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Found 17,501 results

  1. That is a smart solution, way to think strategically!! I think it is perfectly reasonable to do this with children old enough to cook or use a microwave. And they get to support you in a tangible way, which makes most kids feel really good! I don't have kids but I live in an open floor plan apartment so there is no avoiding the kitchen or cooking smells. But my partner would take food to their office to eat if I was having a hard day. And if they wanted something elaborate, they went out to a restaurant to have it. LOL This really helped for the pre-op diet/early post op period. I also made a rule that they have to keep their junk food in their office. 🤣 That way I don't have to see them eating Reeses cookies!! For the most part though I didn't mind others eating around me or cooking around me, the 6 shakes a day plus water, sugar free popsicles, and broth gave me enough variety. I was constantly drinking something! I'm so excited for your surgery, it is getting close now!!
  2. newbegining2024

    January 2024 surgery buddies

    I went out food shopping too about 8 days after surgery and let me tell you… I felt dizzy and everything was spinning around me. I went and sit in the car too. When I told my doctor, she screamed at me for going out. I had a revision RNY which is a major surgery. I didn’t expect it to have that effect with me. I finally feel better after full 3 weeks. I am glad I took 3 weeks off from work. From time to time I still feel dizzy. I think I need more liquid intake. How are you feeling now?
  3. BigZ

    Protein post op

    Unflavored isopure is what I used, or the gatorade zero protein drinks. I struggle with enough protein on food alone at 5.5 months PO. I find myself having a protein shake. I am trying to wean off the shakes, which means eating more protein snacks (Quest Protein Chips).
  4. Please don't wait to get signals a week after surgery. There's little or no feedback from our stomachs because all the nerves have been cut. Takes weeks or months to heal and tell you anything, and even then, as the others have said, the feeling of fullness can be really delayed. I am 28 months post sleeve and I have just learned to eyeball what volume and mix of foods my stomach can manage, and usually stop a bit before that for safety's sake. If I go beyond that I get a runny nose and sneeze (Vagus nerve stimulation). By then it's too late though. You'll learn how to manage as you go along. Just stick to small volumes at the start. At your stage you shouldn't be too hungry so you're just eating for fuel - treasure this time, it passes all too quickly. 😍 Stick strictly to the volumes you have been given. Weirdly I wasn't given any by my team so I asked for advice here and then stuck to THAT and it was very helpful.
  5. NickelChip

    February 2024 Surgery Buddies?

