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Started my liquid diet today - I am miserable. I work 9 hour shifts on my feet 5 days a week, and after today, I am light headed and completely impatient. Makes me wonder how many people in customer service who are cranky and just annoyed and short with everyone are on this damn diet!! I've had Water all day, 3 Protein shakes - each of different variety, and 3 yogurts - also different brands. At a total of 780 calories, I feel I have eaten far from enough, and I feel sick to my stomach. I'm re-tasting the shakes, and just totally turned off of everything. How am I going to get the protein and calories I need, by also feeling full and not like I'm starving myself all day? If I stick to the Protein Shakes and yogurt, I'm gonna hate them really soon. Help!!! Feeling weak physically and mentally.

Boiled eggs are a waste of calories and sleeve space. Not enough protein .Research before you put anything in your mouth. I live on greek yogurt 14-15 gr of protein. Tilapia, chicken, red meat. Cottage cheese is high in protein. Special K PROTEIN PLUS cereal 1/2 cup with 1/2 cup Carbmaster milk. I don't have space for veggies or bananas in my sleeve. No protein? I won't eat it. Water? Yes, but not as much cause I forget to drink it. I take my Bariatric advantage vitamins and 1 iron pill every day. I am not doing ANY excersise but to walk from my cubicle to the mail room a few times per day. I've lost 35 lbs in 8 weeks. Ps: I take Wellbutrin. What is depression again? You gotta take something. See a doctor. Get serotonin levels up baby. Check your thyroid levels. You'll feel great.

Its really pretty easy. The first rule of healthy is variety. Dont eat the same thing day in day out. You need to decide whether the low carb thing sits well with you or not, for me I dont believe in it, dont have an interest in living that way and would have to relearn planning and cooking a healthy diet, so I just eat "normally". So..... eat a lot of different foods, try to include a few different coloured vegies on your plate with your evening meal, try to eat two fruit, five veg a day, dont overdo the bread, Pasta and rice, eat the wholegrain or wholemeal varieties where possible, dont add fat when cooking and definitely dont bread and fry things - the grill and the barbecue and dry roasting are best. Most nights of the week we do eat boring and plain - ie. a piece of Protein be it chicken, fish or red meat simply prepared, potato and vegies. We'll do a rice or pasta meal once a week. Home made Soup makes a good dinner and your family can have a bread roll with that even if you dont. Salads, yogurt, fruit and nuts, someting on crackers and some fruit makes good lunches, and I always stick with a basic good quality Cereal (oatmeal, muesli etc) for Breakfast, usually with some berries and a dollop of yogurt, or a piece of wholegrain toast with Peanut Butter (or vegemite, lol, I am an Aussie after all). I pretty much stick with 3 meals a day, no Snacks, no seconds, avoid sweet stuff nearly all of the time and dont have a lot of alcohol or liquid calories. I lost 130lb, and have maintained that loss unfilled for five months now, just a basic, sensible diet really does work - but I do run for an hour or so or go to the gym most days.

Ice pops are great. Yogurt is good, and I now love those cup in hand Soups. It will take a while to get the whole thing down but you can have it a few times. There really isn't any protien in them. My favorite thing post-op was and still is egg salad, scrambled eggs with salsa on top, corned beef hash, pudding. I was able to go on mushies after 2 weeks which was a wonderful thing!!! Good luck your going to love your band!!!

Day 3 of the pre - pre-op diet.. lol I started a week early just to ease my way into it. The first day the 1st protein shake was HORRIBLE. The 2nd one was tolerable. Day 2 I started off right, created a protein shake that was on the verge of delicious. Then I got derailed by some chocolate chip cookies with skim milk (because yeah that skim milk makes ALLLLLL the difference lol) and a pollo asado burrito for dinner.. WHAT??? It's protein... lol Ok so I fell off yesterday but I knew I would, that's why I did this a week early. Despite my falling off, everyone made comment about how great I looked and my energy level and I must admit I felt GREAT. People were asking me how much weight I've lost lol.. Umm I've been on a diet for 2.5 days, how much do you expect me to lose??? Lol but you know what? I will RECEIVE those compliments and how I feel! Today I ate a cucumber like it was THE BEST candybar I'd ever had.. I think I was just excited for the texture lol, but I also played around with some shake recipes which I will be posting here in my blog as I develop and taste them. Today's shake: 4oz Healthy Balance Apple Juice 2 tbsp vanilla non-fat yogurt (be careful with the sugar/carbs etc in your yogurt. Greek yogurt is best if you can find it - LOTS of protein, low carbs and little to no sugar.) 1 scoop vanilla Designer Whey protein mix handful of icecubes. Mix or blend, whichever you prefer, I've tried it both ways and they're both delicious. Well as delicious as it can be lol. Tomorrow I'll do one with Acai juice and see how it turns out. If you try the shake let me know what you think. :thumbup:

Janey I never liked yogurt either - the texture made me gag (the same problem with pudding) and the gross aftertaste - yuk! Since I am determined to eat healthy food and I know yogurt is good for me, I made a serious effort to like it. I found that Yoplait custard style in almost any flavor is really, really good with no aftertaste. I find myself eating one at least four times a week for a nice snack and I really like it.

