Chimera

I dont remember where I saw this but Under 30g carbs = rapid weight loss 50-100g = some weight loss 100-200g = will maintain the weight you are at and over 200g you will gain weight from personal experience I would say that those figures are pretty accurate

Post surgery? I think a lot of folks and my NUT's give the same recommendation - 600-800 calories a day, 80+ g of Protein, and the lower your carbs the faster you will burn fat - i.e. the sweet spot is generally below 50 g a day. I feel better when I get my calries up through dense protein (helllo chicken breasts - I'm going to start clucking soon lol) - and drop the carbs to 20 and under, which can be a challenge with chewable Vitamins having carbs - and delectable nectarines being in season. I dont worry about fat - selecting the right healthy fats is better for our WL, and it is carbs and insulin response that make us pile on the lbs - not fat with that said - mine is usually pretty low per day - between 10-40g. Mind you I did not come anywhere close to those numbers until this last week - I was lucky to get 2-300 cals in when I first got home. I did soft scrambled eggs rather than mashed potatoes or Beans - both of which are big trigger foods for me.

I think it could be due to number of factors - the amount of hydration we are gettting - I used to be one of those that just drank coffee all day with milk and sugar. Now, no sugar, limited dairy cept for hard cheeses, more walking, fresh, I quit smoking after a pack a day habit that lasted 28 years, simple meals, very rare for us to eat processed foods now, recuperating forces us to rest a bit. all of the supplements - hah the list could go on and on. My skin is clear but hope my new turkey neck starts to shrink lol. And last but not least happiness and hope at finally being able to shed some stubborn weight makes me glow most days now

274 the moring of surgery - 3 days post was 294 due to internal bleeding and the hospital staff pushing massive fluids. After the first few weeks of madness I was down about 23 lbs from my surgery day weight in 3-4 weeks. I think the first two you should not worry to much - our bodies are so wacked out by the stress of surgery, healing, and trying to get fluid/elimination/protein into a groove that I think numbers can be deceiving early on. Best of luck with your surgery - sip,sip,sip, and walk as soon as you can and often.

Thanks for the tip about centering the yolk - I picked up an avocado shopping today but it is hard as a rock and needs to ripen a bit - so it is grilled chicken with a tiny pomodoro salad for me for dinner (sliced roma tomato, buffalo mozzerella, and basil with a splash of olive oil and cracked pepper - yum) Good to know those fat devils will be yummy

I dunno - everyone is different, my husband was out mowing the lawn and doing yardwork 4 days after surgery - while I had complications and was still in the hospital. There is no way I would have been able to do to a festival within even the first two weeks post surgery, but there are lots of folks here that were raring to go right after surgery.

Statistically my surgeon told me that for vsg patients in the first 6 months expect to lose 50% of your excess body weight, then another 25% the following six months - and the final 25% to goal weight during the second year. Currently I am about 7 weeks out from surgery and have lost 40% of my excess body weight including my pre-surgical loss. I was hoping to hit stastistical numbers - i.e. 10-20 lbs down the first month post surgery, and 8-10 lbs a month following. So far, so good - I am working on getting my exercise in which can be hard with a recent severe flare up of osteo arthritis, but just taking things a day at a time. I really think everyone is different and will lose at different rates. I am working on celebrating the milestones as I achive them - like no longer being super morbidly obese, and in 12 more lbs lost I will no longer be morbidly obese, just obese even folks who consider themselves slow losers, if they post their monthly losses the cumulative total can rack up some amazing total losses over time. Hoping to hit 200 and lower sometime in late November - a feat I no longer thought was possible

Get more icecube trays if you dont have many - or a small bag of ice. Believe me, it made all the difference in being able to drink or not drink after surgery. Savory forms of Protein Soup - as well as clear Protein drinks like Isopure or proti-diet brand...all that stuff is available on Bariatric Advantage or at other retailers. This stuff also saved me right after surgery because I had a heck of a time with Premier Protein and nectar the first couple of weeks post, which I loved pre-surgery. I have never used my food scale - as now we go by volume rather than weight. You may find that you use measuring cups more. We also use the small dishes, and I picked up a set of toddler flatware that we use all the time - its nicer than our everyday forks and spoons lol.

