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Everyone loses at their own rate. There are many factors that can influence your rate of loss (constipation, diarrhoea, fluid retention, your body’s reaction to the surgery, starting weight, medications, etc.). Though it can be difficult, try not to compare yourself with others. It will only lead to frustration & feeling you’re failing. You’re not failing. You’ve lost 4lbs in 11 days - yay! Remember too that many nerves were cut during your surgery so messages about feeling full or eaten enough either aren’t getting through or the messages are distorted. It takes around 8 weeks to be fully healed & when your messages start to come back they may be different to what you remember. It’s why it’s important to stick to the portion recommendations you were advised & to eat slowly (takes a good 20+ minutes for a full message to get through when you’re healed). Portion sizes do differ but 4-6oz at 11days seems a lot. My plan was 1/4 - 1/3 cup of food from purée slowly increasing to a cup at 6 months & 3 meals a day. Fluids were just sip, sip, sip, regardless of what I was drinking. So it took me a couple of hours to drink a shake or a cup of soup too. But that was my plan & plans differ. Check your plan for portions & also the foods you are allowed at each stage. I could have cottage cheese at weeks 3 & 4 purées & chili at the soft food stage at weeks 5 & 6. Congrats on your surgery.

I spent about $100 ($64 US) on just a few vegetables (handful of green beans & sugar snap peas, bunch of broccolini & asparagus, some grapes, tub of baby tomatoes, 2x tubs labneh, 2 pork chops & 3 chicken schnitzels). The grapes were the most expensive but will last me a couple of weeks. Then went to the grocery store & spent another $130 on 2L milk, pack cheese sticks, macadamia nuts, mixed seeds, 3 bottles sparkling water, tub of hummus, 8 protein bars, bag of frozen mixed vegetables & a few other bits & bobs (deodorant, toothpaste,…). Two large bags worth. All for just one person. And I’ll be at the shops again next week (to get those cucumbers 😉.)

Hi, I'm Sandra and I am having a gastric sleeve on May 6th! I have been lurking here reading as much as i can of other's posts and have learned a lot. My situation is a little different as this is my second bariatric surgery. I had lap band surgery in 2009 and now am having it converted because my band stopped working for me. I did lose weight but then gained a lot back and recently have lost some again but need to lose more. My reason for surgery is to be healthier and hopefully improve my arthritis pain and mobility. My emotions are currently all over the place, anxious, worried, happy and excited. I will start my liver prep diet in 1 week. Not looking forward to 2 weeks of shakes only. I really am not too concerned about the surgery itself, as I have had several surgeries, and the pain has not been bad afterwards. As for my overnight hospital stay, I plan to pack as little as possible. I will plan on wearing home the clothes I arrive in. I think moisturizer and lip balm are good ideas. I may take a light robe. Someone mentioned a heating pad, but I don't think most hospitals allow you to bring them (coming from a retired RN here). They can be a burn hazard if they malfunction. If I am only staying overnight, I may not need reading materials. I will likely watch TV and nap. Slippers to walk in will be needed. I wish you all the best of luck for an easy surgery and pain free post-op course!

Last week I spent $96.94US for groceries of which one was a delivery order so that covered fees and tip, too. (The delivery item prices don’t include the discounts or sales promo code I had for $30 off $60

I do tend to weigh myself twice a week. I'm sure that doesn't help. But, it would if the scale would move. I just expected a faster response from the surgery. From October up to the two weeks before my surgery, I had lost nearly 70 lbs. Just from changing my diet and exercise. I'm still doing the same thing, but I'm eating less. May 8th I see the Doctor at the bariatric hospital I go to. That will be my 3 month post op appointment. I'll have another blood work-up then to see if there's any issues with nutrition and vitamin deficiency. I've lost over 100 lbs. since October, so that's definitely a big plus.

