Hi Everyone!

I'm new here. Joined back in August 2015 after my initial consultation with my surgeon. My surgery date was November 23, 2015. Been lurking awhile, but this is my first post.

All in all, I think I'm doing pretty well. I've lost 61lbs. I tolerate most foods well. I haven't experienced much nausea or vomiting (that only happened once thankfully!).

I do have some concerns and I'm hoping the lovely people here can offer some tips.

I feel like my life revolves around food now. I feel like I'm constantly eating all day to get my required Protein in (my doctor recommends 65-80 grams per day). Water is a whole other beast (64oz). It seems I just don't have the space for the volume of food and water necessary to meet these requirements. I know once we are able to eat solid foods, we should be getting most of our Proteins that way. I do okay maybe half the week and the other half I'm still using shakes to supplement. Should I not be doing that? I almost feel like Protein Shakes will be something that's part of my life forever, but there's a lot of people who disagree with that feeling. While I'm not vegan or vegetarian by any stretch of the imagination, I CANNOT just eat meat and nothing else all day long. I eat veggies and dairy products as well. I don't eat much fruit due to the sugar content. If I have any at all it's blended in a shake or 1/2 a teaspoon is added to my Greek yogurt to take the tang out.

To make matters all the more awesome, I was never a big water drinker. If I had 8 cups of water in a month, that was a lot. So to go from that to 8 cups PER DAY is really difficult for me. I get maybe half. My doctor is aware and it's something I'm working on. He'd like me to get it increased, and quickly at that.

So. Any tips to ensure I get as much protein packed into a single meal WITHOUT using shakes? Or is it okay to supplement with them as long as I need to? Tips for water consumption would be awesome, too.

Thanks for reading! Sorry if I rambled

I supplement everyday. I use some Protein powder in my coffee and with my yogurt (either chocolate or unflavored).

With the Water I like the 0 calorie Wyler's lemonade flavor powder. But I'm good with sipping plain water too.

It does get easier thanks to good habits being developed over time. Congrats on the loss to date.

I supplement everyday. I use some Protein powder in my coffee and with my yogurt (either chocolate or unflavored).

With the Water I like the 0 calorie Wyler's lemonade flavor powder. But I'm good with sipping plain water too.

It does get easier thanks to good habits being developed over time. Congrats on the loss to date.

Thank you! You as well, that's an amazing loss!

I try and stay away from caffeine. I tried unflavored Isopure in plain water and I basically gagged. I've heard good things about GENEPRO, so I ordered some samples to try.

Is there any reason NOT to supplement every day? Or is it fine to?

Welcome and congratulations. It sounds like you are doing great.

I am of the opinion that getting in your Protein and Water is the primary goal. How you do it is up to you.

Yes, getting most, if not all, of your protein from food would be ideal but as you noted, it isn't easy.

I was sleeved in April and with my goal of 100 grams of protein a day, I still use supplements (just not as frequently as I did in the beginning). I also have to eat frequently throughout the day in order to get it all in.

As to the water, you just need to keep working on it. It is critical to get enough fluids.

I use a lot of water enhancers (Mio drops, etc.), decaf tea, etc. to get in my fluids. I try to make sure I drink at least one 24 oz water bottle of water a day and the rest of my Fluid comes in different forms and in different temperatures.

Try setting short term goals: for instance, drink am 8 oz cup of water or tea before you leave the house, etc.

You can do it!

I am almost four months out and still have a hard time getting in enough fluids. Before surgery I'd drink at least 80 ounces of water a day. I have discovered this week that I can drink the vitamin water zero and it is helping to get a bit more water in. They have no caffeine (I don't do caffeine either) and they use stevia leaf not the nutria sweet which is good for me because nutria sweet triggers migraines for me. It's a nice change to have something with flavor here and there.

Welcome and congratulations. It sounds like you are doing great.

I am of the opinion that getting in your Protein and Water is the primary goal. How you do it is up to you.

Yes, getting most, if not all, of your protein from food would be ideal but as you noted, it isn't easy.

I was sleeved in April and with my goal of 100 grams of protein a day, I still use supplements (just not as frequently as I did in the beginning). I also have to eat frequently throughout the day in order to get it all in.

As to the water, you just need to keep working on it. It is critical to get enough fluids.

I use a lot of water enhancers (Mio drops, etc.), decaf tea, etc. to get in my fluids. I try to make sure I drink at least one 24 oz water bottle of water a day and the rest of my Fluid comes in different forms and in different temperatures.

Try setting short term goals: for instance, drink am 8 oz cup of water or tea before you leave the house, etc.

You can do it!

Thank you!

100g a day? Wow. And here am I whining about 65! haha.

Do you eat veggies as well?

I am almost a year on maintenance and I still use Protein shakes. I use the GENEPRO in my coffee every morning. Sometimes I add it to my oatmeal. I have Shakeology shakes probably 4 x a week. I also eat powercrunch Protein Bars as a snack sometimes. When I get sick of Water I have Powerade Zero.

Good luck-

LA

I am almost four months out and still have a hard time getting in enough fluids. Before surgery I'd drink at least 80 ounces of Water a day. I have discovered this week that I can drink the Vitamin water zero and it is helping to get a bit more water in. They have no caffeine (I don't do caffeine either) and they use stevia leaf not the nutria sweet which is good for me because nutria sweet triggers migraines for me. It's a nice change to have something with flavor here and there.

