Can someone please explain to me the difference between 6 small meals and grazing all day? I feel like I'm setting myself up for failure if I keep doing what I'm doing now, once I can eat more. Thanks!

Some programs like to limit things to only 3 meals a day as they feel more gets too close to, or promotes, grazing. OTH, 3 meals a day can promote overeating our WLS in order to get enough nutrition in during the day. Take your pick, lol.

Meals, whether there be 3, 5, 6, 7 or whatever, should be discrete feedings of a specified "meal" or amount of food, as distinct from grabbing a bag of chips or nuts and sitting down at your desk or in front of the TV.

8 minutes ago, RickM said:

Some programs like to limit things to only 3 meals a day as they feel more gets too close to, or promotes, grazing. OTH, 3 meals a day can promote overeating our WLS in order to get enough nutrition in during the day. Take your pick, lol.

Meals, whether there be 3, 5, 6, 7 or whatever, should be discrete feedings of a specified "meal" or amount of food, as distinct from grabbing a bag of chips or nuts and sitting down at your desk or in front of the TV.

Thanks, I guess since several of my meals (3-4) each day still fall in the liquid category, I don't tend to "formalize" them. Maybe that would make me feel more in control. I appreciate your input!

Grazing is a big danger for me, especially since I work from home part of the time. I try to have no more than 3 meals and one snack. One of my meals is always a protein drink, because I can't get all my protein from food.

But sometimes I just want to snack. For those time I make sure I have super low cal options. Like ff coleslaw, pickles & cucumbers around. Since you can't do solids, what about sf jello? SF jello w ff cottage cheese or yogurt added would be low cal and add protein. Protein pusddings?

The big difference = keeping track of calories and staying accountable. Blind grazing where you're not keeping track can certainly get you in trouble.

If I had to eat three meals a day I'd be starving half the time and I'd stretch my sleeve the other half.

My sleeve generally holds 200-300 calories of healthy food. More than that, and I'm uncomfortably full.

I don't mind eating 5-6 times a day to maintain good energy and not be hungry. But I do keep track of calories for sure.

Ultimately, I'd rather stop when I'm just slightly full and eat again two or three hours later. If the calories are reasonable for the day, I kinda prefer more frequent little meals. I hate feeling over full now. Too few calories and I run out of gas...so more little meals works best for me. I think everyone finds their own niche with this.

Grazing tends to just be eating just to eat, not planned meal times (whether 3,4,6 etc) 

tracking meals and calories SHOULD help prevent this behavior and ultimately I feel like theoretically it should be very hard if you are hydrating all day and meals and fluids don't meet. But it's not always like it is in the books...

52 minutes ago, sillykitty said:

Grazing is a big danger for me, especially since I work from home part of the time. I try to have no more than 3 meals and one snack. One of my meals is always a Protein Drink, because I can't get all my Protein from food.

But sometimes I just want to snack. For those time I make sure I have super low cal options. Like ff coleslaw, pickles & cucumbers around. Since you can't do solids, what about sf Jello? SF jello w ff cottage cheese or yogurt added would be low cal and add protein. Protein pusddings?

I know what you mean. I drink 20g of protein water on my way to work, especially now that the doc upped my minimum to 75g. I so wish I could do the fresh veggies for snacks, but I've settled for cooked ones although those don't help with the protein. I've made myself a little tub to bring protein powder to work. I usually only add it in to things at home, but it will be easier to get my protein if I add it to my yogurts and soup. I do enjoy my high-pro puddings, though. Thanks!

47 minutes ago, Creekimp13 said:

The big difference = keeping track of calories and staying accountable. Blind grazing where you're not keeping track can certainly get you in trouble.

If I had to eat three meals a day I'd be starving half the time and I'd stretch my sleeve the other half.

My sleeve generally holds 200-300 calories of healthy food. More than that, and I'm uncomfortably full.

I don't mind eating 5-6 times a day to maintain good energy and not be hungry. But I do keep track of calories for sure.

