NickelChip

I really love sheet pan roasted veggies. You can do a mix of sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, sweet onion, butternut squash, zucchini, beets, etc. Spritz with avocado oil and put a little bit of sea salt, or try a glaze with some balsamic vinegar and pomegranate juice. You can also try cooking green beans in some chicken bone broth with a little diced ham for a healthier version of southern style green beans. I love making eggroll in a bowl, which uses a bag of coleslaw blend, julienne carrots, and ginger, garlic, and soy sauce. You can add ground pork for an all in one meal. I usually add snow peas, too, and mushrooms that my kids immediately pick out.

I recently tried a very natural protein bar made with nuts and egg white protein that I really liked. It was the Mammoth Bar in the goji berry flavor, available on Amazon. They're pricey but very good ingredients, and I found them to be super filling. 12g protein. I'd say they're a lot like the Rx bars, which are a bit cheaper and easier to find in stores. Worth keeping on hand for hikes or when you're going to be out all day.

Yesterday was no fun, not gonna lie. Having two meals in one day disagree with me to the point of several hours of pain and frequent vomiting is not something I'd care to repeat, so I'm taking it as a warning to go very easy with foods today. My program's recommendation was to have 3 meals daily and to supplement with protein shakes in between as needed, but they were very anti-snacking, which I do understand in the longterm. But I hate protein shakes, so I've felt this added pressure that if I can't eat enough protein in one sitting, I'm dooming myself to drinking something vile in a few hours. It's a recipe for taking one bite too many. However, I went to the dietician the other day and she was asking about snacks, and seemed surprised when I said I didn't have any, just the protein shakes. She even suggested I may need to add in a snack or two! So now it seems I can have several small meals instead of protein shakes and they're fine with it. Talk about mixed messages! I swear they don't read their own booklets sometimes. Anyway, I'm going to experiment with smaller portions size and more frequent meals to see if it helps. If it's just a few things that trigger the tummy issues, I'll chalk it up to not being able to tolerate those foods. If it continues with no pattern or becomes more frequent, I'll definitely talk to my doctor's office to rule out a stricture.

I'm 4 weeks out and started having this issue the past couple days off and on. This morning I had a scrambled egg and it ended up not staying down (despite no trouble with eggs in the past). Lunch was okay but then at dinner I went from being totally fine with 2oz smoked salmon to taking a single bit of veg and having pain and fullness, that stuck feeling, that again eventually led to the food coming back up. Now I just have a painful full feeling that's lingering for hours and is miserable. If it continues a few more days I will reach out to my doctor.

I'm not sure a PCP would have too detailed an understanding of complications from any bariatric surgery, even a more common one. At least I wouldn't rely on that. Although I have a feeling if she has a patient who gets a certain procedure, she might be more likely to read up on it. Is your surgeon attached to a weight loss center of some kind? Mine is, and I'm expected to go for a follow up at the center yearly, basically forever, so I'll always be in close contact for questions. Honestly, I think you need to choose your surgery based on which one will work best for you, which could very well be the SADI. A long term complication is going to be rare, but also you'll know to bring it up if something happens. You don't have to rely on your doctor to think of it, and any doctor will know how to find out more of needed, even if they don't really know much about it now.

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Hooray! Hopefully the time will move quickly for you. I remember how hard it was to be patient while I was waiting, and now all of a sudden a month has passed since surgery. It's funny how time works.

That is such an accomplishment! You look so much more vibrant now, and very happy, too. Extra energy must feel amazing! I finally have some energy kicking in 4 weeks post-op, but I wouldn't call it extra. I didn't count on how tired I would be, like dragging through the morning every day and needing to close my eyes by the time noon arrived. I finally feel back to normal, though. Which without caffeine (I've been told no to caffeine still) is saying something. Sounds like you're on track to reach your goal!

Looking great, and I love the hair color!

Every surgeon is different, but with my program, I was allowed to start soft proteins on Day 7 after a chat with the nurse to make sure I was getting my hydration in and feeling well. I had great luck with tuna salad made with low-fat mayo, yogurt (I did Oikos Triple Zero, but eventually the artificial sweetener taste turned me off them), oh, and cottage cheese was an absolute delight! I made a poached egg and it went down nicely, so then I tried a deviled eggs (yum!) and finally scrambled with a bit of cheddar. I was also allowed refried beans and ground chicken/turkey (which I made with some taco seasoning). After a week of just those items, I was allowed to slowly add in some veg, fruit, and finally grains. This is much faster than what my surgeon allows for sleeve, by the way. He explained that the healing is different between sleeve and bypass, so I was happy to be able to get back to real foods faster. My only issues with vomiting came from reheating some salmon (way too dry) and another time of eating a bit too fast without properly chewing every single bite and waiting long enough between bites. But otherwise, I'm at 4 weeks as of tomorrow and I'm pretty much able to have any types of food, including raw veg. I have a tiny cucumber, tomato, shredded carrot, and edamame "salad" with most of my lunches. As for pills, I crush or sprinkle all of mine over a couple tablespoons of applesauce. Except for vitamins and calciu, which are chewables and have been fine.

