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I also start my pre-op diet on the 5th but my 2 weeks are split. The 1st week I can have 1 meal (high protein, low carb ) per day but the second week is only liquids. I also have to keep my calories under 800 per day - yuck. You sound very much like my twin. I have 4 different kinds of premier shakes,5 yummy sounding keto shakes, several different types of broth and canned soups that I can strain, pudding, jello and I'll buy yogurt when it gets closer. I also have a clever fox journal that has spots for pictures and measurements to keep me motivated. I'm as prepared as much as I think I can be. Thinking and preparing keeps me busy and makes the time pass faster. I get more and more nervous the closer it gets, but excited too. Can't wait to have a new me

I have BCBS of Illinois and they covered everything but $1500, and my secondary covered $1200 of that. So I only had $300 out of pocket. They approved my surgery within 48 hours of my surgeon's office submitting everything. From my 1st appt to my surgery date was 2 1/2 months. BCBS only required 1 pre op and 1 post op nutritionist appt, 1 psych eval, approval letter from my neurologist (because I have MS), approval letter from my PCP, having tried at least 2 methods of weight loss in the past (my PCP knew about me doing keto and also low/no calorie and put that in the approval letter). So it was a fast and painless process. My surgeon's office wanted the blood work and EKG before surgery. BCBS approved every test with no issues.

Before my surgery, my surgeon said “if you do anything….lift weights.” I lost weight so easily I didn’t think I “needed” to workout. My strict diet was going enough! However….I wish I had known WHY my surgeon said that. He didn’t finish the though….”lift weights because….your metabolism will dramatically slow down to a crawl to ‘preserve energy’ and your weight loss could slow - or stop, or being to regain - after a year or year and a half.” Lifting weights and eating your protein could preserve lean tissue loss and help preserve your metabolism. I’m 7 years post op. I gain weight SO easily. I can eat 1/3 of the calories I used to when binging before WLS and gain weight. My metabolism has slowed so much. I no longer have the same restriction as I had immediately after VSG surgery. It’s a struggle to lose re-gain. I wish I had focused on preserving (or gaining!) lean muscle while losing fat.

I'm 323 as of today. Not sure how I lost 4 pounds in 6 days, but I'll take it lol Actually, I might know. So in therapy, we've been working on healthy balance between eating and working out. I was keeping my calories around 700-800 calories and working out twice per day. I've slooooowly increased my calories to between 1000 - 1100 calories per day and I do one 45 minute work out instead of two 30 minute ones and it seems like once I did that, the weight started really coming off again. Who knew eating MORE calories (along with a reasonable work out plan and not going balls to the wall twice a day every day) would be the most effective way to lose weight? My bariatric team wants me at 700 calories and at least 60 minutes or working out every day. But my body doesn't like that. My likes things the way they are. At least for now. So this is when I really had to lean on my therapist, because she's a bariatric therapist and also specializes in eating disorders, and she kind of gave permission for me to not follow my surgeon's preferences to the letter. I still try to eat what they say and avoid what they say, and I still the kinds of workouts they recommend. I just have to listen to my body when it comes to length and frequency of work outs and amount of calories I take in each day.

Congratulations! I'm 8 months out and have only lost 41 lbs. I'm 61. You are doing great! My doctor cleared me on eating everything at 6 weeks out. It's so weird that so many doctor's have such different aftercare directions. I continue to try and eat about 800-1000 calories a day. I have never "dumped" even after eating sweets. I was losing about 5 lbs per month but I've been on a stall for 2 months now. A little frustrating.

I am 3 mos out and had my final nutritionist visit last week. Because I am healed and tolerating the surgery well, she has cleared me (more or less) for juice, soda, alcohol, coffee, etc. - all in MODERATION. I have had small portions of cake, cheesecake, pie, cobbler and candy and have not experienced dumping syndrome. I HAVE had the foamies when eating something either too bulky or taking one or two bites too many. I generally stay between 900-1100 calories per day. I am 62, 50 lbs down and still losing 1-2 lbs per week. EDIT: By "clear", I mean I made her aware that I had consumed this items without any negative consequences and we discussed that I should have no problems if I exercise moderation.

