Last Tuesday (Jan 28) I had my final appointment with the Program Director and my surgeon. It went pretty well. They made sure to reiterate that the surgery is a tool, not a cure, and made sure I understood what the next few weeks will look like.

I had a lot of random questions that all got answered and I felt comfortable and ready when I left the doctor’s office.

At that point I was on a low card diet, though I cheated some on Thursday, the day before I was set to start my liquid diet. I had some pizza for lunch. It was good but not as good as my brain had built it up to be in my head.

I started the liquid diet on Friday, one week before surgery. On the liquid diet I drink 7 protein shakes per day, generally made with unsweetened almond milk. The ultimate goal is to consume more than 70g of protein per day and less than 1200 calories. Typically my 7 protein shakes get me to about 130g of protein and 900 calories so I’ve been eating some sharp cheddar cheese to make up the calorie difference. I don’t know if I’m supposed to do that or not, but it feels good to eat something and cheese has 0 carbohydrates.

I’m actually surprised by how hard it is to follow the liquid diet. I figure I can do anything for a week, so it’s not that big of a deal. But I am HUNGRY. Really hungry. And the rest of the world is still eating delicious foods that smell great that I find in my presence regularly. Also, it’s not like I am on the liquid diet for a week and then I can have whatever I want so I just have to hold out. I’m on the liquid diet for a week, and then for a very long time after the surgery as well.

Suffice it to say, I am struggling much more than I thought I would. On Saturday we had a party and I did have some of the snacks (mostly hummus and some pretzels). I didn’t indulge to the level I normally would have, but it still wasn’t the wisest decision. Otherwise I’ve been sticking to the plan.

The morning before surgery, though, I had some ground turkey, cheese, and sour cream. I rationalized it by saying it was the last time I would have solid food in a long time and that it was still low-carb. I further rationalized it by looking up how long food stays in your stomach (4-6 hours) and that by eating it in the morning, it would not still be in my stomach at surgery time the following day. I feel silly for making these rationalizations and cheating on my diet, but man it felt good to eat something.