Reevaluation of my diet, time to shuffle the deck

So, I'm almost six months post op. I've lost consistently without major stalls. I've been examining my diet trends in my fitness pal. I'm good with overall calories, and am meeting protein, but the trend I see that I think I need to change is % of calories stemming from snacks; which also seems to be the source of my carbs mostly. (My only goal for carbs is that they are less than my protein)

I'm one whose hunger hasn't returned yet. I only snack to give me more options for getting protein, but lately it feels more like a habit. (Usual snacks include: cashews, cheese stick, yogurt, jello). Considering that I'm not hungry, I'm thinking of forgoing the snacks and maybe increasing my meal size. (?). I don't weigh/measure... I eat to satiety and have not had an issue with feeling overly full (or hungry), so it's working for me. Increasing the meal size would be for the benefit of ensuring I get the protein I'd be missing from the snacks.

If I don't nix the snacks I can see the carbs growing into a problem, so I need to do something and I don't want to use protein shakes.

Thoughts??

I don't know how many snacks you are having, but why don't you try and have more protein snacks and just cut down on the carbs? Getting used to eating more at a sitting I think could backfire in the long run - just something to think about. It really is a balancing act of not eating too much at any given time, yet not grazing. Just literal food for thought. :)

That's a good point (about getting used to eating more in one setting).

Today I decided not to pack any snacks in my lunch bag. Just my lunch (chicken) and and Apple. I'll go through today without snacks and see where I end up today with my protein.

The topic of carbs came up in my Support Grp meeting on Tuesday. Are you going to the Support Grps at your surgeon's office??

Our NUT's guidelines were 26gm carbs max for women - men get a few more. She told us we don't have to worry about counting calories until we are in maintenance, just stay on the program of protein then veggies.

I actually giggled at that max carb count. So unrealistic for me! My carbs average between 50 and 100 in a day. My nut feels carbs are necessary, just to be mindful of the source of them. She's never expressed any maximums.

I'm reevaluating because my carbs have been holding steady towards a hundred, I prefer them lower.

Thanks.

First, great new avatar! How you doin'?

Next, I think it's fantastic that you keep track of what you eat, reexamine it, and make adjustments. Those are great habits.

I've changed my routine a few times. For the past several months, eating by the clock works best for me. I eat at 7, 11, 2, 5 and 8. I don't think of them as breakfast lunch or dinner, or meals and snacks. I don't wait until I'm hungry, or eat til I'm full. It's just putting gas in the tank. And I avoid the trap of meals being protein, and snacks being carbs.

I would say that for some things, like cashews, you might be better in the long run if you weigh portions. If you put a can of cashews near me, I would eat about 3 million of them. And slap your hand if you tried to take them away. Things like that have a lot of calories, and they add up fast. Weigh out a set amount is the only way I can do it.

But the biggest thing is you keep looking closely at what you are doing. We all have different things that work, and don't work. Only by staying on top of it, like you are, can we adjust. When we put our head in the sand, we're doomed.

Thank Grim.

I'm just gonna shake things up for a few days to see how I respond and if I meet my protein goal sans snacks.

Cashews aren't a big draw for me, I only eat them to tolerate the cheese stick, which I feel is dreadful iwithout something with it. One the cheese stick is eaten, the cashews are done with. Either way, I'm gonna leave both alone for a few days, they aren't netting me much protein anyway.

I only snack to reach my protein goal for the day, which I set at 70 grams of protein. I need to eat four times and drink half a protein shake to get that much protein in one day. I really don't understand how you can rely on your calorie and protein counts in any way if you are not measuring. Guessing only leads to consuming more calories than you think.

And that was my point, I was snacking to reach protein goals... but I'm not really sure I need to.

Since I'm losing, and not stalling, not losing hair (an irrelevant concern for me), and my energy level is fine-- I think I'm good w/o weighing/measuring. I do use old tips I got from when I did weigh****chers (IE- serving of meat is equivalent to the size of a deck of cards). If I see those things change, I'll consider pulling out the food scale etc.

I hit my first major stall a little after I passed the six month mark. I agree that you should eat fewer times if you are getting enough protein. Just stay vigilant and be ready to make adjustments if needed. I too have been trying to adjust things. It takes a long time to figure everything out.