On the pre-op diet, I liked the Bariatric Fusion chicken soup flavor, and I also was able to do two scoops of Syntrax Nectar unflavored in a tomato basil soup. It gave it a creamy consistency, similar to if you added some milk or cream. Post-surgery, the only one I can still stomach other than the unflavored powder is Syntrax Nectar Naturals in orange flavor, which is somewhat convincing as an orange-juice-adjacent drink. Think TANG.

The sashimi was great! Very easy to eat. I had just a few bites of my miso soup and then gave that and the salad to my daughters (both items come with the order). I think I ate 4 or 5 pieces over the span of an hour, no rice, and half of one green tea mochi ice cream for dessert. I ordered a miso soup to take home because it was so delicious. I had half yesterday and will finish it today. Congratulations on your stall breaking! Mine is still hanging on, but I'm just trying to ignore it. I've lost 21 lbs but a lot of that happened during the liquid diet pre-op. When I told my dietician I'd lost 15lbs in two weeks pre-op, she said that was way more than expected and might be why my post-op loss has been slower. It'll all work out in the end, I guess.

I'm having eggs prepared all different ways, plain Greek yogurt or cottage cheese with fruit, tuna salad, smoked salmon, ricotta bake, quiche, white fish, ground turkey, baked tofu, and all types of cheese. I went out for sushi (sashimi, actually) and that was really nice. I also love edamame as a snack. Right now I'm having a no-sugar drinkable yogurt for a snack that's nice, although maybe too sweet to buy again. I'm not having a ton of veggies yet but I usually have a small serving of cucumber slices, julienne carrots, and diced tomatoes with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar at lunch, and I like to add spinach to an omelet for breakfast sometimes. I'll have broccoli or green beans with my protein at dinner. Another nice treat is peanut butter powder, which I have in plain and chocolate.

Had my 4-week post-op appointment with my dietician today. She wants me to start aiming for 80g protein and 800 calories per day. Currently I'm averaging closer to 65g and 600 calories. We'll see how it goes this week!

My two suggestions are to change up the temperature of your drinks, and to try some sugar free popsicles. Depending on the day, I find really icy cold water or hot herbal tea will just go down perfectly. Peppermint tea and ginger tea are both really soothing. And the popsicles limit how quickly and how much you swallow, so you get a slow hydration (that also tastes nice).

I haven't been told this personally but it's something I've heard can happen. I would suggest trying to increase calories without increasing volume if you can't eat more. You could add a small handful of dry roasted or raw nuts, which are very calorie dense. Or choose low fat instead of non fat dairy products. Even just adding a protein shake in between breakfast and lunch or before bed could give you another 200 calories without making you feel too full.

Why are you trying to cut back? What do your doctor and dietician have to say about it? You seem to be losing weight very rapidly and doing well, so I don't see how you're doing anything wrong, unless the specific foods you are choosing are bad for you. But just because someone else ate less doesn't mean you aren't doing what is right for you! Remember that 1000 calories per day pre surgery would have been starvation level, and it's very hard to get in the nutrients your body requires in even that amount of food. You've had a metabolism altering surgery. Choose healthy protein and natural foods. Let your new metabolism figure out what it needs to function at the best level for you. If you deprive yourself of calories now, you're setting yourself up for a lifetime of deprivation. Remember it's supposed to take a year to reach your goal!

Mine has felt slow too. I went from 238 to 223 on my two week pre-op diet, which was so fast, and now at 3 weeks post-op I'm only at 217. Did you lose a lot pre-op? That can slow the post-op loss in the beginning. I figure 21 pounds in 5 weeks is awesome, but 6lbs post compared to 15lbs pre feels very slow indeed! I know there's a lot going on internally, and that pre-op, it's mostly fluids that are lost. I know I need to remember that this is a 12-18 month process that will happen at its own pace. But it's hard to be patient in the beginning when so much of what you read and hear are these crazy high weight loss numbers the first few months. Of course that's often with people who had a much higher starting BMI. But it sure does make you dream of it happening faster. However, I will take the victory that I've had to start pulling out smaller jeans and bras already because my pre-op favs are way too loose now.

