Question:
How many meals am I to be eating each day??

When i started this journey in Feb 2008 i met with a surgeon and a nut, well about 4months into my 6mo preop my surgeon left the practice and i found myspself another one (a better one)... Well now i am finding that what my nut told me isnt what my current surgeon wants me to be doing... Im so confused! I was 1month post op Nov 23rd, I have had no complications and nothing has made me sick. i am currently in the 2nd stage out of 3 and im told i can have pureed foods and to swallow nothing bigger than a pea. So ive been following those guidelines but i have been getting most of my protein thru milk/cottage cheese/food processed meats i get about 60gm a day but not thru protein shakes... Am i suppose to be drinking a protein shake (is that required?). also, i have been reading about how some people eat 6 meals a day and some eat 3, also how people meausre their food. I havent been doing any of this, i eat to get my protein in (since im never hungry) and i eat a few bites and stop NEVER UNTIL I FEEL FULL - i believe i am to eat 1/4c of food per meal and in the next few months make it 1/2c per meal. I dont understand this because chewed food is smaller than whole food. I did so much research before this surgery and am shocked at what i still dont know, any help is appreciated!! I dont want to fail, ive come too far!!    — LauraMarie (posted on November 27, 2008)

November 27, 2008
Congratulations on your success so far! Just the fact that you want to remain educated about the right eating habits demonstrates that you want success! The number of meals that one eats per day, really, depends on your body type, what your surgeon deems appropriate for you, and what your triggers out. Personally, my nutritionist and surgeon gave me a food-management plan pre-operatively that I have been following since then (I am nearly two years out), and I have found it to be successful for me. I still have my food-management plan that I would more than willing to share with you via e-mail. I can scan the sheets and send them to you for your review. You can be free to share them with your surgeon so he or she can make the necessary tweaks for your particular situation. You can reach me at [email protected]. X-man
   — Xavier Smith

November 27, 2008
Laura, It sounds to me like you're doing fine but I think you might feel more secure if you called your Dr's office and requested a follow-up with a nutritionist who will instruct you in the eating plan your Dr feels is appropriate. You should also be given some some written materials to read and refer to at home. I'm just behind you at 3 1/2 weeks and I know how you must feel. You think you're doing it right but you aren't sure and you don't want to screw it up, right? If I didn't have the written materials to refer to, I'd be lost! I hope this helps. Tina
   — Tina G.

November 27, 2008
You are doing fine! Don't worry so much about weighing food and measuring stuff out just yet! You will increase your intake weekly and even daily at some points. When you reach a year out and are in the maintenence phase of your journey...It is good to measue and weight now and then to keep in "check", especially if you are struggling with some weight gain or large fluccuations on the scale. Otherwise, just RELAX and let this be a gradual process. I personally eat several times a day...as a cured diabetic, I had to eat 6 small meals a day to control sugar with diet...Now that I no longer have diabetes, I still control my sugar levels to insure I maintain weight! But I try not to eat more than 5-6 time a day or else it is considered grazing...and that can lead to weight gain. Docs/Nuts have different opinions, 'tis true! BUT, you have to do what is right and good for you...and if eating three meals a day leaves you famished and hungry before your next meal, it's not going to cause you to gain weight if you eat a small snack til the next meal! I was told to only drink a protein drink until I could eat my food...and I can eat my food after several years! However, I recently (over the last year) have a protein drink for breakfast because I tend to skip breakfast and get weak by lunch and I was hooked on coffee fru fru in all it's sugar and calorie glory! So the protein in my morning drink is a perfect solution for me! I am also very active/muscular... so the extra protein is a great replacement of the carbs I would have normally either eaten or drank as sugar and fat in my coffee...I think even my nut would agree that it is a great "better choice"...So my advice to you is to follow your own instinct as TRUST yourself and your tool as long as you follow the basic rules of your surgery...all else is just opinion and no one diet plan is universal...You find one that works well for you and leaves you an easy and normal, healthy lifestyle...Trust your tool and have confidence in it because as long as you use it properly, it will treat you well and you will become an average sized, regular person! (It's sooooo boring...and all the time I was MO... I thought thinner people had all kinds of bells and whistles!...BAH! It's so boring...No meds, no pain, no drama...sheesh!) LOL
   — .Anita R.

November 27, 2008
for something that was suspose to be easy, it sure can make you feel over whemed!!!!! for me anyway. st v gave us a note book with every stage in it. both what to and how much.... three meals a day is what has been set up for us. i have to get it out and read it all the time.... i get so confused. but we just keep on truckin!!! you too will be great. my mind just gets so full sometimes it is too much from time to time.
   — peggy R.

November 28, 2008
Hi Laura, I to have only been Post Op 4 weeks and Istarted to eat some solids but I only eat 3 meals a day. The little suport group I have that is what every one said. Eating more than three is what can put more weight back on. Pick carefully what to eat and I have one protein shake to start the day I findthat helps. Then the meats and dairy to get the rest. Most of the group has said that the more you eat the more you waqnt to eat. So 3 meals is the best to start and stick with. Scott
   — Scott Ambrose