Protein Bars
Dear All, In preparation for my surgery, I am researching protein bars. I think I will like these more than shakes, and even though I hope to mostly get my protein (my surgeon recommends building up to 80 grams) from real food, i think a protein bar for breakfast will work well for me. What are your favorite bars? I have seen a Pure Protein brand Greek Yogurt Blueberry that looks good to me. It has 30 grams of protein and 6 grams of sugar Does this sound like a good choice or is it too much sugar? Also, has anyone bought vitamins through Advantage, and in particular, the Post-Op DS 90 day kit, and if so, were you happy with it? Thank you, my surgery is in 24 days, feeling excited and scared.
I found protein bars too filling right after surgery. I'm at 10 months right now and I'm just getting to the place where I could eat a whole one and still get a days worth of food.
The Pure Protein ones you listed have 5 g sugar alcohols, which are a no-go for me. They will make me bloat and gassy for hours. That is pretty common post-surgery.
There are other things I don't like about them, but they are more in the trade-offs department.
Constipation, especially for my first six months, was a huge problem for me. I had to seriously watch my calcium intake on bad days. I would not have risked eating something with this much calcium in it on what I call a "bound up like a rock" days.
Also, 19 g total carbs is a lot!! If you are trying to keep it under 50 (or what ever your body does best at) then the opportunity costs of this bar is a huge hit against something else you could have eaten that would seriously make your life a little brighter. That is enough to get some real fruit and some real yogurt into a real smoothie that would be ever so much better than a processed dried out bar-food thingy. Both yogurt and fruit really helped fight off the constipation dragon, so it the trade-off here is much larger than you would guess.
There are some bars that come in at 12 or 15 g of carbs that I occasionally partake in. Quest and Chia Bars come to mind. I found another one once but I threw away the wrapper and haven't been able to find it again.
Overall good thinking though. Keep this attitude, keep searching for creative solutions that work for you. It is the only way through those early months.
Good luck!
August 2014 - DS @ Mexicali Bariatric Center / Ungson.
It took me one and a half years to lose 165 pounds.
Weight: High=314, Goal=155, Current=131
Why would you say the 6 grams of sugar won't matter?
There are very few bars out there that are low in carbs to justify eating them. Most of them are glorified candy bars with a little protein thrown in.
The only ones I eat and not often at all are Power Crunch Bars. 10g total carbs. 1/3 of my carb allowance for the whole day.
on 7/13/15 5:36 pm
Post surgery you'll struggle to get down protein, so any way you can get down 60 grams is probably good. I don't think 6 grams of sugar for 25 grams of protein will matter so much; it's the 25 to 30 grams of sugar for 10 grams of protein that become a problem.
Your vitamin needs will be impacted by 2 things: 1) Your body and how it handles digestion, and 2) Type of DS procedure. You mentioned a lap DS, which I have not heard of. I assume it's a SADi, Sips, Single loop DS. If that's the case, barrier rich advantage is probably ok and will help by combining pills (so less of them). If you are having the standard DS, many people on this board contacts to Vitalady who sells recommended packages specifically for the standard DS. The newer DS options generally include a longer common channel so you vitamin needs are somewhat less.
For example, I take 2 calcium pills once a day after having a Sadi. This work not be a sufficient dose post standard DS surgery.
