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So gutted got told yesterday my surgery was moved from today 16th December to 17th. Yes only moved by 1 day but I've syked myself up, I'd packed up my car and was just finishing work to drive up. Instead I've wasted a day of my annual leave and am on milk and yogurts for another day. Am so upset and so annoyed. I know it's only 1 day but it makes all the difference. I'd arranged for my mum to take me, she had taken the day off. Now she can't come with me and I have to travel alone a nervous wreck. Was supposed to be called back by my surgeon to explain but nothing. Will call again at 9am and hope I can have it today.

Plan things for lunch and snacks that are easy and not messy. My favorite lunches are deli turkey and a slice of low fat cheese rolled up, greek yogurt or my very favorite is to take tuna, feta cheese and non-fat miracle whip and mix them together to taste. It makes 2 lunches. Easy snacks are string cheese or nuts (my favorite is pistachios). Just take time to prepare and plan the night before so you are ready to just grab it in the morning amd go.

I have a desk job n work 8-4:30, here's what I've been doing: Breakfast I start shortly after I start work about 8:15-30 and I usually have 6oz of the chobani Greek yogurt it takes me about 45 min to an hr to finish it. Then I have lunch at 11:30 but usually don't start eating till closer to noon so far I'm still on soft food n I'm lazy to prepare so I've been eating tuna n 4 crackers I eat about 2oz of tuna. I like tuna so I'm not tired of it yet. Then about 2or 3pm I have a snack like cottage cheese doubles 100 calories or string cheese. N dinner I have about 2oz of chicken in the can, or lentils, or ground turkey I still haven't gotten tired of soft foods yet I know there r more options but this is what's easier for me

I never ate baby food either. Lots of yogurt, cottage cheese, protein shakes. The only thing I puréed was canned peaches since I wasn’t allowed fresh fruit yet.

The kind I buy are from Costco and they are called Premier Protein. They were recommended by my surgeon's office because they are softer/chewy so you can eat them early out too. 1 bar has a whopping 30grams protein. I don't remember the exact info for everything else but want to say it's AROUND 210-230 cals and 15g carbs. I find that at one month out, I still can only eat 1/2 a bar at a time (very dense) so it makes a very reasonable meal since you'd cut those cals and carbs in half, and still get 15g protein. The box comes with 3 flavors in it - chocolate peanut butter, double chocolate crunch, and yogurt peanut crunch. Not sure why they call them crunch because they are soft and chewy. I think they are decent in flavor, the yogurt one is my fave (tastes more "convincing" than the chocolate) but I don't think you can buy them individually, just in the box with the 3 flavors.

