KevinS62

Sounds like you are doing great. Funny you mentioned your trip. I was just asking about eating on a 1,000 mile trip (Louisiana to Iowa) and got some good tips. In case you hadn't seen it, Eating/Drinking on a Road Trip: 4-5 Weeks Post-Op. Enjoy your trip!

More good tips. Hadn't thought of Chicken pot pie at KFC. I could go for some Wendy's chili. Thanks.

Meat pudding. You all are cracking me up today. Thanks.

Thanks for your response. Very good tips. Love the Chew the tar out of it.

Jealous of you going to regular food when my plan is barely letting me start some soft foods. LOL. Enjoy your trip this weekend!

@kcuster83 Thanks for your tips. Yeah, as I said, my diet plan is exageratingly conservative. It has no puree stage and very slowly introduces soft foods and meats (they say chew, chew, chew). It's probably a week or three behind others and I'm not skeert to reach into the week 6-7 menu for an item or two to try in weeks 5-6. In moderation, of course. I have learned NOT to ask the dietician anything. I won't like her answer. She goes strictly by the written guide. When I was able to speak to the surgeon, he was more open and basically said the menu was conservative to work for all patients and I could try something off plan, but to stop if it doesn't work. I'm not a huge egg salad person but I may try a light tuna or chicken salad. Taco Bell beans is a great idea.

Hey all, I'm sure this has been asked a bazillion times, but the wife, adult son and I are leaving next week for a vacation/family visit. The road trip is 1,000 miles. I feel great right now and we take turns driving, so that's not the issue. We make this trip annually and will likely have 2-3 fuel stops and will stop another couple times to eat. When we leave, I'll be four weeks post-op, so I'm looking at my week 5 and 6 menu items, and I am asking for your tips and tricks when going on a long trip Drinks: I will bring coffee, water and pre-mixed protein shakes for fluids. Maybe a Gatorade Zero for a change in pace. Snacks: What snacks are suggested? According to my nutrition plan, about the only things I could have thru week 4 are the protein drinks, string cheese and some peeled fruit. I'll be right at the start of Week 5 which mentions up to 3 Multi-grain crackers a day, but I ordered some of the Quest Protein Chips. (I purchase $95 worth, so hope they are good). ? Restaurants: This is probably where I'm looking for the most tips and tricks most. What restaurants have good menu items to choose from and food items should I be looking for? For example, a Big Mac, minus the bun, (which does not sound good right now), LOL. *Full disclosure, my nutrition plan really does not mention meat or salads until week 6 when I can have tuna and baked fish and then add baked chicken, lean ground beef, ground turkey and salads. But, I'm not against trying some of this (in moderation of course), if other plans allow these items sooner. I realize my nutrition plan is exageratingly conservative.

She has not mentioned it to me in my two appointments with her and it's not even talked about in my menu/nutrition plan. In a FAQ she sent me last week, it says calories needed depend on gender, age and activity level, but a general rule of thumb is around 1,000 calories a day. The FAQ does not say when to start the "1,000 per day" thing, but I find it somewhat difficult during the liquid phase and I plan to build up to it as I increase my activity level. In the meantime, I'm concentrating on the 90g protein and 64oz fluid/water.

How are you doing? Welcome to the July Peeps. As for your question, the answer is yes. I'm 3 weeks post-op and have probably averaged one BM every 2-3 days due to having mostly fluid diet. As you graduate to more solid foods, I'm certain you will have more frequent toilet visits.

I've been having tomato soup since the first day home (water mixed in for week 1, and milk added in week 2). Then I and added V8 Juice in week 3 and have had no issues. I'd say go for it, but if it bothers your stomach, step back from it and try again in a few weeks.

Hey y'all. I just wanted to post a Three-week update. I feel good. Pretty much normal even. Except, of course, with a smaller stomach capacity Incisions are fully closed. The small ones look good and only the largest still has any leftover scabbing. I'm trying to stay positive since I've lost more than 20 pounds since surgery. But my weight loss progress has slowed more than I thought it would this early. Maybe it's the third week stall we keep hearing about. W1: -12.6 lbs W2: -5.6 lbs W3: -2.6 lbs My conservative diet plan sucks, but it improves a little this week, since I can add cottage cheese, shredded cheese, beans, canned fruit and some specific well-cooked veggies (only carrots and asparagus look appetizing). I am logging everything. I am getting 80-100g of protein, 50-90 oz of water/fluids, and 650-750 calories daily. I have not done great on my steps/walking/exercise, but plan to fix that this week now that things at work has calmed a bit. I have now lost a total of 48.6 lbs since I started losing weight in late March when I had my "Oh Hell No!" moment and contacted the surgeon's office. I am feeling pretty good about that.

Ha. Same answers, but it confirms it. Majority wins. As you said, focus on fluids and protein right now.

Thanks everyone for the responses. I listened and am going to work on this. Yesterday I added a second Protein powder/shake, raising my protein from 60ish grams to 87. This raised my calorie count roughly 120 or so to 763. I also took in close to 64 oz liquids. I actually felt better during the day yesterday and my scales moved this morning.

I feel it. I'm sitting here working in my bedroom office and adult son is making Spam and eggs in the kitchen. It's like torture. I end up eating my soup or broth at the table by myself, while wifey is cooking something nice for her and the son. I guess, I hope, I'm sure, once I get on my regular diet after another month or so, it will be easier. I will be able to eat with them, just smaller portions than I used to put on my plate. My hope is to get them to eat a little healthier as well.