Ice is now my best friend Powerade zero is what I go to when I feel like I am dying of thirst - which I think I felt the first 3 weeks post surgery, then paniced about getting dehydrated and sent back to the hospital. The Powerade really seemed to help - just kept it on ice and drank constantly.

I have days like that too - some days early on lactose free milk was all I could manage. I also resort to protein broth, milk when I am behind on my liquids or still want to sip my drink and not have to wait after eating - which is one of my biggest challenges.

that is one of my favorite soups in the world! Lucky you

Here is another great page at MDA about nutrition - look at the Protein reqs btw - good stuff! three cheers for real food! http://www.marksdailyapple.com/definitive-guide-to-the-primal-eating-plan/#axzz1zss9QFOX

I started pre-surgery eating this way - and after surgery I need to get back to it (still have the icky shakes to deal with to get the Protein in) - it is amazing how much better you feel when you start to follow the blueprint. when I eat white flour/bread it is like I have been darted by a big game hunter haha.

Recently found this recipe on Mark's Daily Apple - which is devoted to eating primal - a way of eating I have been moving towards for a while - with Protein first as my cardinal rule - after one of my good friends who is a firefighter raved about it (her gang at work eats primal, and the are crossfit folks - cannot imagine people more fit.) Hilarious name - and I have not tried these yet but they look yummy. http://www.marksdail.../#axzz1zss9QFOX

Congrats!

No failure! We are all on the losers bench - some folks lose rapidly and others are moderate. We have to stay positive, it is okay if it takes some of us longer - I knew that it would most likely take 2 years to get to a healthy goal weight for me - in the great scheme of things, that is nothing really. We just have to stick with it and try our best to stay positive

Nice - I did 6 months of supervised WL and in the 7th month - my insurance lifted that requirement completely lol. Good to get 44 lbs. off before surgery anyway. I suppose it depends on your surgeon, but as long as you have all of your pre-op tests complete it can happen very fast - my husbands took only about three weeks.

May 21st - down 32 lbs. post surgery.

