Missie, at first getting in your protein drink and water is difficult. For me, I am more of a savory person, so the protein shakes were too sweet and thick. I did much better with protein infused broth I got from my surgeon's office. I had to stay an extra night in the hospital because I just couldn't drink them and they were concerned that I wasn't getting any nutrition, so if this is you, talk to the doctor before surgery. As for water on top of protein, it's still an issue for me and I'm 3 years out. It does get easier to do though, so don't stress too much.

Once you start eating again you will do the interval eating, but, at least for my doctor's plan, it's not permenant. I still do it most days because it helps with the head hunger and it allows me to get in all my protein. But my plan cut out snacks and went to just 3 meals a day. Yes it was several months out, but again, this is my doctor's plan, yours may be different. And you notice, I said I still do snacks most days. Most of us can customize our plans a tiny bit to fit our individual needs. Like I said, keeping calories for the end of my day for a healthy snack helps keep me on track, you may be different and not need them.

Gum is not allowed by my doctor as it can cause you to swallow air which is painful. By the time I was going to soft food I was so ready to chew something! It's hard but not impossible.

Hope that helps and congratulations on your upcoming surgery!

Gum is no problem. Docs don't recommend it at first because we swallow a lot of air. I chew about half a piece of sugar free gum, or I have a sugarfree breathmint.

As far as interval eating.......I never ate every 2-3 hours. I don't have a schedule that would allow me to stay on that kind of track. I had a protein shake on the way to work, some water and coffee when I got there, a snack mid morning, lunch when it was lunch time, a snack mid afternoon and then I like to have dinner eaten by 8. Sometimes I'd have a swig or two of a shake before bed or maybe some cheese. I also wasn't all that legalistic about counting things, so... take my schedule with a grain of salt. I mostly used protein shakes to supplement my eating because I was just not going to stuff myself full of food for protein's sake.

You will fall into a groove that works for you. All of us are different. So long as you keep protein first, stay hydrated and move your tush, you'll see success.

It can be a challenge to get in your protein AND your water but you just have to work at it. I find that a straw helps me get down tons more water. Surgeons also say no straws-- Again, more air in your sleeve and sometimes you can't tell how much you're taking in, through a straw. It's easy to overfill a swollen sleeve. My surgeon okayed the use of a straw after the first few weeks.

I wasn't really hungry for a long time post surgery. Around 8 mos to a year out, I started to have an appetite again. No worries because I filled up quickly. Then sometime around a year and a half the hunger went away again. You may find that eating on a schedule works best otherwise you'll never eat!

Getting anything in for the first few weeks after surgery was a challenge for me. You just kind of work to get a little more each day, advance your diet as scheduled, (even if it doesn't taste good and you have no desire, which happens early on). I was told early on that I wasn't getting enough without snacks and to add them or risk stunting my metabolism. It was good advice for me. I started eating every few hours, breakfast, protein snack, lunch protein snack, dinner, treat for the day and boosted my caloried to beterrn 1000-1200 for the duration of my weight loss. Then adjusted up from there for maintenance. Hydration is still a challenge but I'm in a really managable place now as far as how much and what I can eat. I never feel like I'm on a diet, pretty much eating what I like in small quantities making sure I hit my protein targets for the day. Sweet freedom!