By Elizabeth Goodman Artis (Shape Magazine) We dissect the science of fat to help you pick the smartest strategies for losing it. Fat is the ultimate three-letter word, especially the kind that you spend so much time watching your diet and hitting the gym to keep at bay (or at least to keep off your butt). But beyond making you look less-than-svelte, fat can have significant physical and emotional implications. We talked to Shawn Talbott, Ph.D., a nutritional biochemist and author of The Secret of Vigor: How to Overcome Burnout, Restore Biochemical Balance, and Reclaim Your Natural Energy, to find out a few essential facts that might surprise you. 1. Fat Comes in Different Colors More specifically, there are different types of fat that have different hues and functions, according to Talbott: white, brown, and beige. The white fat is what most people think of as fat—pale and useless. Useless in that it has a low metabolic rate so it doesn’t help you burn any calories the way muscle does, and it’s the predominant type of fat in the human body, encompassing more than 90 percent of it. In other words, it’s a storage unit for extra calories. Brown fat is darker in color due to a rich blood supply and can actually burn calories rather than storing them—but only if you’re a rat (or other mammal); certain critters can activate brown fat to burn calories and generate heat to keep them warm in winter. Humans, sadly, have so little brown fat that it won’t help you burn calories or keep you warm. The third type of fat, beige fat, is in between white and brown in terms of its calorie-burning ability, which is actually very exciting. Why? Because researchers are looking into ways to shift white fat cells into more metabolically active beige ones via diet and exercise or supplements. In fact, there is preliminary evidence that certain hormones which are activated by exercise may convert white fat cells into beige ones, as well as some evidence that certain foods such as brown seaweed, licorice root, and hot peppers may have the ability to do this as well. 2. The Fat On Your Butt is Healthier than the Fat on Your Belly It’s probably safe to say that no woman favors the fat on one body part over another, but it’s actually safer health-wise to be more of a pear than an apple, Talbott says. Belly fat, also known as visceral fat, is much more responsive to the stress hormone cortisol compared to the fat on your thighs or butt, so when stress hits hard (and you don’t find a healthy way to handle it), any extra calories consumed are more likely to end up around your middle. Belly fat is also much more inflammatory than fat located elsewhere in the body and can create its own inflammatory chemicals (as a tumor would). These chemicals travel to the brain and make you hungry and tired, so you’re more likely to overeat or eat junk food and not exercise, thus creating a vicious cycle and perpetuating the storage of more belly fat. The good news is that anything that helps you reduce inflammation helps reduce those signals to the brain. Talbott recommends fish oil (for the Omega 3’s) and Probiotics, which you can take in pill form or get by eating yogurt with active cultures. 3. First You Burn Calories, Second You Burn Fat The term “fat-burning” is thrown around willy-nilly in fitness circles, but as an expression of weight loss, it’s indirect. Before you “burn” fat, you burn calories, whether those calories come from stored carbohydrates (glycogen and blood sugar) or from stored body fat. The more calories you burn during each workout, the bigger deficit you will create and the more fat you will lose. You can also create a calorie deficit by eating less. The trick, though, is time, since it’s hard for most people to put in the time needed to burn enough calories to make a weight-loss dent. Talbott (and many other experts) advocates high-intensity interval training (HIIT) to burn as many calories as possible in as short amount of time as possible. This method, which alternates between hard/easy efforts, can burn double the calories in the same amount of time spent exercising in a steady state. 4. Fat Affects Your Mood Certainly there is no easier way to ruin your day than seeing you’ve gone up a few numbers on the scale, but having excess fat—especially around your belly—activates that inflammation/cortisol cycle, which studies show may be a factor in serious mood disorders like bipolar disorder. If you’re stuck in a stress/eat/gain/stress cycle, however, you’re likely to experience at least a perpetually low mood, even if you don’t have an actual clinical condition. To help break the cycle, try eating a square of dark chocolate, suggests Talbott; there is just enough sugar to satisfy a stress-induced craving, but the healthy flavonoids help calm inflammation that leads to more stress. Low-fat dairy products like yogurt can have a similar effect—the combination of Calcium and magnesium can help calm the stress response. 5. Even Skinny People Can Have Cellulite The dreaded c-word is caused by fat trapped under the skin (known as subcutaneous fat). The overlying skin "dimples" are created by connective tissues that tie the skin to the underlying muscle, with fat trapped in between like a sandwich. You don’t need a lot of fat to cause a dimpling effect, so you can be in great shape and have low body fat but still have a little pocket of dimpled fat, for example, on your butt or the backs of your thighs. Building muscle while losing fat (and the fat loss part is key—you have to have it to lose) can help minimize the appearance of cellulite; cellulite-specific creams and lotions can also help minimize the look of dimpled skin (though they can’t do anything about the trapped fat beneath).

You're probably master crossfitter here and we'll be the ones taking your advise!! I'll have a yogurt, spoon of PB or 1/4 cottagecheese and a strawberry before (1hr) my sleeve can't tolerate much yet. It seems you're doing awesome! Yes I'm spent after and for recovery I do the same. Maybe cheese & turkey or egg salad. Are you replacing your electrolytes after??

I ate vegetables and fruit from week 1. I never had any issues with constipation. I have regular BM's 1 -3 times a day. I started small with cooking or puree peaches and yogurt or tossing fresh spinach in my Protein smoothies during the full liquid stage. I also pureed spinach as a Soup base or tossed some into scrambled eggs as I moved onto soft food stages. By week 4 I was back to eating raw fruit and veg. Protein is important but so are the natural Fiber and nutrients you get from fruit and veg. I find that I lose more when my bowels are working properly. My protein is routinely in the 80 - 100gms range. You do not have to sacrifice one for the other.

When I was running a lot in the summer (waaaaaaayyy back in the good ol' days... ), my favorite thing to have was Greek yogurt. I knew I was getting fuel, it didn't make me feel full, and just sat in there so nice and comfortably with no issues at all. Plain, with a little vanilla extract and Splenda. I'm planning on getting on the treadmill a little later today and I don't have Greek, but I do have Kroger Carbmasters (which, if you're not familiar with it, is like any typical "diet" yogurt, thinner and not real substantial, but good) so I think I'll see how I feel with that.

