Question:
How can I accommodate all the requirements for stage 2 - mushy foods?

I am just 10 days PO and I am overwhelmed on juggling 64oz of liquids (water, diet snapple..) plus 70 grams of protein to my schedule. I feel that I am not choosing the correct items to eat or drink to get the best amount of protein possible without going over my 3 meals - 4oz each limit. Can anyone help?    — GettingMeBackAgain (posted on September 18, 2010)

September 18, 2010
It is difficult believe me. At 10 day PO, I believe I was still on protein shakes, my Dr. is very conservative with the diet. But when I started to eat mushy foods it was ricotta cheese, beans pureed and to tell you the truth it wasn't too much more. I wasn't able to tolerate a lot of different protein. At 10 days PO wasn't allowed to eat anything but protein. I hate to tell you this, but it is difficult, at least for me it was. It does get better, and it is so worth it. You must drink your liquids too, you are on the right track, it looks like you have an excellent Dr. Call your NUT, they are helpful.
   — FSUMom

September 18, 2010
Hi, Remember protein shakes are part of your 64oz of liquid. I always started my day with a protein shake... 8 oz of fat free, lactose free milk; scoop of protein powder; package of no sugar added or sugar free carnation instant breakfast and ice in a blender. That not only gave me 8 oz of liquid but it also gave me loads or protein. I also used flavored protein powder in bottled water. As far as meals... make sure you eat protein first. I remember having a tough time getting 4 oz of food in so I tried to take in as much protein as possible in my liquids. I am 9 mos PO and have lost 80+ pounds... I am at my goal weight and have to say I still only eat about 3 oz of meat at a meal. It will get easier as time goes on, don't get frustrated just get in as much as you can. Good Luck :) Debbie ~live as if all your dreams came true~
   — fortywhat2

September 18, 2010
I skipped the mushy stage and just did protein shakes. Still doing 1 or 2 a day even now. Truly everyone is different. You won't know until you try something..it will either stay down or come back up. For me a lot of stuff kept coming up for the first 2 months. Now I'm out 4 months and food stays down just fine. I have friends that were eating normal food at 6 weeks so everyone is different. The only requirement you need to concentrate on is the protein. And of course water. I just concentrated on those two things for the first 2 months. Now I feel like I can eat like a regular person - just smaller bites of things and no sugar etc. It gets easier with each passing day. Cheers, Tee
   — texastreat

September 19, 2010
I would find a good protein drink that tastes good. As far as one of my favorite post-mushy foods, it was cottage cheese and spaghetti sauce melted. I know that sounds bad though it is really good. I sell a protien drink I have used for 10 years call CINCH. It is by Shaklee My site is http://gastricbypasshelp.myshaklee.com I have used this to keep my hair and muscle mass. It contains a muscle building agent which helped me to stay toned.
   — shellydj1975

September 19, 2010
Hi! I am 5wks post op (on Monday), and on soft foods. When I was on purees/mushy, I drank a lot of protein shakes (the EAS ones and Muscle Milk Lite are yummy)... can you eat cottage cheese? I can't stand it, but know people on purees can usually eat it and it has lots of protein. Your protein shakes count as fluid, so keep a journal (I still keep one), put what you ate/drank, how many ounces, how many grams of Protein, etc. It is a juggle, but it does get easier, just write everything down and you'll do fine :)
   — Clumsybarbie

September 20, 2010
Soft mushy food, really is not that hard. soft boiled eggs, extra soft scrambled eggs, refried beans with salsa and cheese melted, creamed soups. My doc also said at that stage we could eat shaved meats like ham and turkey but they had to be shaved thin and I would only eat little tiny bites. Also high protein yogurts, kroger has a great one that is high in protein low in fat and carbs that comes in lots of flavors. I was only eating 2 ounces at a time at 10 days and I did just fine, also water although extremely important I was told by both doc and nut that you will have to build up to 64 ounces, they said start at 32 and work your way to 64, I bought a water bottle that held 32 ounces and worked my way up to 2 a day by the end of 6 weeks, I am now up to 3+ 32 ounce waters a day. I was also told to avoid any drink that had more than 15 calories in 24 ounces because people can easily drink there way into not losing weight, so I just stuck to water only. My doc is not a fan of drinking your protein so he made us choose foods that would be considered normal. I am 20 months post op and at my goal weight and have been since my 1 year mark (lost 116 pounds total). I would warn you to be careful with sugary things, look closely at the carb levels in all the protien powders some are low and great tasting (I like the ones found on bariatricadvantage.com especially the fuzzy navel one it is peach yummm) others are extremely hard if sugar is a weakness the sugary ones will make it hard not to crave sugar again.
   — brindledanes

September 23, 2010
Today is my third day on pureed foods and I am having pain in the area of the breast bone, low. I think maybe the egg and mayo might have been too thick. Any ideas????
   — pcannedy

September 28, 2010
I'm on full liquids for 3 weeks. I get most of my protein from shakes. My favorite shake: 1/2 cup of skim/1% milk, 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder, 1teapon reduced fat peanut butter, and a couple ice cubes. this makes 2 shakes about 1/4 cup each, at 18g of protein each. I have 3 shakes a day. I also eat 2-3 more times. Basically eat or shake every 3 hrs. I eat a pudding cup (usually 2/3 fills me up), 1/4 cup of lwfat cottage cheese (6g Protein), cream soups strained (make with milk and get 4oz/4g protein) I also get in my 64oz water. I'm 2 weeks out and down 24 lbs!! 1 more week on full liquids and on to blended food. Good Luck to you!
   — Shannon D.