sillykitty

The Gladiator Strawberry or Vanilla with raspberries or blueberries is only 265 calories, 15g carbs, 8g sugar with 45g protein.

I also technically took no time off. I work from home, so except when I was in preop, op and recovery, I was working. I had no issue at all doing my "desk" job right after surgery. Physically it was similar to @wjgo experienced, soreness from moving around. If I had to go into my office I would have taken a minimum of 3 days, including surgery day, but maximum of a week. I also wouldn't want to be sitting at home if there was work to be done.

I just want to echo the advice of getting some therapy. You are actively sabotaging yourself. You have gotten this great tool, and find yourself unable to use it. You need to find out why that is. Be grateful the NHS covers therapy, many people in other countries wouldn't be able to afford to get this kind of help. Please make good use of your benefits.

Honestly, I think you have some unrealistic expectations. You're averaging 5 lbs a week, that's huge! This isn't some miracle, our bodies can only lose so much so fast. And as time goes on our weight loss will slow. It's a little worrisome that you've lost 15 lbs and 3 weeks and somehow think the surgery isn't working.

Are you getting any nausea from them? Or have you ever had nausea from vitamins? I found a prenatal that is great, doesn't upset my stomach, but needs to be taken 3 times a day.

Thanks for the heads up, certainly things to be aware of!

I was feeling exhausted and really low energy. My surgeon's office gave me a B12 shot, and I was feeling back to normal soon after that. It could have just been a coincidence, but there's no harm in it, so I'm now a believer in B12

I just asked my surgeons PA about them last week, I told her I was skeptical of them, but all the vitamins I have tried to date had made me nauseous. She said they have patients on them, and seem to be doing well, but vitamin and mineral deficiencies show up long term, not short term. She said they couldn't hurt, just not sure how much they help. She told me about a prenatal multivitamin she takes and finds easy on the stomach. I tried her recomendation and they are great, no nausea, so I didn't end up ordering the patches.

I blend mine with ice. I don't notice any ill effects like gas.

Same situation here. My work slacks are looking pretty baggy. so I just ordered the next two sizes down. I'm really hesitant to buying more than 1 pair in each size because they are expensive, and I have the expense of having them hemmed as well. I might be ok because I work from home whenever I'm not traveling. So it's not like I need to dress professionally 5 days a week. My tops are still fine, and I have a few that are too tight, so I should be fine with those for a while. The other part of my work wardrobe is more formal skirt suits and dresses. Those are expensive, and dresses aren't the same as slacks, you can't wear the same dress week after week. So for my less casual work wardrobe I plan on using a clothing rental service. I'm going to try out GwynnieBee.com. They have from plus sizes down to regular sizes, and quite a few options that suit my style. I think it is expensive, but cheaper than trying to keep a professional wardrobe while I go down in sizes.

That's exactly my point. Your plan is working for you. I can see that you are making healthy and smart choices. Just because the portions are larger and your meals are more frequent than mine, does not mean I think that you are on a slippery slope, or are in anyway endangering your long term success. I also want to point out, that I didn't say that your portions or meal frequency was excessive. Just that they were too large and frequent for ME. That was the point I was trying to make. That even though I have seen you post what and how you eat, I never jumped in and told you that you'd become a statistic and you'd have a 60 lb regain. Because i believe that even though your meal plan is different than mine, it's not inherently wrong, just as I believe having one portion of mac & cheese is not inherently wrong. I actually hope you don't stay off my posts. This board needs different perspectives. No one here knows everything or has all the answers. I don't want to live in an echo chamber. But what I took issue with was the jumping to conclusions and the tone. You went straight to this dire scenario of regain. I'm certainly open to being questioned on my choices. I'll readily admit I could have made a healthier choice last night. But I reject the idea that this is a sign I'm playing with fire. I think everyone likes to be given the benefit of the doubt, and that's what you didn't do. I hope you don't take this as any kind of attack @FluffyChix. I respect your opinions, even if I don't always agree with them

I got mine from Amazon, the Protein2O tastes really good. Not something you can say about most protein drinks! I agree it is expensive, on Amazon it's about $2/bottle. But you'll find that all protein supplements are pricey, unfortunately.