There is a new video from Dr. Weiner on the Pound of Cure YouTube channel just posted today updating his now 10-year-old video on post-op eating. This applies to the first several weeks, up through about 3 months. So if you're at the stage of reintroducing foods and trying to hit water and protein goals and want a little extra guidance or reassurance, (or if you are pre-op and want a great reference for later) give it a watch:

@RonHall908 Isn't the slow weight loss the worst? I had my second mini stall this past week. At least it was 4 days instead of 7 like I had at the three-week mark. I truly did think, based on how quickly I lost weight in the pre-op diet phase, that it would be super quick after surgery. I lost 15.4 lbs in 2 weeks compared to 16.8 pounds in 8 weeks post-op. What the heck?! It's demoralizing at times. I still have 3 weeks until my next appointment with the dietician and 5 weeks until I see the doctor again. I'm really hoping I'm on track. They say the first 3 months is the fastest weight loss, and if that's true for me...it really sucks. The one thing I can handle large quantities of is water, or even something very liquid like a smoothie. 16oz in under 30 minutes is no problem. And I can eat a full 1 cup serving of bean and veg soup. Any kind of meat fills me up fast, though, although tuna salad is probably the one I can eat the most of.

Chicken, Turkey & Bison ground meat is the easiest for me to eat and get enough in where I can get the protein I need. However, chicken breast is another matter. for some reason I can only eat about 2-2.5 oz of chicken breast. But I can have almost two cups of ground meat. Deli meats, I can get in about one to one and a half slices before I fill up. Greek yogurt with Pbfit2 chocolate and protein powder mixed is my go to. I can eat two cups and not feel stuffed. Weird thing is when it comes to eggs, I can eat two fried eggs easily, but two scrambled eggs and I can't finish it. Only thing I'm concerned with, is how very slow my weight loss is. I'll lose a pound or two, then go two to three weeks without losing. In fact, I weighed last week and gained a pound. I'm not sure how that's possible, but I managed it. The dietician and Doctor has assured me that's normal.

Kristen it's not uncommon for people who are post op a few days to have so much angst. Follow your doctor and nutritionist protocols. Everyone loses weight at a different pace. The main thing is to stick to the program and despite what is preached about super fast weigh loss, it does happen but it's not the norm. The majority of people lose a a decent amount of weight, experience a stall, after time the body adjusts and then you experience constipation, and the body adjusts and you lose more weight. . Your best result is patience and sticking to the plan. I have family members who can eat a lot more than they thought they should. It comes down to what you eventually eat. Eating a ton of salad is much better than eating a ton processed food. Still eating a ton but with much different results. Stay the course and dont be discouraged, your body is going through a process and needs to sort things out.

Hello, my name is Kristen. New here. I'm 11 days post op. I'm on my protein weeks or phase 2 of 5 to weening back to normal foods. My nutritionist told me I should be able to feel full after 4-6 oz. I should drink a protein shake within 2 hours as my stomach couldn't handle it all at once. However, I'm finding out that I can eat/drink a lot more than that at once with no pain. I burp a little more but that's about it. I'm HIGHLY worried that this means I won't be able to control my food intake once I can have solid foods again and regain all my weight. I'm 11 days after and only down 4 pounds, which is another concern is that I'm not losing weight as fast as so many have told me I would, including the nutritionist. I do know that in some cases, inches fall down faster than pounds. I'm hoping that's my case but my pants so far fit just the same and the 4 #'s seems to be reflecting both pounds and inches. Has anyone also experienced this? Is this because I can stomach more than I was told I could? Am sorry eating too much? I have 2-3 protein shakes a day. I eat some chili or cottage cheese randomly these past 3 days. I also have protein20. A water/protein mix. I have around 40-60 oz of water a day (still working on my water intake) here and there I'll have sugar free popsicles. Have cut the popsicles mainly out as they have other bad things in the ingredients and I don't want a sweets craving. My nutritionist assures me I'm doing things right but I don't understand why I can eat a lot more than I'm supposed to and I'm losing weight very slow. It's super discouraging. I was looking forward to this surgery as a new life, new me and a better me. Not at all what I hoped for

No matter how discouraging this is know that it will pass. Mine lasted 2 weeks. I just kept on doing the deal and it eventually passed with a 2.5 pass.

Hopped on the scale today excited to see how much I’ve lost (4weeks post op) to discover the scale reads the same as last week. I’m taking in less than 500 calories per day & meeting protein requirements. Was thankful to read from others that this plateau is common around 3weeks. Trying to stay positive but this was 🥲

I had this long stall as well. Just keep doing the plan and just broke through with a 2lb loss.

What a productive morning @ms.sss. I had a fridge clean out this morning too but there was no saving my leftover cabbage or sugar snap peas. There are two limes I’m giving another few days. Was considering making some pickled cucumbers a couple of weeks ago too but turned out I had eaten the two I had. Now I’m thinking I should just buy some more. Mmm?? PS. How are vegetable prices in the northern hemisphere? Still recovering from the $14 punnet of blueberries 125g/4.4oz last week.

