So I joined this board yesterday and have been browsing around. I have noticed so many things that people do that my surgeon says are not allowed. One thing is no carbs at all until I reach my goal weight, but I have noticed some people eat carbs and some don't.

But one thing that is really bothering me is that the guidelines from my surgeon say no Beans or Soups on any stage. But on reading what people eat, especially on mushies, it seems these are very popular choices. Mostly they want us to eat chicken and fish. I don't like fish, but will eat it if I have to. But I will get bored if I am constantly eating pureed chicken and fish, which doesn't even sound good to begin with.

Is it normal for my doctor to be restricting these things? Soup seems to be a pretty big staple around here, especially in the first few weeks post op. And beans are so high in Protein, what could be wrong with them? Even when I'm on liquids, I am not allowed any broth or bouillon either.

It seems like post op will be so hard, and my doctor is making it even harder. I guess I will just live on eggs, cottage cheese, chicken and fish for the next couple of years.

Well, I cant see any logic at all for such instructions.

Ok, I guess some doctors might consider soup a "slider food" in that its liquidy so wont fill you as well as solids. However, that is only true for some people (same as for cereal). I find soup one of the MOST filling foods I can eat and a fantastic way to get in lots of vegies, lentils and yes beans!

Beans are such a healthy food, its absolutely nuts to steer people away from them. They're really fantastically healthy for you and everyone should eat more beans. I cannot fathom why your doctor would say no, unless he's talking no carbs at all.

I also eat carbs and I've lost weight perfectly well and kept it off for about two and a half years now. My family has a lot of bowel issues and I will never eat the typical Protein first bandster diet, which to my mind consititues an UNhealthy diet as far as your bowels are concerned.

The longer you are on this website the more diverse answrs you will see.

My physician, dietician and I talked about this at length. Soup is their opinion is not verboten but it is a slider food which means more will go in so you can get more calories than you need pretty effortlessly. If you are trying to maximize your loss large volumes of soup will not get you there as many soups are pretty high calcoric.

The other issue is the sodium content of the soup which leads to Fluid retention.

Lastly as part of the bandster diet we try not to take fluids with meals so we fill quicker so soup is liquid so it does counteract the band.

That being said we all agree that it is not forbidden but needs to be done thoughtfully.

All the best,

My doctor is more stringent than most. His diet focuses on lean Protein and nonstarchy veggies. Grains and starches are not added until at least 75 percent of excess weight is lost.

But he DOES permit--and encourage---beans. Not immediately postop; I don't think I added them until 2 months after surgery. But they are an excellent source of a wide variety of nutrients. The carbs they contain are complex (and there's plenty of fiber), and there really is no valid reason to exclude them. With limited stomach capacity, it's easy to stay within any carb limitations your doctor might have.

I eat Beans every single day, without fail. Even so, my carb intake never goes above that which is recommended for the ongoing weight loss phase of the Atkins diet. (No, I'm not following Atkins--I do journal on a site that gives me this information; I'm including it to illustrate that beans fit in even with the most stringent carb restrictions.)

Doctors are humans--and like all other humans, their recommendations can be a little wonky. It's up to you to decide what works best for your life.

My surgeon and dietiation are also strict. No slider food (soup, cereal with milk). However, I was able to eat beans (ff refried) during muschie stage. As for the carbs- only whole grains

I'm a vegetarian and would be absolutely LOST without beans! I eat them for almost every meal at this point, and I've been losing just fine without restriction, including 4 pounds in the past 5 days (my first 5 days on mushies). Beans are so good for you, and I talked at length with my dietitian about them. She is absolutely fine with beans as a source of Protein for me. Yes, they have more carbs in them than meat, but as long as I keep track of where I am with my carbs each day, it is fine. Soon, I'll be off mushies and can add in soy, tofu, and "veggie" meats in addition to beans and cheese, but beans are working just fine for me at this point.

I think by so severely limiting your options, your doctor could cause you to "cheat" more than if you were allowed a bit of variety. If I could only eat chicken day in and day out, you can bet I'd be considering some ice cream and chips out of boredom!

I think by so severely limiting your options, your doctor could cause you to "cheat" more than if you were allowed a bit of variety. If I could only eat chicken day in and day out, you can bet I'd be considering some ice cream and chips out of boredom!

That's what is bothering me so much about it. I have tried dieting before and I always end up cheating. It just doesn't work for me. If I was going to go on a chicken, veggies and salad only diet I'd probably lose the weight without the surgery. I feel like a well balanced diet in much smaller portions is a better approach to this. Obviously cut out sweets and chips and fast food and all the junk, but why not some whole grains once in awhile or some Beans or beef. I know for a fact that if I do limit myself as much as they are asking, I will cheat and that seems counter productive to me.