I have to say I pretty vehemently disagree with you on this. I do not have a goal of eating perfectly. I do not need to eat perfectly in order to be successful. Being perfect is unrealistic for me, and I think unrealistic for the vast majority of people. I am succeeding in my goal of making much healthier choices. I have been craving mac & cheese for weeks. I have been tempted by it on a dozen different restaurant menus (I eat out very frequently for work). I resisted those because I knew that restaurant versions would be particularly unhealthy. The version I made last night only had 3 ingredients, and 2 of those, fat free evaporated milk & protein pasta, were better choices then I would have made in the past. The three ingredients also let me know exactly what the calories and macros would be. I also knew that I had the calories to spare. Before the mac & cheese I had only consumed 290 calories that day, so I had 414 yesterday w the mac & cheese. And in the 7 days prior, including work travel and an Easter buffet, I averaged 236 calories/day. Once I was full last night, I then threw out the rest of what I had made, so I couldn't go back to it today. @FluffyChix I read the meal plans and pics and recipes of what you are eating, and I think, "oh that would be a bad idea for me" For ME, the portion sizes are too large, and the timing of meals is too frequent. But I didn't get on your threads and tell you "you will become a statistic and will be back here in 2-3 years saying, "Help me Obiwankenobe. Help me! I've regained 60lbs and I am eating large portions and am hungry every 2 hours"". Because I know that just because something wouldn't work for me, doesn't mean it wouldn't work for you. There is no one size fits all answer to losing and maintaining weight. Everyone has to find what works for them, and what they can maintain long term.

Ok, I'm quoting myself, sad! But tonight was the perfect example of my stomach capacity helping to keep my cravings in check. I've been wanting to make this 3 ingredient mac and cheese I had heard raves about. Tonight I gave in and made it. I was semi good, I measure the ingredients out and then weighed it after it was done, so I would know what each serving would be nutritionally and calorie wise. I was only able to eat half of what I served myself, and my total damage was limited to 124 calories! Did I mention how much I love my sleeve??

I actually say something first to avoid the questions, spoken or not. For work I'm almost always eating at a restaurant my associate or client has chosen, so I don't want them to think I don't like the food. I've been saying that my stomach has been bothering me, so I haven't been eating much. That will also explain why when I see them in a few months or a year, I've lost weight.

I became intolerant of whey protein isolate. Anything containing whey made me extremely nausea, protein shakes, powder, bars etc. I tried different protein drinks, and found that the premade Muscle Milk Pro shakes don't bother me, and the chocolate tastes decent. The Muscle Milk and some other premade shakes, like Lean Shakes, EAS Advent Edge Carb Control & SlimFast, and I'm sure others use milk protein isolate as their main source of protein, and that seems to agree with me. I also bought some Medifast soups, bars & powders. Medifast mostly uses soy isolate. The Medifast items aren't as protein dense as the stuff using whey, but the ones I bought taste pretty good, so I'm happy with them. They are super expensive though. Once I'm through those I'm going to try some of the Bariatric Pal soups, and pastas, as they are mostly whey free, and less expensive. I also tried some vegan shakes, powders and bars. I found them to be absolutely vile. If you're going to try those, don't buy a case from Amazon like I did!

I know! Since I'm not hungry, it doesn't bother me. The only bad part is it is super obvious I'm not eating to all my dining companions

Oh, that's too bad you are both having abdominal tenderness. I have no issues there since 2 weeks out. So I'm doing fantastic. My weight loss is a little slower than I'd like, but I'm sure most people feel this way. But I feel really good. I had a period of low energy and weakness, but I believe B12 shots have taken care of that. My stomach is great, able to tolerate everything I throw at it. I'm loving having such a small stomach capacity. It keeps me from self sabotaging too much even when I give into cravings. I'm also loving that having no physical hunger, only head hunger makes those cravings easier to control. NSV - I finally figured out protein shakes and vitamins/mineral that are working for me. I became intolerant of whey protein about a month ago. That eliminated most shakes, powders & bars. I'd also not taken my multivitamins & calcium regularly because they cause extreme nausea. Now I've found premade protein shakes that agrees with me, and tastes decent. I've found multivitamins and calcium supplements that don't upset my stomach. I'm now able to get in all my required vitamins and minerals, plus the additional pills like my ppi, stool softener and probiotic & meet or at least get close to my protein requirements!

I'm almost 8 week post op. I have to say my daily diet and stomach capacity is vastly different then some! I'm able to handle 1 solid oz of food, that's it. I'm also never hungry at all. I have cravings, but no hunger. I'm averaging 300-400 calories a day and 40-60 g of protein. On days I'm home I typically have 1 Muscle Milk Pro premade shake & a high protein soup. If I have been out and have leftovers, then I'll usually have one meal of leftovers (1 oz) & the shake. One Chipotle soft taco was 4 meals! When i'm traveling my protein really suffers. I don't check luggage, so no premade shakes. I haven't yet found a powder without whey (I'm intolerant) that I can stomach. So I usually just try to make good choices when eating out. For example grilled shrimp appetizer, french union soup, eating the broth and cheese, turkey burger, mostly eating the meat, egg white ham & cheese omelette, etc.. I'm nearly always eating with associates or clients, so trying to excuse the tiny amount I can eat is awkward. The good news is absolutely nothing bothers my stomach (besides whey protein) I talked to my surgeon's PA about this last week, and she said it all seems normal. My neighbor had the surgery w my same surgeon and is now 3.5 months post and has the same 1 oz capacity. So it may be a function of our bougie size. I'm actually really grateful for the lack of hunger and small stomach capacity, it's making this process much easier than I had anticipated.

