NMJG

I could eat a little salad at 5 months out, before that I could not handle it. At nearly a year out I can eat small amounts, which I enjoy, but I do prefer to save my limited tummy space for more nutritious food. I generally steal a few bites from someone else's salad and that satisfies my salad itch.

Kaitlyn, you can seriously hurt yourself. None of us want to see you end up in the emergency room with a leak. Please, please please follow your post op diet. This is serious stuff, like your internal organs type serious, not just another stupid diet that is easily broken with no problem other than guilt.

So get back on your program and move forward. Then analyze what caused you to sabotage yourself. Last, come up with some strategies to use next time those triggers occur. Knowledge will you help you.. Best of luck to you.

Just make sure your surgeon doesn't have a rule against gaining weight prior to surgery. Mine would cancel you if you showed up the day of surgery with any gain or if you did not lose your specified presurgery loss. It is fairly common among wls doctors.

Do a search for gamergirl on here. She posted a ton of recipes last year and has a blog, I think it is twosleevers.com or something like that. Lots of pureed dishes. She's an excellent cook.

You can order sugar free chocolate chips online.

I second what Lips said. For cheap, I look for the meats at the store that are on deep discount because they are about to expire. Save 30-50%. I make my own bean dishes that cost a couple of bucks for the family. No sugary Beans, instead I make cassoulet or chili or lentils or split pea Soup or refried pintos or black beans. Don't forget tuna salad for a cheap, wls friendly meal. Eggplant lasagna is much better than Pasta lasagna. Slice your eggplant very thin, then sauté it in olive oil. Use the eggplant slices instead of noodle layers. Add in Italian sausage, mozzarella, ricotta, mushrooms, etc. delish. Bake until bubbly and brown on the top cheese layer, 45 min. Be sure to use a low carb pasta sauce, though, you would be surprised how many brands use high fructose corn syrup. Read the label for carb count per half cup. Have Johnsonville Brats night with sauerkraut and some sugarfree coleslaw. My kids love that. Most stores have large bags of boneless chicken thighs in the freezer section. Excellent source of Protein that is easy to get down with wls, too. This is a very cost effective protein choice.

Just my opinion....When you work out hard, you might well find that you want to eat a lot the following day. Personally, i choose to eat more fats when I am hungry like that. I am a low carber (LCHF). Eating more fats ends that crazy visceral hunger fast and helps you lose. Just don't mix a lot of carbs in with it, as that will not help your weight loss.

Syntrax matrix Peanut Butter cookie is the bomb, especially with a spoonful of PB2 added and mixed with milk (half milk half Water or almond milk, or use milk for all the liquid). Chike Iced coffee Protein powder is also a winner in our house, regardless of diet status.

Dried edamame Nut packs Roasted soy nuts Protein chips

Early out your tummy is numb and you can get in more, plus they are very soft foods. Just wait, when you get to firm protein you will see considerable restriction. What you describe is common in the first month.

Actually, new research plus old research that was buried for many years says your mom is right. It's the carbs, not the fat. Take a look at Gary Taub's books Good Carbs Bad Carbs or Why We Get Fat. Journalistic discovery of all the research and studies over the years that did not agree with the low fat bandwagon. Nations around the world (like Sweden) are revising their nutritional guidelines as we speak. I was low fat for decades, did nothing to keep me from gaining weight. Now I eat all the heavy cream and butter I want but keep my carbs very low and I maintain my weight very easily. Not to sound preachy, but the world is a-changing and everything we took for granted about nutrition since the 60's is being turned on its head.

Well done! You should be very proud. Amazing accomplishment.

I'll play devil's advocate here. I think for many people, very low carb and high fat is an effective long term strategy that results not only in weight loss, but successful long term maintenance that is very sustainable. People are different, exercise regimes are different, some people are more insulin resistant than others. I find that I do extremely well on very low carb. I do think that when carbs are increased they can cause a lot of people (especially heavy people who still have vestiges of metabolic syndrome or outright diabetes)who are early out from surgery) to lose less quickly than they might on a low carb or ketogenic diet. People who exercise a lot use up a lot of carbs, no doubt. Those of us that don't exercise hard may find problems with even 80-100 grams of carbs a day. I do eat carbs, but my carbs generally come from vegetables, legumes, and dairy (ok, and the occasional tortilla chip or worse). Personally, I find carbs not very helpful in my diet. Do I demonize them? Yeah, I do. I wish I didn't eat them at all, because I still have an addiction to them and must always be careful about it.

When I was heavy I did Gentle Yoga, which I loved. I still do it and also Slow Flow Yoga. I think it is excellent. When I was heavy and had lots of joint issues we just modified poses so I could do what I could manage. I also have balancing issues, which have gotten a bit better with Yoga. Go for it.

No that is not slow. And it wouldn't matter if it was. Don't compare yourself to others, everyone loses differently. If you would like to lose faster, take a look at your food composition. Some people are insulin resistant, especially early out when they are heavier. You may want to drop carbs below 50 grams a day (no more than 20 grams in a meal) to see better results. Many people drop to under 20 grams of carbs a day for best results. Ketogenic diets are very effective.

