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I find its easier to buy plain or plain Greek yogurt. No need to look at labels then. I add my favourite sweetener or honey and fruits. In Egypt I would be eating figs and dates with it. If you struggle to get protein shakes, Use a tip that I was given, drink skimmed milk with a tablespoon of milk powder added to bump up the protein. I added fruit and occasionally peanut butter to it and blended it smooth. You can add yogurt to this too. If you say what kinds of foods you want to cook the people on here can give you the recipes

Hello, I am so glad to have found this forum right before my surgery. I am an American, but I currently live in Egypt and I will be getting my VSG on January 26th! I have lived in 4 countries in the past 3 years, which has led to poor choices in food and exercise. I think it's mainly because of adjusting to local food, navigating what food you are buying (sometimes there aren't even nutritional labels), and as I previously loved late runs at night that is something I left behind states side because in some countries I have lived in it is considered quite odd and you get lots of uncomfortable stares. I know it's a long shot, but I wonder if there are any people with a similar situation? Also, for my main question does anyone have any advice on simple at-home exercise routines to start after post-op (once it's safe of course)? Or just generally good foods that can be eaten without worrying about specifics of nutritional values that aren't the basics of meats and vegetables? Even yogurt sometimes stresses me out because I know it can have high sugar content. Before going down the VSG path I kind of gave up on the food selection because it was impossible to know what is in everything. Alternatively, if anyone has found any great resources for limited ingredient recipes, I would love suggestions!

Hello, I am also 1 month post-Op and average around about similar numbers. Between 750 to 850ish. I do get about 75 to 80ish protein (60 to 80 is my program requirement). So I am good on that front. If you run short of protein try skyr (or ice landing) yogurt. 2/3rd cup has about 20 grams of protein. That and may be protein powder (if you're allowed) I am sure it's easy peash to get enough protein in. If no protein powder, do 1 cup of skyr daily (split) and you'll have 30 grams right there and then.

Oikos Triple Zero Yogurt or something else with high protein low sugar. Chicken salad. Egg salad. Tuna Salad. Refried beans! i never knew those beans could taste so heavenly.

When I had my brachioplasty a year ago I also had a lower body lift at the same time. Before I went to the hospital I set my kitchen up so I wouldn't have to reach up or bend over. I borrowed my brother's countertop microwave because mine is over the stove. I also live alone. I got straws for my drinks because you can't bend your arms very much for the first couple of weeks. (My incisions went below the elbow, midway between the elbow and my wrist.) My brother came by daily for the first couple of weeks and brought me food, otherwise I ate easy stuff like yogurt, protein shakes, soup or stuff that didn't require anything other than the microwave. I really didn't feel the need for a full-time caretaker. The one thing that was uncomfortable for a long time though was driving, but I did it anyway! I didn't have drains in my arms but I did have 4 for my lower body lift and was able to manage those alone. Good luck with your surgery. I'm having my 3rd (and hopefully last) plastic surgery on Thursday. I'm getting my thighs done.

Ahhh this just reminded me…back when i was still taking vitamins, i too would get nauseous if i took them on an empty stomach…so i started burying them in a tbsp of greek yogurt. Worked well for me.

Morning!! So I had my RNY in May 2020. Every thing has went as expected!! But now all of a sudden about 2 weeks ago I develop gas - horrible horrible painful gas with ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING I EAT OR DRINK!!!! Water I get gas, yogurt I get gas, cottage cheese I get gas, diet Snapple I get gas, tator tot hotdish = gas, so on and so forth. I literally started the journal but everything was causing it!!! Anyone else had this problem and what did you do?

