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I haven't read the research but in general terms if a food has proven health benefits then it might be better to just eat the whole food rather than add a powdered derivative to water, or to take pills with bits of it contained, or to drink the juice. Totally understand we're volume restricted after surgery but I hope you can get back to whole beetroot really soon!

OP you really must stick to your plan one week post op. Yes it is really difficult for some people and I'm sorry you're one of them. Solid food a week after surgery can honestly be dangerous. You won't feel full because the nerves to your stomach have been cut and sutured and you need to let them grow back. This is why you can eat anything. You CAN, but you SHOULD NOT. Drink drink drink. If you meet your fluid goals I suspect your hunger will be easier to ignore.

This is my daily routine day 3 I will sip 20ml at a time in that lil cup which has the measurements I aim to have 60ml in the hour protein water I have my multivitamin at 9am as well as my anti reflux You can’t have the calcium/vitamin D 2-3 hours past multi vitamin and it’s best to take that with food for best absorption . So 12pm bone broth (chicken yesterday was yummy) that one ouch I will split into two containers and I will sip over the course of four hours. The other half I will have at 5ish for two hours again. Whatever I can’t finish I just chuck 4pm another multivitamin And that’s it :) I stop liquids around 8-9 depending on how I feel and try and sleep

I really appreciate the response! I was asking because my blood pressure hasn't lowered and my pre-diabetes has gotten worse since losing weight. Also, I'm looking to increase brain/blood O2 saturation levels. I've done my research on beet roots (only scientific research papers/studies) and they've found significant improvements in some of the reasons I'm looking at adding it to my vitamin regimen. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4425174/ (from the library of medicine) one of numerous I've read. I'm sorry about you son in laws uncle, I haven't seen any conclusive research studies on beet roots curing cancer. I was thinking the powder, only pure non GMO no additives only dehydrated then powdered put into my water would be a good option because we have to drink water anyways. Plus, with stomach size and my need for more proteins with very very low carbs (no fruit etc) due to my hypersensitivity to carbs (why they're looking at pre-diabetes hypersensitivity) it would be a good option for me. I'll take your advise and just wait for my 6 month check up next month and ask them. I just thought I'd put it out here on the forums to ask those who've actually taken it for their input! Thanks!

It sounds like you're doing fine. Congrats on your weight loss victories!!! Part of the reason they leaned in heavy on it was because they want you to succeed, but also to a degree, they're covering their own liability and don't want to be sued for not giving you the proper advice. I would try to increase both the best you can, but don't beat yourself up if you come up shy one day. Look for more protein-dense foods and shakes to make up the difference if you can. I like the Fairlife protein shakes that have either 30g or 42g, depending on which is available. One of those can be half your protein content for a day, plus its 11-12oz of fluids! Too little protein can cause your body to run a deficit, in which it will burn off muscle rather than fat, which is not a good thing. The more muscle you can maintain, the more fat calories your body will burn to feed them, which helps with the weight loss. The increased water intake is to keep you hydrated, but it also helps you flush out the waste from what your body is breaking down during your weight loss, preventing it from backing up in your kidneys and leading to problems. But keep up the good work! Sounds like you're getting through the "regret" phase, which I'm convinced we all go through that first month or so haha. It looks like my surgery was a week before yours, and I'm already feeling much better. Hope you are too!

