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Right now, the scale is not your friend. Remember, you are still recovering from major surgery and that your body is trying to figure out what you just did to it. You're right, with the number of calories you are eating, it's not possible for you to have gained a pound of fat (remember, a pound of fat is roughly 3500 calories). When I was early out, like you, I had my husband hide the scale and he brought it out once a week. Weighing every day was not good for me - it created too much anxiety. Right now, you need to focus on getting in your fluids and follow your doctor or NUT's plan. Don't let the scale derail you. You got this!!

The nurse practitioner at my surgeon's office told me at least 60g of protein and 1,000-1,100 calories per day. I have been doing good with staying in the range for both but I think I am eating too many carbs. I have to do a better job with my selection of frozen dinners (like Healthy Choice and Lean Cuisine) and cut back on the high carbitems (noodles, rice) that come in some of them. It's hard to take all of this into consideration when selecting foods and I had been focusing more on calories and protein. I am looking for an idea or a range of how many carbs per day is considered good with the band.:help: Thanks to whoever suggested fitday.com. I have been using it for the past week.

Has anyone done weight watchers post op? I am 18 months out and have gained 9 pounds. I know it's not a lot but weight watchers is running a promotion and I was thinking of trying it out post op. I am really struggling with hunger and I think this might help give me some structure. Or will it not work on people who have had the sleeve because of our metabolism? I don't know the points seem like a lot. Any thoughts? I've been tracking with MFP and need to stay at about 1300 cal to maintain with daily exercise but lately my calories are creeping higher as the hunger becomes more and more demanding. I'm not the lucky one who lost their hunger mine has been with me since the get go and it's not acid because I've tried all kinds of acid blockers they make no difference.

I have lost about 177 lbs to date. I was super strict and still pretty am about my food. I did do a lot of food experiments. I had baked fish most of the time for the first 6 months. Then once I was cleared for steak, it was mostly steak. I do not eat carbs at all, except green veggies. I hardly ever go above 25g of carbs a day and a "bad" day for me is 50-60 carbs. I have been to the gym maybe 10 times. The gyms in my area suck so I quit. I walked 1/2 a mile to 1 mile a day the first month. 2 miles a day the next month. 3 to 5 miles months 3-9. Then pokemon go came out I was wasking 6 to 10 miles a day for months 12 to 13. In my opinion doing gym workouts intense ones just don't worn for me. I read eat right for your blood type and learned why. Intense work outs have the opposite effect for someone like me, they increase my stress levels and make me hang onto weight. So walking, kayaking, yoga, weight lifting works better for me. I also think calculating the calories and balancing calories with working out is really hard. I was burning a ton of calories this summer and it was really hard to get enough calories in. I HAVE to replace keep my calories up or I will stall. My body hangs on to fat at severe calorie deficits. So you do not have to hit the gym to lose weight. I think honestly you lose weight faster and easier not working out. You do however need to be active every day. If you have a lot to lose walking or swimming are the best exercise with low stress on your joints. Weight loss issue all about your food. You cannot put train a bad diet. Fitness and strength are going to require working out, but it isn't required for losing weight.

I love potatoes but as a diabetic I can't eat them.. They are high in Carbs 36.6 grams of carbs and 2 grams of sugar, which isn't much sugar, but high carbs raise my blood sugars.. They also are 161 calories for 1 med potato which if you are counting calories, is high.. So I avoid them!! Bread and potatoes have always been my fav foods to eat but haven't had either one since january and with proper diet and excercise I have come off 2 diabetic meds, I'm only on 1 now and that's been lowered and hope to come off next month..

Your doing terrific! I'm 10 months out and about 10 lbs from goal. My body is content here. After a 3 month stall, it has finally started to move again. I have read where a few people have continued to lose after meeting their goal, and had to up their calories. I don't believe that I will be one of those people, cause my body likes the cushion...Good luck and God Bless!

