A year out from surgery, what is your daily diet consist of?

[Gail Ann 8]

Give me an example of what you eat daily for Breakfast, lunch and dinner?

[Lizardlady 90]

Also curious to see some long term successful sleevers daily diet.

[Dub 9,922]

This is a great question.

I'm looking forward to seeing their daily menu as well.

[Bufflehead 6,358]

I need to take off a few lbs, so I am in weight loss mode right now. And this is pretty much the way I was eating at a year out, when I was in full time weight loss mode. Here's my diary from Friday

Early morning: fat free hot cocoa made w/ cashew milk

Breakfast: 3 oz chopped chicken breast

Lunch: 3 oz chopped chicken breast + 1/5 oz green Beans + 1/2 T. light champagne vinaigrette

Afternoon snacks: small apple, Protein shake

Dinner: roast brussels sprouts, curried tuna & kale w/ an egg baked on top

After dinner: Greek yogurt, roasted rosemary walnuts & fig

Totals for the day: 1,095 calories, 93 grams Protein, 87 carbs, 13 grams Fiber

If you want to see diaries on a regular basis, friend a bunch of post-surgery people on myfitnesspal, that way you can check their diaries every day

ETA: at a year out, I was probably eating more like 2 oz of chicken breast at a meal -- at that point I don't think I could have eaten as much as 3 oz in a sitting.

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

Below is Friday's menu, which was very typical of what I eat now that I'm 20.5 months post-op. (Yesterday was date night and not a typical menu.) Anyway ... Friday:

Breakfast:

* GNC Lean shake 25 (Swiss chocolate)

* Homemade skinny latte: 1/2 cup skim milk, 1/2 cup Starbucks espresso roast, 1 envelope Turbinado raw sugar

Morning snack:

* Doctor Kracker three seed cracker

* 1 ounce sharp cheddar cheese

* 2 tablespoons Smuckers sugar-free strawberry jam

Lunch:

* Ham and cheese sandwich: Oscar Mayer Black Forest ham (5 slices); 1 ounce sharp cheddar cheese; 2 tablespoons Hellman's Lite Mayo; 1 medium sliced tomato; 2 leaves of Romaine lettuce

* 1/2 cup petite carrots

Afternoon snack:

* Starbucks coffee - 6 ounces

* 1 tablespoon half and half

* 1 Specially Selected (Aldi's) salted caramel biscotti

Cocktail Hour:

* 1.5 ounces single malt scotch (was Aultmore that day)

Dinner:

* Stouffer's Fit Kitchen Steak Fajita (first time I'd tried one of these; not bad!)

* 2 cups Romaine lettuce hearts

* 1 tablespoon Litehouse chunky blue cheese dressing

After Dinner:

* Caltrate chewable (chocolate truffle)

* Dannon Oikos vanilla greek yogurt

* 2 small squares of Lindt dark chocolate with sea salt

Macronutrient Totals:

Calories - 1,700

Carb grams - 174

Fat grams - 64

Protein grams - 101

Sugars - 72

Fiber grams - 26 (minimums for women are 21-25)

[Bufflehead 6,358]

@@VSGAnn2014 psst Ann minimum for Fiber are based on how many calories you eat each day . . . you are supposed to get 14 grams per 1000 calories as per the USDA. The 23-25 number is based on the assumption that a woman eats (I think) 1800-2000 calories per day. Just saying this so people who are eating 600 calories a day right after surgery don't start freaking out about the fact that they can't get in 23 grams of fiber in such a small amount of food! Don't freak out, surgery newbies!

[Dub 9,922]

Holy Hell.....I'm lacking badly in Fiber intake it would seem.

Do any of you supplement with Metamucil or the like ???

[Lizardlady 90]

87 and 178 carbs? My nutritionist said we should stay under 40 carbs FOREVER. What are you guys' goals as far as carbs, calories, sugar and Protein?

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

That's interesting. No one on my surgeon's team has ever bad-mouthed carbs. Not even during the weight-losing phases.

If you lose all your excess weight and can eat 1700 - 1800 calories a day to maintain your weight (which is how much I have to eat to maintain my weight at 135 pounds), why in the world would you limit yourself to 40 carbs a day -- even 40 net carbs a day? Frankly, I don't even know if I could eat that many calories without eating a significant amount of carbohydrates.

The vast majority of carbs aren't bad for us. If we minimize white flour and sugar, which have little nutritional value, we can find so many high-fiber, colored veggies and fibrous fruits and whole grains found in brown rice, quinoa and high-fiber, high-Protein breads, pastas and even crackers that are jam-packed with Vitamins and minerals and trace elements we need.

