I am 4 weeks post op, and have had NO issues at all with any food.

I can eat a fair amount before feeling restriction. About 1/2 - 3/4 of a cup.

I see posts all the time about people only being able to handle such small amounts of food...it worries me that I am able to handle what seems like so much, and such a short amount of time out...

However I am getting 600-800 calories per day...and lost 20lbs in the first 2 weeks, and nothing since...

Anyhow, I need to start planning my meals better, and would LOVE some ideas.

What are your breakfast/lunch/dinner ideas?

Snacks?

do you use a Protein drink/bar to replace a meal, or as a snack?

If you have time, I would love to see a weekly menu for what you are eating...

Any help is appreciated!

Back then, at five months now, my meals were like this

Breakfast

poached egg, slice of toast

yogurt

cottage cheese and fruit

Cereal and milk

Snack

Protein bar

Protein shake

fruit

lunch

salad with meat (hamburger, chicken any leftover)

dinner

normal meal, meat, potato, vegetable

Soup

anything that would stay down

At this point, my metabolism is stable haven't gained or lost a pound in 6 weeks which is actually fine, only 10 pounds from goal but quite comfortable as is.

I'm 2 years out and basically eat whatever (in tiny amounts of course) for example this morning I had a 3" BMT breakfast sandwich from Subway and coffee. . . for lunch 1 chicken wing and some cucumbers with ranch peppercorn dressing and for dinner I don't know yet. . . I drink about 100 - 110 oz of water every day. . . other then tight restriction and still sliming if i overdo it, I don't have any issues with eating!

I, too, would love to hear some more on this topic. I'm 21/2 weeks post-op, and I've lost 20 lbs. so far, but I feel like I'm eating a bit too much. I read about how so many of you can eat only tiny amounts, and while it's true that I eat much, much less than before, I have progressed to soft foods (just this week), and I can certainly eat a whole egg or a cup of soup or 3 oz. of chopped meat. I'm following my doctor's instructions carefully, but I do feel I sometimes eat too much or could eat more than I do. I'm having no problems with swallowing foods or keeping them down. I am having some trouble with getting enough Protein in my diet, but that may change now that I can eat some meat.

Thank you all for all of your help--your stories are inspirational, and you are full of good information.

Hi Friends-

Please do not be anxious about being able to eat more than others. I have been able to eat more than others from very early on and I can promise you that it has not negatively affected my weightloss. Some reasons that you are able to eat more include: less swelling than others, your surgeon used a bigger bougie (tool to set the stomach size), you have a longer stomach (likely if you are tall) and/or that you haven't progressed to dense enough foods to actually feel the full level of restriction.

Now, with that being said, I would also caution you to not eat more just because your stomach will allow you. I fell into this for a bit. Plan you meals and portion sizes and stick to your plan. This will help you be successful. Talk with your nutritionist and watch the scale to help you determine the appropriate number of calories. For me, I started with 800-1000 at about week 5 and then moved to 1200 at about 4 months and now at 10 months I take in 1500 with a lot of running. We are each different with different activites so you really have to listen to your body and your health professionals to determine what is best for you.

At four weeks out my typical meals included 1-2 scrambled eggs, Muscle Milk Light, Greek Yogurt, one ounce cheeses, Lean Cuisines that were meat and veggie based (I ate about 3/4), Salmon (about 4 oz.), Ground beef and well cooked veggies- I did not care for bread or rice and did not introduce raw produce into my diet until after week 12.

Best of luck to you!

Amanda

Thank you, Amanda. This is very helpful!

I'm glad this was mentioned. I'm 3 weeks post op and I can eat just about everything. I definitely feel the restriction though. For breakfast I have either 1/2 cup cottage cheese with 1/4 c blueberries or a slice of toast with 1 TB peanut butter. Snack I have white bean chicken chili soup, 1 cup. Lunch spaghetti with meat sauce, 3/4 c. Snack Chobani yogurt. Dinner 3oz pork tenderloin, 1/4 c mixed veg, 1/4 c mashed potates. I don't drink during meals, but try to get at least 32 oz fluid in during the day. I'm working on getting in the habit of drinking more fluid. I've lost 20 lb since surgery. I'm not wanting to lose huge amounts of weight though. I am wanting to lose between 2-4 lb/wk. Good luck to you and keep up the great work!