Finally broken through my week 3 stall and it feels so good. I had zero weight lost for three weeks, from March 26 (2 weeks post VSG) until today. I didn't make any changes, just stuck to the program and waited it out.

I had my consultation and my psych eval. I’m just waiting on my recommendation letter from my pcp and because I already see a therapist, they had to also write a brief note. Assuming they come back positive, I’m cleared to move to the next phase. Which that is getting a letter sent to my insurance for approval of my surgery. Once it’s approved I can move to the pre surgery blood work. I do hope they get their letters in this week!

every week or so, i do the "fridge clean up", and toss the foods that are no longer edible and make attempts to salvage the foods that are on the brink of inedible. this morning i tossed a bunch of leftover chinese food, ½ a wheel of brie, an almost full tub of sour cream, and an unopened box mixed greens (this made me sad ) BUT here are some items i was able to save/repurpose/extend shelf life of: 1. leftover fresh parsley and super ripe lemon into...PESTO! 2. uncut cumber bought over a week ago into...SWEET AND SOUR PICKLED CUCUMBERS! 3. almost dried out baby carrots and the remnants of a tub of spreadable cream cheese and 2 old apples that i made into applesauce into...CARROT CARE WITH CREAM CHEESE ICING (Mr. ate like 2/3 of the cake before i got to take a pic of it) and finally: 4: ½ a head of cabbage that i shredded to include in the filling of these EGG ROLLS! that i prepped to freeze and cook another day. phew. i feel very accomplished with my very productive morning...now im gonna go veg on the couch and watch tv!

I’m 18 days post-op and on purées and I am struggling with protein intake. Protein shakes are so hard to get down, the milkyness of them turns me off and I feel nauseous. I’ve tried premade and protein powder. I’ve not once met my daily protein goal because of it. 😩 Hopefully next week with soft foods and then regular foods the week after will help with that. Other than that I’m doing okay, which is good.

hmmm...you could always try it, and, if it doesn't work for you say, after 3-4 weeks, then just go back to what DOES work? or, if it's causing you too much angst, and your current M.O. is not causing you any issues (which sounds like it isn't), why fix what ain't broke? there is no one-size fits all prescription...find out what works for you and go with that. good luck! ❤️

I can't speak to somee of the other things you mentioned, but as far as BM's go, it's pretty common for it to take a week for your first one post-surgery. Not much in there...

This situation is a catch 22 because no one knows exactly what the insurance requirements are and no one will tell us. The dieticians job is to help you lose weight, period. Whether that’s in your best interest or not is where it gets tricky. On one hand If you are in a supervised weight loss program (the six month requirement by a lot of insurances) they are trying to see if you can lose the weight on your own before they approve it. So in theory if you lose too much they could deem you not a good candidate for surgery. On the other hand, every pound you lose the heathy way should make you that much more fit for the operation (not if you malnourished though). Plus, if you really can lose it without surgery obviously not putting your body through surgery would be ideal. if the dieticians way is something you have never tried before and when you try it you feel like you can do it, losing weight without surgery is obviously preferred. BUT, just because the insurance company sees progress and decides that you should be able to lose it based on the trend doesn’t mean they are right (they are not doctors and should not be making these decisions IMO). I know myself I have probably lost 1000 pounds in my life but that’s because I have always lost a few and gained them back but never got near a healthy weight. Whether you have tried everything, including the dieticians way, only you know. I had sleeve three years ago and my high weight was 235 and I’m taller than you. So I was lower BMI as well. On surgery day I was 220ish and I was fine but I did not start losing until my pre op diet began. During my 6 month supervised diet I did follow the diet they set out for me to the best of my ability BUT the cheat days basically offset my progress so I didn’t really lose anything. Now I am considering revision and there is not any weight requirements as far as I know but I started at like 245 this time anyways so I’m not as afraid to lose a little. I asked him what I should do and he said to keep my Carbs below 40 for now (I am most likely having the SADI so carbs are gonna be most important post surgery). Well I am losing but less than a pound a week so no one is raising any eyebrows at my loss. Anyways If I was in your position I would reduce my calories by like 100 at a time and see how I felt after a week adjusting to that. (Mayne you can get to 1200 with the dieticians help and maybe you decide that you want to try it once the dieticians way before you decide). On days like you four hour swim I would ask the doctor their opinion because 1200 calories does not seem enough for that level of activity. I think if it was me, I would stick to eating healthy choices for now. Try out new, healthy recipes and get used to the food you will need to eat post surgery. I would try to get to the 1200 because they are the dietician but portion wise I would cut my calories slowly to get there and see how my body reacted at each stage. (Just be honest with yourself about whether you really need or just want the calories) if I was really losing more than ever before and it seemed like something I could sustain, I would then re-evaluate whether I should be jumping into major surgery just yet. But if I decided that i couldn’t do it on my own and for sure wanted surgery i would talk to my doctor about how much they would like to see me lose to be fit for surgery.