    So relieved to report I finally dropped to a new "lowest weight" after my 2-week stall. Weighed in at 198.6 this morning, a drop of 0.6 since yesterday. I really hope that might continue a few days at least before I hit the next rough patch. The cravings for sweets and carbs are real! I'm fortunate that I do feel a lot of restriction, or at least I do if I am eating the right kinds of foods. I can only manage about 2-3 oz (60-85g) of heavier proteins, which include salmon, poultry, beef, and pork. I also get full at around 4 oz (100g) veggies. Sadly, if I do eat bread or crackers, they seem to go down easy. Same with ice cream or candy. I had really hoped that wouldn't be the case. It makes it that much more important for me not to keep those types of things in the house. I'm struggling with what to eat, especially for breakfast. Nothing sounds good. I'm tired of plain yogurt and cottage cheese. I'm tired of protein shakes and smoothies. I was enjoying smoked salmon with cucumbers on rye crisp bread until last week when it made me violently ill. I've become repulsed by eggs. Plus, I don't usually get hungry until later in the morning. Today, I decided to wait, and I finally started to feel some real hunger at 10:00am. So, I'm having a leftover big Italian meatball from dinner a few nights ago. Lunch and dinner options aren't much easier. Cooking is a hassle when you can eat so little, and my kids don't like the kinds of things I can eat. But I worry it sets me up for grazing when I don't have a plan. I'd really like to do some meal prep and have a list of maybe 10 go-to meals that are bariatric approved and easy to make any time of day. I'd like to spend a few hours roasting a sheet pan of veggies and cooking some chicken to store in the fridge for the week and incorporate into meals. I need to clean out the fridge and pantry. I just don't seem to have the motivation to do any of it. It's like all my energy has run dry, although my bloodwork came back good so it's not an issue of something being off. Just my attitude, I guess! I'm feeling stressed and a little overwhelmed, and it shows in my environment because my house is getting cluttered and I have a pile of laundry that is quickly going to consume me. What I wouldn't give for a housekeeper to keep the place tidy and my own cook to make healthy meals and deliver them to me at appropriate times during the day.
  6. I had a bypass on 11-6. I eat solid foods. It does not hurt. I can eat 2 whole cucumbers. I can eat a 4oz piece of tuna. Am I just doomed? I should hurt right? probably eat 500-600 calories a day. only eating fish, chicken, and cucumbers. I crave them ALLDAY. so I'm not concerned that I'm not eating health. But why can I eat so much. Oh, I can eat 2 large scrambled eggs.
  7. Happy birthday! I had my surgery less than a week before my birthday, so I was still on liquids for my birthday. I didn't (and really couldn't) do anything food-wise for my birthday that year. What else do you normally do to celebrate your birthday? Do your friends and family give you gifts? You can still open gifts on your birthday. Maybe instead of going out for a birthday meal, you can find another (non-food-related) activity to do with your friends and family, like a movie or show, escape room, spa day, mini golf, etc. Something to consider with respect to a birthday treat is that you might have a bad reaction to it, so think about whether you want to risk getting sick on your birthday. Maybe instead you can find a bakery that makes sugar-free cupcakes, or a health food store that sells protein brownies, or make yourself a sugar-free protein mug cake.
  8. Feb 14th for me. I decided to "love myself" by picking this date. I have my preop visit next week so I'll find out my pre-surgery diet then. I feel like I've been having a lot of "last meals". My greatest goal out of all this is not just the loss of weight but rather re-jump starting my approach to food. I guess it will begin next week.
  9. gracesmommy2

    February 2024 Surgery Buddies?

    @BlueParis I’m sure you’re really happy to be home and WTG on the weight loss! @NickelChip I’m usually able to get between 60-70 gms of protein a day in with no shakes most days…..I eat a lot of tuna, Greek yogurt, buffalo chicken dip, and my new favorite is chicken pizza crust pizza. I also occasionally eat canned turkey chili with no beans in it for lunch mainly cause it’s soft and high in protein but a little different than what I’m usually eating. I’m definitely getting bored with my food choices but anytime I try and add in stuff I end up coming up short on protein and have to drink a shake. 🤢I use liquacel also. They gave it to me in the hospital and I prefer it to shakes. It’s 16 gms of collagen protein ( it is a complete protein and my nutritionist is ok with it) it’s super sweet but I just mix it with a little water and I’m good. @RonHall908 and I’m with you guys on the slow weight loss train also so it must be pretty normal although irritating. Lol @LisaCaryl I’m glad your nausea is getting better. Maybe you’d like the liquacel to help with your protein since you don’t eat meat. You can buy them in one dose packets so you could try them before you bought a bottle of it. I like the peach mango one the best but it is super sweet so not sure if it’s for ev1 but maybe an option for some of y’all needing a protein boost with no shakes 🤷🏼‍♀️ https://store.bariatricpal.com/products/liquacel-liquid-protein-1oz-packets-flavors?variant=5067375607845 heres the single serve packets but I ended up buying the multiple dose bottles directly from the manufacturer cause it was cheaper. https://globalhp.com/shop/liquacel-liquid-protein/
  10. I had mine removed 2017 and it gave me relief because I had GERD. I was so much more comfortable and could eat without throwing up eventually. There’s still changes that have stayed like burping after meals and sometimes foods like rice and bread still feel harder to pass without liquid to help it down. But I’m happy I got mine removed because there’s no more Extreme GERD.
  11. summerseeker

    One year later...

