6 weeks out needing HELP

Amazing that your weight loss center does not give you information.  I have a huge binder that I am still required to bring to every visit, and I am four months post-op.

What White Dove said.  I can eat 1/2 to 1 cup of food at a meal depending on what it is, but only about 2 ounces of protein.  Look at the "What's on your menu" threads that are posted every day and you can get an idea of what we are eating.  Some posters say where they are in their journey (how many months out they are).  At 6 weeks I was just being moved to solid foods from a soft diet.  I have trouble tolerating meat, so I still eat a lot of greek yogurt and I have a protein shake every morning.  I do eat veggies usually - but we are doing a meat challenge this week so a lot of us are focusing on meat all week.  That is not usually my menu of choice but getting rid of all carbs helps me kick the carb habit. 

Lot of us believe in limiting carbs.  My dietician says 80-120 grams a day of carbs is healthy, but I believe that some people's bodies react to carbs and mine is definitely one, so I limit my daily carb grams to under 50 and right now it is at about 20 grams a day. 

LOT of liquid!  I try to always get at least 64 ounces a day.  I do not like plain water much anymore so I add some diet cranberry juice.  I drink coffee in the mornings, I eat sugar free jello, and sometimes sugar free popsicles and broth.  I ALWAYS get at least 60 grams of protein, and aim for 80-90 a day.  I take a multi, D3/calcium patch, iron patch, B12, and I also take some other minerals.  You should be having labs done at some point because your new system will not absorb some nutrients.

Good luck, post here and check the threads.  There is a lot of information here.

Thank you! This is all so helpful! I'm struggling with the 64 ounces of water everyday. I feel like I can get a couple big sips in every time I drink but I worry that I'm drinking too much and risking the chance of stretching out my stomach. What do you think? It's not uncomfortable when I do it so I've been using my body's response as my gauge for what is acceptable but I've always had a stomach of steel that can handle so much so I wonder if I'm not doing it the best way :-/

You won't stretch out your pouch by drinking water... if it feels comfortable, then you're fine.

Here's a really important tip that I haven't seen on here yet... consider this on the top 10 list of things to follow:

• DO NOT DRINK ANY LIQUIDS FOR AT LEAST 30 MINUTES AFTER YOU EAT... and at times, if your food is really dense, it might be longer.

You want that food to stay in your pouch to keep you full, and let it digest. If you drink water, then you are pushing everything through, and you WILL get hungry faster.

^^^whst she said times a hundred

My weight loss center gave me information. Some of it was crap. They had me eating grilled cheese and other high carb foods. 

I came here for help. It has helped me a lot. 

Mine gave me a book, I do not follow all of it

Other pointers below which have not been mentioned already:

1) eat protein first, if you have space left, eat veg

2) don't eat crap like potatoes, rice, breads, corn, anything construed as starchy. no fruits on my plan until at least 6 months out. why? they have a crap ton of sugar/carb and MAY make you ill.

3)you may want to get some lo calorie turkey gravy to go on your meat if you find it hard to swallow/chew. Early on and for a VERY limited time, I allowed myself refried beans with salsa and a bit of cheese. Beans are really not an 'ideal' source of protein due to carbs/calories, Packet or canned tuna and shrimp were my buddies.

4) chew each bite of food 30 times and don't just swallow hunks of meat. You could choke or get food stuck and be in agony for an hour or more.

5) Do not drink out of a straw

6) avoid carbonated beverages

7) read your labels on everything! there is sugar piled in most foods you would not even think of, like bbq sauce, pasta sauce, yogurts are a huge example of this. Try for oikos triple zero, or a low carb yogurt.

8)Get off as much weight possible during your first year- year 1/2. you don't get this time back

9) if you are burnt out on sweet protein, try isopure or adkins lift drinks. or get some 'unflavored' and add to soups

10) read and join the RNY board for menu ideas from others.

11) don't drink anything for at least 30 min after you eat and don't drink while you are eating period.

When in doubt, ask us! we are a nice bunch and have probably heard everything under the sun.

there also is a search function in the top right hand corner for topics.

This is great info!!! Thank you! You guys are all really helping me. Can't even put into words how grateful I am :-D

is there an unflavored protein you recommend? I'm already getting sick of the sweet stuff haha. Do you think you could add it to water? Maybe a couple cucumber slices or mint to cover any aftertaste that the powder might have? Or lemon? I'm assuming lemon is ok to use even though it's technically a fruit

unflavored protein just means not choc or vanilla. Whey protein has its own flavor, spoiled milk. That is why they try to cover it up so much. 

You totally will not like it in plain water with or without cucumber

What do you usually mix yours with? I have a nutrininja that I used to make veggie purees/juices pre-op. Do you think something like that would be a good idea or would it just be too many added calories? 

I never used unflavored. I was ok with Syntrax Nectar chocolate.

many ppl mix it with yogurt or sf pudding. 

Smoothies usually too many carbs/ sugar.