Agreeing with the others, stick with the plan. The first couple months you definitely do not want to put pressure on those staples and risk a leak. That's a rough surgery compared to what you just had. Infections from that can get nasty and lead to sepsis. I struggled with overdoing it myself early on, but had to remind myself that its to prevent burst staples, and that I can give it 30-60 minutes and resume eating to give it room. I've noticed I can do 8 fl oz easily if I'm not careful before my stomach starts pushing back. As for the hunger, I'm one of the unlucky few that still has the obsessive head-hunger. It takes practice, but look for signs that your stomach and body are telling you that you are full, despite part of you saying "I have to keep eating!" It took a lifetime to train that reflex, and it won't go away overnight. I'm still fighting mine daily. I've noticed I'll feel a little pressure if I'm approaching the limit, but if I keep going, I start to get a runny nose, which is my final warning before making myself sick. My goal is to prevent it from getting to that point. One thing I did to throttle my eating speed is to get disposable mini / baby spoons and forks from amazon. They're only like 1/4 of a teaspoon so you get a smaller portion per bite, which helped me a lot! It takes longer to eat, which gives your stomach more time to send the full response to the rest of your body, since that is delayed. I've had to use the disposable ones since its mentally easier for me to walk away from the food if I throw the little cheap spoon in the trash. I'd rather use the reusable ones, but I know the limits on my discipline haha. This is just anecdotal, but as a recovering Type 2 diabetic, I have to be careful with sugar and starch hidden in foods. I've eaten some over the holidays, which tasted great, but realized it made me crave more. If I went a meal without it, I would get actually angry, and I'm sure I wasn't any fun to be around. Eating desserts over Christmas would send me into constant snack cravings for 2-3 days. I told my doctor, and he said you have to power through those couple of days, but by focussing on low carb (not necessarily keto) and prioritize protein, unsaturated fats and water, those cravings go way down. I've had to use "filler foods" to hold me over between meals. My wife says its gross, but I've been eating Fage plain greek yogurt to hold me over. Single Digit carbs and 17g of Protein per serving and its more savory rather than sweet. Mentally, I've used it as a substitute for cheese, mayo, sour cream, and other things to just pretend that its a more substantial food. That and it does seem to fill me up as long as I don't have anything sweet with it. Similar with 2% fat cottage cheese. Also, some artificial sweeteners can set off a sugar craving or insulin response, which just compounds the cravings. I'm not sure which ones do, but I know the ones in the Fairlife brand protein shakes do not set it off for me, while MuscleMilk does make me crave it. Fairlife has Monk Fruit, Stevia, and Sucralose, and don't seem to set that off for me. You may want to experiment to see which ones may bother you.

Yeah, the first two to three weeks will have you questioning everything about the process, but that's only due to the temporary discomfort and the idle time while resting and recovering. We all go through that phase, so you're right on track! The good thing about the sleeve, like others mentioned, is that you will eventually be able to eat all of the same things again, but now you'll have that governor in place to stop you from going overboard. Early on, just stick to the diet plan, as its more important to prevent stretching the tissue where the staples are and to prevent infections. After the first month or two, then the goal is to keep the carbs and excess calories down, as statistically you'll have the beest luck losing weight those first 6 months before it slows, and levels off around the 12-18 month mark. Its just to get that jump start on the weight loss. Each day gets easier, but it is gradual and expect the occasional "hangry" day while you adapt. You'll have days where your body will try to fight you since its used to the old foods and quantities we used to eat. It misses its snacks, but our mind and stomachs are like angry toddlers in this phase, they require some discipline. Teaching it early on makes it better on the long run, but be ready for the temper tantrums haha. I'm approaching 2 months from my surgery and I have to say the first 2 weeks were fear/regret, then that subsided in weeks 3-4, and I was more upset about "well I feel like I can eat x, y, or z again, why can't I?", then even that started to subside on Week 5. I will say to avoid excess sugar, as that will still set my cravings off. I made multiple mistakes sampling cookies and cake over the holidays, and the following 2-3 days I would be craving it constantly and getting angry about it. Forcing myself past those 2-3 days, focussing on protein and more savory foods, and the obsessive craving went away. For the gas pain, definitely find some Gas-X or similar medication from a pharmacy. That helped me a lot the first month. Also, while walking, do some arm exercises like lifting over your head, windmill stretches, etc., and that will help disperse some of the gas. That really helped to get rid of my shoulder pain from it.

oh yes - those first few weeks are tough and I remember questioning whether or not I did the right thing. But those will fly by and soon everything will be much easier and you'll be glad you did it. and yes - you will eventually be able to eat the foods you love (although in smaller quantities). As time went on, I could add more and more foods - and by the sixth-month mark, all food restrictions were dropped.

Hello and congratulations on your surgery Nobody is totally prepared for this surgery. After all we learned to eat as a baby. We never gave a thought to the fact that we might need to re learn these skills. Add to this all the rules that we are told we have to adhere to and then we have remorse. It doesn't last long. Soon you will have it all figured out. Give yourself time to heal. Drink as much as you can, my intake was way off for the first month but as soon as I reached my teams goals, I felt much better. I had pain in the middle of my chest, not my stomach. I was advised on here to drink slower, try hot, cold or frozen drinks and do not gulp in air. If your pain is in the stomach area, if you are allowed try to, vary the temp of your drinks. Cold drinks sometimes cramp up your stomach. I never had gas pain but have read on here that it is usually in the shoulders. It might take you a while to eat all your fav foods but you will be able to soon, mostly. Over sweet, greasy and stodgy are all foods that are off my menu now. My pre surgery favs were salmon and mussels and I heave just thinking about them ! Why, I do not know. I am not bothered about the loss tbh. There are lots of foods to eat instead. I love that I can eat the tastiest morsels and leave the dross to others.

