Ok VSG family, I have bought and am exploring some cookbooks for WLS patients. Some actually have some great recipes but I am not sure if I will be able to handle some of those foods eventually. I was curious to know if any of you sleevers who are 6 months or more out might answer this question. Can you eat any of the following foods?:

salad stuff such as lettuce, green onions, cucumbers, tomatoes?

fresh fruit such as grapes, berries, etc.?

sandwich?

bread for toast?

tortillias?

rice?

Would appreciate to know if anyone can eat these things or is this one of those trial and error experiments? Thanks!

can you tell me what your typical day is of eatting and how much of it you eat? Do you ever miss being able to eat bigger portions the way you use to? Are you happy you did the procedure?

I had this same feeling, that I would miss eating bigger portions. That I would feel like I was missing out. I do not miss it (VERY rarely) and I am so happy to have the sleeve to "keep me in check". Looking forward to my first Thanksgiving with my sleeve and I will make myself two small plates, one to eat right away and one to save in the fridge for later (3-4 hours) so I still get what I want. Maybe I will post a picture of my meal. I will focus on the turkey and salad. but I will have a bit of everything.

I eat absolutely anything I want to eat. I have never watched carbs or limited myself. Yesterday I grabbed a bag of Cheetos at Target. ate about 8 cheetos and was full/satisfied. Prior to surgery, I could have eaten the whole bag, easily. I feel that not limiting myself will help with the diet mentality, I don't want to hate myself for binging, etc. I just want to make smart healthy choices and have a healthy relationship with food.

The big thing that I think is hard to understand until you are here is: You really, truly, honestly, don't WANT the foods you wanted before in teh same quantity. I never feel deprived, even though I rarely eat more than a small bite of carbs. I am never really hunger. But I know I need to eat and need to eat healthy, nutritious food (Protein and fruits and veggies). I prefer not to eat carbs because they fill me up so fast, especially bread and pastas. I focus on the meat/seafood portion of the meal and eat a bit of carbs just to satisfy a small craving, taste, or texture desire. When I go for fast food I get chicken tender type choices, I try to order something that isn't mostly bread or carbs. If I eat Italian I order the meat dishes, never Pasta dishes. If I am really craving a burger, I get it, but I can only eat half the meat and even less of the bun. Recently I went to a professional conference and got a box lunch. It had a turkey sandwich, chips and a brownie in it. I ate 1/2 the sandwich meat, but only 1/4 the sandwich bread. And about 1/2 the brownie. Saved the chips for later (they are still sitting in my pantry 3 weeks later) and then I ate the other half the sandwich (just took the turkey out) about 3 hours later on my way home, later that night I went out for Mexican and ate chips and salsa and 1/2 of a chile relleno and couple bits of Beans and one bite rice. I eat such small quantities in one sitting, I need to eat more often to get all my protein in.

I hope this helps some. For me it was just so foreign of a concept to imagine not being hungry all the time. Not thinking about food, etc continuously. I couldn't even imagine it. But now, 11 months out tomorrow, I feel so normal. I still love food, eat anything I want, but it doesn't consume me like it did before.

I wish you all the best in your journey!

salad stuff such as lettuce, green onions, cucumbers, tomatoes? Still love salad, one of my favorite foods, love cucumbers too. I usually take the skin off. I try to eat Protein with my salad, cottage cheese, tuna, cheese, eggs, etc.

fresh fruit such as grapes, berries, etc.? yum, eat all the time, but small amounts at one time. No problems.

sandwich? I rarely eat a sandwich. Kinda miss the idea of a sub, though I am sure I could try one now. I usually just eat the protein part, turkey, chicken breast, pulled pork, etc, without making it a sandwich.

bread for toast? not a huge fan of toast. but I can eat it fine. I prefer a bit or two of hashbrowns to toast.

tortillias? I can eat a corn tortilla with carnitas, etc. I can not eat a whole flour tortilla. But I can have some bites and then take out the filling and eat that part. I can eat tortilla chips great.

rice? yes, I just eat a little bit. When eating with others, I try to order the healthiest option and then take a bite or two of fried rice, lo mein, breaded dishes to get a taste in.

Would appreciate to know if anyone can eat these things or is this one of those trial and error experiments? I have heard others have problems with some foods, so I do think it is a trial and error thing, I just got lucky, or I like to say: I dealt with the bad stuff in the beginning, so I was due for the rest fo the ride to be smooth sailing!

Thanks!

salad stuff such as lettuce, green onions, cucumbers, tomatoes?

fresh fruit such as grapes, berries, etc.?

sandwich?

bread for toast?

tortillias?

rice?