This isn't going to fix a lot but, try making ranch dip using a dry mix and Greek yogurt, then add a scoop of unflavored protein powder. Use that to dip fresh veggies in. 2 birds 1 stone.

My port incision hurt the most and I had signifigant discomfort for probably 2 or 2.5 weeks (maybe longer? Cant remember now) after surgery. Sometimes I held a pillow over my tummy when I was lying down. You should try reclining instead of sitting up right. I think reclining helps. When I was post op, for the first 2 days I was drinking about an ounce of Water every hour. I had a few spoons of clear broth Soup too. I did Clear Liquids (so water, clear broth, crystal light, etc) for 3 days. Then I did full liquids for 2 weeks (Protein shakes, thicker Soups sometimes, slim fast...kind of like the pre-op diet). I don't think I had yogurt during that time. After that I did mushies, which is when I think I incorporated thicker things like yogurt in. Then soft solids and solids after that. But its really different from doctor to doctor. Did your doctor say you could have yogurt at this point post op? If he didn't, I would just REALLY stick to what he said. You are giving your stomach time to heal. You don't want it to start churning (which is what happens when you eat, even a little) because it could cause the band to slip. Good luck!

When I was a kid my parents had an ice cream maker and I would sneak handfuls of rock salt. We lived by our neighborhood's baseball fields and I'd go sit in the bleachers, watch games, and snack on rock salt like it was popcorn. My parents were worried so they took me to the doc and he's the one I heard about it from. It made sense, because I never really drank milk and have hardly touched it since I was about 8... and wasn't much on yogurt, cheese, etc. either. He told my parents to give me 1200mg calcium a day. About 4 days later the salt cravings went away. Too bad the admiration for cheeses came in its place.

I had to be treated for Hpylori. Had no symptoms either. I had 3 meds one a PPI. Made me horribly nauseated. Had to use an anti nausea patch. Could only eat carbs, starches and some yogurt, cheese. Then after 4 wks had the breath test to make sure bacteria gone. I was praying I wouldn't have to have another round of antibiotics.

I am a week banded and I have some major difficulty drinking. I thought the my NEW stomach or pouch would be just like my old stomach but much smaller. Does this get better? please help !!!!! I am here because it seems like u guys have all been through the early stages. I am still on Liquids only, w/ the exception of yogurt. I tried oatmeal the second day by mistake and boy did that SUCK. I am deff a bit scared to try any kind of mushy foods can u guys give me some insight into the first foods u guys tried. Thanks soooo much Tom

Please give your Doc a call on monday just to be sure. Miserable feeling no doubt. I am not sure what eating stage you are in. But possibly some yogurt or sf applesause. Along with the anti acids. just a thought.

Here is the Liver Shrink Diet my Surgeon and Nutritionist gave me to follow pre-op: Liver Shrink Diet Remember: Vegetables ar unlimited on this diet. (except potatoes, corn, beans, and peas. Breakfast Protein Shake or Protein Bar (You may use any shake as long as it has 220 or less calories and 10g or less fat/serving) Mid Morning Snack 1 small piece of fruit (if you have Diabetes add 4 oz low-fat yogurt) Lunch Protein Bar (220 calories of less and 10g or less of fat) or Shake Mid Afternoon Snack 1 small piece of fruit (add 4 oz low-fat yogurt if you have Diabetes) Dinner 3 oz meat (lean) - The size of a deck of cards steamed vegetables or salad with Fat-free salad dressing 6 unsalted crackers or 2 slices low calorie bread or 1 small baked potato 1/2 c fruit or 1 small piece of fruit Evening Snack 1 small piece of fruit (add 4 oz low-fat yogurt if you are Diabetic) (You may have non-caloric beverages on this diet) NO ALCOHOL!!!!!!!! Examples: Decaf. Tea, Crystal Light, Sugar-free Kool-Aid, Water Follow This 1 Day Prior To Surgery: Clear liquids only including Jello, broth, juice, and any beverages listed above. Jello can be congealed, but do not put fruit in it it. (NO RED JELLO) & NOTHING TO EAT PAST MIDNIGHT (of course). This is just what my surgeon and nutritionist gave me. Of course everyone's seems different but I just thought I would give you something to go on.

