Results of my restriction...

I just performed an at-home sleeve restriction test on myself. Here is what I ate: Shredded chicken that I cooked in sal****er in my crockpot yesterday. Shredded last night and put in fridge overnight. And that is all - no sauces. First thing of the morning, not anything to drink since about midnight last night.

I just ate 6.25 oz of this chicken over about 1.5 hrs. I still don't feel uncomfortably full in my stomach. It took so long because I wanted to make sure I didn't overdo it too fast and because I was "head-full" with the dry, tasteless chicken a long time back and did not want anymore! But not really feeling a whole lot of restriction. I decided to quit because I really don't want anymore and because now it has been 1.5 hrs like I said. So everyone else who was feeling depressed about themselves today can feel good again . . . except me. Oh, yeah, did I mentioned I'm only about 10 weeks post-op with 36fr sewn to a 34fr? And during our leak test after surgery my surgeon told me my sleeve was a bit smalled than the other two girls their with me who had the same surgery on the same day ? And, NO, I am no masochist who gorges myself to vomiting daily. In fact, I have never vomited from overeating even once. Did I have a few times where I felt like I went a little too far maybe and had a little discomfort? Yes, but who hasn't done that?

If I've done anything wrong in my self-test, let me know. I am going to see my PCP here in the US for 3 month check-up in a couple weeks - I'm going to ask him about it and hope he knows a little something about sleeves.  Yes, I believe I am a fast healer/adapter, but even if I was a year post -op I don't think I should be able to eat this much dense protein. How can this be explained? I have long thought my "wiring" between my brain and stomach didn't work properly - may this is the case. Have I been brutally stuffed myself and did not know it because it didn't register in my brain?

Give me 1.5 hours and I could eat 6 oz of dense protein too.  The guideline is to eat your meal in 20-30 minutes, no more.  Even though dense protein moves out of your stomach slower, it DOES move out, and over and 1.5, some has moved out and made room for more.  Try eating 6 oz in 20 minutes and tell me how you feel.

Ok, thanks, Emelar. I just did not want to get ahead of myself too fast because sometimes i think that's how I have ended up a little uncomfortable after a meal in the past. But I guess it was too long - it's just hard to get down that dry tasteless chicken that fast.I started with 2 oz on my plate, and just like often, I have to stop for a few minutes after I first starting eating (like 1-2 oz) and then it's like I can just keep going. . . .

I'd have to agree with the others- one way to get in more than your 2oz of meat is to eat slooow over a long period of time.. heck, I did it with a fantastic steak just because I wanted more than 2 oz.. I called game at 3, but it was still 45-50 mins of slow, very well chewed eating.. I could have kept going at my slow pace and fit more in.. but that kinda defeats the purpose.

That initial restriction at 1-2 oz that makes you stop and wait - THAT's your restriction.. Don't stop and wait- just stop. Eventually that restriction will get even slightly less and you will be able to get maybe 2-3.5 oz in during that 20-30 min feeding.. so don't let that surprise you either when it happens! You can pack more in by doing what you did- so it's not surprising at all. You're slowly packing more in at the front end, while your sleeve is emptying at the other.. 

I could poke many holes in your test.  First off I think I can eat well actually I KNOW I can eat almost a whole rotisserie chicken if I nibbled on it for 1.5 HOURS.  In addition the way you prepare foods is also...sal****er in a crockpot yeah it's going to be a little easier to eat then say 6oz of grilled/baked chicken.  Even though it's dry the chicken basically has soaked in water so while it was 6oz it absorbed water so it was chicken AND water.  Another thing is the length of time you are testing...when we are eating we are told 20-30 minutes and stop.  It takes the brain about 20 minutes for our stomachs to send the signal to our brain that we are full.  So stopping even though you aren't full your brain registers it later.

Now I haven't followed your posts but why are you 10 weeks out and testing your sleeve?