The matter that you have a guy metabolism, and have had a relatively easy pre op loss if a good indicator of fairly rapid progress post op, but no guarantees, of course. I was also 335 at the start, lost about 50 fairly easily in the six month insurance diet/exercise effort (and then took a few years off before surgery - but kept the 50 off which led me toward the sleeve rather than something stronger like the DS, but I digress....) I was at 200 at six months post op, starting to ramp up the calories to slow things down toward my moving goal of 190ish (based upon body composition - fat mass, etc. - rather than BMI or scale weight.) Wight loss is usually a stair step affair, in a decaying function (rapid at first and slowing over time). The matter that you have lost "fairly easily" to date is a good sign that your metabolism is still in decent shape - those who struggle at this point seem to be fighting a bigger metabolic problem and tend to be "slow losers" and will often struggle to get to their goal weight, if they get there at all. Slow weight loss pre op would encourage me to look at something metabolically stronger like the DS, which may be overkill for someone with a better metabolism. In addition to general declining loss trends (mostly because it doesn't take as many calories to move around 200 lb as it does 300 lb, etc.) weight loss tends to be front loaded some by virtue that most of our initial loss has a large water weight component in it, and the body initially draws from its glycogen stores - basically stored carbs kept in the liver and muscle tissues, used for quick response energy needs. That needs the water to keep it in solution, and burns more rapidly than fat. Once we get through that - maybe 10-20 lb typically - we start drawing on fat stores, which goes slower. So, don't expect as big of a drop out of surgery as someone who hasn't lost anything pre op.

The others are correct, weight loss, especially after WLS is never linear. If you were to graph it out, it would look more like exponential decay (with lots of fits and starts and even deviations up). At one point. I even tried graphing out my potential loss based on a decay constant but realized it was all based on my previous experience losing weight in the past. The decay constant will undoubtedly be different than my past attempts. If it helps, I saw a couple of references in the scientific literature that suggest the AVERAGE across large population groups shows the weight lost at 2-4 months will be roughly 50% of that lost at 12 months. As an example using totally made up numbers to make the math simple, let's say you lose 50 pounds in 3 months post-op. Then the average above would suggest you'd lose another 50 pounds in the next 9 months. Again, these are averages. Your loss may be higher or lower than that depending on a lot of factors such as amount and type of exercise done, how compliant you are with your plan, total calories consumed, etc.

Hi Shannon, I live in Pennsylvania, and I am scheduled for surgery Tuesday (16th)… I’m 48 and have similar goals as you. While I’m not a veteran, I have friends who are 7-15 years out and I grilled them about several of these things so I will share my experience this far and some of theirs. Let me just say there are tons of people who will help with their experience also… and one of the things I learned from this board is everyone is different. (I love this app and the people on here - they are so awesome!) 1) I have IBS (largely well managed) and dealt with constipation after my c-sections as well. The high protein pre-op diet made that flair up for me. In addition to water (I struggle with that) and hitting my other liquid goals, I add miralax once or twice a day (depending on my needs) to help keep things moving. Also moving around - walk, walk walk… even puttering around the house. Moving helps keep things moving. At the first sign of things not cooperating I take an approved laxative by my program. That’s my last resort (because that is never fun) but I know my body and I know when it’s necessary - so if I catch things early enough a partial dose (I prefer liquid to pills) is usually enough to keep things productive. 2) I have digestive issues with artificial sweeteners. So I like Sodastreams water enhancers (Bubly) zero calories, zero carbs. But lately I’ve enjoyed my zero water filter enough to not bother with the flavor. I can easily work 3 20 oz bottles of water (some days 4 or 5). Keep in mind I’m pre op… but I’m hoping that post surgery I will be able to get back into that habit after surgery, because I too have kidney stones and am eager to avoid that. Right after surgery they all warned me I won’t make my goals most likely - but to do my best. With time it will come. Broth and bouillon have been helpful in hitting (and exceeding) my goals. So I will use those to work towards my daily goals. 3) Depending on your surgery - will depend on the long term possible side effects, one of the reasons I’m having sleeve (shorter potential list). However my surgeon balanced it by saying the potential side effects of not doing it the surgery or taking other steps to loose weight (prolonged joint deterioration, effects of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, cardiac disease, elevated risk of cancers and although I’m not diabetic - eventually I’m likely to be, liver disease, etc) are equal or greater. On balance the surgery is a toll that helps me improve more than it risks in my case. 4. Hormones can be real - hunger, menstrual, general emotional. I was told that some women who stopped menstruating, would start again… (also warned to watch out for later in life babies), some women who have fertility issues, see a reversal… weight loss - especially large amounts, can result in an estrogen release (hormone swings). There’s no guarantee of if my hunger hormone will be gone - or how long. Everyone is different in that area. My hubby and I had a talk of what to possibly expect after (throw back to postpartum depression). Prepare for the worst and hope for the best. I have Virtual appointment already scheduled with my therapist for the week following surgery and recurring every two weeks after (with the options to call if I need to see sooner and ability to cancel if I need to rest and not up to it as long as I check in). I’ve been seeing him for a while now to adjust to life after a car accident. I also have my pcp follow up scheduled and my endocrinologist scheduled within a few weeks after my surgery so I will have those check-Ins to help with anything non-surgical that might pop up. I have some help lined up (kids, husband and one friend I told what I was doing) just in case I need a little extra help right after. However the rest of my family (siblings, parents, extended family and others) know only that I’m getting a hernia repair and that I started working with a nutritionist pre-op and will continue post op due to some other health issues … which is not untrue, just not the whole truth. I’m taking care of me first for the pre-op and the post-op recovery. I’m hoping by doing that, I can reduce my stress and help manage any of the hormone fluctuations that MIGHT pop up and well as focus on meeting my nutritional and water goals. I hope this helps!

