HELP...After Surgery Protein

I am only two weeks postop and I just can't seem to get enough protein in each day. I am currently using EAS Whey protein additive but almost gagged yesterday trying to get it down. I am still on the Pureed/Soft foods stage so my choices seem to be very limited. I don't want to lose my hair and I am worried about that too. I went to my two week follow-up with Dr Schweitzer yesterday and all went well. I don't think I lost as much as I think I should have so I am a little puzzled about that. My first two weeks I only lost 10 lbs total. With following their diet plan, I really thought I would have lost more than that. I guess I am just feeling a little frazzled right now. HELP!!

Hi Carol. First of all I want to say congratulations on having wls. It was the best decision I have ever made for myself, besides my hubby, kids and Jesus. As for your weight loss, 10 lbs is great. Don't get discouraged. I lost on average 15 lbs a month, the most I lost in one month was 32 lbs and that was between my 1st and 2nd month. You will lose and quickly. The protein is a hard one for me because I am not into liquid supplements. I would recommend you either purchase or check out from the library a copy of Susan Marie Leach's book Before & After weight loss surgery. (advertised on this site) She has lots of protein shake recipes. I do not like protein supplements but I was able to tolerate 3 or 4 of her shakes. I will try to remember to send you the recipes but I have a terrible memory these days. Just keep doing your best to get in protein all throughout the day, and drink water. In these first few months your entire world will focus on your eating and protein. I didn't realize how much I had to think, plan and follow through about food in the beginning. It can be overwhelming but it is so worth it. The hair usually falls out no matter what you do. Opinions vary on this subject but a lot of people agree that the hair loss will happen. Keeping up protein helps but won't prevent it entirely. Hang in there sweetie. I promise it really does get better in time. Hey, I found these recipes. By the way, the protein powder I had used a larger scoop and had 50grams of protein per 1 scoop. Usually the serving is 2 scoops. Keep in mind though that you can only absorb 25-30 grams of protein at a time so you should adjust your protein powder to get that much protein per shake. You can 1/2 the recipes so that you can drink the volume (they make a lot). Title: Isopure Zero Carb Shakes Description: these are really great tasting shakes. Especially for anyone like me that can't stand the taste of protein shakes. It took me awhile to discover these and I am so grateful that I did. Ingredients: Basic Shake Recipe 2 scoops of Isopure Zero-Carb Creamy Vanilla protein powder 1 cup of Ice 1/2 cup skim milk, soy milk or water Add the following ingredients with the above basic recipe for great tasting shakes: COOKIES N CREAM 2 sugar free oreo type cookies 1 heaping tablespoon cool whip 1/2 teaspoon vanilla ELVIS'S FAVORITE 1 frozen banana chunk (about 2 inches) 1 heaping tablespoon peanut butter 1/2 teaspoon vanilla ORANGE N BANANA use only 1/4 cup of water instead of the 1/2 cup milk, soy milk, or water for the basic recipe 1 frozen banana chunk 1/4 cup orange juice 1/2 teaspoon vanilla Directions: Put all the ingredients for the basic recipe and your choice of flavoring into a blender. Pulse on and off until ice is blended. ENJOY! I must add that these recipes came from the book before & after by Susan Marie Leach. I am so glad that i tried these. I am now getting in all my protein. I have one for breakfast everyday. Number Of Servings:1 Preparation Time:5-10 minutes Hugs, Robin

Hi Carol, At 2 weeks out I was having the same problem even tho I still have an issue with the liquid protein. One of the protein that I can stomach is Body fortress vanilla flavor. I use 1% milk add like 4 frozen unsweeten strawberries and some vanilla extract. That is 23 grams of protein plus the milk is 8 grams a total of 31 grams. Then since you are on pureed foods you can get shrimp and puree in the blender with a little water tastes good after being steamed and it had a good amount of protein. You can buy chicken breast tenderloins and cook them with chicken brother and seasoning until the chicken is very tender then throw in the blender with some broth, you can have that with a little mashed potatoes with cheese on it. You can go to fitday.com and add all the stuff you are eating and see how much protein you are getting in a day. it really helps me especially when I see I have to eat something else to make sure I get the requirement in. You can also do string cheese low fat to help with getting in protein. The first 4 weeks I was only averaging like 40 to 50 grams of protein. Take care and I hope this helps. Hugs, Cira

Cira's advise sounds good too. I am 1 month post op with Dr. Schweitzer too. I use APC protein powder which the chocolate I could tolerate the taste well, but my sister could not tolerate any protein suplements! Low fat cottage cheese also has like 10 grams per 4 oz serving so that was a favorite of mine!

