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I am trying the pure protien shakes, not to bad. i was looking for a protien powder that was unflvored so that you could ad it to like yogurt to boost the protien. Anyone have any have any they have tryed? Let us know what you think Glove ,

I had my first fill since November this morning, and I'm not sure if it's because it's been so long or what, but I felt kinda tight afterwards too. Almost like I had a lump in my throat, and I had some pressure in the middle of my chest too. It's better now, and since this morning I've had two cups of water, tomato soup and plain greek yogurt with no pain or anything. I'll see how I feel tomorrow, but so far so good!

Doesn't you NUT have a plan for you or have you not got that far? You will find everyone on here has a different eatingI plan and time frame. First 2 weeks post I could only have protein shakes, yogurt and cream of chicken soup, along with clear liquids...sf swiss miss with a scoop of unflavored protein was my daily go to drink After 2 weeks I could only add egg, cottage cheese and ricotta....I made a baked ricotta every day..yum! At week 4 I could have moist meats, I dont have to puree any of my food just has to be really moist...I use my crock pot for chicken and turkey, can have any flaky fish and soy products, no beef I stay on this stage for 4 weeks Because I eat so little I make one thing and eat it for couple days

every since i had to do six months dietian classes. the first three months i.ve lost nothing but when she said you have to prove to them you can lose the weight i got going now as of sept3 i,ve lost 27lbs on my own.at first i was slacking she told me the kind of foods to eat but i went out an bought me chicken b&beef broth, dannon light&fit yogurt,sugarfree jello,eas drinks, crystal light.an i started exercising on my stationary bike for thirty minutes.a day.

December 13th sleevers!! Lets all update and see how we are doing. I am trying to get a sense of what is normal, average, ect. I am 3 weeks post op today and down 16 lbs. I thought I would be down more, but seem to have stalled at day 13, losing only 1 lb in the past 8 days. Is this normal? Is this possible? My calories are between 600-800 per day. No issues with the Protein or liquids. Soft food stage for me, fish, yogurt and soup. I know its crazy, but I was not anticipating a stall for at least a month or two. My surgeon said the first 6 months is where the weight will fall off, after that its up to me. Hoping to hit a milestone in January.

