Wasntme

@pumpedandready
I never ate slowly and I have lost over 180 pounds.
I hate cold food. I usually eat in 10 minutes or less.
If you have weighed your food, eating your proper portion fast is not going to make you sick because you are not over eating.
As long as you are weighing your food prior and not over eating there is no harm in eating fast. Ideally you should eat slowly but that just isn't a reality for everyone. If my food gets cold or even lukewarm, I won't eat it, so I eat faster than most people.

Hi Buklova -
I feel ya. We have the same doc. I'm being sleeved next week.
They are very rigid with their diet. It is very frustrating when you see that other docs aren't so rigid. There are all kinds of liver shrinking diets that incorporate real food, or at least a choice of Protein Drinks.
Makes me wonder if they are getting kickbacks from Optifast! (Nestle)
Good luck choking it down!

How are you doing now cat6618? I am almost 3 weeks post op and only down 10.5 lbs since day of surgery. I'm discouraged too. I'm currently 193 lbs but only 5'1. My weight has been the exact same for 4 days now. Would love to hear if the scale started moving again for you.

I am 3 weeks post op and am feeling super frustrated because my weight is also coming off slowly. I'm 12 lbs down in week three and hearing so many others who have dropped 20+ in the same amount of time, I'm having a hard time feeling excited about my loss. I know I shouldn't compare to others but realistically we all do it. I thank you for sharing your experience and being honest because at least I don't feel like I'm the only one having slower loss and i no longer feel like I'm doing something wrong. i keep hoping our bodies will eventually rev up and kick into high gear,

Regarding pre-surgery diet: if you have less to lose, you probably won't be losing 15 pounds in 2 weeks. I only have to do the pre-surgery diet for one week, and I'll be lucky to lose 4 pounds.
Surgery is a risk.
https://asmbs.org/resources/bariatric-surgery-in-class-i-obesity
The American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery's paper above is a good read. (Of course this means more "business" for them if they expand their client base!)

Like you, I have a low BMI. I have read more success stories than failure stories regarding sustained weight loss - especially with low bmi sleevers. As a female who has had children and has had a long history of dieting, success at continued dieting and excercise alone is only going to get more difficult to achieve. (I write this out of personal experience and after reading the book "The Secret Life of Fat: The Science Behind the Body's Least Understood Organ and What it Means for You".)
I am having the surgery next Monday. I have insulin resistance that is going to turn into diabetes and high triglycerides. I hope to nip those problems in the bud, lose weight and keep it off with the same advice your doc gave you.
There are lots of low bmi folks who are thrilled with their surgery - do a search and you"ll find them. Cheers to you!

Like you, I have a low BMI. I have read more success stories than failure stories regarding sustained weight loss - especially with low bmi sleevers. As a female who has had children and has had a long history of dieting, success at continued dieting and excercise alone is only going to get more difficult to achieve. (I write this out of personal experience and after reading the book "The Secret Life of Fat: The Science Behind the Body's Least Understood Organ and What it Means for You".)
I am having the surgery next Monday. I have insulin resistance that is going to turn into diabetes and high triglycerides. I hope to nip those problems in the bud, lose weight and keep it off with the same advice your doc gave you.
There are lots of low bmi folks who are thrilled with their surgery - do a search and you"ll find them. Cheers to you!

Like you, I have a low BMI. I have read more success stories than failure stories regarding sustained weight loss - especially with low bmi sleevers. As a female who has had children and has had a long history of dieting, success at continued dieting and excercise alone is only going to get more difficult to achieve. (I write this out of personal experience and after reading the book "The Secret Life of Fat: The Science Behind the Body's Least Understood Organ and What it Means for You".)
I am having the surgery next Monday. I have insulin resistance that is going to turn into diabetes and high triglycerides. I hope to nip those problems in the bud, lose weight and keep it off with the same advice your doc gave you.
There are lots of low bmi folks who are thrilled with their surgery - do a search and you"ll find them. Cheers to you!

