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You may need to eat out after WLS, because Americans eat out a lot. Some estimates put one-quarter of Americans eating fast food on a given day, before counting food from casual and upscale restaurants. A total of about 1 in 3 calories come from foods that are eaten away from home, such as prepared foods and restaurant foods. With restaurants, fast food, and other prepared foods being such a big part of our culture, you may not be able to, or even want to, stop eating out. That is okay, even after WLS. You will just need to be a savvy customer to be sure that wherever you are, you get a meal that fits into your meal plan. Take heart: it is almost always possible. The Trouble with Eating Out Research has been clear on the differences between eating out and preparing food at home. Restaurant meals tend to be bigger and higher in calories. Beyond that, they are higher in sodium and saturated fat, and lower in fiber. That does not bode well for weight loss, but you are not doomed. Most restaurants are willing and able to accommodate you. You may be pleasantly surprised at the choices. Do Your Homework (Or Procrastinate) Most restaurants have their menus posted online. Many have their nutritional facts online. Check before you go to the restaurant, and decide on your meal before you get there. When it comes time to order, you need not browse the menu for temptations. Or Procrastinate It is not always possible to check beforehand, and that is okay. Just keep your goal in mind: Some lean protein, such as eggs, chicken, or fish. A vegetable. A small amount of a healthy starch and/or healthy fat. Build that meal from the items you see on the menu. The Customer Is Always Right If you need another expression to drive home the point, what about, “He who pays the piper calls the tune?” You are perfectly entitled to ask for no sauce, dressing on the side, or no bun. A surprising number of joints allow substitutions or modifications for no extra cost, although some may charge. The cost is usually minimal, and worth it. Examples include getting grilled instead of fried chicken or fish, or swapping a side salad or steamed vegetables for a side of rice, pasta, or potatoes. Best Bets for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner You can go to a restaurant with some ideas of what they might have for each meal, and search for those. Breakfast Eggs: in an omelet or scrambled. Look for egg whites if you can, and choose vegetable toppings. Cheese and turkey can also be good additions. Skip bacon and other fatty meats in your eggs. Oatmeal: plain, regular or steel-cut, without add-ons such as dried fruit or brown sugar. Nuts are okay. Steer clear of granola. Breakfast sandwich: English muffin (you can eat half) with egg and/or cheese and/or ham – no bacon, sausage, croissant, or biscuit. Create a meal from sides or add-ons, such as cottage cheese, an egg, fresh fruit, or turkey sausage. Lunch Green salad with any of grilled chicken, cheese, nuts, vegetables such as tomatoes and cucumbers, and light dressing. Skip regular dressing (or order it on the side), croutons and chow mein noodles, and dried fruit. Chicken, fish, turkey breast, a veggie burger patty, a hamburger patty, or taco beef. Skip the bread, tortilla, bun, or taco shell, and steer away from breaded and fried. Side salad, carrot sticks, yogurt, or sliced apples. Dinner Shrimp cocktail or broth-based soup for starters. Avoid dips, chips, bread and breadsticks, and fried starters. Grilled, baked, or roasted plain chicken or fish. Avoid fried choices, fatty meats, and creamy or buttery sauces. Steamed vegetables or a side salad. Avoid fries, pasta, rice, and mashed potatoes. The Final Filter: You No matter what lands on your plate or your to-go box, the ultimate decision about what goes into your mouth is made by…you. You can turn a potentially disastrous order into a not-so-bad or even good meal with some smart choices. Decide how much you will eat and pack away the rest before you take your first bite. Scoop out the filling from sandwiches and burritos, while leaving the bread and tortillas. Eat the proteins and vegetables from your plate, while leaving the fries and fatty sauces. Scrape off any breading and eat only the chicken or fish inside. Weight loss surgery is to help you lose weight, but it is also to help you live a better life. If the good life for you includes eating out, you can do it. Just be careful. Keep your weight loss surgery diet plan in mind as you order and eat, and you can lose weight as you live your normal life.

I was wondering if anyone has some advice for a newbie? I struggle with being hungry all the time and I try to ignore it or drink water but if I drink too much water I end up with acid reflux. I sometimes will drink a protein shake but that doesn't really help right now. I am only 2 weeks into getting started on the road of getting better off. Does the hunger pains get better?

My Doctor said that a reinforced gastric sleeve is to prevent bleeding and staple-line leak, which are the most common complications. They first staple the sleeve and then sew it.

You'll be ok in a day or two. Let the nurses know your in pain. Maybe they need to adjust your pain meds. Good luck to you and a speedy recovery.

For my post-op diet, I'll be on clear liquids until I leave the hospital, then full liquid / pureed foods for four weeks. I was told the thinner, the better. It should fall through the tines of a fork without any trouble. I do not see any issue with what you ate, except for the rice. My diet does not allow starchy foods until after week 8. Also, you may have just eaten too much. I have been told that for most of the pureed stage, I will only be able to eat two to three tablespoons of food at each meal. Each tablespoon of food is about 0.5 ounces, so four ounces of food would be about eight tablespoons. I'm glad you feel better.