Hi, I'm Abby. Wasn't exactly sure where to post this as didn't think it would be appropriate in newly banded for new bandsters that are learning like me. If anyone has any advice, please help! I know there are several topics on heartburn AFTER a patient has been too tight or has had fills but I haven't had anything in my band. My lapband surgery date was 9/13/13. I had the AP-L band with no Fluid placed in band. I did have hiatial hernia repair 3 x 4 CM. Today is my 14 day post op and I am having heartburn. I did not have heartburn at all the first week post op. I do not lay down after meals, so I know it is not related to that. I also have ONLY had Water to drink for fluids since day 8 and forward from surgery. I had my post op appointment this last Wednesday (9/25) with the nurse. I had only had one bad heartburn experience the past weekend and thought it was an isolated incident but still mentioned it. She suggested that I trial prilosec for about a month or so until the swelling subsides from the surgery. I just wanted to give you some background information and what I’ve been doing so you have all the info. Prior to surgery, I probably have had heartburn 5-10 times in my life that I can recall. The only thing that triggered it was if I drank more than two glasses of alcohol which was a rare occasion. I was never sensitive to any other types of food. It was also relieved by taking two tums within 10-30 minutes. My first week post-op I was unable to burp for 6-7 days. Every time I had the pressure to burp, I was unable to for some reason. Starting day 6-7 and forward I burp multiple times throughout the day. I don’t know if that’s a factor since it opens up the Lower esophageal sphincter. I do try to not gulp air and try to SIP my water. My first heartburn experience was on day 8, first day of pureed/soft type foods per surgeon guidelines. I had three bites of lowfat cottage cheese at 12:00 p.m. I tolerated that fine. I had no other food and only sipped on water starting at 1:00 p.m. At 3:30 p.m., I developed heartburn that lasted until 7:00 pm. I took two tums and a chewable prevacid around 5:00, the heartburn finally relieved itself two hours after that. I had no episode of heartburn on Sunday. On Monday I had very mild heartburn that lasted about 1-2 hours and then went away. No episode on Tuesday or Wednesday. Yesterday Thursday (9/26) I had heartburn from 4:00 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. I did have ¼ of tomato Soup at noon but had no symptoms of heartburn and had tomato soup previous days without problems (I understand this is acidic) At 3:30, I ate two ounces of tuna fish and 1 low fat laughing cow cheese wedge. At 4:00 p.m., I had heartburn. I took two tums and prevacid at 4:30 without relief. I continued to sip my water but no other food. At 8:30 I took two more tums and then Pepto-Bismol. Had no relief. Finally at 9:30 I started to drink my Protein shake (only water and whey protein) and I had relief. I was afraid to try any more food even though I was hungry in fear of having heartburn all night. This morning I woke up around 8:30 a.m. with heartburn. It is my third day of omeprazole. I’m really upset as it is uncomfortable, I had no problems of reflux prior to surgery AND I had a hernia repair. My throat and esophagus feel irritated now and then to have another episode makes it more irritated than the initial episodes. I don’t know if there is something wrong but this is NOT normal for me. If this is related to swelling from the surgery, wouldn't of I experienced it the first week? Or no? I have NO night cough, no nausea, no vomiting. I also don't feel gastric juices in my throat. Just a "burn" from my sternum to my throat area. I've had minimal hunger since surgery. Maybe feel hungry once a day. I am eating roughly 500-700 calories this week. I have tolerated swallowing everything I've tried. No PB or slime. I've tried Protein shakes (only water and whey stirred), broths, blended Soups, lowfat cottage cheese, refried Beans, greek yogurt, pudding, tuna fish, laughing cow cheese wedge, and Peanut Butter. Is there a reason post op with no fluid in the band why I would be experiencing this? . I left a voicemail to make an appointment with the surgeon but seeing if in the meantime someone else had a solution. Thanks. -Abby

sugar free puddings, yogurt, cottage cheese. I make a low cal salad for the Holiday's, and people love it try this, just cut the recipe in 1/2. Shirley's HOLIDAY SALAD. 2small packs jejjo (FLAVOR IS UP TO YOU) 1 quart of cottage cheese 12 oz. cool whip 1 can crushed pineapple (large) Drain the pineapple. Put the Jello in a bowl and add cool whip (DO NOT ADD Water TO JELLO !) when well blended, and jello is dissolved, add the cottage cheese, and stir. Fold in the pineapple, cover and chill overnight. O M G it is Delicious. Now you all know it. If someone makes it,, let me know what you think. Great Pot Luck Dish also. Shirley

What is everyone's pre op diets? I have been on mine for a week and its been ok I did cheat this weekend but other then that not to bad. I can have grits in the morning, yogurt at 9:30, 11 applesauce, much protein shake, 3 pudding, 5 yogurt, and dinner is another shake.

I'm on my second week with Bariatric Advantage shakes. At first it wasn't so bad, but the sweetness of them is getting to me. I've been adding bananas and other fruits to them to try to cut the sweet. I went tonight and got unflavored whey Protein. I'm going to try that and see if that's better. I was told that I could add fruit, nuts, honey, yogurt or Peanut Butter to them. Maybe try those options.

Milk is a good thinner too. If the yogurt and other thick things hurt then don't do them yet! Listen to your body. It wont hurt to let the swelling go down some more before you try the thicker things- and meanwhile milk will both thin yogurt, pudding, and even cream Soups and add Protein.