I am 30 lbs approx from goal. I am eating around 1100-1200 cals I have 2 shakes a day to hit my Protein Love Oh Yeah Protein Bars Try and eat egg, cheese & meat daily 1/2 c chicken Cheese Beef Jerky Lots of spinach Veggie protein balls or bites Exercise: Pilates reformer classes 2x /week Cardio 4-5 days / week on my eliptical Walking whenever i can Strength training 2-3 days per a week for 15 mins Soon it will be golf & season!

While looking at protein bars today I saw Quest chips and thought I would try them.... 20 / 21 Gms protein, 2 net carbs, 0 sugar and 130 calories. I only bought 3 snack size bags in case I liked them, I don't want to eat them every day. I tried the cheddar ones and liked them... I suppose if I feel I really need a snack that these wouldn't be too bad considering the protein content. I don't plan on having them often. Anyone else try them?

@@Eclectick if I read the OP right she IS losing a half pound a week (.5) not 5 lbs per week. Weight loss does slow eventually. If you have access to a dietician through your surgeon's practice, you may want to see if they have tips for you. Or you may find that eventually your weight loss picks up again on its own -- sometimes there are slow downs and speed ups, and you can't really control them. I was eating under 800 calories per day at that point, but I eventually (about 9 months out) bumped it up to 1000 calories per day and found that my weight loss picked up a little when it did that. There is no one right answer for everyone -- you just need to experiment and find what works for you -- assuming you aren't working with a dietician that you trust. If you are, do what they say

I am right there with all of you. I am 3 weeks post op today. I received my call from my dietician yesterday telling me to go to pureed foods today and I will stay on them for two weeks before going on to semi-soft. She asked me the portion size I am eating - I am supposed to be eating 1/4 - 1/2 cup three times a day - but they want us to eat 1/4 cup. I told her between 1/4 and 1/2 and that I had been having a sugar free pudding cup as one of my meals - she said that is more than 1/2 a cup. I said oh well, I can't survive on less than 2 cups of food a day - I am hungry all the time. She seemed surprised I was hungry all the time - come on - how could I not be? I was on a 1200 calorie a day pre-op diet and lost 30 lbs - why should I have to be on about 400 calories a day now? I have lost 13 lbs since the surgery, but 10 of that was the first week. I have my first post op appt Oct 6, but not sure if I will get a fill - I will definitely ask for one.

Oh, yeah, that was on my iist of worries, probably near the top. So far, I've found the sleeve allows ME to be in control. I always had willpower, but my body had more power to make me eat than my brain had to stop it. Now, I feel like I have some balance. If you learn new habits and follow the rules, the weight does come off. Before surgery I suffered if I ate below 1500 calories a day. Now I eat about 600-700 and I'm fine. And, it's not a ridiculous worry - it's very valid, based on our years of experience. Best of luck to you!

I eat very similarly to Jacqui except I'm not quite that good. I still can't stand plain Water except in summer and it has to be icecold so I sometimes have a diet soda or Crystal light. The rest of the time I drink tea with skim milk. I don't buy lots of processed foods and when I do I no longer buy the diet versions - I just buy the standard version as I am eating less of it anyway.E.g I always buy full fat Greek Yogurt. However there are some things that I cannot stand unsweetened and then I use a small quantity of Splenda or whatever. I use it on my oats even though I cook them with raisins and also on my yogurt along with some cinnamon. The quantities are minimal and I do not believe that it makes me crave sweet foods more. Most things are OK in moderation it is when you overdo them that they become a problem. Lets face it even too much water is dangerous and can lead to death! Interestingly for years fructose was pushed as a healthier alternative to sugar - its also natural , is low GI and I'm not sure but it may be lower in calories too. They have now discovered that fructose actually causes problems similar to the ones your NUT told you about for the artificial sweeteners! It's actually quite hard to know who and what to believe when it comes to nutrition as they change their minds so often. For example.We have had fats being the villian then sugar then fats again then carbs, told not to eat more than 2 eggs a week, then told we can eat them daily, told soy is great then told that that causes problems............................................................................