    Hello and congratulations, you are smack in the middle of what I would have called a crisis. Pre surgery, I would have turned to food for comfort. So big applause and back slapping for coping with life's ups and downs so well. I have GERD in a big way so have to tailor my diet to the bland side or I know about it. I am also done with protein products. Except the protein bars I forgot about. At times I don't want food and at times I am super hungry. If I was a lifelong thin person, I would eat when I was hungry and skip meals when I wasn't. Its just that I was so used to eating every meal that its a hard change now. So on average this is my daily menu. On a hungry day I might get in 1600 calories but level that out with a day of 800 calories Breakfast - A latte, yoghurt and berries Lunch - Home made soup or a picky plate of cucumber, celery, beets etc [ hell I don't know why this tastes so good ] cashew nuts or deli meat, apple, grapes or orange, cheese. This plate will often go back in the fridge and finished later. My restriction is fierce. Dinner/supper - A homemade family meal. I adapt a portion for myself. Typically made from a meat, veg and potatoes/ rice. Pasta is off my menu and my fam are not fans. This may also go back in the fridge and I will eat it later. Evening - A latte, A popsicle, watermelon etc I always carry a protein bar because when I am out and about, if I am hungry its not always easy to find my foods in a café or restaurant. A small adult plate is only just becoming a thing here.
  12. Nyxienoodles

    One year out and hungry all the time

    I am a bio woman, just a big, tall one. Lol. I definitely need to eat more veggies. I am guilty of grabbing a few pieces of beef jerky, a handful of nuts, and some cheese cubes for lunch. My boyfriend calls it my "Confederate lunch". (I live in Alabama). Ha. I have tried the shiritaki noodles. They are pretty good with a little seasoning or sauce. I went through a phaze where I ate them daily with some veggie "meatballs". Then got bored. I do that with food. Get bored. I do think I may need to see an outside nutritionist. I think the one I see at my surgeon's isn't very thorough. I will try broth. I have some powdered variety left from when I first had surgery. It should still be good. Thanks for the input!!!!
  13. Hey all, I had my dietician appointment last week, and I am due to have my pre-op assessment this week. Bit of a long one, apologies! Full disclosure - I have ADHD and I am also suspected Dyslexic, and both of these things are making it really hard to plan and to work with numbers etc. We went through all the info of the Liver Reduction Diet (LRD) - I am starting that on the 1st May, for 2 weeks. I've been given 800 calories a day max - already made a small blunder when ordering stuff from New You Plan https://www.thenewyouplan.com/ - I ordered x14 shakes, x14 soups, x14 meals & x14 snack bars. I added up what a typical day's calories would look like with these, and it only comes to about 555 calories - so I had to order some SlimFast meal replacement powder to buff it up for another 222-odd calories. 😰 I don't know why that stressed me out so much, but because my dietician gave me a meal plan template of only 4 items, I got it stuck in my head that I couldn't add an extra shake on top of that, rather than just thinking I am allowed 800 calories per day. I also got through the guidance for the vitamins and the food stages and god...with my neurodiverse brain it is just SO much to take in and try and organise. I am anxious about ordering the right vitamins, and then making sure I am eating the right things - my instinct is always to prep, prep, prep, but I think maybe that will be running before I can walk. Any advise at this stage? 💜
  14. Nan CC

