that works for you!

I'm not flying past you, lol. But thanks for the compliment.... I exercise like 3 or 4 times a week by doing cardio on my elliptical as well as focusing on my abs. I am now putting focus on my arms too because I'm noticing a little sagging skin there but hey gotta take good with the bad . You can look me up to check out my pics on posts that I have placed on here to see my progress . I'm doing ok with food now but I am very selective and still can't eat many different foods so I stick to the basic high protein foods that are on my list from surgeon like tuna, tilapia, chili, grilled chicken , Greek yogurt and veggies. We are both doing great and are on the losers bench which is the most important thing. Stay positive and keep in touch.

Surgery was on Monday, came home yesterday. Have ended up with a sinus infection, so not feeling too good, but working my way through it. Water intake has improved since I got home. My program has you on to solids (that you have to chew until puree) by day 4, so I'm already on yogurt, creamy soups, even had a babybell cheese. Down 2.4kg /5lbs since surgery

I think you need more food, mostly protein, and less fruit. For starters, eat breakfast! Have a protein shake, or a slice of cheese, or a 1/4 cup of cottage cheese, or SOMETHING with protein in it! For lunch, eat a 1/4 to 1/3 cup of protein first, THEN have the veggies. If you have to have fruit, stick to the blackberries and raspberries- strawberries if you must- but skip the grapes. Find what fruits are lowest on the glycemic index and stick to those (but honestly, for my metabolism, eating fruit is just like eating cake). Do the same thing for dinner- eat a good serving of protein FIRST. THEN fill yourself with cooked veg or salads. I really think you are filling yourself up with too many things other than protein, not getting enough calories, so you always feel hungry and unsatisfied- and your body won't lose weight because it thinks it's starving. I'm not an expert, but I am doing pretty well with my sleeve. I just had my 6 month visit and my surgeon says I am where they like to see people at a year; I've lost about 80% of my extra weight. Here's what I eat every day; maybe it'll help you get some new ideas of what and how to eat. Breakfast: Either a slice of cheese, a protein shake, or 1/4 to 1/3 cup of cottage cheese, and coffee (with half-n-half). I take a cup of coffee in the car, too. For morning snack, I have a slice of cheese, or a low calorie greek yogurt (sometimes made into a smoothie with unsweetened almond milk- maybe 12 oz), or maybe 1T of peanut butter (not on anything, just the PB). Lunch is usually dinner leftovers, but I always make sure I have about 1/4 cup of protein, then the veggies. I usually cannot finish this, but I try to get the protein in first. If I don't have dinner leftovers, I'll make egg salad (I try to keep hard-boiled eggs in the fridge), or grab some of those pre-cooked chicken strips (try to keep on hand) or make tuna or chicken salad (I have cans of both proteins) and take about 1/4-1/3 cup of this. For a mid-afternoon snack, I'll make a mini-salad with some shredded cheese, or have about 20 peanuts, or maybe 3 green olives. Other snacks might be about 4" of celery with either PB or cream cheese, or maybe a slice of deli meat. (We eat supper late, so I often need a snack around 4pm or I'll just graze and eat crap.) Supper is more of the same... protein first, then salad or veggies. I eat almost anything for protein... chicken, fish, pork, ground beef, meatballs (I can eat 2 or 3 one-ounce meatballs), shrimp, steak (I buy a very small "good" steak and cut it into pieces that are about 2"x3" and freeze them), lamb, eggs... just about anything. If I've made the protein in a casserole or sauce, I just scrape off as much of the sauce as possible. It tastes great, but I need to get that protein in first. SOMETIMES for supper, we go out for wings... I can eat about 3 pieces... or pizza, where I eat the toppings from one or 2 pieces. I don't usually snack at night, as dinner ends around 8 and I go to bed around 11, but if I do want an evening snack, I'll have sugar free popsicles, SF jello, SF pudding (although not often), sometimes a cookie, about 2 tablespoons of ice cream, a little popcorn... something that is treat-like but I'm not eating enough of it, and not eating it regularly, so I don't really worry about it. I don't eat bread, rice, noodles, pasta, potato, junk food (mostly... ), etc. Not too many grains, either, although Trader Joe's makes a terrific mixed grain hot cereal that I like! I know I should eat more veggies, but I am usually just too full on the protein, and protein is most important. Good luck- I think you can get yourself on track and feeling like you are really eating, not dieting (which is what your meal plans sound like to me!).