If you don't eat, your body will think it's starving and it will hold on to every little calorie, every bit of fat, everything to protect you. That will be what causes you to gain weight, or at the very least, not lose. You have to learn to walk that fine line between eating enough to stay healthy but not too much to cause weight gain. It's a learning curve, and takes a while to figure out. But you'll get there. Just make sure you get your protein in first, then carbs (from veggies and fruits), HEALTHY fats, and enough calories. The first 2 weeks, I never had more than 600 calories per day. Weeks 3 and 4 it went up to between 800 - 900 per day. Weeks 5 and 6 I was around 1000 per day. Once I was completely cleared for all exercise, I went up to 1100 - 1200 per day on non work out days and between 1300 - 1400 per day on work out days, depending on what work out I was doing that day. You absolutely HAVE to give your body the fuel it needs to survive and thrive. The point of the surgery isn't to starve yourself into being skinny. It's a tool to teach us to make better, healthier choices and stick with them.

I did not get a very detailed plan, and my program advances quickly so that in theory you can have no restrictions at 4 weeks. For me, that has been way too fast. I have found the Bariatric Diet Guide and Cookbook by Dr. Matthew Weiner very helpful. Now that my own program says I can have anything, I'm appreciating his stages (which vary from the typical phases you see in most programs).

Your plan should list the foods you are able to eat & those you need to avoid at each stage. It should also say how long you stay on each stage. If it doesn’t, contact your team & ask for more specific information. Your tummy lets you know pretty quickly if you’re not ready. It may be discomfort on eating, a feeling of heaviness, you may regurgitate what you’ve eaten. It’s a lot of trial & error honestly. For example, most plans tend to advise 2 weeks on each stage. Some people stay a little longer on a stage or go back a stage simply because we heal differently & their tummy just isn’t ready for the foods (texture & density) on the next stage. Some foods are on the avoid list because they can be hard to digest by your healing tummy (bread, pasta, rice, seeds, fruit & vegetable skins, etc.). Other foods are off the list because of their nutrient content & calories (many plans are no starchy vegetables for e.g..). There may be foods on your list your tummy can’t tolerate (chicken breast, eggs often are a struggle few a while). Your tummy can be fussy while healing & the temporary change to our taste buds &/or sense of smell can make foods extra sweet, extra salty or just plain disgusting. Textures can be off putting too at this time. Many of us ate the same meals or rotated through a small selection especially in the first couple of months. One because we eat such small portions there’s lots of left overs. Two, because our fussy tummy & you can’t tolerate a wide variety of foods. Three it means you don’t have to think to much about food & what your going to eat & you know how much protein & other nutrients you’re getting with each meal. I still eat a lot to routine & often have the same meals & I’m almost 5 years out. It’s not that I can’t eat a variety of foods it’s just easier sometimes (or maybe I’m lazy LOL!). I struggled in purées to find foods that tasted good because the taste or texture was awful. Thank goodness for runny scrambled eggs, milky rolled oats, yoghurt & soups. In soft foods I ate a lot of minced meat dishes - savoury mince, meatballs (rissoles in Australia), bolognese (no pasta), etc., slow cooked stews, thick meat & vegetable soups, omelettes. Try some savoury egg muffins (add cheese, mushrooms, onions & other pre cooked vegetables you like) & a lot of people swear by ricotta bake (someone will have a recipe they’ll happily share).

The 1st few days are rough. Consentrat on protein and liquids right now. The protein shakes can be counted as liquid. The first few weeks I only got between 700 and 900 calories day. Just don’t go on a binge. I need a bunch of crap and you will be fine.