Do you try to finish it later or…

[Ready21 34]

Hi All,

I’m officially two weeks post op and have moved to soft foods.

I carefully measured one half cup or 3 oz etc, but cannot finish certain things. My question is, during the 30-40 minutes of trying to eat, do you just stop or do you go back throughout the day to try and finish? Or do you just toss it and focus later on another meal hours later?

[MandoGetsSleeved 431]

For me, it just depends on if it was something I actually enjoyed. If it's something that was just "meh", I'll toss it.

[Anj0399 61]

Hi there, I am just over 3 weeks post-op and can only eat about half a 5.3oz yogurt so I save it so I can have it later, usually before bed. Eggs I toss as they dry out when reheated.

[Ready21 34]

Ok, thanks for the replies! I’m trying to understand if it’s important to consume all of the calories of a particular meal or just don’t worry about it.

[ms.sss 14,634]

I would put whatever I couldn’t finish in the fridge and try again in a few hours (actually still do this at almost 3 years out). I had/have stuff in the fridge for days. I’m not adverse to leftovers and/or cold food so this works for me…but i get how some may be turned off by this.

Basically, i’d say just eat what you can (without going your pre-portioned amount). No need to force yourself.

Good Luck! ❤️

[Arabesque 6,440]

You can only eat what you can eat. Some days you’ll meet all your goals, the next you may not. That’s ok. As long as you work towards it every day. It does get easier as you heal. You’re all very early out.

I don’t meet my Protein or fluid goals every day now either but some days I exceed them. It averages out across the week.

As to food, some things I grazed on for ages, some things I put in the fridge for later or froze or ate the next day. There were the odd things I tossed (like turkey, ricotta & cottage cheese - blah!)

Honestly, I still do this. I love my microwave. Go through a lot of cling wrap & zip lock bags though. The people from Glad must love me LOL!

Good luck.

[Ready21 34]

On 07/29/2021 at 20:01, Arabesque said:

You can only eat what you can eat. Some days you’ll meet all your goals, the next you may not. That’s ok. As long as you work towards it every day. It does get easier as you heal. You’re all very early out.

I don’t meet my Protein or fluid goals every day now either but some days I exceed them. It averages out across the week.

As to food, some things I grazed on for ages, some things I put in the fridge for later or froze or ate the next day. There were the odd things I tossed (like turkey, ricotta & cottage cheese - blah!)

Honestly, I still do this. I love my microwave. Go through a lot of cling wrap & zip lock bags though. The people from Glad must love me LOL!

Good luck.

Thank you for that input. Was a little stressed because I’m not meeting all my daily goals. This puts it into perspective.

[Ready21 34]

On 07/29/2021 at 16:41, ms.sss said:

I would put whatever I couldn’t finish in the fridge and try again in a few hours (actually still do this at almost 3 years out). I had/have stuff in the fridge for days. I’m not adverse to leftovers and/or cold food so this works for me…but i get how some may be turned off by this.

Basically, i’d say just eat what you can (without going your pre-portioned amount). No need to force yourself.

Good Luck! ❤️

Thank you! I’m definitely learning as I go!

[ShoppGirl 3,340]

Certain things that are really good I will save and try to finish later but I really had to teach myself that it is okay to waste some food. I was raised in the clean your plate club and that just isn’t really the way to have a healthy relationship with food.

[MistySkye 181]

I tend to toss in the compost. Part of it is to teach myself I don’t have to clear my plate. I eat till I feel full and stop. I don’t keep trying, I don’t continue it later.

I would say around 5-10% of what I track in Baritastic I don’t actually consume. Sometimes I adjust my numbers, usually I just leave it. I figure that margin of error offsets any measurements that may be off.

[ms.sss 14,634]

30 minutes ago, MistySkye said:

would say around 5-10% of what I track in Baritastic I don’t actually consume. Sometimes I adjust my numbers, usually I just leave it. I figure that margin of error offsets any measurements that may be off.

Im the same way (though in my case im guessing i dont actually consume about 25-35% of what i enter into MFP). I figure its better to overestimate.

Edited August 1, 2021 by ms.sss

[Lucylovesfood 1]

I'm on my 4th week and I take 2 bites of whatever I'm having and stop for like 10 minutes or until I dont feel like my stomach is going to burst, and then I keep going.

For example I cooked 2 scrambled eggs with tomatoes at about 4PM and now it's 8PM and I still haven't been able to finish it. I hate wasting food so I try to finish whatever I cook even if it takes a really long time because if I dont get enough Proteins, I'll lose my muscle mass and the weight loss rate decreases because your body thinks you're starving yourself.

It's soooooo annoying not to be able to finish my food in one go especially when it's so little, like not even a quarter of what I had pre-op. But I'm just thankful if I can finish my food, no matter how long it takes and keep the food down without throwing up.

Do you guys still have to do this even months after the surgery?

I'd like to be able to eat normally although not as much as my pre op days.

[Arabesque 6,440]

You won’t be able to eat portion sizes like you used to because your tummy is a fraction of the size it was. But it is likely you used to eat portion sizes that were too large before like almost all of us did. it’s one of the reasons we were obese.

You will eventually be able to eat about a recommended portion size but this will be at or around when you reach goal. I was only eating 1/4 - 1/3 cup of food in the first months. It slowly increased to about a cup by about 6 months later but it would depend upon what I was eating. It took me three days to eat 2 scrambled eggs for months & I still can’t eat 2 eggs.

Eat slowly. Use teaspoons, buffet forks (sporks), etc. Serve your food on small side plates & bowls. I found ramekins & tapas bowls & plates a good size. Take a small bite & wait a couple of minutes before having another one. It doesn’t matter if it takes you 20 - 30 minutes. (I still take 30mins to an hour to eat a meal.) it takes time for the message to get through that you’re full & by the time you feel full you’ve had too much. Learning to stop before you feel full but when you’ve had enough is key - do you really need that next bite or do you just want it.

Don’t force yourself to eat just to clean your plate - gotta get away from that thinking. And certainly don’t force yourself to eat at the moment while your tummy is still healing. You don’t have to waste anything. Keep it for later or another day. Cling wrap, storage containers & your fridge, freezer & microwave will become your best friends. My freezer is full of left overs & single serve dishes - easy nutritious meals for days I don’t want to cook. My fridge often has plates of leftovers - some porridge, vegetables, the last two bites of meat. I just graze on it later or include it in another meal.

[Starwarsandcupcakes 1,892]

If I don’t finish something and I know I won’t eat it later I offer it to a kid before tossing if no one wants it. Usually it makes it into a stomach and not the bin. The only things I find myself really saving are quart jars of Soup from when I make it and on occasion the random stuffed pepper or Beans as I’m the only one who eats those in my house.

[Officially Not Fatty Matty 459]

This is purely a personal choice. My wife also had sleeve too and she grew up learning you finish what’s on your plate. I grew up with “eat what you want and if you can’t finish it that’s fine” and neither of those are wrong but it’s definitely carried over to our adult selves. She was not happy with the waste and I actually was (in one perspective, it’s clearly better not to simply waste food but I get a joy from seeing how little I can eat). I’ll have to remind her that portion sizes and packaged food isn’t made for us and it’s not our fault.
If it bothers you and you think you’ll eat it later, save it . If not toss it or give it to someone else. Whichever brings you comfort is the right answer :)