    January 2024 surgery buddies

    I need to rant a little! I have always struggled with excess weight in my adult life. Over the years I tried Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem, Jenny Craig, my own thing, you name it. For the past 8 years I have been struggling to lose 50-60 lbs. It was extremely difficult for me to lose anything at all unless I severely limited calories - like 800, 900 per day - which I could only do with the help of prescription medicines. When I'd stop taking them the weight would come back despite that fact that I was rarely overeating, usually around 1500 calories per day. Over the years I gained and lost the same weight this way. I took Contrave, but it hyped me up so badly I couldn't stand it. I took Belviq, which worked well - I didn't care if I ate or not so it was easy to consume so few calories, but it was taken off the market. I used Qysmia, which also worked the same way. I lost 30 lbs, but I was paying out of pocket and couldn't afford it any more. One of my issues is that I lose weight VERY slowly, and it was frustrating to work so hard and lose a pound or 2 a month. After gaining all the weight back plus 10 more pounds in 2 years, I knew I could lose it again by getting back on Qysmia but I couldn't bear the thought of the "yoyo" again. I'm 67 and have diabetes and heart disease in my family, which I was afraid of developing if I didn't take and keep the weight off. I'm on blood pressure and cholesteroI meds already. I can't play with a yoyo any longer at this point in my life and so I began to consider sleeve gastrectomy. I researched and thought about it for a long time before finally having surgery 1/24/24. Yesterday it was 4 weeks since surgery. In the 1st 2 weeks I lost 10 lbs. While I hoped to lose more, this was a good result because before surgery it would have taken me about 6 months to lose 10 lbs. Victory!! Or so I thought. Since then, however, I haven't lost any weight. I've read about the 3 week stall, which I guess is what I am experiencing. I think I get it. And at the same time I am enormously frustrated and sometimes find myself thinking that I made this drastic and permanent change in my life only to have the same result - consuming very little calorically and the weight just not coming off. Except now I'm consuming even fewer calories (still on purees). And on top of that, I am hungry almost all day. After breakfast, I wait 15 minutes and start on water/fluids again. Fifteen minutes after that, I am hungry again. And yes, it's genuine hunger - with growling and an empty feeling. Eating 1/4 cup of food is not filling me up. I am getting usually around 70g of protein each day in what I'm eating and drinking, so it's not that. I had some wild expectations, I'll admit. My doctor gave me a goal weight that requires me to lose 50 lbs. (60 for a "stretch" goal). I (crazily) thought that it would take about 2 months to lose that much. I've since realized that with relatively little to lose it will go slower, but geez! For who knows what reason, I also thought I would hardly ever be hungry. Five days post op, natural hunger returned. I was mad! And surprised, but I relied on this forum and learned that hunger was still normal. I thought once I could actually eat something it would be more like "normal" hunger - like before surgery - when it was about time to eat. Instead I find that I am often just hungry all day (usually worse at night) and the amount I'm eating isn't enough. I eat the recommended 2 oz of food and I never feel full, but I stop because that is the recommended amount. The instructions I've been given have implied that this should be more than enough to fill me at this point and that I might not even be able to finish that much, but it hasn't been the case for me. In 30 minutes or so, it's like I didn't eat anything and I'm hungry again. Of course I realize that a lot of my problem is my unrealistic expectations. But sometimes I do feel frustrated that I did this drastic thing only to have nothing change - I still can't lost weight. Mostly, reason prevails and I know that sooner or later the weight has got to come off. Reason is reassuring for the mental issue I have here, but reason does nothing to help the hunger. Ok, rant over. Does anyone have experience like this? Very slow loss and constant hunger? Does the weight loss pick up? How long does the 3 week stall last? Does the hunger ever return to normal? Help!!
  15. It doesn't sound like it. I know that the amount sounds like a lot compared to the can-only-eat-three-spoons-of-pureed-food-and-even-less-when-solid crowd but the amounts is not what strikes me odd. If the foods you're listing are fairly typical for a day of eating you simply might be lagging nutrients. No fruits at all, only a little bit of vegetables. I'm not surprised. The sodium content of the foods you listed seems to be fairly high. Quick weight loss or weight gain usually almost includes some water retention. My weight can swing up to almost 1 kg within one day because of how much water I hold. You say you want to start tracking. Are you a person who likes to track food, a person who abhors it (raises both hands simultaneously here) or a person who is not a fan but in the end doesn't mind it? Tracking foods/calories/macros can help people - however, it could be that you can benefit from a different food selection without even having to write everything down you eat. How far out of surgery are you? Are the stats you're listing in your profile still correct?
  16. SomeBigGuy

