whatcha eatin? :)

im curious what the rest of yall are eating! Im 8 weeks postop myself, have lost 40 lbs. Ive have slowed down dramatically tho the past month. Anyway, im eating alot of cheese (maybe too much. but its all fat free and low fat), deli thin turkey, tuna, chicken salad, cheese on crackers, etc... but i wanna try new stuff. id love to hear what the rest of yall are eating every day! Rachel 270/230/170

Hi Rachel, I am on reg food now. But since early on the small wendy's chili is great!High in fiber and 19 grams of protein and 200 cal. I also like the sugar free icepops. a crabcake. hmmm lets see salad works well for me i put some feta cheese on it for taste and protein. I had a baked clam, scramble egg or egg salad, wheat crackers, bread is still hard for me to eat, even toasted. these are some things i found stayed down well. . btw not all in one day...

Congratulations, you are doing GREAT!!! Breakfast: Small U-Turn protein bar Lunch: Lettuce Wrap from Pickup Stix (ate 1 - just the chicken) Dinner: Same and a piece of cheese Snack: Small u-Turn protein bar lots of water, lots of walking today too.

Hi Rachel, Your doing great, I have had a lot of post op complications, but find what you are eating is pretty much what I can eat. Have you tried any veggies? I find soft cooked veggies stay down really well and I eather cook them in broth or add butter buds (fake sprinkle on butter flavered flakes ) they even come in cheese flavered, not bad tasting either. Take care Sue

Rachel, I am not eating a big variety of foods yet, but egg salad, and tuna salad seem to work well. Baked or broiled fish are pretty easy as well. I have had a hard time getting enough protein and can't tolerate the protein shake mixes, but I make my own with sugar free Carnation Instant Breakfast mix, 1 cup skim milk and 1/3 cup powdered skim milk. This drink is 21 grams of protein - not too bad. I have also tried the protein bars which seem to be easier for me to tolerate. My favorite treat is garden vegetable cream cheese on a cracker! Yum! I still am not really eating a lot of veggies unless they are in soup - after getting my protein in, I do not have any room left. Yesterday: Breakfast - Protein drink Lunch - tuna salad Dinner - Baked chicken and pinto beans Snack - 2 crackers with cream cheese And of course - water, water, water Liz

Hi Rachel. I have been trying all kinds of stuff (haven't been too successful with poultry, most seafood or eggs--bummer): *Natural peanut butter--(the oil was separated when I bought it so I dumped the oil out and made it low fat)-usually scoop 1.5 tsp on a saltine or triscuit *beef jerky-low fat, read your labels and chew, chew, chew *Wendy's chili *low-carb tortilla wraps with lean ham, ff cheese, and any meat products (tuna salad, taco meat, chicken (when I can keep it down), etc) *egg drop soup (homemade with egg whites and ff chicken broth) *Taco Bell pintos and beans *I have mixed spaghetti sauce and ground beef (small amounts) with my cottage cheese to spice it up a bit (reminds me of lasagna) *I eat a prune or two each day (lol--must be all the cheese) You're doing great and hope this helps, Dorothy 325/263/165 Down 62 pounds---yippee!!

I feel like I could use some new ideas too, Rachel. I'm not doing very well with getting in a variety of foods. I can't keep chicken or beef down. I also can't tolerate scrambled eggs or egg beaters. Strangely enough I can eat a poached egg or egg salad. I can also eat shrimp (not breaded). I eat soft cheese like Velveeta, deli turkey, and peanut butter on saltines. I still think what I can and can't eat is strange. I can eat a few shrimp with a bit of ****tail sauce and feel fine but I can't eat even the smallest amount of plain tender baked chicken without getting sick. I can also eat cottage cheese which I have loved since I was a kid, but I've lost my taste for it now. I know that protein is really important but I can't deal with the taste of the shakes. I drive myself crazy worrying about whether I'm eating too much or too little! Anyway, it is nice to read what everyone else is eating. Linda open RNY (hernia repair & apendectomy) Dr. Anita Courcoulas/Shadyside Hospital

Hi Rachel, Well I must say reading all these responses is such a help for me too!! I am almost 3 months out, and I try to keep everything on my plate...this is what I mean, my doctor told me that a successful surgery is when a patient limits the food intake without limiting the types of food. He also said that surgery should help a patient get to a desired weight and maintain that weight with a normal diet when you reach goal (or close to it). And a patient might have food issues in the first year, but never take it off your plate, revisit as time goes on. We have a new stomache, almost as like a newborn, time, trial and error, teach our new stomaches. My doc also said to eat the protein first, think and always eat smart, surgery or not, this is good to follow for everyone. I have a hard time with white bread (especially fresh baked or rolls), I do okay with wheat bread, especially toasted! I try to limit my bread though, maybe i'll have one slice in a week for lunch with lunch meat and cheese. And fried food, hurt my stomache like hell is trying to open shop!!! I have found that some foods (lettuce, broccoli, lobster, chicken breast) where hard at first, but I think my problem was chewing. Know I realize if I chew really well (almost liquid before I swallow), that really helps. And I eat 2 bites if its something new or something I had a problem with before (chew chew chew chew chew, etc...) then leave it alone, and if it's ok, then I'll try a little more. One last thing (I should write a book ) GNC has a great protein powder, 25 grms, it's their brandname, Chocolate. I blend it with a small banana, and skim milk (or water). It is so good, my 2 sons and husband both drink it with me on the way out the door for school and work. Tracie -60 lbs

I have attempted to be brave in my food choices... one thing I've noticed is spices really do me in. I can't have any thing too spicy or else I am driving the porciline bus. Here's some of my favorites though... Pinto's and Cheese from Taco Bell are great and cheap. Cottage Cheese with a half a of sliced pear in lite syrup (drained) Shrimp (8 or 9 med. sized) Cheese (Tillamook Mild Chedder and string cheese) Yogurt (Lite and Fit is my favorite) Luna Glow Bars (Low carbs and sugar and about 18 gr. of protien) chicken tenders (a fullsezed breast is too big and I can cook one of these in 4 minutes) protien shakes (I add 1 yogurt, 2 strawberries or peach slices, my protien powder and a little water or Silk Soy Milk) South Beach Diet Bars (they are by far the tastiest protien bar I've found and they have 24 grams of protien per bar!) Peanuts (I am having a hard time getting the calories I need, so this is a good choice for me once in a while) I also like to eat half a Healthy Choice or WW dinner a couple times a week. Protien first of course. Chinese Chicken Salad is a favorite of mine also. Best wishes! Sarah -42 lbs since 2/24/04

Fish-baked or brioled especially salmon Beans-pintos, butter beans, bean salad Veg-Asparagus, broccoli, spinach, lettuce, carrots, green beans Meat-Pork, Beef, Lamb NO POULTRY!(makes me yak) Canned meat- tuna, chicken, ham, crab Snack: peanuts, beef jerky, low carb chips(1 bag=15 gm of protein)SF chcocolate, string cheese Drinks: minute maid lite, arizona SF green tea, SF Tang My doctor and nutirtionist like for their patients to eat a balanced diet while still getting in their protein. I do not drink shakes period since week 2. I do eat protein bars,one a day to make sure that I get in my 60grams of protein a day. I have been getting all of my water since week two.