Hi All,

I was wondering how long you were on strictly liquid? Also, from there how long were you on pureed food and what was it like? What did you puree? Right now I am on liquid but also puree low calorie or reduced calorie soup for at least another week. How long did the Puree to soft food transition take and was it comfortable, any issues and what foods in the soft stage? What did a day of meals look like? After the Soft foods how were you preparing your meals and what were you eating? Everything I have read eventually you can eat as you please without so much worry but wanted to get ideas of things to start considering in my near future.

Thanks

According to my Bariatric program I was required to do 2 weeks full fluids post op followed by 2 weeks puréed. I have one more week to go at the puréed stage before soft food. The first 2 weeks I had 1/2 cup of cream of wheat thinned out with milk for breakfast with protein drink( Premium Nutrition) .
Lunch and dinner were both broths or soups ( 1/2 cup) with either unflavoured protein powder added or I would supplement at least one protein drink. Once I got to the puréed stage I would only incorporate one protein drink to supplement the protein I was already getting from food. Breakfast is still cream of wheat but I add 1 tbsp of unsweetened apple sauce and I also have a soft poached egg. Lunch is usually 2-3 tbsps of tuna or salmon puréed with 2 tsp of light mayo or 2-3tbsps of puréed cottage cheese. Dinner is 2-3 tbsp puréed chicken, 2 tbsp of mashed potato and 2 tbsp of puréed peas or carrots. I’ll have a protein drink as a snack between lunch and dinner. 2-3 tbsps of 1% Yoghurt is also snack option. You can also continue to do broths and soups at this stage or alternate with puréed food. The most important thing to remember is to stay hydrated and get in all your protein (60-80grams). I fill a 2L bottle with water everyday and sip throughout the day, making sure it’s empty by the end of the day. I’m not at the soft food stage yet but looking forward to getting off of puréed. You are allowed decaf coffee or decaf tea or sugar free drinks as long as they are not carbonated.
Anyway, hope that helps.

Edited April 18, 20215 yr by ThanaK

Hi @Lorey_a!

I was only on liquids for like a week or two post surgery and then on puree for like 4+ weeks. I ate (and still eat) mostly yogurt, chili, protein drinks (so far fairlife is my fav) and salmon. For whatever reason salmon really sits well with me. I also would eat grilled/baked chicken breast and rotisserie chicken when I didn't feel like cooking. Also, I would snack on cheese sticks and sunflower seeds (my nutritionist warned against the seeds though so don't do it!). I didn't actually blend my food, I just chewed it for a long time (my nutritionist said that was OK). That worked well for me. Mostly, I just eat the protein and have yet to really stomach any sides. I dont have much room for them when Im done with my meat anyway. I really want to be able to eat potatoes but my stomach says NO. I can however have some frozen carrot slices from Trader Joe's without an issue . I'm on soft foods/solids now and experiment a lot more but for the most part, everything I experiment with makes me feel bad so I end up just going back to what I know. I think my body is the best indicator of when Im ready to move on. My worst reaction so far was with popcorn. I had a handful today and literally curled up in bed regretting it!

I don’t have anything original to say except the infamous ricotta bake during purée phase was a lifesaver for me. I have issues with consistency of foods and the consistency of purée food makes me feel ill if it’s not supposed to be that way so I are a lot of applesauce and ricotta bake.

https://bariatricbits.com/single-serve-baked-ricotta/

Edited April 18, 20215 yr by ShoppGirl
Added link

My programs approuch to eating phases is:

1. clear liquid = until hospital discharge (1 day for me)
2. full liquids = 4 weeks (greek yogurt counts)
3. Pureed = 3 weeks
4. soft food = 2 weeks

I've followed this strictly and have had no issues. It was scary to transition stages, but I took it easy and everything went well. The worst I had was a couple of instances of discomfort from eating something that sat a little heavier in my tummy (like chilli) too quickly. I learned to go slower with these foods and, even when it was the same volume as other foods, to expect that I'd need to eat it in two sittings.

I'm in the soft foods stage now, during liquid and pureed stages the options were limited which did get old. Full liquid stage all I ate was protein shakes, greek yogurt, protein cocoa, and strained bariatric protein soups.

Here is what I lived on, in addition to supplemental protein shakes, during the pureed stage:

• Refried beans with a little Valentina sauce and a small amount of melted cheese
• My version of ricotta bake (made with cottage cheese, I don't like ricotta)
• Tuna salad (For some reason, the idea of pureeing tuna didn't turn me off, but any other meat did so I never branched out. Tuna sat suprisingly well in my tummy. Also, I made this with pureed cottage cheese instead of mayo, more protein, and my tummy hasn't liked mayo yet)
• "Tuna melt bake" just ricotta bake with tuna added. (I like tuna melts and this was one of my favorite things to eat.)
• Pureed homemade chilli (also a favorite, but I had to be careful since it sat heavier in my tummy)
• Soft baked yam mixed into yogurt with PB2 added (tastes better than it sounds)
• Poached egg or soft scrambled egg (the poached eggs were especially easy on my tummy)
• Just plain cottage cheese or cottage cheese with 1-2 slices of pureed peach or a little mashed banana (sat great in my tummy)
• Egg salad (again, made with pureed cottage cheese - I don't know what I would have done without cottage cheese! ?)
• Mashed banana with PB2 (l liked this the least, only ate it a few times)

Edited April 18, 20215 yr by chiquitatummy