    Feeling regret

    Congrats on the surgery and taking a huge step forward in improving your health! Also, welcome to the post-op malaise phase of the process, haha! I was there a few months ago, and I think its a rite of passage to be like "What have I done?!!" somewhere in the first 6 weeks. It does get better gradually, but the first month is the roughest. You will be able to eat "normal" foods again soon. I think I was able to eat most things again around the 3 month mark (mostly excluding carbonated drinks and alcohol). Just take your time and listen to your body. Some things will fight back, and if they do, just wait 3-5 days before trying again. I had a lot of trouble with green veggies initially, but was able to handle them around week 6. Also remember the weight loss pattern will resemble stairs and not a straight line. You'll have periods of weight loss, followed by a couple/few weeks of stalling and slight regain. This is just your body recalibrating itself after a large loss to ensure its safe to continue letting go of fat reserves, because it mistakenly thinks you're in a survival event and doesn't want you to starve to death. Just remember this is part of the process, and its not a failure. This really got me down initially and compounded that regret feeling, but after a long stall I'm making progress again. Also, Cipro is very likely the culprit in making you feel sick. it's a very strong antibiotic, and good at its job, but the side effects can be harsh. I've developed some partial hearing loss because of it after years of taking it for recurring Diverticulitis. Ask your doctor if there is another antibiotic that can do the job, but with fewer side effects. Good luck, and I wish you luck on your journey!
  17. Didn’t have one but I understood if you are to experience one it usually occurs in the first few days. While you need to seek help as soon as possible if you suspect a leak, they are usually repaired fairly easily via an endoscopy. You’ll likely be on antibiotics after to ensure any infection is cleared. I have three friends who’ve had sleeve surgery too & none of them at one either. They’re pretty rare I think like 1%. And even rarer if you have one in the years post surgery. Leaks occur because of a suture/staple failure, tissue decomposition, patient health prior to surgery affecting healing like a history of smoking or high blood pressure, food choices (not following your plan), excessive activity to strain & cause trauma to the area.
  18. It was a while ago now but I remember I still wasn’t hitting my protein goal. I wanted to do real food only too & plus I found the shakes disgusting & never touched one after liquids. For breakfast I scrambled eggs with extra milk & took three days to eat them or ate rolled oats again made totally on milk & took three days to eat a serve. Lunch & dinner were often just protein (maybe 2 ozs) & nothing else or with just a green bean or two or a small cauliflower floret with dinner. And yes I’d take a while to eat that - 45 mins +/-. After a week or two on soft food I added a high protein yoghurt or yoghurt drink as an afternoon snack to burst my protein. I wasn’t hungry or really interested in eating. I simply couldn’t eat more than I was but I was following my surgeon’s portion size recommendation of 1/4 - 1/3 cup from purée slowly increasing to a cup by 6 months If you are worried by getting your protein in try protein water. You’ll get about 16oz liquid, 15g protein & about 70 calories. So fewer calories (if you count calories) than a shake (which is really a meal) but not as many nutrients. Just watch those with added sugar or sugar substitutes or artificial sweeteners.
  19. I feel so defeated.... it feels like every time I try to improve my health I make things worse. A small bit of back story first.... I had my WLS back in 2000, and was never told a lot of what they tell people now. I was simply told to take calcium, stool softeners and a multivitamin.... not what kind or what it should include etc. I was then told years later I was anemic, but after 2 years with that (PCP) doctor she never addressed it even though I inquired. Due to an extremely large hernia and pain I was having, I went to the bariatric doctor and he said to fix the hernia I would need to lose weight. I was losing weight again (after many years) and was feeling tired all the time. I asked my team about the low iron/anemia and asked if should I address it. I was advised to take 18 mg of iron daily so I bought the multivitamin with it included.... I bought a year's worth.... several days in, I became painfully constipated. Nothing worked but suppositories. I also increased my water intake and fiber both in food and with Benefiber. I was finally able to go without extreme pain after 2 days. One day of not using the suppositories and I am right back to not able to go again. I don't know if this is something that my body just needs to adjust to or if I messed myself up with all the years of taking stool softeners (that I don't even know if I was getting benefit of because I took soft gels)... I did message my team to ask advice, but with so many here going through similar stuff I thought I'd rant here also! I hate to think I wasted over $100 on the multivitamins that I can't take now. I'm a retired teacher with limited funds.....lol....
  20. catwoman7

    How much protein is too much?

