Hello again!! I just thought of this. My understanding and what I have read about the lap band is that it only will hold 3-4 oz. of food at a time and is about the size of an egg. That must be one big-ass egg. Doesn't that sound contradictory to yall? Besides, I personally was told to eat a cup of food per meal and from what I read in this forum, thats approximately what y'all are eating as well. I'm sorry to be splitting hairs here, but I always forget to ask these types of questions when I'm with my doctor. Just wondering what y'all think.

Mary

Thanks Jack...I always enjoy your responses as they are very informative.

G

I take that "3-4 oz" to represent hard Protein, as that is the most complex to digest and turn into a slurry that slips down into the lower stomach.

When foods that are of a consistency that move through the Os easily I can eat more at a time. For instance, I can if truly hungry enough from physical exertion, a small salad, a cup of Soup, and maybe a few oz. of meat....but not often that much. Emphasize the SMALL and CUP....and eat the protein first, guess what?

If I start with the meat I simply am sated such that I don't want the rest.

Complex salads, such a with a bit of shrimp and/or cheese; pickled beets, a couple greek olives...a small bowl is plenty and lasts me a long while before next meal.

The small-bowl approach works well for me at Breakfast too.

Without my daily helping of the Holy Shredded Wheat there's Big Trouble. I often add a spoon of Peanut Butter, use Water instead of milk, add a bit of stevia liquid, maybe a spoon of sunflower seeds...and there's breakfast, well under 300 calories and carries me usually until lunch.

Buffalo burger neat and a cup of home grown spaghetti squash, and perhaps later, a TINY slice of apple pie...maybe a spoon of NF white stuff...

So that's a not too unusual day intake recently.

Thanks so much Jack! Thats a very good and reasonable explanation.

I am only supposed to eat 1/4-1/3 cup protein, 2 tblsp vegetable or fruit, and 1/4 piece toast or 2 wheat crackers three times a day. I eat the 1/3 c protein and that is usually it. I was eating 1 egg for breakfast, but recently my dietician said I could have 2 eggs as I was hungry a couple of hours after breakfast.

Jack really nailed the answer!

In general, four ounces is a good rule of thumb...Three ounces of meat is about the size of a deck of cards. Add to that an ounce of veggies and that is about right IF you are only eating food in that form but as Jack explained very well, it really depends on what you are eating.

I was not told to measure my food. I was told that your stoma can hold approximately 4 ounces but that info was just to give me an starting point. The rule for me is to pay attention to my band and how I feel. When I feel satisfied stop eating. Satisfaction for me does not come in exactly the same measurement for every meal. Sometimes I am more hungry and sometimes less, some forms of food fill me up faster some less.

Well, I actually do not measure my food I go by how I feel and what I estimate should be the right proportion for me. I am always running with the kids so my portions are usually small, and as long as I eat Proteins first then veges I am good. I eat 6 x's a day 3 meals and 3 small Snacks, each time I eat I usually take in 10 grams of Protein. But I try to stay away from mushy foods as they don't hold me long enough.

My day is this 2 eggs, scrambled and a small wheat tortilla

snack cheese stick

lunch- Tofu and veges

snack- fruit (no protein there)

dinner- turkey burger, tomato, onion lite mayo and mustard and small wheat pita if I am really hungry or else nothing at all

snack- pudding ff and sugar free of course

Lots and lots of H2O

I was banded on August 28 and have lost 47 lbs. forever, so far.

All the best and Good Luck,

Andrea :thumbup::thumbup:

Hi there. I am new here, actually I registered in August but just had my band done 11/05 so I still figure I am "new". lol I wasn't sure how much (and didn't even THINK to ask duh me) I could eat. So today was my first "soft solids" day and for breakfast I drank my whey Protein drink, waited 30 minutes, ate 1/2 a scrambled egg and then waited another 60 minutes before I drank anything (according to my instruction book given to me). I didn't feel any kind of "full" feeling but now after reading all you have posted I know why. I just finished about 1/2C (probably 3 oz or so) of cottage cheese and I can feel something different. It's not really a "full" sensation, which I am sure is different for everyone, but I didn't want to put in any more than that. I also saw some can eat 6 times a day but I was instructed to only eat 3 meals a day, having my Water and Protein drinks inbetween (along with my vitamins). So are all doctors just that different? Do you all just find your own "nitch" and stick with that? I am just afraid of putting too much in, that's how I got here in the first place.

Thanks for letting me stop by and ask my questions, I look forward to any/all replies.

JulieG

Hey, just do what your doc tells you everyone is different I don't know why but you have to listen to your body, use smaller plates to trick yourself into thinking its eating more food and my doc said no drinks 1/2 hour before and 1/2 hour after eating that included Protein shakes. Good luck to you and keep me posted on your progress.

All the best, always, Andrea

Thanks Andrea, I appreciate the reply. And I will do my best to keep you posted.

JulieG

I was told to eat 4 ounces at a time. 2 or more should be protein, which should be eaten first. Then 1 ounce veggies or fruit. I had my surgery 1 month ago and I was really full at first (while swollen) but now I can probably eat about 1 cup of food and I am full. i hope this gets better after my first fill next week!

Thanks Mz. Yolanda, since yesterday I have decided to not put in more than 4 ounces, so far it has all been Protein to make sure I am getting that 60-70 grams a day. I really appreciate all the input I have gotten!!

Hugs and good luck on your fill (my first one is Dec 10th),

JulieG

Jack & Jodi (HI!!) - thanks for your details. It was very helpful. This my first week in the muchies, but I think I've been eating like week 6-8. I do try to eat only 4-6 oz of protien per meal. I will push back to 4 oz.

I'm pretty happy today...I LOST ANOTHER POUND!!!!