Hi everyone, there's so much conflicting information on the amount to be eating per meal. I am 5 years post op and I believe was severely under eating for a long time.

Is 220 gm per meal / 8oz too much food to be eating, as in 1 cup? Some people say one cup is 128gm and I am just lost.

depends on what it is. I eat that much yogurt almost every morning (I make my own - thus, it's not a typical 5.3 oz container). Eight ounces of meat, on the other hand, is way too much for most people (I could never eat that much anymore). I go by calories more than by volume now (and have for awhile - I'm eight years out). Plus I stop eating when I'm feeling satisfied (or when I'm feeling discomfort - but I try to stop before I reach that point)

It does seem to vary from clinic to clinic but my dietitian said that the goal was to get to be eating 8oz to 12 oz from 6 months to a year out from surgery and to stay at that range for life.

Your 8 oz. does sound like it's not enough . I'm only 2 months out from surgery and they said I'm supposed to aim for 12 oz.

This may be a program and/or person specific. My program, for example, says no more than 8 oz of food at a time for life. At almost 3 months, I can take in about 4-6 oz at a time; depending on what it is.

This past Monday, my PA told me I should probably be consuming 1,000 calories a day. Ta loco! (He's crazy). I reminded him I'm only 35 days out of surgery. I said I was consuming about 600 cals a day now, 60g protein, and 41 carbs (because 21 of my carbs and 60 calories come from my chewable vitamins and fiber supplements). He said I should up my cals. I told him, I'd up them to 700, but that was it. I'm not saying the kid doesn't know his stuff, but this isn't my first bariatric surgery. We know our bodies better than our docs, PAs, and nutritionists. Unfortunately, we know our bodies because we learn through trial and error. That's how we figure out when too much it TOO MUCH, or what foods our particular stomachs will reject or be fine with.

"Since grams can be used to measure both solid and liquid ingredients, both types of ingredients can also be measured in a cup. However, while liquid ingredients are always the same weight in grams, solid and dry ingredients are not. Remember that grams are a measurement of weight or mass."

Solid food is more dense than liquid. You'll need less solid to fill you up. Liquids will go though faster and easier. Listen to your tummy. Grams only measure the weight of something, not how bulky or dense it is. Also, everyone's tolerance, hunger, and nutritional needs will vary from person to person. The medical teams can give us guidelines, but even if they've personally had bariatric surgery themselves, ever body is different. I don't think that 1 cup of food is too much at 5 years out. However, only your stomach can decide that.

I agree with @catwoman7 & @CarmenG. Every food is different so you can’t rely solely on a weight measure or only on a cup measure. When I reached maintenance, I began checking the recommended portion sizes of different foods and then from there I worked out what I could physically eat of that food. Also considered the calories too which also influenced how much I could eat. It’s not perfect but a good place to begin.

I eat about a recommended portion size of most foods. For example I eat a little more of vegetables but only about a half a portion of rolled oats. As you likely know, it can differ day to day - some days I can eat my portion & then another I can’t.

Have you checked your BMR? Again a good place to start to give you an idea of the calories your body needs based on age, heigh, weight, gender & activity levels. I’d also go back to tracking all your food for a while just to ensure you’re getting in the nutrients & calories you need. I don’t measure & weigh religiously anymore but do random checks to ensure I’m still on track & of course I check any new food I introduce. It can be easy to let things slide or over/under estimate.

I was never given calorie goals by my surgeon or dietician only pretty general portion requirements. My surgeon told me to start with 1/4 - 1/3 cup from purée & slowly increase to about a cup by when I reached maintenance. He also drew a picture of a side plate & sectioned off two other circles: protein & vegetables (interestingly no carbs) & said that’s what a meal should look like for me in the future in maintenance. It’s funny that picture really stuck with me & I often think of it when I’m serving a meal or eating out. And using recommended portion sizes as my reference actually does mean my plate looks much like his drawing.

8 oz thru out the day 4 years out.