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HI! I wanted to know what are the max/recommended amount of fat, sugar/carbs, sodium, protein, etc. we should have in our food ? Like what's the max i can have in one day or one meal/snack ? Or should I have ...? Waiting on an answer from my nutrition team but I need ya'll help meanwhile.

How do you cope with menopause? Sent from my moto g stylus (XT2115DL) using BariatricPal mobile app

Good afternoon all! I just was thinking of all the surprises I've experienced since WLS...and I wanted to ask others what's surprised them about their weight loss/surgery journey that they weren't told by their bariatric team?! I'll go first: 1. All the aches and pains in my hips and butt. My butt hurts now when I sit since I'm missing my butt padding! Also, since losing weight my posture and gait have changed so now I'm in PT for hip abductor pain. 2. The ever increasing and changing locations of skin irritation. The skin now droops in places I wasn't told to expect and I get red irritation under my butt creases from over lap - sorry for the unpleasant visual! 3. I've shrunk..so driving I now need extra padding to be at my former "sitting height" I feel like a kid driving my parents car now. 4. I've had to buy new glasses, mine were stretched out from digging into my fat head 😋 and now they keep falling off when I look down. 5. I've had to buy new shoes, all my old shoes no longer fit. They just flop around. I was expecting new clothing..not shoes. 6. I feel more clumsy and weak despite working out. My manual dexterity is horrible now. 7. I still feel hunger 😔 These are just a few of the changes I've experienced that my bariatric team never mentioned. Do you have any to add that can take the surprise out of it for people just starting their WLS journey?! I eagerly await your responses!

Hi all I am now 23 days post op and on my 2nd week of puréed foods. I hope Xmas 🎄 has not been too hard on you. I lost my mum back in April, so this is my first year without her and it has been tough. I'm keeping myself busy preparing meals for my husband and it's not really bothered me that I have to purée anything that I am having. What does bother me is that I don't seem to be losing much weight 🤔. My husband and sister say they can see change in me but the scales say otherwise. Since my pre op assessment I have lost a total of 16lb and it just doesn't seem much at all. I don't know if I have an unrealistic expectation of what I should be losing. I think the only thing I maybe doing wrong is not eating enough. I have been lucky ... Although I had bad nausea during my first week post op, I had no sickness nor dumping. I just feel like I am doing something wrong. My dietiy suggested dropping out the homemade smoothies made with fruit which I have done. Is anyone else going through the same issue?

I haven’t been very public about my surgery journey, but I’m not very public about any of my health stuff.  If people ask, I’ll ease in slowly and gauge interest, but usually keep things short. [[I’m okay- aka I’m still not great but not is particularly bad. We’re working on it- meaning my doctors and I Ah, it’s going, meaning it’s pretty bad but you don’t really care about it. ]] For my weight loss- I did it primary as a potential benefit to help my health issues, not particularly for looks. There were two people who pretty much immediately started commenting as soon as I lost like 10 pounds.  Other than that it was only in the past 1-2 months that I have started getting regular comments.  And I am struggling to figure out how I want to deal with them.  If it is strictly compliments, I’ll just say thanks and move on. [I’m still supperrrr awkward about it, but 🤷🏻‍♀️] [I also don’t particularly like the attention, and it makes me want to dress to hide the changes.] But when people continue and ask what are you doing or what’s your motivation or anything like that that’s where I am struggling a little bit more. My goal for the surgery was focused on my health. It also is a little difficult because my health issues are caused my genetic issues, and while weight loss likely will help in the long term, I haven’t really seen any improvements since losing weight.  So it can be awkward for those conversations if other women ask how I have lost weight or if I’m feeling better.  I don’t wanna tell anyone, yeah I don’t really feel better, because I know that for most people it would.  So for those of you who aren’t really sharing about your surgery, what do you say if people ask about how you lost weight? How do you respond when people compliment you? All of that…

So there have been talks about pregnancy and babies with my boyfriend. With history of PCOS, my cycles have become regular and I have been ovulating for the last year or so. We may try for pregnancy may be sometime next year. My question is, anyone here who got pregnant after WLS? If yes, did you end up losing your post pregnancy weight? Or was it difficult to bring it back to pre-pregnancy baseline? Currently I am happy with where I am with my weight. But also, looking forward to starting a family if destiny permits. But, the weight gain cycle of pregnancy concerns me. Putting on the weight will naturally happen but I was wondering if the bypass tool will help me lose the weight post pregnancy. Any thoughts, experience shall be great!

