Success with moderate carbs?

FWIW, a lot of things that don't seem "livable" pre-op are actually much more manageable post-op.

Which, of course, is one of the primary reasons to have surgery! At least it was a big motivator for me.

Thank you, I hope that is this case. I think a lot of people here can understand what it is like to "fail" at weight loss a hundred times over and have a fear of doing so again. I am determined to go about this the right way, but still have some self-doubt due to my history.

We all have the same history of failure or we wouldn't be here. Follow the rules and give it a chance. You will be surprised at the difference post-op. Some carbs will come eventually, but focus on the protein first.

Many go very low carb until they reach their goal and then start easing up. The general practice is to limit carbs to complex (vegetables) opposed to simple (bread, sugar, pasta, rice, etc). This will maximize loss during the honeymoon period, which lasts around a year, give or take. Trust me, you'll barely have enough room for vegetables the first year, anyway.

Thank you, I appreciate your insight. This last few weeks before surgery has got me feeling a bit nervous and you all are such a wonderful resource!

I am only 3 1/2 months out, but started adding carbs fairly early as I do not eat red meat or fish (I do eat chicken). Since my husband is diabetic and has cholesterol issues, we have always followed a South Beach diet. We avoid high carb vegetables like corn and peas, and don't eat white potatoes or pasta. I do like sweet potatoes, so I might have a quarter of a small one. We eat only brown rice, so I will have a few tablespoons. Sweets are not important to me, but when I want something sweet I eat a portion of a protein bar that has chocolate in it. I would estimate I have less than 30 carbs a day and have no issues. Fat free stuff is usually higher in sugar and weird chemicals so we avoid them. I can't have aspartame, and we use only stevia as a sweetener.

Everyone is correct that once you eat your protein and some low carb vegetables, you won't have a lot of room for carbs. That does not mean they are gone for good - you just have to make good choices. For example, I went to a birthday party for one of my grandchildren and had a small slice of cake. I was careful not to eat any more complex carbs that day.

Carbs are usually the food of choice for eating when you are bored or stressed. Mine was popcorn. I now have a cup of decaf coffee with stevia in it when I get carb cravings. My stomach gets full, but I still have to fight the craving. Even so, after VSG, the cravings are much less than they were before.

There was a period a few years back where there were constant "carb wars". At the end of the day there simply is not one "perfect" plan. We are all too different for that. With that said, many here do 40g or less. My first month out of vsg I did do that-- and my blood sugar levels kept tanking on me. I needed to figure out where my ideal level was. Eventually, I found eating 5-6 times a day and monitoring carbs worked best. My meals would be about 30 net carbs and my snacks about 15. More carb and it triggers that insulin spike, hunger vicious circle. Less over a prolonged period causes low blood sugar issues. I had no difficulty getting to goal doing this. Now a little further out, my a1c has been creeping up. Not prediabetic yet--but getting close. When I first found out I set out to drop carbs a bit. Doing Ok now and such, but just know for some it can be a moving target.