I have discovered "Nectar" protein powder, to be mixed with water & or crystal light, after getting totally bored with the bland isopure, and other pre made shakes, I was lucky to find this protein powder mix, You are getting in the water as well as the protein supplement, I enjoy the Lemon Ice Tea, & Fuzzy navel/orange, I've tried some other flavors of the brand but these two seem to be the best tasting to me, It's worth trying. 23 grams of protein per scoop, with 8-16oz mixing to your flavor level? adding more or less powder? I got this product at the Vit. shoppe.& I'm quite sure they sell it all the health food places as well? or you can get it on line. Bariatriceating.com. Good Luck as you continue through the journey!! I hope you do find the right protein supp. that was so important to me, because I know we really need to have it to loose weight & stay healthy. Let me know what you discover and come up with?? Take Care!! Peace. jbug.

There are so many options out there for protein as you see from your responses. In the early stages, I liked Carnation Instant Breakfast. You need to build up to the amount of protein recommended. Don't worry. You will get there. Be gentle to yourself right now. You are still healing from a major surgery. Great news on the 10 lbs. Aime

Hi Carol, Way to go on the 10lbs. Just be patient right now...as Aime stated, you just had major abdominal surgery and you need to heal. I am about 5 weeks out and last week was told I needed to increase my protein from 70-80g / day (the men have to get more in right from the start) to 110 to 135g / day. I almost fell on the floor. So here is what I found. If you like sweet, then follow what Ladybug mentioned. The Nectar protein powder is very tasty. Almost no hint of the Whey protein. You can actually eat it like a pixie stick in a pinch (it really is that good). The problem is (and this is true of most of the protein supplements) you can only buy it in the industrial sized container...(about $21 to $30 depending on where you buy it). I mix it with fruit punch crystal lite, 3 or 4 fresh strawberries, about 1/3 a banana and some crushed ice. I also get in, at least 1/2 a bottle of Isopure water each day. Although it is high in calories, it is very high in protein (about 20g in 10 ozs - which is half a bottle). Now...if you are not much for sweet, you might want to try AnyWhey. Some people find it has no taste. I don't. It smells like vanilla but adds a background taste to everything I put it in. But it is not sweet so I can add it to things like instant potatos or pudding. One thing about the protein powders. If you are going to add them to things, mix them with a small amount of liquid (just enough to get them to dissolve) then add that mixture to the finished product. If I add the Nectar product to my strawberries and banana before I puree them, I end up with a frothy mix that is very tough to drink. If I add the Nectar and Crystal lite to the already pureed fruit and ice mixture, I get something that tastes like a fruit shake. Very easy to drink as a meal replacement. Then...you can make a nice chicken or tuna (I have been told to watch out for the mercury in tuna) salad. Each has over 20g of protein. I can get the 3oz cans of chicken or tuna in my grocery store. I just drain them, mix in 1 table spoon of lowfat or lite mayo (less than 5 g of fat per tablespoon), seasonings to taste. Then, when I was in the puree phase, I would add a little water to the whole thing and then put it in the blender. I ended up making a very nice chicken/tuna paste that went down easily in 30 minutes. Take your time with this stuff. It is all really personal. Find at least two protein supplements you can tolerate and try switching back and forth. That way you don't get sick of one thing. You can get your protein up to the levels you need! I promise. It just takes a little time and experimenting. The Vitamin Shop is an excellent source of products as is GNC. But beware of the GNC sales people. While they are all great people...they have certain products they push. You need to know what you are looking for when you go in. Don't be afraid to ask, but verify everything they say. This goes for any store, but GNC has been a problem with this for me. Good luck. Keep trying...it will all come together soon. Again, congrats on the 10lbs. It is a great first step! Dave

Thank you all so much for responding. I find it very comforting to know that you guys have already been through this stage. I guess the first few weeks postop just seem a bit overwhelming with trying to fit it all in. I am very greatful for all of you, your advice is very much appreciated.

I was getting worried about not getting enough protein in daily. I got burned out on it. There would be days (4-5 in a row) even (7-10days in a row) that I would probably get 20 grams to 30 grams. I'm back on track. on getting it in. I do 2 scoops 23 grams each of vanilla, mix it (1 cup) with the sunburst/sunshine orange crystal lite and have like a orange cream drink. It takes me 30-60 minutes to get it all down. I gag sometimes in the process. I'm 3 months post op and I had some loss of hair no biggie, now the hair is coming out more. I got upset, scared and didn't wash my hair for 3 days (I know sick)LOL I was even afraid to brush my hair, in fear of clumps of hair coming out. I'm still worried about it. I hope that part gets better soon and I hope my hair loss doesn't get worse. I was prepared for hair loss, but nobody could have prepared me for this. So you're not alone sweetie. Hugs to ya, Marcy