Advice on food Please

Okay, so a little back story for those I haven't personally discussed this mental game I am playing. I know darn good and well that I am not getting enough protein in. Sure, I eat plenty of high protein foods, just not enough of those foods. I had also decided that snacks weren't for me as that was a big problem for me post-op. A snack turned into a food fest! Currently, I am satisfied with what I eat and don't feel that I need any more, but I fear that is why the weight is not coming off as fast  as I had wanted. I do some sort of cardio every day and have been very accountable about it for the past couple of months.  After the support group meeting, I decided that I need a swift kick in the rear and to get my act together if I'd like to lose more than a couple pounds a week. So yesterday, I gave it a valiant shot. I had high protein all day and I felt like I ate quite a bit. Well, actually I suppose I did! I ended up getting almost 1000 cals in by the end of the day and only 49 protein. Everything I ate had protein in it as well! I had a cheese stick snack TWICE yesterday and ate greek yogurt when I got home. I had written greek yogurt off, but then I found the blueberry flavor and after I added about a tsp of Splenda, it was really good.  Today....I started the day with what I thought was going to be astronomical protein. An egg with a TBSP of bacon bits and half of a pepperjack stick(I'm in love with pepperjack). I actually made twice that much and packed half of it for lunch being the planner I am(and lack of anything good enough for lunch in the fridge)! I got on thedailyplate.com and guess what....I'm at 270 cals for the day and only 22 protein. On top of that, I don't have any more of the greek yogurt at home to give me the big boost it looks like I am going to need!!!! What's a girl to do?!?! I'm thinking Tilapia for dinner, but lord knows I don't want fish every night just so I can get my protein in!  Tell me your secrets. I worry about eating too much as that's how I got to this point...lol. I don't want to eat 5 times a day and I'd rather not have any protein shakes as they make me want to yak. I would really appreciate anyone and everyone's take!!!

Are you drinking any protein drinks?  I get 52 grams of protein alone from shakes, 1 in the morning (usually chocolate protein powder, 1 scoop with sugar free vanilla latte packet or sugar free hazelnut capp. packet or sometimes just some coffee and creamer added) and I do a shake at night (usually 1 scoop of vanilla powder with a wylers or crystal light sugar free drink packet added).  That equals to 52 grams, and then I try to get the rest of the 90 grams you need a day in food, but it is hard.  I know Dr Baker says he doesn't want his patients getting protein from drinks, but you really don't have a choice in it.  It is impossible, I think, to get all 90 grams in, plus from what I have read, I believe that your body doesn't absorb most of the protein from food.  So getting pre-digested whey protein powder is best, since it is pre-digested your body absorbs all of it.  Getting your protein in is also important to prevent your hair from falling out to much, even though most of us will have some hairless, the less protein you take in the more it will fall out.  I am sure Wendy and Susan will post their replies and will be able to help you more.  I just know about what happened to me when I tried to go without protein shakes, and my hair fell out in clumps and I was tired all the time and didn't want to do anything.  Good luck!!  You seem to be doing pretty good on your journey, and tackled the snacking right on!  I have trouble with the snacking myself, but I try to eat fresh fruit or a handful of nuts or sometimes beef jerky (usually homemade) when I just have to eat a little something and it's not mealtime yet. Also your body could be catching up with you, you have probably hit a plateau, we all hit them from time to time, no matter what we do, we just don't lose any weight for a small amount of time, that's because our body is adjusting and catching up with all the weight you lost so far, and after the plateau ends you will be back to dropping pounds again.  Also since you mention you do cardio, you are probably gaining muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat.  Have you measured yourself?  I bet you are losing inches.

My NUT doesn't want us getting protein from drinks which is perfectly fine with me because protein drinks made me sick in the beginning. I thought about getting some unflavored protein to add to some foods instead of "drinking" my protein, but I don't know.  My hair loss isn't too drastic at this point and I think I bounce off the walls msot days unless I am just tired from lack of sleep(this week I am because I have been busy every night!). I still battle the urge to snack. Last night I wanted to snack after I got done exercising so I allowed it. I ate some watermelon and drank a big glass of water and  I was fine. I also have nuts in the evening if I feel snacky. I don't really get the urge to snakc at work, but when I'm bored at home *uh hum* that's another story. That's where the battle is.  I have been losing on average 3 pounds a week for the past 2 months so I think it's just where I am at the moment. I just know I don't want it to slow down any more than that. As for losing inches...I don't measure, but I can see the differences in certain places but for some reason it takes a long time for me to drop sizes. I've lost almost 75 pounds and only 2 pant sizes? come on already!!!! Oh well, I feel great and I get alot of compliments from people who don't even know I had surgery. I don't complain about my 3 pounds a week, but I just want to kick it into a higher gear so it doesnt slow down as  I get further out, ya know? Thanks for the advice!!

