How much?

I  have read many different versions of food portions...between here and my drs office and the hospital. My drs. office doesnt have the sleeve guide...They only make us follow the bypass food guide....Just to ignore where the bypassers cant have sugar...

I am still confused as to how much we are supposed to eat at each meal. The original guide I was following said. for example...(this was on full) 2oz.greek yogurt and 2oz. cream soup.
Another thing said...2oz. of farina...2oz.greek yogurt.  Ok so any of these = 4 oz. of protein or full liquid. at each meal Im assuming...Did that...

So now the guide says...for mushy/soft...can have....tuna fish...refried beans....cottage cheese..etc. but doenst say how much of each!  Is it the same as the full? Do I limit myself to so many ounces of this stuff if I eat it alone...How am I measuring this phase....Confused........

I know I ate more than 2oz of tuna fish last nite...but thats all I had....

Linda M.from Jersey

My doc says 2 - 4 ounces of mushies. I can eat 6oz of Carbmaster yogurt, but only 3oz of plain tuna. If I have tuna salad, I can eat a little more.

Just remember to stop eating when you feel full, not over full. I try to wait a few seconds after every bite to see if that will make me full before I have another bite.

The tuna I ate with fat free mayo(15cal a tbsp)....Went down fine..no problem...Tonight I ate 1 1/2 little (****tail size) turkey meatballs..I think I made them cook too long...so I couldnt eat all of them..Seemed to go down ok..Once I started burping...that was it...I dont know how many ounces they are...Maybe 1oz. each...so 1 1/2 oz. of that and two teaspoons of refried beans.

My son in law asked me this....How are you going to ever eat a normal size meal..like meat, veg, a little carb at one sitting?....If you can only eat 2-3 oz of food>? How is that enough? Do you have to eat that much for the rest of your life?

I told him the stomach will eventually stretch somewhat and I would be able to tolerate more..Hopefully by that time I will have learned how to eat healthier!

What do you think?

Linda M. from Jersey

according to my doc your entire meal should not be more than 1 cup of food at a time so for instance 1/4 cup of tuna salad, 2 tbs of veggies, 2 table spoons of carb. At the beginning of your sleeve journey many don't get more than 2 to 3 oz down in 1 sitting. But as far as I know your daily intake should never go beyond 3 cups of food. The oz versus tablespoon is difficulty. I just got an electronic food scale  to measure the ounces, because *****ally can just eyeball that ****il you get used to it). If you buy one then it is easier to keep track of your protein cause your probally not getting a full serving. Also I beleive that 1 ounce is equal to 1tbs. Bottom line eat until you feel full then stop according to my nutritionist should not go past 30 minutes per meal or drink if so stop because then you might be eating more than allowed or you'll get into the habit of grazing. This is my doc plan, but like you have seen already each doc has their own plan.

One cup of food? Thats 8 oz! I dont think I could get that in...My dr. said our sleeves are the capacity of one of those mini water bottles.

I should get one of those scales!  Thanks!

Linda,
As far as amounts, I would start out with about 2 oz of your protein source. ..if you can add more do so. However, at this point, that will probably be it. Especially if your eating about 5 times a day. Just take it slow and read the many guides you can find on this site. Or call the surgeon's office for guidance.

Regarding the comments made by your son-in-law.....You might explain to him that your stomach is still healing which is why your doing the mushies/soft food. Hopefully, our stomachs aren't going to "stretch".  When you are on regular food you will be able to put whatever you want on your plate---meat, veggies, carbs---if that is what makes you happy. But do you really want to go back to normal eating?  What used to be normal is probably way too much food. If you're like me, I served my portions far too large. That was a big part of my problem. The new normal is smaller portions and healthier foods, in my opinion.

Thanks...

No, I know I will never be able to eat a big amount and dont want to. I was told to eat 3 times a day and add shakes..2-4 oz 2x a day...

I use a measuring cup to measure the food...1/4 of a cup of this or that...= 2oz.

I know the meat veg...combo...I will very rarely have a carb when I am on reg food..

I told my son in law about the healing process..and that it can only handle so much as this point...He understood. He was just wondering..if you can only eat a little bit of food..how do you get all your nutrition? I told him........vitamins and supplements are part of this plan.

Here are a couple of sites with lots of information,  maybe these will help. 
Good luck to you,  sure hope this will help you out.


http://www.hopkinsbayview.org/bin/c/a/nutrition_sleeve.pdf


http://www.sleeveguide.com/uploads/1/7/9/4/1794785/dietguide vged42006feb.pdf

Hi Libralin!  Here is my plan:  3oz. 3 times a day.  2 ozs protein & 1oz of veg or fruit at each meal. Protein drinks, sf jello/pudding, broth and water in between.  75-90 grams of protein per day and 64 ozs of any fluids.  Also measure your food by volume not on a scale.  I hope this helps.

Tammy

p.s. I am six weeks out.

Libralin:
I meant to say 1/4 to 1/2 cup at each meal not 1 cup. thats a bit much..... so its 3 cups a day total with all intake. sorry about that. I'm no way near there.