HI my lovelies ❤️ I am just about 3 months post op (surgery was 12/6/24) and 1 lb shy of being down a total of 40lbs. While this is great I feel like I should be down more, or wish I was down more. I can't help but see others with close to 60+lbs down within the same time frame. I know we're not supposed to compare ourselves, it's literally the worst thing to do, but I can't help it. I was apart of the Tuesday Talks meeting last week which there were 2 women there that assured me that they lost at a similar pace, losing about 10lbs a month every month after the surgery. One of the nice ladies explained that 10lbs/month = to 120lbs down in 1 year. When I thought of it like that, I did feel better and more assured however I am still struggling with self depleting thoughts. Also, the last 2 weeks I been struggling with eating the wrong foods and snacking on foods I shouldn't be eating which I'll beat myself up even more mentally. My biggest struggles are iced coffee with sugary syrups and pizza/chips. I will have these about 1 x a week the last 2 weeks. How the day goes is it's usually a Sunday, I'll get a sugary coffee for breakfast and then end the day with 1 of those single serving bag of chips and 1 slice of pizza. I've done this now the last 2 Sundays. While it may not seem like a lot Im worried that I will start sliding down the wrong path and give into my old ways even more. The luxury of this surgery is Im incapable of overeating now and these foods still stay within a "normal" caloric range for the day (about 1400cals) but still, I know I shouldn't be eating them at all. I also workout 5 days a week now and have been consistent with this since late December. I do about 1.5 miles on the treadmill at the gym 3xs a week and then do a step ups aerobic type of exercise 2 days a week at home. I always leave my workout super sweaty with a high calorie burn on my Apple Watch. So with all this being said, I feel like I eat perfectly 6 days a week w 1 day where I'm "off", workout 5 days a week every single week taking off 2 days usually Wed and Sunday to let my body rest. Is there anything else I could do to speed up my weight loss? Or do you think this is "normal" and I'm on a good path? I also do these week to 2 week challenges with my bf that help me stay on track too. For example we did one from 2/12 - 3/1 and the rules were no junk food, fried foods or sugar and workout 5 days a week. I completed the challenge and lost 6 lbs total. But it was the day after the challenge where I ate pizza and iced coffee w mocha. We started a new challenge today which ends on Saturday 3/9. After that I'll be partaking in Ramadan beginning Monday 3/11 this year which will also help to keep me disciplined. Please do share your thoughts and how you combated your bad food habits? Also, please be kind ❤️ Thanks for reading! xoxo

I am meeting with my surgeon in a week to hopefully talk about a surgery date. The surgeon wanted me to lose 10-15 pound prior to this appointment, and I haven't been able to! I have major anxiety about this and am worried he will choose to not move forward. Has anyone gone through something similar?

Hi Everyone, I am over a year post op and have not started any serious exercising yet. I do have an allotment, I go fishing occasionally. However I do get dizzy and dehydrate quickly which is making me nervous in regard to exercising. Is this normal?