Then I guess in your book, I'm good. I track the calories and keep a complete log. 1035 has been my post-surgery high and that involved broccoli-cheese soup from Panera! Otherwise I'm normally around 800 or so. Mixing in extra protein powder at work may add another 100 or so. Thanks!

3 minutes ago, Tealael said:

But it's not always like it is in the books...

LOL . So true! Ah, the books... and what it's "supposed to look like". Who knew there could be so many versions?

2 minutes ago, Tealael said:

Grazing tends to just be eating just to eat, not planned meal times (whether 3 or 6)
I feel like theoretically it should be very hard if you are hydrating all day and meals and fluids don't meet. But it's not always like it is in the books...

Since most of my meals count toward my fluid total, this hasn't been a problem for me. I've never been a meal "time" kind of person. I eat when I'm hungry, or at least not still full. I drink protein water on my way to work because otherwise, I probably wouldn't get any protein in until 10 or so.

2 minutes ago, Orchids&Dragons said:

Then I guess in your book, I'm good.

Doesn't matter at all if anyone is good in my book. What matters...is if they're good in their own book:) And hopefully, their team's book....since being on the same page with your team helps a lot.

Lotta ways up this mountain!

Wishing everyone a good journey.

I think the question is ... are you grazing because you're hungry, or out of boredom / habit / head hunger?

If you're eating because you're hungry, I think that's fine. You're tracking and making good choices.

If you're eating out of boredom / habit / head hunger, that where the danger lies, IMO.

Just for myself, boredom / habit / head hunger, is a struggle. I'm very fortunate I have very little physical hunger. So I'm trying to use that gift, to retrain myself to eat only when I'm hungry and for nutrition. I'm totally not perfect, which is why I arm myself by stocking the house with things like I mentioned above. I can totally afford the calories, I stay far below where most people are at the stage, most days. But I'm fearful for a time when I have more capacity and my hunger comes back. I feel like if I can stay strong now, I can succeed long term.

Semi OT, but that's good you can eat cooked veggies. Two of my favorite things are miso glazed carrots, and green beans with whole grain mustard.

Also thirst can masquerade as hunger so i would drink more before eating more any day (apparently except when menstrual cycle is coming then I need more food and fluids)

4 minutes ago, sillykitty said:

Just for myself, boredom / habit / head hunger, is a struggle. I'm very fortunate I have very little physical hunger. So I'm trying to use that gift, to retrain myself to eat only when I'm hungry and for nutrition. I'm totally not perfect, which is why I arm myself by stocking the house with things like I mentioned above. I can totally afford the calories, I stay far below where most people are at the stage, most days. But I'm fearful for a time when I have more capacity and my hunger comes back. I feel like if I can stay strong now, I can succeed long term.

This is exactly what has me terrified. Right now, I have to eat this often to get all the protein in. But I feel like I'm setting myself up for disaster by eating every couple of hours. Last night I had a shake at 8:30 because I was still 28g short! But I'm really worried about eating out of boredom/frustration when I get to the point that I can. So far, I don't think I've had too much head hunger because it hasn't been too hard to avoid all the food being cooked in my house. But, even then, is it because there's no head hunger or because I'll be miserable for hours if I take a bit of your steak fajitas? I mean, yeah, it does smell really good and I did snag a cooked slice of mushroom.

Sadly, with 4 grown men in the house, my kitchen is a bariatric mine field!

10 minutes ago, Tealael said:

Also thirst can masquerade as hunger so i would drink more before eating more any day (apparently except when menstrual cycle is coming then I need more food and fluids)

I drink over 100oz./day, so I don't think that's a problem. This is less than I drank pre-surgery, but still should be plenty. I think I may have been a camel in a past life

On 06/24/2018 at 15:56, Orchids&Dragons said:

I drink over 100oz./day, so I don't think that's a problem. This is less than I drank pre-surgery, but still should be plenty. I think I may have been a camel in a past life

You'd be surprised how much fluids we actually need vs what's recommended. Try working your way back up to your normal, and hot fluids tends to be more satisfying than cold IMHO