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Hi everyone I am a newbie, question?

S

sirenaclub7

New Member
I just finished my consultation appointments, and I hope to hear from my surgeon's office to schedule my gastric bypass procedure. I had my nutrition consultation and was shock to find out that they don't believe in using protein shakes or protein powder to get enough protein intake, as I have had several friends who have had this surgery, but with another surgical group who push protein shakes or to put protein powder in some food to get enough protein in their diet. What are your thoughts on this? I myself was a little leary about the thought of how I was going to get enough protein if my stomach pouch is going to be the size of an egg or smaller. Any thoughts or experiences on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
:confused:
 
My nutrionist says its best to get your protein through food but using one protein shake a day is ok. However Im sure during the time we are on the liquid diet we will have to do more in order to reach our goals. I dont always do one day for now only if im short on protein for the day. Are you using an app such as myfitnesspal to track your daily intake of calories, fat , protein, sugars etc...
 
Hi Sirenaclub, Welcome. You are not alone, there is someone else on the forum who's doing the same thing and yes she has found it difficult to get her protien in. Maybe you have the same surgical team:confused:? I am sure she will see your post when she comes on this evenening and let you know how her journey is. I have a surgical team that said it is OK for protien shakes,m which is good because I have used different protien supplaments for years. You'll do fine, keep us posted. :cool: Tom
 
Hi Sirenclub7,

My name is Mary, I'm from Milwaukee, WI. The program at the Froedert & Medical College of Wisconsin's Bariatric Center of Excellence follows that same philosophy. The reason is that they want to make sure you get the protein from food which when chewed properly will remain in your pouch a while before is goes on down to the intestines but will give you the sense of being and feeling fullness.

It's possible to consume too many calories through some protein shakes & drinks & they prefer that we get all the protein from food only.
Every program is different but I defer to my surgeon & their program but keep an open mind & enjoy hearing about others & taking in their particulars.
Initially it is not easy to get all the protein and water in each day but you keep striving for it.
You will succeed and will do it because it will make you healthy and force your body to leave lean muscle mass alone and go to your fat for energy helping you to lose the weight.

Some programs have people on liquid diets before and/or after the surgery itself.
Mine did not. They had a very specific diet they wanted us to follow 2 weeks prior to the surgery.
It was specifically designed to reduce the size of your liver to make it safer for you to have the surgery.
The following day we began w/pureed foods about a 3/4 day later followed by a 2nd meal before you leave.

Again, not every plan is the same but I don't believe the one gives you an edge anymore than another.
It is important that you understand why the plan is established in the manner that it is - it will help you make sense and understand it all better along w/the big picture.
You must be very comfortable and have a high level of confidence in your surgeon and the balance of the team that will help you with your health care needs not just before and after the surgery but for years to come.
I've be fortunate to find a program that I would highly recommend to anyone.
This team wants me healthy and wants me to succeed. I need to be honest, accountable & do my part to make it work. When I fall, I need to make the call & ask for help.
That's what they are there for & have emphasized that it is important to make the call to get back on track w/no shame or scolding.

I wish you all the best in your journey. I hope I was able to help some. I would suggest writing down the many questions you must have so you can ask them & get the ahswers and ask again if you don't understand the answer itself.

-Mary
 
Hello Sirenaclub, My name is Tracy congratulations on your upcoming surgery I guess every program is different, because I haven't heard of no protein either. I thought that was the way of life for WLS patients. I know everything will be just fine just have faith in your surgery team and do what they tell you to do, they are the professionals and they know what's best for their patients.
 
Sirenaclub-Welcome to the forum and congratulations on deciding to have WLS. Each surgeon has their own way of doing the surgery, although they are similar. This may be the reason your surgeon specified no protein shakes. As for myself, I can use shakes or food for my protein. Since I am not a big meat eater the protein shakes are what I use the most. I find that "whole" meats are hard on my pouch but I try to eat a little evey day anyway.

It's best to follow the advice of your surgeon otherwise you may end up with complications. After surgery iff you find you are having difficulty eating meat or other food sources of protein then talk to your surgeon to see if you can have the shakes instead.
 
Protein Requirements

Hello, All,

As we all know -- witness this forum -- it's usually helpful to know what/how/why others are doing what we're all doing.

To that end, I'd like to ask a couple of questions of everybody. How many grams of protein has your doctor or dietician or whomever told you to ingest daily? Some of them will change that requirement as your bodyweight changes. Some of them select some level, 35g, 55g, 100g, etc. and stick with that "forever."

How do you keep up with your intake? Just keep it in mind? Journal it? Other?

For me, I've not yet had WLS. Currently, my protein intake is between 80g and l00g. I find if I don't log it somehow or somewhere, I often come up short.

Regards,

Qaterra
 
Hi Qaterra, Welcome. I used to write down my protien intake but any more I just mentally monitor what I eat and try to get between 10 and 25 grams of protien a meal with an average of 15 grams a meal and between 60 and 100 grams a day. My doctor had just told me to get a minimum of 60 and that was tough for the first 9 months post surgery but it got easier after the first year, now I have to watch calories mor than protien, I keep snacking on damn cookies and I don't know why:mad:, I never really had a sweet tooth:confused: But I am still hanging in at 180 so I just need to watch myself. :cool: Tom
 
Hello Qaterra,

My surgeon wants me to take betewwn 50 - 70 grams of protein every day. I use an application on my smart phone to log everything I eat or drink, and even exercise as I started going to the gym today. It analyzes the food I log, and does the math for me. After my dinner, if I find that I'm still short of protein after three protein based meals, I take one protein shake to supplement.
Hope this helps.
 
