Question:
I ate 3oz of baked salmon and it took me about 30 mins to finish

I was full after about three or four bites, but just kept taking breaks in between-should we stop after the first few bites and if so-how do I get all of my protein in from eating meats-I do not want to rely on protein shakes???BTW-is this a normal amount of time to eat a piece of fish    — TotallyTori (posted on April 22, 2003)

April 22, 2003
I'm glad you decided on meat rather than protein drinks. Very wise in my humble opinion. I had really high protein levels by eating meat and cheese. You can do it too! ;) I never could eat for 30 minutes, however by eating the meat I don't see why it should hurt you as long as you are not stuffing it in. You certainly would not want to be eating carbs for 30 minutes. But you need protein so I think you should be fine. But when in doubt, ask your surgeon. He/she is your best choice for info on this.
   — Danmark

April 22, 2003
I just had to put my .02 in here. That's grazing to me, painless pouch stretching. But then, I'm a big fan of protein drinks as I'm utterly convinced that's what holds me at goal these many years. I figure my meal is over in 15 minutes. Anything beyond that is grazing and grazing will put every stinking pound back on me, along with all their friends. And that scares me WAY more than protein drinks.
   — vitalady

April 22, 2003
My Doctor told me that it should take me 30 minutes to eat a meal at 5 weeks post-op. He has been doing some form of WLS for 30 years now and has a very high success rate so I feel comfortable with his oppinion. I think you are fine and I think the other posters are right when they say not to munch on carbs for 30 minutes but with protein...it should be o.k. Denise(open RNY > 46 lbs)
   — denisel

April 23, 2003
I think that as an early post-op, taking that long to eat your protein is OK, however, the further out you get and the quicker you can eat, the less time it should take. By 6 months or less, it should take you no more than the 15 minutes Michelle mentioned to eat your meal. At 14 months post-op, it takes me less than 10 minutes and I eat rather quickly. What I have found is that it fills the pouch quickly and I get that full feeling rapidly which means I eat less. If I took 30 minutes to eat, I could get alot of grazing done.
   — Cindy R.