I was also told no on gum from my surgeon. Found this info online not to chew gum after their weight loss surgery. First, some gums can have a lot of sugar, which contributes unnecessary calories into the diet, making it harder to lose weight. But, even if they opt for a sugar free version, chewing gum can cause problems in bariatric patients. The act of chewing gum allows air to enter into your digestive tract. For people who haven’t had bariatric surgery, this may not cause any problems. But for bariatric patients having air in their digestive tract can lead to gas and abdominal discomfort. In the first few weeks after gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, or lap band surgery, some patients report excess saliva. Chewing gum can also lead to saliva production, potentially compounding their problem. Another problem with gum chewing after bariatric surgery is the potential for any swallowed gum to cause a blockage. After gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, or lap band surgery patients are educated to chew their food thoroughly to a paste like consistency. As much as you chew your piece of gum, it will never be such a consistency. The wad of gum can potentially lead to a blockage if swallowed. Most do not find the risk worth it. A great place

Aside from the worst gas pain I have ever felt post op (upper right shoulder) that motivated me to get to walking asap, which in turn probably aided in my recovery. I have no complaints about my surgery or the road I've come down. Can't say I've really been hungry yet(10 weeks post op and down 65lbs) but if I forget to eat and I'm super active I will feel weak. I'm lucky if I get 600-800 calories, usually get between 65-80 protein and 20-40 carbs. I take colace and Benefiber because otherwise I "back up". Most days I burn what I eat in walking because of my job. But I have good energy and I'm thriving so it's all good. ☺️

Hi all! I'm having some trouble finding an app that meets my needs. I want to log my food, but I am very much planning to meal prep (so cooking one bigger item, and having it across multiple meals). The issue is that most apps seem great for logging food as consumed, but not creating recipes and dividing into servings so that it's easy to track calories and protein individually. It could be user error, but I tried MyFitnessPal and Fitbit tracking. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

I am a little more than a year out from my gastric sleeve an initially lost around 75 lbs. I recently started back on my antidepressant and seem to crave carbs. I have put back on about 20 lbs and really need to get my snacking under control. In the past being on antidepressants was a major cause of my weight gain and I am trying to tame the carb monster since I started back on the meds. Any suggestions besides getting back to religiously tracking calories. I still work out about 4 days a week. I think focusing on my protein intake may help with the carb cravings but I thought I would see if others have any recommendations. Sent from my SM-G998U using BariatricPal mobile app

This is good advice. What you're experiencing is something called adaptive thermogenesis in the scientific literature. In effect, your body adapts to your restricted intake by also reducing the amount of calories you burn. As much as we hate it, this is actually a evolutionary advantage. When our bodies detect "lean times", they adapt to make sure you survive long enough to make it to the next time of plenty. This was important over most of human history because we we didn't always know where the next meal would come from. To break out of this adaptation where you body is "helping" you survive, you should try to do something different. Varying your macros as suggested above, varying your exercise routine, or potentially even upping the number of calories you eat for a while can all "reset" the metabolic changes that caused the stall. Now that said, even if you changed nothing, it's unlikely the stall will last forever. At the end of the day, your body can only slow your metabolism so much. If you prefer to wait it out, that should eventually work as well as long as you are sticking to your plan.

its still early days, try not to drink your calories or feelings though, a therapist is a good idea though and I think for hubby too, have you asked him what it is about you having the surgery that he is finding difficult to deal with ? Can I be so bold as to suggest that maybe its your hormones too not knowing you age makes it difficult but I started hormone patches after my surgery cause I just couldn't deal with being peri-menopausal and how the surgery was making me feel and it really helped. As for your sisters I have a friend who I discovered likes to encourage me to eat what I shouldn't and don't really want to, she suggested we go to a French patisserie for lunch and all sorts of other naughties which I politely declined, then you get the friends that are at the other end and question everything you eat and think you should only be eating lettuce lol. So just do what's best for you and not to please others. lord knows its hard enough for us to make the right choices or we wouldn't be here right ?

