Tomo

by the way, since you have acid reflux, did your surgeon suggest gastric bypass (RNY) instead? That's often recommended for patients who have reflux issues (I was one of them...). RNY usually improves if not outright cures reflux. With sleeve there's about a 30% chance of it getting worse. Some people are comfortable with those odds and have gone ahead with sleeve and lucked out. I wasn't comfortable with the odds.

that's not why some insurance policies require a six-month supervised diet. They require it because they want to see if you're able to stick to a diet long-term, because they don't want to fork over thousands of dollars for patients to have an elective surgery only to blow it big time by not following their clinic's plan. On top of that, some surgeons require that you lose a certain number of pounds before they'll let you have surgery.
I lost 56 lbs on my six-month supervised diet, and no way were they going to tell me I couldn't have surgery because I could obviously "do it on my own" (and honestly, fewer than 5% of people who lose a lot of weight can maintain it for more than a few months. Bariatric surgeons are well aware of this fact)

The purée stage is a struggle for lots of us. A combination of the taste, smell &/or texture which is temporarily haywire post surgery. The worst things I pureed was tuna & salmon. Shudder.
I survived on runny scrambled eggs (you could mash soft poached eggs too), boiled eggs mashed with mayo, thin instant rolled oats (made in milk), yoghurt, thicker Soups (pre made or make your own & puree) & a couple of times I ate baby food. Friend said she survived on chicken breast puréed with chicken gravy - it was the only meat Protein she could tolerate.

Yogurt, cottage cheese and cream Soups (as others have suggested) are all good at the pureed food stage, too!

Trying again to show pics.

Trying again to show pics.

Aww wonder why it isn't showing. Thank you for letting me know. Yes, same and I always air fry everything too. Favorite kitchen appliance hehe. But the batter of this was so easy so I had to try it.

lunch today was colourful.
White fish and shrimp ceviche that was really spicy due to the fresh jalapeños (sooo good). Mexican rice and a strawberry gem lettuce salad with roasted almonds and goat cheese.
I only ate a few spoonfuls of ceviche. Then a couple of hours later had a small bowl of salad.

Nothing wrong with being a perfectionist or anal @Lilia_90. Your spread looks wonderful.

If only @ShoppGirl. But once the photo is approved it becomes your photo. If you take another it has to go through the identification process again. Sigh! Thankfully I don’t usually have to show my licence often so if it’s a crappy pxt it won’t be seen often.
I wonder what will happen with all those young girls with their over filled sausage lips & chip monk cheeks & the eyelash extensions that half cover their eyes. That’s going to be interesting. Lol!
Hopefully you have a better system in the US so you don’t have to go through this @Tomo.
I admit I considered only getting a one year license but waiting in the queue again & all the kerfuffle & the comparatively additional cost for a one year vs 10 year license put me off.

Ooh, I enjoy crumbed calamari @Tomo. (Can’t see your pxts though. ☹️) Have to admit I buy it pre prepared & then air fry it. Only have it rarely as it’s processed & is impregnated with far more oil than I like.

Made the fam Çilbir which is a turkish egg dish with a tangy and garlicky greek yogurt base, topped with poached eggs and drizzled with a hot spicy olive oil and butter mix. I love this dish but didn’t have any. I might have some for dinner. With a side of toasted sourdough.

Burger!

The whole dinner spread for the above post (for context, yes I’m anal and a perfectionist I know)

dinner tonight:
Smash burger tacos Big Mac style. Lean ground beef on a mini mission low carb tortilla (my hand for reference), melted cheddar cheese (real cheddar not the plastic one), sliced dill pickles, jalapeños and gem lettuce drizzled with a little homemade big mac sauce. This meal is one of my favourites. See how I did below.
My motto is when you’re full, you don’t need to eat the last bite, so I left the last bite sitting there. 1 hour later I had one bite of the homemade roasted potato wedges and 3 broccoli florets.

Dinner:
Homemade steaks!! I am so proud of how these turned out. Super juicy, super yummy and the homemade Chimichurri was out of this world good. I ate around 3 strips and couldn’t fit anything else, the meat was too filling.

