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Thank you! :thankyou:I can honestly say that for the first time in my life, I am proud of myself. It is a nice feeling. I am not doing anything special I don't think.:noidea: I am very happy with losing 50 lbs. and that is a great accomplishment but I want to lose 230 lbs. so 50 is just a drop in the bucket. My surgeon has set his goal for me at losing 200 lbs. so I guess I am 1/4 of the way there! I think that the reason mine may seem to come off quicker is because I have a lot more to lose than others. I may be wrong on this, but it seems logical to me. What do I eat? Well, I try to stick to 3 small meals per day. Once in a while I will have a snack but I try to not do that too often. Typical foods for me are: rice chex with skim milk, oatmeal, boiled egg whites, sugar free/fat free pudding (I have lots of it), low fat cheese, some mashed potatoes or baked with a little fat free butter, fat free refried beans with a little low fat cheese on top (YUM!), vegetable soup and fat free yogurt. Other things are: fresh fruits such as bananas, apples (w/o the skin), peaches; my favorite vegetables are green beans, lima beans and broccoli so I tend to eat them more than anything else. As far as meats, I have boneless skinless chicken breast (baked) mostly. My husband is big into hunting so we eat wild game and I never buy things such as beef. Deer meat is a lean meat and better for you. I have had small amounts of deerburger and steak. There are obviously other foods in with these but these are the things that I have most often. Not a lot of variety but so far I am not bored with it and it is working. As far as excercise goes, I try to walk on the treadmill 4 times per week and do some light weights to help keep the sagging skin from getting so bad. So far the weights are working because I don't have any sagging skin! I also don't sit in front of the tv like I did before because I have this amazing amount of energy so I actually want to be up doing things. I did have my hubby take pics of me the night before surgery but I have been afraid to have him take any since because I have a hard time seeing my weight lost (since it's me). However, other people are noticing it and I guess I afraid to see the pics because I don't want to be disappointed if it's not as noticeable as I hope it is. Maybe I will break down this evening and have my hubby take some new pics. :nervous

Hello, Maybe if you start off really simple. I only focus on protein which is calculated by .37 times your weight and this will give you how many grams you need a day. I have a low cal GNC protein drink in the morning with two scoops of the powder so that is 40 grams then I have foods that cover the other 20 grams, greek yogurt has 14 grams of protein. You can easily cover the rest with and egg or tuna. Follow all the rules, and maybe you will be able to get back on track... are you drinking your water? Good luck

I had my 4th fill on Saturday afternoon. I was told to be on liquids the rest of the day. (which I did) I could immediately tell the difference. I had trouble getting the liquid down. I did it... but it took a while. Sunday I advanced to having some chili. I could only have about 6 or 7 bites. For Snacks I could only eat half a yogurt Same thing is going on today. I tried having Soup for dinner but couldn't even eat a cup. I have had such a hard time getting the restriction I want (need) thus far. Is this the way it's supposed to be? I'm hesitant to get unfilled because I'm afraid of not enough restriction. Sorry to be a pain.... just looking for help before I decide what to do. (also...I seem to have the flu right now... could that make me tighter too?) Thanks guys!!

I can be picky at times, so I get it. I have been writing down things I will be able to eat after surgery at different phases. I will share what I have: First couple of days will be clear liquids such as water, Gatorade/Powerade, sugar free popsicles, decaf tea and coffee, broth or bullion, protein water. After that will come the pureed stage, where you can enjoy things like skim milk/almost milk to make a protein shake with, strained creamy soups, sugar free puddings, Greek yogurt (no chunks), mashed potatoes (soupy consistency), sugar free fudge & fruit bars, cream of wheat (soupy), sugar free ice cream, applesauce with no sugar added, and anything you can puree like baby food such as fruits (non-citrus) and veggies. You can make protein pudding with sugar free pudding and protein shakes. You can make something called Ricotta Bake. I found the recipe on Pinterest. Sugar free whipped cream with sugar free pudding mixed. You can also get unflavored protein powder to add to these foods to get your protein in for the day. Cottage cheese blended smooth. After a couple of weeks, you can graduate to a little more texture like runny scrambled eggs, egg and tuna salad, soft cheeses, refried beans, mashed bananas, etc. I find a lot of useful recipes on Pinterest. This is the guidance from my nutritionist so yours could be a little different.

