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My nutritionist sadly isn’t very good, shame really. Nothing about calories hydration, so reading these sites really help me. They did give me a packet I’ve sifted thru. So what’s the caloric intake per day.? I’m drinking 48 oz so far a day on day 6. I’m on strained soups and yogurt. Any help will be appreciative

I too had a 2 week all liquid pre op diet allowing exactly the same items you listed. My surgery was back on October 22. My diet began October 6. Yesterday was my first real bite of food. I went a good 7 weeks on shakes, jello, propel zero, and half that with yogurts in there. My surgeon said the pre op diet is for two reasons...one is to shrink your liver. Another is as he said...the higher your bmi the higher chance you have of a complication. So he said that the pre op was very very important to the folks that have the bmi in the 60 and higher range. I know it stinks some days to have the shakes. Those days I flavored them with sf torani syrups. Or I'd just focus on water or the propel zero. It's for a good reason, so try to just wake up with the mantra ...it's going to be a great day drinking protein shakes today. I had to do that and it helped me out. A little positive reinforcement went a long way with me.

My surgeon considers yogurt a liquid. Anything that is pain related is a call to your surgeon. You are too early out for anyone here to guess with you or reassure you. Keep posting. You're doing great!

It looks fine to me - my program was purees and soft Proteins, along with liquids of course, from the hospital on out. I was served things like yogurt and scrambled eggs (along with pureed lettuce - ewwww!) in the hospital. The basic rule was to try new foods one at a time to test for tolerance, and if you had any problems with that one, try it again in a couple of weeks. This is from a program with over twenty years of experience with the sleeve, so I had little problem questioning their experience on this. Things like Protein shakes are still a staple initially to ensure adequate protein intake, but their preference is to move away from them as tolerances permit - their general finding has been that patients tend to do better as they move toward more real food. I have found this to be a fairly common practice amongst the more experienced programs (most particularly the DS oriented practices that have more sleeve experience than the average bariatric practice.) The main reason we see most programs being more conservative and going with liquids, sometimes for weeks on end, is that they are transitioning their experience from bypasses to the sleeve and they haven't gained enough experience and confidence in the sleeve yet. We are seeing more programs advance their progression schedules as time progresses and their experience builds. How well you will handle heavier liquids into purees and beyond is heavily dependent upon how much inflammation you experience in your stomach - it may be minimal which will allow things to move through relatively easily or it may be significant where liquids have a hard time passing. There is no real way to know ahead of time where you will stand in this spectrum. Take things slowly and try small amounts of new things while sticking with the tried and true Protein drinks for the basic needs at first.

I have but I don't think I'm any help, I have done fresh fish and chicken since everything tastes like metal, yogurt and cottage cheese, and shrimp chewed to a pulp Plus Protein shakes

Does anyone ever eat frozen yogurt,? I don't like yogurt but today I tried frozen no sugar added non fattening yogurt today n it was pretty good.

Not sure if it's helpful, but I did a blog post recently about a trip to the grocery store. I bought 5 items and, mixed with some staples I have in my fridge/pantry, I can make a bunch of meals. http://gastricsleeve4me.blogspot.com/2012/07/eating-9-weeks.html There's a video, and a link to my "solid food" stage page too - which has pretty much everything I eat, and is only like 13 items from the store...it's pretty much my go-to list. In simple terms it's cheese, meat (be it lunchmeat, ground turkey, frozen shrimp, rotisserie chicken, etc.), greek yogurt, refried Beans, and wonton wrappers. Another crazy-simple and cheap way to go is to make "bites". You'll need eggs, whatever you want in your bites, and a mini muffin tin. 1-2 "bites" should be plenty. There's a BUNCH of recipes on the world according to eggface: http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2009/10/party-time-confetti-bites.html. Make a pan and freeze. Good luck.

hi, i am 34 days post op sleeve surgery. so almost five weeks post op. I am eating toast, crackers in my Soup (veg. beef, ) . breakfast: yesterday i ate couple bites of bananna, Water lunch: yogurt, small slim jim, piece of candy, 2tbs tabouli (parsley, tomatos), one cup of broccoli and cheese soup. dinner: piece of candy. 2 tbs of hamburger, 2 tbsp of mashed potatoes, some stringbeans. felt like i overate. didn't feel too great. but, these foods do go down easy. 2 potato chips. ice tea flavored water. note: broc and cheese soup didn't agree too much with my stomach. toast was fine. crackers fine, slim jim fine, tabouli was okay. bananna was fine, water at night and couple pieces of hard candy at nite for dry mouth.