Oh, hello, three-week stall. I see you've arrived like clockwork. I'm one of those people who weighs every morning as soon as I wake up. I started doing it the day before my pre-op diet began. I won't do it forever, but I really wanted the record so I could look back and see what patterns my weight loss actually took, because I think it's easy to forget over time. Plus, I like graphs. So, I hit 217 lbs on Tuesday, and have now been that weight for 4 weigh-ins in a row. I think my body must have access to a calendar because it hit the 3-week mark perfectly. I mean, I'm kind of impressed.

I feel like it's the same strategy used by department stores. Macy's puts a price tag on a blouse for $100. As soon as the blouse goes on a rack, they have a super-duper 50% off sale. As soon as that sale ends, they have another sale, or a coupon. Pretty soon, the blouse goes on clearance. Everyone pays something slightly different for that blouse, but absolutely no one ever pays $100. And yet a few years back, a new CEO was put in charge of JC Penney. He said hey, instead of all this "Door Buster" triple coupon special sale nonsense, we're going to put a price tag of $35 on that blouse instead of $100, and any day you come into the store, you will know the price you're paying is the best price you're going to get (at least until the item legit goes on clearance at the end of the season). And shoppers hated it. They wanted their 65% off special shopper coupons instead. They wanted to believe they got a total steal on a $100 blouse.

Yes, my daughters were of differing opinions about the chicken sausage. I put it in for the extra protein and the older one loved it, but the younger one thinks it would be much better without. I think I may agree with her, as the precooked chicken sausages have an odd texture, although the spicy flavor was nice. I wonder if there's a way to get that extra kick in another way.

If you have the days to take, take them. I am self-employed and work from home. There were certain things I had to do within a couple days of getting home because nobody else could do them, but it was a struggle. I was sore and exhausted. I'm three weeks out and doing a lot better but I still get very tired midday. It would have been great to have at least a full week to two weeks to recover. Also, figuring out what to eat and when to drink and all that really takes up most of your brain for a while.

I've been making a smoothie most mornings with frozen fruit, spinach, and unflavored protein powder. I was having that most mornings before surgery, so I've just tailored it to be a little thinner now with water or milk, and I seem to tolerate it well. I've done well with eggs of every variety, and also smoked salmon, which is so delicious. I can generally eat 2 eggs or 2oz of the smoked salmon. Cheddar cheese is good, as is cottage cheese with peaches. Oh, I also adore edamame! They have it shelled and lightly salted in the produce section of my grocery store in a small tub and it is so pleasant to eat, kind of snack-like, I guess. Tuna salad has been nice, too. I've done okay with ground turkey and chicken, but it's not as appealing right now, although I do like a turkey sausage breakfast patty. I made a ricotta bake that was really good. I mixed 8oz ricotta, an egg, and some chopped spinach (thawed from frozen with water pressed out), and spread it into an 8x8 baking dish, topped with some diced Italian chicken sausage, then covered in marinara (look for one with no added sugar), sprinkled with mozzarella, and baked for about 20-25 minutes until the cheese was a bit browned. Like a lasagna without the heavy noodles. I wouldn't be able to hit 90g without significant use of protein shakes, which I also can't stand because of the artificially sweet flavor. But maybe you can try making some soup, like a pureed bean or carrot ginger, and add unflavored protein to it? I plan to try that next week for variety.

Hey there! Would love to hear how it's going for you! Here's where I am: My highest weight was 251 back in the summer, which is when I was referred to the surgical program. I started making changes to my eating following the Pound of Cure book by Dr. Matthew Weiner and was down to 238 on Feb 7 when I started 2 week pre-op liquid diet. I was 223 the day before surgery, so 15 lbs down in two weeks. That's compared to 13 lbs in 6 months, which is crazy, but I also know that I wasn't trying to lose weight during those months so much as make healthy choices. I didn't count calories or other macros. I just made an effort to reduce processed foods and eat a pound of vegetables most days. Whereas the liquid diet was pretty much me starving for 2 weeks. But I survived! Since surgery, it's gone a bit slower, which is in part due to the fluid shifts from surgery (according to my meeting with surgeon last week). My weight this morning, 3 weeks post-op, was 217 lbs. So, 6 lbs down since surgery. I'm healing pretty well, meeting my 60g protein goal and 64 oz water goal daily. I did have one incident of foamies / vomiting two days ago that set me back a little on food tolerance, but I think I'm doing better today. I go in to see the dietician on Monday. The first week I was getting around 400 calories per day. Last week and this week have ranged between 500-700, depending on the day and what food choices I make. I haven't really experienced anything I would call hunger. As for non-scale victories, I had to pull out one of my smaller bras yesterday that I still had from about 5 years ago! I also fit into an outfit I bought last year that I wasn't able to try on at the store and discovered was too small when I got it home. But not anymore! And I'm officially off blood pressure meds!

You probably should stop taking them if that's the case! I was told to hold off restarting them after surgery. Otherwise I probably would have passed out because I was on a pretty strong dose.