On the Regis and Kelly Lee show they said yogurt before a work out will help you burn more calories.

listen to your trainer. you are burning fuel and then you have none left essentially. try some greek yogurt before a workout or a smoothie. you work out more, you burn more, you eat more. you will lose more inches than lbs, there is an almost 2 month "lag time" from inches lost to lbs lost. but it will catch up. i have been told and read that eating more protein will help you lose the weight as it builds muscle.

Your surgery was this month? I agree, there's no way you can get many more calories than you are already at this point. Have you tried greek yogurt or soft-boiled eggs? Cottage cheese? Just as a side note, that apple juice is not doing much for you nutritionally. Grape would give you anti-oxidants and V-8 would give you vitamin C and loads of potassium.

I know these people exist, but for me I can't see having any issues hitting those kind of numbers at 6 months out. My doc wanted us on 3 meals a day and that was it - no snacks. There was no way I could do that. I had to aim for 3-4 meals plus a protein shake to hit my 60g for a day. I probably average 1600 calories a day being a year out. Truth be told I could easily be over 2000 if I wanted to. It's all about what you eat and how often. Yes, my portions have to be smaller, but if I wanted to graze all day long I could and easily rack up the calories. Even with healthy options like cottage cheese or Greek yogurt those are easy to get down. Really it isn't anything you should be overly concerned about IMO.

Map out your day, once banded, and you will be able to lose. I do not follow all rules of the band (I eat about every two waking hours), but I still lose. Your schedule will differ from mine, but the concept is the same: Know what you are going to eat the day before you eat it and stick with that. Here is a sample schedule from my day: 5:20 - out of bed, drink a sugar-free Red Bull 5:40 - on bike 6:40 - end of ride, time for a shower 7:14 - Drop son off at school and begin commute - Eat a Quaker Oats Breakfast cookie and bottle of Water 8:30 - Arrive at work, with meals in small cooler type lunchbox 8:45 - Eat one yogurt and one sugar free pudding - bottle of water 30 min after 10:30 - eat Clif bar - water 30 min after 11:50 - lunch - tuna salad and Soup 2:00 - Yogurt and sugar free pudding bottle of water 30 min after 3:30 - Red Bull - time to wake up. 5:00 - Start commute to gym - eat a Clif Bar and drink bottle of water on way 6:00 - arrive at gym 7:30 - leave gym 7:45 - arrive home and have some type of fruit and water...if it is a cheat day I may have a little full-fat, full sugar ice cream...moderation is key - never buy more than a pint at a time, then tell yourself not to finish off the pint that week. :cool2: In bed by 10:00 - non-essential chores get done on weekends.

I have noticed from others that sometimes after being banded for a while, it is easy to forget or stray from the original guidelines or some banders didn't get adequate information from their centre initially. For starters, I would log what you are eating (ideally through myfitnesspal or something like that that will track calories too). You should not exceed (per my doctor) about 1200 calories per day and should have about 60+ grams of protein. Try not to exceed 1 cup of food per meal and have a planned healthy snack in between meals (piece of fruit) or something. If you are not able to get even yogurt down, perhaps your band is a little too tight which may be causing you to eat some unhealthier items (sliders) that will go down easily and that may be part of the problem. It sounds like you could really benefit from a visit (or 2) with a nutritionist to get back on track. You shouldn't feel so defeated and frustrated with your food choices. I am able to eat most anything as long as I eat slowly and eat small bites. I would urge you to see out one (my bariatric clinic has ones on staff) and they have a lot of great ideas and advice. I truly don't feel deprived and only did when I was too tight and struggled getting solid food down. I also have found healthier ways to still enjoy many foods I loved before but now in a healthier way. There is a website called Emily bites (I believe) and there are many recipes that you make in cupcake pans so they are portioned out into appropriate sized meals. They are healthy versions (ie. lasagna) of everyday foods. I really enjoy them. Good luck to you!

