lsereno

Hi Meggie, Can't speak for others but Kaiser Fremont advances you to soft foods at two weeks if all is going well. Soft foods include: Protein: Moist fish, chicken, shellfish, pork, and tofu Veggies: Soft cooked veggies Fruit: All fruits, peel removed Of course it's Protein first, so I haven't really had room for much veggies or fruit. I can eat between 1-2 oz. for lunch and dinner. At Breakfast, I have a hard time with solids, so I've been sticking with greek yogurt every day. Lynda

I don't think you are eating too much. Everyone's tummy heals at a different speed. Yougurt and Protein drinks are a lot easier to tolerate than solds. I was able to eat 1/2 c. yygurt without a problem within the first week of surgery. However, it's a day to day thing with solids. After an unfortunate incident with the slimy vomit others have mentioned, I'm really careful to stop as soon as I feel full. Even if it is just an ounce or a 1/4 cup. Good luck on your journey. If you are following your Dr's diet plan and you stop eating when you feel full, don't worrry! Lynda

Hi Holly, I'm with Kaiser Fremont Bariatrics program and I believe we are all prescribed Ursodiol. My Kaiser WLS "Bible" claims it lowers the chance you will have to have your GB removed to 2-3%. I'm happy to take them because the last thing I want is another surgery. I really hope my VS is the last surgery I ever have. Lynda

Hi all, Tomorrow, I'm gonna try this recipe I saw on Simple Recipes: chicken breast in saran wrap and drop it in Water you have brought to a boil. As the water cools, the chicken breast continues to cook. Sounds like an easy way to get some moist chicken meat. I know the crockpot works, but for those of us who are not feeding a family, the crockpot makes way too much. Lynda

Congrats Irene! You look amazing! Thanks for sharing your journey with all of us. You have really helped me through more than one rough spot. Lynda

It has a higher Protein count. 20 grams per cup for the fatfree unsweetened that I use. I add Splenda to mine. Lynda

Gurgling is normal for the first couple of weeks. My tummy sounded like a mac truck was being driven through it. Now, half-wya through week 3, I mostly have embarrassing burps. Drink slooowly at first. It helps. At first, I drank one ounce every 15 minutes. I used a timer. I still can't tolerate room temp drinks. They must be hot or cold. I don't care for sweet drinks or ones that seem a little thick, like the Propel Water I tried today or the Isopure Protein drinks. Crystal Lite Pink Lemonaide is not sweet. I also like Lipton Diet Green Tea with Citrus. For hot, I like Starbucks decaf coffee and Sleepytime tea. Or just plain hot water if I'm cold. Lynda

Hi Purdy in Pink, 1) I've had surgery 2 1/2 weeks ago (May 24th) I was wondering how soon i can actually start to do some real excersizing.....more then just walking..... I'd wait for your first follow up to do more than walk if I were you. I had VSG on 5-17 and at the two-week post-op my Dr. OKd me for light exercise, slowly increasing strength over the next few weeks. 2) i'm having some mid to lower back pain..feels like i have about 50 knots tied up in there, anyone else experience lower back pain? I've been doing the heat/Ice, and no releif in a week? Any ideas? Try some back stretches. 3) I'm stuck in in a holding pattern in my weight loss............I lost 16 lbs in the first 6 days.....and only 1 more in over a week. Is this normal? I think so. I held at one weight for about a week and then dropped 3 lbs. Now I'm holding again, but I expect the weight to drop any day. Lynda

Hi Newbie, We were sleeved on the same day. I take a nap most days still. I also know what you mean about the tightness. I take really tiny bites and use a timer - one bit per minute. That helps but it can still be tough to get stuff down. I've had better luck with ground turkey products, such as turkey meatballs, turkey sausage, and turkey meatloaf (my fav), lunchmeat, and greek yogurt. I drink a Protein drink every evening to get me up to 60+ grams of protein. Yesterday I felt really sick after eating and I didn't feel 100% this morning so I have had liquid Protein all day. I have to admit- it feels so good to get a day off food!! I will go back to solids tomorrow. You could call your Dr. about the stomach acid. I have read many posts where people have tried several different ones before finding one or a combination of several that works for them. We are still healing - I know it will get better with time. Lynda