Tiny amounts of yogurt, cream cheese, peanut butter and banana blitzed in milk, strained soups etc

Karen, Thanks for your support. I am doing much better now, gas and few aches here there is it. (I am a bit concerned about slippage just due to all the previous heaving.:sick I THINK I am down about 11 pounds as of today. Have not figured out how to move my ticker?? I am eating soups and yogurts and few other very liquid mushies. I move to full mushies Wed. I have already found it I don't drink slowly I get a tightness in my chest. I walked today for the 1st time, it was nice to get out! I also have one shoulder that is sore because its the side that I have been sleeping on..I thought it was gas but don't think so now ..?? How are you doing? Do you still have all your tape on? One of mine came off in the shower today..?? Dpingl, I didn't have staples, so no tape! The surgeon used a type of glue that will wear off after awhile. It has been nice to not feel the "pull" of stitches/staples, or to deal with leakage. I know from experience how much better you will feel after the staples come out, so hang on until then! As for your shoulder, I had that for the first 4 days, now it is just a pain in the left side.... 11 pounds down??? WOW!!! Is that since your surgery or from the pre-op diet?? WAAHHHHHH :cry I want to have lost 11 pounds!!!!! Good for you! Karen

The only way I get mine in is if I do 2 protein shakes a day with 20g+ of protein each. I always have a greek yogurt which is another 12 to 16 depending on the brand and then my other 2 meals are usually refried beans and salsa or canned chili with beans/turkey, sometimes beef. I also sometimes will have an egg with a sprinkle of cheese on it for a meal. I hope this helps some....but I have to still do the shakes to get it all in since my meals are so small.

I was on clear liquids for two days then they switched me to full liquids until the 20th which is a total of 7 days, then I will be on pureed for 3-5 weeks, next I will be on regular diet (scary to think about). I can only have 2 ounces of food an hour and that is it....eg. pudding, shakes, yogurt but I can tolerate about 6oz clear liquids in an hour before I start belching. Your body will let you know what it can tolerate.

Well, I mix 1/2 plain Greek yogurt with 1/2 flavored (lowers the sugar level to acceptable limit), and eat off that a few times or I would just get light and fit and have that. Both of those would not be good for lactose intolerance though. I don't know of any yogurt that would. Maybe you could ask your Doc about taking Lactaid to see if that helps? You would prob have to crush it, but all the dairy products really saved me when it came to getting in any protein or nutrients, so might be worth it.

Hi: I ate very plain. Cottage cheese and plain yogurt only. Skim milk and tons of water. Sorry, not very inspiring. Doddie

Mandi.....what are you doing????!!!!! To tell you the truth, I think I might try it. Yogurt and cottage cheese...hmmm don't forget the VitaVims

C'mon Wheezy, do it too! Loriely, maybe after your fill, you won't even need it. I just had my chicken breast, and boy, was I ever excited! I figured Frank's Red Hot sauce would be ok, so I added some to spice it up.... and did it ever! Good though. Since eating is quite troublesome for me in the morning, I had about 1/2 cup of yogurt at lunch, and 1/2 cup of cottage cheese, then at 4:30, 1/2 cup more of cottage cheese, and 1/4 of yogurt. Now my chicken breast, and I'm hoping to be able to get in some Jello before I have to quit eating for the day! Maybe some milk too. I loooove milk. I weighed myself this morning so I will know how it goes. I've got that party on Friday night, but I will try to get right back on track the next morning(afternoon!)... and hopefully not ruin things too much. Do you think that ANY kind of boring Protein would be ok? Like, say... instead of chicken on night at the gym, how about a piece of salmon? (good luck to you too, Rosi!)

wow, this is tough. It would be easier if I was doing it outta fear for my life like last time! (and if my work didn't have such a nicely stocked vending machine, and I didn't walk downwind from Tim Hortons each day) Now I think "Geesh... just a couple of days ago, I could eat what I wanted!" It seems so long ago. I'm looking forward to the hot sauce doused chicken breast.... soooo much. I'm lucky I'm not a big fan of yogurt as it is, cause, I can see yogurt (and CC) turning into the new Optifast! I have seen scale movement though, so that's always motivation to keep it up!

