Search the Community

I hate to cook too and still struggle to get as much water in as they want. I do get the minimum 48oz/day but don't always make the 64oz they want. I was so glad to stop eating cottage cheese and yogurt! I scoured the grocery isles for food that looked good and was easy to make (Or better, didn't require making). I have to admit I got a little bit of attitude about my diet when I was ALMOST, but not quite, meeting their calorie and water goals, telling them that I was struggling, and they scolded me and raised my goals. I have a spreadsheet that calculates calories and protein from every food I get with a nutrition label and buy low fat, low sugar foods so the calorie and protein count meets my goal. I got a frown from my nutritionist when I told her I eat ham every day, but I gave her a "look" and told her my calorie and protein goals were being met and she refrained from scolding me. I buy Kentucky Legend Bonless Quarter Sliced Ham because it doesn't have lunchmeat texture and I can just weigh out my portion and eat it cold. I got another frown when I told them I eat beef jerky, but reminded them that 100g of protein is hard to do, jerkey is low calorie and high protein, and I chew it VERY well and spit out gristle. If they have to cut a ball of gristle out of my stomach, then I'll stop eating beef. I switched nuts for peanut butter toast when I started getting hungrier. I eat a lowfat sharp cheddar with crackers. Quaker makes a protein Banana Nut Instant Oatmeal. I also eat 1/2 Atkins Chicken Margherita or Healthy Choice Simply Steamers Grilled Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo (1/2 is less than my 6 oz, but it's easier to just take half and eat the other half the next day and the math is easier too). Those 2 were the best my WalMart carries for frozen food Calorie/Protein ratio that I also liked. For an added vegetable I eat 2oz canned french style green beans with 1/2 oz Velveta low fat cheese heated in the microwave. Tyson makes a fajita chicken that microwaves well if you put a dollop of water on the plate. Turkey bacon doesn't really satisfy my bacon cravings, but turkey sausage is really good. If I'm craving sweets I'll eat a Quaker Caramel Rice Cake or a few dark chocolate chips. Luckily I crave salt, not sweets, and the salt cravings have almost gone away. If I'm going to be away from home for a few hours I pack an insulated lunch bag with a serving of ham, cheese and crackers, and jerkey to take with me. If I'm going to be gone for a day or longer I pack my food in bags and a cooler. I got married a little more than 3 months after my surgery and ate what I wanted at my wedding and during the honeymoon, I just kept the servings really small and took protein with me to make sure I still got enough protein and because I needed to eat more than 3 times a day. After that, I allowed myself one meal out each week, eating my 6oz and taking the rest home. Hubby ate most of the leftovers. After I reworked my diet to include tastier, real food, I switched my protein powder to a Collagen with the added missing amino acid. It mixes best with warm or hot liquids and was approved by my nutritionist. I still use 2 scoops a day, 1 with my protein oatmeal and 1 with my sugar free hot apple cider. I met my goal weight at 7 months, just in time for a Halloween party, and I allow myself a small cheat almost every day (my nutritionist told me to add 100-200 cal per day to stop losing weight and i decided to add a tasty snack rather than rework my diet). I watch my weight to make sure I'm not overdoing it. If I eat out, that's my cheat and it replaces a meal. I order what I want and ask for a container BEFORE the food is served so I can pack away all but 6oz before I start to eat. Some cheats aren't really cheats. I've added in apples, pineapple, strawberries and mango. Breyers Carb Smart Fudge Bars have 50 calories, 3g fat, 2g sugar (0 added), and 1g protein. It's only a cheat because of the low protein/cal ratio. Pure Protein bars could be a meal substitute instead of a cheat and have 180-200 cal, 3-4.5g fat, 2-3g sugar, and 19g protein. I like the Chocolate Salted Caramel that's a little chewy and the Chocolate Mint cookie, which has more of a grainy (cookie) texture but tastes really good. At a party, I may eat a bag of chips (~150cal), or I may give in and eat a single Reese's cup (105 cal). OK, maybe a bag of chips AND a single Reese's cup, I'm weak. Dot's Seasoned Pretzels have 130cal per oz. An entire bag of buttered flavored popcorn has 150cal (DO NOT LICK THE BAG). It's nice to eat something tasty and not worry about if it has enough protein. I just had my 9 month bloodwork done, it's all fine.