Did anyone go in for there first fill and not get a fill?? My nurse told me that I have 3cc residual fluids in my band from surgery already and I was 4 weeks post OP down 25lbs not hungry at all with good when I do eat. still a little nervous eating solid foods so I do protein shakes , fish, Greek yogurt and egg whites with salsa most days .. I'm sure this is completely normal just wanting to see if anyone else had this experience...

The nausea stopped right around the 24 hr point. I tried to walk two laps everytime my vitals were checked but I was tired and slept most of the afternoon away. Sunday morning, Dr. Kelly came by and checked me out then Cecy took me around noon for my swallow test. That facility is very nice, though the roads are quite bumpy on the way there. Thank goodness I still have cushion on my backside lol. The drink is disgusting, like aspirin Water, but it goes quickly and I brought sugar free mints for afterwards. Dr. Kelly recorded the test and Omar emailed it to me. My tummy looks so widdle on the video. They also gave me xray to take home. It takes like 10 minutes total. Cecy took me to the grocery store to get some cold beverages and my meds. The grocery store had the most gorgeous mangoes I wish I could take home and was sooo clean and colorful. Once I got to the hotel, Omar and Dr. Kelly came up to go over my diet and Cecy made me some rice water. I'd never tried rice water, but it has a nice cinnamon flavor. Omar went to get the other two couples then came back to get me. I took a big gatorade and headed to the bull fight with another couple. It was $20 for premium seats and $1 for a cushion (concrete seats). The food they brought by looked delicious, dried meat, fruit platters, but I sipped my gatorade. It was very...authentic. Beautiful bulls and horses. We stayed a little over an hour. Omar picked us up and we all went shopping at Avenida Revolución. You have to haggle for prices, but I yard sale every weekend so this is totally up my alley. I spent $33 on 3 luchador masks and some maracas. We stopped at Caesar's Restaurant which is the birthplace of the Caesar salad. It is made tableside with ground anchovies, dijon mustard, oil?, garlic, worchesterchire sauce, egg yolk, pepper, parm cheese & croutons. It looked really good. We then went out to eat at a mexican restaurant that has the.best.chicken.broth.ever. I don't remember the name of the place but I've never had broth that good, full of cilantro goodness. I chewed a tiny bite of rice with it. It was my first meal since Thursday night (3 days). I sipped too fast as about 5 minutes after I finished eating I felt way over full. You know how when you eat like a jumbo cheeseburger and fries then feel ugh? I felt that way after drinking 1/2 a cup of pineapple juice and maybe 3/4 cup broth. I kinda couldn't believe it until it happened to me. We got back to the hotel around 9pm. I showered, changed my bandages, took my meds, went on the balcony to check out the city at night, then online way too late. I got up this morning around 5am and had a drinkable yogurt. Omar brought me some thin oatmeal Cecy made me around 8am. I'm sipping on it very slowly. I'm chilling in the room this morning watching HBO. I have no nausea or pain. I get a free broth and popsicle from the hotel daily so I'll be checking that out later today. So far I've had a great experience in Tj. You don't get this kind of personal service in the US. Good luck Reese! It was nice meeting you yesterday. I'm sure you'll do great! Thanks thinmymind, I had a lot of fun yesterday.

Hi Kim, I've never been able to stick to a diet for long either, BUT... the pre-op and post op diets are different, at least I thought so. You know that there's an end to it, for one thing, and you're really doing it for a GOOD reason. Not sticking to it would only make your surgery more difficult, and I found that good incentive to 'be good'. But... LOL, I of course wasn't all good. I still lost 15lbs, and it did its job (shrinking my liver). Just think of it being for the best. It's not for long, and really, the worst of it is the pre-op part. TLBC's is yogurt and cottage cheese, right? Mine was all Optifast. They both suck, eating any one thing for a long time, but... you'll live. And then after, you'll be so excited to have juices and broths and popsicles! Your BMI is a good thing to know. A 'normal' BMI is around 18.5-24.9. Up to 29.9 is overweight, 30 and above is obese, and 40 and above is morbidly obese... I believe 50 and above is super morbidly obese. You could tell us your height and weight, and we'll tell you what yours is. It's not something you NEED to know, but I guess we just use it to gauge where we want to get to. When you hit a 39 BMI, you can say "WOOO! I'm only obese!!!" You don't really need to know about the size of the bands and fills right now. Joffe/Yau will figure out what you need when they get in there. Then you'll eventually get fills, which amounts will vary. You should start working on not having a drink with you when you eat. If you're eating tiny bites like you're supposed to, you probably won't choke anyways! Practice that (small bites and chewing the crap out of everything) too! It's not that you CAN'T drink with your meals, it just defeats the purpose, because it makes the food slide out of your 'pouch' faster, and you won't get full, or not for as long. If you absolutely NEED a sip, take one. I'm not telling people.... not really. I just moved across the country, so no one I know or am around on a daily basis, besides my boyfriend knows. People really don't notice what you're eating or that you're not drinking while you're eating. They're too busy with their own food. Order smaller things... eat what you can. If you can't finish it... just say "Oh, I guess I wasn't all that hungry." If you just have a diet Pepsi once in a while, you'll probably do fine getting 'cut off' ! I'm not one to talk though, I've started having coffee every morning again. Damn you, Tim Horton's! Let us know whatever else you want to know! Mandi