I have become a very strong advocate of low carb/high fat and plan to stay on this forever to keep my weight where I want it. It gets easier over time, and I do endulge in carb feasts from time to time, but high carb treats are just that - treats (not my regular fare). And a treat might be a frozen yogurt or ice cream scoop (not half a pint) a couple of Cookies (not a package) or a slice of pizza (not half the pie). My regular meals have 10- 20 carbs each, often less. Carbs are addictive. There is a study with rats and cocaine and oreos - they pick the oreos over the cocaine - nice! Once you get over your addiction (some people never do), it gets much better. Note if you are just starting off low carb: when you eat high carb you hold a lot of Water. When you start low carb you lose a lot of that water very fast, which can lead to dehydration and headaches. Be sure to stay hydrated during this period. Also, once you get used to eating low carb, the 3pm lows and depression go away. I recommend studying up on it if you are interested. Gary Taub's books are great: Why We Get Fat or Good Carbs Bad Carbs (read one or the other, no need to read both). I currently eat no more than 50 carbs a day on maintenance. When I have a treat I might have 100 carbs for the day. Gone are the days of 500 grams of carbs at a sitting. I used to eat huge amounts of carbs, bread, Cereal, Pasta, etc. and never ate fats. I never eat pasta or bread or drink beer any more, and I don't miss it. My carbs tend to come from Beans and legumes, dairy, and vegetables, and the occasional tortilla or tortilla chips (some addictions never die). Once in a while I do a cookie thing or a chocolate thing or a key lime pie thing. No one is perfect. I will say that I believe eating high fat with low carb is what makes it work best long term. I am never hungry and I never feel deprived. I understand now that calories in do NOT equal calories out, and I understand why I got fat despite years of low fat eating. How many salads did I eat with plain vinegar? How many sandwiches with mustard instead of mayo? How much pasta with marinara sauce instead of alfredo sauce? Plain vegetables instead of buttered? I never understood it was the bread, the pasta, the cereal, the potatoes, etc. that made me fat, not the fats which I never ate. Now I've got this, and my weight is very stable (a miracle), even going on vacation and a cruise (with more than my normal treats). I finally have a way of eating that I can do long term easily and that works well with my sleeve. And, the sleeve is there to help me keep my "bad" moments limited, which is a great tool because I can actually stop myself now. That was not the case before the sleeve.

It is totally ridiculous. I am currently in a size 6. I fit in 12's from the 1980's, 10's from the 90's and 8's from a decade ago. If you look at sewing patterns you can see what the sizes used to be (the pattern companies never went to vanity sizing and base everything on measurements). I think I am a 14 or 16 in a standard sewing pattern LOL. Personally, I like shopping at Chico's because they don't even use the standard sizing, they have their own sizes in 0, 1, 2, and 3. I like being a size 0!

Goodness, high carb snacks like bananas and dried fruit are not doing you any favors. Stick with low carb, high Protein snacks to maximize your weightloss. It will make a big difference. I also eat high fat along with low carb, but that is a whole other topic. Depending on where you are in your food stages: Jerky cottage cheese ricotta cheese, plain or with sugar free flavored syrup (Torani), chocolate, vanilla, caramel, etc. Hard boiled egg cheese sticks greek yogurt (sugar free) Peanut Butter / almond butter cherry tomatoes nuts (no honey roasted or any with sugar) a glass of whole milk Atkins Endulge chocolate candy (2 net carbs) Saffron Road Falafel flavored dried chickpeas (World Market or online) Dried edamame (snack packs available) World Market or online Fresh steamed edamame Dried seaweed Protein chips (online) not my favorite but some people like them Laughing Cow or mini Bonbel cheeses (individually wrapped) Individually wrapped Brie Cheese (Trader Joe's) Chick-fil-a 4 pack of grilled chicken nuggets (chunks of grilled chicken breast) Chick-fil-a Diet Lemonade Starbucks Skinny Mocha - Tall size (110 calories, 11 grams protein) Olives Pickles (not sweet) Roasted red bell peppers Roasted red bell pepper spread with cream cheese and rolled up and secured with a toothpick beef sticks salami and cheese slices hummus Greek yogurt dip (yogurt with seasoning mix, garlic, salt and pepper, etc.) Sour cream and green chile dip (sour cream with chopped green chiles (canned or fresh) Dippers (instead of chips): celery sticks, Belgian Endive (makes a nice scoop), carrot sticks, snap peas, cucumber slices, jicama sticks Quesadilla (half of one slice of Flat Out low carb bread, 1 oz cheddar cheese, pickled jalapenos or salsa (optional). Cook in a pan or microwave. Spread filling on one half and fold over. pizza (half of one slice of Flat Out low carb bread, 1 spoonful of tomato sauce or alfredo sauce for white pizza, 1 oz. mozzarella cheese, optional topping: 1 oz. of pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, Italian sausage, etc.). Spread sauce on the bread, then cheese, then topping. Broil for a few minutes until bubbly. Sprinkle with Italian Herbs and Parmesan cheese if desired. You can also roll this up after you broil it to make a little pizza handroll that is easy to take with you.

A lot of people are different. Some have a lot of trouble getting fluids down, especially at first, and some don't. I believe that after 6 months most of the issues subside for most people, but you could be one of the unlucky ones. I started using a straw again after 3 months. No trouble with it and I don't have air issues with a straw.

My surgeon told me the statistics were (overall) sleevers lose and keep off 60% of their excess weight. That averages out to some people gaining it all back and some people keeping it all off, with most people somewhere in the middle. I have never heard the statistics your nutritionist quoted. I would ask her for her sources. If she has none, or they are out of date, or if they are from a sketchy website instead of a reputable medical institution, then you know what to do with her data! This is from an older study in 2010 from the National Institute of Health, but even these statistics are far above your nutritionist's stats.

So find a new PCP. You don't need a cr@ppy attitude like that.

Honey, you can always just drink a glass of milk if you are desperate. Whatever you do, get in your Protein. hair will grow back. Getting muscle back is a whole other thing. You really don't want to lose muscles because of lack of protein. Where are you post surgery? How far out?

Awesome

I do mall walking when it's hot, or Walmart or Target walking. Anyplace it is cool. I get dehydrated easily. I also walk early in the day before it heats up too much or I walk at night (still humid in Houston early in the day, but at least the sun isn't high and the temps are not way, way up there yet.).