Thanks everyone....Renee, I too am a Dr Aceves patient and am only allowed the 2 oz, I know I couldn't even do 1 oz of yogurt yet.. I am okay w/this, it's just different than my band and was unexpected. With my band, I had no issues w/yogurt or even cottage cheese at this point. I can now see why people lose so quickly..I am now down 22lbs in 16 days. I am still so tremendously happy to have that band out of me, I think I can handle almost anything. I just need to get some more Protein shakes..I have been living off the Premeire Protein RTD from costco and Special K Protein H20. I appreciate all of you!!! Erika

I used heavy cream to thin out the greek yogurt. While it has more Protein in it, it's very thick and just kinda sat there in my tummy. meh...didn't feel great at all. The heavy cream gave it a nice creamy texture. Milk is something that I can't have because it bothers my tummy A LOT, but the fat in heavy cream kind of "buffers" it in the tummy and it was fine. I also wouldn't try to eat 4 ounces yet...if ever. I'm allowed 2 ounces but that's after healing, not while I'm swollen still. I can tell you this, after a few bites, I'm done. I can't eat any more and I can't sit there for an hour and wait for it to go down. I put it away until my next meal.

Congrats on your new sleeve! I hope your sister feels better. VSG was my first surgery too so I also felt a lot of discomfort post-op. The gas pain lasted the longest. When can you start eating mushy foods? I remember I was so excited to eat yogurt and eggs after having nothing but liquids for a few weeks. I wouldn't recommend sneaking in food until you're ready, but you already know that. You don't want to risk getting sick (vomiting!) or hurting your new sleeve!

I used regular mayo for everything. Never worried about fat. Actually, come to think of it, blending avocado with the egg salad was really good, too. I never really used sour cream that much, I used plain Greek yogurt instead, just for the protein factor.

In the first months, it's all about keeping food really simple and expedient. You will be eating so little that the last thing you want to focus on is cooking and food interaction. So do what needs to be done, simply. I agree with @catwoman7. Use meat lube aka gravies and sauces on the side to dip protein in at first. It helps it go down. I wanted and needed to feel full and feel restriction, so I did choose harder to digest meats (aka dry dense lean protein). But I did use some ready made sauces (low fat, low carb, low sugar, low to no cal). I always had these on hand (frozen in ice cube trays in 1-2oz portions, then put into bags and labeled: Heinz Homestyle Chicken Gravy Heinz Homestyle Beef Gravy Classico Lite Asiago Cream Sauce Central Market Taste of Italy Marinara Light Hollandaise Sauce 99% FF Creamy Poblano Soup 99% FF Cream of Mushroom Soup 99% FF Cream of Chicken Soup Mild Salsa Mild Enchilada Sauce Mild Taco Bell Sauce Then I would just make things like: Foil Wrapped Fish Pan Seared Chicken Breasts Grilled Chicken Breasts Grilled Salmon Ground Turkey Crumbles Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage Crumbles Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage Patties HEB Hatch Turkey Burgers (air fry them) Carton Egg Whites 2% Cheddar Shreds Low Fat Mozzarella Shreds 2% Cottage Cheese Nonfat Greek Yogurt Plain At first: frozen veg & canned green beans, then later switched to fresh and cooked al dente. But by that time, most of the meat lube had gone away.

@ - yes i traveled during the week before surgery and then my trip was post 10 days after surgery ( I was in soft food phase - so shakes, Soup and lots of yogurt). My surgery did not have a liques diet until 2 days before surgery - at my trip I was on a pre-op diet but not liquid only. I will say - my first trip was hard (I was still building strategies). I am now better at planning. Reach out (send my a message) if you want to talk live about how I travel now.

Breakfast is a tough one to prep. It just doesn't taste the same reheated or will have a nauseating smell when reheated. I usually do a protein shake, cream of wheat or Greek yogurt if I can't cook breakfast every day.

