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I got the great value brand powdered peanut butter from Walmart and I’ve been adding that to my yogurt and shakes because I miss peanut butter so much! It’s actually pretty good and it has protein in it so bonus.

It doesn’t seem like anywhere near enough but what do your dietician & surgeon say? Are you recording your food? What does your plan require & recommend? I was eating three meals a day from purées - small portions about 1/4 -1/3 cup. Each meal contained protein. The portion size slowly increased to less than a cup as I progressed adding more protein & vegetables & I added an afternoon & evening snack usually fruit & yogurt. I was focussed on developing good eating routines & incorporating a balanced diet & what would be sustainable in the long term to maintain my weight. I wasn’t really hungry or all that interested in food but I knew I had to eat. By about 5 or 6 months I was eating less than 900 calories I think. I stopped multi vitamins at 8 months with my surgeon’s approval as my blood work is as very good so I was getting all the nutrients I needed from what I was eating. I maintain at about 1200 calories (not tall, smallish frame, not very active & in my mid 50s), blood work is still good. Some people can eat more than others & some people’s plans require to eat more or less than others. I do believe you can only eat what you can eat at each meal but I’m concerned you are really only eating one meal & a snack a day. You’d be better off eating smaller portions more frequently through the day. Add a protein shake or yoghurt for more protein - you can’t be any where near meeting your daily protein goals - you can sip the shake & graze on the yoghurt for ages at work if you need. Are you eating slowly? I take 30 - 60 minutes to eat even now. If you don’t have a dietician, I’d ask your team for a recommendation & if you don’t track your food, I’d also start doing that too.

Hello guys, This is my first post here. I stumbled upon this page on Google and was reading some of the topics and this community seemed very supportive. I thought I'd give it a try. So I'm one week out of post op gastric bypass. I was in the hospital for about 3 days and I've been home since. I have to say the first couple days I was in horrible pain, way worse than I anticipated. While in the hospital I drank very small amounts and barely ate anything. They gave us little 30ml cups to pour liquids into. We had the option of water, apple/cranberry juice diluted 50/50 with water, skim milk and ice chips. They also gave us a jello every day at lunch and a no sugar vanilla pudding at dinner. Accompanied by some sort of cream based soup with no chunks in it. I was a little surprised because I was expecting clear liquids only. Anyways long story short.. After coming home I've felt much much better. I think I stopped pain meds day 4 and I'm able to move around, bend, etc without any discomfort really. I'm obviously taking it easy but I am finding the now 3 weeks (2 weeks pre-op) liquid diet to be hell on Earth. I'm doing my best and while yesterday and today I tried a little bit of pureed foods and yogurt and it seemed to sit fine. I am trying to follow the guidelines. I personally have no felt any nausea or had any diarrhea since the first day or two. So I'm just sitting here trying to argue with myself about whether to try and suffer another week of primarily liquid diet or to try and step into pureed a little early. I don't want to cause any issues or stretch my stomach accidently. Even with puree I've been careful to have things like Liptons cup-a-soup. I pureed a clam chowder and ate maybe 1/3 of the can and found it sat very heavy the rest of the day on my stomach. I felt bloated and whenever o drank liquids it just refreshed the bloated feeling. Not trying that again. They also expect me to drink 2 protein shakes daily. The best I can do to makr a protein shake that isn't chalky is 300ml of water in the blender. But even then I struggle sipping at it for an hour or more to drink more than half. I actually feel very gassy afterwards and sometimes it too feel very heavy on my stomach. Maybe I am drinking too fast or is this normal at this stage? Obviously I want nothing more than to be back on solid foods. But I know that is at least 3 weeks away and then it will be a very gradual introduction. Sorry for this post being soo long I am just really struggling and not sure what to do. I feel like if I see one more cup of clear chicken broth I'm going to croak. I just miss and want flavour and taste back in my life. Something to get me through to where I can enjoy real food again.

Hi there, I am just over 3 weeks post-op and can only eat about half a 5.3oz yogurt so I save it so I can have it later, usually before bed. Eggs I toss as they dry out when reheated.

Greek yogurt also makes a good dip if you add in ranch dressing mix.