I will be two weeks out tomorrow so it hasn't been an issue yet. I am lacto ovo so I am planning on lots of eggs, cottage cheese and Greek yogurt. I've been a vegetarian for two years but I do find myself really craving a McDonalds chicken sandwich!

15 grams of sugar is a lot. Not all yogurts are created equal. You have search for low sugar, low cal, non or low fat. My nut gave me a list of the four yogurts that are good and meet our needs.

My nutritionist said to try to stay under 5 or 6. She aslo gave me a list. The one I remember, Dannon Light & Fit Greek Yogurt. If it isnt sweet enough you can add a sweetner.

I was on liquids for 2 days then mushies. I lived on cottage cheese and yogurt! Congrats and Good Luck!

Just know you will be very easily tired the first few weeks, I will be 2 weeks tomorrow and still take naps. I am sure this has to do with no calories - if I really push it with yogurt and protein I can get 300 in. My shower and running a few errands uses that easily. Just listen to your body!

Hi Jackie, I was banded on 3/24 and the surgery itself is a piece of cake. I had never had surgery before so I was very nervous about the postop pain. My surgeon uses a local anesthetic that lasts about 10-12 hours afterward(you could ask your surgeon if he does this also) so I had no pain at all until the middle of the night when I got up to go to the bathroom. The pain was a little sharp only where the port was placed. The first day after surgery I was uncomfortable but not unbearably so and I slept most of it anyway. The second day it was almost as if I hadn't had anything done. The port site hurts for a couple of weeks when you use your abdominal muscles but tylenol or ibuprofen took care of any discomfort. Don't be surprised if you have gas pains that go up into your shoulders, these are from the gas they use to insufflate your abdomen. I had a little bit of that but walking help significantly. Do a lot of walking afterwards. I started out walking for about 20 minutes a day. I found I wasn't that hungry for the first couple of weeks afterward. For the first time in my life I had to remind myself to eat. I just copied and pasted what I had told someone previously down below. I hope it helps. Congratulations on your decision to get banded and change your life forever!!!!! :banana :banana :banana :banana :banana Some things that have helped me through the first three and a half weeks: 1. Stock up on plenty of non-carbonated liquids. Bottles of Water help keep count of water intake. I am not a great water drinker so I usually add sugar-free Kool-aid or Crystal Light. Also it would have been nice to have more options available, I soon learned. Once you get to full liquids it gets easier, you can choose from things like V8 juice, Yogurt smoothies, Instant Breakfast (sugar-free of course), etc. I have just gotten into the habit of looking on the shelves for different options. When you find something that works don’t forget to let us know!!! 2. I also bought all the different kinds of mashed potatoes in a cup but found that instant potatoes tasted better – it’s all a matter of preference, yogurts, sugar-free puddings, tomato soup(one of my faves), actually any Soup works, I have found that blending them in the blender makes just about any of them go down well. Malt-O-Meal and Cream of wheat are also tasty warm meals. 3. Protein shakes were my salvation (and still are) when I just don’t get enough in. The Atkins and Slim fast ones have 20grams of protein, which help with getting the 60grams of protein in daily. I either drink these over ice or I mix them with ice in a blender to make a smoothy (almost like a milk shake) 4. There are also plenty of choices in the sugar free Popsicle aisle. There are fudgesicles, cremesicles, and just about any flavor Popsicle. These are great because you can actually chew them. 5. Don’t forget your chewable Vitamins, antacids (chewable or liquid), advil or tylenol (chewable or liquid – like Jennye said, try to get the adult strength or you end up drinking half the bottle), and something for gas (although I haven’t needed that yet). 6. Don’t be surprised at how much you can eat at different times of the day. I have yet to figure it out. Sometimes I feel like I can eat anything and others I can’t eat hardly anything without getting that “it’s all going to come back up” feeing. Take Care and Good Luck and let us know how it goes!!!

