rcarter76

I too use the Calcets but hate that they are 7 carbs and 40 calories each, but better than NOT taking calcium. I HATE my Bariatric Advantage chewable Vitamin I am supposed to take twice a day, but they make me gag. I have tried both berry and lemon. Too chalky and cardboardy. I switched to flintsone multi just to get some good in me. I take a B12 that dissolves under my tongue once a day. I would LOVE if you guys could tell me about the gummy Vitamins. Do they taste like gummy bears? What is the brand and do they have the same nutrition as the others? Do you take them once or twice? If I could find something I like, I would be so happy!

That helps so much just to see what someone else's day is like. I am going to try everyone's tips and then give an update of what happens! I love you guys, thanks for looking out for me and sending me in the right direction, what would I do if I didn't have the forum? My dietician and doc were sending me down the wrong path me thinks! Have a great night!

It sucks that my nutritionist and doctor told me not to worry about carbs if they had Protein in them and I am only finding out about this from you all. I still think it is disappointing that eating 800 cal a day, carbs or no carbs, doesn't even get a POUND off in 2.5 weeks. That's just crazy. But I am revamping the diet, going to try the 30 carbs thing and see what happens. Some people have said their doctor said to stay under 60, and mine said don't worry, so I don't know what to do. But I am going to try to not put fruit in my shakes and see what happens over the next few days. I will report in so that everyone (newbies) can learn from my hardship!

Thanks everyone for your two cents. My Protein shake itself only has 7 carbs, so it is the fruit and yogurt I was adding that put it over the top. I will take Tiffy's advice, and only have one yogurt a day and stick try to watch my carbs. It is just frustrating when your doctor isn't the one giving the good advice! I tried to explain to my nutritionist and she says she wants to take me back off fruit (I put blueberries etc) in my Protein shakes for 2 weeks and see what happens. I know eating this way will bring weight loss. But I guess I am just going through the depression stages of a few things. If I ONLY ate 2 protein shakes etc before surgery I would be losing weight as well, so I am trying to fight the feelings on that one. I do know that it is MUCH easier to only eat 800 calories with the sleeve since I would be starving otherwise, so I guess my head is adjusting along with my body. I am very thankful for this forum as it allows me to talk to people who are going through, have been through or will go through the same exact stuff. Sharing both ways helps me out a lot. I will keep on keepin on for now and you all will be the first to know when I get out of the 250s and break this darn stall. I can't wait.

Thanks for the info, I will see if I can be more conscience and if it works. Does anyone else count carbs so religiously? If not, have you hit a stall or kept losing, could it be something else?

Wow, well I am super jealous. I can eat an entire cup of yogurt no problem...maybe this just didn't work for me like it does some others... So you are saying keep it under 30g carbs daily? It sounds like you were barely eating! I am not sure what to do, I have already emailed my nutritionist for advice again...

But my Protein shakes have 33.5 carbs in them just for one, and she is recommending 2 per day? Between the powder and blueberries, it just goes over. Are you taking 30% carbs or 30Grams per day? I mean if you ate eggs, Protein Shakes, yogurt, how did you not eat carbs? Plus I am STILL eating 1/3 of what I ate before surgery and the carbs are 75% less, so I should still be losing? I don't know, I just thought if anyone had any tips, so thanks Tiffy!

I keep my carbs under about 60-80 and my nutritionist said not to worry if the carbs come from things with Protein like cheese, yogurt, refried Beans etc. So I am not sure what it is, but I haven't heard from ANYONE else that they have hit a plateau like this... It is hard not to get depressed. Thanks for the response girl!