This are the top tips I recommend to people getting started.... Here's my top 13 tips! Start altering your diet now. Cut out processed food, or at the very least processed sugar. Practice eating your protein first and then focus on non-starchy veggies. Also, start tracking your food. There are lots of apps that make logging very easy. I personally use MyFitnessPal, but there are others out there. Find something that you like to drink that doesn't have calories. Try different caffeine free teas and water additives. I still can't drink plain water....so you want to have something on hand that you know you like. Cut out caffeine. Most programs allow caffeine back in relatively quickly, but caffeine can hinder your body's ability to heal. You don't want to go through caffeine withdrawal along with the aches and pains of surgery. Don't use protein shakes before you absolutely have to! I made the mistake of supplementing some of my meals with shakes to "prepare myself" for the pre-op diet. Big mistake. You will get to the point where they are DISGUSTING, and you don't want to increase the timeline of that by drinking them before you need to. Start incorporating exercising (even if it’s just walking) somewhere in your daily routine. It will make it easier if it’s already a habit. Practice chewing your food at least 20-30 times before swallowing. Muscle has memory and it will be so much easier if you already have this habit. If you screw up and swallow too soon after surgery, you will pay the price. Set timers and don't drink and eat at the same time. I highly recommend having at least 1 visit with a therapist to establish with someone for after surgery. It’s not required, but everyone seems to have some emotional struggles afterwards. Whether its 2 weeks, 2 months, or 2 years you may struggle with the changes. I personally wouldn't share with people, unless you know they will be 100% supportive. It is nerve wracking already and you need nothing but positivity. Plus it’s a lot of pressure from people who know you've had WLS, versus people who think you are on the weight loss track. People think that the weight is going to melt off after surgery, and sometimes it doesn't. You don't want the extra judgment. Don’t engage people with people who say “WLS is too dramatic” or “You could just diet and lose the weight” or “You aren’t big enough for surgery” or “It’s the easy way out”. SCREW THOSE PEOPLE, they don’t know. They will never know how triumphant our victory will be. I would also remember that you need to make time for you! Make the time to shop healthy, meal prep, cook healthy, and plan ahead. And I’m talking to all the selfless mothers, fathers, husbands, and wives. We give so much to our families, but NOW is the time to focus on ourselves. We are doing it for them, after all. We are doing it to prolong our lives and improve the quality of our lives. Come up with a reward system of sorts. You want to acknowledge your successes. For my 50lb mark, I went and got pedicures with my girlfriends. For my 75lb mark, I bought myself some new dresses. For my 100lb mark, I bought myself a really nice full length mirror. Stalls happen and are completely natural. There are tons of threads in this community that you can search for suggestions or for advice. Hunger happens. Some people don’t experience a decrease in hunger, but it is easily manageable with a small amount of the right foods.

I'm playing with the idea of saying "I'm really uncomfortable talking about my weight. [Obvious subject change]" Because I am, and because it's really rude to comment on/ask about other people's health. And maybe a gentle push will help people behave better. What the subject change is will vary with context. At work, I'll ask some question about a work project or redirect back to whatever we were talking about before. With friends ... well, with close friends, I actually won't have this problem, because I'm being honest about what's happening in my life. But with friendly acquaintances, I'll ask them what TV shows or board games they're enjoying lately, something like that. With family... that's going to be hard. I don't see most of them that often, so it'll be a bit of a shock when they see me, if I'm suddenly down 100 pounds (not outside the realm of possibility, with my in-laws--I see them once a year). I might get my spouse to run interference with that side of the family, to avoid awkward conversations. My brother knows I'm planning to do this, and so does my aunt. My mom... oof, that's going to be an unpleasant conversation, probably. I'll see her a little under 2 months after the surgery, so the loss (and my changed eating habits) will be noticeable. (I might not even be on solid foods yet? So. That's fun!) Anyway, what I'm saying is, it's your choice what you tell people. I'm not willing to imply that I did it all with willpower alone, because that is cruel to other fat people. But I'm absolutely willing to deflect and refuse to answer.

I had 2 glasses of wine with my birthday dinner, 5 months post-op. I didn't feel that it hit me hard, but I had a designated driver, anyway. Haven't had any since. As much as I enjoy my wine, I'd rather keep my calories low right now.

Ok... turn this around and look at the positives. Did they cancel on you? No. Did they reschedule you? Nope. Just take the win where the win is. I get that you don't want to wait any longer and having to wait the whole day seems rough, but, it's better than if they postponed it on you.

Oh, my, gosh. If you're not a writer, you ought to be. So much of your story rings true for me and (I suspect) for many others. My favorite line: "You reach a point where surgery is less fearsome than continuing to live obese". Yep, that says it all. Thank you! btw, how far out is your expected surgery?