Hi Shawna, I don't know what your doctor or nut recommends for your daily intake of protein, but both Dr's here in LR want us to have between 60-80 grams per day. The OH leadership training suggests we get more like 80-100, which I really tried hard to go for while I was on the losing track. Considering you really can't eat all that much at one time, protein drinks or bars are about your only option.  The South Beach Diet brand of bars have 10 grams of protein in them, find them with the granola bars and pop tarts ( but ignore the pop tarts!  LOL)   I think a good many of us use protein drinks to supplement our daily intakes. You'll get as many opinions of good drinks as there are people here.  I think the Vitalady.com web site sells samples for a couple of bucks each, so you can try different ones. Personally, for almost two years now the only drink I've used is Syntrax Fuzzy Navel. It is supposed to be peach flavored, but I think it's more orange flavored. I mix it with ice water and a little bit of Crystal lite orange sunrise (or the generic) mixed into it.  Blend it up and it has about 30 grams of protein for a heaping scoop. If you want to, mix it with skim milk and boost the protein and add calcium too! As early out as you are, you should still be trying for around 700 calories a day.  Talipia is a great source of protein, and if you like shrimp, it's loaded with it. Good luck, we'll be here to help if you need anything else.

I'll look for the protein bars I suppose. Trying to eat enough protein yesterday put my cals a little high and would have been a little under 700 without "snacks". I'm okay with sea food. I like a little, but get burnt out easily so I have to choose wisely. I think I am suppose tog et around 60 grams of protein but i always seem to hang out in the 40s. Well, I'm giving it another shot today so we'll see how it goes. Thanks for the tips

Hi Shawna, You've had some great advice on here.  The bullets are a good, and easy, way to up your protein...I don't use them anymore because I can't stomach them anymore.  Protein bars are also good, jus****ch the fat and sugar content, especially sugar alcohols.  I eat one a day...I eat the Atkins Advantage, most of them have no sugar alcohols and are 11-12g. protein each for the smaller bars.  Do you like milk?  I never drank milk before surgery, but now I have 1-2 glasses of chocolate milk every day.  I put a couple of squirts of sugar free chocolate syrup into a glass of fat free milk and stir it up, very yummy!  The protein bar and two glasses of milk gives me 30g of protein a day.  If you can add that to your diet you'd be topping out at around 70g a day, which is very good!  Also, as far as food, I eat lean turkey breast or homemade chili just about every day.  I buy the Sun Dried Tomato turkey breast at wal-mart, already cooked...4oz is about 24g of protein I think.  I make my own chili with extra lean ground beef (could use chicken or turkey also), light kidney beans, a can of stewed tomatoes and chili seasoning...loaded with protein.  I also eat turkey cheese bratwurst and parmesan chicken sausage....both from wal-mart...good sources of protein.  There's lots of options out there you just have to look for them and find something you really like.  Just some suggestions, hope you find something you like soon!

We need to hit wal mart together, I think you should have more protein if you are eating 1000 calories and only get 49 grams, if I eat 1000 calories I am getting 60+.  I know the nut doesnt like protein bars and shakes up there but I used them in the beginning and still do they are an excellent source of protein for the calories.  Let me know. I will come up one night and we can hit wal mart and GNC/Vitamin shoppe ok!

AB

Well I'll say that yesterday I got in more protein and ALOT less cals. HOWEVER...I weighed on Tuesday since we had support and at that point I had lost 73 pounds. Today, 3 days later, after consuming more cals, protein and slightly more exercise....I have lost 3 more pounds. That hasn't happened to me since I was about 2 months out. Yes, it could be a total fluke, but I am going to keep doing what I am doing and see how it goes the next couple of weeks. Anne tells us not to even look at cals, but thedailyplate calculates them so when I saw the number I thought. We'll see how it works. I am going to pick up some protein bars and more blueberry greek yogurt in an attempt to get my protein up just a little more.

