How has gastric sleeve affected the way you prepare food?

[nomad9988]

This is a big one for me. My family relies on me for 90% of meal preparations. Also, another big thing is I am in the beginning stages of opening a family style deli/cafe. I am fine tuning my menu and recipes. What are some of the ways that my preparation of food, not for myself, can change?

[jerzeygirl]

Air fryers are awesome!

[Sandra3]

Hi Nomad,

I've always been the cook at home, and since I became obese with my first pregnancy, I was always extra careful to offer "balanced meals" because obesity "is contagious"...being bigger we need more food and do have cravings so I knew showing the bad example could lead them to be big too. None of my kids became obese when living at home but starting in 2012 I really did focus on nutrition, I took three years of uni classes and would only need to do an internship to be a certified nut (but can't really stop working for 6 months!).

All that to say nutrition is a subject I like, it's really interesting to see how the evolution in our diet did bring many new diseases..

SO I think health first but I'm also a foodie: small changes can go a long way and food will stay tasty.

My view is to focus on veggies and eating those as much as possible, and avoid frustration so a treat here and there is ok, but good quality only! I love chocolate and only get the dark one, and the brands I like are not cheap....but that's ok! quality over quantity!

I cook more or less a Mediterranean diet we have meat 2/3 times a week, eat lots of fish (when available) but also use soy and beans for the proteins.

The key is to find what you like.
My kids didn't like quinoa that much at first, then I cooked it with organic chicken broth and used it as a base for a salad with arugula, vinaigrette made with olive oil, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, feta cheese, kalamata olives and now she loves it!

Also for the first few months post-op I was following a moderate low carb diet so I always had options available, my husband does need his carbs??

Same thing for chili, I make it sometimes with tofu, and of course I prefer it with beef, but with more garlic and spices the tofu does taste good too!

I use lots of spices, and fresh herbs (do grow it in my garden now) and it does make a difference! but since my stomach is more sensitive now, I use less hot sauce...

Good luck for your surgery and for the cafe!

[Ann2]

I don't have children. So this may or may not apply to you. Anyway ...

How I now prepare food / cook is different than I did pre-op (four years ago) in these ways:

1. I buy many more uncooked veggies and fruits than I did pre-op.

2. I do a lot more slicing and cooking of foods. I've figured out that the more peeling, slicing, cutting I do to prep my meals, the healthier I eat.

3. During a single week, I wind up eating a lot of the same things over and over. I used to think I need tons of variation in what I eat. Not so much now.

4. My grocery bills are a lot lower than they used to be.

5. I don't buy or cook anything "white," as in bread, potatoes, rice, pasta. Yes, I do have whole grains, beans and other legumes now, and they're so much more filling than fiber-free, overprocessed, bleached icky carbs. And they taste so very much better!

6. I do eat some whole grain/high protein "power bowls." My current favorite brands for these kinds of bowls (which I buy at Walmart) are Healthy Choice and Frontera. Others may not go for this, but these are working for me.

7. I never buy junk sweets (cookies, chips, desserts) and bring them home. Instead these days for evening treats I usually eat berries, mango, melon or other higher-fibrous fruits with half a cup of Greek yogurt sweetened with Torani sugar-free syrups.

8. I still drink alcoholic beverages, but less of it and less often than I used to.

One of my biggest nutritional aids post-op is to keep my home food environment clean and safe. If I don't buy it and bring it home I can't eat it. Yes, sometimes I do splurge and have foods that aren't as clean as the above. But I've learned that it works better for me if I do so when I'm eating out or on holiday. When I come home, I go right back into regular, clean eating mode. So far this approach has worked for me. But I'm willing to change anything that turns out not to work for me.

To be clear -- I'm now four years post-op and maintaining my weight 100 pound weight loss, not in the post-op losing phase. Both losing and maintaining require consistent discipline. But my "discipline" has been more about being very clear with myself about my lifelong commitment to being healthy, daily planning and accountability. Focusing on those three things has been very helpful to me.

Very best wishes to you!

[sraebaer]

No kids at our house either but we always follow our self-imposed "rule of two" when shopping and cooking. A protein and a veggie. Hubby is an amazing cook and loves roaming the store looking for dinner ideas. I'd say we eat mostly fish, then chicken, and lastly red meat/pork. (My nut says the less legs the better.)

We have wonderful meals. The trick is to be sure whatever protein you are eating is tender not tough. Our protein is typically cooked slowly on his Teaeger grill or sautéed in a pan with a little olive oil.

Hubby lost 35 pounds by eating like me and exercising. (OK, he really exercises, today he is riding across Wisconsin in one day, 175 miles. I get to pick him up at Lake Michigan in Kenosha. Hope it's not at midnight.)