What's on your Thursday Menu, RNYers?

Best wishes on your upcoming interviews and possible promotion! If you're on your third interview for the new job that you want, it certainly sounds very promising!

---Joyce

Do you ladies really only eat approximately 600 calories a day? I'm 6 weeks out but I'm hungry all the time. My pouch really doesn't seem to tell me it's full. I've asked for the nutritionist to give me a call so I can discuss. I have only lost 15 lbs and the same 5 lbs keep coming and going. I'm at 221 and need to get to 142 so I promise to listen carefully to what is said. Thanks

I'm a little over 8 months out and my 30 day average is 658 calories, 68 protein, 18 carbs a day.

Post what you are eating and you can get feedback on it.

Also, these threads are a great way to both plan and hold yourself accountable to the plan.

As I've moved through the healing/food stages, I've gotten great ideas on things to try from looking through everyone's menus too!

From what I understand, your nerves have been cut and you won't necessarily experience "fullness" until you heal. But if you overeat you can cause damage to your pouch. I recommend getting a digital food scale and weigh your food. At six weeks out I used to weigh 3 oz of dense protein for each meal - tuna fish or cottage cheese or deli turkey or chicken sausage or cod or whatever was my meal. That was my entire meal. I ate it slowly and if I felt full before finishing, I stopped. But I never ate more. I had a protein shake for breakfast everyday for about 1.5 years. And just did solid food for lunch and dinner and snacks. Go slow and remember your nerves have been cut. Heal, take care of yourself, stay hydrated (but don't drink while eating or for 30 mins after). Good luck!

At 6 weeks, your stomach nerves haven't completely healed from the surgery, and you may not feel anything for a while. I still don't ever feel "full" but if I eat too much or too fast, I do feel suddenly SICK. Keep in mind that you can't chase that "full" feeling at this point. overeating may cause you damage this early out. You're likely still eating a lot of soft, less dense foods that will "slide" through your pouch easier, making it easier to eat more.

at 6 weeks out I was told not to eat more than about 1/2 C volume of food in one sitting. This was approximately 2-3 oz of food in weight, pending the density of the food. Something more dense, like chicken breast, I couldn't even finish 3 oz. at those volumes, my calorie range was around 600-700 a day. More calories if I ate things with high fat content like cheese. At 8 months out, I can eat 4 oz of protein and maybe another 1/2 C of veggies, but I'm careful to weigh out my portions and don't eat any more than that. I try to keep my calories around 800-900, and to do that, I try to choose lean meats (chicken, turkey, fish) and non-starchy vegetables. I don't eat fruits often, and I keep carbs under 30.

Hope that helps!

You will probably feel more full as you eat denser proteins. Softer foods don't trip the satiety switch as well. And as others have noted, your nerves are healing, and your perception of feeling full should change. I occasionally have a very hungry day with true, rather than head, hunger. It's rare, but those days I find it hard not to eat more than 650 calories. Those days are almost always immediately followed by a drop in the scale. But most of the time, my small meals satisfy and hold me for a few hours. I stop eating if I feel full-ish, because I know if I have even one or two more bites, I can become very uncomforable, or actually be in pain.

I'm a little over 16 months out. For pretty much the whole first year, I kept to 600 calories per day, often less. A few months ago I went up a bit, but even now, I very rarely go past 660 or so, and still sometimes eat under 600. Today I had 625 calories, an amount that is pretty typical for me. I started at 353#, and am in the mid-140's now, and am working on getting down to under my second goal of 142 (the same as yours! My first goal was to be under 150). It's going slowly now with some vacillation of the scale, but I am very stubborn, so (God willing, because I sure am), I will hit my goal and then some, shortly.

The important thing is to eat protein first, and to be sure to get in at least 60 grams of it per day, more if you can; to get in a minimum of 64 ounces of fluid per day (I usually get in over 100); and to take your vitamins. Stick with your plan, don't get frustrated. You may be experiencing an early stall - many do. Just keep at it and you'll get to your goal! Wishing you much good luck!

Good Morning Jen and Menu Family!

QOTD: I take medicine to help me sleep and for RLS so I usually sleep pretty well. I often wake up halfway through to go pee, but then go back to sleep. If I can't get back to sleep I usually get up and then take a nap later on during the day.

Accountability: Yesterday: Protein - 103, Calories - 1,385, Carbs - 143.

B: prosciutto & mozzarella sticks, light & fit Greek yogurt

L: 160 calorie meal, light & fit Greek yogurt

D: microwave meal, light & fit Greek yogurt

S: prosciutto & mozzarella sticks, light & fit Greek yogurt, banana

Have an awesome day everyone!

~ Karen

good morning everyone!

I have to leave work early today for a dentist appointment to get my bi-annual cleaning/checkup and I am so nervous! I have never had terrible teeth, only small cavities in the past, but I have heard a few things about teeth getting bad after bariatric surgery and I am super nervous about losing my teeth! I brush twice a day with a sonicare toothbrush but I still feel like my teeth just arent as strong as they were. It might just be paranoia though. I guess I will find out this afternoon!

I've skipped cooking dinner for a few days now and just eating leftovers which is fine, but I have started to get that "unmotivated" feeling that the seasonal change into fall/winter brings me and I know I need to stop letting it get to me.

I ate about 1/2 Oz of smoked almonds last night...they put me a little over on calories for the day but I don't feel terrible about it. I could have made a much worse choice!

QOTD: I don't get insomnia very often, but I do watch ASMR videos on YouTube every night to help me fall asleep. I get general anxiety often and they really help me to relax. It looks super weird if you don't get ASMR but it is SOOOO helpful for me, and I am super thankful I discovered this weird subculture of people on YouTube who do these videos. 99% of the time I am asleep within 10-15 minutes if it's a good "ASMRtist".

B: coffee w/SF pumpkin spice creamer, greek L&F yogurt, small nectarine
L: 1C leftover chili w/1 TB sour cream & .5oz cheddar
S: 2 turkey meat sticks
D: I am actually going to cook it tonight, I swear. Chicken cordon bleu casserole.

I still have all my teeth after 14+ years, so I'm not buying that RNY has much to do with losing your teeth - as long as you keep up with your supplements!

thank you! I don't remember ever hearing about it before the surgery at all, until a few months ago I read something on one of my FB groups and people were talking about it. ever since then I've been super paranoid LOL...
it's funny though, my dentist actually had RNY about 12 years ago (I've had the same dentist since I was a kid) so I am sure if there are any extra precautions I need to take, he will be able to tell me!