I am having trouble some days getting all of my protein. Can I make up for the missed protein by having more the next day?l I am trying hard not to do the shakes just because I would rather eat my calories than drink them, but I do drink three to four glasses of milk a day that gives me 36-48g of protein. Some days I miss a glass or two and am just wondering if I can drink extra the next day will it all average out? Thanks for any advice.......

At 47 years old.....all I can say is that I'm very happy to see you each take your health so serious now. If you work hard and adhere to your plans....strictly......you can achieve mighty impressive results. It can truly change your life......while at my age it is to save my life. It's not a "one and done" type situation, though. Those of us who've struggled through this for decades understand that. It's imperative that you grasp this......it's going to take a lifetime of watching your calorie type and amounts. The surgery doesn't just fix it all. You will always be in the driver's seat and in control. Stay on track and you'll profit tremendously. I'm not trying to preach.....please understand this. I'm simply wishing you each the very best. Gain control and stay in control and live without the burdens of obesity. Slim, trim and young.......you'll be living the dream every day of your lives. Great stuff !!!!!!!!

Count me into the hungry bunch, and my first fill hasn't made any difference yet. I'm staying within my calorie limit but it's taking a lot more will power than I can sustain. Going for my second fill a week from thursday, fingers crossed!

I am clueless as to how many calories I need per day. I looked it up and came up with 2200 per day. That seems like A LOT! Any advice or suggestions ?!?!

No one is perfect. Don't worry about, just be as faithful to the diet as you can be and make sure to keep a check on your sugar. If you need Protein try to make it healthy (cheese, small amt or lean meat small amt.) Keep your calories below 800 and just do your best. Good luck to you and have faith in the Lord to see you through...

What a complete and total waste of my time and sanity. I was banded in October two years ago, and in that time, the only thing I lost was my mind. I feel lied to and cheated, and wish I'd never had this horrible band put in me. I lost 30 pounds the month of my surgery, and then every single time I went in to the Dr, they would take my "weight loss", divide it by the number of months that passed, and tell me how wonderful I was doing. These "doctors" ignored me when I told them the band wasn't doing anything for me. Eventually I lost a total of 50 pounds, but let me be perfectly clear on this. The weight loss was from pure strength of will, the band did NOTHING! I went from yellow to red zone, from eating too much to throwing up every single bite that went in me, with no green zone in between. My body went into utter starvation mode while I was in the red zone, and rather than loose weight, i stayed completely the same, and eventually started gaining it. I exercised, I DIETED harder than I have ever dieted in my entire life, and I got to the point where I was having a psychotic episode over the stress and failure I was faced with every single day that passed. They told me I wouldn't need to diet. They told me the band would regulate my appetite, therefore "dieting" wouldn't be unnecessary. They promised me, no more fad diets, no more stress, just nice, easy, appetite control. What a load of bull. I kept going back to that sham of an office, and every person I talked to would give me a totally new hard-core diet to take. Protein shakes, low fat, low carb, low calorie, point systems, counting calories, eat more cheese, don't eat cheese, eat nuts, stay away from nuts, you name it, someone there told me to do it. Every single time I walked in there, I was given different instructions. Not one single bit of continuity between all the dr's and nurses. All smiles, all "you're doing fine! I know you haven't lost any weight in 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, etc months. I know you can't eat. I know you're stressed out and angry. Don't worry, here, try another diet. Go home now, must get more patients." My hair became thin, and eventually started falling out in clumps, and that's where the psychotic episodes came in. Every night sitting up stressing, pulling out wads of hair, crying in fear and anger. And they said, "Don't worry, you're doing fine. Try another diet." And so they took Fluid out and i went from red zone to yellow - no restriction again. And I gained back 20 pounds. On top of the failure of regaining that weight, it didn't go back to the spots where I lost it. Nope! It focused around my chin and my stomach, so I look like a demented weeble wobble toy now. I wish I'd never had this surgery. I wish I'd had more self esteem and been happy with my extra weight. I wish my life wasn't ruined with the knowledge that I've stressed myself and my family with two years of overwhelming obsession with my weight. And where do I go from here? There is no where to go from here. I'm stuck with a piece of equipment in me that failed - IT FAILED NOT ME - my so-called DOCTORS failed, not me! I've never worked so hard before in my life, exercise, diet after diet, and nothing! What a great life I have to look forward to now. Thanks for nothing lapband.