Breakfast- 1/4 c. chocolate pb fit with 1c. oats with 2tbsp cocoa powder made with Water
snack- 1/2c. cottage cheese, 3/4 frozen blueberries, and a toasted plain mini bagel
snack- raita (1/3c nonfat plain Greek yogurt, 1/2c. Diced cucumber with a pinch of salt and garam masala and a smidge of lemon juice
dinner- curry seasoned veggies (zucchini, spinach, mushrooms, onions, and garlic) with chicken coconut curry (found in the deli section)
Also, bonus calorie count for today as I doubt I’ll eat anything else today.

Mashed potatoes and pepper salmon
I was super busy all day and didn’t get to eat until 6pm plusI had to cook (at least the food was good)

Meals from the last few days-
those cheesy stuffing waffles with over easy eggs and griddled tomatoes (clearly didn’t eat it all)
cottage cheese mixed with cooked onions, bell pepper, and mushrooms then microwaved with marinara and turkey pepperoni (this I will definitely eat again)
lemon poppyseed bread with ricotta, sliced apple, and honey (ate about 3/4 the bread and ricotta)
polenta with French onion roasted green Beans (a kit from the produce section) and shrimp, onions and tomatoes in veggie broth (the kids had theirs mixed with rice)
spicy Thai chili tuna mixed with nonfat yogurt, more reduced sugar Thai chili sauce, and shredded lettuce. Only ate 10 of the Thai chili rice crisps
cottage cheese plate with an everything bagel, strawberries, mini bell peppers, Tomato slices, and lettuce (ate half the bagel, most of the cottage cheese and peppers and about half everything else)

Wow. I concur with @ms.sss. You did get the short end of the stick. I had the sleeve for years and then I had a revision to RNY (~3 years) and I don't have any of those issues. In fact, I can't even think of any negatives. Except if I eat too fast, it may cause the foamies.

I'm so sorry you're going through all that. I have no problem with my Vitamins, I wear a MV patch and sometimes I'll take high ADEK chewable. My Vitamin A was slightly low so that's why I started taking the high ADEK a few times a week. I also never heard of cold sores lower immunity and fungal infections... Etc. after WLS. I sure hope things and improve for you.

"- Still have fun but track their calories and weight DAILY."
This is me too.
1. What are your golden rules to successful maintenance?
I've found that sticking to a monthly calorie average rather than a daily one gives me the flexibility I need. If I go over my limit for a week, I know I have time to balance it out. This approach prevents me from being too harsh on myself for one bad day. For instance, my goal for June is to maintain a daily average of 1550 calories.This method has been crucial for my success. In the past, focusing on daily or weekly limits led to self-criticism and was counterproductive. It took some time, but I’ve learned that this is a life long game. By being kinder to myself. I've made much more progress. Even naturally thin people overeat occasionally; the difference is they don't punish themselves or give up.
2. How did you manage the mental shift (navigating fear and uncertainty) while transitioning to maintenance?
The shift for me came pretty naturally. I eased into it slow. I remember in the beginning that if I lost a pound or so that month I would adjust my calorie intake, small increments so I wouldn't get used to too high of calories. It's always a slippery slope when you have a history of overeating. I adjusted it month to month, until I got to the point that my weight was stable month to month.
3. How much indulgence do you actually allow yourself? I don't have any absolutes. I do try to eat healthy 80/20. I try to eat 5-8 servings a day of fruits and vegetables.

I call it regurgitating not vomiting because it almost comes up on its own with very little muscle spasming. Think it’s because your tummy is the muscle & it’s smaller so less strenuous spasming is needed. Plus being a smaller ‘container’ it takes less to empty it. And no cramps & sore stomach muscle after. That’s a win to me.

everything i've eaten today!
1579 calories from food + 2 espresso martinis (282 cals, not shown)
so 1861 cals today if i don't eat or drink anything else.
and now...my food day in pictures!

White fish Ceviche and Mexican street corn salad (made with a greek yogurt dressing). Below is what I plated for myself but decided to go for seconds for the ceviche and only had one bite of the corn salad (which was really good).

Wow. I concur with @ms.sss. You did get the short end of the stick. I had the sleeve for years and then I had a revision to RNY (~3 years) and I don't have any of those issues. In fact, I can't even think of any negatives. Except if I eat too fast, it may cause the foamies.

I'm so sorry you're going through all that. I have no problem with my Vitamins, I wear a MV patch and sometimes I'll take high ADEK chewable. My Vitamin A was slightly low so that's why I started taking the high ADEK a few times a week. I also never heard of cold sores lower immunity and fungal infections... Etc. after WLS. I sure hope things and improve for you.