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I was so happy to have chicken soup flavored "shakes" to offset all the sweet stuff (until they started to taste like chemicals after surgery, lol). I was also able to put unflavored protein powder in tomato soup, and that was so nice! I would do a coffee flavored shake at breakfast, chicken soup shake for lunch, and tomato soup for dinner, plus sugar free jello. It wasn't too bad after the first several days. Mine lasted 2 weeks. Take it easier if you can, and get lots of fluid and sleep.

Hey Yall. Very very new to this but I need some help. I had gastric sleeve surgery on May 10th. The liquid diet leading up to it, and afterwards was absolutely torture for me (I know it's really hard on everyone) but I could barely get broth down, especially post op. When I say that, I mean the idea of drinking more and more broth, no matter what kind or flavor, made me feel absolutely nauseous. And I literally gagged trying to get it down. Needless to say, I didn't get much broth down, but I tried to stay as consistent as I could with protein shakes, which also had a similar effect on me. So when today came around, I was so excited because finally I could slowly try to incorporate foods that didn't make me want to vomit when I thought about them. I started slow with just a yogurt for breakfast, taking tiny bites, with 2 minutes in between bites. That went down pretty well. For lunch, I tried an applesauce, repeating the same process as with the yogurt. Again, that went down fine. Throughout the day, I also timed taking my vitamins, so as not to push a bunch of pills down my throat at once, I was afraid of the effect it would have on my stomach. My plan for dinner was to have some tomato soup, and maybe even put in a little extra flavorless protein, because I hadn't gotten in as much protein as I should of during the day. But before I could make the soup, I started feeling disgusting. And the thought of eating anything else makes me feel nauseous. But I know if I go back to the clear liquid stage for a bit longer, I'm going to be struggling to get more broth down. I just don't know what to do. I feel like I'm completely undernourishing myself and it would be even worse if I went back to the clear liquid stage. I've talked to my nutritionist about it, and she only told me to try drinking other types of broth. Which I have. I've tried every kind you can think of. And she said if that doesn't work, to try to drink Gatorade zero to at least make sure I'm staying hydrated. I have just reached a point of such regret. I feel like I'm just going to get sick before I can get better. I'm at a point where I would rather live my life the way it was, than to feel like this for months. I know it's too late for that, but man, never let anyone tell you this is the easy way out.

This should be fine. It sounds like you're aware of the portion that is appropriate for you right now and making reasonable choices like leaving behind the bread. The biggest issues with restaurant foods are probably portion size and hidden calories/fat/sugar in sauces. Since you know this is part of your lifestyle to get takeout, and not something you're looking to change, I would say stay aware of the choices you make, as it will be easier to push it the further out you get. Beware of getting the fried chicken instead of grilled "just this one time" which becomes every time because it's tasty. Eating the bun because you have a little "extra room" instead of getting yourself a side salad to fill you up. Eating the million calorie sauce, which will go down way too easily, instead of substituting something healthier. If available, you might want to get the nutrition info for your favorite places to make sure what you think you are eating matches up to what you are actually eating. If you want to reduce eating out, consider doing some meal prep/batch cooking and freezing options for when you're not in the mood to cook.