Ms Shell

I'm testing because I'm worried that I can more than I should be able to. The other night I posted about my experience at Applebee's where I ate probably 5 oz of a 7 oz steak topped with cheese plus a side of steamed veggies. However, someone pointed out that 7 oz is the pre-cooked weight, and I don't know what the actually weight was when I got it out there on my plate, but it looked like a pretty dang big steak to me! I weighed the leftover part of the steak when I got home and it was about 2 oz so I initially had figured I ate 5 oz of steak with cheese on top and veggies. Someone pointed out maybe it was more like 3 oz after cooking and all. People also said the true test of their restriction was with dense protein alone - that sauces and veggies and other stuff made the protein slide down faster and or better and they could eat more that way than when eating protein alone. So, I just want to know truly how much restriction my sleeve has.

Gotcha...I caught up on your plight by checking your latests posts so with that.  The steak was NOT 7oz when it got on your plate.  I know becasue I OFTEN weight stuff before I cook it and then after for ****s and giggles.  If the meat has little to NO fat it doesn't lose as much BUT if it does have fat like MOST meats that we are served then it loses more.  For instance the other day I weighed a 4.5oz piece of boneless, skinless chicken thigh.  It was 2.35oz when I took it out the over probably less if I would have let it rest and more juices would have run out.  When I cook a chicken breast give or take it loses about 1.5oz.  So that's first.  In addition eating out is WAY different then broiling, eating at home (which is why you are testing at home) which is why I urge you to say bake the chicken and not make it in a crockpot.  Also when we are out we tend to languish and take our time etc etc like you did in your 1.5 hour test.  Do try it over say a 30 minute period eating slowly and mindfully.

Now while I understand you believe you can eat more and you might be able to, so if you feel you must test go right ahead but there isn't going to be much you are going to be able to do about it.  Once you are sleeved you are sleeved.  Some folks are able to eat more...some say they doctor makes the sleeve bigger, some because our stomachs are longer etc etc.  When it all boils down to it we have to do the BEST we can do whatever size our stomach is.

The just because you can comments...I saw that you get hungry when you dont' eat till full.  Find what that number is.  MY number is about 4oz of meat and 4oz of vegetable...now CAN I eat more YEAH (my sleeve is bigger then most I THINK) but I don't when I CONTROL what I'm eating, meaning at home.  When I'm out I usually just box 1/2 from the get go and go from there when consuming the rest.  

Here is a link to what is called the cottage cheese, if you like cottage cheese of course test http://www.bsciresourcecenter.com/proddetail.php?prod=A4 it's what many WLS people do.  Normally it's "for" those who had RnY but it does still measure a stomachs capacity.

Best of success to you.

Ms Shell

I could probably eat 8oz of dense protein if I ate over an hour and half time period. Also, protein ordered at restaurants, or pre-packaged meats are measured in weight, not volume. My sleeve holds food by volume not weight so the measurement of 5oz of a 7oz steak is not an accurate measurement of volume for your stomach.

20-30 minutes is the prescribed meal time. I cheat my sleeve fairly frequently to fit more food in because I have to eat 1700-1800 calories a day with 100gr of protein plus carbs and fats due to the pregnancy. So, there is no way I can eat that much in 20-30 minutes.

Your restriction is going to change as well. If you fret over restriction, and make it a point to eat until your full, then guess what?? Maintenance at 2 years out is going to be a challenge. If I ate until full, I'd be screwed because I can eat twice as much as I could at 2-3 months out.

 Tiff:
How do you measure volume?
 

Cups, half cups, quarter cups are volume.

For me, I measure meats out in 2 or 3 ounces, usually have a slice of cheese and a T of salsa - even the 3 ounces plus cheese and salsa fits in a 1/2 cup container, and its easier for me to use the scale than whip out all my measuring cups.

An *important* thing (to me) is consistency.  If you say "I can eat more!!!" but you cannot ever tell us how much you ate before, then its like one of those "train leaves a station going X many mph" but leaves half the equasion off - nobody can answer because most of the data is not available! 

Anyway, that's the how and the why of me and mine!