To carb or not to carb...

[NurseIvy]

Hey everyone!!!
I am 2 months post op (yesterday). And I have been doing very low carb.
I am doing well (I think) so far. I have lost 51 pounds (35.53 since surgery).
My question for you guys is, are you guys eating carbs (brown rice, Quinoa, whole wheat bread, potatoes etc...)??
I keep thinking that I should in order to have a balanced diet.
If you are eating carbs, can you share a sample of your diet?
I soooooooooo appreciate it!! I am so confused!!
By the way... I have no food restrictions at this point.

[sraebaer]

I would say I eat low carb too. Protein first, then veggies, then carbs. I think recent studies are showing that carbs as you mentioned should be part of a healthy diet. (Now candy and chips, that would be another story.) While I typically don't eat any bread, when I'm at a fancy restaurant and they have some special, delicious bread, I'll make an exception!

You're doing great!

[Tamera2]

Congratulations on your success. I eat mainly low or lower carb diet. Always start with protein first then veggies either streamed or very small salad. Sometimes I eat brown rice with protein on top or protein pasta. Occasionally I'll have very small piece of whole grain bread and make a sandwich with turkey, roast beef, etc and sometimes I'll use iceburg lettuce and make sandwich wraps instead. A couple times during a difficult hike (huge elevation gain) high mileage I'll have couple pieces of hard candy,dark chocolate or half peantbutter sandwich on white bread. Hope that helps. Goodluck

[azladyrider]

At the beginning I ate very little carbs now over 5 years out I eat what I want. I eat a ton of almonds and nuts for snacks but I also eat very high protein. I still rarely eat bread of any kind, just yesterday went to a pizza place and friend had a slice of pizza (ginormous and a slice filled him up they are that big) but I had a pizza bowl which was basically just the pizza toppings. I'd rather have the good stuff than the bread that fills me up too fast.

[Sarcastic_Bard]

I ate really low protein in the beginning months and got used to avoiding most carbs, but I run 25+ miles per week now and unfortunately I really can't ignore carbs and still be healthy. I'm not a huge bread and pasta person, so I end up getting a lot of my carbs from veggies and fruit. However, I don't straight up say "never again!" to sweets, popcorn, a rare bit of bread or bite of spaghetti. I don't want to keep myself on a severely strict diet; that's one of the issues that lead to weight loss failures in the first place. Now I just focus on getting in enough nutrients, hydrate myself, and have fuel foods knowing that if I feel like a few bites of a treat food it's not gonna kill me. Also, sometimes if I'm really into a type of food, I find ways to replace some of the simple carbs in it for more complex ones, like big slices of bell pepper acting as pizza "crust" for mini pizzas.

Also azladyrider I so want a pizza bowl now. That sounds amazing.

[NurseIvy]

Thanks guys!! I appreciate all of the responses!!
I am doing fine getting all of my carbs from veggies. I just didn't know if I should be adding in whole grains.

[Muchomedic]

That pizza bowl sounds amazing...lol. I am 4 months out from surgery, of course I focus on protein first then veggies, but I have to agree with Bard. My severe diets over the years really contributed to my weight gain, I would restrict myself from eating the foods I loved for so long then blow it and splurge and be back to where I was again plus some. So now that I have this fantastic tool that won't allow me to eat large amounts of food, I use it. If I want something then I eat it. I generally stay away from the carbs, bread in particular. But if i want a little pasta or a few chips I eat them, just in moderation as with all foods. That is the lesson I have taken away from this whole experience. It's not so much what you eat but the amount, that is how we all got to be overweight and now that is how we are losing it by "forcing" us to eat smaller portions.

[Christie13]

I ate low carbs until I hit goal. Now I eat carbs but I am also a runner. I still focus on protein and veggies first, though. And I do not eat as many carbs as most people. I do think it helps with weight loss in the beginning. Adding back the carbs did not make me gain weight.

[Ann2]

Hey, NurseIvy. I'm 3+ years post-op, so no longer in your shoes. But I was.

The post-op advice I got, and that I followed, was protein first, then (when your healed sleeve can tolerate it), small amounts of vegetables. Then (when your healed sleeve can tolerate it) small amounts of fruits. Then (when your healed sleeve ... you get the idea ...) small amounts of whole grains. Then as your sleeve continues to heal and capacity increases (very slowly) larger amounts of all of the above.

At two months post-op, I was focusing on solid protein, veggies, fruits, and rare whole grains.

These days, I eat pretty much everything. You can read about my eating progressions in the three links at the bottom of my signature block below. Such an exciting time for you. Sounds like you're doing great.

P.S. I'm about a month into Year Four post-op. My goal this year is to eat 8 veggies and fruits a day. It can be done. But it requires some focus. And I'm doing great at it.

[NurseIvy]

Thank you guys so much!!
I sooooooooooo appreciate the advice.
I am so happy that we have such open and honest (and AWESOME) mentors to show us newbies the ropes. I will continue my low carb way for a little bit. I have been fine without them. I just feared that if I waited too long to add them back, I would gain wait. This adventure is so exciting. I have totally changed my mindset about food. And for the first time in a loooooooooong time, I feel like I can do this!! Thanks guys!!

[Luna354]

Other than some green veggies, I still don't eat carbs. I don't have room. I still eat my protein first. This is the only way I come close to getting in enough protein.

[Tamera2]

Thank you guys so much!!
I sooooooooooo appreciate the advice.
I am so happy that we have such open and honest (and AWESOME) mentors to show us newbies the ropes. I will continue my low carb way for a little bit. I have been fine without them. I just feared that if I waited too long to add them back, I would gain wait. This adventure is so exciting. I have totally changed my mindset about food. And for the first time in a loooooooooong time, I feel like I can do this!! Thanks guys!!

Congratulations on your success and realizing you have to change your mindset!! That really made a difference for me. Best of luck to you, your doing awesome

[azladyrider]

That pizza bowl sounds amazing...lol. I am 4 months out from surgery, of course I focus on protein first then veggies, but I have to agree with Bard. My severe diets over the years really contributed to my weight gain, I would restrict myself from eating the foods I loved for so long then blow it and splurge and be back to where I was again plus some. So now that I have this fantastic tool that won't allow me to eat large amounts of food, I use it. If I want something then I eat it. I generally stay away from the carbs, bread in particular. But if i want a little pasta or a few chips I eat them, just in moderation as with all foods. That is the lesson I have taken away from this whole experience. It's not so much what you eat but the amount, that is how we all got to be overweight and now that is how we are losing it by "forcing" us to eat smaller portions.

Yeah the nice thing of the pizza bowl was I can choose my proteins in the meats I use and there's no bread. I'm going to make my own soon in the crockpot and then make them into muffin tin sized portions which I can then freeze and grab and go

[Ann2]

Damn, Sue! I wish a pizza joint around here made that "pizza bowl." What a brilliant idea!

[Katrina]

I guess I'm the lone wolf here. I eat the carbs. ALL THE CARBS. I never cut them out. I never had a problem losing the weight. You would probably faint if you saw my diet. I eat two or three single serve bags of chips every night. I have bags of candy everywhere. I eat loaded mashed potatoes or pasta nearly every time I cook. It's ridiculous. I never did all that before surgery. Now, over the past three months, it's been a little harder to keep my weight under 110. It seems my honeymoon ended. I'm going to have to start being accountable for the things I eat. This Monday I cut out all that nighttime eating, and it's killing me! I miss my junk food. It was fun while it lasted though.