My highest weight is on my profile, 207. That was after I had decided to get surgery and before pre-op diet, and I had kind of gone on a, I'm going to eat whatever I like and not worry about weight gain, rampage, and gained probably 8-10 lbs. I lost that weight and then some on my pre-op diet. I did have my surgery in the US, I'm from alabama and I had my surgery with dr schmitt in birmingham. I did have issues with adjusting to the right portion sizes and learning what I could tolerate. Before surgery, I don't think I had massive issues with overeating, or eating unhealthy foods. I probably ate more than I should have, but I have a very slow metabolism and thyroid issues, so the sleeve has helped me be satisfied with much smaller portions and control my cravings. Before surgery I didn't really eat many processed foods, I cooked my own meals and didn't snack a lot, but I did have rice pretty much every day with my dinner, and some sort of carb for lunch. After surgery, I barely eat carbs. I can hardly fit them in with all the Protein and Water requirements! I have tried to eat a little rice, and protein Pasta but they didn't settle right with me. I'll probably try again closer to my goal weight. I live by myself, and my family is states away, so for me the hardest part of life after surgery was feeling alone and without support. I told one friend who lives states away that I was having surgery, and my parents. No one else, not even my siblings, know I've had surgery. Adjusting to the restriction was hard, but I quickly figured out that I could have yogurt for lunch, add protein to my coffee in the mornings, eat chicken for dinner, and beans/cheese/salsa as a snack. I follow the same routine pretty much every day, and I'm really comfortable with it. I track all my food, I bought a kitchen scale (HIGHLY recommend, helped me with portions a LOT). So I might have "given up" rice, and carby lunches on a daily basis, but if I am out socially then I don't feel too bad about indulging in a few fries or bread. I can still eat anything I want. I just don't feel the need to, and some things settle better than others. I no longer feel the need to finish the whole plate of fries (I physically can't), I'm good after having 2 or 3. Not feeling hunger is great. I do get "head hungry" at times but usually it passes. I no longer feel like the whale in the room. I might still be the biggest in the room at times, but I don't feel unhealthy, and I know that in time I'll be out of the overweight BMI category.

lunch? Tuna and or greek yogurt. Big beliver in the scale and MFP.

Finally updating 6 days post op because the first few days home from the hospital I was extremely tired and all I basically did was sleep in between sipping liquids and my Protein shakes. Surprisingly, I wasn't even nervous going into the surgery. The only thing I was nervous about, was the possibility of my nose piercings closing lol, luckily they didn't The overnight stay in the hospital was alright, the staff were fantastic but the bed killed my back so I was very uncomfortable. The hospital volunteer guild gave flowers and a Thanksgiving card created by school children to patients which was really sweet. Happily I was discharged Thanksgiving afternoon, which was great because I was unsure about if my doctor would come in on a holiday. Also, before leaving my doctor gave me a 25oz purple water bottle and a big totebag with their office information on them. Anyways, I'm feeling pretty good now, I hardly have any pain, yesterday I accidentally leaned my bellybutton incision against the bathroom sink while washing my hands and that stung a little but mostly the incisions are starting to itch and the surgical glue is coming off, I was also able to take my regular daily pills since yesterday, Saturday I gagged them up, I haven't been ridiculously freezing yesterday like I was the couple days before which is fantastic because that sucked. I'm able to drink a lot more, not quite 64oz but getting there. My doctor has my new weeks starting each Friday and I can't wait until this Friday (week 2) so I can start having yogurt, applesauce, mashed potatoes and oatmeal instead of just 4 ounces of Protein Shakes 3 times a day, water, diluted juice, and chicken broth. Oh, and even though I've weighed myself, I'm going to wait a few more days to update because I want to be sure all the gas pumped into my abdomen is gone. Patience and following the complete lifestyle change instructions are key to success. HW: 288 SW: 268 CW: ? Sent from my SamsungGalaxy using BariatricPal App

I focus on Protein. This early out if you just keep individual foods low carb then you really don't need to worry about carb counts. You only have so much room, so if you get in your protein you don't have much room for anything else. Unsweetened (no sugar added) applesauce and peaches were fine by my NUT, but I don't have more than one a day. I like Dannon Light and Fit yogurt. Its protein to carb ratio is pretty good. I liked the ProtiDiet pudding because it has protein already in it. You can also make your own protein pudding, just make sure you use sugar-free pudding mix and low-fat milk (I use 1%). Choose low or lower fat cheeses when possible. I also liked the ProtiDiet soups (creamy chicken and tomato basil). I used those a lot because I was tired of everything being so sweet. For my second week of soft foods I was able to add soft fish (like tuna, tilapia, and salmon). If in doubt, reread your program materials and call your NUT. I know mine is very helpful with ideas. Just remember: protein, protein, protein. And Fluid, fluid, fluid.