Congratulations! I'm almost 4 months post-op from gastric bypass and my advice is to watch every video from Dr. Matthew Weiner (Pound of Cure Weight Loss) and Dr. John Pilcher on YouTube. These were by far the best resources I found, and I go back and watch many of them (especially Dr. Weiner's, and also his new podcast) all the time even now. Especially the ones on how to build lifelong behaviors to keep the weight off. One thing I did early on, right after my first bariatric appointment where I weighed in at my highest weight ever (yikes!) was order Dr. Weiner's books. There's The Pound of Cure, which gives a detailed, step by step way to make healthy changes to your diet, plus a second book explaining how bariatric surgery really works and then his bariatric cookbook (I also really like Bariatric Meal Prep Made Easy by Kristin Willard). I made several of the changes recommended by the Pound of Cure (I didn't start with the 2-week diet, just started implementing changes I thought I could manage) and over time I lost about 12 pounds, plus just felt healthier and more in control of what I was eating. One other piece of advice: don't over-buy protein supplements. So many people on this board will tell you this, and I did not heed the advice. Now my cupboard is full of protein supplements I stopped liking after surgery and will never use. I've barely needed supplements after the first month or so, honestly. I feel guilty at how much money I spent on them, but I will likely end up throwing them all away (most are opened so can't be donated). If you want to stock up on anything, an unflavored protein powder is much more likely to be useful to you in the long run than the flavored shakes. But if you're buying flavored ones, consider trying a soup flavored one because the sweet ones get old really fast, even pre-surgery. Oh, and take "before" photos! I know taking photos can be so uncomfortable, but you will want them. Choose something very form fitting to start. I went with a pair of exercise leggings and a tank top that was so tight it was like skin. I took photos about a week after my first appointment, so around my highest weight, and then on the day before surgery and at each month-marker thereafter. So far, I've worn the same clothing each time, although I may need to change that as it becomes too baggy to show the progress clearly. Take your measurements the same day you take your photos. You may struggle to see (or refuse to believe) the changes in yourself, but the photos and measurements don't lie. Even if it's painful to see the photos now, you will be so grateful to have them later. I was in shock and wanted to cry when I truly looked at my highest weight photos, but I'm so glad I took them.

I had a similar situation with Tennessee, but unfortunately none were available. I had to save for a while, but the clinic I went to offered a discount if you financed through CareCredit with them, so that may be an option. Also with self-pay, there's fewer hoops to jump through leading up to scheduling a surgery. That being said, i would recommend lining up some counseling along the way if you do go the self-pay route. Good luck! Hoping someone has some better news than I do.

I've been stalled for 3 weeks. I contacted the dietician and had her look over my food logs on the baritastic app. She told me stalls can last a month, sometimes more. She went on to tell me I wasn't getting enough fiber. So, I bought some Flaxseed and going eat more fiber foods to see if that was the thing keeping me stalled. How many grams of protein and carbs are you getting per day? I'm curious, every doctor or nutritionist seems to have a variety of how they do things. I believe you had the sleeve which would be a different nutritional guideline than mine since I've had gastric bypass. It's frustrating to work on doing the right thing, only for a lingering stall. It has been getting really hot in Oklahoma. Mid to high 90's. I have a hot job as it is. Sweating all the time, I thought just by the heat and sweating I would lose a few pounds. It truly is a marathon

This is something that never stops. You have to watch what you eat, how much you eat, how often you eat. You have to move your body more. Prioritize protein first, then veggies, then carbs, then healthy fats. Fluid intake never stops. You have to get 64oz at least. Avoid the slider foods, avoid grazing. Cut the salt. And switch to sugar free and no sugar added sweets if you really can't stay away from them (I have never been a big sweets person. I'm not even a huge fan of chocolate). This is something I would thing your surgeon and nutritionist would have gone over with you before you had the surgery. This isn't a magic cure all. It's a tool to use to get your weight and health where it needs to be.

Happy Birthday! A little treat won't hurt, but 2 big things: 1. Don't beat yourself up over going off of the diet once. It can easily lead to a spiral where you feel bad. Remind yourself its not a big deal when its a single event, just resume at the next meal like nothing happened, and don't let it become a daily habit! 2. Expect sugar cravings and being "hangry" for a day or two after having a sweet treat after weeks of having none. I felt ravenous after having treats over the holidays, and couldn't figure out why. I wanted to eat more than I knew I could physically handle. Our bodies are engineered to make the most of carbs because up until a hundred years or so ago, they were rare for humans to come across. Nowadays, sugar and starch are in everything, and our bodies haven't adapted to that change in food availability yet. That instinct will kick in and make you want to eat "all the carbs". The following 2-3 days, resist it and remember to stick to higher protein and savory foods until it passes.