I dislike the taste of plain nonfat Greek yogurt, but when I add a liberal amount of Lawry's chili-lime seasoning to it, it makes a tasty enough dip for celery sticks.

A lot of it is willpower, unfortunately. I find it easier to stay on track after surgery because I am always seeing results. Maybe there's a bit of instant gratification to it, and I know I'm still in the honeymoon phase, but I'm still losing a fairly decent pace three months out and that's incredibly motivating. I find the more I stick to the guidelines (protein first, eat slow, chew thoroughly, avoid sugar or fat laden foods) the easier it is to stick to the healthy foods. Surgery gave me time to start getting over my sugar addiction because I quite literally couldn't eat sugar, and now it's so much easier to say no because I can't have refined sugar. I'll eat some fruit if I have a craving and be satisfied. Surgery also took away my hunger for the first couple months, which gave me time to get my head on straight. I know that's not the same for everyone though. What meats can you eat? I'm not familiar with what is or isn't allowed within a Jewish kosher diet. I've found as long as I stick to lean meats, I can eat just about anything. I tried chicken skin once and BIG MISTAKE, but just a thigh or breast, some leaner cuts of steak, lamb, turkey (seriously, turkey chili is my lifeline even in the summer), bison...all these I can tolerate fine. I live in Midwest USA so there's not a ton of fresh seafood options, it's not something we make often. There's also protein powder and shakes that you can use to supplement. I usually have a protein shake every day because I just physically can't eat enough food to hit 60 grams of protein. I use cheese as a snack sometimes to supplement my protein intake. I'm also very fond of Greek yogurt and cottage cheese, but you might be tired of them. What about eggs? Or even a glass of milk - hydration and protein!

I take things in regular size containers. Talk more, move my utensils around stirring food or moving food around in the container more and so far it is going okay. I am still in the Full liquid stage so I do a lot soups and yogurts. So far no one has noticed, that I am aware of. I do tell people I am doing more mindful eating so pausing between bites, etc... Mindful eating is a buzzword so it seems to placate them.

Don’t get worried. I had mine in 6 July and doing fine. I thought after my first Greek yogurt I did not get it but the weight still comes off. I too a week after mine could handle 4 oz but think about that ?? 4 oz ?? I could drink 6 sprints in an hour and half before surgery and eat hamburgers ! you’ll do great !

You might also keep using protein shakes to get your protein requirements, and high protein yogurts. If you don't keep up the protein levels, you will lose muscle, and more hair. Also our bodies use starches first before it burns our body fat, but it is not the same process as when you eat dense protein, your body uses the stored fat for fuel, you become fat adapted instead of running on glucose. And that is what corrects insulin resistance, we correct our metabolisms and hormones.

Hi everyone! I would really appreciate some help. I am 6 weeks past my sleeve surgery. I'm am very discouraged and disappointed. I lost about 20 lbs in the beginning, only because of the pre op diet where I barely ate anything and the 2 weeks after the surgery but it has been downhill from there. I know the sleeve is "not a magic solution, its a tool" and so on! I've heard it all too many times. But I would assume that if I eat like ten percent of what I used to eat I would lose weight, but I haven't. I do eat starches and foods that I may not supposed to, but much less than before. I am really struggling with dieting. If I didn't struggle with dieting, I wouldn't get to the point that I need surgery! I find it hard to believe that all people who are over weight to the point that they need surgery, all of a sudden magically changed their mindset after surgery and started to be able to eat the right foods. I don't know how to do it. I may not eat the "right" foods, but I don't eat terrible foods. I don't eat more than I can tolerate, I don't eat ice cream or milkshakes or things like that. I do eat my sweet cereal, my avocado, my rice, grits etc. I find it nearly impossible to eat all this protein. I hate all fishes. I'm Jewish and Kosher so cant eat seafood. I don't like chicken salad. Very limited in the proteins that I can eat. How much cottage cheese and yogurt can a person eat a day? I am so frustrated and don't know what to do, I am very curious to know if all these people who lose so much weight after surgery is because they actually followed the guidelines, and if so, how all of a sudden they were able to change after all these years of not succeeding to eat the right foods. What discourages me the most, is that it seems that it is all about will power, with or without surgery. If dieting and controlling what eat is the only way to lose weight with or without it, what is the surgery good for? I am so discouraged. Please help! Thanks so much for your time!

