Eating Schedule After Weight Loss Surgery

After weight loss surgery, you will be on a strict diet. You will have guidelines that your surgeon provides you which will help keep you on track. These guidelines will have recommendations for the types of food you should be eating and how often you should be consuming them. One of the most important things you can do after surgery is follow those guidelines. If you decide to go off on your own and create your own eating schedule, you risk falling off the wagon and eating things you should not be eating.

Following an eating schedule is critical for you to be successful after weight loss surgery. I can speak from experience how important it is to listen to your surgeon. I had gastric sleeve 6.5 years ago and followed the guidelines from my surgeon for the first several months. However, as time went on, I got more lenient with my diet. Before I knew it, I was eating junk again. This was all because I stopped following the eating schedule that my surgeon made for me. I struggled with significant regain because of my behaviors and I regret not listening to my surgeon. 

At first it is really hard to deviate from the plan since you can only drink/eat so little at a time. However, the further out you get, the easier it will get to put things back into your diet. One of the biggest mistakes I ever made was when I learned how to cheat the system. I learned that I could only eat a little at a time, so I would eat a small amount then wait about an hour and eat more. This cycle continued for every single meal. Before I knew it, I had consumed thousands of calories throughout the day. 

When surgeons and nutritionists give us the guidelines to follow, they truly do mean you should follow it. This surgery is a tool. It will not fix everything for you. You have to hold yourself accountable and make the changes that are necessary to be successful after weight loss surgery. If you want to achieve your goals, make sure you stay on top of your eating schedule after the procedure. Do not just eat to eat. Set a schedule for when you should be eating and make sure you are not snacking throughout the day. Stick to this schedule every day and your body will start to get used to it. These will be huge changes you have to make, but it will all be worth it. Don’t ever forget why you decided to have this surgery. Take control of your life and stay focused. You got this!