Thank you all so much!!! I'm definitely taking note of all of this. I've gone shopping and added more fats and a little higher carbs to my diet. I'm at around 1300 calories per day on average, but I'm working on upping the fats and carbs a bit. I'm also looking to keep my protein at around 100g per day if it's at all possible. Not sure about increasing the sugar and salt intake too much. I HAVE had to start using a little bit of Himalayan salt because my bp has been running super low since my hysterectomy (it's been 3 months and it stays around 97/50, sometimes a little lower) and we're trying to get it to come up. Last time I went to the doctor for my 12 week post op appt it was 88/51, so not having a lot of luck there just yet. I don't like the taste of salt anymore, so adding it to nearly everything is tough, but I'm working on it. Thanks again for all of the suggestions!!! OH, and the potatoes are going to be tried tonight. I'm hoping the carbs won't make me sick. And I can't do any kind of cow's milk at all because I'm severely lactose intolerant, so I use almond milk and non dairy cheese and nutritional yeast. Should I be looking at muscle building exercises, and if so, which ones do you recommend? Maybe I should try to bulk up just a little......

It is pretty common & it can be a challenge to find foods you enjoy & can tolerate. It can be a lot of trial & error to find foods to eat. Don’t give up a good though. Sometimes you eat something one day & it’s fine but the next day your tummy is no way that’s disgusting. Then a week or so later it’s great again. It does gets better & easier as you progress. I began eating to a routine to help counter not being hungry & having no appetite because I knew I had to eat. Didn’t matter if I didn’t eat all of my portion or only ate the protein portion, as long as I was getting some nutrients in. My fridge always had leftovers in it which I’d eat for another meal that day or the next. Actually there’s still leftovers there everyday & I’m 5 years out. 😁 Eating to a routine continues to be part of my day. I’m not as rigid anymore but I find it helps keep me focussed & helps ensure I only respond to real hunger not head hunger.

Since you have difficulty drinking water (I do as well) try things like crystal light frozen, get a icreami and freeze protein shakes or sugar free Jello in liquid form or freeze it. I find the different state of the water makes a huge difference for me. I personally detest plain water and always have (makes me want to vomit) so I've had to come up with ways to get my fluids that work for me: Sugar free Jello Frozen or liquid Crystal light Chicken broth Soups (yes they count towards water count if made with water) Protein drinks I also purchased crystallized lemon and orange powder to add to plain water...it comes in little travel packets. Good luck, you can do it!

When in doubt, I slam an Ensure with 30g protein plus caffeine. It isn't a substitute for food but it is better than nothing. My problem is often that I don't have much of an appetite; and when I do, it's always for something that isn't readily available in the house. Sure, I can get food delivered from a restaurant but even good restaurants tend to use things like butter and salt, in addition to who knows what else, to provide flavor. I also tend to keep the dishes simple- steak and eggs after a work-out. I love pasta but won't eat much of it- I'll do pasta plus meatballs, heavy on the meatballs, with just a taste of pasta. I don't know about "apps" but you could stick a reminder in your calendar.

Hello, I'm still hanging in there, things are improving a lil each month. Still have days where I'm pretty sick, but overall I'm feeling alot better. My doc did ask if I would want to try a revision to see if it would help, but I don't think I wanna take that chance with how awful my first round was. I'm down almost 80#s overall. 47# since surgery. So my weighloss is very slow going. I'm finally averaging 500 Cals a day and 53 protein. Each month I able to increase it a lil bit. Slowly working my way up. They said my weightloss will increase as I'm able to get my intakes up. Congrats to you on your journey you're doing great. I'm sure you will hit all the goals you set. Take care.

Oh no! I'm just over 5 weeks out and I've been put back on liquids due to vomiting. It started just before 3 weeks with what I thought was an isolated incident because of some fish that was too dry. I had four hours of agony before I was finally able to expel everything from my stomach and have the pain stop. But 4 days later it happened with something else, and then three days after that it seemed that anything I tried to eat was triggering pain and vomiting. So I had to go back to liquids. I've been having protein shakes and cream soups. It's been 9 days and I haven't had any more pain. I see the surgeon on Tuesday and am hoping he'll say I can start trying soft protein again. I hope your doctor gets to the bottom of the issue for you soon! I'm grateful that water isn't causing any issues for me.