I don't count calories or anything. BUT, I eat the exact same food every day because I am on bland puree for 10 weeks (possibly longer... we will see). It's just easier to eat the same thing. I know that what I am eating equates to roughly 400 calories a day. Everything is low-fat and low-carb. I have a yogurt for breakfast, a hardboiled egg as a snack, 2oz of meat for lunch, and a soy shake. Sometimes a tablespoon of cream cheese. That's every day. lol. Dietitian and surgeon are good with that given the ulcer. Again, they are happy with my progress and everything... it's just me being scared it's "not going to work" or I will "never" reach my goal. I'm just getting started with exercise... just officially got totally cleared today.

Each person is different when it comes to sliders. I eat Special K Fruit and Yogurt every morning for Breakfast and I do fill full after one cup of special K with a half a cup of 1% milk on it. I have found some foods people say are sliders and don't fill them up actually do for me. I can eat popcorn a cup full and I do fill full and frozen yogurt to. Everyone is different. I would think that you do need fill, but that is just me.

BJean, thanks for thinking of me. I am doing quite well. I even cleaned house yesterday and made lunch for my family today after church. The hunger is getting better. I am still on liquids. My doctor wants me on them until I see him again which is not until Sept 17th. I have not always been a very good rule follower so I have had some of the "whipped" yogurt and that seems to kind of fill the hole. I am drinking the Protein drinks to make sure that I get all of my protein in but I shake it up a bit by putting fruit in the blender with it. A friend of mine that had the sleeve a year ago gave me a receipe for refried bean Soup from Weight Watchers that I tried today and was pretty good. Jello and Protein shakes do get old really fast. I will make it through I am sure, but I am ready to just be "normal" again and be able to eat at the table with my family.

haha i hear ya. I love to bake and i made red velvet cheesecake brownies the day before surgery to bring into work and i didnt even try anything i was very proud of myself. I was extremely sick of clear liquids myself and even started crying the night before my 1 week post op appt because nothing was satisfying me. The next day i was cleared to add in yogurt and pudding and it was the best thing since sliced bread to me! haha Wednesday i was cleared for stage three foods and i can finally feel full and on maybe 3 oz of food. You will progress soon dont worry. as a side note...i think the smell of baking choc chip Cookies is one of my fav smells :wub:

You eating puree food?? I had mine July 7th. I'm on Jello and chicken broth and I never get full. I'm starving:( I'm still on liquids, but get to have cottage cheese and yogurt. I don't feel hungry, and only a couple of small bites make me feel like I ate too much, but I'm getting used to it. Next week I get to start the puree food, looking forward to that. I did read that if you feel hungry, you might be dehydrated and need to drink more liquids, hope that helps. I must really suck to go through this and still feel hungry :-(

I was told I could take a shower the second day and it felt great! Let the warm water run over your incisions. Your doctor should have given you post-op diet instructions which you should be following. I was on soft proteins starting on day four (day of surgery is day one) Soft proteins=eggs,refried beans, chicken and turkey,cottage cheese, low sugar/lowfat yogurt,lowfat cheese. Call your doctor and ask what you should be eating. Every doctor is different but I don't think you need to be on clear liquids too long.

I have a desk job so it was easier for me to return on Monday (after a previous Thursday surgery) than if I had a physically active job. The difficulty was that my job requires me to *think* -- novel concept, I know! It was difficult to concentrate on tasks while taking prescription pain meds. In my case, I was on Percocet, and thus difficult to actually work! I left each day around 4:30 (I usually work 9 - 6), and went home and took a nap. I made sure we didn't have any social event or after-work stuff to attend to -- I think that helped as well. As soon as I shifted off of Percocet (day 7) and on to Extra Strength *Liquid* Tylenol, that made all the difference! I was alert and able to focus at work. Liquid Tylenol is great. Drink lots of Water with it. I also had chicken broth with me and drinkable yogurt.