I can meet in Hayward. I'd love to see some fellow VSTers face to face! Lynda

Laura, Congratulations! Enjoy your accomplishment - you earned it!! Lynda

Thanks Kelly! I'm hoping a day without solids will give my tummy the break it needs. I hope you are feeling better soon too! And I think I will buy myself a little present today-- haha! Take that cranky tummy!! Just something little like a new lipstick or nail polish color or maybe a trashy magazine :-)

Hi MLD, I was sleeved at Kaiser Fremont on 5/17. I followed the pre-op diet with small cheats once per week for three months and lost 32 lbs. I did feel hungry when I first started it, but after a while I didn't. I really love Kaiser's approach to WLS with lots of planning ahead of time. I felt healthier and more prepared, which made me a lot more comfortable about having such a radical procedure. Good luck on your journey! Lynda

Hi all, So last night I got the slimies for the first time. Boy was it gross! I never threw up food, but I tossed copious amounts of slimy stuff. And I had the worst stomach pains I've had since the surgery. I have already scaled back to 2 oz of Protein per meal, but I added 1/8 c. frozen vegetables. I had eaten 1/2 c watermelon about 2 hrs before. Not sure what got me, or if my stomach was just "in a moood" but I DO NOT want a repeat. I think I would have felt better a lot faster if I would have thrown up and been done with it. After that I waited a few hours before my nightly Protein Drink, but I couldn't finish it anyway. So today I woke up and I am just NOT MOTIVATED to eat solids. I'm sitting here at 11 a.m. drinking 1 c of soy milk with 1 scoop of gold standard. And I'm thinking Soup for lunch later and some unjury chicken for dinner. I have had a really easy recovery compared to so many on the boards, so I feel a little guilty whining about this. Lynda

Hi, I gained 15 lbs. after surgery and suffered with diarrhea for the first two weeks. If you are using any dairy products other than yogurt or cheese, try cutting them out. I found when I cut out cottage cheese and lactaid milk my diarrhea lessened to 2-3 times per day. I use soymilk now without a problem. Try to focus on getting your fluids first and find a way to tolerate the Protein. I used the

Hi all, My week's goal and progress so far: Monday: Ride bike 2-3 miles, walk 1 mile with hubby. I walked 1 mile with hubby and we washed the dog at the self-serve dog wash. Tuesday: Walk 3-4 miles with my walking group. I made it about 2 miles. Had to turn back early. Walked another mile with my husband in the evening. Wednesday: Follow along with Sit and Be Fit class that I recorded from PBS. I saw the Dr. today for my first post-op and I am cleared for more activity including working out and lifting more than 1- lbs. Dr. said just don't do it if it hurts and don't go crazy-build back up slowly. I didin't work out today. Thursday: Walk 3-4 miles with my walking group. Walked the entire walk with my walking group: 45 minutes we covered two miles. I know they walked slower for me. Rode my bike about one mile. Had to take a nap in the afternoon. Friday: Follow along with Sit and Be Fit class that I recorded from PBS. Ride bike 2-3 miles, walk 1 mile with hubby. Spent 3 hours walking around the Sub-Zero fest. I only sat down twice for less than 5 minutes each time. I was pooped! Saturday: Day off! Was thinking of working out today cuz I skipped Wednesday, but I've been pooped all day. Napped on and off all day and planning to hit the sack early tonight. Sunday: Longer bike ride with friends. Forgot I have a big community event to organize on Sunday, so I'll be walking and biking all over my neighborhood.