Weekly, I make a big pot of vegetable soup that consists of okra, Asian eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, daikon, shiitake mushrooms and then I add cabbage, bok choy or spinach at the end. One cup is less than 50 calories.

Hi Everyone, I was posting over in the RNY August thread, but it doesn't seem to be very active. I had my surgery on Tuesday, so today is my Day 3 Post Op. The surgery & hospital stay went very well, but I had a rough first day at home yesterday. I think it was mostly because I no longer had the IV for hydration and it takes forever to drink enough water on your own. The barium swallow test at the hospital was pretty gross. Plus, it didn't move very fast through my bowels so I was sitting around for like an hour while they kept trying the x-ray; they finally sent me back up to my room and had a mobile x-ray come up a few hours later. Everything was fine, it was just slow moving. It made me really nervous that something was wrong though. I was on a pre-op liquid diet (OptiFast shakes only) for 7 days, clear liquid only the day before surgery and until this morning, I've only had clear liquids. I haven't been hungry at all, but I can tell my body is pretty weak from not taking in many calories. I've been really tired. Today I started full liquids, which for me is 3 servings of 2 oz per day until my 1 week post-op appointment. I had 2 oz Fairlife Chocolate Shake this morning which went down well and I'm working on a 2 oz portion of SF vanilla protein pudding right now. It's been difficult for me to get my 64 oz of liquids in. I never thought it would take this long to drink! Before surgery, I was a person who drank 100+ easily before bed.

Overall I'm doing well. However, my team feels that I'm losing too much too quickly because I'm having trouble with getting enough protein in. I've been having issues with food food aversions that I have to get past and learn to eat a bit more. However, because I had hyperemesis during my pregnancy, my nutritionist feels that history is playing a part in having a tougher time getting enough calories. It's a very individual journey in many aspects, but having support groups and forums like this are helpful in learning from other people's experiences.

Same story here! VSG June 14 with Bhatti GI & North Memorial in MN. Recovery has really been a breeze. I took 1 week off from my desk job for surgery recovery. At almost 8 weeks, 32.5 lbs down. Including a recent 10-day vacation, eating normal foods at restaurants, but small amounts. On vacation we walked 3-6 miles a day. Normally I barely exercise…yeah…I know I need to do better, but I do physical farm work too. No food intolerances, nausea, pain, hair loss, or dumping. I get my 65-90g protein, hydrate, and have my vitamins & probiotic. 900-1200 calories/day. Too often my carbs are too high (>75g). It’s hard to get fiber. The “hardest” part for me and the only deviation from the plan that I have committed (besides erratic levels of exercise) was clear liquids. I was prescribed 3 days CL before surgery (lost 4lbs) plus 2 weeks CL after surgery. 2w after was way too long. I got dizzy and weak because I couldn’t get enough protein. Switching to full liquids was like paradise. Did that a week early with no issues. North Memorial’s diet plan is very conservative. I also got Covid for the first time at 4w post-op. I only had a scratchy throat for 3 days and was tired for a week, but had no problems keeping to the dietary guidelines. Almost zero movement b/c I did strict quarantine for 10d to not spread it. I am surprised I’ve done so well given how crazy it all sounds in retrospect. Major abdominal surgery, FT work, life with 3 kids, Covid, harvest season on the farm, and lengthy travel all in 8 weeks. But it’s been great! I have tons of energy! Fear of complications and lack of insurance coverage kept me from doing this for probably 8+ years. It’s nice to hear positive stories collected in one place. I feel for those of us struggling. I still fear something will crop up. We are fortunate.