I try to get at least 80 grams of protein a day. I snack on nuts some but mosly I use protein bullets. they come in a variety of flavors, i like the orange and grape. Some people freeze them or pour them over ice but I just open them and drink em straight! I don't even chill them. They have 42 grams each, I drink 1/2 in the morning and 1/2 in the afternoon. I think they have 170 calories per tube. I also like the fuzzy navel drinks. I can sip them all day! The best thing for you to do is take in all the info you can get and then use what works for you. Each one of us is different and thank goodness there are many varieties of protein supplements for us to try. I usally order from bariatrics.com. Hope that helps!
Rhonda T

Some of my favorite high protein meal/snack suggestions follow.... 1 medium egg (kroger generic), 1/2 slice turkey sausage patty (Jimmy Dean) & 1 slice Sara Lee 45 Calorie & Delightful Wheat Bread 145 calories 6.25 fat 7.75 net carbs 12.25 protein (38.79% calories from fat is high, but worth if it you low fat another meal) (NOTE: See Jimmy Dean turkey sausage box here: https://www.jimmydean.com/sitecontent/fully-cooked/2007/10/1 0/fully-cooked-sausage-patties-turkey.aspx) chicken soft taco (Taco Bell) with chicken & lettuce only (no tortilla but add hot sauce) 50 calories 1.5 fat 0 net carbs 9 protein 27% calories from fat 1/2 cup Four Cheese Lasagna (Hamburger Helper) 165 calories 6.5 fat 15 net carbs 11 protein 35.45% calories from fat (a little high, but definately do-able) (NOTE: Most Hamburger Helpers are around these numbers, not just this "flavor".) 1/2 cup White Chicken Chili (McCormick seasoning recipe ) 153.5 calories 3.5 fat 11.5 net carbs 16.5 protein 20.52% calories from fat (NOTE:  See McCormick chicken chili recipe here: http://www.mccormick.com/recipedetail.cfm?id=10630.  I don't even use the vegetable oil and it's delicious and easy.) Pintos & Cheese (Taco Bell) 160 calories 6 fat 12 net carbs 9 protein 33.75% calories from fat (a little high, but definately do-able) 1/2 cup Hormel Chili w/ Beans, 1/2 slice 2% American cheese & 4 Almond Nut-thin Cheddar Crisps 185 calories 5.75 fat 19.5 net carbs 10.75 protein 27.97% calories from fat (NOTE: Nut-thins available at your local Kroger in the health food section.  See picture here: http://www.bluediamond.com/shop/natural/nutThins.cfm) 3 tablespoons PB2 & 4 apple slices (1/2 apple) 135.80 calories 2.91 fat 16.38 net carbs 8.68 protein 19.29% calories from fat (NOTE: PB2 available online only.  See www.bellplantation.com.) RNY Honey Mustard Chicken Pizza (1/4 Tumaro's Low Carb Multi-Grain tortilla, 1 oz chicken, 1/2 tsp honey, 1.5 tsp mustard, 1 tbsp 2% cheddar & 1 tbsp 2% mozz cheese) 110 calories 3.88 fat 4.33 net carbs 12.5 protein 31.75% calories from fat (a tiny bit high, but definately do-able) (NOTE: Recipe can be "tweeked" to increase or lower fat %, calories, protein, etc based on cheese used.  For example, adding 1 slice of 2% pepperjack cheese, 1 extra tbsp of 2% cheddar & 1 extra 1tbsp of 2% mozz brings the totals to: 200 calories 8.88 fat 6.58 net carbs 20.25 protein 39.96% fat (high but definately do-able) BBQ Chicken Sandwich (1 slice Sara Lee 45 Calorie Delightful Wheat, 1 slice 2% pepperjack cheese, 1 oz chicken, 1 tbsp Kroger Original BBQ sauce) 150 calories 3.75 fat 14 net carbs 14 protein 22.5% calories from fat (NOTE:  The chicken portion can be tweeked to increase protein, etc.  For every .25 ounces of chicken you add to this recipe, you increase the calories by only 8.75, increase the fat by only .19, increase the net carbs by 0, increase the protein by 1.75 and DECREASE the % calories from fat by .18.  This information is based on using Tyson Recipe Ready Pre-cooked Chicken available at your local Kroger near the cans of tuna where you'd get the premium tuna that comes in a bag.)