Pouch Reset Plan
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 BariatricPal pouch reset plan can help gastric bypass, lap-band, gastric sleeve, and other weight loss surgery patients “reset” their fullness point. By doing a bariatric pouch reset or a gastric sleeve reset, you’ll get the fullness point back to where it was post-surgery.
How To Restart Weight Loss after Gastric Bypass or Other Weight Loss Surgery
The BariatricPal pouch reset plan takes you through the post-op diet progression, but faster. You start with liquids and progress to solid foods just like you do after bariatric surgery, but this time, it takes only 5 days to get to solid foods. The entire plan is made with high-quality nutrition in mind, with a reasonable calorie count and it’s made to get you back to eating normal foods as quickly as possible. It can be incredibly helpful if you’ve struggled with being obese and decided a weight loss surgery is the solution.
Tips for success:
- Continue to follow the rules of your weight loss surgery diet, such as choosing protein first and only drinking liquids when you are not eating a meal or snack.
- Eat only a small amount of food at once. A half-cup or cup of few (4-8 ounces) is plenty. Remember, you are retraining yourself to eat less, just like you did after weight loss surgery.
- Drink at least 64 ounces of calorie-free fluids throughout the day.
- Revisit your nutritional supplements. Ask your doctor if you are unsure about which multivitamins and other vitamin and mineral supplements you should take.
- Ask your surgeon, doctor, or nutritionist, or another health professional, before starting this plan.
The Plan
- Day 1: Clear Liquids
- Days 2 and 3: Liquid Proteins
- Days 3 and 4: Pureed Foods
- Days 5 and 6: Semi-Soft Foods
- Ask your surgeon, doctor, or nutritionist, or another health professional, before starting this plan.
Meal Plans
Day 1: Clear Liquids
Starting with a day on clear liquids lets you get all residual food out of your system so you can be sure to reset from the beginning.
Day 1 Meal Plan
½ cup apple juice
½ cup decaf green tea
½ cup orange gelatin
1 sugar-free ice pop
½ cup cranberry apple juice
Days 2 and 3: Liquid Proteins
Stick with liquids to give your pouch, sleeve, or stomach a chance to reset. You want to remember what it feels like when you do not have solid foods filling up your stomach. Protein shakes, protein gelatins and protein puddings, protein hot drinks, and protein soups are all great choices.
Day 2 Meal Plan: Liquid Protein
Day 3 Meal Plan: Liquid Proteins
Days 4 and 5: Pureed Foods
You get to add back in some regular foods now, but make sure you puree them to a smooth consistency. Protein shakes, protein gelatins and protein puddings, protein hot drinks, and protein soups can still help you hit your protein goals during this stage.
Day 4 Meal Plan: Pureed Foods
Pureed tuna salad with 3 ounces tuna and 1-ounce Greek yogurt (90 calories, 20 grams protein)
½ cup non-fat refried beans, 3 ounces pureed lean ground turkey, 1-ounce cheddar cheese, 1 slice avocado (390 calories, 35 grams protein)
Day 5 Meal Plan: Pureed Foods
Vegetable Protein Omelet (pureed) with 1-ounce cheddar cheese and ½ cup pureed tomatoes (250 calories, 23 grams protein)
3 ounces pureed tuna with 1 cup well-cooked pureed sweet potato (210 calories, 23 grams protein)
Pureed Turkey Chili with Beans with ½ cup pureed green beans (260 calories, 24 grams protein)
Days 6 and 7: Semi-Soft Foods
All foods on this diet should be semi-soft. Stay away from hard foods such as raw vegetables and crunchy fruit. Most well-cooked proteins should be okay, and you can enjoy cooked vegetables and soft, ripe fruit such as cantaloupe.
Day 6 Meal Plan: Semi-Soft Foods
Maple Brown Sugar Protein Oatmeal with ½ cup ripe cantaloupe (140 calories, 15 grams protein)
½ cup cottage cheese (110 calories, 14 grams protein)
3 ounces canned salmon with ½ cup cooked sweet potato and Strawberry Banana Protein Gelatin (250 calories, 33 grams protein)
½ cup cooked pinto beans with 1-ounce cheddar cheese (220 calories, 21 grams protein)
Spaghetti Bolognese with 1-ounce mozzarella and 1 cup cooked carrots. (250 calories, 22 grams protein)
Day 7 Meal Plan: Semi-Soft Foods
1 packet Honey Nut Protein Cereal soaked in ½ cup milk plus 2 tablespoons peanut butter (360 calories, 26 grams protein)
1 string cheese stick plus 1 cup ripe honeydew melon or peeled peaches (120 calories, 8 grams protein)
2 hard-boiled eggs (160 calories, 14 grams protein)
Days 8 and Beyond: Solid Foods
You can follow this diet for as long as you want because it resembles your long-term solid foods diet for weight loss and maintenance after bariatric surgery. Tweak it as needed to add or subtract snacks. Proteins should still be your top priority, and vegetables come next. Protein breakfasts, protein lunch and dinner entrees and protein bars and snacks are great-tasting and convenient choices.
Day 8 Meal Plan: Solid Foods
Spicy Oriental Chicken with 1 cup baby carrots and 2 tablespoons hummus (350 calories, 18 grams protein)
3 ounces grilled salmon with 1 cup steamed green beans and 1 ounce sliced almonds; Chocolate Protein Pudding (380 calories, 41 grams protein)
Day 9 Meal Plan: Solid Foods
½ banana with 2 tablespoons peanut butter (230 calories, 8 grams protein)
Salad with romaine lettuce, 1-ounce parmesan cheese, tomatoes, and 2 tablespoons dressing, served with Parisien Rusk Bread (350 calories, 24 grams protein)
Barbeque Soy Puffs (120 calories, 21 grams protein)
3 ounce roasted chicken breast served with ½ small acorn squash roasted with 2 teaspoons olive oil (300 calories, 25 grams protein)
* Before starting this pouch reset plan, check with your surgeon or another doctor to be sure you have no medical issues, such as a leak, that could be causing your weight regain or plateau. Also, check with your doctor before starting this or any other restrictive meal plan.