I did Atkins induction prior to surgery as per my surgeons instructions (2 weeks - with Clear Liquids the day before surgery) lost 14 lbs and surgeon said my liver was teeeny-tiny, which made me very happy. I was terrified that there would be issues with my big, fat liver lol - but the very low carb is very fast at reducing it. Atkins 72 is usually the most extreme, but most effective way to go. This is from a low-carb msg board with info from the original Atkins diet - Atkins 1972 NOTE* This is from the book, Bantam edition / September 1972 paperback... Not sixty grams of carbohydrate on this diet but zero grams Here’s how this diet is significantly different. During the first week on this diet, you cut your intake of carbohydrates down to what is biologically zero. This creates a unique chemical situation in the body, the one favorable to the fastest possible burning of your body’s stored fat. Ketones are excreted, and hunger disappears. You see, the first fuel your body burns for energy comes from the carbohydrates you eat and drink. If any carbohydrate is available, your body burns this rather than stored fat-and maintains its old metabolic pathways. But carbohydrates, as such, are not stored in the body beyond forty-eight hours. So when no carbohydrate is taken in, your body must draw upon the major reserve source of fuel-the stored fat. It is forced to take a different metabolic pathway. In this process your body converts from being a carbohydrate-burning engine. This is The Diet Revolution: the new chemical situation in which ketones are being thrown off-and so are those unwanted pounds, all without hunger. A gradual addition of carbohydrate to keep your body burning it’s fat as fuel. We must maintain this chemical situation if you’re to continue to lose without hunger. And if we add carbohydrate very gradually in tiny amounts-we can do just this… keep your body converted into a fat-burning engine. So that is just what we do. The second week you might add a few grams of carbohydrate to your diet. Every week thereafter a little more carbohydrate (around five grams) may be returned to the diet. The Rules of Original Atkins The Diet Revolution Rules (Level One) 1. Don’t count calories (so why are so many counting them?) 2. Eat as much of the allowed foods as you need to avoid hunger.(see, no limit) 3. Don’t eat when you are not hungry. 4. Don’t feel you must finish everything on your plate just because it is there. 5. Drink as much Water or calorie free beverages as thirst requires. Don’t restrict fluids… but it is not necessary to force them either.(It doesn't say anything about 1/2 your body weight in water) 6. Frequent small meals are preferable. 7. If weakness results from rapid weight loss, you may need salt. 8. Everyday take a high-strength Multivitamin pill. 9. Read the labels on “low-calorie” drinks, syrups, Desserts,. Only those with no carbohydrate content are allowed. The First Life-Changing Week, eat nothing that is not on the list. Meat: Steaks, Corned beef, Lamb chops, tongue, Hamburgers, Bacon, Any kind of meat in any quantity—except meat with fillers such as sausage, hot dogs, meatballs, most packaged “cold cuts” Fowl: Duckling, Turkey, chicken, Anything with wings, No stuffing Desserts: Gelatin with artificial sweeteners (e.g., D-Zerta ) Condiments: Salt, pepper, mustard, horseradish, vinegar, vanilla, and other extracts; artificial sweeteners; any dry powdered spice that contains no sugar Drinks: Water, Mineral water, Vichy, Club soda; Beef or Chicken broth, bouillon; sugar free diet soda; coffee*, tea, decaffeinated coffee ---------*Special note on caffeine and Diet Cola. Because most heavy people have some hypoglycemia, coffee, which contains caffeine, should be limited to six servings a day (cups). If you know you have low blood sugar, better limit it to three. Fish: All fish, including canned salmon, tuna; any kind of seafood, including oil-packed and smoked, except oysters, clams, muscles, scallops, and pickled fish Eggs: Boiled, fried, scrambled, poached, omelet – any style and without limitations(another NO LIMIT) Salads: Two small green salads a day (each less than one cupful, loosely packed) made only of leafy greens, celery, or cucumbers and radishes. Dressings with vinegar, oil, salt, dry spices, herbs, grated cheese, or anchovies. Or else a sour pickle in place of a salad. Plus… green olives. Butter & Mayonnaise Fats: Butter, margarine (head New Diet Revolution & eat no margarine with trans fatty acids), oils, shortening (not such a great idea), lard & mayonnaise (fats have no carbohydrates). Juice: juice of one lemon or lime Cheese: Four ounces a day of any hard aged cheese. No cream cheese or cheese spreads. Heavy Cream: Four teaspoons a day. (Cream has less carbohydrate than milk – so don’t use milk) Diet Revolution Salad Material: Celery, Chicory, Chinese Cabbage, Chives, Cucumber, Endive, Escarole, Fennel, lettuce, Olives (Green or Black), Onions, Pickles (Sour or Dill), Parsley, Peppers, Radishes, Scallions, watercress. What Happens After The First Week’s Diet. Most diets are fixed formulas and are therefore short-termed and self-limiting. This diet is fixed only for a week. After that – because it must be a lifetime diet, it is, as variable as are individual tastes. I’ve labeled the additions of carbohydrate that follow’ second level’, ‘third level’, ‘fourth level’, ‘fifth level’, but in fact the additions are interchangeable and flexible. You can make any of these additions any week that you choose. I am so committed to making this a livable lifetime diet that I am letting you select your own variations, within the rules set up by your biological rulebook. Put back what you’ve missed the most: The idea is simply to gradually return to your diet first what you missed most. Custom-tailor the diet to suit your carbohydrate additions to suit your lifestyle. All that matters is that you add back to your diet a little carbohydrate at a time, and that you stop adding carbohydrate when you reach your CCL. How to know when to put back a little carbohydrate: Ask yourself: Are the keto-stix still turning purple? Am I still un-hungry? Have I stopped eating at night? Do I have more energy? Am I still losing weight or inches nicely? Remember, your tape measure is a lot better friend than your scale, not only more accurate, but better able to report on the actual fat (not just temporary water) losses this diet achieves. The Second Level: Cheesecake for dessert? At each level, remember you add approximately five to eight grams of carbohydrate daily for a week and analyze the results. Most people agree the best way to handle the second level is to add cottage cheese… The Diet Revolution Vegetables (not for level one): All of the above plus; Asparagus, Avocado, Bamboo Shoots, Bean Sprouts, Beet Greens, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Chard, Chinese Cabbage, eggplant, Kale, Kohlrabi, Mushrooms, Okra, Onions, Peppers, Pumpkins, Rhubarb, Sauerkraut, Snow Pea Pods, Spinach, String Beans, Summer Squash, Tomatoes, Turnips, Water Chestnuts, Wax Beans, Zucchini Squash Sample menu, level one: Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with spicy ham, Diet revolution roll and butter, Bouillon, coffee, or tea Lunch: Cold cuts sandwich on Diet revolution Roll w/ mayo or mustard, 1 cup of salad (loosely packed), oil & vinegar, or a dressing from the recipe list, Raspberry gelatin, Diet soda, coffee, or tea Dinner: Chicken Soup with Matzoh Balls, Your favorite cut of steak, Caesar salad with Caesar Salad dressing, Gelatin, diet soda, coffee or tea Snack: baken-ets, stuffed celery, diet soda. Sample menu, level two: Breakfast: Lox and stuffed onion omelet, caraway Diet revolution Roll with cream cheese, Bouillon, coffee, or tea Lunch: Avocado stuffed with crabmeat, Tossed green salad with dressing from recipe list, diet soda, coffee, or tea Dinner: Mixed grill with garlic Butter Sauce or Béarnaise Sauce, Tossed salad with French Dressing, Gelatin Parfait with whipped cream, diet soda, coffee, or tea Snack: Assorted smoked fish, Hard cheese, Diet soda Ok, there it is 'By The Book'