I'm 3 years post-op and my eating has pretty much stayed the same the entire time. I guess I may sneek in a bit more junk food than I did during my first year. The nice thing about it is that my weight has also stayed the same. I've stayed the same weight (within a pound or 2) for the last 18 months. I have not counted calories from day one. For me it is a texture and volume thing. The "lifestyle change" thing for me is , find what works for you and stick with it..... forever. If you find that counting, measuring, and tracking works in the weightloss stage, do it and never stop. I will never go back to what "normal" eating was before the band. It is what made me morbidly obese. Now my new way of eating is my "normal" and I do it without even giving it much thought.

Hey guys, So this is my second time around with wls. I am back on the pre op diet (1200 calories) and I am struggling so much with reducing my calories. I don't remember it being this hard on my last pre op diet (I lost 40 pounds on that one). Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. Sent from my SM-G925T using the BariatricPal App

It's not even a month since you had your surgery! Don't be so hard on yourself! The doctor that most of went to recommends at least 60 grams of Protein per day and about 800 calories. Good sources of protein are cottage cheese, and eggs if you can stand them. Some people have trouble with eggs but in the beginning, I mixed hard boiled chopped up eggs with low fat mayo or miracle whip and a little bit of mustard. I also ate tuna salad and chicken salad. I am not sure what food stage you are supposed to be on. Are you drinking Protein drinks? That's the easiest way to get a good shot at protein. Did your doctor put you on a post op diet?

Waiting patiently raises some excellent questions. From my understanding talking to the nutrionist, if you're a woman eating less than 1200 calories per day and your weight still stalls out for a long period (plateaus are normal), chances are good if you increase your calories a little you'll boost your metabolism. If you're eating 1200 or more a day (and some do need more!), then you might want to play with your nutrional intake. For instance, if you normally eat considerable carbs, you might want to cut back on them and increase Protein. Vice versa if you normally eat mostly protein (but never below 60g per day of protein, she said). If you do increase your carbs, be sure it's good carbs: Whole grains and high Fiber. We want to stay clear of anything white, enriched, and/or bleached. Really, it all boils down to everyone is different. I can eat good carbs daily (and I do) and still consistently lose weight. Some people simply can't. Some lose great at 1000 calories a day, however considering I'm still very obese, my body needs more or my metabolism slows. We're all different. Just like there's no one size fits all that actually does fit all in clothes, there's no nutritional plan that fits all either. Btw, side note, be prepared to adjust your caloric intake as you lose, too. Obviously you don't need as much to sustain a 150 pound body as you do a 300 pound body, so needs will change.

change you settings on Fitnesspal.com to the calories you want. I added fiber now, just to see how much i get each day. I agree don't starve yourself. 1200- 1400 is about right. I don't always eat that much but that is the goal. my problem comes from carbs. I like to keep them low and that is hard to do! many people don't even keep track of how much they eat! I could not do that, i measure and weigh everything. Maybe that will change when I get to goal.

Love the huge bowl of fiber one you can eat for 200 calories.

I tried all the powdered shakes and didn't like any of them. Way back when I started, someone on here suggested Premier Protein shakes from costco. I tried them and have been drinking them for over 18 months every single day. They are ready to drink, smoothe like chocolate milk, no grit, no foam, tastes great and the lowest in ratio of calories to protein. 30 gms protein in 11 ounces and only 160 calories and 1 gm of sugar. Simply cannot be beat. (I check & compare labels on everything)