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You can fold laundry and wash dishes and prep dinner, etc. You can go for walks. Just no heavy lifting or big bouncing (step class, etc). You can even do light excersize! Your incision will let you know if you are pushing it too far. I had the sleeve done over two years ago and I rested for about a week. I was able to do most my chores and take care of my family just fine. Just listen to what your body is telling you….don't be changing the 19L water cooler jug or carrying the vacuum from floor to floor or anything like that but get moving! The sooner you do, the better you'll feel.

As for food….got very very very bored (almost angry!) with the mush….at around 3 weeks you can crunch into an almond (chewchewchewchewchewchew) or a baby dill……I really missed biting into things. Just be sure to chew like you've never chewed before!

Seriously, things are gonna get better and better and better and better!!

Wish you well,

Jgirl

Go easy, do light things – walk, cook, dust, fold laundry.  Don`t do stuff like stretching – no painting that ceiling!  You should be able to go for walks, go up stairs, etc.  Just don`t push it for too long while you heal.

Enjoy a good protein shake; add some fruit to it or some Crystal Light to change up the flavour.  Look for good quality protein powders from body builder type stores – better variety.  Start looking up bariatric recipes – try http://www.theworldaccordingtoeggface.com or other sites.  Experiment with soft foods ie. devilled eggs – mix the yolk with yoghurt, chives, paprika, salt and pepper.  Try imitation crab or Underwood devilled ham.  Find some really simple, bariatric friendly soup recipes.  Cottage cheese pancakes with protein powder….Search for low carb recipes, low fat recipes, etc.  And of course, sugar free pudding, jello, tapioca pudding, yoghurt.

While you are healing and having rest periods, search the net for new ideas; there are a lot of interesting sites out there.  Have fun; you will be eating different foods for the rest of your life and avoiding things like potatoes, rice, flour, etc if you`re smart for as long as possible to keep the weight under control.

Since surgery in early spring.  Don`t plan on going back on them in the future.  I like the alternates I have implemented and everyone in the family is better off with less carbs…I very rarely cook them for family and if I do, just avoid them.  With our small stomaches, not a lot of room for junk!

No alternatives for potatoes or rice; just don`t eat that part of the meal.  I use matchsticked pieces of zucchini, steamed for spaghetti noodles.  Zucchini for lasagna.  Or try spaghetti squash as a replacement.  I was on http://www.celiac.com and found lots of recipes for wheat free breads, pizza crusts, desserts, etc.  Have only tried the bread so far and love the one I tried.  Have eaten some rye wasa crackers/bread as rye is a grass not a grain.  Bought  heavy rye bread – the 100% rye bread once and loved it but never did finish the loaf as it is so dense in the stomach….Don't eat brown rice either.   I have made a lasagna where I substitued won ton wrappers for the noodles….at least there is less flour in those, but I prefer the zucchini in it. Found a variety of nacho chips that are made with bean paste and have had those occasionally, just not often.   And several recipes on eggfaces's site that make protein breads, cup of cakes, etc.   I have bags of flours – quinoa, channa, tapioca, corn, almond, coconut, teff, amaranth on hand to put in different flavours.  The celiac site describes the taste of lots of the flours, so you can tell what they will be suitable for.    I wouldn't use, for an example, much of the amaranth in a dessert recipe as it's got a strong nutty flavor.  Channa is best with brown sugar substitute and molasses to cut the strength of it, almond or coconut for desserts, etc….