I'm just beginning my process and would like to start developing some good habits before surgery. I would like to start replacing a meal with a Protein shake several times a week.

- Which meal would y'all suggest?

- Where do I shop for Protein shakes?

- Any good "tricks"?

- Anything I should stay away from that will be "bad" post-surgery?

Any advice is very much appreciated! Thanks!

The Protein shakes are all different, I started in November replacing Breakfast every day with Pure Protein 100% whey Protein Frosty chocolate, which is about $28.00 for a huge tub of it. My son and I both used it daily. You can also try some of the ones at GNC which are a little higher.

I never ate breakfast before.

I just posted some tips and tricks earlier on a thread called Pre-preop and here's a link.

http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/40110-pre-preop-diet/page__p__356831#entry356831

It has helped me tremendously and I'm sure there are other great tips.

For pre-op, I did shakes for breakfast and lunch with a lean and green dinner. I was working out and would get hungry in between meals, so my Dr said it was ok to have a shake for a "snack". It worked for me.

Pre-surgery, I used powdered Protein from Vitamin Shoppe. Combined with yogurt and berries, they were great. But then post-op, they were terrible. Couldn't stomach them. I tried a few powders and some ready to drink (RTD) varieties and settled on Premier Protein from costco. They are $25 for a case of chocolate or vanilla. In my neck of the woods right now, Costco has a coupon for $5 off a case, so I'm stocking up. They are great.

Best tricks ... hmmm ...

• Get all the cr@p out of your house immediately. There's an old saying ... "Sit around a barber shop long enough, you're going to get your hair cut." Talk to you family and explain that the Cheetos are going to have to leave the house for awhile. Just dump all the stuff you know you shouldn't have. Throw it away. Don't gorge on it.
  
• Exercise. Start now. It will help with the hunger now and it will help with your recovery, too. Exercise is something most of us want to adopt post-sleeve anyway, so you might as well start now.
  

Things to stay away from ... well ... let's focus on what you should eat instead, because that is a far smaller list.

The bottom line, though, is to follow your medical team's dietary guidlines.

My biggest tip would be to read, read, read this forum. There is a search area in the top right if you are viewing this on a web browser. Believe me, the chances are pretty high any question you have has been answered by dozens of people and you should tap into that repository of experience.

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

I drink my shake all during the mid day (lunch) or somtimes dinner, I have been sleeved since 3/14 and eating has become somewhat of a chore, some foods go down well and some still feel like stones in my sleeve, the shake has become my easy go-to that I have no problems with I also have lost taste for a lot of food that I used to think I could not go without, so eating is not too much fun anymore (I have no complaints on that,,LOL). I drink the Isopure dutch chocolate, order it online from supplement warehouse, it taste the best to me and has 25 grms of protein per scoop, so since I need at least 70 grams of protein per day, I take two scoops (50 grms) with two cups of Skim Plus milk that is 22 grams of protein and I have my full protein needs for the day without worrying if the food I am eating is giving me enough, I freeze it the night before so it stays real cold during the day. Once you have your surgery you will start developing your own way of doing things, being sleeved really changes things and you need to do it as it makes you feel comfortable. I am wishing you All The Best with your new Journey!

Thanks for your responses!

Pdx, no costco in my neck of the woods. The truly sad thing about my eating is that my family and I eat pretty well at home. I have small children and I really want to teach them better habits than I was taught. I have two big issues...portion control and the food I "sneak". At work, out running errands, etc., I eat garbage and a LOT of it. It's humiliating to admit, but I have to start owning my bad behavior if going to change it. From candy bars at the drugstore to chips at the gas station to Sonic blasts on my commute. Sometimes I even stash junk food on my desk and vehicle. How horrid to see that in print...

Sounds like I'll have to do some taste tests with shakes before and maybe after, too!

Pure Protein 100% Whey you can get from target. GNC has a different brand. Try to make sure your shake has low carbs under 9 and at least 25 grams of protein per shake.

Replace at least one meal a day now, drink a cup of hot decaff tea about 1/2 hour before dinner, eat meat first, vegie second, carbs third, chew everything slowly and try not to drink with meal.

Start exercising now.

Don't worry about portion control after surgery, you won't be able to keep down more than a few ounces at a time and alot of the foods you were use to you might not be able to tolerate anymore and after a while you won't have any urges for the bad stuff. The only thing I still have once in a while is a piece of chocolate like a hersheys kiss a couple times of week which is a HUGE difference than how I was prior to surgery. I had this surgery so I wouldn't have to give up to much but I just won't over-eat like before, but now I see I don't want alot of the old crappy food anymore. You'll see!