Amanda 3.0

I had no restrictions on spicy foods. I had a five week post-op full liquid diet and I was adding hot sauce after a few weeks out. By hot sauce, I mean the smooth types, like "Tapatio" (my favorite) and Tabasco. I live for spicy so I specifically asked about this.

Check liver light! Now that was funny! Regarding the posts about the calories in alcohol - yes, those are liquid calories, but in my case, the danger of weight gain from drinking has been the overeating afterwards. All common sense would go out the window. Now, I don't (can't) do that, and I hope I never do! There was a time when I drank sweet frozen and mixed drinks and didn't pay attention to the calories. I was pretty big, larger than I was when I started this VSG process. Well, one day I actually read the label on the frozen mixers and I actually cried at how many calories I had been drinking in mixer alone! No wonder I was so big. I have never touched those mixers since then and have had maybe half a dozen margaritas in the last ten years. Now I only drink wine, or alcohol mixed with a no/low calorie mixer.

Isn't Redbull carbonated? I haven't had a carbonated drink since before surgery. Come to think of it, I have never had a Redbull! The vodka cranberry is pretty much what I do, with the Ocean Spray low calorie juice. I tried vodka with grapefruit using the 50 calorie/8 oz juice, but it tasted too good. Too many calories and the alcohol can sneak up on you!

I have a glass of wine or two sometimes. I have had vodka with Ocean Spray "diet" juice (5 calories/8 oz). It can get you, so be careful!

My husband also eats a bunch of crap, not just in front of me, but everywhere! Plus, he is pretty normal sized, and when he wants to lose a bit of weight, it drops off with little to no effort on his part! He eats dinner, sometimes a huge dinner, and one hour later he is combing through the fridge and pantry for more to eat. He thinks he is getting some Easter candy, but it won't be from me. I don't really care about candy anymore and I am more scared of it than anything. I need to just take care of me, but every so often I give him a nagging.

I would try to stay somewhat normal on the diet. Sure you will want to indulge in a few things here and there, but you don't want to make yourself more unhealthy and possibly make complications for your surgery! Plus, you will have to lose all that afterwards. I was notified of my surgery date less than two weeks out, as the surgeon's office accommodated my request to get in before the end of 2011 (for insurance). So I didn't even get the whole two week diet, just 13 days. I canceled my birthday plans for the Brazilian steakhouse with great sadness! I am just three and a half months out and I can already eat just about anything, so I am glad I didn't have any food funerals. I have had several steaks since surgery, and while they seem to "sit" in my stomach for a bit (no pain), I have loved every bite. Earlier this week I cooked some filet mignons and put a little goat cheese atop each, and they were just wonderful. So don't assume you will be doing without for very long at all. I tried not to think about the surgery too much, leading up to the date. It was almost too much to believe that I was finally going to do it! I ended up breaking down in pre-op, but made it through just fine and I am a happy camper. You'll be okay, just try to keep some good habits and not go too overboard!

Raising Cane's just came to our area and boy, do people get excited by some fried crap. I've never been, probably never will go. There are way too many better choices for us out there.

I think you would be better to buy fruit cups and actually eat and swallow them (when it's time) than to chew and spit. But, like others have said, just ask your surgeon or nutritionist. I doubt you are getting any real nutrition from chewing and spitting, even citrus fruits. And, it's a habit that you probably don't want to start. So much of eating is about the head, not the stomach, so just be careful and take care of you!

You are going to be set for, like, two years! lol I could hardly eat anything, so in my Quest to be prepared, I completely overbought.

Not a fan of fast food, but from time to time it is a necessity. Chick-Fil-A has grilled nuggets, and you can order the kids' meal. They also have chicken noodle soup, and have (or had) a chicken tortilla soup that was very good. Steak N shake has chili and you can get a side of cottage cheese. Any "Mexican" place, like Taco Bell or Del Taco, where you can get a side of refried Beans. I'm guessing those have lard in them though.

That's hilarious, I do love chickens and all birds! I think our HOA forbids them or maybe just roosters. Someday though, I will have some chickens.

There is a whole mathematical equation to bra sizing, apparently, and it is all over my head! One can wear a smaller band size with a larger cup size, or vice versa. So a 40C might be fairly equivalent to a 38D. Depends on the manufacturer too. Were you measured at Nordstrom prior to your weight loss? I feel that I can't really compare apples to apples as I wasn't fitted properly before I went in. After my fitting, my bras fit like I have always heard they should, but prior to that they were mostly just "contained".

I am so very sorry to hear this. What treatment did you get at the ER? Did they do a swallow test or anything? How far out are you? Are you better now? When I ate the grits, it was only a tiny bit before I was full.

Great post, as I am a big fan of throwing stuff away. It was a mistake to buy it in many cases, it just compounds the mistake to actually eat it! I just threw away a bag of Sun chips. I thought I could eat just five or so, but that wasn't the case. And, they went down absolutely effortlessly. I also dumped some pita chips. They didn't sit well in my stomach, but I could melt cheese on them and that made it easy to eat a bit too much. So into the trash with them.

