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I completely agree with all your points. Herbal life has had a really bad reputation for years plus for the reasons you pointed out. Plus, I too wouldn't do soy, as "Soy contains phytoestrogens, which are plant-based compounds that can mimic estrogen in the body" why add to hormones when you're trying to get protein not hormones. Especially since the release of fat our bodies are metabolizing after surgery release extra hormones as it is!

Is Herbal life still in business? Gracious. They have had a bit of a controversial history over the years so I would probably avoid them too. There’s a lot of protein shakes available including through here. Sure others will recommend ones they’ve found to be good for quality (& value).

I was never given macros or calories just portion size recommendations & it came from my surgeon not the hospital. I was told to begin with 1/4 - 1/3 cup from purée stage gradually increasing to a cup at 6 months. I was also told 60g protein & keep low fat & low carbs. And I clearly remember my surgeon drawing a picture of a plate and sectioning it off to show the portion of protein, vegetables and carbs on a plate I would be consuming at a meal when I was in maintenance. If you think you’ll feel more comfortable with having more guidance, keep pushing your dietician or surgical team. It comes down to what you feel you need to be most successful.

They probably didn't give you any calorie values because they don't want you worrying about that yet. As long as you're not eating more than the recommended amounts, you'll be fine. As to macros, the absolute minimum recommended protein amount would be 60 grams, but really, shooting for 100+ would be better. It can be hard for some folks to hit that higher value early on, so as long as you're getting a minimum of 60, you should be okay for now. Just try to work up to 100+ as time goes on. Eventually, ~1 gram per pound of bodyweight would be a better target for protein, but I'd be surprised if you're able to get there at 2 months post-op. I wouldn't worry too much about carbs and fats at this point other than to say you do need a bare minimum of fats to make sure you get your essential fatty acids. In short, eat the recommended portion sizes, aspirationally shoot for 100 grams of good quality protein per day, at least 30 grams of (good), fats per day, and the rest can be carbs. Your carbs should ideally be from whole food sources like veggies, grains and fruits.

Yes - as Greentael (sp?) said above, your second set of photos give more context. Here are my before and afters. I forgot I had these on here.

@Lily2024 Good luck on surgery!! I was not able to work out for 7 weeks it was so tough, but getting back into the swing of things!

i got alot of the same responses/reactions about my decision to get an arm lift as well. i was told my arms weren't so bad, that they were fine, and that no one noticed the extra skin. Well *i* noticed. i always disliked my upper arms, even when i was "normal sized" as a teen, in my twenties, early thirties. one if my biggest sadnesses was having to wear a shawl on my wedding day over my awesome sleeveless dress because i was uncomfortable showing them. then when i started the road to morbid obesity, i absolutely HATED them omg fast forward to post wls and my joy of wearing tank tops again were marred by not up to snuff arms. so i got me an arm lift, baby. i wont sugarcoat it: recovery was a bee-yatch. mostly self-inflicted as i didn't listen to my doc and did too much too soon. i also have noticeable scars (im over 5 yrs post plastics, 6.5years post wls), which i knew going in as i historically scar badly. BUT, omg i love my arms. weird to say out loud but true. im sleeveless like ALL the time, even in winter lol. and because i love my arms so much i take care of them with regular exercise, ha! here is a link to my BariatricPal photo album of my arm lift before pics and progress/results over the years: there are pics 6m before arm lift, day before arm lift, and 1 & 6 months after, and one from last fall (5 years after arm lift) (im trying to find old pics of arm close ups where im not flexing, but it seems i only like to flex hahhaha) long story short, if you have the means/resources and the desire, do it! you only live once, may as well enjoy it with fabulous arms (or boobs or butts or noses) if thats what you want. good luck! ❤️

LOL - I was just thinking that the OP's "before" brachioplasty pic looks a lot like my "after" brachioplasty pic! (of course I had major batwings - much worse than the OP's)