I'm just over one week post-op. And my surgeon here in sweden (and the nutritionist) gave me a suggested meal plan throughout. And the caloric total is somewhere around 1200 (during liquid stage), and needing like 78 g of protein. I have to eat 9 meals a day (every 2 hrs). I need 5 dl (approx 2 cups) of dairy each day as well. My first day home after leaving the hospital when I followed the plan eating all that yogurt and milk and stuff, my calories were near 1200 and my protein near 100g. I was shocked! I was convinced I was eating too many calories. Over the last week I have lost 12 lbs, and I'm eating between 800-1200 per day depending on good I am at getting in the full 9 meals. Oh and he is intending to refill my band every other month (starting 2 months after surgery) and going on like this until the 1 year mark. He is hoping for me to lose 1-2 lbs a week once I move to solids.

I agree with Susie, Sula. If you are having extreme reflux, and you tried everything to cure it. Like, not eating 3 hours prior to bed time, etc, I would go in and have a slight unfill. It is so WEIRD about the band being so darn fickle. I was scheduled for a fill in December but I canceled, and just when I think I need a fill, I get tight again. I made an egg white omlet this morning, and took 2 bites and realized I was having a hard time with it, so I switched to yogurt, and I had to slow down while eating the yogurt. Normally I can eat anything in the mornings, but his morning, my band is being a little fickle. I'm usually tight only 2 days out of the week, the rest of the time I am normal. I'm not real lose, but looser than I would want to be. I had a little reflux on Friday night, but haven't had any since. I know its good that your losing weight, but you don't want to jeapordize your health. So, if you have tried not eating before bed (I have to wait 3 hours), then I would go see the doc. A slight unfill of even .1 cc can make a difference.

Lou, congrats! I'm sure you'd doing a great job. Men usually drop the weight faster, too. Kathy, I recently saw a post by you on a different topic. You're doing a great job! You had a longer journey to onderland, but you'll be there before you know it! I know I don't think of myself as "fat" anymore. I finally see myself as just overweight. I am not disgusted by what I see in the mirror (when clothed, at least) and I can't remember the last time I put myself down either verbally or mentally. I view these things as huge strides in the right direction. I still don't see myself as "skinny" or "thin" yet. I see myself as more normal, even though the BMI chart has me hanging out in obesity land. But I'm no longer morbidly obese, at least! I had twins three years ago and MY WORD the things those sweet babies did to my stomach. I'd be a full shirt and pant size smaller if not for the large band of twin skin around my middle. Yes, this excess skin and fat does still make me a little uncomfortable, though I'm a far more confident woman than I used to be. I still find myself shocked at how large I am when I lie down in the bathtub...when it all spreads out and I see the space I take up, I can't believe I'm 60 pounds lighter at all. The reflux is now just a part of my life. I sometimes forget to take my pill and don't immediately have the burning hell in my esophagus anymore, so I hope it will eventually go away. I eat very small portions, but sometimes I love to eat! I had the Ahi Carpaccio appetizer at Cheesecake Factory a while back (well, part of it, anyway) and actually enjoyed it enough to ooh and aah over my dinner. Amazing! The lactose intolerance is a little harder. I didn't expect it the way I expected the reflux. I miss cottage cheese and yogurt. But for the most part, it's not that bad and it's not too tough to avoid foods that will make me ill. It does limit my protein options, though. I am losing hair but I'm not seriously alarmed yet. I had a ton of hair on my head and losing a bit of it isn't hurting me so far. I enjoy shopping. I fit in almost everything I try on! It's the best part, I think! I'm down to 11/12-13/14 or L pants, and L shirts. It's pretty neat to be able to shop in any store. I've also gone down a shoe size. The "ladies" are very sad little ladies these days, but they fit in normal sizes again. I figure it's nothing a little surgery can't fix in the future and I don't worry too much about it. My main issue right now, and the one I'd love to hear feedback on, is that my husband and I are in disagreement about my goal weight. I picked the highest weight I could be and still have a normal BMI. I wanted to be able to have a doctor actually view me as a patient and stop telling me my weight is causing all of my problems. I wanted to be taken seriously. My husband likes short, chunky women. I am currently the size I was when we met. He's already mourning the loss of my butt and chest. He really wants me to stop losing in about 20 pounds or so. He's been incredibly supportive despite the fact that he never felt I needed to lose weight in the first place. He's a fit, active man himself but he loves curvy women. I'm actually insecure about the thought of losing too much weight. In most relationships, women wouldn't worry about this, but I'll have other men paying attention to me (it's already happening more now that I'm losing) and he'll be looking for the chubby women in the room! It's like the opposite of how I've felt during my marriage. I never worried my husband would cheat on me with some skinny blonde, because the man likes fat women! Any advice? Is anyone else dealing with this? I trust my husband, but I've always known he's very attracted to me. I'd hate that to change simply because of my weight. We're very open about what we find attractive, and not one time has my husband ever found a thin woman attractive. I will say that his idea of a pretty woman got larger as I got larger over the years though. I wonder if this will work in reverse, too? I have a fantastic marriage. I'd really hate to ignore his feelings about my body, the same way he'd make me crazy if he shaved his head knowing I hate it, but ultimately we both realize that it's my choice. Well, it's been a great five months for me. I'm losing slower than I like because it's been a stressful month and a half of traveling. But overall it's great and I was able to simply get back on track. I absolutely LOVE my sleeve. I cannot imagine regretting this surgery. I'm grateful for it every day. In those five weeks of completely stressed out travel (and we have a few months more of being displaced to look forward to, I think) I ate whatever I wanted...I gained about three pounds but maintained after that. I was able to jump back to protein first and I've dropped ten pounds in less than two weeks. My sleeve ROCKS. I want to hear how everyone else is doing now! ~Cheri