Wow.....I'm in a serious stall and am definitely struggling to get past 600 calories most days. My short term goal is 800 calories. I don't know how you guys can eat so much.

For food ideas, might I suggest that you log on to myfitnesspal.com (there are a lot of VSTers on there) and you can get a glimpse of everyone's intake there. It has helped me with ideas on what to eat because you actually see the nutrition values (including protein) on their logs. The great thing about myfitnesspal is that they have a phone app so you have no excuses on why you can't keep your food log up to date.

Good luck! BTW my handle is sleeviewonder on MFP if you decide to sign up....Friend me!

AfroCyster, Your sleeve will start accepting more food the further out you get. It takes some time for it to heal and allow more food in there. Just keep working on getting in your fluids and Protein and it will happen!

I second SleevieWonder's suggestion of My Fitness Pal. I keep my food diary public for accountability, but I've been known to look at other people's food diaries when I feel like I'm getting into a rut on meals. The blog (google it) The World According to EggFace is great as well because she shows her daily food intake as well. She calls it "A Day In My Pouch" and she often makes herself bento box lunches, which are very inspiring. She's the person who taught me that cucumbers make great crackers!! She also talks about the importance of moisture to get our protein in and she has tons of recipes for dips and sauces that are WLS friendly. Gee, I should get a commission.

For lunch today I had some thin sliced honey ham sandwich meat, 2 pickles, a cheese stick and about 2 oz of cottage cheese. I'm trying to see if I'm still lactose intolerant, hence the cottage cheese. I rolled up the sandwich meat, pickles and some cheese together to make a sandwich roll. For me, 1 of the small packs of Buddig sandwich meat (2 oz), along with the cheese stick and a pickle is a perfect lunch. Others may be able to do something somewhat spicier, but Rex (my sleeve) won't accept that yet.

Good luck!! You will find meals that work for you!!

I'm 5 weeks out.. I usually have 1 egg w/ 1-2 oz of chicken and veggies, Protein bars/yogurt/cheese stick for snacks... lunch is fish (3-6 oz) w/ brocolli or Soup w/ some protein thrown in, dinner fish or lamb w/ veggie...

I've found myself snacking at night.. mainly because I can't sleep and I THINK i'm hungry.. working on that this week... Gonna buy more veggies and try to bump up my calories a little...

"...cucumbers make great crackers!" How frickin awesome is that! You just opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me Lissa!

Lissa what's your MFP handle? I GOTTA add you as a friend!

Sleevie, and anyone else who wants to, I'm Lissa912 on MFP.

BTW, Favoredone, are you allowed to have nuts yet? I will snack on a small handful of almonds in the evening if I'm feeling munchy. It takes awhile to eat them, and a huge bag of them is around $9 at Sams.

Hello ... I am 5 months in, and have had to pretty much tough it out on my own. I have not had the follow up or support I should have had (this I am upset about) and this includes nutritional dietary advice.

It is a long story, but the shortened version is that I am an Australian living in Munich Germany... there seemed to be no language barrier before surgery (I was convinced I would have the correct follow up), since having the op and paying for it - it seems no-one at the place can now speak english and give me the support and advice that I need, my german has improved but - I cannot find any support networks close by.

As of today, I have lost 45kgs (??how much that is in lbs), I convinced my GP to do some blood tests to check on Protein and Calcium levels and general check - all has come back OK (means I must be doing something right).

I really just wanted to see what peoples typical meals are, how often people eat (meals per day) and the quantity per meal.

A few times I have been rather sick after eating and other times, I am frightened as I seem to eat what I believe is too much food and still feel hungry.

Hello ... I am 5 months in, and have had to pretty much tough it out on my own. I have not had the follow up or support I should have had (this I am upset about) and this includes nutritional dietary advice.

It is a long story, but the shortened version is that I am an Australian living in Munich Germany... there seemed to be no language barrier before surgery (I was convinced I would have the correct follow up), since having the op and paying for it - it seems no-one at the place can now speak english and give me the support and advice that I need, my german has improved but - I cannot find any support networks close by.

As of today, I have lost 45kgs (??how much that is in lbs), I convinced my GP to do some blood tests to check on Protein and calcium levels and general check - all has come back OK (means I must be doing something right).

I really just wanted to see what peoples typical meals are, how often people eat (meals per day) and the quantity per meal.

A few times I have been rather sick after eating and other times, I am frightened as I seem to eat what I believe is too much food and still feel hungry.