I didn’t really eat any fruit during weight loss phase save for the occasional berry when i got closer to goal. I did eat some veggies (kale, lettuce, spinach) but only if i had room after eating my protein…which didn’t happen very often. The only dairy i ate during weight loss phase was cottage cheese and plain greek yogurt…and if I remember correctly I didn’t start eating these until about month 5 (i’m lactose intolerant). And finally, I actually didn’t follow my prescribed program. They wanted me to be at 1200 cals by month 3, with a macro split of 50%~25%~25% of low-glycemic veggies, protein, and starches respectively. I got nowhere close to that. I came up with my own program through research and trial and error. I did tell my NUt about what i was doing, and while she did tur-tut me about maybe eating more, she wasn’t overly concerned (especially since my labs always came back satisfactorily) and was actually always the first one to rave about my weight loss progress. So, go figure. ***And again, i want to stress to any readers of this to do your due diligence and consults with professionals before embarking on any drastic food intake changes. This worked for me. It may or may not work for you.

Hello everyone, I am 6 weeks post op and I'm a bit discouraged by the amount of weight I have lost and my surgeons reactions. The first week after surgery I could not get anything but 12 oz of apple juice and water down. I experienced protein aversion and would spit out any protein drink or shake that I tried to take. To my surprise, at my 1 week visit I gained 2 pounds (I was also experiencing my first bout of constipation post op). For reference Surgery day: 317; Week 1: 319. After that I moved to the puree stage and found that I can only eat a limited amount of food varieties without feeling sick, and for the most part that will only last for a few days. The only thing I can consistently eat is yogurt or a yogurt drink (8-12 oz per day) for breakfast and water. Most days I force myself to eat different low fat pureed things like burrito-less burritos, buffalo chicken dip, tuna, chicken salad, crust-less quiche ect. I tend to make them in cupcake or muffin molds so it's easy to pack for work. Usually, I can only eat one at lunch and have half of something else for dinner. Last week I had my 1 month visit with a different surgeon (mine was out for personal reasons) and I lost 17 pounds since surgery day, but the surgeon seemed disappointed that it wasn't more. They asked what I was eating, and then I was chastised for the amount of sugar in the yogurt drinks. I tried explaining that most things make me feel sick or that I have to force myself to eat. I guess my question is how do you no feel discouraged by the speed you are losing weight? Or the expectation of your medical team?

I've heard conflicting opinions, so who knows. My dietitian urges us to eat within an hour after getting up - but I know some of her patients just have a protein shake since they can't stomach solid food that early (although she's OK with that - it's SOMETHING). I do eat breakfast, but I'm rarely hungry - so it's usually just a thing of Greek yogurt (well, and coffee beforehand). I could never stomach one of those huge breakfasts some people eat - like bacon & eggs or stack of pancakes. Ugh. Not that it tastes bad, I just don't want that much food in the morning.

For myself: routine im a teacher so my routine is pretty much set. I have never really been a foodie and I am fine eating the same thing every day….so….I have the same thing for lunch every day (P3 pack and a Greek yogurt). By eating the same stuff every day I am sure to get in my allotted protein (I’m actually at a lower level of protein than the normal Bariatric patient because of my kidneys). i have my set recipes that I make for dinner but the air fryer is my friend and I usually just eat two chicken wings, some cheese, and some fruit or veggies. If it’s not chicken wings I make sure my plate is well balanced and small. exercise: I am terrible and don’t really do this. I don’t because I am on my feet all day long walking and get 10k steps easy, then also come home and take the dog for a walk. And once a week on my “lazy” days I take my kids to the harbor and we walk a couple miles there too. So again, walking is my routine. It’s what I do every day and I don’t need it think about it anymore. Water: I have one of those water bottles with times on it. I drink one bottle before lunch. One bottle after lunch. That is 64 ozs of water. As long as I keep to my routine of finishing the bottle it works. all these things have evolved over time. It didn’t start out like that and I had to push myself to remember stuff and found myself frazzled with all the stuff to do. BUT: I’m on less medications now than I was before and I take them first thing in the AM. Calcium chewy bite I eat after school because it’s a time between meals. If you stay consistent it will eventually become a routine and second nature. (I am about 10 months out from surgery and down to 185pounds. My highest was 330 pounds)

Tomorrow I will be 7 weeks since surgery and am really behind you all. I haven't been able to get enough protein or water due to extreme nausea and vomiting. I can eat porridge, yogurt, raspberries, hard cheese, smooth pate, melba toast, boiled eggs and soups. In very small amounts. I am trying pasta, rice, meats and fish and shellfish, but no joy. My team say keep trying, it will happen soon. Medication is helping. Does anyone have any other food ideas I can try.

