Bariatric Meal Plans

Your surgeon may put you on a low-calorie liquid diet before or after surgery. A pre-op liquid diet can help you lose weight and shrink your liver for a safer surgery and faster recovery. A post-op liquid diet can help you meet your protein and nutrient needs while letting your surgery wounds heal. On this “full liquids” diet, you can have clear liquids plus protein shakes. Also, don’t forget to drink plenty of water and other low-calorie fluids to stay hydrated, energized, and healthy!

After the liquid diet, you can start adding in pureed foods (“Mushies”). This can happen in just a few days if you have lap-band (adjustable gastric band) surgery, or 2 or more weeks after surgery if you have gastric bypass or gastric sleeve surgery. If you have the gastric band, you may go back to the pureed foods diet if you have an adjustment (fill).

This phase of the diet usually includes pureed foods such as pureed cottage cheese, yogurt, tuna, and ground turkey for proteins. Your surgeon or nutritionist may also suggest fruits and vegetables such as pureed cooked carrots, sweet potatoes, and applesauce. You may still depend on some protein shakes to hit your protein goals.

The solid foods diet is a high-protein, low-calorie diet to help you hit your goal weight. Gastric band patients might start the diet as soon as 3 to 7 days after surgery, while gastric sleeve and gastric bypass patients might start this diet phase 2, 4, or more weeks after surgery. The emphasis here is on healthy choices. You may depend on proteins such as fish, chicken, eggs, fat-free yogurt, tofu, and beans. Vegetables and fruits may be prominent, and you may fill out the rest of your diet with small amounts of whole grains, starchy vegetables, nuts, and avocados.

Congratulations on getting to goal weight! Now your goal is to stay at this weight and prevent weight regain. This meal plan can help you do that. Your diet here is based on lean proteins and vegetables, with nutritious additions like nuts, fruit, and whole grains to balance it out.

Weight regain is common after hitting goal weight. It’s frustrating, but not to worry! Here’s a meal pattern that can get you losing weight in a hurry if the scale starts to creep back up. This is also a great plan to follow if:

• You’re not a weight loss surgery patient, but you want to jumpstart your weight loss.
• You have weight loss surgery coming up, and you want to lose some weight before you start your liquid pre-op diet.
• You’re getting close to goal weight and want to keep up the high-protein, healthy eating options.

If you are a weight loss surgery patient and you believe your pouch, sleeve, or stomach is no longer feeling as full as it did right after surgery, this may be the right place for you!* The pouch reset plan can help gastric bypass, lap-band, gastric sleeve, and other weight loss surgery patients “reset” their fullness point.

The 48-Hour Pouch Reset Diet can help you if your weight loss stalls after getting gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, lap-band, or another type of weight loss surgery. There may be a time after weight loss surgery when you wonder whether your pouch has stretched, or when you get off track with your eating.

The 2-Week Pouch Reset Diet can help you if your weight loss stalls after getting gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, lap-band, or another type of weight loss surgery. There may be a time after weight loss surgery when you wonder whether your pouch has stretched, or when you get off track with your eating.

The 3 Daily Meal Plan can help you maintain goal weight and prevent weight regain. It is designed for anyone who needs to maintain their weight, especially patients who have hit or are near goal weight after gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, lap-band, or another type of weight loss surgery. Each day on the plan has three high-protein meals with a variety of nutritious foods.

The 6 Daily Meal Plan can help you lose weight at a moderate rate. It is designed for anyone who is looking to lose weight, especially patients who are eating solid foods after gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, lap-band, or another type of weight loss surgery. Each day on the plan has three small high-protein meals and three high-protein snacks.