I keep things simple during the day---I do cook for dinner when DH is here, but when it is just me, I keep it simple. For breakfast, I usually have a cup of yogurt with granola. I can usually eat about 1/2 of it. I take 1/2 out of the container, put it in a bowl,sprinkle it with granola and eat it the first day, then have the second half the next day or for snack later in the day. Sometimes I will cook up a sausage patty and throw a piece of cheese on it. For lunch I most of the time eat some sort of left overs. But also take a slice of deli meat, and either spread cream cheese on it, or wrap it around a piece of cheese. Soup is always easy, and I like it if it is a cold snowy day! A small bowl of cottage cheese with bell pepper chopped up in it, is easy. Snacks, I like almonds, or mixed nuts, I microwave pepperoni til it is crisp, and snack on it. The 100 calorie snack bags are handy and easy. Wheetsin told me how to bake freshly grated parmesan cheese to make cheese crisps, that we really like. SF pudding cups---a variety of things. For dinner, I do cook. I cook the same meals I used to cook, I just eat a lot less of them, and try to focus my meal on the Protein and the veggies, and less so on the carb part....which was ALWAYS my weakeness!! My DH is pretty much a meat & potatoes kind of guy, so I can usually keep us both pretty well happy! I drink tea or Water all day. I take my Vitamins, and I chew up Calcium chews. It is a pretty easy way to eat! Plus when you get a good fill level going on, the restriction, reduces or eliminates hunger, so that helps in a BIG way! I am so looking forward to the new suggestions that you get!! Have you went over to the April 2007 group and introduced yourself? It is underway and all of them are anticipating their upcoming surgeries. I am part of the April 2006 group, and we look forward to getting to know you 07's!!! Good Luck! Kat

I am sure if I did the math -my food bill dropped. I was a huge fast food, sandwich, deli, and pizza shop guy pre-band. Once I moved over to regular food post band my actual grocery store bill went up but my total food bill dropped. You will be shocked at how many meals one package of ground beef becomes. However, I did spend more money on "better" things within the store also. Meaning the can keep the 3 for a $1 dollar nasty yogurt give me the $2.00 per yogurt good stuff. At the end of the day what you might end up in saving in total food is going to have to go towards the purchase of new pants. So don't plan for any savings!!!

