The Recipe Categories

When I put in recipes, I will be dividing them into three categories: Bariatric 1, Bariatric 2, and Clean Living.

Just to reiterate, if you are actually having the surgery, check with your doctors about their specific dietary plans. This is what I was given by my doctor, and it can serve as a good baseline for healthy eating for anyone, but don’t take this as the gospel.

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Bariatric 1

These recipes meet the requirements for immediately pre- and post-op. They are “liquid only.” While some may stretch the definition of liquid (chocolate mousse anyone?), all should be acceptable here.

Good

• Protein powder or shakes
  • A serving must have 15g+ protein, and under 200 calories, 5g fat, 7g sugar, and 15g total carbs
  • My favorites are Premier Protein and Pure Protein, both give 25-30g protein at around 150 calories, plus don’t taste like chalky butthole. Feel free to toss in extracts or other flavorings to fancy them up
• Egg whites
• Fat free sugar free pudding or gelatin
  • Let’s be honest here… it’s Jello.
• Broth
• Tomato soup
  • Avoid this the first few days after surgery… last thing you want is to get sick and not know if you’re bleeding or still digesting
• Milks (various)
  • Skim, almond, soy, coconut milk, etc.
    • Now… coconut milk is tricky. You don’t want “real” coconut milk, as that is brimming with fats. Silk and other similar companies sell coconut milk beverage which is made in a fashion similar to almond milk. It has 45 calories/cup. It is a poor source or protein but is good when mixed with other stuff
• Yogurt
  • Fat free, no added sugar
  • Greek yogurt is best as it has a higher amount of protein per serving
  • Avoid anything with actual fruit in it
• Popsicles
  • Under 20 calories and no fruit chunks
  • Only 2-3 per day

Bad

• LITERALLY ANYTHING ELSE
• Don’t even mess around. The last thing you want is to eat something off the list, trigger intense nausea, and then immediately get sick all over the shop

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Bariatric 2

These recipes are for (approximately) 2-6 weeks post surgery. This is the period of time where you begin to reintroduce lean proteins back into your diet.

Good

• Chicken or turkey breast
• Non-steak style fish
  • Salmon, cod, tuna, tilapia, catfish, etc.
  • Avoid swordfish, mahi-mahi, shark, etc.
• Deli meats
  • Turkey, ham, chicken all good
  • Avoid beefs and fatty cuts like bologna
• Whole eggs
• Low fat or fat free cheeses
• Anything from Bariatric 1

Bad

• Fruits or vegetables
  • A little bit of oregano or basil on your meal? Fine. Strawberries on the bottom of your yogurt? Get outta here
• Beef or other red meats
• Pork
  • Deli ham is ok, but nothing “solid”
• Dark poultry
  • If you go out and order the chicken, double check first. I took a bite of chicken thigh by accident and was feeling nasty for hours after
• Grilled meats
  • The char makes it hard to digest
  • This also means be careful if you are broiling anything… don’t want to char it or dry it out

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Clean Living

Congratulations! You’re basically a normal human again. Except for the fact that you still need to be mindful of anything you eat. Don’t want to accidentally trigger dumping syndrome. And for those of you who haven’t had the surgery… that is exactly as awful as you think it might be. Don’t Google it. You’re welcome.

At this point you can begin introducing other foods back in, but still be careful of anything too salty, fatty, or sugary.

Be Wary

• Red meat
• Bread, rice, and pasta
• Overly dry/tough meat
  • Goodbye beef jerky. I’ll miss you
• Raw fruit and vegetables
  • Peels and citrus membranes are especially tricky