Question:
Can someone tell me how often and what specifically I should be eating now at 4 month

I am 16 weeks post-op now, and feel like I am eating very strangely. Such as today, I got up and drank 8 oz of water, and about 4 oz of coffee. Than about 20 minutes later I was hungry so I had about 3-4oz of marinated chicken chunks with onions(this is breakfast), and about 2 hours later I was hungry again so I had some low-fat wheatables(about 5-6) and some fat free chips and about 1oz beef jerky, I later drank more water, and about 1 1/2 to 2 hours later was hungry again, so I had some sugar free pudding with cheerios on top(about 3-4oz). than at dinner time about 2 hours after the last feeding I had a small salad with some beef tips on it(about 2oz of beef) and some leftover french onion soup(about 3oz) I feel like i am not eating right, and that I am getting hungry far to frequently, when I do eat I seem to fill up very quickly, but I know I will get hungry soon after. Is this normal? I have lost 75lbs so far and am thrilled, but I am concerned that I am going to stretch my pouch by eating to frequently!! I am eating an apple right now, only 1 1/2 hour after eating my dinner, and I will probably want to snack again before bed!!! (I will try not to) What is wrong with me????? If someone could give me an example menu and food amounts for a 4 month post-op I would really appreciate it!!!!!!!!!!!    — [Anonymous] (posted on January 13, 2001)

January 13, 2001
Hi, I'm 4 1/2 months post-op and this is what I had to eat today: breakfast - 1 scrambled egg; lunch - 1/4 of a turkey & swiss cheese sandwich (I only ate one side of the bread), a couple bites of my husband's patty melt and 2 french fries; dinner - a couple ounces of halibit, a small amount of baked potato, a couple bites of potato soup and a couple bites of cheese cake (it's my son's 20th birthday so I thought I'd celebrate). I had some wheat thins for a snack this afternoon. Today was a little unusual since we ate out twice. I have not had a protein drink or bar today which I try to do each day. I often get hungry a couple hours after I eat as well. I saw my surgeon yesterday and he told me I need to eat more fruits and vegetables than I have been since I've been focusing mainly on protein. I don't focus a lot on the number of calories or amount that I am eating because I had this surgery to try and live a normal life and not be constantly worried about what I was eating. Good luck with your eating plan.
   — georgiacarol

January 13, 2001
I didn't see where you mentioned your protein drinks in here. If you're not getting 60g by supplement, it sounds like the cravings are taking over. We were encouraged to eat 5 or 6 ONE OZ meals per day until goal wt. So, the frequency isn't scary, but the volume is fairly large to eat that often. You might want to have a protein drink (no milk or sugar) for breakfast and again mid-day and see if that helps with that urge to eat, as well as making the volume a little smaller per meal. Also, are you getting in your 64 os of water? I drink right up to a meal to help fill my pouch a bit before I eat. Your wt loss to date is excellent.
   — vitalady

January 13, 2001
The first advice that I would offer is to either speak to your surgeon regarding your concerns or carefully review the post-op instructions that you were given at the time of your surgery. Each surgeon represented on this site seems to have widely varying dietary regimens for their patients...from the subject of protein supplementation to the amounts/types of foods to the number of meals/day. My surgeon is reknowned internationally as one of the leading specialists in RNY. His dietary regimen is much more simplistic than many other bariatric surgeons, but considerably more strict in his expectations. At 6 weeks post-op, we are instructed to eat 3 meals/day + 1 snack for the remainder of our lives...absolutely no other in-between-meal eating. He feels strongly that it is imperative to establish good eating habits early post-op, because he attributes "failure" of the surgery to only one thing: a gradual return to former "grazing" patterns, increased food intake which eventually stretches the pouch to a larger tolerance and increases appetite, and a subsequent return to the intake of higher caloric foods. RNY patients have a 12-18 month "window of opportunity" for optimal weight loss directly related to the surgical procedure. After that, a certain degree of appetite returns as well as calorie reabsorption in the newly-constructed Y-limb of the intestine. Continued weight loss or the maintainence of weight loss after that time depends largely on exercise and a faithful adherence to the good/normal eating habits that have been "re-learned" during the immediate post-op period. Unfortunately, some WLS patients see their surgeries as the "magic cure" and not as a tool which does demand some work and dedication on the part of the patient. Your weight loss is excellent, but your "grazing" patterns now may impact the overall success of your surgery as time goes on. You might try concentrating on really increasing water/fluid intake between meals to get past those hunger pangs. I wish you the very best!
   — Diana T.

January 14, 2001
Hi i am only 6 wks out so i cant really give you any advice on what you should be eating,,,but to help control the in between hunger try this,,,, ice tea with splenda for some reason it really fills me up,,,sometimes that i forget to eat, they say tea is a natural and stops all those hunger pains,,, and you can count is as your water intake too! good luck and great weight loss!
   — kimberly G.