5-Day Pouch Reset: Lose Weight After Weight Gain

It happens! Sometimes without following the proper nutrition plan and healthy lifestyle habits, weight regains after bariatric surgery can occur. Even if you do everything right, sometimes it just isn’t working! Many people hit plateaus, and some get discouraged without being able to bounce back. Regardless if you hit a stall or are regaining weight, the 5-day pouch reset diet is for you!

What is the pouch reset diet?

The 5-day pouch reset is a condensed version of the post-op diet. The only difference is that the pouch reset diet is done over a five-day period to get you back to eating smaller amounts of food. Through the pouch reset plan, former bariatric patients can get back on track and lose weight again.

After it’s complete, continue on the pouch reset diet or switch back to the post-op diet that worked best for you.

Who is the pouch reset for?

Weight regain is common for everyone. Nobody is perfect, and situations arise where you may not be able to follow the post-op diet. The important thing is to bounce back and change your eating habits as fast as possible. It’s always easier to gain weight than lose weight, so don’t lose all your hard work over a slight relapse in eating. Even if you haven’t been on track with healthy nutrition habits for an extended period, the pouch reset diet can still be a very effective tool for you to reset your stomach to a more beneficial size!

The pouch reset diet is for you if:

• You have hit a stall or plateau
• You have gained weight
• Your portions have exceeded 6 ounces
• You stopped tracking your food intake
• You want to take control of your diet
• You are worried that your pouch or sleeve has “stretched” out

Day 1: Clear Liquids

The pouch reset diet begins with the most challenging phase before working your way back to eating solid foods. During day one, clear liquids will help flush your body and disrupt ghrelin and leptin levels, which are the hormones responsible for hunger and feeling satisfied. You can have unlimited sugar-free drinks, but try to incorporate nutrient-rich clear broths to give your body energy.

• Water
• Tea
• Broth (chicken, vegetable, beef)
• Sugar-free drinks (crystal light, propel, vitamin zero water, Powerade zero, Mio, etc.)
• Unsweetened tea

Day 2: Thick Liquids

If you make it to day two of the pouch reset diet, you are doing great! From here, you can enjoy protein in the form of thick liquids. Blending protein shakes is the most effective strategy for consuming full liquids as it breaks down all the nutrients from fruits and vegetables. Protein powders are the easiest way to incorporate protein into your smoothie or shake. Space out your three protein shakes every 2 to 3 hours.

• Must drink three protein shakes
• Weight Loss Magic Soup (as many servings of the vegetable soup recipe spaced out every 2-3 hours)
• 64 ounces of water or a sugar-free beverage

Remember, you can always incorporate foods from the previous day!

Day 3: Soft Solids

• 3 protein shakes
• Unlimited Weight Loss Magic Soup (link above)

Choose two servings out of these soft solid protein options:

• ½ cup cottage cheese
• 6 ounces Greek yogurt: plain or flavored Dannon Oikos Triple Zero
• ½ cup beans (whole or refried)
• 2 scrambled or poached eggs
• 4 ounces tofu

Day 4: Firm Solids

• 3 protein shakes
• Unlimited Weight Loss Magic Soup (link above)

Choose two servings of protein per day:

• 4 ounces chicken
• 4 ounces fish
• 4 ounces tofu
• 2 eggs

Choose two servings of fat per day:

• ½ avocado
• 15 almonds
• 1 TB oil, butter, or peanut butter

Day 5: Whole Foods

Same as day 4, protein can be any lean protein (including beef, pork, venison, etc). Add 2 servings of your choice:

• ¼ cup beans
• ¼ cup berries
• ¼ cup quinoa
• ¼ cup sweet potato
• ¼ cup vegetables

How to avoid stretching your pouch/sleeve after surgery?

There are a variety of ways to prevent your pouch/sleeve from stretching. Most importantly, following the proper post-op diet and stay connected with your nutritionist or dietician will be the most beneficial. With a smaller stomach, it is important too;

• Avoid Overeating
• Stay Away From Carbonated Drinks
• Chew Food Thoroughly
• Follow Post-Op Diet

Pouch Reset to Tighten Your Pouch or Sleeve

The pouch reset is designed for gastric bypass/mini gastric bypass patients who have stretched their pouch or gastric sleeve/duodenal switch patients who have stretched their stomach. There are two options if you are faced with weight regain after weight loss surgery.

1. Pouch Reset Diet: To shrink, or tighten your pouch (stoma) after weight gain starts with the pouch reset diet. This is the non-surgical option to get back on track with weight loss and resume a healthy lifestyle. By following the pouch reset diet, the stoma will effectively use restriction to continue losing weight.
2. Revision Surgery: Different variations of revision surgeries are available for patients who cannot succeed in resetting their pouch or sleeve. To find out what options are available for you, click here.

Learn More: Want to Test Your Pouch Size? Here is our Guide!

Protect Your Stoma After Gastric Bypass Surgery

The stoma is the new “stomach pouch” for gastric bypass patients. It is a tiny golf ball-sized pouch, generally holding between 4-6 ounces of food intake. Your stoma can stretch, causing weight gain in patients. To adequately protect their stoma, RNY patients must keep up with their post-op diet and take vitamins and supplements after surgery.

Protect Your Sleeve After Gastric Sleeve Surgery

The chances are slim that you will stretch your sleeve stomach after VSG surgery. Although, a slight variance in sleeve size may occur, and weight regain is possible after gastric sleeve surgery. If faced with this problem, there are a few options to protect your sleeve from stretching.

If this diet doesn’t work out, try the 10-day pouch reset diet for a more long-term approach that can be followed at your own pace.