I mostly eat the same things for breakfast and lunch B: either Quark (a yogurt-consistency cheese) or Oikos Triple 0 Greek Yogurt with 1/4 - 1/2 c. frozen blueberries (I eat it at work, so the bb defrost just a bit on the drive in so they're not SOOO frozen) L: eggface's ricotta bake with spinach baked in. I usually make a double recipe, cook it in a mini loaf pan that makes 8 mini loaves. Keep 4 in my fridge, freeze 4. Sometimes I'll have leftovers for lunch, but typically its ricotta bake. Snacks - the Sargento nut/cheese packs, cheese slices, almonds, parm chips with guac or hummus (sometimes I'll have this for lunch as well)

2 weeks 3 days post op. I'm hungry, just can't eat much..... the things I manage to get down aren't the healthiest but I have to eat something. I'm still drinking protein shakes 1-2 per day. Today I had 2-1/2oz mashed potatoes thinned with beef broth, approx 2-3 oz yogurt, strained hot/sour soup, crystal light decaf ice tea and water. Tomorrow I'm going to try puréed hot/sour soup, seems to be my craving. I've only lost 10 lb since surgery but my clothes are falling off. My total weight loss to date is 43 lbs.

Hey everyone- I had my band to sleeve revision on May 30th..I've lost 20lbs and am feeling great. Today, being Day15, I am allowed yogurt, SF pudding, etc... I bought some greek yogurt and took a couple of VERY small bites of it and it had a hard time going down. I could feel it sitting there and it took several minutes to go down and was mildly uncomfortable. I gave up and went back to my protein shake. Like everyone else, I want to know if this is normal?? Should I just stick w/the shakes until it's easier, or just very, very slowly eat the yogurt? It was a 4 oz container and would probably take me at least an hour to eat..

Are you ready for the next food stage? How about trying some soft cheese or cottage cheese in the blender? I also bought some flavored greek yogurt and sugar free yogurts. I feel better now that I'm getting "real food" in. I was also feeling pretty tired too..... Hope you feel better soon!

I lost 90 lbs total by the time I was 6 months post-op. I haven't lost an ounce since then. I just celebrated my first year and am doing everything right. I was called the model patient for so many reasons, but the numbers are not budging. I am a super-disciplined person, I eat very slowly, have no emotional relationship with food, and cook everything myself. I am really at a loss. I moved away from my doctor's office after 7 months, and lost all support. No dietitian, no post-op appointments, no blood-work, nothing. Mostly, I mourn the feedback. As my pouch adjusted, I have been able to easily get an entire yogurt down without much effort. I have started adding 5 cherries to my Breakfast yogurts... I am obsessing over my food intake, worrying if I am eating too much (no weight loss) or too little (body in starvation mode). I have no way of knowing unless I get real answers from real professionals. I am tired of researching and doctoring myself. I am tired of putting together advice from people who have been through it. I really need to shake up my system. I feel like I'm losing time, and that I have only 6 more months to lose weight for real. I am 30 lbs from my goal, and have no hope. I'm not sure if I'm looking for more advice right now. I just need some feedback from long timers. I think I want to hear about people who lost weight way after their surgery. Maybe I'll be able to stop pressuring myself to catch only this train before it leaves the station.