Ok everyone, I LOVE this forum, because everyone is so positive, helpful, caring, kind and successful! But this is the third week I have not lost weight! I will be 5 weeks out on Monday and lost tons pre-op and 2 weeks post op. I know everyone says there is the 3 week stall (I am going on week 5), and that your body adjusts to eating soft foods from liquids and all that jazz. But this week I checked my caloric intake, (800 per day), my Protein is on target (60-80 g daily) and I drink plenty of H2o. I have been in touch with my nutritionist etc and we tweaked my diet a bit, but that was almost a week ago. What gives? I don't want to be negative nancy or a sourpuss, but this is depressing. I am barely eating, have been walking 1.5-2 miles every other day and am getting plenty of sleep. I would just like to know, has this happened to anyone else, does it start coming off again, and what are your experiences. My doc said that I should not have a plateau for 6 mos to a year , and I am only a month out so I am super concerned. I have my follow up with him next Tuesday, but I feel like he will give me the same old, "Work the plan, the plan will work" adage and I just want to feel good and NORMAL. Please post any such plateaus, regardless of where you hit them, how much you lost in your first month etc. I was 269 day of surgery and have been toggling between 250-253 for over 2 weeks now. Very frustrating. Any suggestions would be appreciated, along with comments, help, and stories. Thanks, Rachel:001_unsure:

Or you could order the fish, (since it is the softest) and eat the soft foods (steamed veggies etc). and just eat around it, then when you get back to your hotel room, take a Protein shake. I leave for a work trip next weekend for a week too and it is hard, but I don't care, I will figure it out. I think we think people are aware of what we are or aren't eating, but I bet if you don't make a big deal out of it, it won't be. Good luck! Let us know how it goes!

Barbara, I am so happy for you. I know what you mean about he rolly feeling. I kept asking if it would ever feel "normal" again. I am 4 weeks out and it is starting to, but not all the way. At first the rolly feeling made me feel empty (not fullness empty), but like there was extra space in my abdomen. I think it was just my new insides getting used to not having a giant stomach in there. And I still have trouble telling when I am full, so I just measure out what the doc says I should be eating and just eat that! Kermit, I too want to get together with other fellow TX sleevers. Barbara and I live in Austin, and I know there are lots others. Maybe we can compile a group and meet up every other month or something, and keep each other motivated? Where do you live?

I use skim milk. I spoke with my nutritionist and we kind of "started all over". I am to keep my calories between 800-1000. I am to use either the milk or the yogurt but not both in my protein shake. Yes, she told me to use fresh fruit, but to use berries, like strawberries or blueberries instead of a banana for now since the banana is carb and sugar high. I will try it today. I also switched yogurt to Dannon light n fit which has 80 cal instead of 100-110. I also have been back to the gym this week. I walked 2 miles yesterday in 24 minutes! I was so proud. For me that is a lot since I haven't worked out in forever. But I feel better when I do, my insides feel better and I know it will work. I am sitting at 251 today and my hope is to keep eating lean protein and working out and drinking more water and see if I can get in the 240s by this weekend. The other thing I noticed is everyone says keep their carbs under 30. Is that 30 grams or 30%? I use the online food diary and it says to keep your carbs at a certain percentage, but I am not sure how I could keep them under 30g per day. My nutritionist says it depends on what kind of carbs. Like if it comes from yogurt and refried beans or something with protein it is ok and not to worry about it. She says for me to focus on the 80g protein, calories and water and the rest will take care of itself. I have a turkey roll up recipe if you want it! Let me know how you are doing!

Well, I just made a protein shake, it is 150 cal without milk, and has 1 g sugar and only 1.5 fat and 7 g carb. But I add 1 cup milk, yogurt and half a banana to make a smoothie. Gives me over 40 g protein just for breakfast, but is is 380+ calories right there! I hate the taste unless I make it with yogurt or fruit... So now I only have 300 something calories left for the day and 40 more grams of protein to go find in those calories. I am getting down. My weight keeps going up a bit each day and then will dip, but hasn't gone down in over 2 weeks now...

Well, I just need to track and get on it then, I hope I have not sabotaged myself. If I start back and get under my caloric intake daily, you think I will lose again??

My nutritionist just told me to keep it around 800. SO I need to revamp my diet. I think the biggest thing is that I am still doing protein drinks and they are 200 cal each, so if i cut those out, I should be better off...it is just so hard to get the protein in enough to speed the weight loss. I am wondering, what your diet was each day...a few months out. Also, I am jealous, I don't think I get as full as you, but I do think I am dealing with head hunger lots lately, like I can eat cause I like food, but don't need to. Did you ever deal with this, even back with your first WLS?