I'm in the "Find an Alternative" camp When I have a craving, I try to identify what is about the food I am craving -- if I am craving chips, do I want salt or do I want something crunchy? If I crave ice cream, am I craving something sweet or something creamy? Then find a healthy alternative that will quell that craving. If I am craving something sweet, maybe I'll have a cup of fruit. If I am craving something creamy, maybe I'll have some Greek yogurt. It doesn't need to be spot-on, it just needs to be close enough to trick my brain/body into thinking it got what it wanted.

when I'm having an uncontrollable craving for dessert, I'll sometimes take a thing of vanilla Greek yogurt (usually one of the lower calorie ones - like Light & Fit, Carbmaster, or the 100-calorie one they have at Aldi's), stir in a couple teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder, and top with a dollop of light Cool Whip and a few raspberries. sugar free Jello with a dollop of light Cool Whip can hit the spot as well. although not caving in any way and just getting out of the house sometimes helps as well - although that's harder to do in the winter (depending on where you live). My worst time for cravings is late afternoon, so in the summer I'd often get out and ride my bike for an hour. I try to keep my hands busy, too (like doing jigsaw puzzles) - that'll sometimes work, too. it's a constant battle, isn't it? UGH.

I don't thi!k you should get discouraged just yet. Like others mentioned speak to your medical team about the concerns you're having. I didn't have much side effects of the surgery but 1st month was definitely difficult in terms of energy. I didn't even have energy to walk few mins on a treadmill which has gotten so much better now 6 weeks post-Op. Now I can easily do 30 to 35 mins. Even now though, there are some days which are easily fatigued than others. I am sure as time passes, it'll go away too. Plus as you progress, you should be able to tolerate various foods. I have tried other foods, and I haven't gotten dumping yet. So I am sure down the line, we should be able to enjoy our favorites, ofc in limit. As for gross tasting protein, try other brands. And even if those don't work, try to get protein from wholesome foods. On my program, we aren't allowed protein powders or any processed protein. We are told to consume protein from food. I am also vegetarian, so my options are mostly dairy products. And I still make my goal of 70 to 80 grams of protein. So protein powders aren't the only means. Try Greek yogurt or even better *ice landing yogurt*. Both easily available at grocery stores. Ice landing yogurt has 15 grams of protein on 0.5 cup. I can have about 1 cup a day (split) and easy 30 grams in. Then therea are various cheeses, cottage cheese, milk, lentils, beans etc. So many options out there for protein alternative. Good Luck with your journey.

I love to mix yogurt (all flavors) with cottage cheese. It ups the Protein but it’s really good. You can also add some sugar free yellow or pudding mix (powdered) I love it with pepper and I eat green onions with it like you would a carrot but I can’t eat those right now.

I like tajin seasoning - it’s a chili lime seasoning. It’s good on plain yogurt and cottage cheese.

Haha yeah I felt that way in the beginning but just remember the full liquids are still liquids.. pudding, jello, drinkable yogurt (yogurt with milk added), etc.. I found pudding to be super delicious and filling and went down nicely and gave me a “liquid” that I could feel was like a food since I’m eating it with a spoon. Much of this is trial and error. It gets easier