I am hoping that some experienced sleevers will take a few minutes and give me a sample menu of what you eat in a day. I am starting regular foods tomorrow and I am not sure what to eat. I am clear to eat anything now but I'm just not sure how to start. I would love to see what you eat/ate and how much and how often. This is a sample day of what I eat right now on soft foods: I have a hard time getting much of anything in me at a time. I have 2 Protein drinks a day which is a total of 80 grams of protein. Breakfast: Protein Drink, mixed in 15 oz Water, takes about 20 minutes to drink. I have a hard time eating anything in the morning and the protein drink seems to be best for me, I was the same way bf surgery. Snack: String cheese Lunch:1/2 cup refried Beans with cheese and greek yogurt. It takes me at least an hour to eat this usually longer and I can't usually finish it all Snack: A few bites of watermelon or another string cheese Dinner: Not hungry at all but make myself have a few bites of Soup and cottage cheese Snack: Protein Drink In addition to this I also drink at least 60 oz. of water a day and have a couple of sugar freepopsicles. What do you think? How can I incorporate regular foods in my diet and still get all of the protein I need? I am nervous bc I can't eat very much at one time, although I can drink just fine.

Quick update... I have already made some positive changes to my appearance. I started wearing my hair up aka Britney with the headband and the big ponytail, kind of teased at the top so it gets a bit of volume (aka Amy Winehouse). Started using an eyebrow liner and wearing lipstick (which I never used to do, just did my eye makeup and that's all, bare minimum). I lost 11 pounds in the first week. It went lower then went up 2 lbs and then stabilized. I'm pleased with the result. I must admit that I am weighing myself once, twice a day. I need to stop. I can't remember if I discussed this or not but I slipped up a few days ago and had some teaspoonfuls of nutella (chocolate/hazelenut spread similar to peanut butter). I am back on track now and trying some week2 foods - I had some potato soup, slim fast (with added protein), and a kids-sized yogurt (minigo). I'm finding that it helps a lot and doesn't leave me feeling so deprived. Whenever I drink something, even if it is the first sip or two, I get a heavy feeling in my chest and my shoulder pain starts. I don't get it!! It's hard not to drink air with the fluids, I still can't figure out how to manage to do that - have tried straws, spoons, right from the cup, no go. It's hard for me to tell if I am 'full' or not --- especially with liquids, how much am I supposed to eat? I don't understand. I emailed my dietician and hopefully she can answer that. Anyways that's it for now...thanks for reading. If you have a progress thread you post to, please let me know, I would love to read it!

Hi Jaymie, I will take a look today to see if I can find those fit n lite yogurts that you mentioned. Wow, I had no idea they came out with sf carnation instant breakfast ! Another one I"ll have to buy. Thanks for the suggestions

Seems like we are in similar situation. How far out are you? I do cardio and weights. I meet with a trainer once a week. I run but haven't been running as much because the heat is horrible here. The carbs I get are from Greek yogurt, Protein bars, veggies. I don't eat any bread, rice, Pasta, potatoes. I've never even had a bite of those. Never had a bite of dessert. I'm frustrated because I want to be at goal!!!! Lol

I was sleeved Nov 17th, only a short time before you. Wow I wish I was loosing weight as fast as you are! You are doing a great job! As for Protein, one of my favorite things to eat is dannon oikos triple zero yogurt. One serving will have 15 grams of protein and it comes in so many yummy flavors. I have also found that it is sold at most of the local grocery stores too. -Amy

@ finalllly soft foods woo hoo party dance party dance i love love my fage 0% plain yogurt (i mix in a few blueberries and a little granola on top) but you can't do the blueberries etc yet cottage cheese is also good i like scrambled eggs for some reason that i don't understand many people have problems eating eggs good luck bud the best is yet to come kathy

Generally, the complex carbs (the courser, whole grains and more fibrous vegetables) are the preferred, but the simpler carbs can be worked in as well if combined with your Proteins - a little fruit mixed in with greek yogurt, for example. Carbs in general don't provide much in the way of lasting sataity and can even promote hunger in short order (that's why restaurants often hit you with a bread basket as soon as you sit down - it sells more appetizers and bigger entrees!) but if combined with proteins, which provide the longest sataity, things average out. Some vegetables mixed in with meat is great - a stir fry or stew, or extra veg added to chili. A few whole grain crackers or half slice of whole grain bread with some sliced meat and/or cheese worked well for me - the trick is to add just enough without going overboard, and watching if any of these things trigger you into overconsuming them - you don't want a couple of crackers to lead to the whole box! The premise of the low carb diets, whether done intentionally or just as a result of low calorie/high Protein diets that we are typically on post-op, is to keep our body's reserve of glycogen (short term stores of carbs) at a minimum to promote fat burning from our long term fat stores to get the energy that we need. The problem is that some of us don't metabolize those fat reserves all that quickly so we run out of energy easily, or we have fairly high activity levels that burn through the glycogen quickly - it's somewhat like the "good old days" when if we wanted to buy something we had to go to the bank to cash a check rather than just use a debit card. The trick is to keep your "pocket change" of glycogen/carbs high enough for routine living while still low enough to keep burning that fat.