I have been stalled for 2 weeks also! I am not sure if it is the calories? Not enough water or not enough protein? I will call my nutritionist this week and find out if there is something I can do?

I am also dealing with the smell and Water issue. So I drink Crystal Lite or SF kool aid to get the water down. Smells are really a lot more apparent to me these days. I get sick feeling if I smell fish, eggs cooking etc. Not sure why my senses changed, but just agreeing here. I use Bariatric Advantage Protein shakes in chocolate and they are good. They have little to ZERO sugar and almost 30+ g protein! Good luck!

YOu guys! I must be doing something very wrong, I am eating between 1000- 1200 a day! How often do you eat?

What is your caloric intake guidelines ladies?

I am self pay and went to Texas Bariatric Specialists and my surgeon was Nilesh Patel. He has done over 1000 WLS and I got the sleeve. I paid $14,000 out of pocket through Care Credit. It was all inclusive for my pre-ops and all post-op appointments and the hospital was Innova in San Antonio that has a 4 to 1 nurse ratio and you have a private suite to recover in with your own bathroom etc. It was wonderful. It was really helpful to recover in a specialty hospital where all they do is weight loss surgery. You should google them and check it out. I am sure they would work with you as well from out of state! Good luck!

Yes! I don't even know what that is. Maybe I have a gallstone? Hmmmm I will call my doctor on Monday. Hopefully that is not it! It is not searing pain, but noticable. Isn't gallstone pain much much worse, or could this just be the beginning?

Just recently I started having this sort of "side stitch" pain. It is not super painful, I don't have a fever etc. But when I sit up, bend over, or use my tummy muscles, it hurts, almost like an internal bruise. It kind of reminds me of a side stitch you would get when you run? Has anyone experienced this, is it something to be alarmed about? Or is this normal internal healing? It is on my right hand side literally between my front and back, and just doesn't seem to go away. It is a new pain, or at least since I have been healing I have noticed it more in the last few days. Let me know if anyone else has experienced anything like this, this far out from surgery. Thanks! R

I got instructions to not drink before OR after my meals for 30 minutes. The 30/30 rule. Can anyone explain why? Did anyone's surgeon tell them this same thing? Will it be bad, or is it just so we feel full and get nutrients instead of flushing them? I just can't remember and was wondering if anyone had an explanation for me for now? Thanks!

I have had this pain too, for me, I have determined it is from eating too much too fast. It almost feels like it is stuck in my chest and I can't breathe. I have to train myself to slow down, smaller bites, more chewing, take time in between each bite. This is a big lesson to learn for me since I was a binge eater and could throw down TONS of food in minutes. I have to sit bite, chew, breathe, and take a break and repeat. Just my 2 cents. I am 3.5 weeks out now... R

I really appreciate everyone sharing. The newbies understanding, the encouragement from the veterans. I really am glad we have this site, or else i am not sure what I would do. I am down another pound today! I am also going to start heading back to the gym consistently today, (it's had bad hours and been closed for the holidays). So I think adding walking and more Water like everyone has said will help. I noticed yesterday when I added more water intentionally that I felt SUPER full and couldn't have even tried to eat. I think I am just scared since I haven't gotten sick, vomited, or had any issues internally. I also moved to soft foods (doc doesn't believe in mushies, wanted to "train" me to chew everything up on my own), and so moving directly from liquids to soft foods, and not feeling entirely full is scary. But people around me remind me I am not eating nearly what I used to. I need to keep the faith and keep going. I guess I am also scared since my sleeve is still healing and I am only 4 weeks tomorrow, that adding something or eating too much will cause a leak and I am just hoping to get to the point where I know I am all ok inside and keep on keepin on. Also, what caloric intake is everyone on? My doc didn't give me anything but guidelines for 80 g Protein and 64 oz water per day, and each day differs. I am toggling between 600 and sometimes 1200 per day. Thanks again everyone and Happy New Year!