Hi there, I had a lot of the same worries but now I am glad I did it. For me I was in a bit of pain until about day 4-5 but Tylenol helped. I would rather go through sleeve surgery again then get my tonsils removed lol. Been there, done that at 30 and that was much more painful than this surgery. As for drinking, by day 5, I could take small drinks without discomfort and by day 10 I could take normal pre-surgery drinks of everything. I’m just starting on the puréed/soft stuff and so far can get about 1-2oz of yogurt and scrambled eggs down without a problem. Incisions healed nicely and I have so much more energy than I did two weeks ago. I’ve lost 17lbs in 14 days :) I talked myself out of surgery for 3 years…wish I hadn’t. Good luck with whatever you decide!

@Ready21 Smoothies definitely was not allowed in the liquid stages for me. It was one to avoid. Full Fluids was things like protein shakes, milk, yogurt, cream soup. The only "fruit" I had was applesauce.

Thank you. I feel horrible and now I’m contemplating calling the surgeons office to let them know what happened. I should have not done that! From this point moving forward I’ll stick to the creamy soups and such. I think I was thinking that since they are allowing me sugar free pudding and yogurt, that I imagined a smoothie to be fine…wrong!

I found a yogurt drink called "Pillars" which I like. It contain probiotics and has no fat. The 32 ounce version has 15 grams of protein and 70 calories per 8 ounces, and is thin, so it goes down very easily. I find it is easier to get protein in my body through this drink than via any other method. It's not very sweet because of the low sugar, but I like the taste of the mixed berry and strawberry banana versions.

Hi all, I’m 7 days post surgery and I suffered from diarrhea all night long last night and noticeable bad gut flora since day 1. I have my follow up appointment with the doctor tomorrow but until then I was thinking of getting some non fat Greek yogurt or kefir to help with right now until I can get advice on a good probiotic. Any advice would be helpful!!!

I was allowed cream soups as well. So originally , I stocked up on a bunch of “sipping Bone broths” they had them in all different flavors like a chicken, rosemary and lemon , Chinese 5 spice or something like that. I also bought miso broth to switch it up a bit . I did end up getting tired of those and so I reached out to my nutritionist and tried to get a better idea on if it had to be clear liquids or as long as it’s liquid then it’s fine and threw out a few examples for approval . She pretty much said it’s fine , as long as it’s liquid and as long as you “LOSE WEIGHT” just like that in caps lol . From that point on, I puréed my own vegetable soups and lentil soup , I bought different Tomato soups , a butternut squash and sweet potato soup. It was a game changer at that point so i would definitely find out more info as you get closer to see how strict the liquid diet for you will be .I know you mainly sound like you want soups to make at home but if interested here are a few other suggestions ! I bought sugar free popsicles the different colorful flavored ones lol AND the SF fudge pops! Those came in super handy when I was craving chocolate (which I NEVER do). I also got sugar free apple sauce , SF chocolate/vanilla puddings , SF Jello and oatmeal, non fat low sugar yogurt with honey and cinnamon . Of course , I bought all kind of premier protein shakes to test out my favorite flavors. I found these premeir protein clear drinks , quest (cookies N cream) protein shake soooo good!!! Then for water alternatives because trust me, you WILL get tired of water when it’s the only thing you can drink… I bought a bunch of different flavored crystal light packets such as a peach mango green tea and lemon Iced tea and they even had a large packets for pitchers and I got that in strawberry watermelon . I hope this helps!!!

For real! My session with the dietician also consisted of her just reading through the packet to me, and her being unable to answer any specific questions. I'm pescatarian, and don't consume much dairy, so the only animal proteins I eat are fish/seafood and some eggs. She had no idea about recommendations for non-dairy protein shakes, and no ideas about customizing the puree/soft foods phases to be things that weren't all ricotta, cottage cheese, and yogurt. This is a major university bariatric center. Asking about plant-based alternatives shouldn't be so befuddling. I'd love some specific recommendations and recipes, but yeah, if you can't do that, give me the info to do it, myself, and don't charge me hundreds of dollars for a service you aren't really providing.