Be careful the food police are waiting to pounce on people that have slip ups. I think it's fine as long as you're losing, Feeling good, and having no problems

I was stalled forever and then suddenly, after kicking artificial sweeteners to the curb and drinking plain Water (advice from my nutritionist), my stall ended and I have lost 4 pounds! A call with my nutritionist today was even more eye opening... she said, "don't be afraid of a little sugar!" Here's what that means..
Artificial sweeteners can be, for some, tougher to break down than regular sugar. Sure, regular sugar isn't good for you in large doses and may cause dumping, but don't shy away from it completely, especially when you need to up your caloric intake to lose weight. Some of us strain to get 600 calories a day, or when we stall, we need to push additional calories to shake up our metabolism. I drink coffee and before surgery, I used to drink a caramel latte daily (I love caramel). But that's way too sweet for me and causes dumping big time. However, after her advice, I began adding 1 pump of caramel to my regular Dunkin Donuts coffee along with skim milk and Splenda. It's the only sugar and artificial sweetener I consume every day (now). I began drinking more water and the weight loss has resumed. It's my one "sweet" treat a day, and I look forward to it every morning. It hasn't interrupted my weight loss and I no longer feel cheated when I get coffee.
I'm not promoting ice cream or candy, resuming the crazy binge sugar feasts we may have once had (our bodies can't handle that anyway). But for some of us, artificial sweetener can cause us to stall or cause water weight gain. Natural sugar is, in small small doses, sometimes better for us than the artificial kind. If you can handle it, add a little sugar to your coffee (be realistic) or some sweetened flavoring like the International Delights flavors with Splenda or Stevia. Just once a day, it won't kill you. (Now, if you think it is a "gateway" to eating more sugar a day... then don't. You know yourself better than my nutritionist. For me, once a day sweet treat is plenty. I can no longer tolerate anything super sweet.)
I'm so happy to be losing again after a long stall, and I won't jeopardize that by overindulging in anything, but I enjoy my coffee every morning and this makes it so much more pleasurable. I feel like I get something sweet and yummy without going nuts.