I go through times when I feel hungry and have cravings as well. But I figured out it is head hunger vs. physical hunger. If I eliminate triggers, like food on TV, or food smells, then I go back to not being hungry. I live alone, so it's easier for me, but could you do that as well? I tend to crave savory over sweet, but I do like Trader Joe's Cold Brew Latte Dessert Bars, they are only 40 calories https://www.traderjoes.com/digin/post/cold-brew-latte-dessert-bars

That's great, congrats!

Let me start off by saying I'm totally against hard and fast rules, and nevers and can'ts. Everyone has to find what works for them. If you can manage the calories into your diet and still lose, then good for you. But I'm swearing off alcohol while I'm in my weight loss stage. At 3 week post op I went on a business trip that was a very social, cocktails and dinner every night event, and then stayed the weekend with a friend and did the lay by the pool thing. I had a beer or cocktail each day, rarely finishing it. I was more active than I had been since surgery. I got my protein in, tracked calories, and averaged 700/day for the week (including the alcohol). I got home, jumped on the scale, anticipating a big loss. Nope, up two pounds! So that did it for me. Also, your tastes may change post surgery. I was a big social drinker. I never drink alone at home, but put me out at a bar, I really like to have a drink, or two, or ten. But since surgery, I don't have that desire. I'm fine being out w friends, coworkers, clients and having water while everyone else is drinking, don't feel any need to join at all. The week I did drink, it wasn't out of desire, it was out of habit and not trying to attract any more attention than necessary to my changed diet and eating habits. So you may not even want that wine after surgery. Or if you do, your desire to lose weight might outweigh it.

I have recently started taking Whole Foods Prenatal Multivitamins. I love them because they don't upset my stomach like almost every other multivitamin I've taken. I can even take them on an empty stomach with no problems. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B074KKKMBQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I also take Calcium + Vitamin D, Biotin, and have gotten B12 shots from my surgeon's office, and will be changing that to a B12 nasal spray.

I have kept who knows down to as small of a group as possible. I have told all of my friends, as I wouldn't have friends who judge me. I have told only coworkers whom I consider friends, and they have been told it's completely confidential. For family, I've only told my mom and my sister. I have actively misled everyone one else I work with, my management, associates and clients. I'm in sales, so eating and drinking out is a multiple times a week thing. It's very obvious how little I'm eating, especially if it's one on one or with a small group or over more than one meal. I've had to say that my stomach has been bothering me lately. I also have to explain why I'm not drinking. For my extended family, I'm a little torn on that. We are close and see each other pretty often, so at some point I'm going to be asked. I don't really want to tell, but I wouldn't feel right lying, and it would also put my mom in a situation to lie for me. They are all loving and supportive. But I have an aunt who was a NUT in the 80's (and is now a psychologist) and is a lifelong calorie counter. I just know she will be silently judgemental, lol. My sister is the one person whom I had to tell, because I didn't want to lie to her. She has opinions on everything and they are usually 180 degrees from mine, lol! As predicted she told me I shouldn't have the surgery and just do yoga in the park w her. It's ironic because she is far from fit herself. One unexpected thing is my friends whom I have told have been so supportive, and not thought it was a big shameful thing at all, have gone on to tell people. I can't be mad at them because they just really didn't think it was something that needed to be kept a secret.

Personally, I would be hesitant to cut back on my protein. I totally get wanting to get yourself lower than 900 calories, but I think that lowering your protein would be self defeating. Where are those other 600 calories coming from? Can you cut back those instead? Or if you do want to eliminate the protein shake, can you make the protein up by adding unflavored protein to your savory dishes? As far as still feeling great with less protein, I think that is normal. Protein deficiencies don't show themselves overnight. I became intolerant to whey protein and for a while was not able to meet my protein goals until I found alternatives. I did some reading at that time, to see if I could get away w a lower amount. What I found is that your body slowly pulls what it need from your muscles, bones and organs. So the effects most likely won't be felt until we get much older. That scared me, because being healthy and strong in my old age is important to me.