I use my scale because I want to accurately track how much Protein I'm eating each day and that is easiest to measure per ounce. I also use it to measure ice that I blend in my Protein drinks so I can count that towards my 64 oz. per day requirement. . 4 oz. of ice= 1/2 cup of Water. I have a WW scale left over from my many years of WW. Lynda

Hi Kara, Congrats and welcome to the losers' bench! My Dr. also uses a #40 and at 2.5 weeks out, I can definitely feel the restriction. I am managing 3 oz. of soft Protein at lunch and dinner and 1/2 cup of greek yogurt in the morning. I'm so glad you are doing well and I'm happy for you that you made this decision and had this operation available while you are younger and have more of your life to enjoy. I've been obese sine the mid-90s and my only regret is that this operation wasn't available to me sooner. Lynda

Hi Lisa, I'm on my first week of soft foods and I don't want to eat most of the time either. I just set my timer and slog through it. I really want to get away from the Protein drinks so I've been eating 3 oz of protein per meal. I just can't face anything to solid first thing in the morning so I have 1/2 cup of greek yogurt (10 grams protein) for breakfast. I also have a couple of slices of peach, which I enjoy. Then I have a low-cal string cheese (8 grams of protein) mid-morning, 3 oz of turkey, chicken, ham, fish, or shrimp for lunch and dinner, and a Protein shake before bed. I've been making these with 4-5 strawberries, 4 oz of ice, 1/4 cup unsweetened soy milk, 1/4 cup Water, and a couple of spoons of splenda. I am eating only my favorite foods, but it is still hard to eat. I'm mot worried though because I've read of lots of people have problems early out and they resolve with time. I feel like my stomach is still healing, so I'm not surprised it's a little cranky when food gets shoved down there. Lynda

I had VSG on 5-17. I was scared before, but I dealt with it by planning: Dehydration: I set up small shot glasses, a measuring cup, a timer, and a pen and notepad on my kitchen counter before I left for surgery. When I came home, I filled the measuring cup with ice Water, set the timer for 15 minutes, and took the measuring cup, shot glass, and pen and notepad on my nightstand. I drank 1 oz. of water every 15 minutes while I was awake. Pain when trying to sleep: I gathered a bunch of pillows and set my bed up to look like the hospital bed (head and shoulders elevated, knees slightly bent up with support underneath. My worst surprise was diarrhea, but I found many others have it too so I wasn't scared, just inconvenienced. I will be thinking of you Monday and sending healing thoughts your way! Lynda

Hi all, I'm not sure I'll make my goal, but I'm trying! SW-223...............CW-206...............July 4th goal-189.................Lbs to goal-17 Lynda

Hi Kelly, I use my food scale for everything. I think it was about 5 shrimp- the big ones from the costco Seafood Roadshow. I buy the 5 lb. bag frozen because you can just take out a handful at a time - perfect for our small tummies! Lynda

Erin, I'm rooting for you today! I', glad you found my info useful. I have gotten so much from this forum. It feels good to be able to give back a little. Lynda

Hi all, My week's goal and progress so far: Monday: Ride bike 2-3 miles, walk 1 mile with hubby. I walked 1 mile with hubby and we washed the dog at the self-serve dog wash. Tuesday: Walk 3-4 miles with my walking group. I made it about 2 miles. Had to turn back early. Walked another mile with my husband in the evening. Wednesday: Follow along with Sit and Be Fit class that I recorded from PBS. I saw the Dr. today for my first post-op and I am cleared for more activity including working out and lifting more than 1- lbs. Dr. said just don't do it if it hurts and don't go crazy-build back up slowly. I didin't work out today. Thursday: Walk 3-4 miles with my walking group. Walked the entire walk with my walking group: 45 minutes we covered two miles. I know they walked slower for me. Rode my bike about one mile. Had to take a nap in the afternoon. Friday: Follow along with Sit and Be Fit class that I recorded from PBS. Ride bike 2-3 miles, walk 1 mile with hubby. I'm going to SubZero fest downtown tonight, so I will walk a mile or so there. Saturday: Day off! May skip this day off since I didn't work out on Wednesday. Sunday: Longer bike ride with friends. Forgot I have a big community event to organize on Sunday, so I'll be walking and biking all over my neighborhood.

Do you have your gall bladder? My doc put me on a gallbladder medication for the duration of my active weight loss period. Other than that, I don't know of any issues with burning substantially more calories than you are consuming. Lynda