I am not a sweets person either. Are you allowed to have yogurt. I made a ranch dip with plain Greek yogurt and ranch dressing mix and ate that a couple spoonfuls at a time to satisfy the savory craving. If you are allowed raw veggies it’s an excellent veggie dip.

Hi Mama Des, Congrats on the surgery. I'm sorry to hear you are in so much pain, and so hungry. I'm not sure what your allowed and what you have tried, but here are some things I am going to try after surgery (and am using now, pre op): broth (w/ or w/out genepro), s.f. jello (genepro can be added here, too), s.f. electrolyte drink mix, s.f. popsicles, s.f. drink mixes, and once in full liquid stage s.f. yogurt & farina/cream of wheat thinned with milk. I had a sample of a broth that was made by Bariatric fusion, it was pretty tasty. The nectar protein drinks have some flavors that seem more like juice, lemon aid, fruit punch or iced tea. I haven't tried those yet. I hope you find something to make this phase easier, good luck, & tell us if you find anything that worked for you.

My doctor is very specific for the 1st 3 months. My diet has been nothing but protein shakes and water 2 weeks pre and 2 weeks post. I never thought I’d be so excited to try cottage cheese and shredded Parmesan cheese. I even get to add eggs and yogurt as well. The way he had me do everything has been great. I haven’t been hungry and I didn’t really struggle. I am just desperate to have a different texture in my mouth. After 1 month, tomorrow’s my day. I’m so ready!

I had to crush my pills for a week. I took them with yogurt. I would put a little yogurt in a spoon, add the crushed pills, then cover them up with yogurt. I tried to swallow the whole spoonful without letting the pills touch my mouth. It was a bit less disgusting that way.

It can be a bit challenging to find foods that won’t upset you. So sorry you had such a dramatic reaction to your first non liquid meal. Many think yay, real food & try to purée foods that their tummy can’t tolerate yet. Go slowly. Remember you are still healing. Try thicker soups first. I was allowed very soft scrambled eggs, rolled oats, yogurt & I found them easier to eat to begin I think because they were more bland & less stressful on my tummy. Just make sure your purées are still pretty sloppy. Only being able to eat very small portions is very common - think 1/4 - 1/3 cup. You’re eating denser food now & they take longer to digest than liquids which go through your tummy very quickly so you get full much more quickly. Personally, I still find mashed potatoes too heavy to eat - they sit like a lump in my tummy but every one is different in what they can tolerate. Good luck & congrats on your surgery.

My doctor is one of the strictest I’ve heard about. I haven’t been allowed anything but protein shakes and water for 2 weeks pre-op and 2 weeks post-op. It has been worth it to see my weight come off. I had surgery July 1 and have lost 15 lbs since (33 lbs total). I’m glad he’s so rigid because I haven’t had to guess at what kind of food or shakes to get. He even told me the brand names. Any sign of non compliance and I was out of the program. My 10 day follow-up was today (since 10 days was over the weekend). He told me I’m doing better and lost more than expected. I get to start on cottage cheese, eggs, and yogurt this Friday. All of this to say I highly recommend you following EXACTLY what the doctor says. It’s not the first time for them. They know what works. Don’t sabotage yourself before you even get started!! Good luck and best wishes

I started Habit tracking and Journaling, but I still need to get more consistent with both. I think they are both helpful activities. I also like watching videos on YouTube of people who have gone through this. I need to get better at food Journaling, too. I bought cups for the protein shakes, cups and a thermos for hot/warm liquids for the broth & soups (one has a strainer), 4oz. containers, a motivational water cup with time markers, protein shake powder & some ready to drink shakes, sf jello, sf ice pops, broth, protein fruit drink mixes, sf drink mixes (like crystal light), sf hard candy (I heard it may help right after surgery with dry mouth), Multivitamin, calcium, prilosec, & collagen w/ hyaluronic acid. After surgery I plan on ordering a food scale and mini travel food processor. I am thinking about getting little 2 oz containers for jello, pudding, yogurt, & the very small portions in beginning. I have an air fryer that I don't use much, but maybe will start using it more. I heard it is great for veggies.