I can eat about 3 oz of really dense protein like chicken or beef, or 4 oz of soft fish like salmon or cod, usually accompanied by about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of vegetables (I only weigh my protein). If I'm eating soup, I can do about a cup now, depending on how much dense protein it contains. I eat about 1/2 cup of greek yogurt, with maybe 10 blueberries, in the morning. I'm 9 mos out yesterday.

I hope so! It feels like my stomach wants me to put something in it to calm it. So far today I've had two extreme episodes. First one was a little over a half hr after lunch (oikos yogurt), I wanted to start my water drinking but took two tums instead and fell asleep, pain went away. The next happened 2 1/2 hrs later, stomach obviously empty. Took two tums again and pain subsided. Both times I had started taking small sips of water to hydrate btw meals. Water never bothered me before.

I progressed to soft foods and have been eating tuna,salmon,yogurt,cottage cheese and my favorite now,Humus!! I havent had any issues with anything I have eaten yet, knock on wood. I even tried 2 shrimp the other day with my salmon. It is amazing how small of portions you can eat and how fast you feel full like you ate a huge meal. The soft foods phase has made me feel 100% normal again thankful.

i am at 8 weeks as well and eat about 3-4 bites tops of most things . I have one protein shake and try to eat protein throughout the day in small meals . cheese, chicken, yogurt, peanut butter, hummus more meat etc along with water . Theres the medical way and then there is the way that suits u and lifestyle ,consider doing 5-6 smaller meals for a day i think its easier then .

Liquids pass through the stomach fairly fast, as do yogurts, so it's hard to get a full feeling. Not saying it isn't possible, but it's much more difficult. Even though yogurts are thicker when they're cold it doesn't take long to thin out once it's in your stomach. I never had any full sensations while on the liquid phase. When you get to the pureed stage you'll likely start to notice it. My first time of feeling full was when I tried a scrambled egg. I got about 3/4 of the way through it and that's all I could do. What I've noticed now at 8 weeks out (for me anyway) is that there is a difference in that full feeling. It's not a "Thanksgiving full" feeling of realizing you ate too much. Now eating too fast or taking too big of a bite can make you feel like crap. Just remember to measure out your portions and take your time eating once you get there. It can be frustrating but making your early meals last 15-30 minutes helps out tremendously. Btw...welcome to the site. Good luck on your journey!

I am 7 days post op and I've been doing great with my diet of liquids but I'm curious what full feels like. I have yet to feel hunger so I am eating because I need to. I haven't eaten until I feel pain or discomfort so I'm starting to get concerned I'm not noticing it. What did full feel like to you this early on? I eat (drink rather) my broths and such very slowly and eat my Greek yogurt very slowly but I don't feel anything.

Ok so I've been searching and googling and scanning forums and I know alllllll about the whole head hunger vs. real hunger vs. stomach acid but really what the heck is going on here? I went from feeling nausea almost all day to severe hunger pains and cramping at night to feeling those pains several times a day after I haven't eaten anything for several hrs. I'm at a loss and SUPER frustrated. My biggest issue pre surgery was saving most of my calories for the nighttime hunger I would get. And when I tried dieting I always failed because I would follow a sensible eating plan all day then in the evening I'd start picking so I wouldn't go to bed hungry and anxious. Now 6 days post op I was feeling I was eating more than the average sleever so I tracked my food today. I ate 97 grams of protein and 1160 calories today!! I ate over the course of the day, drank my water requirements and STILL felt so hungry and uncomfortable to go to bed that I just had some smooth broccoli cheddar soup to put something in my growling ravenous stomach. I'm so aggravated, I would almost rather feel nauseous than deal with this. I heard once we move to denser proteins there will be more restriction but I feel like a serious outlier taking in as much as I am on full liquids. This is not normal right? I'll be seeing dr this week and dreading getting weighed as I feel like I'm eating more than I was before surgery. **full liquids include (and I've had all of these options): protein shakes, sf jello/pudding, sf popsicles, broth, smooth/strained soup, unsweetened applesauce, plain or no sugar added greek yogurt. Theres also more sf beverage options but I abstain because of taste and rebound hunger/cravings.

