Full fluid stage- how to keep it low carb?

I dunno, sometimes banging things on the counter is a cheap form of therapy >.>

I personally stayed keto during liquids for both surgeries. It was easier, and also I bloat up horribly with carbs anyway.

I had broth and just used very low carb protein shakes with almond or coconut milk, unsweetened. I skipped pudding and everything other than plain unsweetened greek yogurt and broth. I skipped apple sauce and beans. I'd also mix protein powder into 1/4c of yogurt and eat that.

As for pudding...I'm not a fan of SF pudding. When I made this I'd use fairlife milk and a premier protein shake to make it super high in protein. Honestly, I just preferred to do shakes at this point. Easy to get liquids and low sugar.

I had ricotta bakes too, during liquids (I was allowed).

Thank, Donna! I am sooo looking forward to ricotta bakes (I can have after fluids, during pureed stage). I've been on my pre-surgery diet for almost 3 weeks now and I miss cheese! My carbs have been at about 40g per day (protein 100g), not super low but I went through some keto flu which has now abated. So I don't think it will be much a shock for me to keep the carbs low (hopefully even lower) during full fluids.

May I ask how many grams of protein per day you got in during full fluids? Did you track protein and carbs?

15g of total carbs tops, and that was only if I did premier protein instead of my usual whey isolate and plain tea or water. As for protein, between 80-100, but usually with an average of 90. It literally took all day to drink that though. Sometimes I'd mix a scoop of protein powder in the plain yogurt with a squirt of Mio. 35g of protein and took an hour to eat it (4oz of yogurt before powder).

You can be in ketosis at up to 65-75g particularly if you are athletic. It's just that 20g or less guarantees it across the board.

Why would you be aiming for 100 grams of protein right after surgery? 100 grams would be impossible immediately after surgery. Unless the rules have changed, you need around 30 grams of protein by the end of the first month, 60 grams by the end of the second month, 90 grams by the end of the third month, and so on until you reach your desired protein amount. I had the DS so I aimed for about 120 grams of protein per day.

Focus on fluids - water, crystal lite, broth. Add sugar free jello and pops. Try to keep carbs to below 20 grams per day. Limiting carbs simply helps with weight loss. Once you're cleared for soft foods, introduce yogurt, cottage cheese, soft boiled eggs, things like that.

You don't say what type of surgery you're having but the rules basically apply to all types of WLS for the first month or so.

Thanks, Janet! You're right, last night I was doing the math and quickly came to the realization that 100g of protein will probably be impossible at this stage. My centre's booklet doesn't really specify how much protein to aim for during full fluids, although it does have 2 sample daily menus with approx. 60g and 90g respectively. Luckily greek yogurt and cottage cheese count as a full fluid for my plan.

My protein goal was 60-80 grams of protein from day 1 post op and definitely not impossible. I was easily able to drink two protein shakes a day, three was bonus and got me to 75-90 grams.

I'd start off each day with a double protein shake and finish that in a few hours, then I'd sip sip sip all day and, in the evening, have another protein shake for "dinner." My shakes are 25-30 grams of protein each.

Oh, double protein shakes are a good idea! My shakes are only 23g protein each, because I can't do cow whey (I've got goat whey, and a pea & brown rice combo instead, both are complete proteins with all amino acids but unfortunately they are a little less in terms of protein serving)

My booklet says I should be aiming for 2-3 cups of full fluids per day, plus 4-6 cups clear fluids, sipping 2 tbsp every 15 minutes. So you guys aren't kidding about sipping all day!

I think I've figured out a plan with 2 full protein shakes a day, plus 2 meals of 1/4 cup Skyr mixed with one scoop of protein powder. That should get me approx. 77g protein a day. But I'm going remember to try doubling up the protein in the shakes, that way I could just do all shakes at least on some days.

Do you have a link to goat whey? I'm curious!

If I use a scoop of my protein powder, it's 20-25g (I forget exactly which at the moment), but I use a scoop and a half per 8 ounces to increase the protein.

My goals post-op were "at least 64 ounces of liquids a day" (and all liquids count) and then 60-80 grams of protein a day. Liquids, clearly, being the primary goal. So if you can't reach your protein goal AND your liquid goal, prioritize reaching the liquid goal.

And, remember, all bets might be off post-op. You might find you can only do 1 ounce of yogurt or that yogurt doesn't feel good at all. You might find that you hate your current protein powder. You might find that everything is still great. I guess, what I'm saying, is don't hold yourself too strictly to the plans you make pre-op! Be ready to change them if necessary.

https://nkdnutrition.ca/products/goat-whey-protein-powder

It's a bit spendy, but I wanted to give it a try. There's a couple of other brands that do goat protein powder, but I went with Naked because it doesn't have any additives.

It takes 3 scoops of Naked Goat to get the 23g of protein, but I'm not sure how big the scoop is yet (haven't opened it). My vegan protein powder that I've been using is Garden of Life, 1 scoop = 22g protein, but the scoop is freakin huge! I figure 1 scoop of Naked Goat is just over 7g, so if I add that to a 1/4 cup of Skyr it'll be about 14g protein.

Good point though about how things might be different after surgery. I need to remember that. Also the point about prioritizing liquid.