Weighing, Measuring, and planning...advice please!!

So I am having a difficult time figuring out how much I should eat and when at this point. Unlike many VSGers I do still have real hunger but when I can get denser meals in like chili, or egg salad (still in the soft foods stage) I notice my hunger is kept at bay much longer. My problem right now is that I am eating very little but finding I often eat too much. By too much I mean I feel full after eating but sometimes within 5-10 minutes I start to feel a little nauseous. I know I need to start weighing and measuring food but I don't even know what I should be eating right now. My plan initially said 1-3 oz eventually expanding to 6-8 oz with in the first year. I think I am eating around 2oz (might be a bit more when I start feeling sick) but if its something like cottage cheese or a protein shake I am really hungry again in an hour or so. I am thinking it will get better next week when I am eating denser proteins but I want to start planning a little better to minimize feeling nauseous.

Also I am currently eating about 4 meals a day as I get up at 4 am for work. I try to eat a small amount of oatmeal to start the day, soup or a protein shake for lunch (my lunch at work is 9 am), something dense in the after noon around 2 pm when I get off like an egg (though I cant eat a whole egg), then dinner (something like beans or chili). Honestly reading this it sounds more organized then it is and I feel like I am screwing up by not planning and weighing.

Can you please share your typical menu for the day including approx. ounces (if you recall will you share your typical day when you were in your early months, I can have full foods starting next week so you dont have to take into consideration soft foods).

Hi there,

I do highly recommend that you measure and plan.  It is sooooo easy to think a serving is 2 ounces when it really is 3 or 4.  There are a lot of hidden calories in a day too, and the logging will help you to be cognizant of that.  You may want to consider an acid reducer if you are feeling hunger that fast, as it may help with that situation.  

I have a larger stomach than most, so I am not so sure I can help you with portion size.  Early out was 2 ounces of Fage with protein supplement and sugar free Torani mixed in.  When I first started eating protein I could do 4 ounces, but was full on that.  After a bit I would measure out 3 ounces and was satisfied with that.  As time progressed I added in carbs and veggies.  Today (in maintanence and a year out) I eat a small, but normal sized meal.  Today at Applebeas I ate the 7 ounce sirloin (but left 3 ounces or so on the plate) along with all of the veggies and a quarter of 1 mozzerella stick.  That is a fairly normal amount for me. If it is a carb heavy meal I eat more, because carbs slide much easier than the protein.  

Thanks! I am usually really good at tracking using livestrong/ daily plate but got off track when I started soft foods since in the liquid stage I was only at around 450-500 calories per day and tracking felt sorta silly. I agree that eyeballing it is a terrible way to keep track. When I initially wrote the post I thought I was around 2.5- 3oz but I discovered last night I'm eating around 2oz or just under. Thanks again for giving me an idea of your progression in meal sizes.

I try to use the same size dish to eat from.  It's a 3/4C storage container, I fill it to 1/2C portion size and this is pretty much what I eat.  Strangely enough, this is the same dish I used to carry my salad dressing in when I ate big salads.  Now it's my whole entire meal!!

Great idea. I have a few tiny storage bowls that hold about 1/2 cup so if i fill them half way it would be a great way to keep track. I might actually just put a small sharpie line at the 1/4 cup line. Thanks!

I recommend starting by measuring (or weighing) what you're eating now, then adjusting according to how you feel. For instance, if you find hat 2 ounces of something makes you feel awful you can try 1.5 ounces next time.

You're less than a month out - your portions should still be very small, and you might want to consider eating 5-6 times a day instead of 4.

Soft foods are generally moist foods you can cut with a fork - string cheese, scrambled egg, baked finny fish, salmon/tuna/egg salad, cottage cheese, meats cooked to very tender, cold cuts, beans, veggies a bit overcooked.

A lot of us use myfitnesspal for keeping track of what we're eating and making sure we get our protein in. You're welcome to add me as a friend there - my nick there is KellyAnneH.

Thank you. I tried this last night. I need a new battery for my scale so I measured my dinner instead of weighing it and 1/4 cup was just about right if not a bit too much. Also thanks for the info on soft foods. I could use something with more density and you listed some good ideas. I may need to like fish a bit more. Also I might check out my fitness pal. I have been using lifestrong (daily plate) for 5 years so I am so accustomed to it (plus it has all my weight tracking and foods diaries during that time) but it would be nice to connect with others and myfitnesspal is better at bringing in that element.

Something else I've found really helpful - 2 ounces of chicken or fish is about 1/2 the size of my iPhone or the equivalent in volume of an egg. We travel a lot these days (I'm heading out to New Brunswick for a month just after Christmas - first grand baby!) and although I own a small digital scale just for that sometimes it's just a lot easier to guesstimate by approximate volume.

It's a 9 hour trip, so I need to plan 3 "meals" for along the way. First 2 - a Greek yogurt cup and spoon tucked into my "wet stuff" ziplock and a covered container of high fibre cereal for on the plane. (I ask for milk when they're serving drinks) 3rd meal - I put whey powder, 1/2 dose of Miralax and a packet of Hawaiian Punch into my water bottle. Some water, a good, hard shake and breakfast is made.

When in restaurants (not my favourite place to eat, but sometimes it's my only option) I either order a cup of soup or a salad with grilled chicken and a takeaway box. I put 2/3 of the salad and all but my "1/2 an iPhone " of chicken into the box before I start eating. Not only does it avoid a worried server asking if I don't like my meal, but I find the smaller portion much more comfortable to face. There's something so pitiful about nibbling at the corner of a meal, knowing you can't come close to eating it all.

I'm 8 weeks post op, and this is my experience only.

I've never weighed / measured anything nor will I. My tummy is the boss. I can eyeball my food and know I can only eat 2 bites of anything.

My typical food is:

Chicken salad

Greek yogurt

vitamin water/ice water

Lean turkey peperettes (from costco)

egg

grape tomatoes

I typically eat about 2 bites of one of the above 3 times a day because I physically cannot eat anymore.