Hello,

I had VSG surgery on March 9th 2017. From the day of surgery to March 24th, I lost 12 lbs. From the 24th up until yesterday, I stayed the same. Then this morning I actually gained 1.5 lbs. I'm worried that I am eating too much and gaining so soon after surgery.

I started tracking calories yesterday and to my surprise, I was able to eat 1300 calories. From everything I read that sounds like too much. But I stuck to the diet and only ate when I was hungry. Yesterday I had a protein bar, soup, ground beef and scrambled eggs.

I know weight fluctuates a few pounds for a normal person. I also know that it's possible to stall on your weight lost. But I'm worried that I'm actually gaining weight.

Is this something I should be worried about? Should I call my doctor?

Thanks!

Good for you for getting things under control and taking a look at your diet before regain really creeps up on you. Keep tracking and making healthier choices. When you eat 1300 calories in a day, do you mind breaking down how that all adds up? What, exactly, did you eat on that day? It might help us give you some more suggestions.

And as to hunger... a lot of people lose it, but many don't. I didn't. I started feeling hunger three days after my surgery. I am FULL much faster, but I definitely still feel hunger. I don't mind it, because with my ADHD I'd have a heck of a time remembering to eat otherwise LOL! Even pre-surgery I would sometimes go entire days without eating because I was too busy!

Here is yesterday and the day before. Note that "purple bowl" I had to manually add so it doesn't have any info except for calories. Also, one of the days I had two protein bars which now I know is a bad choice.

At three weeks post op we are still on puree food and my surgeon has us on a strict regimen for eating. For weeks 5 and 6 after surgery we still on soft food. His patients lose a lot of weight if they follow it. No drinking fluid 1/2 hour before or after eating. Protein first and if room, cooked vegetables. (No starch vegetables) serving size 1/4 cup

This is the sample menu

7-8 AM 1/4 cup egg white

8-10Am 12 oz clear fluids

10-11:30 8 oz protein shake

12-1 1/2 of a 2oz turkey meatball

1:30 -3 12oz clear liquid

3-4PM 1 string lowfat cheese

4-6 PM 12oz liquid

6-7Pm 1/4 cup or 2oz scallops

7:30-9PM 12oz liquid

9-10 1/4 Greek yogurt frozen

10-11 8oz clear water

Total 66g protein and 62oz fluids Although, the diet is not calorie based, this is under 500.

I have researched other programs and below is from UCSF Medical Center and is similar to Yale

Recommended Meal Plan For Weeks Two to Eight Until Two Months Post-Surgery

At this time, your caloric intake will probably be no more than 500 calories a day, divided into six to eight small meals. Recommended portion sizes are 1/4 cup for solids and 1/2 cup for liquids.

Obviously, you should follow your own doctor's recommendations but if you didn't receive anything I hope this helps. Good Luck

58 minutes ago, teacupnosaucer said:

Good for you for getting things under control and taking a look at your diet before regain really creeps up on you. Keep tracking and making healthier choices. When you eat 1300 calories in a day, do you mind breaking down how that all adds up? What, exactly, did you eat on that day? It might help us give you some more suggestions.

And as to hunger... a lot of people lose it, but many don't. I didn't. I started feeling hunger three days after my surgery. I am FULL much faster, but I definitely still feel hunger. I don't mind it, because with my ADHD I'd have a heck of a time remembering to eat otherwise LOL! Even pre-surgery I would sometimes go entire days without eating because I was too busy!

Congrats on your sleeve! Hope everything is turning out fantastic for you.

In addition to tracking your calories, you may want to also track your macro nutrients. Rather than focusing on a number, look at the %of protein, fats and carbs to the calories intake.. I am set to 60% protein, 30% fat, 10% carbs. You definitely need to be doing cardio too. Walk, treadmill...shoot for 5,000-10,000 steps per day. Burn more calories than consuming, but make sure to get your target calories in

I have a thought....maybe the iced teas aren't helping you?

Caffeine causes the body to lose water. Maybe your body is just holding on to whatever it can bc of the caffeine.

I'm not sure what kind of caffeine is in a bottle of Snapple, but I think it does have some

I was a Starbucks junkie. I gave up all caffeine 2 weeks before the surgery bc the support nurse said to get the headache out of the way bc caffeine is a no no for my docs protocol.

When I eliminated all carbs (pre-op) and started my vitamins my energy didn't tank mid day. I am so surprised. I literally needed my coffee to get through a day.

Just a thought. Sometimes it's those little changes that may make a big difference.

I'm shocked you can eat that much ground beef in one sitting 3 weeks post op. You should be eating about 2-4oz. portions at a time for meals.

Stick with lean meats (turkey, chicken, fish, tuna, eggs). Do soft foods for now - tuna, eggs, and ground turkey and chicken are great options.

I think the NUT telling you not to worry about calories at this point is because they assume your portion sizes are way smaller than you are consuming. For example, I'm 3 months out and can't consume 6.5oz. of ground beef, but I haven't tried either. I tried eating 5oz of chicken the other day and was in so much pain. I still eat 4oz for exactly this reason. Even your chicken serving is over 6oz, are those measurements accurate? It seems your restriction is less than others so you might have to really watch the portion sizes until you get used to what 4oz of food looks like.