Im still preop, scheduled for 3/31, but I have my diet for the first 2 months already. From 2 days postop i can have yogurt, puddings, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese up until my 2 week appt. I also can have my Protein shakes, broth, crystal light, sugar free popsicles, etc..

You should not be having puréed foods 8 days out. Look at web site below it's a great guide & tells you what to eat. I never ate puréed good, always mashed to applesauce consistency. At this stage you should be having yogurt, protein drinks etc. once you find your rhythm you'll be ok. I went for almost 2 months before anything tasted good. It was really tough time but you will get thru it. Just remember baby steps! I'm 16 weeks out since my bypass & hit the 50lb mark! Good luck, stay positive & walk, walk walk!! https://www.tuftsmedicalcenter.org/~/media/Brochures/TuftsMC/Patient Care Services/Departments and Services/Weight and Wellness Center/GBP Diet Manual12611.ashx

I will be 8 weeks post-op tomorrow. I have been released to exercise every other day and to eat a full, regular diet. I work out every other day on a Total Gym and I walk 5 miles a day. I am still very careful not to eat certain things... I avoid soft, doughy breads... so I don't eat sandwiches or wraps or burgers, etc... I also don't eat ground beef, nuts, popcorn, chips, stringy fruits or veggies, raw fruits or veggies, salads, corn, or anything breaded/battered or fried etc. What I do eat is almost entirely: toasted bread with Peanut Butter, scrambled eggs, cooked onions, bell peppers, & mushrooms, with grilled chicken or steak, oven roasted pork loin on occasion, and sometimes mashed potatoes or cooked green Beans. I also eat wheat crackers, soft, spreadable cheeses, yogurt, sugar free popsicles, and sometimes I try to stave off my hunger with Protein shakes. I drink Water, Gatorade, and Vitamin water and occasionally lifewater... but NEVER soda or anything like that. Yes, I said HUNGER... real, honest to goodness hunger AND head hunger AND cravings hunger... because I have almost NO restriction unless I eat too much too fast. If I take my time I feel like I can eat almost anything I want to in whatever quantity I want - or so I assume, I don't push the issue of force it or over eat on purpose... BUT it feels like I could if I wanted to and that worries me because sometimes I have "hollow days" - days where NOTHING I eat makes me feel full or satisfied and I am CRAVING something I can neither name nor define. These days there is nothing I can do to make myself stop stalking into the kitchen every 10 minutes looking to graze. I try to make the choices I make during these hollow days something that isn't bad for me - sugar free popsicles... fruit... that sort of thing... but sometimes I am giving in to 5 or 6 club crackers... half a dark chocolate candy bar... ice cream... and it's almost impossible to stop, no matter how much I realize I shouldn't be doing it. I have been stuck at this same weight for 2 weeks - gaining and losing the same pound over and over again by ounces every day. Today I FINALLY got past that number and went one pound down... but I had a hollow day today and I fear the scale tomorrow morning already :-( Is it just me or does anyone else have this issue already? I hear people say a couple of YEARS out from surgery this happens and they need to do a "reset" and try to get back on track but I am only 2 months out... this shouldn't be happening to me, should it??