Yay for you!
I wish someone would have told me "don't sweat the Protein, focus more on Water right now,..and get lots of sleep."
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Ok. Rules are SOMETIMES meant to be broken. So, Here's the deal. I am 2 weeks post op today. I am one of those who had zero issues and had a smooth ride from recovery room to date!! This post is not intended to mean I am sure I will have a long term good go at this! It also doesn't address the future, but really ONLY the many threads that I have read regarding the preo op and post op liquid diets and the Pre and post few weeks Do's and Dont's!
I have read almost every post on here before and after surgery, lol. Here is the point that I will explain. Your/Our obsession over following diet rules is what got us here in the first place.. isn't it?? I mean, it's great to have black and white rules.. Do's and Don's. can and cant's.. That's why we were ALL great on Atkins (remember the carb counting obsession), and South Beach (remember how carefully we chose the meals), weight watchers, low cal, grapefruit, slimfast , yada yada yada......RIGHT?
Sure, it worked. THEN WE WENT OFF THE WAGON and got sick of the rules and restrictions and put weight back on (and then some).... That's because it was a DIET.. Why do so many of you do that on here? I'm not judging, but trying to help! Yes, it's easier for me, since I have had no issues. I come from a strong medical family (i had bio as a minor,4 docs and 2 nurses in immed family) and I always love to understand WHY the rules are in place. If something doesn't make sense, I want to know why and not just follow a rule because it was put out there.
My surgeon told me that "rules" are on here for the lower end of reaction spectrum. meaning, many need not follow them, but since 30%, for ex, will have issues with some things, they want to make a general rule......
As EVERYONE says on here, as well as EVERY doc, ALL OF US ARE DIFFERENT! We heal differently, We tolerate pain differently, foods differently, weight loss differently, etc..... EVERY SINGLE ONE So, the rules need not be applied to the T!
Now, as a caveat and from feedback so far on this post, this is not an excuse to eat junk NOR stay on bad habits. I don't mean to enable anyone. here is what BUTTERTHEBEAN wrote:
"The only reason I say "enabling" is because I think there are some people waiting in the wings to hear someone tell them it's okay to eat whatever they want. They haven't tackled their food addictions and they are hoping for "permission" to go back to their old ways. I know there are some that can learn to eat "all things in moderation." I have no problem with that. For me, I chose to embrace my inner health nut. It's not fear or weakness or lack of self control...it's the desire to live a long, healthy and active life. I'm not depriving myself, or sacrifing. The things I'm doing and the life I'm leading now feel way better than eating pizza and cupcakes ever did (even in moderation). By that I mean that food did not give me pleasure (never did, I just thought it did), so I no longer look to food to satisfy my needs, except nutritionally."
Ok... Back to the post. Specifically, here is what I have had debunked by my brother (Anesthesiologist for bariatric), My mom (nurse and nutritionist), my bro's good friend and bariatric surgeon, and my surgeon..........
* Yes, the liquid PRE OP diet is not to be messed with. It sucked, but we need the liver to be soft and looking like liver in a supermarket. That will happen in most cases with one week.. Many docs do one week only and many do 2 weeks..... So, if you have a 2 week doc, don't worry if you cheat a little and wants some low calorie food.. It's OK!! have the Soup... etc. I didn't cheat as mine was only a week and I did not want to have a lifetime of liver issues if it was frail and broke a bit/injured while being moved for my surgery....
* Most docs on here POST OP put you on liquids for 2 weeks.. Why?? NOTHING medical. Really? Many docs, including mine, put me on Clear Liquids only day 1 in the hospital and then put me instantly on pureed foods (tuna salad, chicken salad, egg salad, greek yogurts, ricotta cheese, etc).. Yes. DAY 2! He does this for EVERY patient.. He has had NO MORE COMPLICATIONS than anyone else ever.... It is NOT true that eating this will cause a leak.. It can't get caught in you stitches, lol, as they are on the outside and you can't see them even in your stomach.. The ONLY risk is a)that you eat way too much and thus can cause leaks, so don't do that. and that is WAY too much. Meaning you go out of your way to test the limits. As any surgeon will tell you, stretching the stomach to break the staples is no easy task.... easy enough to follow that rule .. and the risk is that you get nauseated.. Ok.. we are all different. Some take 90 minutes the first time they eat to get down 4 oz of chicken salad.. I didn't . I got it down in 15 min and could have done it in 5..... But the point is, listen to your body. start slowly and if you tolerate it, then screw the rules.....
What does this mean? It means so what if you doc put you on 2 week post liquid. That is soo hard.. so, do it mostly, but don't obsess about cheating. have a friggin plate of tuna salad.. It will taste yummy.. Add some great yogurt. If you can handle it, you are good to go! I did.. They also want you on this liquid to max your weight loss for motivation up front? do you really need that?? I don't care if it takes me 1 more week than you to hit the same goal? Frankly, I decided to keep my calories around 800ish anyway for my first 2 weeks. It was a little hard, but nothing like your liquid nightmare and i lost as much weight... I'm now on 1200 cal full diet plan (less hard carbs and hard veggies) as of last night.
