How much food should I be eating?

Shana16
on 12/1/11 12:26 pm - Las Vegas, NV
I am about 6 months out and I never weighted or measured my food just eat until I was full.  Now I think I am over eating.  How much of food should I be eating?  I would like to measure my food in measuring cups I think that would be best. Should I be eating 1/4 cup of protein, 1/4 cup veg, and few bites crabs (rice or pasta)?  I do a shake in the morning and then 3 meals a day.

Thanks so much for the help.

 LIVE HOPE DREAM

Shana
            
Krazydoglady
on 12/1/11 12:39 pm - FL
What does your surgeon's plan say? 

From 6 months post-op until goal, my plan allows for 3-4oz of protien and 2oz of 'fiber' food (mostly veggies) 3x daily plus a snack of 6oz yogurt and 1oz  fresh fruit (i.e., berries).  One of the 2oz servings of 'fiber' food may be a good quality carb like brown rice or quinona.   

I cannot eat 3-4oz protien at a shot, so eat 4 meals a day and I rarely have room for much more than the protein.. I do not eat the yogurt & fruit snack as I have become somewhat intolerant of milk and yogurt.  I measure all my food by volume (measuring cups) although i can eyeball it pretty accurately.  

Carolyn  (32 lbs lost Pre-op) HW: 291, SW: 259, GW: 129.5, CW: 126.4 

        
Age: 45, Height: 5'2 1/4"  , Stretch Goal:  122   

 

ruggie
on 12/1/11 1:14 pm - Sacramento, CA
Honestly, you probably shouldn't have any room for carbs really.   Definitely not full carbs like pasta or rice.

Frisco has some wonderful advice on how much to eat, and not to eat until your full as that's a great way to streeeeetch your little stomach back out.  Hopefully Frisco will point you to his advice.  Definitely don't eat more than 1/2 cup in a sitting.  Or, I don't use cups too often, but I weigh my food out.  (So don't eat more than 4oz at a time).  I eat two ounces of lunch meat, and I'm fuuulllllll.

Eat protein first.  If room's left, eat veggies/fiber.  There really shouldn't be room for any carbs.  They're just calories you don't need, and will make you hungier.

Get 80 g of protein a day!  Since you're about to start recording (yes, record it!) the amount of food you eat, you need to record the calories and the protein as well.

     

Heaviest weight:  310 pounds  (Male, 5'10")

vacationlover
on 12/2/11 12:03 am
Shana16
on 12/1/11 1:22 pm - Las Vegas, NV
I seem to have missed place my doctors plans.  I am going to try that and see if that works. Thanks for answering my question.  What is some good food high in fiber?
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Shana
            
vacationlover
on 12/2/11 12:01 am
califsleevin
on 12/1/11 11:41 pm, edited 12/1/11 11:48 pm - CA
I would agree that you need to get on track with measuring and recording what you are eating, then you can figure out whether you are over-eating or don't have the right balance of things. I use an electronic scale for measuring as volume measures aren't all that convenient for where we are at (now that we aren't doing liquids and slops) nor all that accurate for many things (just how much is a half cup of spinach - creamed, chopped - how finely chopped, how compressed...)? When I'm putting together a salad, it's much easier to weigh things going into the bowl (10g or this, 15g of that, a couple ounces of meat...) than pulling out a box full of measuring cups and spoons (and cleaning them), and once you do that for a while, you learn what your comfortable capacity is for different types of foods, rather than some blanket figure like "no more than 3 oz or a half cup at a meal" as that can lead to shorting yourself nutritionally more than is necessary within our weightloss goals - it all depends on what you are having in a meal,. My capacity is still about 3 oz of firm proteins - meats and the like - but can easily be double that if more compressible and slippery veg is part of the meal; the lunch salads that I often have are in the 6 oz range including a couple ounces of meat. Leaving an ounce of meat behind leaves room for a lot more than an ounce of veg in the dish, and is a healthier approach once you have the protein minimums in place.

Once you are familiar with your comfortable capacity for different types of foods, and measure things up as you prepare them, you leave yourself open to a wider variety of dishes. While it is good advice when getting familiar with things, you don't necessarily need to do the "protein first" game if you know that you are getting in the requisite amount of protein during the day and know about how much of different combinations of foods you can comfortably tolerate. It's good for your sanity and overall health to be able to have a variety of things like salads, stews and stir-frys without having to pick out the meat first, then eat the veg.... Even small sandwichs (yes, with those evil carbs...) are appropriate in some cases when more complex carbs are called for, and you reach a point where many nutritional needs have to be considered beyond the basic protein and water.

As for amounts of things, the general consensus of all of the various plans is somewhere between 60-80g of protein per day; some may specifiy somewhat higher levels, particularly for men, but you will be in the ballpark with 70 give or take a bit. Beyond that and a minimum of 64 oz of water (or more depending on weather and exertion) there is little consensus between plans. Some go the ultra low carb approach aiming for ketosis, under the premise that it enhances or speeds up the weight loss (which it can for some) while others go for a more balanced nutritional approach. Try to find or get another copy of your doc's program documents and see what he wants you to do, and then adjust things so suit what works for you.

1st support group/seminar - 8/03 (has it been that long?)  

Wife's DS - 5/05 w Dr. Robert Rabkin   VSG on 5/9/11 by Dr. John Rabkin

 

vacationlover
on 12/1/11 11:56 pm
vacationlover
on 12/1/11 11:59 pm
Shana16
on 12/2/11 2:19 pm - Las Vegas, NV
Wow very help full! Thank you guys so very much.   I bought a food scale today so it should help with the over eating.
 LIVE HOPE DREAM

Shana
            
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