I've approached this whole WLS journey from the viewpoint that food's not evil. However, pre-op I was not making very smart choices about which foods I ate most days. In the last two years I've learned so much about nutrition and tried to apply what I've learned to planning my meals to become healthier.

Believe me, getting "skinny" was nice. But getting healthy came first.

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

@@Dub -- your approach during weight losing phases has been to maximize Protein and minimize everything else. You've lost 180+ pounds so far, so you're really on the weight-losing train.

But remember what your doc said -- it's time to start making friends with veggies.

@@Bufflehead is right -- you won't need as much fiber now because you're eating much less than you will be when you start figuring out maintenance. BTW, I think guys eating (I'm guessing here) 2500 calories/day are supposed to eat around 32-35 grams of insoluble fiber.

And for @@Dub -- no, I haven't used Benefiber or Metamucil. Never needed to. I do eat an apple 4-5 times a week (unpeeled), and that pretty much does it for me.

BIG CAVEAT: My posts above describe what works for me. Everything I do may not work for you. Don't ignore your surgeons / NUTs / whatever. But if this thread raises confusion or questions for you, please query your medical team to see what they have to say or to find out if (perhaps) you've misunderstood their life-long instructions. There are a lot of different recommendations out there. I know that one bariatric surgeon (Dr. Matthew Weiner) makes a lot of online videos and has published a book suggesting we all eat a pound a day of plant-based foods, e.g., vegetables, whole grains and fruits. See http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AEYQYDE/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?ie=UTF8&btkr=1

[Bufflehead 6,358]

@@Lizardlady I think 40 carbs per day for life would not be possible for me. I maintain at about 1600 calories per day. 40 carbs per day would mean getting 10% of my caloric intake from carbohydrates. So if I got 50% from Protein and 40% from fat, that would be 200 grams of protein per day and 71 grams of fat per day. I don't think that's healthy, not to mention that I don't think I could even afford to buy 200 grams of protein per day! The only way to get in that much protein and keep your carbs so low is to get virtually all of your protein from meat and/or Protein Shakes, both of which are pretty expensive.

When I am in weight loss mode, I don't eat any grains, starchy veggies, sweets, or Beans. That keeps my carbs pretty low. Even in maintenance, I avoid white flour and keep whole grains, starchy veggies, sweets etc. to a minimum.

[Healthy_life2 8,324]

I want to make this clear...I'm not advising anyone to eat as I do. Maintenance is different for each of us. food and exercise is not a one size fits all program. I would suggest consulting your dietician.

I wanted to show an example of maintenance that is not the norm. I am a type one diabetic. I distance run. I work with a sports medicine dietician.

When I'm not training..I consume 1300 to 1700 calories..Low carb - high Protein.

If you choose to be a bariathlete, getting enough food in is an all day project. What is listed for a meal..I eat until full. take a break and come back to it. I still wait 30 mins before drinking Water.

When I train, I consume up to :

2400 Calories.

217g Protein

192g carbohydrates

(Before a race I carb load for two days)

Breakfast.

Milk - Reduced fat, 2% milkfat, 1 cup

whey Isolate Protein - Six Star , 1 scoope

Jimmy Dean - Turkey Sausage 4 Links

Cascade Pride - 100% Stoneground Whole Wheat bread, 0.5 slice

lunch

- Sunflower Crunch Chopped salad, 1.5 cups

Avocado, 1 Medium Avocado (150g)

Wheat Thins - Big, 16.5 pieces (31g)

Great Value canned chicken - Canned chicken, 5 oz

Nosblast - Pre-work Out, 1 scoops

dinner

Walmart - Bacon, 1 pieces

Trader Joes's - Bbq Cut Salmon Filet, 5.2 oz

Marketside - French Beans (Green Beans), 0.5 cup

Sweet Potato Baked Sweet Potato - Baked Sweet Potato, 1 oz, 4 oz

Snacks

Dynatize - Elite Protein shake, 1 scoop

Milk - Reduced fat, 2% milkfat, 1 cup

Quest - chips, 1 bag

Tillamook - Cheddar cheese - Medium, 1 oz (28g)

Safeway - Salsa, 4 T

Frog Fuel - Energy Gel, 3 packet

Walgreens - Glucose Tablets - Orange, 4 tablet

[Lizardlady 90]

@@Lizardlady I think 40 carbs per day for life would not be possible for me. I maintain at about 1600 calories per day. 40 carbs per day would mean getting 10% of my caloric intake from carbohydrates. So if I got 50% from Protein and 40% from fat, that would be 200 grams of Protein per day and 71 grams of fat per day. I don't think that's healthy, not to mention that I don't think I could even afford to buy 200 grams of protein per day! The only way to get in that much protein and keep your carbs so low is to get virtually all of your protein from meat and/or protein shakes, both of which are pretty expensive.