Hi - my NUT says I can eat all of that stuff right now and I am almost 11 weeks out. BUT I have decided that I am focusing on Protein and limiting my carbs -- as it happens, focusing on my Proteins usually does the job for me and I don't eat bread or tortillas, etc. Have I? Yes. But it fills me up so fast that I can't eat anything else. So my diet is more of a conscious effort to eliminate carbs (which is my downfall anyway) and increase protein and fresh veggies and fruit.

thank you soooo much. This encouragement is very helpful and just what I needed. Please try to send me a picture of your thanksgiving meal so I can see what you are able to eat and how much. I have been so scared that I will be miserable because I can only eat small amounts but mentally I will want more. Your info helped alot. thank you!

I had this same feeling, that I would miss eating bigger portions. That I would feel like I was missing out. I do not miss it (VERY rarely) and I am so happy to have the sleeve to "keep me in check". Looking forward to my first Thanksgiving with my sleeve and I will make myself two small plates, one to eat right away and one to save in the fridge for later (3-4 hours) so I still get what I want. Maybe I will post a picture of my meal. I will focus on the turkey and salad. but I will have a bit of everything.

I eat absolutely anything I want to eat. I have never watched carbs or limited myself. Yesterday I grabbed a bag of Cheetos at Target. ate about 8 cheetos and was full/satisfied. Prior to surgery, I could have eaten the whole bag, easily. I feel that not limiting myself will help with the diet mentality, I don't want to hate myself for binging, etc. I just want to make smart healthy choices and have a healthy relationship with food.

The big thing that I think is hard to understand until you are here is: You really, truly, honestly, don't WANT the foods you wanted before in teh same quantity. I never feel deprived, even though I rarely eat more than a small bite of carbs. I am never really hunger. But I know I need to eat and need to eat healthy, nutritious food (Protein and fruits and veggies). I prefer not to eat carbs because they fill me up so fast, especially bread and pastas. I focus on the meat/seafood portion of the meal and eat a bit of carbs just to satisfy a small craving, taste, or texture desire. When I go for fast food I get chicken tender type choices, I try to order something that isn't mostly bread or carbs. If I eat Italian I order the meat dishes, never Pasta dishes. If I am really craving a burger, I get it, but I can only eat half the meat and even less of the bun. Recently I went to a professional conference and got a box lunch. It had a turkey sandwich, chips and a brownie in it. I ate 1/2 the sandwich meat, but only 1/4 the sandwich bread. And about 1/2 the brownie. Saved the chips for later (they are still sitting in my pantry 3 weeks later) and then I ate the other half the sandwich (just took the turkey out) about 3 hours later on my way home, later that night I went out for Mexican and ate chips and salsa and 1/2 of a chile relleno and couple bits of Beans and one bite rice. I eat such small quantities in one sitting, I need to eat more often to get all my protein in.

I hope this helps some. For me it was just so foreign of a concept to imagine not being hungry all the time. Not thinking about food, etc continuously. I couldn't even imagine it. But now, 11 months out tomorrow, I feel so normal. I still love food, eat anything I want, but it doesn't consume me like it did before.

I wish you all the best in your journey!

I'm 9 months out and just wanted to add that you can eat all those things, but most of the time you won't want them. Like if I eat spag and meatballs now, which was my favorite before, I'm like tearing into it looking for the meatballs. I eat all of that I want first and then eat a couple bites of Pasta to satisfy myself. B/c if I eat the pasta first I guess my body won't get what it needs so the craving sort of switches. You can't eat a lot of both, so you tend to go for what your body must have first. The cravings sort of reverse in that way. Pasta won't give you the energy to keep going, and you know it. Your body guides you on eating more than your mind does. Bc it comes down to body needs, which are pretty powerful.

There are still times I think of nothing but food. I went through like a week a of eating just strangely recently, just could not get satisfied. Kind of a binge? And that will happen to me every few months. And then it passed, probably hormonal. But the diference is with the restriction I can't do myself as much damage b/c the volume is cut short.

On Thanksgiving I sort of snacked while I cooked for 3 days , as we had a big group over for a huge spread of food, so when the meal came it was absolutely not a big deal. I ate a tad of a plate, like some turkey/ham/bit of dressing, potatoes, corn, etc. No roll. Then I picked on ham (it was sweet/smoked yum) all day and never got hungry again. I ate a little dessert, but honestly I just couldn't ever get my stomach empty enough to put down a plate of food. A lot of grazing but just never could pig out. But since I cooked it all I was pretty done with it anyway.

Your life will just be different. I don't miss pigging out at all. Like if I want pizza I eat it, but I just can't eat so much of it. Once I ate 3 slices of thin pizza over the course of an evening. It satisfied the craving I was having. But usually I'm fine with a piece or piece and a half.

I needed the restriction. It keeps me out of trouble. But I don't crave white carbs often, and am fine with a couple bites. What you have to realize is you WILL be full on less food. You will feel totally satisfied after a meal a lot of the time. There are times I feel I need more food than I can eat, especially if I went too long without eating. And that can be frustrating because my body is still wanting more fish, for instance, but I have no more room to eat more. But I just have to make a point to eat more often at those times to satisfy the nutritional needs of my body. That was never an issue before surgery, but it happens if I skip meals b/c I'm busy.