I am sure this question has been asked before, but I didn't see it. I am looking for how many calories we should be taking in during the early post-op timeframe after being sleeved. From the handouts I got from the dietician, it says I should be shooting for 1,000 calories a day, but it didn't say when I should start. I am in week 3 post-op and was talking to a friend this weekend that had the sleeve a few years ago. He could tell I'm confused and a bit frustrated. He thinks I'm starving myself and should eat more if my stomach is ready for it. Here's some numbers: - Week 1 post-op, I was on clear liquids. I probably took in about 400 calories a day and lost 12 1/2 pounds. - Week 2 post-op I was on full fluids, I took in about 500-600 calories a day and lost another 5 1/2 pounds. - Four days into Week 3 and still mostly full fluids. I am taking in about 600-700 calories a day and have only lost 1 pound in the last 4 days. So. I really am confused at this point. Should I up my calories some and stop starving myself? Or am I just over thinking this?

That's awesome how you took care of two things with one procedure. There is a bunch of us that got sleeved in July - Come say hello! https://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/441093-july-2022-peeps/

I can't answer that one but like @liveaboard15, I'm curious why you want surgery at 25 BMI. I think I set my goal to a BMI around 26-27.

I had my first scrambled egg this morning, 16 days post-op. No problems.... Just don't tell my dietician. A scrambled egg is in week 5 of my very conservative plan.

Amanda, I had one week off, but worked some. I am mostly working from home as well. I requested one week off, but with my office in the spare bedroom and work piling up, I just couldn't stay away. That was my choice. My surgery was on a Thursday and by Monday I was working 4 to 5 hour days. I went back to full time work on Thursday, 1-week post-op. On those half days I probably could have worked full 8-hour days if needed. But wanted to relax a little and use some of the leave I was approved to use.

Welcome Steve. I think you made the right decision. I've said for months (even before surgery) that my only regret was not deciding to do this sooner. The pre-op and post-op diets suck some, but I just tell myself to keep my eyes on the prize. It's going to be worth it.

Cay, Sounds like you are doing well, as am I. You are one day ahead of me, and I'm jealous of your diet plan. I met with my surgeon's group's dietician and she wants me to follow the plan to the T and it's super conservative. When I questioned anything on the plan, she told me to stay off the internet. Yeah, right. The only soft food I graduated to today (week 3 plan)is I can have a half banana, cream of wheat, and oatmeal. In week 5 I can finally have Cottage cheese, cooked beans and soft veggies. Scrambled egg in week 5 and baked fish and tuna in week 6. Ugh. You know, the stricter they are with these things, the more patients are going to "cheat".

Good morning July 2022 Peeps. Sounds like there's a lot of the group doing well. Hope to hear from the ones that just had surgery in the last couple days. I am at 10 days post-op. After losing 12.5 lbs in the first week, I stalled out for a couple days. Instead of losing my normal 2-4 lbs, I lost 0.0 and 0.4. This was a bit frustrating since I am only taking in about 500 calories per day. But it is what it is. From what I read, this is how this is going to go. I am happy that my plateau or whatever, may have been a small one and this morning I showed a 2.2 lbs loss. For those that believe a person shouldn't weigh themselves daily, I normally don't, but I wanted to record my first 4 weeks in a journal on my laptop.

Just when I said this forum was a great place to get answers, I get another great response. This helps a lot. TayTay - Thanks so much for your views! I wish my dietician/surgeon (surgical office/team) would have taken the time to explain some of these things better. As I said, just saying NO POTATOES does not help someone trying to make the right choices to make the surgery and recovery go well. I just started the "Full Liquid" stage yesterday, but have been slow introducing new stuff in my diet. They said I could have cream soups, so I did have Campbell's Cream of Broccoli for lunch, after running it thru the blender. OMG it tasted so good after having nothing but broth for so long. I also had 12 oz of V8 juice which was also great. Unfortunately, my plan does not include anything called Pureed Stage, It just slowly progresses for 7 weeks and drops you off with an 8 Weeks and beyond (my new normal) diet. I will ask about pureed foods on Tuesday when I go in for my follow up. Thanks again TayTay!

I'm glad you questioned the nurse about the no food after midnight rule. I think that is pretty standard, but not for a 7 PM surgery. Good luck with everything. I'm looking forward to an update!

First I will say I have no regrets other than I wish I would have done this sooner. Now I'm only a week out of surgery so I can give you any info on long-term effects from my view. But I've seen lots of others that have had the sleeve in the past 5, 6, 7 years or more and none of them seem to be having the issues your friends are scaring you with. I hate to go down this path, but what are they referencing when they are trying to convince you these things? It doesn't sound like they are quoting from anything in particular and just making guesses. We all get negative feedback, but most, if not all are from friends that know nothing about the surgery If you ask someone that has had the surgery you will hear something completely different. If you want, do a few web searches and watch a few Youtube videos. Some of the videos are made by doctors and others are made by people like us that have had the surgery. As far as the sleeve procedure, the only thing that changes is the size of our stomachs. None of our innards get rerouted. I'm not saying anything is bad about the by-pass or the other methods, just saying I don't see much being changed if you are getting the sleeve. Disclaimer - I am not a doctor.