Hi all, Just had surgery and I’m 48 hours in. Had surgery Thursday and came home Friday 2pm I keep thinking why have I done this to myself so I’m still in abit of shock and I honestly didn’t prepare myself for post recovery (stupid I know) I had all the food stuff down and thought everything will be ok but there is so much too it. Am I having enough fluids, why does my stomach hurt after I drink is it gas pain? or is it because I didn’t have enough food and it’s empty? Or am I having too much? It’s a constant mental battle. I just wanted to get some perspective on people who are in the same boat as me right now. I also want to hear from people getting into foods and how that was. My biggest fear was not being able to eat the things I love but was told that it’s not going to be like that and it won’t be healthy for me to deprive myself.

Personally I would trust any supplement that promises to burn calories especially one that relies on ‘natural caffeine’. Caffeine is a naturally occurring drug. (You’re probably not young enough to remember the Medislim craze of the 80s - everyone jittery from the excess caffeine but no one lost weight.) Only two ways to burn calories: increased activity & decreased calorie/food intake. Our hormones have already been modified as a result of the surgery. So I agree with the others. Why are you thinking about using it?

Have you gone back to your surgeon or your dietician? Maybe they can offer some advice or alternatives (yes like medication). There may be something you are missing too. If you haven’t yet, clean out your pantry, fridge & freezer of any foods you may be drawn to (snacking). Cut out any high or ultra processed foods from your diet that may have snuck in (known to increase your hunger & decrease your satiety). Are you still meeting your protein & fluid goals? Do you still eat protein first, then vegetables & then only if you are able any whole/multi grain complex carbs? 1800 calories may still be too high for you. Remember ‘they’ usually say 1200 for a female to lose weight but that’s based on averages & not individual needs & stats (age, height, current weight, activity levels, health status & considerations, etc.). But your dietician will be able to advise you on what’s best for you. All the best.

I’m going to jump on the going off plan issue first. Your tummy is being held together by sutures & staples (can be 12inches of them - imagine that on your arm or leg)). The staged return to eating solid food is in place to protect your healing tummy & not strain or stress your digestive system. Your tummy is a muscle. Would you start exerting your arm or leg muscles if the wounds were there or would you tread carefully & follow the plan to aid healing? Nerves are also cut during surgery so signals that you are doing harm may not be getting through. Please, please return to your plan. As for hunger, yes there are some who do continue to experience hunger after surgery but it’s not common. It’s more likely you are experiencing head hunger not real hunger. (A easy way to differentiate the two is with head hunger you tend to crave a specific food, flavour or texture. You don’t with real hunger.) Most of the area that produces your hunger hormone is removed during surgery. For many, we ate as a comfort & to soothe ourselves when stressed or emotional. The surgery is stressful on your body & you psychologically & emotionally (consciously or subconsciously). This is a time you would turn to food but you can’t which makes you want food more. Plus the psychological issue of how can this small amount of food be enough can start to kick in & you consequently feel hungry because you think you need more food. There are a few strategies you can try to help with head hunger. Distraction is very useful. Read, play a game, phone a friend or family member, check social media, go for a short walk, etc. Sipping a warm drink can be helpful. These diversions are helpful in the long term too. As we progressed many of us distracted ourselves by cleaning out a wardrobe or drawers or the pantry or learn a craft. I found setting routines for eating good too: didn’t eat between my set eating times. I still do this nearing 5 years out. All the best.