    Keep in mind that a shake also counts as liquid. That could be another reason why he recommended drinking two shakes a day - that way you can get both protein requirements AND fluid requirements met. I still drink a shake a day after nine years, but it's because my protein requirements are 100+ grams. I can probably do this with food, but I would rather drink a protein shake as my morning snack and therefore be assured I'm going to meet my goal by the end of the day, rather than obsessing all day about how much protein I'm getting and whether or not I'm going to hit my goal..
  21. Congrats on the surgery! Expect the first month to be a roller coaster of emotions, hunger, anger, and a day or two of regret. That's a rite of passage for us, where I think everyone second guesses their decision. By week 5, I finally started getting a better handle on things and I'm still very happy with my decision. 10 weeks out and I'm in better shape than I've been in decades! As others have said, you feel hungry because you are hungry. Your body is used to the previous amount of eating, and panics when it realizes you're not eating what you used to. Since you were a candidate for surgery, then your body has enough fat cell reserves to live off of that for a few weeks, which is why they have you focus only on water the first two weeks, while working in more protein to prevent you from burning muscle. However, our bodies don't understand that logic and kicks into survival mode. It only understands "food" or "no food". The first six months is critical to the process because that's when we have the best opportunity to retrain our mind and bodies to adapt. In a sense it is traumatic to our bodies, and it will fight until it understands that this new normal is safe, because that's its job, to keep you alive! Once you're back to solid foods, that's when recognizing head hunger becomes more important. Around that time (somewhere around weeks 4-6), you'll have worked up to eating enough calories to be sustaining metabolism, while still running enough of a deficit to burn fat. At that point, your body will try to tell you "hey, we're close to the old normal again, go ahead and eat more!". As my therapist reminds me, remember to listen specifically to your stomach, and not your mouth. Practice eating enough to where your stomach feels full, and not pressured from too much, but at the same time, study your habits to see if you're eating to stay busy, to deflect stress (I'm guilty of this), or just because your body thinks you should keep your stomach topped off. During that period, if you feel like your stomach is craving more, double check what nutrients you are getting. If you're deficient in vitamins or minerals, you will develop insatiable cravings, but your body can't tell you exactly what its missing. It just yells "I'm Hungry!". Check with your doctor on which supplements to add or remove, and also branch out with different styles of food as long as they fit your calories/macros. I felt like I was starving for most of last week, then I got some Korean food (sort of a bibimbap inspired kale and cabbage salad with beef) on Friday, and the cravings stopped. I'm still trying to figure out what itch that scratched, but obviously I was missing something in that! Also, be very careful with sugar, starches, breads, rice, etc. That can send you into a craving spiral that lasts 2-3 days. Some sugar alcohols like Sorbitol and Xylitol also trigger that for me, while Monk Fruit, Stevia, and Splenda don't. Everyone is different, but pay attention to those ingredients, because that can make the hunger feel worse!
  22. catwoman7

    Is this true?