Once I booked my surgery, the nutrition expected me to start a low carb, high protein diet. So I had a month of that before starting the pre-op liquid. I also start tracking every bite that went into my mouth. Like the above poster, I am very grateful for that time. It allowed me to take a hard look at what I was eating and work out what life will be like long term. I cut out sugar, rice, pasta, bread, potatoes... The carbs I did eat where either from fruits (limited), vegetables, or dairy. I learned that by bumping up my protein, I don't miss the carbs! If I were in your shoes, I would just start making small daily changes. Giving up soda is awesome! Maybe work on your snacks next? Instead of a cereal or granola bar, how about a piece of fruit and some nuts? Or veggies and dip or hummus? Cottage cheese? Hard boiled egg? Wasa crackers are fairly low carb (for a cracker) and might help you slowly limit the carbs. I like them with laughing cow spreadable cheese and antipasto, or tuna or avocado. Try looking for a greek yogurt instead of a sugary brand. Focus on making the small changes consistently and you'll get there! And definitely make the most of the time you have to start creating that new relationship with food! Try not to let other get you down and keep your chin up! You can do this!!

I HAVE made small changes. I no longer drink soda (I used to drink diet coke) I have started drinking Raspberry iced tea, and mixing it with 1/2 water. I have cut down my serving sizes. But, carbs STILL make up about 90% of my diet. I am going to have to find alternatives to them. Like, what to eat for breakfast? I eat 2 waffles everyday. Am snack, a cereal bar or granola bar. Lunch, string cheese, greek yogurt and a blueberry bagel. Dinner...thats my biggest problem....pizza,pasta,cereal,sandwiches etc. I am going to research things that are low carb, and start the changes right away!!!

I added in some Greek yogurt from time to time given its carb content is likely lower than most fruits. Depending on the amount of protein in your shake and/or if you are using milk it might be overkill on the protein in a single serving.

I am only aloud protein shakes, Greek yogurt, and crystal light for my two liquid diet, and I was told no coffee about 3 months ago. Maybe it's different pending on the person?

Not a yogurt answer, but if you freeze a cup of pudding its like gelato/heaven.....to me!

At that stage, you are just begging for dumping syndrome with frozen yogurt. I have it every once in a while now and it can still give me the sweats. My preferred dessert substitute is Fage plain yogurt with Torani syrup. There are tons of the to choose from. Right now my favorite is coffee liqueur, but in the past it was salted caramel. Mix a teaspoon of that with a few ounces Fage and then stick it in the freezer. Depending on how good your freezer is, you can have decadent "frozen yogurt" in about 30 minutes.

Are you pre or post op? Just curious, why that calorie range? The premier protein drinks sit well with me. Isopure unflavored too. Dannon light and fit yogurt or the oikos triple zero. Some places have a carb control yogurt that a lot of people like too. Low fat cheese. Lean meats like another person suggested. I also like quest protein bars.

Great stuff from all of you, congrats and continue the good work. I'm a few days shy of 6 months out and I try to just listen to stomach, whats left of it. I've stopped weighing my food because rarely could I eat it all. That being said, some days it seems I can eat a fair amount while others, I get full after a half bowl of soup. Beef, chicken, fish, i can barely eat 3oz. It is easier for me to eat veggies. Also, I know its frowned upon but it is what it is, I have an easier time getting portions in with a piece of bread. Lately, my lunch is half a ham and cheese sandwich on good bread, with good quality meats and cheeses. I always end up throwing it out with 2-3 bites left. I pretty much have switched to a european style diet. No processed foods, but I am OK with a small good piece of crusty bread, lots of olive oils, good fresh vegetables. I drink lots of water throughout the day. I do seem to eat several very small meals per day and the free yogurts at work are a regular go to. I will also slice half a banana with some peanut butter as a sweet treat. I will keep focusing and try to listen to my stomach. I eat slow and some meals it seems like I can eat a lot, at least for the new me, while other meals, I am done after just a few bites. There is no rhyme or reason that I have noticed yet. It sucks when you order an expensive meal and you feel hungry to have your stomach tell you, nope...your done, after just a few bites. I'm down 117 lbs or so to 263 which is way ahead of where I thought I'd be. My SW was 359 and HW at start of liquid diet was 380. My goal weight is 225. Not too shabby. Thankful for my new found health. I'm off blood pressure meds and no more sleep apnea. In fact, my wife says I don't even snore.