What to eat/not to eat? Nothing fits all the rules and my tummy.

I'm just starting my fifth week post-op.  I feel like I have impossibly many constraints on what I can eat based on what my stomach tolerates, what my palate tolerates, and all the semi-contradictory instructions from my nut and wisdom on this board.  I feel like there's no possible way to do everything "right," and like an earlier thread I'm not sure I know what "right" really means.  

I could use some support.  My weight loss has stalled for about a week and a half.  (It's the dreaded 3-week stall)  This stall could be my fault for not complying with the rules, but I couldn't tell you which ones that I've violated has caused it.

I eat about 600-700 calories a day, and that's about all I can fit.  Most of what I eat is protein-rich (light and fit yogurts, greek yogurt, cottage cheese, eggs).  I usually fall a little short of 60 g of protein because I am so sick of protein shakes I can't see straight and I can't eat very much at a time.  I find dense protein still too heavy and uncomfortable.  I'm working on getting up to 60, though, and I'm almost there.

My nut says 3 meals per day , no snacking.  (If I complied with that I'd eat no more than 400 calories a day!).  She also says nothing with more than 3 g fat per serving; No more than 3 servings fat per day.  No sugar, sweets, or sugary drinks; Around 1200 calories per day.  (simply not possible without breaking other rules); only egg whites, no yolks; 2 servings of veg and fruit each per day.

Pretty much the only thing I comply with on that list is the no sugary stuff.  I mostly keep all carbs low per this board, although non-sugar carbs are not a concern of my nut.  I simply can't understand why I should be fretting about fat and egg yolks when I can't even eat 800 calories per day.  Anyway, after reading Gary Taubes I don't believe 100 calories of fat is worse than 100 calories of pasta.  Do you worry about fat in your diet as long as you're meeting your calorie/carb/protein targets?

Finally, if I eat as much protein as possible to get towards 60+ g, there's no time for all the liquid I'm supposed to have if I comply with my nut's no-drinking rule of 45 minutes afterwards.   I have found I can drink a lot sooner than that with no problems if I've just had a yogurt, so I routinely break the 45 minute no-drinking rule.

Is the only way out to resort to protein shakes?  Ack!  Please tell me that complying with all these rules gets easier.  I figure it's got to be the case that at 1 month out I'm still early in the evolution of my sleeve.

I eat about 400-800 calories a day.  One thing that i found works for me is that about 2 hours before bed have a protein shake.  Your body will use the protein to work overnight and you will be amazed on the results.  Also, I got some of the mini bananas and my nut said I could do a teaspoon of peanut butter so I have that with my banana and it an amazing snack.  My nut said 3 meals and no more than 2 small under 100 calories snack.

Great ideas! I will definitly try the shake before bed and peanut butter/banana.

Ignore your NUT when she's wrong. At 5 weeks both my surgeon and NUT said it's too early to count calories, carbs, sugars, anything at all YET. I was told to concentrate on the fluids and protein.

Eat your 3 meals a day AND snack if you need to. Don't even think about counting fat. Use butter. Eat bacon. Cheese. Cream cheese. Whatever. 1,200 calories is an awful lot. 600-800 is more like it. Eat the entire egg. What does she mean - only whites? 2 servings of fruit and veg a day seems like a lot - especially at 5 weeks. What happened to protein first? If you do protein first you may not have much room for 2 servings a day of fruit and veg. In my opinion she's wrong on several counts. Ignore her.

About the drinking - and this varies - but try not drinking 15 minutes before and 30 minutes after eating. 

Everything will get easier. You'll learn what your sleeve likes and what it doesn't. One of the things that makes all this stuff hard is getting bad advice from the NUT.

I have a protein shake first thing in the morning with two cups skim milk and it fills me up for the forenoon. My shake has 54 grams and I try to shoot for 100 grams protein. Hope this helps.

I eat full fat, and still have a hard time hitting 800 cals my plan calls for.. usually high 600's - med 700's.I would be hard pressed to get my protein in without one shake a day, but I found ones I like that are light & refreshing, so that's not an issue.. plus an occasional protein coffee too. I get 70-80g protein a day.. and I also stay very lo-carb as it works well for me (and I also read GT, very good info there.) My plan is 3 meals a day as well, but that does not include protein supplements.. so I get the extra from those. I still have no room for veggies at all.. 2oz protein is my max still. I drink up to about 5 mins before eating, and generally wait 30-60 mins to drink again depending on what I'm doing. Hopefully this helps, but it does take some time to get into a routine with the new sleeve..

As early out as you are, worrying about calories or anything else except protein and liquids is useless.  Get in your 60 (or more) grams of protein a day.  Drink 8 glasses (or more) of liquid a day.  Eat the whole egg, eat the full fat version or whatever.  Heck, I didn't even try veggies or fruits for months because I didn't have room for them after my protein!  I'm not a big fan of protein shakes either, so I did my best to get my protein from food as soon as I could.

Some docs and NUTs recommend the 3 meals a day/no snacks regimen.  I say bull****!  (so does my dietitian )  It's more important to have a few PLANNED snacks so that you don't find yourself grazing mindlessly during the day.

HUGS!  It really does get better with a little more time and soon it'll all be routine to you.

I say bull**** to the no snacking too.  I eat 3 meals (usually) plus a mid morning and afternoon snack.  I find I do better when I fuel myself throughout the day.