Hello, I am a little concerned and I want to know if this is normal so early in my post-op phase? I was sleeved 10/11/12 (9 days ago) I am feeling kind of hungry all the time. I am on full liquids and am able to drink way more than 1 ounce 15 minutes, in fact I can drink 1/2 cup of broth in less than 10 minutes and a few minutes later I'll feel hungry (not head hunger) and I can consume 1/2 cup of yogurt (thinned out) like nothing. I am following Dr's directions and am consuming anywhere from 48+ ounces of Fluid a day and Calories between 400-600 and Protein between 60-91 grams (that has been my range) It just seems I am able to consume quite a bit of liquids with no problem and I am worried this won't work for me? Please any feedback is appreciated. Thanks!

Those carbs you're getting in the carrots and yogurt are simply promoting more carb craving. Sorry! Try muching on hi Protein (dense protein....like meat, Beans, etc)....it'll stay with you longer. And protein supplements are wonderful for keeping you satisfied and for keeping your energy level up. Try to get about 100 grams a day along with lots of liquids while you're going thru this. You might as well get started now.....because you'll need to keep up that regime after banding if you are going to be successful at losing weight. Best wishes to you!!

I also had really intense constipation for the first month after the sleeve. I took Benefiber and stool softeners and drank 90 oz of water a day, but I still had long bouts of painful constipation (5 days or more). At my one month check-in with the nutritionist, she told me it was fine to use Milk of Magnesia every other day prophylactically until I started getting more plant fiber in my diet. She also told me to add chia seeds to my Greek yogurt. This worked for that second month and, now 2.5 months out, I am able to eat more veggies and not taking the Milk of Magnesia anymore and am totally regular lol. TL;DR In my experience, getting enough fiber gets easier every week. Talk to your surgeon or nutritionist about Milk of Magnesia. My nutritionist didn't want people relying on it indefinitely, but was fine with me using it very regularly for a month until I started getting more fiber.

I ate it. Hawiian Delight/Gerbers is my favorite. Keep it for after my fills too. The turkey dinner was good too after I added some salt/pepper. But only did that once. I like the custards and fruits too. The peaches with a little ricotta was good. Added the Gerbers chicken to some broth and it made good soup.... but DO NOT get the beef... yuck! Other than that SF Jello Pudding/Protein Shakes/Yogurt/Ice Cream were my staples. Good luck!