Hi all...I am almost 5 weeks post op! Wow the time has flown by! Sorry I have not been on here in a while giving an update or posting about something I have kinda been in what some people call a "stall" for the past two weeks. Kinda puts a damper on things. The first week I was really pretty ok with it. I had just lost 40lb in 2 months and was just stoked to start seeing the changes in my body and in my attitude/personality. Then by the 2nd week it just started to get depressing, I even gained 1 pound... I started getting a little mad and was trying to figure out how to amp up my loss again. I had just started adding solid foods back into my diet but I was not getting over 600-700 cal a day. (which I thought was good) I was having a little bit of a hard time with my protein and liquid intake. So I figured that must be the problem. Last Tuesday I had my first WLS support group meeting with my supper awesome friend Tina. By some amazing divine appointment God had them focusing on PROTEIN! She had a ton of samples to try from different products and gave us a bunch of ideas on how to add bits of protein to our diets through out the day. Apparently just about everyone in the group had been struggling with some kind of stall recently and so that was the topic of focus! How perfect for me And because I know how common it is for us new VSG'ers to have a hard time with proper protein levels I thought I would share what I learned, my new favorite products, and a few new ideas on how to use protein. First, my new best friend is "Big Train". I have always loved this brand but had no idea that they had a bariatric friendly line of protein powders. So now I can have my love of coffee and drink it too I do live in Seattle... Its almost against the law to not like coffee over here... lol Here is the link for the Big Train drinks. I love them! The cool thing is, I can not taste the protein in them at all! I have tried the vanilla and the espresso (both are fantastic) and have just ordered the sampler pac to try the rest before purchasing in bulk... http://www.bigtrain.com/coffee-protein-drink-mix-powder-fit-frappe-c-143.aspx My 2nd new brand of protein is Chike... I had never heard of this brand till my meeting this week. I tried the coffee flavor and again it was really good! I ordered the sample pac of this brand also. I really like being able to take a little packet of powder with me rather than mixing up a whole days worth at once. I need to find some kind of little container that holds one serving though, because it is so much cheaper to buy the tub rather than the packets... Anyway, here is the link for Chike. http://www.chikenutrition.com/buy-chike.html Third... I know most of you guys know about Unjury. But recently I have made a few friends who had never heard of it. For all of you newbies out there here is an awesome product! Unjury is said to be one of the best forms of protein. One of the best on the market. Its protein has really good absorption into the body. I have been told some of the cheaper proteins don't benefit the body as well as others. I totally get that, most food now a days dose not benefit the body at all so I am sure they cheat on this kind of stuff also... Anyway, Unjury makes a "non-flavored" powder that you can put in just about anything from soup to pudding, to drinks. I have been adding it to my Crystal Light or Mio drinks. When you add it to a fruity drink it kinda turns it into a cream cycle taste. Not bad when it is giving you 20+ grams of protein in each scoop... I also put some strawberry lemon-aid into a vanilla powder and it was pretty good too.. http://www.unjury.com/store/protein/ I also found this website http://www.bariatricchoice.com/bariatric-protein-shakes-smoothies-drinks-12.html It looks like it has a ton of different high protein options including Nectar (which I have ordered the sample pack but have not tried yet) It might be a cool place to get some extra ideas from. (And by the way I just started loosing weight again! I dropped 1 pound yesterday. I really believe its because I am drinking more and added more protein) So, to give you an idea on how I get my protein and liquids in... In the morning I start out with either a mixed fruit and veggie shake with a scoop of Unjury in it. Or, I have a coffee drink with either the Big Train or the Chike. Rite there in that morning drink I have just got 20 grams of protein in... As a snack I will have a cheese stick or cup of Greek yogurt. (6-12 g protein) Then for lunch I make sure to have some kind of meat, eggs or cheese. All of which are low in carbs. (remember we like low carbs During the day I will have a "snack" by putting one scoop of protein powder in with a beverage. There is another 20 grams. For dinner I have been trying to get in some veggies with my meat. So weather I have 1/2 a hamburger patty or a few ounces of fish, I try to get in either salad or another green vegetable. If I work it good like that, I am over 70 grams of protein. Plus the shakes alone have given me about 30 ounces of water so I only have to concentrate on another 30 through out the day. To tell you the truth, its the liquids I am still having trouble with. It is really hard to drink that much through out the day. But I am trying... I hope I was able to help some of you guys... I know I was really struggling with ideas on how to get enough every day... Good luck to you all! And let me know what you think of my ideas. Also, If any of you have some products or mix ideas for me please let me know! I am always looking for something new to try. Later all!!! "HUGS" Amber

I don't think of carbs as "the enemy" the way some people seem to. My nutritionist never advised me to limit carbs to any specific number and carbs are the only form of fuel your brain can use, so you need some! I just focus on getting all of my Protein in and that usually means I don't get many carbs and I'm fine with that. If my protein source happens to have some carbs attached to it, then so be it. My calories are only coming from three macro-nutrients: protein, fat, and carbs. If I get the 100 gram upper range of my protein target every day, that's 400 calories from protein. That means to get 1000 calories a day, I'm getting 600 calories from fat or carbs. Why are would calories from carbs be any worse than calories from fat? That being said, the bulk of those other 600 calories are coming from fat for me, because most meat-based protein sources also include fat and fat has 9 calories per gram, versus only 4 calories per gram from carbs. In any case, even if I were overly concerned about carbs, QuestBars would still be a decent choice, because while they have 21 grams of carbs per bar, 17 of those are from "fiber". And most anyone who counts carbs actually counts "net carbs", which means subtracting out the Fiber and sugar alcohols from the total carb count. So the "net carbs" in a QuestBar are only 3 grams. Plus they only have 1 gram of sugar. Now you could make a whole case about Isomalto-Oligosaccharides not being real "fiber" in the way we tend to think about fiber. But the same could be said about the Polydextrose, Maltodextrin, Inulin, and Chicory Root Extract you see in all of the so-called "high fiber" foods on the market these days. Everything from yogurt, to cereal, to Breakfast bars, to ice cream is claiming to be "high fiber" now with those ingredients. If you are opposed to processed/packaged foods, then most Protein Bars probably aren't for you. But I don't think that has anything to do with the carb count, especially when the main carb you should be worried about (sugar) is barely even present in QuestBars at least.