You might want to pay close attention to the nutrients component of Lean Cuisine and other frozen entrees now that you are banded. I started doing this and found that a lot of prepared meals may be low in calories but they are high in sodium and low in vitamins, minerals, fibre, and the other good stuff. I am not a cook but there are a number of things that you can make on the stove top or in the microwave or eat fresh which will be tasty and healthier for you. I guess my favourite microwave meal is two beaten eggs with milk (eggs are loaded with vita Bs, protein, vita E, selenium, the omega oils and have only 70 calories per egg), a finely chopped tomato, a little salsa, and some cheese. Put this in a bowl and nuke it, then eat. Oh, yah, season to taste. I also keep around the house those little cans of Clover Leaf flavoured tuna; these come in such flavours as spicy peanut satay, dill&lemon, and have a pop top lid. They are low in calories, taste good, contain protein, and although there is some cholesterol it is better than eating a bag of chips. I also eat a lot of tzatziki which I buy from the store. I don't have much of a sweet tooth and this is a thing which the Greeks do with yogurt; they mix it up with garlic and slivers of cucumber. If you can get over your fear of the stove top you might consider getting into stir-frying fresh vegetables and chunks of expensive beef/pork tenderloin or chicken. I use the expensive stuff because it chews up nicely in my mouth and because it tastes better. The leftovers nuke up nicely the next day. However, if you cannot get over your fear I would suggest that you make a point of chopping up fresh vegetables and adding these into every item which you microwave. I say this because I shocked to note that even Gardenay soups (which allowed me to survive the full fluids weeks post-op) are surprisingly devoid of the vita Cs, etc. I have to say that I really was surprised when I began to study those nutrient info labels! I also rely a lot on salads and I often incorporate chick peas into these. They are a good source of complete protein when combined with cheese and they are fibre rich. I add diced onion, red, yellow or orange pepper, and fresh parsley, dill, or coriander. I make my own salad dressing by mixing together dijon mustard, cider vinegar/lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and a few drops of balsamic vinegar. Because I like spicy I add a bit of hot sauce. And when the season is right I substitute avocado for chick peas. Avocados are kind of fattening but they are loaded with nutrients. As for the salad dressing, I learned how to make this when I was living in France. Olive oil has the good kind of cholesterol, and both apple cider vinegar and lemon juice are good for you, they say. The sweetness of the balsamic vinegar cuts the acidity of the dressing and the dijon mustard binds the vinaigrette together and gives it zest. This dressing takes 2 minutes to make and is less fattening, less expensive, and pretty much free of additives. Another lazy thing which my husband and I have gotten into is that we buy these pre-roasted chickens which are available in our local supermarkets. They haven't been deep-fried and they don't come with the Kentucky crust. We buy 'em, put 'em in the refrigerator, and eat 'em cold. This works out well for us, particularly so because I like white meat and he prefers the dark. It is another source of protein for the non-cook, eh. I know that this is an awfully long reply to your question, grrl, but I am anxious that you understand that surviving on a diet of Lean Cuisines and Healthy Choice Meals is probably not going to cut it. We are subjected to those Campbell Soup ads which mention that their soups contain full servings of vegetables when in fact nutrition-wise they are lacking. At the same time I, while I am not phobic, do not derive any joy at all from cooking. Eating is where I was at! It strikes me that you have got to figure out a new and creative way to deal with your food issues, one that does not necessarily mean that you ever have to go near a stove. I have provided you with a few of my thoughts. There are other things which you can do in order to get your food needs in order. Eating a lot of fresh fruit is one of them. You will need your Bs, and your proteins, of course. Beat an egg or two and then nuke it, and buy those pre-cooked chickens. This should cover most of your nutritional needs. And do what most of us bandsters are doing, take your vitamin supplements as well. I take the chewies and because I live in a northern climate I take an additional 1,000 IUs of vita D. I think my answer is really boring but I hope that it helps.

I eat meat but alot of vegetables. This last week I got awesome fresh brussel sprouts that I oven roasted. They were awesome. I also oven roast green Beans, carrots, etc. One of my favorite veggie dishes is mushrooms, spinash (cut small), yellow squash, and matchstick carrots - cooked in garlic oil, sprinkle with parmesean cheese. Hummus is a favorite veggie dip for me. I eat soy chips, use Protein drinks, yogurt, etc. I think you can get your protein in without meat. Just track your protein and if you are short, have a Protein Drink for supper or before bed.

I had my surgery on the 15th of this month. I was put on a liquid diet upon discharge. I've been home and have been able to finish my Premier Protein shakes yogurts, cream soups and amout of water I was told to drink. I feel like I'm eating as much as I was during my 2 week pre-op liquid diet. I never feel full or sick. No pain or discomfort. Is this normal. Besides the brusing on my stomach I feel like nothing has changed.