I've heard people say they are craving one Dorito chip.. Then the advice replies were "lick the cheese off" or "take a bit and spit it out...." LOL. Really? This is your diet/lifestyle for the rest of your life. HAVE A CHIP.. See if you get a lot of gas.. Chew it well.. If not problem, then enjoy the one chip. You got here because you at a half bag . One or three chips won't kill you! You need to find a way to eat what you will do.. The docs want you to build your healthy habits now.
*The first year is where you get your max weight loss- Ok. For sure,, so, as noted, build your healthy habits now.. but make it last. So, if I want a Dorito chip. I have one or two.. On my pureed phase, my kids had pretzels at a game. I took 2 small ones....I had a qtr of his hotdog meat.. The point is, if we can seriously lower the number of calories we eat (which, for me, they figured i was eating between 3500-4000 per day and needed to be at 2400 or so.. Now, with 1200, which believe me, with the sleeve is a mini feast, I will be eating half the amount and will lose a lot of weight. So, yes, build good eating habits and i'm working on good food choices that I can live with! Can I eat white bread. Damn right?should I// nO?? it's a waste of calories and spikes your sugar and appetite. But, I sure will if i want a hamburger or great sandwich. A month ago i would have had 2 cheeseburgers and 2 hotdogs at a bbq. .So, guess what, i'll lose weight. Can't make it a daily thing.. But, again, stop obsessing..
*Eating and drinking slowly eating- well, you don't HAVE to eat slowly, but as we have been told our whole lives, eat slowly so that when you are really full, you know it! Also, you need to see what your bod can tolerate and if you eat too quickly, you may not have realized you were about to puke. If you can tolerate it, you can eat and drink quicker than others, but not a good idea for reasons mentioned. so work on it, but don't obsess.. At the hospital, they told me I had to drink in in little tiny medical cups a few cc evry 20 min. I laughed, as Water went down easily in recovery even. ALL NURSES TOLD ME NO. When I saw my doc, i asked why I can't just drink as I can tolerate it at home and get my 64 oz is. HE said dont' chug, but do whatever you can do without discomfort. So, 8 oz bottle of Water went down in 5 minutes... etc....
*Chewing your food- ALL true... We have that banana sized stomach.. So, the doughy breads, and stringy veggies and large pieces of non chewed enough food INDEED often get stuck! Not stuck like a lap band, but rather, they move toward the pyloric valve and are too big to pass through it, since there isn't as much acid, etc in your stomach and, well, the route to the valve is now MUCH shorter.. So, it sits in front of it and as soon as the next item goes there, it waits in line. your body puts out gas and then knows there is a problem, so will signal you to vomit it up. not fun... So, chew! All true! Also makes us take longer to eat and thus enjoy the tastes more than ever and have the full signal sent to our brain while we are still eating or pretty close to that!
*Caffein is bad... Ok. Google whether it's an appetite suppressant or stimulant.. It's hysterical.. You'll get equal replies from GREAT sources that say the opposite. I WANT my one cup a day. I'm not an addict. I asked. I am now sipping on my first REAL one. It is indeed a diuretic for some. So, drink a half cup more water than a day! If you feel it makes you hungry after you have it and you don't want to hold back, then stop the coffee.. It doesn't for me. It does for some... But what will you be doing in a year from now??/ There is NO medical reason why you can't have caffein after a few weeks
*ALCOHOL is a no no for 2 months. NONSENSE.. Again, just there so we don't put empty calories. BUT what if I WANT one drink or two on a date tonight?? I am told, go for it, but just know you will have ingested 400 wasted calories. Ok. I get it, but I WILL drink in my life, although never drank a ton and that was not the cause of most of my weight.. Watch the calories and don't do it twice most weeks.. Or if you will, then cut back a bit on your Snacks, etc. Anyway, looking forward to a martini with my date tomorrow at dinner.. Oh, most people on here for a while, will tell you since there is less food to bind with alcohol, it goes into your intestines/blood stream much quicker and you get a nice buzz faster with less! way cool!
* Most other rules and comments on here are just not universal and again, if you feel the NEED to cheat, then well, cheat! How can it be cheating if this will be your new life! WOrk hard at right food choices and don't make this soooo hard. The harder you make it, the more YOU WILL revolt and end up going off the wagon like the good old days... Since I have had no pain, etc and pretty much eat what I wanted (and cheated on my puree period even), I feel this is just toooo easy. I hear so many of you struggling (not because you have pain, but because you want to break a rul) and so many of you "supporting them" to stay strong, that I just wanted to add this post! Also, again, much of the medical advice that our well meaning friends on here provide, just isn't true. Sorry, but it isnt.
I hope this helps some of you enjoy your Pre and Post diets much more than you may be now!
Best, my friends!