Hi, Tom,

Ummm . . . quit buying cookies? LOL There are some things I just don't keep in the house anymore. If it's in the house, it's in my mouth, dontcha know! Embarrassing to admit, but true, nonetheless. It is what it is. Of course, that doesn't keep me from making a conscious effort to get into the car and go out and buy some. But it does help in the "mindless self-sabotage" arena.

Anyhow, I hope that after some while, I will be able to mentally monitor myself regarding protein and other factors. Until that time, I carry a small spiral notebook in my purse.

Keep on watching yourself. Seems to be working for you. Kudos!

Qaterra
 
Hi Q, It's not the cookies in the house that get me, it's the ones at the AA meetings I go to:eek:, I make cookies for two of the meetings I go to but every meeting has cookies and they arent as good as mine but they taste so darn good with a cup of coffee:eek:

What's a mini bypass:confused: Tom
 
Hello, Darling Lili,

(Couldn't resist. Hope you don't mind.)

Your surgeon seems to be progressive regarding his protein recommendation, especially for women. Sometimes, we forget that just because we take in 70g of protein doesn't mean that's what we get. I don't know all the medical particulars on malabsorption, just that it's always a factor. Some medicos say that you should figure 50/50 for malabsorption; that you only utilize 1/2 of your intake. I wonder how much this has to do with the (predominantly) female wls hair loss issue. So many surgeons still recommend only 35g protein for women. If the 50/50 theory is correct, those post-wls women are getting only 17.5g protein daily. That's seems too low to ensure good health.

Until I get a smart phone -- which sounds like such an excellent idea -- I'll stick with my spiral notebook.

Whatever, it looks like you're doing very well on your post-wls journey. Kudos to you!

Qaterra
 
Hey, Tom,

What doesn't taste good with a cup of coffee? (Or a glass of milk?) Maybe you could take your own snacks with? Like some really good tasting protein bar? Or some nuts; think peanuts, cashews or pistachios? Sorry, I don't have a good answer for you. Food is so unarguably social.

As to the Mini Gastric Bypass, the short answer is: it's a modified, simpler version of the RNY developed by Dr. Robert Rutledge (Nevada, USA) about 15 years ago. Still a restrictive and malabsorptive procedure; still usually resolves certain comorbidities like diabetes and hypertension. Despite thousands of successful procedures (and now more readily available here in the USA and in over one dozen other countries), it is still considered "experimental" and is not covered by insurance companies. If you really want specifics, there's lots of info on the Rutledge site (clos.net) and videos on YouTube.

So, all those thousands of patients have paid for this MGB surgery out-of-pocket. I'm working on it!
 
Qaterra said:
Hello, Darling Lili,

(Couldn't resist. Hope you don't mind.)

Your surgeon seems to be progressive regarding his protein recommendation, especially for women. Sometimes, we forget that just because we take in 70g of protein doesn't mean that's what we get. I don't know all the medical particulars on malabsorption, just that it's always a factor. Some medicos say that you should figure 50/50 for malabsorption; that you only utilize 1/2 of your intake. I wonder how much this has to do with the (predominantly) female wls hair loss issue. So many surgeons still recommend only 35g protein for women. If the 50/50 theory is correct, those post-wls women are getting only 17.5g protein daily. That's seems too low to ensure good health.

Until I get a smart phone -- which sounds like such an excellent idea -- I'll stick with my spiral notebook.

Whatever, it looks like you're doing very well on your post-wls journey. Kudos to you!

Qaterra
Of course I don't mind, Qattera :)

Yes, I think I have a wonderful surgeon, and she's always available to answer my questions. I haven't experienced any hair loss yet, but I hear it starts in the 3rd month; still away from that.

I feel so good despite some moments of frustration that I wish I could lose weight faster. Wanna go shopping for new clothes soon! Women!

I started going to the gym yesterday, and am enjoying it. Feels so good when you read the meters and see how much you've lost! So motivating!

The applications I use on my phone have their own websites if you'd like to go electronic ;-)

Welcome to this wonderful forum
Click to expand...
 
My surgeon told me since most surgeons don't remove nearly as much of the small intestine as they used to for a gastric bypass, the malabsorbtion rate has been greatly reduced and we metabolize about 80% of the calories and nutrients we consume. Although that may not sound like a lot of malabsorbtion it really is considering the small amount of food / drink we are able to have each day. Even if there were no malabsorbtion at all we would still not get enough nutrition from what we are able to consume so we have to have vitamins, supplements and extra protein to make up the difference. The bariatric nutritionist said we can only utilize 20 grams of protein per "meal" so we need to spread our protein consumption out throughout the day so our digestive system can process most of it. Same with the vitamins and supplements, they need to be taken in intervals otherwise we will not benefit from them.
 
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