I was allowed any strained cream soup during my full liquid phase, so there were a LOT of options. I literally bought every single one my grocery store had. My favorites were Campbell's condensed cream of shrimp made with 2% milk and Progresso's Chicken Cheese Enchilada. I was also allowed drinkable yogurt in my full liquid phase, so maybe that would be an alternative to soup or protein shakes if you are tired of those?

So glad you're here. Good luck with your next stage. Hopefully things get better. Yogurt! Keep us posted. HW: 281.5 on 10.30.15 SW: 245.7 on 6.1.16 CW: 204.8 on 8.17.16

*GASP* That could soooo be it! I was lactose intolerant pre op but because I've yet to find an Organic Lactaid I just dealt with the bathroom runs..... But it makes sense & I never thought to think the lactose affects my body different now....! I will try my children's Almond Milk. They are lactose intolerant as well & since they've been drinking the stuff since I stopped nursing them they actually really like it. I'll see how it goes, thanks! Right now I'm having some white fish I sauteed and mixed with .5oz of yogurt for lunch. So far so good and surprisingly tasty after seasoning it well.

Starting purees is great! After the liquid diet, it's nice to be able to eat something resembling real food. You should mix protein powder into purees to make sure you meet your protein goal. My advice for that is to use flavored protein powder for sweet foods and unflavored protein powder for savory foods. Here's what I ate in the pureed stage: Fat-free, no sugar added Greek yogurt (vanilla yogurt + birthday cake protein powder; vanilla yogurt + chocolate protein powder + powdered peanut butter; strawberry yogurt + strawberry protein powder, etc.) Fat-free, sugar-free pudding (chocolate pudding + chocolate protein powder + powdered peanut butter; vanilla pudding + strawberry protein powder, etc.) Unsweetened applesauce + cinnamon roll protein powder Protein oatmeal + cinnamon roll protein powder Pureed refried beans + unflavored protein powder, topped with enchilada sauce + Laughing Cow cheese Pureed black bean soup + unflavored protein powder Mashed cauliflower + unflavored protein powder, topped with gravy

Regina, That is correct--you do not have to use the shakes at their office. The nurse said Atkins are allowed and I believe it's listed on their paperwork under "liquids". I also love fruit flavors so I bought some frozen fruit in the bag and the vanilla Atkins shakes and blended about 1/2 cup fruit into a shake. Or I used low fat plain yogurt, some skim milk and the frozen fruit to make a smoothie. Wasn't perfect but it gave me the change of taste that I needed. walmart had frozen peaches, mango, strawberry and pineapple. Just watch the calories and use small amounts. I was able to stay under the 800 calorie total each day even with a smoothie. Dr. Watkins office has a support group meeting the second monday of each month at 6:30. I went to the July meeting even though I was pre banded and it was great. I plan to go again in august. They give ideas and helpful hints there too. Mason33 is correct--the staff is excellent---the hospital was amazing and the whole experience has been better than expected. I'm on day 3 post op and hopefully it's all better from here. I've been able to go to the store, do dishes, laundry, sweeping--light work and I go back to work tomorrow full-time. As long as you have an option to sit once in a while for your teaching event---it sounds like it could be done (if it were me). Let us know if you need to vent during the diet. Even though I wasn't having hunger pains, I realized how very much I missed food and that was hard to get over at times. Just kept telling myself that it was in my head and not to let it win. Vicki