Surgery date : 7/10/17.
Surgery weight: 295.
Today's weight: 254.
Sent from my SM-G930V using BariatricPal mobile app

@neil: I liked your post
@pdx: I liked your post too
@easye: if you can't tolerate ice cream, have you tried frozen yogurt?
I tend to be a "question authority" kind of person and although I am now old enough to know better, still, when someone tells me I can't do something I'll be danged, I just feel compulsed to do it. In some cases that has been to my benefit; in some cases, not so beneficial (i.e. speed limits). So, when the bariatric surgeon & nutritionist gave me guidelines about when to move past the liquid phase, I pushed it forward a week (no problems, felt great) and so on for each stage. And by golly, I have had zero problems or issues and feel that my VSG was a complete success and is doing exactly what I wanted it to do - I didn't expect it to cure my issues with food but just to limit the amount of food I could consume.
Maybe that's the message we need to tell the newly sleeved and the gonna be sleeved: it only limits the amount of food you can eat at one time. Period.
disclaimer so I don't get roasted alive: these are my opinions and my experiences

While I don't think anyone should disregard their doctor's orders, I do agree with the stop obsessing part of your post. What I mean by that is for instance: 1.) We don't have to worry about dehydration more than we did before forever, just for the first few weeks post op when we still have trouble getting fluids in. I see people on here at a year out worrying about not getting all of their fluids. I'm 14 months post op and I drink just like I did before surgery, sometimes a lot, some days not much at all. It never hurt me before to only get 30 oz in a day why would it now. 2.) We don't HAVE to eat Protein first forever just in the weight loss phase because let's face it we are put on a high protein low carb diet, yes diet by our docs to lose the weight. I chose to have this surgery so I could eat like I did when I was thin in my younger days and that is a little of this and some of that but not 4 servings of anything. When I really started trying to diet to lose the 10-15 lbs I had gained in my late 20's is when I really started gaining weight. If I wanted to stay on Atkins I would have just done that and not had surgery, at least then I could have eaten a whole steak and not just 3-4 oz. lol Anyway that's just my two cents worth take it or leave it. lol

It seems that there are two major groups on this forum. Those who get the sleeve and use the tool to eat less and loose weight and those who get the sleeve to kick off a new life of healthly eating, exersice, Protein Shakes and basicly a totally new life. The first group, in which I belong, is a little more laid back, we are going to incorporate birthday cake and margaritas. I would love it if the group of "Sleeve life changer- health nuts" would give us "Laid back sleevers" a break and not accuse of us of being trolls, or giving bad advice. We have a different lifestyle, it is okay not to be just like you, I promise. There needs to be room for both types of people on this forum. When I first started reading I thought the only people on here were health fanatics, I am glad to see there are people who are not running 5k's and drinking Protein shakes 4 weeks out.

I was BMI 30-31 when I signed up for surgery, and 29 on Day of Surgery.
3 months later I'm down 35 lbs and feeling great. 20lbs or so to goal.
From my perspective your doc is right - high Protein, low carb, no sugar, small portions of quality diverse nutritious food (weigh and track all your meals) and some exercise and the weight should fall off.
I feel that this was the right decision for me and so far..would not discourage other Low BMIers... though to be honest, the proof will lie in my ability to get to goal and to stay there. I'm optimistic because this has really changed my relationship with food. I used to be all about the huge portions, now I am satisfied with much less. That was my main motivation to do this - I needed help with Portion Control. That is much harder to do without the surgery without being hungry all the time.
Definitely experienced some judgment from those with higher BMIs in the hospital and on forums (i didn't tell anyone else except mother and partner) - but we must each walk our own paths. In fact, at the hospital, the doctor who performed the surgery on me said to me afterward that my stomach was surprisingly large - the same size as someone much bigger than I actually was at the time - and so he was not surprised that I had extreme trouble keeping my weight down. I did feel a little vindicated at that.
The first month was rough, I cannot lie. Really hard. Be prepared.
Now though, I feel great.
The only physical side effects have been an increase in GERD symptoms like acid reflux and heartburn, which is a little annoying as I did not have these problems before. Mentally I was very emotional for the first few months. All in all its been worth it for me so far, but check in again a few years out to see if I am still saying that Maintainance is probably more challenging than losing!