I'm on day 3 of the liver reduction diet to get my sleeve "back in shape". It's already feeling more restricted. It's good reminder to up up up your protein when you've been slacking and get in the habit of healthy eating again. Plus, once you see the scale start moving again, it's gets you in the groove again. They have me on a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch with either 4 oz. of yogurt or 1/2 cup plain oatmeal, or 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce or sugar free pudding, a snack whcih would be something that you could choose from lunch and dinner is 2 oz lean protein with 1 cup of green veggies. If you absolutely have to you can have a shake in the evening. They would probably like you to make shakes with water but I make mine with skimmed milk. Drink all the broth you want and eat sugar free jello. The first day and a 1/2 are tough. You will have carb withdrawl but your energy levels will sky rocket and you will be reminded on how good this feels.

I was also sleeved on 7/27. I'm on purées and I haven't had anything that's actually pureed. My favorite is tuna mixed with Miracle Whip and I add tiny tiny chopped pickles (no peel or seeds) and cheese. Last night and today I had baked salmon, not even close to a puree but my NUT said it was fine. It felt great to be chewing real delicious food! I also love refried Beans mixed with cheese and plain Greek yogurt.

Summerset thank you so much !! You hit the nail on the head on so many things. I don not feel as crappy or wore down as I did after the sleeve. I can drink just as I did the day before the revision and I asked the surgeon about that and he said it was okay just a mouthful at a time. Chobani yogurt is 5 oz and I just ate one for breakfast different brand with 15 grams of protein, no problems. It is very scary because I have no idea of what I am living with now and how this is going to work. I will say I have not gotten sick and thrown up on anything yet, but I didn't with the sleeve either so I am hopeful there, but what is this gas thing and is this something that is forever with the bypass ? Thank you for making me feel not alone, I really do appreciate it.

I was allowed to have things like yogurt, pudding, hot cereals, protein shakes and all that fun stuff on day 3. My nutriontionist just happened to call me today and I told her I was craving cheese and she suggested the Laughing Cow stuff just because if it's creamy consistency. She told me I can have regular cheese on day 8.

