So, here I am 2 weeks out from ESG! Sometimes I feel like I'd slap my own mom to eat a piece of chicken. But I've held meticulously to the diet, and I've been doing what moving around I can.

No weight loss. None. Zilch. I'm no smaller and no lighter.

Everyone with their "I instantly lost 5 pounds" even, is like...depressing. What's going on? How am I breaking physics? I'm eating around 700-900 calories a day -- surely that HAS to do something? If weight loss is at the beginning, what's wrong with me?

Yes, I'm getting my 64 oz of fluids. Yes, I'm adhering to the diet. No, I'm not snacking. Yes, I'm keeping meticulous track of every single thing I eat.

What's wrong?

What is your protein intake like? Today is my last day of full liquids and during this time I have been getting about 500-600 calories a day. 70-90 grams of protein and 64 or more in fluids.

90 grams of protein and 64 oz fluids, so that's 360 calories of protein. I tend to end up around double that in total calories, so like 720-800.

How much did you lose before the procedure?

None. They didn't put me on any kind of diet beforehand. I was taken off the waitlist as a last-minute thing.

There's several reasons I've heard for not losing right after surgery. One is that you lost beforehand - but sounds like that isn't you. Another is water retention. If you're only two weeks out, there could still be an awful lot of swelling in your abdomen. The incisions you can see are probably small, but there's a huge incision on your stomach! In fact, part of the reason your stomach is so, so small at the beginning (only 1/4 cup for some people) and gains capacity over time (more like a cup after 6 months) is because it starts out very, very swollen.

You're going to lose. Trust me. Physics does work.

I'd actually suggest something that may sound counterintuitive - eat more - but make sure that what you add is mostly protein. If you want to eat a piece of chicken, eat a gd piece of chicken! Keep in mind that your body is healing now, and protein is one of the things it needs to build all that scar tissue. Your body is telling you that it needs something. We are so used to not being able to trust our bodies, but the surgery really does rebalance things so that we can start to trust its signals more and more over time.

Not everyone is like this, but my experience is that I was hungry right after surgery until my protein intake increased. That's when I relaxed into a groove, with easy to control hunger and pretty regular weight loss (though with stalls, of course, because everyone has stalls.) My calories were actually pretty variable after surgery. Some weeks I was more like 600, other weeks I was up to 1200. I still lost just fine over time. This is a marathon, not a sprint.

Can't eat chicken. I'm on a liquid diet until 45 days out. It's the worst, and I hate it. Why do gastric sleeve folks get to do semi-solids at 2 weeks while I have to wait over a month?

There's a "huge incision" on my stomach? I thought ESG didn't have those.

Is water retention that big of a deal? I'm female and never had any water retention even with my periods. My weight never fluctuated. Why would it start now? I'm confused.

Edited April 8, 20215 yr by Miratia

I just had ESG 2 weeks ago and there are no incisions. Everything was done endoscopical. Are you sure you had ESG?

I said there were none. I'm not sure why rjan said I had them. I definitely had ESG.

Oh, you had ESG, sorry! So no, you don't have an incision. But there's still a big line of sutures and they can absolutely still swell. Everyone swells when they are healing, even if you don't normally get it during your period.

That's crazy that your doc has you on liquids for 45 days! When I looked at ESG as a possibility, it seems that most surgeons recommended a diet similar to a normal sleeve - about 2 weeks on liquids. Different doctors recommend very different things on diet though, even when they are doing the exact same procedure. People always recommend you do what your doctor says, though, because your doctor knows how to take care of you best when you are following their recommendations. If you get desperate, you can beg them to let you move to purees/soft foods.

I can absolutely see why you're having trouble. I had a lot of trouble on the liquid stage - I was absolutely starving. I'd still recommend eating pretty much as much as you want, though. If you're hungry, eat something. Just make sure it's protein rich foods that are on your approved list. There's no way that you're going to not lose because you add 150 calories and 20 g of protein to your daily routine. The weight WILL come off with time. But a little extra food may help you feel a lot more satisfied, and make you more likely to stick to the diet in the long term.

Hi there... I also had ESG/POSE at Brigham and Woman’s about a week ago. I spend two nights in hospital after experiencing some unbelievably strong nerve pain. With all the iv fluids, I arrived home weighing 8lbs heavier!

The weight is starting to shift after about a week. I am still on a liquid diet (6 weeks). I’m not hungry at all and I am consuming about 700 calories a day. I do wonder why ESG patients seem to have a longer liquid diet phase post procedure. I hope I can manage another 5 weeks.

I know that I have lost weight because my clothes are fitting better, but I will say that my stomach still feels very bloated and swollen.

One reason I chose ESG was because it was meant to be a quick recovery, but for me it has taken a while to feel better.

Hi there... I also had ESG/POSE at Brigham and Woman’s about a week ago. I spend two nights in hospital after experiencing some unbelievably strong nerve pain. With all the iv fluids, I arrived home weighing 8lbs heavier!
The weight is starting to shift after about a week. I am still on a liquid diet (6 weeks). I’m not hungry at all and I am consuming about 700 calories a day. I do wonder why ESG patients seem to have a longer liquid diet phase post procedure. I hope I can manage another 5 weeks.
I know that I have lost weight because my clothes are fitting better, but I will say that my stomach still feels very bloated and swollen.
One reason I chose ESG was because it was meant to be a quick recovery, but for me it has taken a while to feel better.

Hi Honey.Bee! Just had my ESG, also at B&W. Just wanted to say hello. Nice to see someone on the same path.

On 4/9/2021 at 5:10 AM, rjan said:

There's several reasons I've heard for not losing right after surgery. One is that you lost beforehand - but sounds like that isn't you. Another is Water retention. If you're only two weeks out, there could still be an awful lot of swelling in your abdomen. The incisions you can see are probably small, but there's a huge incision on your stomach! In fact, part of the reason your stomach is so, so small at the beginning (only 1/4 cup for some people) and gains capacity over time (more like a cup after 6 months) is because it starts out very, very swollen.

You're going to lose. Trust me. Physics does work.

I'd actually suggest something that may sound counterintuitive - eat more - but make sure that what you add is mostly Protein. If you want to eat a piece of chicken, eat a gd piece of chicken! Keep in mind that your body is healing now, and protein is one of the things it needs to build all that scar tissue. Your body is telling you that it needs something. We are so used to not being able to trust our bodies, but the surgery really does rebalance things so that we can start to trust its signals more and more over time.

Not everyone is like this, but my experience is that I was hungry right after surgery until my protein intake increased. That's when I relaxed into a groove, with easy to control hunger and pretty regular weight loss (though with stalls, of course, because everyone has stalls.) My calories were actually pretty variable after surgery. Some weeks I was more like 600, other weeks I was up to 1200. I still lost just fine over time. This is a marathon, not

Edited May 16, 20224 yr by SleeverSk