Day One: Liquids

The most difficult part of the first day was limiting my intake. During phase one, fluids must be sipped slowly, only 2 to 3 ounces at a time. To start, I measured out 3 ounces of water and poured it into a small juice glass. As I drank from the glass I made a mental note of how many sips it took to finish it (about 4 small sips). For the rest of the day, I drank from a 20 ounce water bottle, which I refilled once, limiting myself to no more than 4 sips at a time.

For breakfast I had a Naked protein juice smoothie, using the juice glass to measure out portions. Since my stomach is not the size of an egg, like bariatric patients, a few ounces did not make me feel full. No surprises there. Keeping in mind the amount of liquid patients are able to consume at a time (2 – 3 ounces), I drank about 8 ounces over 30 minutes.

I was careful to continue drinking about 4 sips of water or unsweetened juice steadily throughout the day. In the afternoon, my friend stopped by with coffee. Caffeine is on the do-not-eat list. Luckily, she got me a decaf, which I sipped happily, 3 ounces at a time.

As the day went on, I progressed to thicker liquids. Here is what I ate/drank today:

• 8 oz. Naked Protein Mango Juice Smoothie
• 8 oz. Chocolate milk
• 8 oz. Low-fat vanilla yogurt
• 11 oz. Vanilla protein shake
• 8 oz. Black bean soup

Thanks to the vanilla protein shake, which had a whopping 35 grams of protein, I consumed a total of 72 grams of protein for the day. Unfortunately, the shake was disgusting. It took a great deal of effort and discomfort to get it down. I'll try putting some protein powder into a fruit smoothie for tomorrow's breakfast.

Rachel

Preparation

In addition to specific food requirements, bariatric patients need to supplement their diet with vitamins and minerals. Mandatory supplements include:

• A multi-vitamin
• B-12
• Iron
• Vitamin C
• Calcium with Vitamin D

I usually only take Fish Oil and Calcium with Vitamin D, so Brandy and I stopped by a pharmacy to pick up the rest.

When I got home I realized that I had to take 5 different supplements every day, in different doses, at different times of the day. That's a lot to remember. I thought about using a pill box, but moving supplements from a bottle to a box seemed like an unnecessary extra step. So I just labeled the bottles.

Once I had my supplements in order, I took a look through my food supplies. Most of the items in my fridge and pantry could be cobbled together into acceptable post-surgery meals, but I was lacking a lot of soft or liquid protein sources.

The most important element of a post-op diet is protein. Unlike fat and carbohydrates, protein is not stored in the body, so it must be consumed in sufficient quantities every day. The daily minimum protein requirement is about 60 grams, which is a lot of protein for someone who can't eat very much. Many bariatric patients use supplements, like protein shakes, to ensure they consume enough protein each day.

Protein powder offers some diversity. It can be mixed with milk, or added to pudding or a smoothie, so I went with that instead of six-pack of Ensure (yuck). The selection at Rite Aid was just a tad masculine. Since I'm not exactly looking for extra "pump" I went with a feminine looking option.

My final stop was Trader Joe's, where a picked up a few things to round out the rest of my weekly dietary requirements – a few cans of soup, protein packed beans, and some soft snacks.

This shouldn't be too bad...

Rachel