I admit these r yummy & I have struggled w/ my chip addiction since being sleeved 9.20.12 & can proudly say I've lost 95lbs. I just dipped them in fage yogurt so I'd get my protein in. What works for some may not work for all. My motto is all in moderation:-)

Unfortunately many parents don't realize the damage they do to their children in regards to weight. Especially around 8-10 years when children are a little more self conscious of their bodies and don't know any better that they're still growing! i was a skinny minny growing up. I do recall my mom calling me fat out of sheer jealousy when I was 16 or so. That lie led me to start believing I was. So I delved into exercise/nutrition. Kept it off till about 8 years ago. My grandmother did the same stuff to my mother, as yours did. So young in age, she put my mom on diets. My mom is still morbidly obese with stage 4 cancer, diabetes, and neuropathy issues. I can honestly believe that if the parents were to not have made weight the issue, or suggest bikeriding (as you said), you and my mother would have turned out quite different. I don't do this with my kids. They're young, 3,7, & 12. I heard my stepdaughter mention something about calories in a yogurt. I told her she had no business worrying about that because her body is still growing. I make it a point to not share my struggles out loud or with my kids as well. They don't even know about my surgery. I'm sorry you had to go through that. It hits hard for me because of where my mom is in her life that started in childhood.

hi marisa,rose You are lucky that you are only 31 - as you've noted above many people, including myself wish they had this surgery years ago. at your age i hope you don't have any health issues yet, or only a couple. The past few months before surgery, before i was having my food funeral, it was amazing how weight just piled on in such a short time. If i had kept eating, going like this - would now weigh............ As far as mourning food - i'm 3+ months out and i am usually ok without "wanting" the bad food stuff.. But i'd be lying if i didn't say i sometimes think about lasagna instead of yogurt. oh well. But just "thinking" about it. the truth is i could have 2-3 bites of lasagna, but to me thats a tease, so i would rather not eat it all. It is hard realizing for the rest of your life you'll be eating smaller portions, but healthier, other good stuff, but it is so worth it. I can tell, you are smart enough to know that. i am so happy i had this surgery, it is a life saver. i'm glad you are coming aboard too feeling better about the surgery too. welcome aboard newbie. continued good luck kathy

perhaps the potatoes are a slider food for you. My NUT recommended adding unflavored protein powder to the potatoes. That might help you feel some fullness, otherwise, maybe try something else a bit more nutritious, like yogurt, or cottage cheese.

Yeah, I had wicked wicked NASTY carb withdrawal symptoms!!! Kim...easy on the yogurt girl....a whole BIG container for one meal is a lot.

I know things seem hopeless right now (God knows we've ALL been there), but I promise you that you'll feel a sense of peace after your surgery, just knowing you have REAL help with your weight loss efforts makes a world of difference. It's really hard for me to describe how it feels for me, it's almost like it gives me the strength to keep going and try and stay away from all the garbage I love to eat. I feel restriction now after my second fill, it's so weird to eat so little and feel so full. It's like a miracle, literally. I had my surgery at the TLBC and went through the cottage cheese/yogurt diet as well. The first couple of days were hard but you'll get used to it and you'll make it. You're worth it, you can do it..once your weight loss begins you'll feel SO much better, I promise. GO FOR IT!!!

Every surgeon is different. I was given a big calendar, color coded so that I could track and follow for my food changes. Personally, after surgery I was on clear liquids day 1 and 2. Then full fluids (soups, yogurts, pudding, smoothings) for 2 weeks. I am now on pureed and blenderized for 7 days, followed by stage 2 of that, chopped, ground meats and adding a bunch more well cooked foods for 10 days. Then my maintenance plan for life.

Thank God they came out with this! Now I can help myself stay regular and eat Greek yogurt at the same time! And it actually tastes better than the Chobani and Yoplait to me! 12g of protein in 4 oz... I'm loving it!