I saw my Nutritionist earlier this week for my three-month post op visit. She upped my calories from 800 to 1000 per day and my Proteins from 60 to 80. She said not to graze during the day but rather to eat three meals of 300 calories each and one 100 calorie snack. Still eat Protein first but also to add a vegetable and/or fruit to each meal. (Previously I was eating mostly protein only with no vegetables or fruits.) She said not to eat any carbs without also eating protein. No crackers, chips, rice, potatoes, basically no snacking.

My problem is that my little sleeve just won't hold that amount of food! I feel like I am cramming in food to get to the 300 calories and am feeling uncomfortably full afterwards. I am worried about stretching my sleeve. To counter this problem I have have been stretching my meals to last longer and I know that is exactly what she doesn't want me to do.

Help! Has anyone else been in this situation and can give me some advice? Should I keep eating to the point of being uncomfortable just to get to the right amount of calories? Should I go back to the 800 cal/60 protein that I was getting in previously (and which did not make me sick.) How important is it to eat add the vegetables and fruits?

THANKS in advance for any insight.

Marie

Did you tell her that you could not comofortably hold that much food? If she understands the volume is the hard part, she should be able to make adjustments for you. Unfortunately lots of the "affiliates" of WLS (everyone who is not the patient, really) don't understand how individualized all of this can be, and tend to give out generic instructions.

WHen I had my lap-band put in, the nutritionist gave me an instruction sheet for drinking. Following her isntructions, it would have been physically impossible to drink the amount of Water she was telling me to drink. Not because I couldn't hold it, but because the guidelines were something like "2oz an hour, sipping, no fewer than 64 oz a day." Well even if I stayed up all night to drink, I couldn't get in 64oz at only 2oz per hour. So I called and she treated me like I was stupid, very "Well duh, those are just guidelines..." so I told her that maybe she shouldn't have titled the page with RULES...

I don't want to go against MD adivce, because I am not a medical professional. I can only tell you what works for me. I started out eating 6 meals a day when I transitioned to mushy / solid food. After a couple months, I scaled it down to 5 meals a day. It is the only way I can do it. My meals average 150 to 200 cals each. It brings me to about 1000 cals a day. I just can't eat enough in one sitting to last. Some of my meal examples:

Trade Joe mini brie and 4 flax crackers

One packet oatmeal with flax

small granola bar

1/4 to 1/2 cup of chicken

2 or 3 pieces of nigiri sushi

one egg with 1/2 piece of wheat toast

one serving of Peanut Butter filled pretzel chunks (about 10 pieces)

string cheese

Mind you, some of these things I eat completely, some I can't quite finish. I don't eat a lot of veggies - there just isn't room for them. At most I get one or two bites after my Protein and that's it. I choose these food items because they are the easiest to eat (wheat toast goes down better than plain bread). I have never been able to tolerate Protein drinks, so I always make sure there is protein in every meal. I eat alot of other things, but these are the go-to staples of my daily life.

Do your best, make sure what you put in your body is healthy and you will do fine. Don't push your stomach to the point of discomfort - that's the one rule I live by :-)

Veggies are a part of a healthy diet. I would make 4 meals and one snack to help spread it out a little bit. Your stomach will relax soon and allow a little more food, just take it slow, try. I make veggie soup with a variety of veggies, cooked till soft. This goes down real easy, and delicious. I can eat/drink around a cup or so of this, get veggies in, not too high cal or carbs, and treat it like a liquid... not with a solid meal. This is how I started getting in more veggies... now I eat some with meals too. I do stir fries, veggie pasta sauce (using dreamfields pasta) with protein of some kind.. I just eat the protein out first, then a few bites of vegies and sauce. You can do it! Adding in fiber is such a bonus to this high protein diet style.

I totally go against my dr.'s advice at this point and it is working for me! I am 8/12 weeks out and CAN NOT lose weight on 3 meals a day @ 1/4-12 c of food with no snacks!! That only gives me 300-400 calories a day and my body is in starvation mode. I exercise for an hour a day and burn more calories than that!!!

So, I do snack and I consume 650-800 calories a day and I LOSE!! Go figure. I have to in order to get calories up. I can't eat much at one time and have to space it out. I really don't see why it matters if I get it all at once or a little at a time. As long as I get it!! I will continue to do what works and for now, this is working!

Kelly

I'm in the same boat as you. I asked the doctor about this yesterday as it was also my 3 mth post-op appointment. I told him that I have trouble getting in the calories / protein in a day. That when I eat protein it fills me up right away and then there isn't any room for veggies. He told me that during this time that is was alright that my sleeze was new and it would take some time. He also reminded me about not drinking 30 minutes before eating, in which sometimes I forget and have a couple sips but I wouldn't think that would fill me up that much. He did not recommend eating until I was over stuffed. He told me to eat what I could and that we were going to follow up in another 6 weeks. Good luck to you!

Thanks all! I think I am going to back off the food for a few days and then try to incorporate a bite or two of veggies at each meal.