After trying every diet and exercise program under the sun over the past 20+ years - then attending the WL seminar with my family after my sister-in-law had gastric bypass, lost all of her weight with no complications - where my surgeon began by laying out the statistics that lasting weight loss when you are super morbidly obese through diet and exercise is something like less than one percent. That if my bmi was over 40 (it was 56) I had a greater chance of dying much sooner than if I layed on the operating table for bariatric surgery.... I had a year of research and prep. Yes is is scary and hard, but it is a permanent solution to a problem my family could not beat on our own. It was worth every bit of fear, pain, and doubt and every day gets better

That is fantastic! You look great

There are vsg folks in my support group who have lost 150+ lbs, look like they have never weighed an ounce more than they should, and could not choke down their recommended Vitamins and Protein until 4-6 months out. When I feel like a failure for not getting in enough protein, vitamins, exercise, H2O, what have you - I remember their journies and spectacular success. My nutritionist says 80 g for us - I dont think I have ever hit that - so I try to get anywhere from 40-60. which I can do with eating real food like chicken, turkey, eggs, and greek yogurt etc.. I cannot hit 80 unless I have protein shakes, and like you I can't stand the sweet taste - I gave away 6 tubs of nectar recently because I just can't stomach it post-surgery. I have also become super sensitive to that manufactured protein smell - powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury chicken Soup and the unflavored whey Protein powder smells sickening to me these days so I am trying to get my nutrients from whole foods rather than through chemically altered, manufactured methods that come in a carton, jug, or bar I think not eating whole foods is one of the reasons I got so heavy in the first place (fast foods etc.) I am just trying to take things one day at a time and be cognizant of my success thus far. Personally I would like to see the folks who recommend 100+ grams, have surgery and try it themselves lol - it certainly is a challenge. Maybe some day I will hit 80 grams - perhaps when I can eat more than 3-4 oz. at a time, but until then I will try for my 40-60. My advice is to just do the best you can - you will be able to get more in as the months go by.

6 weeks out today and have lost 30 lbs. since surgery day. Deb, hang in there, we got the sleeve and it is a permanent tool to help us - we have it forever, so we have time to find just the right diet and movement mix. Each week for me seems totally different from the week before - I will have my Premier shakes one week and then the next I can hardly get them down, so I go to eggs and turkey bacon - then those are not good and I am craving summer fruit, so I will have a small nectarine for a snack (and give myself a break than it isnt protein - but is a good choice and not chips or cookies etc.) Slower is good - less skin issues I figure

Only during the first week for my husband and I with any issues with swallowing - and I am certain that those were from swelling.

This sounds wonderful! I will definetely try it out.