5 Weeks Out today; Question about "real" food.

[AnnieG]

Tomorrow I start "real" foods. I'm supposed to have 3 scheduled meals, and two small snacks. I've done okay with the soft foods, but cannot eat more than 1/3-1/2 C of anything without "froth". Hitting around 500 calories, and 50 g protein. Water intake is okay.

I don't see the NUT until mid January. My weight loss has been fine, and except for being tired easily (I'm 65), no complaints.

SO, I know its protein first, complex carbs and then "starchy" carbs if you have room.

So trying one new thing at a time, or just going back to eating moree mindfully?

Not sure where to step!

[RehabNurse]

I'd try one new thing at a time and see how you tolerate it...

On a side note, your capacity for food volume will gradually increase. By 12 months out you'll probably be eating a full cup of food, if not more. It's part of the healing process: our sleeves relax and accommodate more food once they're fully healed.

Good luck to you.

[AnnieG]

Thank you -- that's quite comforting! Now if I can remember to eat s l o w l y

[Stacey03]

Thanks for the question Annie, this will really help me too in a week or so.
Rehab nurse... do you recommend just eating a single item of food at each meal to see how we go? Or eating single items with other items we tolerate too?

[Christie13]

So when I started on real food it was protein, then veggies. If you have room you can then do complex carbs. Honestly, you won't have room for quite a while. Solid proteins will fill you up super fast. Go very slow because it is easy to overeat in the beginning and it is painful.

[Mikecab4]

Hey annie,

I’m 4 weeks out now and can start eating solid foods but I’m still leaning towards puréed because it’s much easier to eat of course. Cottage cheese has became my life... @stacey03 it’s like my new kale when eating solids I remember to chew a bunch of times and no water before or after meals! I’ve heard from many people that it does get easier but for a long while it will be small meals. Good luck and hope all is well!

All the best,
Michael

[Stacey03]

Hey annie,

I’m 4 weeks out now and can start eating solid foods but I’m still leaning towards puréed because it’s much easier to eat of course. Cottage cheese has became my life... @stacey03 it’s like my new kale when eating solids I remember to chew a bunch of times and no water before or after meals! I’ve heard from many people that it does get easier but for a long while it will be small meals. Good luck and hope all is well!

All the best,
Michael

ME TOOO!!!! Cottage cheese is the new kale lol

[Luv49ers19]

I'm just over 6 months out and my main focus is protien. I can eat up to 4 oz. There is never any room for anything else. I know I can eat whatever I can handle now but kind of scared to. I'm totally ok with that because it keeps me doing what I need to....protien first! I also am allergic to dairy so I get my protien from chicken mostly then tuna and beef. I had a bad experience with a marinade so i steer clear of those!

I also get my protien in my soy milk. I haven't had a protien shake since around week 2. I hate them! I get at least 100 grams in a day between meats and soy milk.

I do weigh my food and log it all in my fitness pal. Just another tool that works for me. My caloric intake ranges from 950 to 1150 a day. Once I did make it to 1450. As for the fluid intake I do good. I found that plain water hurts if I drink a lot of it so I drink mostly crystal lite. I know not the best but it is what I can handle.

Enjoy introducing new foods! It is like experiencing them all for the first time again. At least it was for me! Best of luck.

[sraebaer]

My favorite "real food" is any type of seafood. Fish is so much easier on my tummy than meats like chicken, pork, or beef.
Best restaurant appetizer is ahi tuna or civiche. But any kind of fish: salmon, snapper, trout, sea bass, YUM! Hubby makes a delicious dill sauce to go with the fish. I also love scallops and shrimp. Yesterday I was a pound up but last night's dinner of snapper and cauliflower brought it right back down.

And it's almost always eggs for breakfast. Except for today as I have some delicious smoked salmon in the fridge, so no cooking time!

For lunch it's dinner leftovers (today a salad with veggies and cut up chicken). If I have no leftovers, I resort to those green boxed Bumble low-fat tuna salad kits, low fat greet yogurt, or low fat string cheese. Even found a tuna pouch in my favorite flavor, buffalo chicken, only 70 calories. No need for mayo with the flavored tunas.

Good luck! My husband just roams the grocery store looking for a good dinner of 2. (Protein and veggie). He loves shopping, I hate it, match made in heaven. If you're not that creative (I'm not) there are tons of bariatric cookbooks out there.

[Luna354]

All I ate then was protein. No room for veggies. And even with that it was very small amount of protein. A few bites and full. Keep having a shake as one of your meals or snack and you're good.

[AnnieG]

UPDATE: Talked to the NUT today and she said 500-600 calories & 50+ grams of protein at this point are fine. Somehow I felt a huge relief. Going out to lunch today with my BFF - already checked out the menu and figured out what I could have.

So thanks to everyone from talking me off the ledge!