I've seen a lot of posts with questions about how to dress and buy clothes during and after significant weight loss. I'm by no means an expert, but there are some things I wish I had realized earlier along the way of my 200-pound weight loss that might be helpful to others. I spent my entire adult life up to age 39 as morbidly obese. At my heaviest, I wore size 28, and it's difficult to find ANY clothing that size (even stores that say they carry plus sizes often only go up to 24), let alone flattering or stylish clothing. I sought out black and other dark colors because it's slimming, you know? I just wanted clothes that would (a) fit on my body and (b) hide my size as much as possible. Now, I wear size 6-8 in most brands, and I can shop anywhere... Which is nice, but also overwhelming. Here are some things that helped me: Color analysis - I wish I had done this a long time ago because wearing the most flattering colors helps no matter what size you are. I don't want to endorse any particular company because there are a lot of people who offer this service, but I got mine from a House of Colour consultant after seeing a very informative YouTube video by Sierra Schultzzie about her color analysis. Spoiler alert: black is only recommended for those with a "winter" season. Style analysis (or "clothing personality") - This was life-changing, and I think it was particularly helpful for me after I lost 200 pounds because my body is so different from what it used to be. For example, I used to be a big-busted lady and now I am not, and I used to worry about how big my butt looked and now it's undesirably flat. Again, there are various systems (I think the most popular is the Kibbe body type), but I went back to House of Colour with the same consultant who did my color analysis. I got a ton of information on how to dress to flatter my body based on my proportions and shape, including things like necklines, rise of pants, length of skirts/dresses, fabrics, embellishments to seek or avoid, pattern shapes and scales, jewelry shapes and sizes, accessory shapes and sizes, and more. This was incredibly useful information, especially after my body changed so significantly. A lot of the recommendations were completely at odds with the way I've dressed for most of my life, and once I started wearing clothing that suited my colors and clothing personality, I started to look stylish. I frequently get compliments on my clothes, which, until recently, I didn't even know actually happens in real life. It almost feels like cheating -- as though I am impersonating a stylish person. Clothing rental - Do it! I wish I had started this while I was losing weight. It would be incredibly useful to someone who is rapidly changing sizes, since you can change sizes every time you exchange the clothing. Again, there are a lot of services available, but I went with Rent the Runway and I'm pretty happy with it. I didn't start using it until my weight stabilized, but I've found that they are really good at recommending the right size (since sizing can vary a lot between different designers/brands). It's also a great way to try out clothing that fits into my color season and clothing personality since I can just exchange it if I don't like it (but there's an option to purchase it at a discounted price if I want to keep something). They have some pretty high-end clothing, and I get compliments left and right when I wear my Rent the Runway items. Loose skin - I have a confession: it enrages me when people who haven't even lost any weight are freaking out about the possibility of loose skin. Talk about putting the cart before the horse -- you have to earn loose skin. I literally worked my a$$ off to achieve my saggy butt. I have nothing against anyone who chooses to get plastic surgery to remove the loose skin, but as someone who has lost 200 pounds, I have quite a bit of loose skin and no plans to get plastic surgery. I've accepted that I'll never have a bikini body (and honestly, even with a lot of plastic surgery, I doubt that would be a possibility), but with a combination of shapewear (I swear by shaping camis to smooth my abdominal region and hold everything in place) and well-fitting clothes, I don't think my loose skin is evident under normal circumstances. I think if you saw me on the street, you would probably consider me to look like an average middle-aged lady -- but a semi-stylish one! I hope some of this is helpful to those of you in the process of figuring out how to dress your new bodies. I've come a long way, but I'm still a work in progress, so I'd love to hear other people's experiences and tips as well!

So, Ill be 2 weeks post op on Wednesday. Last week on Wednesday I was from 247 down to 227. Now, I'm currently at 230 !!!??? Why? ?? It's so stressful to see that 3 pound gain. I have been following my diet well, with the exception of not always eating 5 or 6 times a day. Is that why? But shouldn't I still lose?? Honestly I just forget because I don't get hungry. Or I'll be busy trying to wrangle 3 children. I can't eat what they eat and it's not very convenient to make pureed foods all the time. It's a process ya know. Some days idek how much liquids I drink. I'm not great at tracking. But I've had a mix of juice, milk and water. Anyway, has anyone else experienced this? Did I already ruin the good thing I had going??? Please help friends! Thank you!

Hi all I am 3.5 years out from a gastric sleeve. I lost 75 pounds and am happy with how things have gone, and am grateful to have my sleeve as a tool for my health. I don’t have any major skin folds or lots of sagging besides what would be expected of a 40 year old mother. I have a boyfriend whom I have been seeing for 2 years now and I have never told him about my WLS. I never really intended to as I feel it is private and not something I really want to share. He loves my body (maybe more than I do), and is a great partner in many ways. He comes from a large family who eats gigantic food portions and he was always taught to clear his plate. He is constantly making comments about my food and how much or how little I may eat, how I don’t drink my water during dinner, or if I don’t finish my food and save it for later. It honestly drives me crazy and I have communicated this to him. Part of me wonders if he would better understand if I share about my WLS, but another part of me things he would be horrified and not understand at all. What do you think? Should I tell him? I don’t understand why other people have to focus so much on my plate. I honestly can eat normal portions of food if it’s the right food (veggies go down very easily, but things like rice or potatoes are quick fillers). Thanks for your advice.

Hi all, Anyone here willing to share their story of achieving their goal weight and maintaining it 10+ years post surgery? Thank you

Hi! I’m kind of new here. Just had my gastric bypass, route n y, surgery on December 19th, 2023. I’m looking for some other stories that started at a weight over 300. I started this journey at 338 and I’m feeling like I’m not seeing a whole lot of people who start at over 300+. Kudos to the people who start earlier, I’m just looking for similar stories to mine I guess. My projected weight loss is about 124 pounds but I’d like to hear some other opinions on how much people have lost at being at a higher weight. What’s a reasonable expected amount to lose? Or what is realistic to expect for weight loss starting at 300+ in terms of everything like excess skin, working out, what life is like now? I know everyone is different. Just Curious. Thank you. 😊

I have no idea why I feel this way. I'm finally down to 1 more surgery (my hysterectomy) and then I'm totally done with hospitals. I'm healing well from my hernia surgery (even did a VERY light workout today for the first time in a month since I'm only 3 1/2 weeks out). I love my job, I'm feeling good, our rent is paid and we have plenty of food, car is running well, gas tank is full, finally stable again. Hubby and I get along great, kids and granddaughter are doing well. It's driving me nuts that I can't figure out why I feel down. Normally I'm excited about the new year. I don't get SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), and I was fine up until about 2 days ago. I don't suffer from depression, so it's just really bugging me. What in the world do I have to be down about???

