In my experience so far, my nutritionist keeps going back-and-forth and saying different things over and over again. She just keeps changing her story and there is no way I can afford to go see another dietitian at this point. I know that each doctor is different but I'm trying to just find a resource that is the rule of the thumb when it comes to postop diets / long term with the sleeve… I believe I'm doing pretty well on my own but I may not be enough. My weight loss stalled. It's hard for me to do constant Protein but I'm doing my best to get it in. I'm more of a veggie lover. So I thought that I would ask you guys is there any resources that you found helpful.

Take care,

Natalie

Consider purchasing The Big Book of the Gastric Sleeve. Great resource!

There is no rule of thumb. There's what works for you. And you could see ten different dietitians that could all give you different guidelines and still none of them might be what's idea for you.

I spent fifteen years as a vegetarian so shifting into the Protein heavy diet was hard for me. I relied very heavily on dairy and Protein shakes in the beginning...and then I developed lactose intolerance and had to figure things out again. If you don't care much for meat (and your tastes may still change) there are other options. I love seitan. I love meat substitutes and tofu. I try to keep my substitutes to minimally processed ones, but I splurge now and again. Lentils are amazingly versatile. Quinoa is a complete protein. No, it's not as dense in protein as meat but it's a nice option if you like variety. And eggs. Let me sing my praises of eggs, because I eat at least one daily. I have so many egg recipes jamming up my cook book it's ridiculous.

Is your weight really stalled? I realize the scale's not moving at the moment or you wouldn't have said that. But how far from surgery are you? Has your weight been constant for three weeks or more?

If you're not getting adequate nutrition from a variety of sources, your body may be holding on to whatever you feed it for fear of famine. I don't buy in to the starvation mode myth, but I do know that our bodies are wired to survive. And your body has no idea what's going on if you feed it one day and starve it the next, or if you completely miss a necessary group of nutrients for a long period of time.

Additionally, you might be sticking to hard and fast rules given by your nutritionist that simply don't work for your body. Maybe you need more or less calories, or more or less carbs than you've been instructed to consume. Tracking your intake and seeing your results (weight loss, mental health, feelings of satiety) after a few weeks on a particular diet is the only way to really know what you need. I needed a low, narrow range of calories to lose. But my carbs could be anywhere from 50-100 grams a day without any impact on my loss pattern. Figure out what works for you. Hit those protein and hydration goals you set for yourself. I simply DO NOT LOSE if I don't get adequate protein.

Alex's book is a great resource and is definitely something you should read. But the trick here is to track and figure out your own individual needs. There isn't any one size fits all approach to this.

~Cheri

Thank you both for your opinion… I just didn't like being told one thing by the dietitian and then being told something different next time. Thanks for the tips – I will look into that and see what I might be able to do. By the way, my surgery was in September 13 or September 17…