Essential books for your weight loss surgery journey

There are lots of weight loss surgery books out there, from recipe books to information books. These are my favourites – the books I recommend to all my patients in the clinic. I hope you find them helpful, too!

Being mindful about when and why you eat is key to the success of your sleeve gastrectomy in the long term. If not dieting, then what? by Dr Rick Kausman, is essential reading for everyone, regardless of whether or not you’ve had a sleeve.

Rick gives you practical tips on how to get back to listening to your stomach, and what to do when you want to eat for other reasons like stress, feeling low, boredom or habit.

My tip? Don’t read it all at once. Instead, read one chapter then go away and practice for a week or so before coming back and reading the next.

Available online at www.ifnotdieting.com.au or Booktopia; or in ebook form at Amazon.

Sally and Justine at Nutrition for Weight Loss Surgery are two fabulous Aussie Dietitians and this book is a bible for anyone having any type of weight loss surgery – band, sleeve or bypass.

They have info for every step of the way, but the bit my clients like the most are the recipes for each phase of the process (fluids, purees, soft foods).

Available online at the NFWLS Store, Booktopia or as an ebook on Amazon

Along the same lines as Dr Rick’s If not dieting, then what?, Jan Chozen Bays writes this guide to redeveloping a healthy relationship with food with Mindful Eating. 

There are lots of mindful eating books out there now, but this is my favourite, and lots of clients have found it a helpful resource for working on their relationship with food.

If you eat for reasons such as stress, sadness, happiness, boredom or habit, then this is for you.

Available online at Booktopia and more resources such as webinars and tips on Jan’s website.

Often people ask me for recipe ideas. I always tell them that you should be able to cook any healthy recipe, but sometimes getting the portions right can be a pain.

The Fresh Start Bariatric Cookbook by Sarah Kent is packed full of great, healthy recipes that are the right size.

Available on Amazon.

Lastly, I’m excited to say that I’ve published an ebook on Amazon that is your ultimate guide to the initial stages of surgery.

My Sleeve Gastrectomy Survival Guide gives you all the info you need for the pre-op VLCD, fluid and puree phases as well as help with transitioning back onto normal foods again.

You can see a sample and download as a PDF on my shop or purchase as an ebook for kindle on Amazon.

I would also love to hear any recommendations you have. Please feel free to comment below so everyone can see. Hopefully we can get a really impressive list of helpful books going!