A certain amount of sugar is usually fine, especially the natural sugar found in dairy or applesauce. Added sugar is going to be where your doctor will probably have strict limits, and things may change as you get further out from surgery. Chobani complete drinkable yogurt has no added sugar, so that's a good sign, even if the overall sugar is 11 grams. But you'll want to talk to your practice about how many you can have and when they're okay. If you haven't yet, you should soon receive a booklet from your dietician with all the rules they want you to follow, and yes, they will be different from rules other people get at other practices, even if they are getting the same surgery! My rules include finding protein supplements with less than 5 grams sugar, at least 20 grams protein, and 160-200 calories per serving. But that 5 gram limit is specific to the protein shakes, not to all foods or meals. I can also have Greek or light yogurt, and I happen to know plain Greek yogurt has 7 grams sugar naturally. One of those little snack cups of unsweetened applesauce has 11 grams of sugar (again, naturally occurring). So, I think the Chobani complete drink would probably be approved for me, although I'm fairly sure I would be told to limit myself to a certain amount per day and not use them interchangeably with protein supplements, which generally have way lower sugar.

Twinning! I had steak this week too & was looking forward to it but I overcooked it. Got distracted and … It wasn’t its usual tender juicy goodness. So disappointed. And I made caramelised onions this morning (for the second tart I’m making). Been using my new Kitchen Aid food processor for my prep. I love it. Plus I got it on sale so yay!

Today was a week since I had my gastric sleeve surgery. I'm feeling perfectly fine, but I feel constantly hungry. I already included solid food to my diet bc I just can't be satisfied drinking liquids like chicken broth or protein shakes or creemt souos, they do not help at all like it was when I was on pre op diet. I should say that I kinda nervous that I already add solid food, but my body reacts fine. I never felt this "plumb" feeling that many people spoke about. I can easily swallow any food. Is anyone else having same issue with a hunger? How long does it take to you feel satisfied with small portions of food? Honestly, I started regretting about surgery, I expected it would help with food cravings but in fact I'm just limited in portions and feel hungry all the time

Made it to day 2 post op! Not so much in pain, but get some very uncomfortable stomach feelings or cramps. They prescribed oxy and liquid Tylenol which I’ve been taking pretty much every 3-4 hours (woke up every three hours the first night following the procedure). Otherwise I’ve been up and walking in between napping - very tired! I had my procedure Thursday and was planning to go back into my office on Tuesday. Based on how tired I am, I will probably work from home the whole week following the procedure. My dietary guidelines are as follows: Day 1 (procedure day) & Day 2: Clear liquids, supposed to have 64 oz of Gatorade or a diluted fruit juice but I haven’t been able to drink that much at all. They said the first two days are the worst as your stomach heals, so hoping tomorrow is better. 4 weeks: Full liquid diet 2 weeks: Blended/pureed foods 4 weeks: Soft foods Regular food I feel ready but am a little nervous for the amount of drinking I’ll be doing at the office!

Those all sound tasty. You are very organised which is half the battle. Pickle juice is a nice flavoursome addition, I shall try that. I am vegetarian so am thinking of how to adapt your ideas. how are you finding hot foods? The soup I had today caused me some discomfort but I can easily sip away at a protein shake. Raising my arms above my head and gently twisting my torso has helped me relieve gas pains. I had a 4hr nap earlier, so although I feel fine I must be tired. Trying to remind myself this is a marathon not a sprint. Have a Good Friday. 👍

So my 2oz food containers are tuna fish with light mayo, then I add a splash of pickle juice to it for flavor. I also whipped up some Jell-O Sugar free Chocolate Fudge pudding, with 2 cups of Fairlife (extra protein, lactose free) skim milk and a scoop of Isopure protein powder. I've also mixed tuna with cottage cheese, and salmon with light cream cheese. Today I pureed ground turkey with some broth, ate it with taco bell mild sauce. Seems to be doing just fine in my belly. Oh, and Chobani Zero Greek Yogurt, the flavors are great, very low calories, lots of protein and goes down so nicely. I do feel cra**y some too, just keep trying to keep moving. Mainly I've had a lot of gas pain and cramping, moving really helps that. Yesterday when I made breakfast I had my family finish it, I got tired and wanted to just sit and eat.

So my 2oz food containers are tuna fish with light mayo, then I add a splash of pickle juice to it for flavor. I also whipped up some Jell-O Sugar free Chocolate Fudge pudding, with 2 cups of Fairlife (extra protein, lactose free) skim milk and a scoop of Isopure protein powder. I've also mixed tuna with cottage cheese, and salmon with light cream cheese. Today I pureed ground turkey with some broth, ate it with taco bell mild sauce. Seems to be doing just fine in my belly. Oh, and Chobani Zero Greek Yogurt, the flavors are great, very low calories, lots of protein and goes down so nicely. I do feel cra**y some too, just keep trying to keep moving. Mainly I've had a lot of gas pain and cramping, moving really helps that. Yesterday when I made breakfast I had my family finish it, I got tired and wanted to just sit and eat.