TPN is Parenteral Nutrition. It is nutrition through an IV. There are also forms of nutrition that can be given through the stomach. I agree that focusing on hydration and sleep are important for you at the moment, but you can't totally ignore protein at this point. You are 6 weeks out, not 1 week out. Right now you really SHOULD be relying on protein shakes! Shakes count towards your fluid goals and will give you enough nutrition to combat the fatigue and weakness that comes from not eating enough. Most patients rely on protein shakes for the first 6 months after surgery to help them get enough protein in. I'm 3.5 months post op and I eat just fine, but I still need a shake in the morning to get 120 grams of protein a day! At the stage you are at, you should be drinking some protein shake every hour in addition to your water/electrolytes, so you keep a steady supply of nutrition up. Of course you can and should try eating too, as the nausea eases eating will be easier. But shakes will actually help your hydration goal, not hinder it. ❤️

@AndreaJD that actually sounds more like my LSD. There is this whole chart with portion sizes for different meals and there are a few more options but I don’t care for a lot of it. I have been doing the two shakes and a lean meat with one cup veggies for dinner and then I have the other 1/2 cup veggies and the fruit for snacks. I’m pretty board with it but at least I’m not starving. Do you think it matters if I do the meal for lunch and a shake for dinner? I am meeting a friend Saturday and I was bummed we can’t do lunch but I thought what if we go to outback and I do my shake for dinner. I can get a steak and veggies there. I just have to tell them no oil or anything. I may be torturing myself a little when I see and smell what she is having but I guess I gotta get used to it sometime. I think I have lost around 10 pounds. I didn’t think to weigh myself at home right before I started the diet but three days earlier I was 258 at the Dr. It seems like my home scale ran a little lower than his. I was 255 this morning on mine so I’m thinking that’s around 10 but I’m afraid to get too excited until that’s confirmed. i think I am back in a habit of doing all my vitamins now. I take the multi with my morning shake or proffee and then calcium at lunch and dinner. It takes a little longer to get moving in the morning because I sit and drink the shake right next to the multivitamin so I don’t forget but hopefully I won’t have to do that forever. I just finished a Walmart order for some more berries. I am eating so little that the others went bad before I could finish them. That’s okay I needed to add items to get to $35 so it helped me remember to get a small can of dry shampoo for the hospital bag and I need to pick up the nausea rx for the night before surgery anyways. I am also going to haul off some donations that have been collecting by the front door and I hope to finish the deep cleaning of my floors today. Fingers crossed that I don’t get dizzy again. I really would like to come home to a somewhat clean house after surgery. I know that it will be even harder to sit still and recover when I’m looking at all the things that need to get done. My husband is planning to finish some work on the bathroom while I’m in the hospital so we shall see if it’s still clean as I leave it 🤦‍♀️ Well, I guess it’s back to my never ending to do list. I hope everyone else is doing well and you all have a great day.

Just follow what the Medical professionals tell you. Don't deviate. Just be sure to get your water and protein in. I had a two week pre op liquid diet. So, water and protein shakes and zero sugar gatorade was my menu. But everyone's Doctor is different, just follow what they tell you.

My food furneral wasn’t planned, but it’s happened to be my food furneral in the summer of 2023. I had a family member who was visiting in July and August 2024, and I took her to all my favorite restaurants and favorite food in NYC. NYC really do have soooo much options when it comes to great food. It was during restaurant week and I took advantage of it. I also had a few pool parties… I gained about 10 lbs. After that reflux became an issue and lead to my surgery. And since Oct 2023 I was in a diet till my surgery in Jan 2024. I would not say all the food I ate was unhealthy, but portion is what needs to be addressed. I believe in the future I can still have them, but in moderation. some pictures of what I ate.😅 BEWARE! FOOD PORN!

Hello everyone. I am post-op, had my first doctor's visit one month ago and scheduled for my second on 04/19. I am doing my best to read all of the literature provided to me as well as what I can find online. I am struggling with the thought of pureeing food. I just don't think I could bring myself to consume meat, vegetables or eggs that have been pureed. It sounds disgusting! Is this something that is a MUST or can we supplement with protein drinks? All input is appreciated. :0)

I was searching the Bariatri Pal Store and found my favorite Quest Protein Bars. They have various. sugar alcohol amounts. Is it ok to eat one of them with 5 sugar alcohol?

