did you know...... there are 6 teaspoons to every 1 ounce???

I know why am i thinking of this now. Well I was at Target this morning and found a rubber teaspoon that is used for portion size. You scoop whatever into it and you turn it upside down and push on the back side rubber and push it out (makes 1/2 ball shape). So anyway I got one and thought this would be a great way to measure my food. i.e. applesauce, ricotta, cottage cheese, refried Beans, even eggbeaters before i cook them. So as soon as i got home i had to calculate teaspoons to ounces. Holy Crap!!!! 6 TEASPOONS TO 1 OUNCE!!! Do you know how much food that is??? 12 TEASPOONS A MEAL. Really I am suppose to eat 12 TEASPOONS OF FOOD per meal??? According to my Doctor I should be eating 2-3 ounces 3-4 times a day. NO WAY!!!

I am 11 days post op and I have gotten sick twice now. I don't stuff myself by no means but when i feel like i am still hunger there has been that last bite that gets stuck in my throat and wants out in a bad way. Is this how i should be feeling? Has anyone else experienced this???

Sorry, I didn't mean to sound condescending, I have just heard many people say that it is such a bother to use a scale and I think it's no different either way. Actually, you don't need to get your measuring cups dirty, so you are actually saving a clean-up.

Your stomach doesn't have a fixed size like that. If they say 4 oz, it is just a VERY rough approximation of the amount you should/can eat.

Yes, theoretically for your stomach the proper unit would be volume since the surgery restricted the volume of our stomach and not the max. weight capacity but for most things it is impossible to find out the proper volume. Take bread for example. If you cut of a chunk 4 oz. in volume, after chewing and adding saliva, it is probably less than 2 oz.

Same for other things, if you want 4 oz. of strawberries in volume, what do you measure? Whole berries? Halved berries? Quarters? Or mashed up? 1 cup of whole berries probably gives you 1/4 cup after blending them even though you haven't removed a single berry.

On the other hand, if your doctor says you can eat about 4 oz. of salmon, chicken or steak he is not talking about volume but weight.

I personally have a fairly inexpensive digital scale from Aldi. There are a few things I would consider important:

1) Smooth surface that can be cleaned real easy. Since I throw just about everything on there, it is good to know that I can wipe it off easily. Mine is not glass, but that is what I would be looking for for my next purchase. I recommend just a flat surface, no bowls etc. because that's just extra cleanup or obstacles.

2) Easy tare function (this is often also called the "zero" function). Probably should be function number 1 :-) This is how it works for me. The scale is always on the counter top, so now I want to make yogurt with fruit. Pull the scale out, turn it on, place my bowl on it and press Tare. Now the scale says it's 0. Add my desired amount of yogurt. Press Tare again. Add my desired amount of fruit. Press Tare again. Add my desired amount of Cereal, granola, Fiber, Protein or whatever I want to add. This way I don't have to do math, but can just add the individual amounts without thinking. You can laugh, but I do the same when I make a sandwich. Weigh bread, tare. Weigh mayo, tare. Weigh cheese, tare. Weigh ham -- I am probably overly anal with this, but I have noticed so many times how much I was off when eye balling stuff and also how much I was off when using volume like spoons and cups just because the label seems to be off.

3) Digital display should be easy to see when stuff is on the scale. Mine isn't that good with this, and sometimes if I place a bigger bowl onto the scale, I have to peek underneath to see the display. I think the Oxo scale actually has a display that you can pull out.

i totally get you. I just figure since I am in purees, I try to rely on volume...once I hit solids, then I will rely on weight...

_{the scale I have is from my weight watchers days. Its a food scale which has a removable measuring cup as well.}

Ha! I have the same one from Weight watchers.. glad I am getting some use out of it!