im just looking around and researching ive been concidering the sleeve myself. ive notice after every one is allowed to eat "normally" the diet requires low carb high protein is this somewhat similar to Atkins ?

Very similar to Atkins and that is why the sleeve diet works. But some surgeons require you to also eat low fat in addition to low carb.

Here's an older article that has been circulating about the Atkins and other low-carb diets - it's an excellent analysis:

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/07/magazine/what-if-it-s-all-been-a-big-fat-lie.html?src=pm

Ive done Atkins and I did pretty good on that lost 60 lbs in abt 5 months. All cravings were gone. Then Thanksgiving came I didnt think id lose control but all hell broke loose. In your opinion how would WLS help me?

I have successfully done Atkins as well. Lost 80 lbs and kept it off for about 3 years with the help of exercise. I was an exercise freak during that time. The thing that tipped me off the plan was emotional distress of a death in the family. I also found that Atkins was a bit restrictive at that time because truly you couldn't eat any carbs including fruit. I am a pre-op sleever and working my way to surgery and I have found that this surgery is restrictive in how much food you eat, plus, you can recognize your full limits. You can also have complex carbs so life doesn't have to end when it comes to eating. It's still a tool that you have to work at, but keeps the focus on knowing how to gauge when you are full, something that Atkins didn't do. Hope this helps.

Ive done Atkins and I did pretty good on that lost 60 lbs in abt 5 months. All cravings were gone. Then Thanksgiving came I didnt think id lose control but all hell broke loose. In your opinion how would WLS help me?

Thank you Blade I think that does help me feel better knowing u can still have complex carbs (fruits and more range of veggies) Atkins didnt allow hardly any fruit except berries and a few veggies it was VERY restrictive. I can work with something that at least allows more range of fruits and veggies!

Thank you Blade I think that does help me feel better knowing u can still have complex carbs (fruits and more range of veggies) Atkins didnt allow hardly any fruit except berries and a few veggies it was VERY restrictive. I can work with something that at least allows more range of fruits and veggies!

I have a piece of fruit nearly every day. I do not eat much in the way of rice, Pasta, bread etc because they are trigger foods for me. Sweets were and will always be my biggest trigger foods.

Yes, the sleeve restricts how much you can eat at one time, and in the beginning for most people you also lose the desire to eat because the stomach tissue removed from your body produced a lot of hormones associated with hunger. But this lack of hunger tapers off for most people after a few months, then it's more up to you to not snack a little all day long. To be successful post-surgery you need to examine your bad habits (overeating, snacking on bad foods, etc), replace them with good habits (Protein first, portion control, etc), and be vigilant about maintaining those good habits. It is a tool, and if used well, an excellent one.

thank you bkly

I agree with everything bklyngal said. I will also add that I think once people reach maintenance, and are not in the active weight loss phase, you can add back some complex carbs. To vastly oversimplify, after 6-9 months, people may end up eating 1 cup of food at a meal. Of that, 1/2c is meat, 1/4c is veg, 1/4c is either fruit or grain. That's fairly different to Atkins.

But I think up front, during the first 6-9 months when you are in the fastest weight loss phase, it is low carb but still allowed veggies and fruit. For most of us though, it's hard to get enough Protein and still have room for that much more food so the veg intake is necessarily lower than you'd like.

I'm so glad you're looking into this before surgery and getting a clear idea of what you will have to do after. If I can give you one piece of advice, I will tell you to not believe those who tell you that you will be able to eat anythign you want and still lose weight. You will have to be deliberate and careful about the choices you make. The sleeve makes resisting bad choices a LOT easier. But if you decide to fill your sleeve with chips and cake, you will likely not lose weight.

im getting a good understanding now thanks guys. im a little shocked how little id be eating its kind of scary to me in a way of.... how will i deal with my emotions did any of you find it emotionally difficult at first? do any of you gonto support groups etc?

im getting a good understanding now thanks guys. im a little shocked how little id be eating its kind of scary to me in a way of.... how will i deal with my emotions did any of you find it emotionally difficult at first? do any of you gonto support groups etc?

i would encourage you to read like mad on the forum here. You will see all the emotional issues people go through and the counseling, etc. that is helpful to many.

thank you

Interesting, but I was thinking of things that I quit OR implemented cold-turkey. Pop, putting white sugar in things, social smoking (never a big smoker,) buying ground beef, cooking with olive oil/coconut other organic oils, taking Vitamins and supplements and I'm sure others that I can't think of offhand. I always ask myself what made me just decide to quit those things or add those things so passionately that I never want to do them again? If I could do that with rice/pasta/bread and exercise, I would have it made forever.

I say this to say, we are imperfect beings and choosing this surgery is not choosing perfection. It still requires work and making right choices - forever and in all that we do.

Last winter i started "working out" i find that the hardest part is the begining getting myself motivated but I pushed myself starting with JJane fondas work out the newest one for old people LOL it was more like a "walk it out " type video but it helped get me feeling good. Next thing i knew i was outside walking 2 miles being outside made me feel even better i walked for 3 months i got up to 5 miles a day 5 days a week i never felt better i started watching what i ate counting calories. i lost 35 lbs but then my abusive ex started popping up out of no where threatening to take me to court for full custody of my teenagers. i fell into a depression and everything all those i feel good feelings went right out the window. gained everything back and then some. started binging and then hating myself for it. all of that for nothing because he never did take me to court. i mean this is a pattern im starting to see in myself. i fall apart at moments like these. i feel like grasping at straws im at my highest weight ever right now and i really want to better myself in every way possible. my father is type 2 diabetes has every health issue known to man had cancer twice a stroke and 2 anerysums (spell?) found by sheer luck. im getting older im starting to come out of my denial with my food addictions. im begining to feel like therapy and getting sleeved are my last options.

i mean my father is type 1 not 2.

I hear you on many of those that you brought up. I also have medical issues that I need to address now before it's too late. My main reason for doing this surgery is not vanity it's to get off meds, see my kids grow up and have my grandkids or find success, and mobility (my knees are painful and creeky.) Also, I want/need to get my head right about food, so I'm committing myself to visits with the nutritionist and possibly the psychologist for those issues after the surgery. I can't keep carrying a person with me everyday...I'm too old for that.

when is your surgery date do u have one yet?