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You are doing fantastic so far! Anything you can do to embrace the post-surgery lifestyle is fantastic. Reducing your calories AND solid food intake will really make you appreciate smaller quantities of solid foods. I wish I could express how important that is. I knew the pre-op diet was important, but did not truly appreciate it until post-op. You are REALLY embracing this life change! I hope you have continued success! Keep us updated!

The main reason most diets tell you not to drop below 1000 calories a day is because it is extremely difficult to get sufficient nutrition from fewer than 1000 calories. That is why bariatric patients have to focus so heavily on Protein and take so many vitamins/supplements. As for slowing your metabolism, that will happen. Once you reach your steady weight, it will take fewer calories to sustain you than it would to sustain someone that same weight who had never been obese or had bariatric surgery. However, by getting your protein and exercise in, you can curb that a bit.

I was diagnosed with Celiac about 6 years ago. An upper-endoscopy can show if you have damage caused by Celiac. I would ask your doc to be specific about how he diagnosed your "sensitivity". It can show up on a blood test, but an upper endoscopy is typically done in this instance. You should continue to eat normally if you are planning to have an endoscopy. If you are moving to a gluten free diet, you must avoid wheat, barley, rye, and any oats not specifically labeled gluten free. As it is important to stay away from processed food anyway, I would highly recommend staying away from gluten-free processed foods. (Chips, crackers, pastas, etc.) Gluten free products are typically milled with rice flour. High calorie, high carb, a no-no for a health conscious eater. Eat fresh foods. And look for Protein supplements labeled gluten-free. I have found most of the shakes are gluten free. Hope this helps!

Without knowing how much Water you drink or how many calories you eat and what your portions measure its hard to know why you aren't losing but your profile says you have lost 37 lbs so that is great. Sometimes the body just stops losing for a few days and you need to just keep doing what you are supposed to be doing. It's frustrating but then one day you wake up and you are down 4 lbs.... It will drive you nuts if you fret about it. But worse if you give in to cravings and the wrong food... You won't see that eventual loss and you will Be back to square one.

I didn't care for the tracking in mfp either... I use calorie counter on my ipad and droid phone. It's hooked into the fat secret website so you can get it online too. It allows you to customize the calorie count you want then it won't mess with your numbers. Also it had a bar code scanner on it which I happen to think is pretty cool...

I'm six weeks post op and have been at a weight stall for almost two weeks. I'm getting my proton and water intake but my calories per day have been low. Exercising is hard because I get weak So I'm unable to do as much as I did pre surgery. how can I get this stall over and done with? Help

Do you have a surgery date or are you still in the pre-approval process? If you want to experiment to find protein shakes that you tolerate well that would make sense. Beyond that, I'm not sure that you gain anything by starting a liquid diet early (unless the Dr orders it). During the pre-approval process focus on eating healthy balanced meals. Work with the nutritionist to met recommend calorie goals. This is a time to focus on modifying habits like reducing snacking, eliminating junk, etc.

I had lapband surgery approximately 5 years ago. I did very, very well. I started off at 289 pounds after years of hormone therapy and poor eating habits. 5 months before my surgery, I started eating as if I had already had lapband surgery. I lost 60 pounds. I lost so much weight my insurance company almost refused to pay for the surgery. I made a quick decision to have it within a few weeks. I was so concerned that I would yoyo and not be able to maintain. I believe the most I ever had in my band was about 4 cc, which is not a lot as compared to some of my friends and acquaintances. . And I've had no Fluid in my band for a very, very long time. My lowest weight was 118, which was my original weight in my early twenties. Although I felt OK, I feel my best and even look healthier when I'm maintaining 140 to 150 pounds. Without any fluid in my band, I'm pretty much able to maintain that. However, I started having problems swallowing. That then moved to dehydration. Long story short, at this point it is probable I have scar tissue wrapped around my lap band because all these symptoms point towards it. It has to be removed and will be on July the 7th. I MUST EMPHASIZE THAT THE LAPBAND WAS GOOD FOR ME EVEN IF NOT FOR OTHERS. MY PROBLEM APPEARS TO BE UNAVOIDABLE SCAR TISSUE. I am basically on high Protein and high calorie liquids although I am able to eat some slider foods. Funny enough, all the bad stuff goes down relatively easy as long as I'm drinking. meats are out of the question, especially chicken and pork. Even milkshakes have become my friend. In just a few weeks I've gained about 23 pounds. The edema is back in my ankles and calves. Blood pressures are up. Cholesterol is already up. All of these things were absolutely perfect after I lost the weight. I know I've been able to maintain, but I think I am panicking again. I am worried about putting on weight. It's not about appearance. Is it about my health. My family saw me lose the weight before my lap band surgery and saw me pretty much maintain without a lot of band influence for a few years. Therefore, no one is very on board with me considering the gastric sleeve. They feel it is drastic, but having attended the class and spoken to a sleeve patient, I am moving forward with the surgery and I'm excited. I am looking for any tidbits of advice that anyone may have for preoperative and immediate postoperative at this time. I feel I have a little knowledge advantage because I've been there before. But, especially if you have converted, I would love to know your thoughts...

