2 tablespoons is all I am allowed...

My program only wants me to eat 2T. per meal I know I have eaten about 3T at a time here and there, but it depends on the consistency of what I am eating. It appears that some of you that had surgery after I did are eating much more than this per meal. I was told only 300 calories a day as well. I do not move into 4 T. (1/4 cup****il month 3-so that's November 16th...a whole month away. What does your program recommend for portions at this time?? By the way--- I was told to lay off the smoothies. (Not that I was having many of them in the first place) My nurse put it to me this way: I could not eat a whole banana at one sitting plus the yogurt, milk & strawberries I put into it. She said that it is probably more than 300 calories. I was putting my protein powder in it to get my protein in. (This smoothie would end up being about 32oz) She says that since it is pureed, it will go down easier since we are now like a funnel. So, no more smoothies for me...

Wow! I am eating about 500 calories a day....1/2 cup of food. I do one protein shake a day...no smoothies, just milk and protein powder. Hugs, Traci

I'm between 500-700 depending on exactly what I have. I normally have my protein first and a vege and a fruit or starch SOMETIMES. I can eat about 2 tbsp of each of those things. OR 3/4 tbsp of something like spaghetti sauce wtih meat.

Hi Lisa, I'm eating between 250 and 350 per day. My doc told me to keep the calories as low as I could for as long as I could. My pouch is about the size of an egg. I don't mind eating so little though. I'm down 54 lbs. That beats my all time record high weight loss. I think how much one is capable of eating now has to do with maybe how much stomach was left intact. Apparently your doc and mine do similiar surgeries. Good luck. Carol

Lisa, You are doing great! My question is...how are you able to get in you protein on such small servings? Do you do shakes? Hugs, Traci

Traci I don't! I am eating protein first in whatever I do eat. That is why I was doing the smoothies-I would get the protein, fruit & calcium. I think I will have to go back to them and skip what the nurse said. I don't want to be malnurished, ya know? I really like my hair the way it is too. It is hard to count protein since I only eat a small portion. For example, if I eat 1/2 a cheese stick, I only get 1/2 the protein. I am going to start "biotin" to help out with hair, nails & skin though. I supposed I could try it in a shake-with milk, but it's "flavorless"-yet it still has a flavor. I like my skim milk tasting like skim... I am picky!! Plus I don't drink a lot of milk. I used to drink about 16oz+ a day before surgery. I have tried "unjury" chocolate protein-so maybe I will have to get more of that and have chocolate milk. ;) Lisa

Lisa, I know how you feel...early out I was so tired, had no desire to eat or drink anything. I couldn't come anywhere near my required protein amount....or water intake amount. I told myself that going bald wasn't such a bad thing. I started using other ways like Stallone Pudding and Isopure RTD....it helped. I also used Profect...which is so nasty! It is like super thick sugary medication...gross. Something happened around 4 weeks out...I was able to eat more food. That also worried me too....but that meant that I didn't have to rely so much on the other protein I had been using. I could drink more water too....very happy about that. I use Unjury chocolate....made with skim milk. I make sure it is super cold and I am able to get the whole thing down in about 20 minutes. Your weight loss is great....you will get the other stuff under control soon. Hugs, Traci

I eat 1/2 cup per meal ... about 800 calories per day. I've lost 50 lbs and my surgery was on 8/7 ... Keeping your calories that low is just going to slow down your metabolism, and this will make it difficult to keep the weight off. My surgeon and NUT want me to slowly increase my calories to 1000-1200 per day to prevent this. Annette

I agree with Annette. I eat about 1/2 cup per meal and have a snack between meals. I usually don't count calories, but try to choose protein first and drink about 4 glasses of water a day. I know I am not getting enough protein or water in, but I try. But I certainly do not starve myself either. I think I get between 500 and 700 calories a day. My doctor said he does not want me losing more than 2 pounds a week. I think as Tracey pointed out, you can't possibly get the nutrition (protein) in with that little of food. I would talk to my doctor again. ALso you have to find what works for you, but please don't starve yourself. Cindy