goblue9280

Great topic as I just bought a spiralizer attachment for my kitchenaid mixer last week. I made some squash and zucchini noodles last week and did not have a problem with them. I've also been sauteing some cut up zucchini this week and eating that. I like it nicely browned and a little soft, but I'm still getting the hang of cooking it. There's two things I found that can make it tricky to cook it the way you want: 1. Zucchini holds a ton of Water, 2. when it releases that water it tends to suck up the oil. First batch of noodles I did last week I used too much olive oil (you don't need much) and let it cook too long. It lost its noddle-ness and was too soggy and oily. I'm hoping this weekend to cook some turkey or chicken meatballs in the crock pot and make some more zucchini noodles. Let me know if you come across any good zucchini recipes as I'm loving the flavor right now.

Went into my original consultation wanting the sleeve, Doc quickly set me down the RNY path. The main reasons (as others have mentioned) was because of my BMI, type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. The surgery went well. I had it done around noon on a Thursday, and was discharged around noon the next day so I was only in the hospital around 30 hours when you include pre-surgery time. I went home with some pain meds took a couple each of the first two days and then was fine. Slept a ton over those first few days, but by about day 4 post-op I had more energy than I had in months. Went back to work 6 days post-op (desk job.) I have had zero issues with any foods. I never was nauseous or vomited. I have yet to experience dumping, but stay away from sweets and carbs as I'm too afraid to try them right now. I'm 6 weeks post-op today and am in my regular food phase, but have been sticking to mostly foods from the pureed and soft food phases. As of today, I'm down 46 pounds from the morning of surgery (67 lbs down when you include pre-op loss), so an average of almost 8 pounds per week which I know will slow soon. I'm able to eat 1/2 cup of food with no issues at mealtime. 2 to 2.5 ounces of meat (tuna, chicken or turkey) don't cause me any issues. I'm working cooked veggies into my meals now... have been sauteing zucchini the past few days with a little olive oil and some garlic. Experiencing foods again post surgery is an awesome event. I don't know that my tastes for different foods have been altered greatly as I still crave many of the same things. However, being on the pre-op liquid diet, and the blandness of those first few weeks has greatly enhanced my taste buds. Vegetables I ate and barely tasted before are now full of complex flavors. Like the zucchini for example, I use a little fresh garlic so I pick up that flavor, but I also now pick up the underlying sweet flavor of the zucchini itself. Tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, green Beans... they all have these great flavor profiles I never experienced before. I haven't had much fruit yet, but the little bit of fresh cantaloupe and banana I had was amazing. The sweetness hit me like a ton of bricks. For me, that's probably the coolest part of this journey so far... finding out (and embracing) how full of flavor real food is.

One on-the-go food I enjoy is deviled eggs made with hummus. I usually keep a few hard boiled eggs on hand, so it takes me 2-3 minutes to make. Cut egg in half, mash up the yoke in a bowl, add 1 table spoon of hummus, salt, pepper (sometimes I add hot sauce)... mix well and then spoon back into the egg. 1 whole egg (2 halves) fills me up well. I find hummus moves slow through my stomach giving me a nice long full feeling. Generally I eat them with a small spoon and take my time, but I have taken them on the go and eaten them in the car in small bites.

I'm 5 weeks out and have zero issues and have yet to push myself passed around 1/2 cup of food. I've never dumped, but I am strictly adhering to the diet. Ive had zero issues with new foods, medicines, vitamins, etc. I've yet to have a "I couldn't possibly eat one more bite" feeling. I've had scrambled eggs, turkey meatballs, chili, tuna and other filling protein sources, but have never felt stuffed on my 1/2 cup servings. We'll see if things change over time as my stomach nerves heal.

I recovered pretty quickly... in fact, within 4-5 days post surgery I was feeling better than I had in months. It's amazing what getting your glucose and blood pressure under control can do to your overall well being. I had surgery on a Thursday, had my first post-op appointment on the following Tuesday and went back to work on Wednesday (post-op day 6.) However, everyone is different, and your recovery might take longer. Furthermore, if I had more time off available, I would have taken it just to give my body and mind more time to get used to the diet.

Water is the key for me. If I'm getting in 40+ ounces of water a day, I'm fine. Weekends though can be a struggle to get in my water and then I'm taking miralax Monday/Tuesday.

I want to grill some chicken breasts, my worry right now is it will be too dry for me. Also, a back wrapped jalapeno (ABT's) would hit the spot... I'll probably wait another couple months before trying many grilled foods. But yeah, I'm a big fan of the grill.

Are you eating the regular flavored oatmeal or the weight control? I'm pretty sure the weight control has almost no sugar per serving.