Hi Everyone, Why to first month is so difficult. You are about to change everything you know about eating and your body. Your brain for all of you life has been used to you eating almost anything you wanted and large amounts of food. I never stopped and gave this much thought, when I wanted to have WLS. All I was thinking was about getting the fat off my body and feeling healthy again. I spent a lot of year being fat and this was my chance to change the roller coaster of losing the weight and regaining it again. So for me I had to spend the first 10 days having nothing but Clear liquids. I could only have about a ¼ of a cup of anything when it was time to eat. I felt pretty good, but this first 10 days were the worst. There are only some many clear liquids. I had various kinds of broth—chicken was my favorite. I had Jello, white grape juice, apple juice, Water with Crystal Light, decaf tea—Earl Gray and my life saver was sugar free all natural fruit popsicles. If my stomach felt quizy this really seemed to clam it. I had problems finding a Protein Drink that was clear that I liked. I since have found some. They are made by Syntrax and they are called Nectar—all kinds of flavors that can be mixed with water. It is very important that you try to get some protein the first 10 days. These first 10 days are difficult because my brain is screaming at me “I am hungry.” We call these head games because your brain is trying to control you. Your brain can play some mean and ugly games with your mind and what you are thinking. You are NOT hungry; you are getting what you need for these 1st 10 days. You NEED to give your new stomach time to heal and that is why you need to follow exactly what they tell you to eat. The next 10 days is so much better. 10 days of nothing but creamy foods. I thought I was in heaven when I got to this stage. I could have my favorite Protein Drink. I love Premier Protein Drink—I get mine at costco. I have since found 2 other Protein drinks made by Syntrax that I also love—Mint Cookie and banana Cream. I could have cottage cheese, sugar pudding, yogurt, and creamy Soups. Some Creamy style Peanut Butter. I still could also have any of the clear liquids I was having before. Remember you are only going to be able to eat about 2 oz. of anything when you eat. Your new stomach can now only hold food about the size of your thumb. The next 10 days are getting a little better. It is 10 days of mushy food. I found this stage a little harder, but I became a little creative. I took some home made chicken Soup and put it in the blender, veggies worked great to make mushy, sweet potato was great instead of a regular potato. I also had applesauce at this point too. I tried to watch my carbs too—no more than 20 carbs per day. I always made sure I had my protein drinks at least 2 per day. I was told to have at least 70 grams of protein per day. Premier Protein had 30 grams per drink box. Another challenge I had was drinking enough water and getting the Protein Drinks down too. It felt like I was always sipping and drinking something. This is just what you have to do. Eating is like having a job and you have to do the best you can to get everything inside your body that you need. I had problems swallowing my medication during this time. I learned to smash the meds up into a power with a mortar and then mixed the powered medication with applesauce and that is how I took my meds. You may have problems with constipation too. I use 1 cap full of Miralax everyday in the morning. I put 1 cap full in with my Protein Drink and mix it in my Magic Bullet. I still use Miralax all the time. It is not habit forming and helps because we eat a lot of protein and that causes the constipation. Remember there is a reason you need to follow the diet that your doctor has given you. Different doctors have different things they may want you to be eating. These were what my doctor had me do. If you have any questions please feel free to ask me. Suzanne Sleeved 10/28/2008 Lost 105 lbs.

I would check with your NUT or surgeon. The program I was on allowed clear & full liquids pre-op. So I was allowed to have grits (I think I survived on grits and chicken broth between my protein shakes to help with my hunger LOL) This is what was on my shopping list they provided me with pre-op. Clear liquids: sugar free Jell-O, sugar free popsicles, chicken broth, beef broth, crystal light, & decaff coffee. Full liquids: low fat cream soups, skim or 1% milk, reduced fat Lactaid, low sugar yogurt with no fruit pieces, sugar free pudding, cream of wheat, grits, and protein drinks. Hope this helps, but I would verify with your program first just to make sure! Everyone's program seems to be different!

yeah my trainer kept making fun of it, he couldnt even get the name right-- kept calling it pill-yogurt? haha but hes this enormously buff guy that could pick me up with one arm, so i feel like even pilates is too easy for him. :thumbdown:

@@ppressey24 @@Suaniya i have tried premier protein! the problem is though my doctor only wants me to have 2 "milk" servings a day and that is skim milk no other milk by the way and besides having 4 Protein shakes a day which i need i am allowed 2 light yogurts and i know Premier Protein says made with milk so thats why i bought my own to be able to mix with Water it says after mixing 2 of your protein shakes with milk you are not allowed any more milk for the rest of the day so i do need to clarify on that but that is why like i said before i went and bought ones that you personally mix so i can mix with water... this is my exact diet plan am-protien drink and 1 cup of skim milk or light yogurt mid morning- Fiber supplement noon- Protein Drink, fiber supplement afternoon-1 cup raw vegtables dinner-protein drink and fiber supplement evening-protein drink and 1 cup of skim milk or light yogurt and i need to get 100 ounces a day in which include the diet plan and then am allowed water, crystal lights, decaf coffee and tea, broth, sugar free Jello and popsicles so thats why I'm not doing premier protein shakes, this is for my pre op to shrink my liver and i know every doctor has their own kinda way but i deff wanna follow what my doctor says so if he says only 2 servings of milk thats what i gotta do! I'm not worried about protein after i know i can use premier protein and any protein probably by then but this is for the pre op so even the protein i can use is strick

Surgery on 3/2 and back to work today (3/9). I brought a premier protein, water flavor drops and bone broth with me. I think I can start purées today but I didn't want to try them for the first time at work. I have apple sauce and greek yogurt tubes (2oz tubes) as well as some baby food bananas at home in the fridge. I may hold off on that though and stick to liquids till next Monday. I have a big leak fear.

Mine was protein shakes, greek yogurt for a total of 60 grams protein, 4 ounces of juice, 8-12 ounce of broth, unlimited sugar free jello and popsicles. This worked very well for me in 3 weeks lost 22 pounds.

I am a retired RN, but I know what your talking about....even being retired, I take a thermal tote with ice packs in the car with me because im only 6 wks out and eat small frequent meals...pack some yogurt, boiled eggs, string cheese..protein bars..jerky, pepperoni, etc....depending on your stage...I drink alot of arizona iced tea so i take the gallon in the car with me and carry a reusable double walled cup...hope this helped, good luck and congratulation on your surgery and your clinicals...

I didnt like any of the protein shakes I tried. Then I saw someone mix a crystal lite pack with their no fat greek yogurt and liked it so I mixed it with some 1% milk in a blender and total of 28 grams of protein and it wasnt bad, a little bit of a dry taste but so much better than the protein shakes I've tried. Used an orange pack and tasted like an orange cream cicle, also used a peach one and if you like peachy tasting things that was good too.

I think way too much. I just tracked everything for the past couple days and I am shocked. But just this week I started feeling better and eating better so breakfast: 1 cup of oatmeal or 1-2 scrambled eggs with cheese Protein shake : 3 scoops. I blend it with ice and do it all at once. Comes out to almost 2 cups. Will drink 1 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon. snack: laughing cow cheese lunch: 1 egg beat made in crepe style some refried Beans and cheese snack: rest of my Protein Shake or a greek yogurt with protein or a pudding with protein dinner: Soup or if I am feeling okay some tuna or chicken salad. I am averaging 900-1000 calories a day 70 grams of protein and some 50grams of carbs. I think its too much my husband thinks its too little and my body is in starvation mode. Who knows ???

I work in a bank and sometimes we are so busy I either can't drink or forget to drink. Then at lunch time I can't drink w/food. I try to make up for it by drinking in the morning before work. I drink a bottle when I get up, then my Protein shake, then I drink on the ride to work. Then I challenge myself to drink a whole bottle of Water on my ride home (20 minutes). In the evening I drink more and sometimes I add another Protein Shake if I need more protein. If you find a ready made protein shake that you like you can use them at work - it's a great way to get protein and liquid at the same time. Chobani little champions Greek yogurt is good for work too. They're a smaller size so you can eat one fairly quickly. The same with Think Thin Bites (small Protein Bars - about half-size). I carry the bars in my purse. When your able to, try Ostrim beef and Ostrich meat sticks. They're tasty, portable, and have 14gr of protein - another purse staple. I like Cracker Barrel individually wrapped cheese Snacks too. I also carry an insulated lunch bag with a cold pack everywhere I go. I have a good routine down for my Vitamins but I find taking my Calcium more of a problem because I can't take it near my multi or my thyroid med. I keep some in my lunch bag and some in my purse so I can take it whenever I think of it. With time you'll figure out a routine that works for you and a back-up plan for your busier days. Good luck to you!