3 versus 6 meals daily

I was interested to see what everyone was eating for Monday and I noticed more people were posting meals with snacks in between.  My doctor said to eat 3 with nothing in between.  I know different docs/nuts have different approaches, I was just wondering by consensus opinion which option most folks actually going through this feel works better.  I am losing very slowly. On the plus side, I have had no issues with pain, fatigue, nausea, hair loss. Foamies once in a great while, and I have not had any food that has disagreed with me yet (ok..there was some Thai food but might have been because I always order as spicy as it comes)  I'm thinking of trying the smaller meal/snack combo to see if that changes things up for me.

Different things work for different people. Some say that if you eat smaller, more frequent meals you keep your body fueled and it doesn't feel as though its being starved, so it doesn't try to hold on to reserves.  But - others just don't like eating that often. 

I eat snacks because,well, I like to eat!  I have to watch what I eat so I don't start grazing, instead of planned snacks - too easy for me!

Give it  try for awhile.  Also - you may want to post your menu on Menus and Miles that Roz hosts.  Its a great way to get feedback from others about your menu.  Also, you can see what others are eating to maybe change things up a bit.

BUT - don't let the carbs creep back into your daily eating with the snacks - too easy to to do!

Hi Trudy, With the surgery I had I was told 3 small meals,3 snacks...that said I try to get in protein first, mostly shakes then complex carbs, avoiding simple carbs. I also drink green teas all day long to try and get 64oz in. Snacks can be nuts, fruit, peanut butter. I can also eat cheeses and bacon ....I don't absorb fat well. I have had little bread since surgery and I like things I formerly wouldn't eat. Your diet will be a little more sensitive but I hear of great success for RNY. As for me I am very happy with my loss so far and I feel super! Good luck and check out the things people are consuming in Menus & Miles for clues to what might work for you.

 I can only eat very little at at time. There is no way I can get in enough calories each day if I only eat three meals. So, I have to snack or eat 6 small meals. 

I think it just depends on your doctor and nutritionist. Whatever you do, get protein in first.

Hugs, 

With the small portions that we can eat, I can't see how anyone could get in there protein eating only 3 meals a day. It is also better for your metabolism, reduces hunger and stablizes your blood sugar to eat small frequent meals.  I started off eating every 2 hours - 6 to 8 times per day, 1 to 2 ounces at a time.  Then slowly increased the portion sizes and decreased it to 5 to 6 times per day every 3 hours.  I continue to do this, eating 4 ounces at a time.

My program says 3 meals and my surgeon says 3 meals and *maybe* one snack. But, if you read up on this stuff, you need to eat *at least* every 3-4 hours. So, if you are awake for 16 hours a day, that's four "meals", not three and only if you can last for 4 hours between meals. Therefore, three meals a day goes against what we know about how the body works.

Some people do better eating more often than every 3-4 hours. Some science supports eating every 2-3 hours instead of every 3-4. That's generally works out to 5-6 meals in a 16 hour period but, if you eat every 2 hours, that's 8 times a day!

My experience is that every 2 hours is a bit much and getting into grazing territory, but that 5-6 meals works perfectly for a lot of people in terms of keeping their blood sugar and metabolism going.

The other thing is, in the early days you can't eat very much at one time. So you need to eat more often to get in your protein.

Finally, I work out a lot and I need to eat 2000-ish calories a day to maintain my weight, but most of my meals are in the 300 calorie range. 3 meals a day would give me only 900 calories a day, 4 meals would give me only 1200 calories. So I have to eat more often than that or I'd be skin and bones.

I was lucky enough to have a doc & NUT who were willing to try both approaches since I wasn't a binge or grazers to begin with. I generally agree with the more restricted eating plans in the beginning when people are trying to break bad habits and establish a healthy food relationship though.

In the beginning I tried only 3 meals with 3 shakes (so, really, that was 6 meals); but I found out I was allergic to artificial sweeteners so it was hard to find a good shake that didn't have them and also didn't make me dump. I tried eating a little more in my 3 meals and adding a snack, but my pouch restriction was pretty tight and I couldn't make my calorie goals. Around 4 months out I developed post-prandial hypoglycemia and my blood sugar tanked anytime I ate anything (not just carbs). So we agreed to try eating 100-200 calories every 2 hours to see if it would stabilize my blood sugar and help me make my numbers.

It worked, and my loss was consistent except at a couple of old set points. I reached 100% excess weight lost within the first year, and am now at the bottom of my healthy range (3 years post-op). I can eat a little more now (4-6 oz -- between 250-300calories), but I still eat about every 2 hours since I have an extremely active lifestyle now and need more than 2000 calories just to maintain. I still weigh every month to keep an eye on things and find I have to worry about going underweight more than overweight (but I don't think that is typical).

I'm careful not to let this regime become a free-for-all graze though. I still make all my mini-meals in the morning to meet my totals and don't stray from them very often; but I don't beat myself up for having a bite of my husband's pie or an extra yogurt or slice of cheese every now and then either. If I start feeling light-headed and fatigued, I'll eat something high protein/fat whether it's "time" for me to eat or not.

HIJACK!

Hi Plickety. I was thinking of you this past weekend and read your blog. Sounds like you guys are doing great and making decent headway on the cabin.  Congrats on getting that driveway finished.

--gina

Hey Gina -- with all the rain and mud this summer, we'll be lucky to get the cabin up before winter but I have my finger's crossed. Seems like we've done nothing but cut trees and clear brush for the past year! Definitely need to stay warmer this winter and not be out cutting firewood at 40 below everyday or else I'm going to drop down into the dangerously skinny zone again.   Lowest I got this winter was 116 and my size 2's were falling off me even wearing two pairs of long john's underneath -- definitely NOT right!!

Definitely stay warm this winter...can't have you melting away to nothing.  You should have plenty of fire wood now after clearing that driveway. Splitting it is a pain though.  I'm glad you dropped by, babeee!

--g