I tried that BEFORE I contacted my nutritionist and told her so. I tried everything in Nov and Dec. Didn't up it by much, but I was around 1000 a day. Tried more, tried less, etc. She said based on my food logs it just seemed that I was being very inconstant with my protein and carbs. I was also logging net carbs and she wanted me to log total and keep it around 50 but definitely not more than 75. And that's not been a problem. Neither has keeping my cals around 800. I don't feel hungry. Occasionally some days I do feel like I need a lil more and so I have something like a low fat yogurt tube, cheese, or turkey pepperoni, a few whole wheat crackers.....stuff like that. It's usually on days I did more exercise or when my period comes around (or at least it did last month).

when I get chocolate cravings, I sometimes mix a teaspoon or two of unsweetened cocoa powder into a thing of vanilla Light & Fit (or Carbmaster - or another low-cal Greek yogurt). And occasionally I'll even top that with a couple tablespoons of light or sugar free Cool Whip and a few raspberries. My version of a sundae...

The biggest misunderstanding is you don’t need 64oz of “water”, you need 64oz of fluid. Fluid includes full liquids too like jello, broth, sugar free pudding, water, protein shakes, drinkable yogurt (yogurt with milk added), etc. As for the protein if you add two scoops of Genepro to a 16.9 oz water bottle that’s 60 grams in itself. Sip that bottle throughout the day and you’ll get 60 grams from that & then get your extra 20+ protein from foods like eggs, beans, ricotta, yogurt, meats, etc. Hope this helps!

My plan said it was okay to have "planned" snacks, but NO grazing. So, don't take all morning to eat your breakfast because you will be able to eat more if you eat it over more than 30-60 minutes as it will pass through your stomach. Personally, I am hungry all the time but I can't eat much at once, so I have to have snacks between my meals. Also, for exercise, consider swimming or weight training/exercise bands. They may not hurt your hips like walking. If you are not someone who can eat "just a little" sweets, probably the best thing to do is cut them out completely. I don't have a problem with artificial sugar, but some people find it makes their sugar cravings worse. For me, it can satisfy my sweet tooth (like sugar free hot cocoa - swiss miss with high protein milk instead of water). For high protein snacks, you have the right direction with Greek Yogurt (although many brands have lots of added sugar, so try to find ones with no added sugar), but what about cheese, or deli meat (I like deli meat with hummus on it). Hard boiled eggs are also good with hummus. I like adding some heated up frozen strawberries (no sugar added) and some chia seeds to my Light and Fit Greek Yogurt .

Hello WSLers Long time listener, first time caller. I was sleeved on 11/22/21. I had lost over 40lbs since my surgery, but now seem to be gaining a pound a day the last few days. My diet has remained the same, 1-2 Premiere Protein shakes, 5 oz of non/low fat yogurt, and 4 bites of misc protein from dinner. Getting 64 oz or more of water has been brutal. Any ideas on the weight gain? It's really screwing with my head. Walking (exercise) has been limited, since I am currently experiencing my fourth gout attack since my surgery. I've been taking 600mg Allopurinol daily and 0.6mg of Colchicine during flare ups. It's been brutal. I have not had an attack in a while. Regards Dan

Thank you so much!😊 I don't have a therapist currently but I am almost positive I have ADD so next month at my annual I plan on discussing ideas/meds/therapy referral for it. It has made doing online school difficult at times, well a lot. And honestly the job I have (vet receptionist) requires so much focus and multi-tasking WELL I think takes all ability to do the same amount of focus later the same day on schoolwork. I could find a therapist without my PCP doing a referral but the therapist I found is in the same network as my PCP (Baylor Scott & White) and she specializes in several things including bariatrics so I figured I'd wait a few months to get a referral from my PCP...I called to get in sooner but my PCP was booked until March and my appointment was in early February so I was like I'll just wait thanks...🙃 Agree on the snacks thing although does eating my allotted food for breakfast/lunch etc over the course of my day count as snacking if it isn't extra stuff? And yes, I agree with the "low sugar" etc snacks open up the wormhole. I just signed up for the monthly BariatricPal box so I am hoping I will discover new snacks and foods that are specifically for us I can add into my rotations---I think a lot of my snacks while normal aren't really 'normal' for me anymore--I bought myself some almonds but struggle with the idea of spending 180 of my calories on like 6 grams of protein--I do love the Greek yogurt at 120 calories and anywhere from 12-20 grams of protein! I can't avoid the break area, I work at a vet clinic and it is not so strategically located right by the doctor's office where I am in and out all day to talk to my doctors about cases. And our break area is a sink, counter with microwave and snacks piled on top of it. 😑 I need to work on my will power and I am glad to see the holidays to be on their way out! I have found with me, cold turkey is the best way to nix cravings. I don't get to be one of those people who can have "just one piece" here and there because that one piece on day 1 becomes me constantly snacking and seeking out sugar on day 5 or 6....it snowballs. I am debating going back for a week or two to the preop diet I had which was 2-3 protein shakes with a sensible dinner of lean meat and a vegetable and maybe I'll add in a fruit depending on how that goes to get me back on track. Stupid brain liking stupid garbage sugar. 😤