This is so upsetting and heartbreaking to read! But, I am glad you are sharing it here. You are down 49 pounds, which is really good. I don't know about you, but haven't been able to sustain a loss like that in years, prior to surgery. I too am dealing with slower losses now and the ability to eat the wrong foods. But, at 49 pounds down, surely it is easier to exercise now and you have some momentum to work from? You also started at a lower BMI than many and I have heard that a lower BMI can mean a slower loss. I would not give up on this surgery yet! I too hate exercise so I try to do things that are not just weights and treadmill stuff, such as Water aerobics at my gym, or walking several miles around the neighborhood. I also have an elliptical trainer at home which often gets a little dusty. I need to start biking to the store with this mild weather. Have you considered seeing a counselor to discuss the cheating with bad foods? Are you not feeling fullness, or are you intentionally choosing foods that slide right through? Can you go to a support group in your area, or even an Overeaters Anonymous meeting? Is your family supportive? There is such a huge psychological component to our eating! I appreciate your post as I too worry and I am trying to stay on the straight and narrow.

LOL - I was wondering what JimmyGotSOUL was going to say in this thread. Good info as usual! To the OP, it may matter if you had been fitted properly before surgery. I had not been fitted properly, and was wearing a 38D soft cup (if I recall). I knew I needed new bras and so went to Nordstrom for a professional fitting. I walked out with three new 36DDD bras! I had a reduction just under two years ago, so I am not sure if my situation is the same as other folks. I really thought I was going to be a C cup when I went for fitting. If you search, there are a couple of helpful discussions here on bras and breast size.

There is an eating disorder that involves chewing and spitting it out. I saw an episode of Intervention where a girl was doing this. It is gross to see. My surgery was before Christmas, so when I made Christmas Cookies for my husband, I did chew and spit but only to ensure that the cookie dough was good. It wasn't very satisfying and it wasn't even very helpful in gauging the taste. Try to deal with the liquid diet. It isn't forever. You can do this!

Well if she wants to go somewhere where you can't eat, she shouldn't be surprised if you don't go with her. Maybe she has an issue with you losing weight, because what she is doing makes no sense at all. There are plenty of places where you could both go and enjoy your food. If you want fast food, Chick-Fil-A has some surprisingly good options. They have at least one type of Soup (chicken noodle) and sometimes another (chicken tortilla). They also have grilled nuggets without the breading. And, she could have had her chicken strips. I don't know what to say about people watching how much food you eat. That could be a little unnerving. One of my friends made a slight comment about hardly eating anything when we went to La Madeleine last week and I only ate half of my cup of soup, but she didn't watch me eating or dwell on it.

I am only just over three months out, but you can still be a winner. There is a "bootcamp" posted here on this forum. Maybe go back to basics for a bit. Definitely get rid of the trigger foods now, if you haven't already (my advice). We know what to do, we just have to do it. And when we go off course, we have to stop what we are doing quickly and get back on track.

Add new things slowly so you can isolate the culprit. How many grams of sugar are in that non-dairy creamer? In my coffee, I add some Muscle Milk chocolate. My dumping came from a Protein shake that had something like 29 grams of sugar per serving. Ouch! Why didn't I read the label? Lesson learned though.

I am right there with you Yoshikitty. I am over three months out and some of those old habits can definitely sneak back. The only thing we can do is get back on track. You know that diet coke is your trigger, so you know you need to get rid of that. An example: I recently purchased some Sun Chips. I thought there would be no harm, since I would eat only five or so at a time. Well guess what? I was eating more than five at a time. I was eating maybe 10 - 15 at a time, a couple of times a day. I was also home all week by myself while my husband was traveling so my schedule went by the wayside and I skipped two water aerobics sessions. GAH! I know better than to do this! That is exactly how I went off course after prior weight loss attempts. I poured the Sun Chips in the garbage. That is what I need to do when I encounter a food that is a challenge. I would rather put two dollars of chips in the garbage than feel bad for eating the chips, which open the door to other wrong choices. I also did that with some pita chips. This surgery is not foolproof. I had lost over 100 pounds before with diet and exercise and I swore I would never let that happen again, and it did. The power of food on the brain is not removed forever by this surgery, as much as I wish it could be!

Refried beans!

What are you drinking/ingesting? Check sugar grams? Sugar is the only thing I've really reacted to. You'll be glad to figure out what's causing it, good luck!

This makes perfect sense, especially if you are not doing any protein supplements. I have a supplement routine that I adhere to most days so that part of my intake is a no-brainer. Also, if I stopped losing for a while, I would log to find out what my problem was, for sure.

Well, I can't say enough good things about the whole procedure and everyone involved. The supervised diet doctor is Dr. Garza next door, and she and her staff are also wonderful. Dr. Garza's office sells the unjury brand protein powders but I was not required to buy it. I just did because it was easy. Dr. Cribbins' office sells the Celebrate Vitamins, but they were not required. I bought them because I figured why not, but I grew to hate them and then I believe I developed an allergy to them so no more of that! Basically, my food plan was: Very low fat and vegetarian for two weeks prior to surgery. I got my surgery date less than two weeks out, so I didn't even have the whole two weeks of pre-op diet. Clear liquids for three days following surgery (I was in the hospital those three days, no problem) Full liquids/thinned pureed foods for five weeks. I think at four weeks I was allowed to add crackers to Soup and that was pure excitement! lol After that, I got to introduce regular foods gradually. I was terrified of the pre-op diets that I had read about on this site. I didn't think I could comply with full liquids for several weeks pre-op (post op was a piece of cake - did I just write that?). I was so relieved to find out, after I was almost through the process, that Dr. Cribbins has an easy pre-op diet. I would just double check, if you call, that everything is still the same because things might change.