I eat fish Soup now, which is pure Protein. We buy it at this seafood place. This reallllly satisfies my body's need for protein. When I need a boost I'll eat that. I eat a little asian rice with it, yum. The soup is like heroin for my body, which craves protein in this form. I never ate that before, I would have went straight for the fried shrimp. I really don't eat much fried shrimp now, and if I do I will often take off the breading. How weird, huh?

Steeler, I'm so right there with you, I had my sleeve done on Nov 9th and man let me tell you, with all the holiday cooking, the cookies, pumpkin bread and Thanksgiving meals I thought I was gonna die and made the worse decision of my life. I keep telling my husband I should of waited till the first of the year. But he calls me the incredible shrinking woman and then puts me in my place by reminding me how good I look and how I'm off all my prescriptions already. My main concern and question is meats, I'm soooo not liking this stage of the diet and I want me meats and salads back into my life and actually Im counting down to when I can have it again.

Hi, I am almost 13 weeks out and can eat everything on your list in small amounts the only I can not tolerate is carbonation.

Ok, I know this is totally bad....LOL! But I am going to ask. What about buffalo wings and fries? Has anybody tried that?

I am not a fry nut but can eat them if I want to. But no protein in there, so why would I want that when I could eat protein? It gets like that, you'll see. But if you have a craving you could eat fries. I would prefer homemade, you wouldn't find me at McD's much these days. That kind of low nutrient food is very repulsive to me. And wings yes, definitely, although I tend to want them milder than I used to.

Ok, I know this is totally bad....LOL! But I am going to ask. What about buffalo wings and fries? Has anybody tried that?

I don't eat "buffalo" flavored wings, but I do eat teriyaki or honey chipotle wings and fries at least 2-3 times a month ! ! ! Sweet potato french fries are now my favorite! ! ! I only eat the drummettes (the little leg looking wings), and I make my own at home in the crock pot about once a month. chicken wings were and still are a staple in my diet. I don't eat breaded wings at all, but the ones that are fried and then covered in sauce and ranch or bleu cheese dressing.

Basically I am not limited to anything food wise, but I chew chew chew and eat VERY slowly. I also go against the suggestion of not drinking while eating; I often have small sips of water. Now, that said, there are days when some things go down well, but the very next day they do not. I do not eat spicy foods often, usually just a small mouthful. Also, stringy veggies can be problematic. It is an ever on-going process, but so far my limits are simply amounts and not to eat too fast.

Ok, I know this is totally bad....LOL! But I am going to ask. What about buffalo wings and fries? Has anybody tried that?

I bought a potato slicer at a kitchen store and we do our own. Season them with s & p or get creative!! I haven't touched a deep fried one since several months before surgery!! Since I'm at goal, I'd have a hot wing if I wanted one, but things like that don't even cross my mind any more. What seems strange is how BAD walking into a fast food place SMELLS to me. There is a place here in town that has good coffee (We don't have a Star Bucks so some times we'll go to this hamburger joint) - anyway, it's a "nice" place for a FF restaurant but when you walk in, it just smells greasy to me!! There is nothing about it that smells good or that makes me WANT something. I get use to it and after the initial 'YUCK' - I'm ok....but at first, it just hits me in the face. It was NOT like this pre-op. The butter burger was quite good! LOL Love my sleeve!!!

chips and salsa are one of the easiest things to eat. I wish I could not eat so much of it. When I go out to Mexican food, I have to take the basket off the table or I would eat the entire basket. They go down like I have no sleeve.

Popcorn is the same way.

And Why the heck is that?? I realized that too.. It freaks me out sometimes I am like really?!? I am absolutely terrified I will stretch it, so I stop myself.

I am sooo glad you mentioned popcorn!!!! When could you start eating it?

chips and salsa are one of the easiest things to eat. I wish I could not eat so much of it. When I go out to Mexican food, I have to take the basket off the table or I would eat the entire basket. They go down like I have no sleeve.

Popcorn is the same way.

I dont eat much bread at all. I eat about a 1/4 cup of pasta if I eat it. If I have a sandwich I use half piece of bread of the 35 calorie. but I agree with the chips and salsa i have to watch myself. But I basically eat what I want only small amount. The surgeon wants me to stop eating before I am full but I am still learning what makes me full quickest. I am only 3 months out. But I can not even eat a small piece of bread stick. It came straight back up. no more for me and one day my son gave me a bite of a hotdog that is another thing I will never eat. Now for some reason I do not like the taste of chocolate any more still have not figured that one out. but have taken a few sips of frozen mocha's and use to love them more than life now I can not stand them. but as for popcorn if I am wanting to snack at night I grab a bag of 100 cal popcorn and eat a few bites.