So I have been on the pre-op diet for 6 days and this morning I was 9 lbs down from Sunday when I started. Today was a tough day of temptation at work, it was June Birthdays day and they served some incredibly beautiful gourmet cupcakes - I was successful in staying with my protein shake! But today was also a celebration for half of my department who just finished a 6 month long training program. So everybody walked across the street to the local BBQ joint and the company was paying for beers and food. The table was loaded with pitchers of beer and bbq! Luckily one of the platters was smoked chicken breast, dry rubbed no sauce and the ribs were dry rubbed as well. So I had an ounce of chicken and 3 oz of pork. According to MyFitnessPal that fit in to my 350 meal for the day. I drank only water. When I got home I had veggies only and was within 100 calories of my target calories for the day. But now I have terrible heartburn! I have been chewing tums and drinking lots of water but oh man this burns! I am thinking that my very bland diet for the past 6 days is now paying me back by reacting to the first flavorful thing I have eaten all week. Or I am feeling guilty for enjoying that smoky protein and I am having sympathy pains! Acckkk - running for more tums!

My biggest concern is that I am going to have this surgery and I am not going to lose weight....it seems like low calories like this don't do much for me.

Hi Im new here , I had my band since 11/07 . It has been nothing but a nightmare. to begin, Ive lost no weight.... I have a size 10 band, have had fills up to 5cc's which makes it almost closed tight. I vomit all the time, food gets stuck , I had the Dr remove all of the Fluid after the holidays, so with no fluid, I still have restriction. I can eat 1/2 of a weight watcher diiner approx 220 calories, and need to vomit it up shortly after. I now have lost alot of my hair, I have severe joint pain from malnutrition, I have anxiety attacks which I never had before. During PMS week I go back on a mostly Protein shake diet because everything gets stuck . My Dr has done several swallow tests, its always fine, and he has no idea why its just not working,in the begining I was eating barely nothing from all the vominting still no loss.... this week Im seeking a consult from a different Dr , my gut says its either slipped or something, I have never cried so much in my life as since Ive had this band. I've done everything that I was suppose to, recently I;ve attended Medi Weightloss clinics for injections to help replace all the Vitamins. looking back on pictures from a year ago, I looked healthier, full hair, great color, now I have thinning hair, bags under my eyes, and look awful. Im happy so many have been successful, I know I gave it my best but hopefully will get it removed sooner than later Anyone else with words of wisdom would be wonderful :thumbup:

The reason for the pre-op liquid diet is to help shrink your liver. Your liver and stomach are close together so making your liver nice and thin will allow your surgeon better access to place the band around your stomach. When you follow a calorie restricted, low sugar, liquid diet, your liver will shrink enough to allow for a safer and quicker surgery. The purpose of the diet is not to make you lose weight, although that is often a side effect. In regards to cheating preventing you from getting the surgery - your surgeon will cancel the surgery only if you you will still have solid food in your stomach just before the surgery. In other words, if you feel like you need to cheat, stop 3 days before the surgery and you should be fine. Words of caution: Liquid diet is hard, but its additional benefit is to upstart your diet and lifestyle change. Following the surgery, you will need to stay one more week on a liquid diet, and then slowly progress toward solid foods (week 4). Without the prior prep in dieting, you may find it even harder after the procedure. Diet following the lap-band surgery is intended to get your stomach used to the band and slowly ease you into a new lifestyle. Good luck!

Last week was such a crappy week for me workout wise. I lost like 3 pounds but I had SH*TTY training sessions..like to the point I felt like I let my trainer down. He even asked me if I felt okay because I wasn't my usual self. So I am going to bounce back this week and remove the words "I can't" from my vocabulary! I am also needing to increase my calories, which is a bit of a scary thought for me..I am around 1,200 a day now at 6 months out. According to my TDEE which I adjusted for having less lean body mass I need to be somewhere around 1,500 calories a day to lose weight. Furthermore, I need more sleep. According to my UP band..I am only averaging like 6 hours of sleep a night. Anyway..that is my confession!

Evidently my body didn't get that memo as I ate under 800 calories a day for over a year after surgery, and am still eating under 1200 calories a day, have lost 185 lbs and am still losing weight! And I am healthier than I have ever been for sure. Good luck to you going forward!

Michele, unless you have low blood sugar as a medical problem (few people do, but many use it as an excuse to eat), it won't be a problem. Nor will being tired (after you're healed from the surgery). If you stay hyrdated, make good food choices with plenty of protein, and take a multi-vitamin, you'll do fine. We all have calories in storage and that's what you *want* to use.

My BC/BS would not cover me at all...the policy states they pay for 2 nutrition classes per year and nothing else toward weight loss. Therefore, next Saturday the 19th, I'm fly to Tijuana, Mexico and surgery is set for that afternoon after my pre-tests. :sneaky: I am excited, but right now on the liver shrinking diet of 40 - 50 carbs (max per day) and high protein, calories do not matter. So far - so good!