When I am in weight loss mode, I don't eat any grains, starchy veggies, sweets, or Beans. That keeps my carbs pretty low. Even in maintenance, I avoid white flour and keep whole grains, starchy veggies, sweets etc. to a minimum.

I didn't think it was possible for me either but then again, I'm a carb addict so I didn't think much of it when she said it other than to think "wow that sucks" and then write it in the notes and bolded the word "FOREVER" lol. I love Pasta, bread (whole grain too!) and potatoes but apparently it's not working for me so I figured she must be right.

@@Dub -- your approach during weight losing phases has been to maximize protein and minimize everything else. You've lost 180+ pounds so far, so you're really on the weight-losing train.

But remember what your doc said -- it's time to start making friends with veggies.

@@Bufflehead is right -- you won't need as much Fiber now because you're eating much less than you will be when you start figuring out maintenance. BTW, I think guys eating (I'm guessing here) 2500 calories/day are supposed to eat around 32-35 grams of insoluble fiber.

And for @@Dub -- no, I haven't used Benefiber or Metamucil. Never needed to. I do eat an apple 4-5 times a week (unpeeled), and that pretty much does it for me.

BIG CAVEAT: My posts above describe what works for me. Everything I do may not work for you. Don't ignore your surgeons / NUTs / whatever. But if this thread raises confusion or questions for you, please query your medical team to see what they have to say or to find out if (perhaps) you've misunderstood their life-long instructions. There are a lot of different recommendations out there. I know that one bariatric surgeon (Dr. Matthew Weiner) makes a lot of online videos and has published a book suggesting we all eat a pound a day of plant-based foods, e.g., vegetables, whole grains and fruits. See http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AEYQYDE/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?ie=UTF8&btkr=1

I don't plan to ignore my nutritionist but I would like to know WHY it's different for our group. I'm pre-op at the moment and the diet now, I expect it to be restricting (the first few days of this liquid diet was killer) but later on, after the weight is lost, I was hoping to more or less be "normal" about my eating habits. I accept that no matter what, I need this surgery, but it's very emotional to think that for the most part, I won't be able to eat what everyone else around me is eating ever again (or at least that is how it feels).

[brown eyed gal 59]

Below is Friday's menu, which was very typical of what I eat now that I'm 20.5 months post-op. (Yesterday was date night and not a typical menu.) Anyway ... Friday:

Breakfast:

* GNC Lean shake 25 (Swiss chocolate)

* Homemade skinny latte: 1/2 cup skim milk, 1/2 cup Starbucks espresso roast, 1 envelope Turbinado raw sugar

Morning snack:

* Doctor Kracker three seed cracker

* 1 ounce sharp cheddar cheese

* 2 tablespoons Smuckers sugar-free strawberry jam

Lunch:

* Ham and cheese sandwich: Oscar Mayer Black Forest ham (5 slices); 1 ounce sharp cheddar cheese; 2 tablespoons Hellman's Lite Mayo; 1 medium sliced tomato; 2 leaves of Romaine lettuce

* 1/2 cup petite carrots

Afternoon snack:

* Starbucks coffee - 6 ounces

* 1 tablespoon half and half

* 1 Specially Selected (Aldi's) salted caramel biscotti

Cocktail Hour:

* 1.5 ounces single malt scotch (was Aultmore that day)

Dinner:

* Stouffer's Fit Kitchen Steak Fajita (first time I'd tried one of these; not bad!)

* 2 cups Romaine lettuce hearts

* 1 tablespoon Litehouse chunky blue cheese dressing

After Dinner:

* Caltrate chewable (chocolate truffle)

* Dannon Oikos vanilla greek yogurt

* 2 small squares of Lindt dark chocolate with sea salt

Macronutrient Totals:

Calories - 1,700

Carb grams - 174

Fat grams - 64

Protein grams - 101

Sugars - 72

Fiber grams - 26 (minimums for women are 21-25)

Just saw the commercial about the fit kitchen meals, hope I can find them in my rural area!

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

@@brown eyed gal ... it took a while before they arrived here, too. And we are about as rural as it gets.

EDIT ... P.S. Also look for "Cafe Steamers" which are even lower calorie than the "Fit Kitchen" branded stuff. FYI, we shop mostly at Walmart for groceries. Of course, there's always Aldi's and local farmers' markets for fruits/veggies.