I record everything on fitday, I started with fitday.com and switched to the PC version because I don't always have internet access. I find it works for me to record it, I eat better that way - not just calories, but in terms of health, making sure I get enough Protein, avoid saturated fat, get enough Fiber, enough Water... and all the little things. So easy to give you a few typical days! Today - 102 ounces of water in total. Breakfast: -large can of V8 juice about 30 minutes before eating. -egg creations - 1/2 cup scrambled (chive and cheese flavoured fat free egg white blend) cooled and mixed with a half tablespoon of low fat mayo and a teaspoon of nutritional yeast and sodium free potassium salt. 140 calories. Hour after eating, - large bottle of water mixed with tropical flavoured protien powder. half serving of Protein Powder. 45 calories. Mid morning snack: - 30 cherries 150 calories Hour after eating, - bottle of water. Lunch: 10 7grain kashi crackers with low fat chive and garlic cream cheese and smoked salmon. 250 calories Hour after eating, - bottle of water. afternoon snack: 3/4 cup of flax plus Cereal with 1/2 cup of Omega 3 so good soy milk and package of stevia (herbal sweetner) 165 calories Hour after eating, - bottle of water. Dinner: 1 mediterranean seasoning large chicken breast, no added fat. 1/2 cup mashed acorn squash with coconut oil (butter substitute), potassium salt substitute and nutritional yeast. 1/4 cup of corn with coconut oil and potassium salt. 4 tablespoons of salsa. 300 calories Small piece of belgian extra dark chocolate - 60 calories Hour after eating - large can V8 70 calories. Before bed, bottle of water with full serving protien powder. 90 calories 1270 calories total, 36 gram of fat, 151 grams of carbs, 98 grams of protien. Yesterday - (I won't break it down into meals and Snacks, its a similar pattern every day) egg creations with light mayo, yeast, and p-salt half an apple 1 cup of chilli with light cheddar, light sour cream small mixed organic greens salad with tomato and with garlic/chilli flax oil and balsamic vinegar small can tuna with garlic and hot peppers and light mayo half cup acorn squash 1/4 cup peas - veggies with cold pressed coconut oil and p-salt 1/2 cup blueberries 40 cherries 2 poached eggs with light mayo and a teaspoon of caviar 7 multigrain rice crackers with fat free cheese 117 ounces of water over the course of the day. Total calories - 1307, 47 grams of fat, 131 grams carbs, 94 grams protein. Other stuff I eat really regularly - salmon, canned, fresh, smoked, other fish, mackerel, crab, lobster, artificial crab. 1% cottage cheese, various low fat cheeses, dannon sillhoutte yogurt smoothies, loads of fruit and veggies, drink mostly water, but also green and white tea, both hot and iced, and lots of tabouli salad. I avoid sugar, processed foods, and simple carbs, go for multi-grain high fiber low glycemic carb choices...

Here is one that has been posted before. Not sure if it work. Good luck. Dr. Fox's Plateau Busting Diet This is the plan that Dr. Fox gives to his RNY and AGB patients in order to get through a plateau in weight loss. #1 Do for 10 days to break plateau #2 Drink 2 quarts of Water a day #3 You must have 45 grams of Protein supplement and all your Vitamin & mineral supplements each day. #4 You may consume up to 3 oz. of the following high-protein foods, 5 times a day: a.. beef, b.. pork, c.. chicken, d.. turkey, e.. lamb, f.. fish, g.. eggs, h.. low-fat cheese, i.. cottage cheese, j.. plain yogurt (or artificially sweetened), k.. Peanut Butter, l.. beans/legumes. #5 You may also have: a.. sugar-free popsicles (avoid juice popsicles), b.. tea or coffee, c.. sugar-free sodas, d.. sugar-free Jello, e.. broths & bouillons, f.. Crystal Lite drinks. #6 IF IT IS NOT ON THE LIST YOU MAY NOT HAVE IT! #7 Keep a food diary and try to get 30 minutes of exercise daily

I mixed unflavored Protein powder with every kind if cream soup I could find... Lobster bisque, tomato, potato leek, Cream of shrimp, asparagus, chicken, mushroom, celery... Some of them had little chunks in them so I diluted them with milk or Water and strained them first. I Never worried about the fat content. In fact, my surgeon's dietician laughed when I questioned the fat content of the drinkable yogurt she recommended. You can't possibly eat enough at this point for the fat calories to matter. Besides, you need fat in your diet for cellular functions and absorption of Vitamins. Avocados were a fav when I got to mushies...still are, along with nuts, real 1/2 and 1/2 for my coffee and regular 4% cottage cheese. Check the labels...."low fat". Usually has higher carbs.

Okay so I just found something that may help me and others in the purée stage with getting fiber. Oikos yogurt has 3g per serving. I don’t love Greek yogurt but I checked mine and it has none (my husband had the Greek stuff and he pointed it out) so I added a packet of Splenda and it’s isn’t super horrible that way. Tastes better than milk of magnesia. I read that we should try to get 5G per 1000 calories so I am gonna try to get one of those in a day and hopefully that will help.

I clipped out some member favorites from a previous Protein drink thread. Unfortunately, I couldn't locate the thread, but here are the clips: "Nature's Best makes a carb free, clear drink that comes pre-bottled and in fruit flavores. Its called Zero Carb and from what I've read the Frosty Grape is the best." "New Whey liquid Protein is like 4 oz of clear protein with 25 grams and it tastes like liquified Jello @ only 100 calories. www.fitnessfirstUSA.com has them!" "My brand is called New Whey Liquid Protein and I get it from: http://www.wholesalesupplementstore....idprotein.html It tastes fine to me and is easier to get down than Protein shakes." "...started with Carnation Instant Breakfast mixed with milk and unflavored unjury Protein Powder. I have tried a few since being banded (10/04) and now use GNC's whey protein in french vanilla - I mix it with oj, van yogurt & milk and it tastes like an orange julius, or I mix it with frozen strawberries/banana/milk and its kind of like a daquiri."