Courtnay, I am so sorry you had such an awful experience... I had some nurses that really irritated me and treated me poorly but an orderly found me crying because I was in so much pain and stressed by the nurse and so she reported the nurse, which was uncomfortable in the moment because I had to talk to a bunch of people, but really made them treat me decently the rest of the time! You can definitely have the bypass later once the sleeve takes off some weight. This happens sometimes with DS surgeries where they end up doing the sleeve first and then the intestinal part later once some abdominal fat is lost. Livers can be really tricky. Mine was still "plump" during the surgery, I just happen to have an extremely skilled surgeon who was able to work around it, but he told me sometimes that isn't possible. And I really want to say this, what happened to you IS NOT YOUR FAULT!! I'd find a therapist that deals with trauma, specifically medical trauma if possible, to help process this experience. Later down the road if your weight loss isn't stable you can consider converting to bypass or DS, you have options now with the sleeve! I know it isn't what you wanted, and I don't understand why the doctor didn't just close you up and try again later if you felt so strongly about it, but hindsight is always 20/20 and the good thing is that the sleeve DOES take off weight and that weight loss will help you feel a lot better. You should be on a good PPI with your heartburn, twice a day if needed. Omeprazole was always useless to me, so I use pantaprazole in the morning and Dexilant in the evening, both are prescription and they work wonderfully, no food triggers at all. You don't have to suffer with heartburn and reflux, they really should sort your meds out for that. It will make nausea and eating a lot easier. Oh and a few weeks out my digestive system was very testy. I had IBS before and it was grumpy post surgery. Fairlife shakes make me run to the bathroom for days for some reason! I like the Syntrax Nectar fruit flavors, they are like juice. Seeq is also good, it is like juice too, they are water based protein drinks, not creamy milk ones, and my digestive system handles them both better. You can get samples of Syntrax from Bariatric Pal and samples of Seeq from their website. Sending you lots of love... I hope things ease up soon and those hormones calm down, they are really rough after surgery! ❤️

I am about 11 weeks out from surgery, and i was told that everyone's body is different. And that everyone has different tolerations. Like you, i knew other people that had the prodecure with other physician groups, and they were able to move to other stages more quickly. I know for myself i did cut a few days (i think 2 -3) moving to that pureed stage. And i did handle it well. But not everyone does. I do think those are guidelines, and to trust and know your body, and just be cautious. And if anything doesn't feel right, revert back to the documented plan from your nutritionist. It seems most people have had success by reaching out to them and asking them their questions also.

Does he need to know? 2 years in is a little late but I completely understand not wanting to give out medical info unless absolutely necessary. IMHO it has to happen naturally now ( he asks directly or a situation where he needs to know) And even then you may have to downplay it’s importance. When I was newly dating after WLS, I told 2 out of 3 people I went on dates with (one just never progressed to the point where it came up) but I chose to tell them so they could understand why I either didn’t want food based dates or why I only ordered an appetizer vs entrée. Good luck!

Hi all I am 3.5 years out from a gastric sleeve. I lost 75 pounds and am happy with how things have gone, and am grateful to have my sleeve as a tool for my health. I don’t have any major skin folds or lots of sagging besides what would be expected of a 40 year old mother. I have a boyfriend whom I have been seeing for 2 years now and I have never told him about my WLS. I never really intended to as I feel it is private and not something I really want to share. He loves my body (maybe more than I do), and is a great partner in many ways. He comes from a large family who eats gigantic food portions and he was always taught to clear his plate. He is constantly making comments about my food and how much or how little I may eat, how I don’t drink my water during dinner, or if I don’t finish my food and save it for later. It honestly drives me crazy and I have communicated this to him. Part of me wonders if he would better understand if I share about my WLS, but another part of me things he would be horrified and not understand at all. What do you think? Should I tell him? I don’t understand why other people have to focus so much on my plate. I honestly can eat normal portions of food if it’s the right food (veggies go down very easily, but things like rice or potatoes are quick fillers). Thanks for your advice.