My best advice is to be prepared to put yourself first for around a month. It didn’t take that long for the pain to get better but it does take a little while to get your stamina back and get into a groove with all the vitamins, protein and water and then each of the stages are a little adjustment. Take your time and allow your body the rest that it needs and prioritize yourself and your recovery for the time you need. The good news is that you should also see a pretty big drop on the scale as in your measurements. Which leads to my second suggestion which is to take photos and measurements as well as recording your weight beginning preop. They will help keep you motivated later down The road when the scale stalls. The third thing I would suggest is to check out an App that allows you to record your progress. The Baritastic App lets you record everything from food and water to vitamins, exercise, measurements, weight, and even your bowel movements which will become something that you think about more than ever post surgery haha 😆 and it is fairly easy to figure out. I wish I had started before my preop or my surgery. Also, make sure that you have whatever stool softeners, laxatives or soluble fiber your team suggests on hand and begin whatever preventative measures they set for you immediately post op. When you are in the hospital don’t hesitate to tell them if you are in pain. And Walk ALOT. Especially if you are in pain. It doesn’t matter how fast you go, it’s just the movement. I promise you that passing gas is your biggest goal in terms of relieving pain and the walking helps with that.

How’s everyone doing? I’m just about a month out from surgery. I’m about to be cleared to have regular food, but I’m not hungry at all. It’s a struggle to drink and get enough protein. I absolutely hate the shakes. My sister is coming to visit today, she had the sleeve two weeks ahead of me. She likes flavorless protein powder, so I’m going to try that. Otherwise, I see my doctor tomorrow and I’m finally going to weigh myself. I have decided to just weigh in monthly, at the doctors.

Do you like seafood? I mean have you tried it post surgery. I didn’t like it presurgery. Would occasionally have a little Mahi just because I knew it was good for me but never really liked it. Post surgery I usually eat seafood at least twice a week, I also have things with ground turkey such as a Mexican skillet, meatballs or turkey taco filling (I just do the meat and toppings without the taco shell or the lettuce). The lettuce would be fine of course but it just takes up valuable room. I also do things with lean beef such as chili. I will also do a “pasta” dish once a week which is either the ricotta bake which I make with a protein and veggies added, zucchini noodles with fresh basil pesto, or a low carb Italian bake that I found the recipe for online although I make mine with turkey sausage to cut the fat a bit. There are quite a few bariatric recipe sites that have some great recipes. I did like 3 weeks of all different recipes. You can also do like a white chicken chili or southwest chicken with peppers and onions. Just so your don’t have to eat just plain chicken nuggets. If you don’t love to cook the southwest chicken and the chicken chili are recipes from seasoning packets so they are fairly simple if you have a Walmart the southwest ranch is a street taco seasoning from McCormick and the white chicken chili seasoning is by McCormick as well. Those two and the McCormick tex Mex chili are three of my favorite meals that are relatively simple and the chili Freezes well so I have been doing a double batch and then use my souper cubes to freeze single servings. The chili does have healthy carbs though so of course be mindful of that. I am allowed some carbs because I’m pretty active but I still budget for them by doing pretty low carb for breakfast and lunch on days I know the plan is chili is for diner.

It’s so weird how the various doctors do things so different. Your diet is shorter but sounds harder than mine, doable though. At least you get to chew some things. I would hate to do the ALL liquid for two weeks like some people have to. I would feel full but I would just be so board with it. I am so glad you did not have to give a bunch of blood during all this. Thankfully I was allowed to schedule mine prior to the diet because I agree that wouldn’t be good. I was just cleaning today trying to get things done before next week and I guess I overdid it. I got real lightheaded so I definitely couldn’t give blood. I know it’s because it was almost 1:00 and all I had was a protein shake. I stopped and had my second shake right away then just took it easy for a while. i would hate to not know my time until the day before, though. If you can’t tell by my schedule above, I’m a planner. It helps with my anxiety to plan things way in advance. They did tell me that I will need to be flexible that day though because I could get there and have to wait. They said they will always take kids and diabetics to the OR first, bumping me if necessary. I will be done this time near week too, though. So excited for both of us.