I was an Oct 1st surgery and Water has been my biggest struggle. I'm fine during the week at my desk... on weekends is where I struggle. Running the kids around to and fro, I often forget to bring a bottle of water with me. When I don't have enough water, I get constipated, which is a bad and painful thing.

Yep, very normal. I had it as did many here. For me it started almost right away and lasted a couple days. After that I didn't have any issues up until surgery... other than I had trouble getting in all of my protein shakes each day as I found the bariatric advantage powder to be repulsive.

Awesome news Sarah! I've been craving meatballs since your post the other day. Today I went out to a restaurant for the first time postop. We went to Olive Garden. Made sure to ask them not to bring any breadsticks and I ordered a side of the chicken meatballs with marinara sauce. They were delicious, ate one meatball with a little of the kids steamed broccoli for lunch and then had the 2nd meatball with some more broccoli for dinner. Cost was $4 for the two meatballs.

Congrats Eric! I've got 4 young kids myself so i know exactly what your talking about.

Really enjoyed this series and learned a lot.

You're a triple loser! Congrats!

As I was reading your post, I'm thinking "she should totally make a quilt out of the bigger size ones when they become too big." Great minds... Congrats on the NSV, lets me know I can also reach my list of personal NSV's I have in my head.

@@winklie Here are a couple simple recipes I made this week that I have really enjoyed... and trust me, if I can make them, anyone can. Shelly's Baked Ricotta 8 oz of Ricotta Cheese 1/2 cup grated Parmesan 1 large Egg, beaten 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning salt & pepper to taste 1/2 cup Marinara Sauce 1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese Mix ricotta cheese, parmesan, beaten egg, seasonings together and place in a oven proof dish. Pour marinara on top and top with mozzarella cheese. Bake it in the oven @ 450 for about 20-25 minutes (best) or nuke it till hot and bubbly. I usually made it first in the oven and heated the leftovers in the microwave Hungry Girl Buffalo chicken Dip: http://www.food.com/recipe/hungry-girl-buffalo-chicken-dip-413265

No reason not to call your surgeon in the am. If insurance told you they don't have everything, find out why. I know you are eagerly waiting on the approval, but in the grand scheme of things, 2 days may not make a difference. Your surgery date may very well be the same in two days time depending on your surgeons availability.

I would avoid the wonton wrappers... my NUT said no Pasta for at least 6 months. I bet the wonton meat filling would be ok and of course the broth.

Too funny, just had a doctors appt today with my PCP and went through the exact same thing. However, I did have one major scale victory today. It's been a long time since I've been able to step on the scale in my doctors office because it only goes up to 400 lbs. In the past, I would always embarrassingly have to tell the nurse, "...that scale won't work, I'm over 400lbs."

Absolutely follow your NUT/surgeon recommendations regarding coffee/caffeine post-surgery. However, I've also noticed how varied recommendations are. Some say it is fine right after surgery, some say X number of months, some say never. After scouring the internet, one thing I've noticed is those surgeons that allow it at some point rarely state how much coffee is acceptable. Just my opinion, but I think there's a big difference between a post-op patient that drinks 1 morning cup versus someone who has 3-4 cups (or more) through out the day. I would bet there is minimal stimulant/diuretic effect for a person like myself that likes to drinks 12 oz of coffee in the morning. Of course due to all of the variation in opinions, I've abstained from coffee since before my pre-op diet.

@@Bcarter818 111 pounds in less than 4 months? That's incredible! Major respect.

@@winklie If all else fails, take a post-it note, write down in big numbers how much you think you should weigh this week, put it over the readout of the scale... then step on the scale.

Have not had ham salad, but a couple meat salad type things I have done: Tuna salad - pouch of tuna, tbsp of light mayo, tbsp of yellow or brown mustard, lemon pepper seasoning to taste. Buffalo chicken dip - followed this recipe, except the store did not have any small plain greek yogurt, so used light sour cream. http://www.food.com/recipe/hungry-girl-buffalo-chicken-dip-413265 Hummus deviled eggs - I keep it simple, one hard boiled egg, remove the yoke and break it up in a bowl. Add a tbsp of your favorite hummus plus a dash of salt and pepper. Mix well and then spoon into the egg white halves.

@@winklie I was an Oct 1st surgery and the 3-week stall hit me last Monday. From Monday through Friday I did not lose a single pound. Like you my diet was on point... around 700 calories, hitting my Protein requirement and getting enough Water... although I'm not walking nearly as much as you. I did not weight myself this weekend, but as of this morning the scale finally moved. Down 5 lbs compared to last Monday. I bet the stall breaks for you soon.

Regardless of whether you've had WLS, you are still "losing the weight yourself." WLS is simply a tool to help you get there, not something that does all of the work for you.