Hello All. Can I introduce myself. I’m Paul and exactly 4 weeks post gastric sleeve surgery. I’ve been trying to lose weigh all my adult life with varying degrees of success. All ultimately fruitless. There’s very few I haven’t attempted and I was desperate by the time I agreed to surgery. Although a various times I’ve topped 30 stone I was always able to cope with the excess weight. Not so these last few years and severe arthritis in my worn out knees has forced the issue. To get them replaced I have to be lighter. And hopefully ALM will be in less pain and I can move about easier. I was deeply ashamed about having to go down the path of surgery. I’ve loathed my size all my life and it’s had a profoundly negative effect on both my career and personal life. I was a fairly decent footballer in my time (hence the knackered knees) but undoubtedly the excess weight I carried in my younger years, whilst nowhere near as extreme, hindered my performance and damaged my self esteem. I first joined the NHS bariatric programme in late 2015 after encouragement from my GP but I promptly lost 7 stone and decided it wasn’t for me. Life, as always, got in the way and all that weight went back on by 2018\19 after I was made redundant and lost the plot. I was fortunate to get put back on the programme in 2019 and despite the hiatus of the Pandemic got invited to meet the surgeons in January this year. Can’t say I didn’t have my doubts as the date of surgery to nearer but I knew I was probably on my last chance should I walk away. The liver shrinking diet was extremely easy I felt. I stopped any form of alcohol a month before my date of surgery and I’m feeling OK now. I’ve had a couple of incidents of the foamies and have been sick twice trying to progress to purée/soft food. I’ve put that down to eating too quickly and perhaps slightly too much despite my efforts at not doing either. I find I hard to eat the 800 calories a day target I’ve been told to meet, and sufficient protein but I’m working on it. One thing that I do seem to be unusual for reading through this thread. I haven’t weighed myself since the day of the operation. Am I wrong not to do so? I can feel previously tight clothes getting baggy. My view is this is a marathon and not a sprint now and why torture myself if I can see a plateau going on for a couple of weeks. Nice to meet you all.

So i was going to do that. go back on a liquid diet then my nutritionist said no. That i need stability in my diet to loose weight. that changing from this many calories to less or more can cause you to gain weight.but yea if your BMI was lower then you will loose weight slower. I know i am out of my stall because the previous 30 days i only lost around 5-6lb. and recently after 1 week i lost 5lb.

I'm heading the same way @geilli1048 I've already maxed out on my usual calories today and I'm hungry again so I'm going to have to eat more. Yes I agree we need to be extra good at protein first and everything else will hopefully follow! Lots of people say losing the last 10 - 20lbs is really difficult and can take months. I think we've got this and we're gonna make it to goal!

That's amazing - you will be so pleased you did this when you get to the other end of your weight loss journey and those 61lbs aren't still ahead of you! I stayed on my 800 calories, any way, pre-op diet (give or take) for 2 months because my surgery was cancelled first time round. I lost 25lbs in those 2 months and I am so glad I did even though it was tough at the time. Best of luck - I bet you cannot wait.

Congratulations on your loss and getting a head start on those changes! That will certain help when you get back to a regular diet! I’m on day 3 of my 8 day liquid diet … (3 Protein Shakes a day, 24 oz 100% fruit juice [no sugar added] & a minimum of 64 oz of Water. I can also have unlimited sugar free Jello, popsicles, broth/bouillon or zero electrolyte drinks that count towards my water goal). So far I have had broth every day, it helps cut the sweet of the juice and Protein shakes, but I haven’t felt hungry or the need for more… yet. (The high protein diet is only 7 days, day 8 is all clear liquids - 60 oz of juice, 64 oz or more of water, plus I can have unlimited amounts of broth/boullion, sugar free popcicles, “zero” electrolight drinks, low calories water flavor aids… nothing red though).  As of this morning I have lost 10 pounds on my liquid diet (I have a lot to loose) - which brings me to 62 pounds lost so far since June 2021 (my highest weight).

I’m on day 2 (of 8) of mine. I can honestly say I haven’t felt physically hungry but the head hunger (wanting to taste textures and or certain foods) showed it’s self today. It wasn’t bad… but it was there. I’m full liquids (no solid food) - so taking in 123+ ounces a day (between the protein shakes, water and juice requirements), and that’s kept my tummy full. Last night was rough - I felt like I woke up constantly to run to the potty. Despite all the fluids, I woke up with a dry mouth and a dehydration headache (don’t ask me how). It went away as soon as I started drinking again. Today I tried getting all my fluids in by 7pm to prevent the constant waking. I’m a little tired today from waking up and probably from the the reduced calories (around 870) I think, but I’m hoping my body will adjust and my energy will perk back up toward the end of the week. Best of luck! It really isn’t that bad… so far. I’ll see how I feel on day 6. Lol