I recently got into the B'More Skyr Smoothies! They taste better than my whey Protein shakes and so I alternate. One bottle has two servings, and the macros are pretty great:
Vanilla, 8OZ
110 Calories
6g sugar
0g fat
20g Protein
If you can find them, I highly recommend.

Like you, I have a low BMI. I have read more success stories than failure stories regarding sustained weight loss - especially with low bmi sleevers. As a female who has had children and has had a long history of dieting, success at continued dieting and excercise alone is only going to get more difficult to achieve. (I write this out of personal experience and after reading the book "The Secret Life of Fat: The Science Behind the Body's Least Understood Organ and What it Means for You".)
I am having the surgery next Monday. I have insulin resistance that is going to turn into diabetes and high triglycerides. I hope to nip those problems in the bud, lose weight and keep it off with the same advice your doc gave you.
There are lots of low bmi folks who are thrilled with their surgery - do a search and you"ll find them. Cheers to you!

First you probably are being sensitive. Hormones post-op are a mofo.
Is your best friend a plus sized woman?
As far as your husband, so many things could be going on there. This is a bad time to jump to conclusions or make rash decisions.
First he could just be trying to support you in your weight loss by taking you places
Previously you might have made him feel like you didn't want to go places and he made excuses to make that okay
He could be insecure and feel like he needs to court you now to keep you.
Men are visual, he might just be enjoying the new you.
I love when my dog gets groomed he is super cute but I love him when he isn't groomed. When he is freshly groomed I dress him more than when his hair is long. It has nothing to with loving him less or more, it just is.
You should be happy your husband still wants you. There are lots of people that post here, lose weight, and their husbands don't want them, ignore them and abuse them.

Y'all, I am only two days into this 10 day liquid diet and I just feel grumpy and want to hide in the bedroom and sleep till my surgery date. I've had both chicken and beef broth, the Premier Protein shakes, Jello and yogurt, tried cottage cheese but the kind I got was crap. Didn't want. I have tea for Breakfast.< br />
I know - wah wah wah....but the struggle is real, y'all.

Hep me, or just commiserate on how much this sucks with me.

Hi all I just found this group and my surgery is this Monday - July 31st and my BMI is 34 so am happy and relieved to find a group w lower starting BMI. Your posts have really helped me feel so much better about this decision.
Congratulations to all of you on your success and I look forward to getting back to you all after my surgery!

Wow... I posted that as a general question in a supportive community, not an invitation to get chewed out.

I'm 5 months post op & have drank champagne & Diet Coke on special occasions. Honestly, I feel fine. I wasn't allowed to drink carbonated beverages earlier post op because I was healing & it didn't go down nicely at all, but I'm good now. I can't even finish a whole can of Diet Coke & can only consume 1 glass of champagne. Me pre-WLS can drink lots more of the two.


Height: 5'0"
Weight for WLS consultation: 216 lbs.
Surgery date: 2/13/17
Goal: -71 lbs for healthy BMI (about 145 lbs).
Current weight: 145 lbs, now ready to lose 15 more past goal.
My profile picture is not me. It's my "FITspiration" body.

I'm on Monday - I wish I could get it over with.
Good luck!