Hey friends! Here I am a year out and over 100lbs lighter than I was, but stalled because my inner fat kid still loves sugar and snacks. I am moving more but I need to get with a chiropractor I think since walking is painful mostly in my hips although now I find myself able to jog for over a minute at a time! 😮 So here's my need, I have about 30lbs to go to hit my surgeon's goal of 193lbs, I wanna be there by June. 30ish pounds in like over 5 months, I think I can do that but I need some help. I KNOW I'm off track on my eating-I blame my lack of power over my sweet tooth and the holidays. I plan on quitting sugar cold turkey but to that I need ideas for protein heavy, calorie light snacks because when I quit sugar I snack hardcore. I want to have foods I can track (prepackaged-I find being able to scan bar codes the night befoer into Baritastic app allows me some peace of mind that I can eat whatever I have in my lunch box anytime during my 12-15 hour day and not have to worry about continually getting my phone out to log. Also, I can always delete foods if I don't get around to eating everything I bring with me) and have me around 900-1200 calories a day. I have used P3s, greek yogurt, Quest chips (the sweet chili ones are my favorite!), apples are my commute home snack I share with my dog(she gets to go to work with me everyday ), raspberries, Sandwich Bros pita burger things as some of the examples--they are also what I find myself using on a normal basis. I do have an issue in that I had covid back in August, I lost my taste and smell and it has come back mostly all the way but it has really messed up my taste buds namely for tomato based foods(although ketchup is okay, go figure), there are other types that have an 'off' taste to them but I eating those isn't as much of an issue, and of course anything sugary/sweet has not had that wonderful off putting taste in it, in fact because they taste so close to normal that may be another reason I have gravitated so strongly to the sweets. Also I work at a vet clinic and all clients have gotten us for the past couple of months has been sugar(brownies, chocolate, doughnuts, etc etc--we joke you look at the break area and you get diabetes)😬... I don't need lectures at this point....okay, maybe I do. 😐 I know I'm off track. 😕 I am getting in around 100oz of water a day (made the water a priority when a plasma center opened up and my lemon of a dog decides she's going to need a few of the local specialty departments at the vet hospital and I have had zero issues donating at all), protein around 60-90 grams and my vitamins are on track BUT for the most part I have gotten lazy tracking my food intake-another big no-no so calories could be anywhere from 900-1400 maybe more if I'm snacking all day. So what are your go to snacks? Any help quitting sugar? I plan to do so when I am off since I know I'm a raging b*tch when I have quit sugar-at least the first 3ish days and my job is heavily customer facing. Is it worth it to just nix the snacks, stock up on a crap load of water, protein shakes and do the almost fully liquid diet I had to do preop(it was 2-3 protein shakes with one healthy meal) to help reset my taste buds? I have unflavored protein powder-anyone successfully add that into like a muffin cup(like a Kodiak Cake brand)? What about adding it into water with crystal light-kind of like the gatorade protein drinks but less chalky? Thanks for any insight/help/tips etc you can pass my way, I appreciate it all!