A question for VSG Veterans...

I'm 4 months out and 13 pounds away from goal. One of the things I've been enjoying is a local lounge that has a three slider appetizer and incredible Truffle Fries, which I split with my wife.

In my past life, I would have steered clear of this and gone with a more protien oriented dish. Now, I get full after one slider and about 10 shoestring fries. I'm guessing this culinary junk delicacy is under 300 calories and reasonably balanced except for the fat.

My question is, how long will I be full after one little slider and a dozen shoestring fries?

Are you eating the bun? I'm 16 months out and if I ate a slider with the bun, no way I'd have room for any fries, much less a dozen!

Congratulations on you weight loss. It looks like you are still in the weight loss phase. This is a short phase and in order to maximize your weight loss during this phase I would steer clear of burger and fries until your weight loss levels out and you enter the "Maintenance" phase. Generally your goal weight is an artificial number. I think I set my goal weight at about 190 pounds initially but my body decided that it should really be much lower. It went down to 150 without much problem.

Experimentation is O.K. but if you want to reap the full benefits of the surgery, stay with the guidelines.

Hmm. Seems like a lot at 4 months.. esp if you are eating the bun..

I will tell you that I can eat a lot more SLIDER foods (buns, fries) now at 10 months post-surgery than I could at 4 months.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy things like this also, but I really, really try to limit those times. Maybe once in awhile.. once a month? So I'm not trying to shame you, or anything, but to me, that is alarming at only 4 months out. Try to push those Proteins and veggies. A slider with no bun, and steamed veggies, or salad would be much more "smart". The bad choices will get easier and easier and happen more frequently.

I don't know how long you would be "full". The question I would ask is if you are satisfied.

As long as you are recording it and it fits in with your program, I say enjoy. Just beware of leering it lead you to wanting more.

Have you tried it without the bun? You can always ask for a fork.

I do enjoy "treats" so to speak so don't think otherwise, but at 4 years out one of the strategies i use is to just avoid fried food. Since i never have it, my gut isn't used to it, it makes me feel horrible when I do have it, which perpetutates the good cycle of not wanting it.

About a year or two a go, a girlfriend and I shared an order of fish and chips. I felt gross for a day and next time she suggested it, it was easy for me to say "no thank you" and I chose the shrimp skewer. It tasted better and I didn't get cramps and that feeling of greasiness. Actually, I feel a little naseaous just thinking about how bad I felt. I can have a few fries, no problem, but that meal made me really dislike fried foods as a main course.

I love little pork sliders at a happy hour place I used to go to. I would eat a small portion of the bun, all the pork and it wasn't served with fries. AT 4 years out, I recall that I could eat maybe 2 of the sliders with only some of the bun. I could have probably eaten more, but I try to stop when I am no longer hungry rather than going for "full capacity"

Of course, we are all different and I do have treats i indulge in, but be mindful of portions, be mindful of frequency and be mindful of how it might impact your cravings or ability to really stay on your program. just things to think about because this gets a lot harder when you are a few years out so it is good to find these strategies now during the "honeymoon" so to speak.

I am 29 months out and I can't eat a full slider and fries. To be honest, I haven't had more than 2-3 fries total since the sleeve because I know that first, I will then want to eat the whole plate of them, and second, they are likely going to make me sick, so I don't have the best perspective on fries. I tried a slider once a few months ago and I got about half of it down before I started feeling like I was choking on food. Past that, I haven't had any burgers. As maybe a comparable reference, Smart Ones makes a frozen chicken slider, which I have had a few times since surgery. I can eat all but a few bites of that, which includes a chicken patty, ketchup, and a bun.

Also, part of the reason I can't eat a full slider and fries is because anything that has been near oil or butter makes me puke. So, in terms of physical capacity, my stomach would probably be able to handle about 2/3 of the slider and a few fries, but I'm not entirely sure since I just gave up on some foods after about the 400th time barfing them back up. This works well for me because I don't eat fried or sugary foods purely because my stomach hates them- not because I wouldn't enjoy them.

The bun is what's really throwing me off here. I hope the OP posts back to clarify whether he's eating the bun or not. At four months I was just starting to experiment with eating any kind of bread. I would eat open-face egg "sandwiches" with a tiny little 3 inch square piece of wheat toast and I still couldn't eat the full piece of toast.

This might be a bit off topic so my apologies for jumping in here. There are several people on here who responded that fried foods make them sick.

I am wondering if this is similar to dumping or do fried foods simply cause tummy distress because you usually don't indulge.

or does it actually cause vomiting as well?

i am just curious about this. Thanks!

This might be a bit off topic so my apologies for jumping in here. There are several people on here who responded that fried foods make them sick.

I am wondering if this is similar to dumping or do fried foods simply cause tummy distress because you usually don't indulge.

or does it actually cause vomiting as well?

i am just curious about this. Thanks!

I don't have any issues consuming it.. which is why I know I need to really watch myself.. or I'll be back in my pre-surgery boat.

I'm two years out and can eat about 1/4 of a regular size burger with bun and a few fries. If Son is going out to pick up a burger I usually don't want anything, but once in a blue moon I ask for a junior burger and can eat 1/2 of it with no fries.

Every few months or so I get a 6" Subway sandwich and it makes 3 meals for me. By the time I get to the last 1/3 it is pretty soggy so I just pick out the meat and pickles.

A couple of things from you're humble OP:

1. It's more of an experiment and a treat than a diet question. For 40 years I've been a low carb fanatic and became obese eating too many nuts on an oversized stomach. I know that a burger/fry diet is bad - but once a month it's kinda fun.

2. Yes I eat the bun, but it's a very small slider - maybe 5 ounces total. Also the fries are shoestring - maybe 2 ounces.

3. I thank the posters who are reporting how far out they are and how much they can eat. That's the info I'm looking for.

4. Last thing is what was your surgery and are you a man or woman. I'm VSG and have never had dumping or gotten sick from eating anything. My solid food limit is around 5-6 ounces.

My VSG was March 18th. I'm a woman.

Thanks for the extra info.

One more thing. I log everything I eat and average about 1,000 calories a day. I also have a fitness tracker and burn an average of 3,000 calories a day. I also exercise for an hour 6 days a week. Typically, I eat more protein than fat or carbs every day.

I very much believe, though, that where our calories come from matter.

I'm 17 months post-op. I started at 235 pounds highest ever, was 216 pounds surgery day, hit my goal of 150 pounds in 8.5 months post-op, and today (9 months later) weigh 136 pounds. I'm doing great.

By the end of Month One post-op, I was eating one slice of toast (Sara Lee 45 calories/slice high-Fiber, high-Protein bread) with no difficulty.

Around 3 months post-op I could eat HALF a McDonald's cheeseburger including the bun VERY SLOWLY (150 calories). And no, I didn't eat that very often.

By the time I was 8 months post-op, I could eat a whole McD cheeseburger. That's about my fast-food limit now, too. And no, I don't eat these things often at all -- usually once every month or two when I get stuck on a road trip and have access only to fast -food on Interstate off-ramps.

This journey is about doing what you're supposed to do most of the time. When I was still losing weight, I stuck very close to my program probably 95% of the time. Now, 9 months into maintenance, I eat according to my program about 80-90% of the time.

P.S. I'm eating 1700 - 2000 calories/day now to maintain my current weight.