Surgery date is October 11th! WooHoo! I know about hair loss after surgery. Thoughts and/or experience on coloring your hair after surgery, I've heard some people wait 6 months, some a year, some never stop.

Hi everyone I’m new here 🙂 I have decided to go ahead with the esg despite being scared of the procedure I’m desperate to reduce my weight mainly for health. I have such a love hate relationship with food, I like eating healthily and am an reduce my weight but then have periods of time where I just eat everything in sight and these periods last weeks or months and I gain it all again. I've completed hypnotherapy and done so much work on why I do this. I do think if I can reduce my weight and exercise again this will help, my biggest fear is that I spend this money which is such a huge amount for me, then I feel I can eat through the full feeling, is that possible? As long as I feel really full I think I won’t do that. I just really really hope I can do this and feel nervous as everything else has failed eeeeeek i hope this makes sense but it was really a big old waffle of what’s in my head. did anyone else worry that they would mess it up but it was ok?

Hi there, I’m 3 weeks post op today and 52 years old . I did not do a great LRD and probably didn’t lose anything . The day after surgery I was 14 st 9 and today I am 14 stone 5 lb!!! I have been working hard to get my protein in averaging 80g per day and now I’ve managed to increase calories up to 700-800 per day as my fatigue was so bad. has anyone else had such a poor initial loss? thank you

I had surgery on 11/9. I’ve lost 20lbs since surgery 247 down to 227. I have stalled the last few days with no budge on the scale. Should I be worried? It seems pretty early for a plateau?? I’m tracking and getting between 300 and 500 calories a day. Is my weight loss over? I just can’t believe my weight is stalling already. I guess I just need some encouragement.

I’m a few days away from starting the regular/chopped food stage and I’m worried about getting enough protein. So far, I’ve been hitting my goals and about 4.5 oz of purée/soft food makes me comfortably full. This has allowed me to get a decent amount of protein at each meal. I’ve heard from a lot of people that you get full way faster when eating solid food, and I’m worried that this will cause me to not be able to get all my protein in. Is this what happens? Does it get harder to get your protein in once you start eating regular food? I’m just so anxious. Any advice or anecdotes is helpful.

I agree with the other posters. And regarding hair loss, everyone seems to worry incessantly about that - I did, too, but in the grand scheme of things, it's such a small blip on the screen that I shouldn't have bothered wasting one brain cell on it. Some people don't lose any hair at all, and many don't lose enough for others to notice. Some do lose more significant amounts, but the hair loss is like shedding - not big clumps like you see in chemo patients. I wouldn't worry about it. It's a small price to pay for the benefit you get from the surgery, and again, you may only lose a little or none at all.

If you had it to do all over again what would you say was missing in your weight loss surgery experience thus far? Length experience doesn’t matter.

I am wondering if anyone with a diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome has had bariatric surgery. I am curious as I am contemplating surgery and if it helped or made symptoms of chronic fatigue worse

Good morning, I am a 51 yr old woman and had my RNY on 3/9/2016 I am 5 ft and was 210 but 190 at surgery. I was on the smaller end,but I had a lot of comobidities that justified having it. Everything was normal for a while. I got down to about 118 at about 9 months and slowly creeped back up to about 135 where I sat at this weight for a while. Then fast forward to the end of 2019 and I started seeing the pounds come off rapidly for no reason. Now fast forward to today and I am 97 lbs and can't keep weight on,no matter how many calories,carbs, fat I eat. I have seen multiple health care professionals that up until very recently have all told me that this is my new normal. I have had an ultrasound that reviled a fatty liver, however I had a fatty liver before surgery? Has anyone else experienced weight loss like this? I am scared that I will never stop loosing.

There's no one place on Bariatric Pal that houses questions/comments about maintenance. There probably should be separate forum for maintenance, but I'll start a thread here. For those of you in maintenance, where are you in your journey? Any lessons learned?