How many oz should I eat?
on 2/6/17 10:41 pm
My doctor was no help when I asked him, he said I would just "know" lol. Well I don't know about that, but I prefer to weigh what I'm eating. I'm currently on soft foods, so anything easy to get down. 2 oz is about what I am going for for any one particular item. I am having to actually eat foods rather than just shakes and have been told that each meal should equal 20g or more of protein. Should I just stick to what it says is a serving size for the food, or stick with my 2 oz an item? Though no matter which way, getting an entire meal finished right now has been impossible!
Long term, weighing is better to keep track of calories. Actually, the only way. But for now, you need to be concerned more about volume, because your stomach is brand new. You should be sticking to 1/4 cup, total, at one time. next stage will be 1/2 cup total, and you should be at that level for a while.
Most doctors and dietitians are idiots as far as this stuff goes. Telling a morbidly obese person to eat until they "know", or eat until they are satisfied, or full, is as dumb as you can get. How the heck do they think we got to morbid obesity?
6'3" tall, male.
Highest weight was 475. RNY on 08/21/12. Current weight: 198.
M1 -24; M2 -21; M3 -19; M4 -21; M5 -13; M6 -21; M7 -10; M8 -16; M9 -10; M10 -8; M11 -6; M12 -5.
I didn't notice your surgery date - YES, what Grim said. At your point, post-op, you should be going by volume, not weight. I started with 2 ounces volumetrically, which 1/4 cup, and I had to eat more than 3 meals a day. I didn't switch to 3 meals a day until I got to 1/2 cup of food per meal.
VSG with Dr. Salameh - 3/13/2014
Diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder and started Vyvanse - 7/22/2016
Reconstructive Surgeries with Dr. Michaels - 6/5/2017 (LBL & brachioplasty), 8/14/2017 (UBL & mastopexy), 11/6/2017 (medial leg lift)
Age 42 Height 5'4" HW 319 (1/3/2014) SW 293 (3/13/2014) CW 149 (7/16/2017)
Next Goal 145 - normal BMI | Total Weight Lost 170
TrendWeight | Food Blog (sort of functional) | Journal (down for maintenance)
on 2/7/17 7:32 am
I think I will have to eat more than 3 meals a day sinve right now getting the protein in in just 3 is impossible! I will try 4 instead and go from there.
GT, you ain't kidding! If I knew when I was full I would not have needed WLS! I went out and bought little disposable containers. first the 2 oz ones, and now the 4 oz oned. It makes it A LOT easier eating. Before I did that I would throw up probably 3 times a week because of eating too much. I would eat until "full' but of course ten minutes later my stomach caught up with my minds and I was gagging. I am still struggling but the containers/measurement makes it easier.
As for calories, the app myfitnespal is pretty good for what calories are in the volume you are eating. I just started using it.
I weigh my meals at 3-4 ounces. That means they tend to be between 3.2-4.6, depending on what I'm eating/measuring. I eat three meals a day (one of which is a shake because I like having a shake for breakfast) and I have no problems reaching my protein goals.
VSG with Dr. Salameh - 3/13/2014
Diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder and started Vyvanse - 7/22/2016
Reconstructive Surgeries with Dr. Michaels - 6/5/2017 (LBL & brachioplasty), 8/14/2017 (UBL & mastopexy), 11/6/2017 (medial leg lift)
Age 42 Height 5'4" HW 319 (1/3/2014) SW 293 (3/13/2014) CW 149 (7/16/2017)
Next Goal 145 - normal BMI | Total Weight Lost 170
TrendWeight | Food Blog (sort of functional) | Journal (down for maintenance)
on 2/7/17 4:32 am
I use the scale all the time, and I combine it with measuring cups to get a feel for both weight and volume. Volume is the way to measure what you stomach holds, and as Grim mentions, weighing out your food is how you calculate calories. When you combine the two, you will know exactly what you are putting into your stomach.
Interesting, because I asked my surgeon's office specifically whether my new stomach held 8 oz by weight or 8 oz by volume. They said 8 oz by weight, and to always weigh everything. Most of the time it's nearly the same, but if it seems like too much, I go with volume just to be safe. At 3+ months out, I can only eat 1/2 cup at a time of solid foods, 3/4 cup if it's soupy or saucy.
on 2/7/17 8:30 am
Interesting, because I asked my surgeon's office specifically whether my new stomach held 8 oz by weight or 8 oz by volume. They said 8 oz by weight, and to always weigh everything. Most of the time it's nearly the same, but if it seems like too much, I go with volume just to be safe. At 3+ months out, I can only eat 1/2 cup at a time of solid foods, 3/4 cup if it's soupy or saucy.
This is a classic example of intelligent people not thinking very clearly. Think about the volume 8 ounces of water (by weight****upies. It occupies 8 oz of volume because that is the benchmark we use, at least here in the USA. Now consider the volume of 8 oz of styrofoam. Yeah, we don't eat styrofoam, but rice cakes are pretty darn close.
The point is, different things are going to occupy different volumes for the same weight. Many will be close, but a lot of times close isn't always a good idea. How often does one more bite put you over the line from full to miserable? Our stomach does not have a scale in it. It is a bag that will hold a given volume. Each one of us is going to be slightly different. Weight is good for calorie calculation, but volume trumps weight for how much to eat.