I have a hard time with artificial sweeteners - they give me crazy headaches. I don't mind plain water necessarily. It's just getting it all in that seems daunting.

I am almost a year on maintenance and I still use Protein shakes. I use the GENEPRO in my coffee every morning. Sometimes I add it to my oatmeal. I have Shakeology shakes probably 4 x a week. I also eat powercrunch protein bars as a snack sometimes. When I get sick of water I have Powerade Zero.

Good luck-

LA

Any issues at all? With continued use of the shakes?

Welcome and congratulations. It sounds like you are doing great.

I am of the opinion that getting in your Protein and Water is the primary goal. How you do it is up to you.

Yes, getting most, if not all, of your protein from food would be ideal but as you noted, it isn't easy.

I was sleeved in April and with my goal of 100 grams of protein a day, I still use supplements (just not as frequently as I did in the beginning). I also have to eat frequently throughout the day in order to get it all in.

As to the water, you just need to keep working on it. It is critical to get enough fluids.

I use a lot of water enhancers (Mio drops, etc.), decaf tea, etc. to get in my fluids. I try to make sure I drink at least one 24 oz water bottle of water a day and the rest of my Fluid comes in different forms and in different temperatures.

Try setting short term goals: for instance, drink am 8 oz cup of water or tea before you leave the house, etc.

You can do it!

Thank you!

100g a day? Wow. And here am I whining about 65! haha.

Do you eat veggies as well?

Yes, I eat veggies and some fresh fruit on occasion.

@@christinems4280 genpro changed their formulation about 4 months ago and IMHO not like it used to be. I use PipingRock.com for unflavored (for coffee/yogurt)...half the price, low calorie to Protein. I use GNC's no sugar chocolate.

Don't try unflavored protein Water. Not recommended by anyone. Stop by GNC and try some of the Isopure flavored drinks. 40g of protein. I like them, but certainly not to everyone's taste. but has advantage of liquids and protein. The green tea flavor has been my favorite.

@OKCPirate Good to know! Thanks. I've tried some of the clear Isopure drinks. I don't mind them at all. They are just SO expensive!

@@christinems4280 Thank you so much for posting your experiences and concerns.

I find that it's damn hard to get the loss we seek and hit our Protein goals.......without supplementation of protein powders.

To eat that much ends with more additional calories than I really want.

Great advice and strategy has been forthcoming in your thread. Good stuff.

Isn't it ironic that I could drink a 2 litre of Pepsi with a meal and another at bedtime (with chips or pizza) but I had to train myself to drink that much Water in a 24 hour period?

My routine now is to drink a 10 oz cup of green tea (with ginger, tumeric and lemon) with my morning meds and supplements. That takes me about twenty minutes. Then I drink 10 oz. of water before my morning exercise.

After exercise I drink 10 ounces of a Protein shake. If I use milk and a little yogurt, that is 30+ grams of protein right there.

When that is finished, I wait 1/2 hour and eat Breakfast. Even just one egg with a little cheese on it is 10 grams of protein. Often I make a one egg omelet with some sauteed peppers, onions and mushrooms.

Between breakfast and lunch I have a piece of fruit and another 10 oz of water. So far, that is 40 ounces of Fluid and 40 grams of protein, and it's only lunch time.

If I have a cup of chili with Beans and cheese for lunch that's 20 grams of protein.

Between lunch and dinner, I will have 10 oz of water or sugar free cranberry juice.

If I want a snack between those two meals, I might have a handful if nuts or a boiled egg for another 7 grams of protein. For dinner, I will have 2 ounces of meat and later have another 10 oz of water, tea, or Crystal Lite Lemonade.

If I feel the need for a bedtime snack, I might have carrot and celery sticks with some yogurt ranch dip, which will give me another 3 grams of protein. Sometimes its a tablespoon of Peanut Butter and 1/3 of a banana. Before I go to bed, I will have another 10 oz of water or a cup of sugar-free hot chocolate.

I keep two 10 oz bottles of water by the bed, so that if I wake up to go to the bathroom, I will sip so long as I am up anyway. If I get unbearably hungry, I eat some sugar-free Jello which I keep made up in the fridge.

So, within a 24 hour period, this example totals 84 grams of protein and 90 ounces of fluids. Plus the Jello counts as a fluid. 10 oz is my measure because that is how much is in our water bottles and it's also the size of my tea cup.

It can be done, but yes, it does take some preparation and effort to juggle it all

I don't know how this sentence got omitted, but I eat 1/4 cup of steamed veggies with my dinner.

I don't know how this sentence got omitted, but I eat 1/4 cup of steamed veggies with my dinner.

This is some awesome advice! Thank you so much!

I also have a "not eating before I leave my house" problem. But that's an entirely separate issue

I used to think "how am I ever going to get all this in". Here's my eating routine: 8oz coffee on my ride into work. Protein shake and turkey sausage patty when I get to work (or sugar free oatmeal, eggs, etc) at 9 am. 10 am I start Water in take. I drink 16 oz of water. Sometime between 11 and 12 I have a snack. usually a piece of turkey deli meat and a piece of cheese or greek yogurt, etc. Then more water. Around 2 or 3 I have my lunch. Then more water. Then at 4-ish I have a snack before I go work out at 5. During work out I drink water. When I get home I drink water. Then around 8 we eat dinner. So, yeah, it pretty much revolves around food and water.