Good Evening Gang Aint going to the gym- I am pooped - so will do some wii instead (well maybe ;0) Candice I missed this yesterday 1) Eat EVERY 3 hours, weather I am HUNGRY or not... 2) Each time I eat, it must include PROTIEN - You mean you didnt - I might not have hard protein for bf but yogurt does have pt in it - 3) No drinking with meals ( i wasn't doing this) but I need to WAIT One full HOUR before beverages. 4) Between meals I must drink MORE water... he thinks I am dehydrated and that's causing fluctuations in my B/P... (makes sense) I HAVE BEEN BAD ON WATER MAYBE THAT'S WHY MY HEAD HURT TODAY 5) I must NOT skip breakfast, under any circumstances... if I am TIGHT, then have a pro shake or pro bar, cut up in very tiny peices. I EAT BF 5 DAYS NOT SO MUCH ON THE WEEKENDS BUT SOMETIMES I DO 6) I must stop saving Calories to Eat at night... to the detriment of rule #1 & #2... if I am going to snack in the evenings it must include a protien source...ie. pc of cheese, then the popcorn... or NUTS, then a SF, FF pudding or yogurt THIS I DISAGREE WITH NOT BUDGETING CALORIES /BUT THAT'S JUST DR JANET - AND SF PUDDING & YOGURT DOES HAVE PT - NUTS HAVE ALOT OF CALORIES SO BE CAREFUL 7) strive to eat more veggies and fruit, and if I can't tolerate them... then I may need a slight Un-fill... AGREED I EAT MEAT AND VEGGIES FOR LUNCH & DINNER 99% OF THE TIME AND FRUIT IN THE MORNING.. 8) No carb. beverages.. (o.k. cause I don't drink them anyways) He said I was "setting my body up for failure" because I was NOT eating enough protien, plus with working out at the gym 4 times per week, I need MORE cals on those days... up to 1250 cals... and increase PROTIEN... So I think I can do this and refocus myself... eat more HIGH quality foods and less junk... he didn't say to completely eliminate sugar, but I think I'll do that anyways... gotta get the cravings under control.... YEP GF YOU KNEW ABOUT EATING JUNK !!! IT'S ABOUT EATING HEALTHY - I HAVE BEEN PREACHING THAT FOR 2.5 YRS ;0) Glad you are refocused Well - tmi - I a constipated !!!! I haven't been drinking enough water - took some phillip hope it works..

@@Bandista - I'm just loving how you're getting in touch with yourself! I'm learning some things about myself after I read and think about your posts. Thank you for sharing!!! Me too, friend, me too. I still struggle at each meal. Heck, I'll do it even with a Protein shake. I have to will myself to stop at the 8 oz mark when I know I've got the other 8 in the fridge. Each meal, I portion out and then wait after I've finished to see if I'm battling demons or still truly hungry. 99% of the time it's the first. I'm also trying to get into the habit of leaving something on my plate, most of the normies I eat with do this and I want to eat as much like them as possible! Sure wish I had an OA in town... @@bacon - top secret missions now, huh!?! Way to go on splitting that sandwich! VICTORY! @@ParaGirl - eating off plan always leaves me feeling bad too. I think it's a combination of the junk making me physically yucky, but also the emotional feelings of remorse or guilt or something. Glad you're back on track today! Gottta love a principal throwing a last minute "I'm-gonna-use-as-much-of-your-time-as-humanly-possible". Heaven forbid you have time to make copies, plan lessons, etc. @@2babutterfly - hope that camping trip is wonderful! @@enjoythetime - missing your posts, hope all is well. @@lisacaron - what a beautiful list! Sounds like you're one lucky lady! Today has gone according to plan. My husband is sick with a cough and cold, so I know he won't want to exercise tonight. I went ahead and did an hour-long butt kicking today. Jessica Smith has replaced Leslie Sansone for now and she's a little more intense. Add the sore arm from the tetanus shot and those spiffy new ankle weights, and I got my tail worked today! Eating plan: B- 8oz shake w/fiber L-yogurt w/fiber & 2 tbl homemade granola S-8 oz shake w/fiber D-homemade pizza 772c, 79p, 49nc 72 oz Water & exercise completed I just made 96 meatballs for the freezer. I've seen some recipes lately that use them, so this way I've got them made-up and pre-cooked to make life a little easier. I froze them in meal-sized servings, so I hope it works. You guys keep rocking! I gain so much insight and inspiration for your posts. Thank you for sharing this journey with me. I'll check back later, Take care of you.

Checking in. Breakfast was actually at home. Yogurt and almonds. lunch was a chopped salad with chicken and bacon and balsamic dressing, and I passed on the bread. At the computer store now. Maybe an open house this afternoon.

All is well here...did not do Bueno on supper last night. Today I've had B yogurt L bean burrito S Apple D gonna grill last nights steak & cauliflower I am jealous of some of that fall weather I'm hearing about. It got up to 90 here in Texas today!

B: Yogurt and Trail mix- 250 cal 17p L: Quest Bar, 2oz of cubed cheese and a few slices of pepperoni- Approx 400 cal 34p S: Skinny Cow Ice cream- 160 cal D: Grilled Turkey Tenderloin and a salad with homemade ranch dressing- 250 cal 22p S: if needed a Protein bar- 160 cal 20p Est. 1220 calories 93p Water 80oz Sounds like everyone is doing amazingly good! Keep it up.