    I had RNY rather than sleeve, but it's probably similar. I'm nine years out and can eat a "normal" amount of food, but my "normal" now is a lot different than my "normal" was when I weighed 373 lbs. Which means, no one now would guess that I had WLS. At. most they'd think I'm a "light eater", if they even notice at all. If I go to a restaurant, I'll often order an appetizer or a salad or maybe soup & salad. Or if I order an entree, I'll eat half of it and bring the rest home. If we go out for pizza, I'll have 1-2 pieces, whereas before I'd eat half a large pizza. This really is no different than most of my female friends who've never been obese. So it's "normal" eating. The way I was eating before surgery was not normal. Maybe that's what your doctor is trying to say. of course, it's possible for us to scarf up a lot more calories than that. Surgery basically restricts how much you can eat at one sitting. You will probably not be able to eat as much as you used to at one sitting. You will likely be stuffed after eating 1-2 pieces of pizza, for example. BUT...nothing but you will stop you from grazing all day. For example, you could eat 1-2 pieces of pizza at 5:00 pm, and 1-2 more at 7:00 pm, and 1-2 more at 9:00 pm - so in the end you would have eaten just as much as you did at 400 lbs. So that's why some people end up gaining a lot of their weight back - it they can't control their grazing. That's where the head work comes in. P.S. years ago when I was first contemplating surgery, the two choices were lap band or RNY (it took me ten years to finally get surgery - by then, the sleeve was on the scene, rapidly replacing the lap band). Anyway, at first I wanted the lap band because it was reversible. Some of the WLS patients I talked to said "why would you ever want it reversed? You'd gain the weight back". True. So I decided maybe that wasn't such a bad thing (although RNY technically IS reversible - it's just that it's a very complicated surgery, so they only do it in extreme situations). Anyway, I love my RNY and would never want it to be reversed, so I'm fine with the fact that it really can't be (or in my case, only in an extreme medical situation)
  23. Happy birthday! My surgery is next month and my birthday (50th!) will be 24 days after surgery. I won't be eating any birthday treats this year as I'll barely be back on solid foods, but I'm thinking I will go for a pedicure. Actually, that makes a nice group activity if some of your friends want to do that instead of dinner, and at around $40-50, the cost is about the same as an entree, cocktail, and dessert. If you really want to splurge, you could also check around for day spas in your area. I have one near me that offers full-day package including sauna, mineral hot tub, steam room, salt room, massage, and facial. I grew up near a lot of strawberry fields, so traditionally my birthday cake has always been fresh strawberries on top of angel food cake with a little whipped cream. By next year, I imagine that will be fine, especially if I go heavy on the strawberries (no added sugar) and small on the cake. But I think the more you go for non-food experiences to celebrate, the better.
  24. NickelChip

    Pre-Surgery Bucket List

    I didn't have a formal list, but about a week or two before I started the liquid diet, I did make some plans to go out to eat at favorite restaurants. I ordered a particularly rich meal at a local Italian place that I love, and at one place I split a bunch of appetizers (all fried, naturally). I also had a couple of big breakfasts at diners because I love diner food. Oh, and I accidentally ordered a Wendy's Baconator hamburger, which is three meat patties and a ton of bacon. I say accidentally because I'm not a person who goes to Wendy's on the regular, so I had no idea of the menu and had to make a quick decision because I was in the drive-thru. A burger with bacon sounded nice. I had no idea it was the size of a house! It was the only thing I ate all day, but I was laughing when I unwrapped it because I knew I would not be ordering another of these in the future! My only advice is not to let your "last meal" turn into a month of "last meals." Allow yourself a limited amount of time. You can do a lot of damage in a month!
  25. ShoppGirl

    Navigating Eating Out

    Can you tolerate lettuce? Do you like salad? When I had my sleeve I did a lot of chick fila. Their salads are really good and they really measure things and post the nutrition information that is actually accurate not like places that do not measure and you really don’t have any idea how many calories you are getting. Plus the crunchy toppings are on the side so you can choose to leave off if need be and they have the exact calories listed on those as well. Early out to avoid spice I got the spicy southwest salad but I asked for plain chicken breast (no seasonings) and the market salad I would get without the blue cheese. Both of these I take home and take the toppings with just a little bit of lettuce and put into a plate because it’s way too much if not. When I dine in I just do my best to eat the toppings to get the nutrition and toss the lettuce. It is a good place to go with friends because they can get what they want and I can get eat on plan. Super early out you can ask for the grilled chicken breast by itself. Panara is another place with some healthy options. I usually get the kids meal because it’s a half salad which is more than enough and you get a yogurt you can save for later instead of bread or an apple. I have often wondered if they will let you pay to double the protein though because the half salad is half the protein which very well may be plenty. I’ve just never weighed it. Panara also has food that the rest of the family could enjoy.

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