Hi Everyone: This is my first superbowl since going to band land. I got through the holidays fine, but I'm bugged about the superbowl and knowing that I can't chow down on this "holiday". Any suggestions for low calorie superbowl Snacks? Sue

I just turned 21 6 months ago and I'm about 6 weeks post op. I was wondering if anyone had tried drinking so soon after surgery? I know your not supposed to drink at least 6 months after surgery, but it seems to be really hard because all of my friends want to go out! Now I'm not talking about anything crazy because I know how alcohol is like pure calories but I was thinking maybe half a glass of wine or something. What are your thoughts?

:cry :cry :cry So I am having a bad day, and it's only morning. I ate about 2000 calories last night. It was all o.k. until I saw the news. This would be something small to most folks, but it devistated me. Nathan is starting school next year, and I have not been able to figure out who's going to pick him up. His day care doesn't pick up from this school and his school has no after-school program, so I was going to request a transfer to a school that they do pick up from. I was going to line up on Monday morning at 4:30am at the AISD main office because they said that people start lining up pretty early. Well I had no idea how early until I watched the news. They showed people who were already camped out in the parking lot. Some had even taken a week off from work and rented a trailor just to get in line. There's no way I'm going to be able to compete with that. There are only so many places available, so I would say that my odds of securing a spot is very low. So I am so upset about that because now I am at square one. Still don't know what I'm going to do when my son starts school. I also think that I am taking it so hard because it is that time of the month. And here I was just thinking that I had the previous week without the emotional PMSing. I just feel so depressed about this. And to top it all off, I tried to comfort myself with food. It didn't work. It probably numbed me a little bit, but now I am left with the food hangover. I look at myself in the mirror, and I see how far I have gotten with my weightloss, but am scared to be happy about it because I have been so bad. I feel like I don't deserve to be so thin because of all that I ate last night. I am just so unmotivated right now. I feel like crawling under a rock. I feel like I did the last time I fell into a real depression. And I am scared to go back there, because once I am there, it will be hard to get out. And just like before, it was such a little thing that triggered it. For God's sake, it's not like anyone died. Why am I so bent out of shape about this?

:cry :cry :cry So I am having a bad day, and it's only morning. I ate about 2000 calories last night. It was all o.k. until I saw the news. This would be something small to most folks, but it devistated me. Nathan is starting school next year, and I have not been able to figure out who's going to pick him up. His day care doesn't pick up from this school and his school has no after-school program, so I was going to request a transfer to a school that they do pick up from. I was going to line up on Monday morning at 4:30am at the AISD main office because they said that people start lining up pretty early. Well I had no idea how early until I watched the news. They showed people who were already camped out in the parking lot. Some had even taken a week off from work and rented a trailor just to get in line. There's no way I'm going to be able to compete with that. There are only so many places available, so I would say that my odds of securing a spot is very low. So I am so upset about that because now I am at square one. Still don't know what I'm going to do when my son starts school. I also think that I am taking it so hard because it is that time of the month. And here I was just thinking that I had the previous week without the emotional PMSing. I just feel so depressed about this. And to top it all off, I tried to comfort myself with food. It didn't work. It probably numbed me a little bit, but now I am left with the food hangover. I look at myself in the mirror, and I see how far I have gotten with my weightloss, but am scared to be happy about it because I have been so bad. I feel like I don't deserve to be so thin because of all that I ate last night. I am just so unmotivated right now. I feel like crawling under a rock. I feel like I did the last time I fell into a real depression. And I am scared to go back there, because once I am there, it will be hard to get out. And just like before, it was such a little thing that triggered it. For God's sake, it's not like anyone died. Why am I so bent out of shape about this?

Hmmm ... if you have really eaten only 1200-1500 calories/day for the last year, go to the gym regularly, weigh 250 pounds, but and you have lost only 10 pounds in a year, there might be something going on. Have you been tested for hypothyroidism? You should definitely tell all this to your surgeon and see what she/he thinks about this. Very best wishes.

I'm using Isopure tasteless Protein Powder. It has 26g protein per scoop, lactose and gluten free. 110 calories. I can't taste it, when I mix it with Soup or fruits.

I too have lost weight many times, always gained it back when I got tired of dieting. Post surgery you will not have a choice. If you choose to eat bad... You are only going to get a small amount in. And you could choose badly every meal... And you could eat all day and take in a lot of calories. So you will still need to exercise some self control. Because you cannot get as much food in post surgery you may find some of your favorite foods are less pleasureable. But it seems easier to get back on track after you have a bad day. Good luck to you, don't feel guilty though.

I didn't really have any choices to make while I'm on the pre op. The surgeon gave me a 14 day plan (which ends when I get sleeved on the 3rd). I'm doing 3 shakes a day, 1 100 calorie yogurt, 1/2 cup fat free cottage cheese and all the broth, decaf tea/coffee and Water I want. Not sure if this answers your question and I'd be willing to try again if it doesn't. Good luck!

It's very common, a quick search will generate more posts than you can shake a stick at. Are you following your doctor/nutritionist's plans? If so, then you are doing everything you should be. If not... then you really should be following their plan. Make sure your water is upwards of 128oz a day, make sure your calorie count is high enough to support your exercising otherwise you can force your body into conservation mode. Less isn't always more.