Lowering the carbs is best and drinking more water! I recommend cutting out 2 of those Snapples and switch to plain water or smart water. Try no carb drinks instead like Crystal Light or Sugar Free Powerade. I'm glad you have replaced the bars because those are loaded with carbs. You can eat carbs!! But choose them wisely, don't waste them. Even veggies have carbs, beans, most foods except pure protein so they add up quickly. Most people do NET carbs so you would subtract the fiber count from the carbs to get the NET carb total. That's what you want to keep low. Also a good rule of thumb, if the carbs are close to or higher than the protein count it's not worth eating! Low carb, high protein is what you are looking for. However, your protein count is sky high for 3 weeks post op! 140 grams is way too high and that can make you gain rather than lose as well. There's no reason to get more than 60-100 grams a day. This really depends on your doctor. Mine likes his patients to be closer to 60-80 grams a day but some doctors go as high as 100, so find out for sure.

Snacks should not be 2 large scrambled eggs (that's a whole meal). String cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese, avocado, and even a protein shake (if needed) are good snacks for 3 weeks post-op. Or mix it up a bit, half a hard boiled egg and 1oz of Colby jack cheese work as a snack. I think maybe more than anything it's your portion sizes that need work.

Did they give you a meal plan at all? Guidelines to follow with portions, or foods to avoid?

I'm thankful you caught this early. Just remember, all is not lost and you can absolutely turn this around! Don't get too down on yourself, we have all been confused at times. Just really really watch those portion sizes and you are going to do amazing! Good luck to you.

Oh and yes, I thought I was starving and having hunger spells the first 2 weeks after surgery. My doctor told me it was acid and to take a Zantac, and boom, no more hunger. I took Prilosec every other day for about a week until that feeling of hunger went away. Might be something to talk with them about. I had ZERO signs of acid or acid reflux so I was shocked when that was my problem, story of my life! Good luck again!

18 hours ago, j15big said:

Here is yesterday and the day before. Note that "purple bowl" I had to manually add so it doesn't have any info except for calories. Also, one of the days I had two Protein bars which now I know is a bad choice.

thanks for doing this! I definitely think cutting the protein bars is going to help A LOT. I have a hard time eating breakfast so pre-op I often did a protein bar before my morning swim, but at 200+ calories they are really more appropriate as a meal than as a snack. Looks like you are on the right track trading them for a different snack.

Can't wait until I can eat cheese portions again yum yum!

17 hours ago, Mandybb said:

I'm shocked you can eat that much ground beef in one sitting 3 weeks post op. You should be eating about 2-4oz. portions at a time for meals.....

Thank for the great information. Yes, I am a little upset about how much I am able to eat too. Not really sure what is going on. I am going to take your advice, cut down the amount of protein, stick with water for now, and change my snacks.

I hope you are right with the acid and Zantac. I am definitely going to try that.

I really hope the Zantac works as well. You might not notice a difference until day 2 with the hunger. If not, at least you tried and know it's not acid related.

I've heard of people having less restriction so you aren't alone. I truly hope those things help you and things turn around. I learn new things every day! I was eating too many sugar free Popsicles at one point because I thought they were carb free like jello. [emoji16] I wish you the absolute best and be sure to keep us updated!

I had my sleeve surgery on Feb 28 and have only lost 12 pounds. I had lost 13 but gained a pound. My nutritionist says it's impossible to "gain" at this stage but I beg to differ with her.I am still on Stage 4 and follow the diet closely. I have incredibly small meals and try to make up for the protein throughout the day. I find that it is virtually impossible to get the recommended amount of fluids in. I simply don't have enough time in my day if I can't eat for 3o minutes after drinking and can't drink for 45 minutes after eating. That means that I have to be consuming most of my fluids after dinner and that is difficult. The idea of drinking all that makes me nauseous. BTW, my weight loss was not influenced by exercising or drinking. On days when I did both faithfully, nothing changed on the scale. The only thing that keeps me sane at this point is the knowledge that at age 69, weight loss is expected to be slower. I only wish I had known this before or I would not have had the surgery and would have given Weight Watchers another try. I only found this out through my own literature search. My team said nothing about it in advance. My hunger never disappeared and I would have had the same problem on WW but could have eaten more and still lost 12 pounds or more in a month.

You should be losing weight.
Maybe your activity level is low.
Try walking longer walks.
I am losing very well because I exercise everyday.
Water aerobics is good too.

I also noticed your protein amounts are high. I'm 13wks out and am lucky if I can get 4oz of meat in a setting. Most of my meals consist of 4-5 ounces total, usually 3oz of a meat and 1-2 ounces of a veggie. 6-7 ounces in a setting seems like a lot.

I would try measuring your food. My NUT said at this point my meal should be no larger than 5 ounces total so I measure everything.

Thank you. I'm just bummed because I thought that by having the surgery I would be freeing myself from the weighing and measuring and all the trappings of former weight loss attempts but I guess that the reality is that this is simply a tool. I will try to be more dligent about measuring my food and see where that takes me. Ugh!!!!!!!

On ‎01‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 0:07 AM, j15big said:

Here is yesterday and the day before. Note that "purple bowl" I had to manually add so it doesn't have any info except for calories. Also, one of the days I had two Protein bars which now I know is a bad choice.

Thanks for this @j15big - could you please tell me which app/tracking tool this is? looks really good!

Edited April 4, 20179 yr by ma08