My Eating Habits
A common day post-op for me would be:

Breakfast:
Breakfast was the hardest thing for me to find something that would be healthy, as well as satisfy me. I was a huge bagel or muffin eater or would sit and eat 3 bowls of sugared cereal. Now breads just fill me up so much that I really don't like to eat them anymore. Eggs are too much of a pain to make on the run. At the beginning of my search to find foods that would work with my busy schedule and taste great, I turned to Nestle's Sweet Success drinks. I drank them for the first 9 months post-op. After my abdominoplasty I no longer wanted them and I realized how high in sugar they were and might have been working against me in my struggle to continue losing weight. I made the switch to munching on an apple and/or some low-fat Ritz or Saltine crackers. I also buy fresh fruit whenever can find it at the grocery store.

Update - 2/00:
I realized I was eating way too many carbohydrates so I went on a search for a great high-protein bar. I found the answer! I went to GNC one day and read labels for hours and bought the ones I thought were highest protein and lowest in carbs. Now I have a protein bar every morning for breakfast. What I found are called Pure Protein Yogurt Coated Strawberry Shortcake. They have 34g of protein and 13g of carbohydrates. Although 13g still is a bit higher than I would like, at least they are edible and they work for me! Now after I have one in the morning, I am not hungry again until lunch time. Before I would get hungry again after only 2 hours.

Update 11/4/00
At 2 years post-op, I have found that my habits have settled into a pretty regular pattern. I am still eating the protein bars for breakfast. However, now I have found that I become hungry about every 2-3 hours. I am also having some trouble with low blood sugar and I have to eat every 2-3 hours or my sugar 'crashes' and I feel horrible. The low blood sugar really isn't a problem as long as I keep food on hand. Around 10-11am I will have a small baggy (probably about 1-2 oz.) of reduced fat cheese-its.

Lunch:
Small lunch size (not the large size) cup of noodle soup was a favorite of mine for quite sometime. When I am working outside of my office or at home I will frequently have 1/2 of a club sandwich. I am constantly on the prowl for a yummy fruit salad, too. Another food of choice is to bring half of a smoked turkey sandwich with low fat mayo and lettuce on it along with a yummy apple or other fruit. I will usually add a few crackers or low-fat cheese-its for a nice crunchy snack while I'm at work. Eating out I will usually grab a hamburger and eat it without the bun. Once in a great while I will also order french fries but only eat about 5 of them, just enough to get that yummy taste without the side-effects or weight gain.

Update 11/4/00
Things are pretty much the same for lunch with the exception that I have noticed I can eat more. For instance, I can eat a full slice of pizza and about 1/2 an order of french fries on one of my 'bad' days. However, I can still be very satisfied with my 1/2 sandwich and an apple, which is more than likely what I eat for lunch.

Dinner:
Of course, this meal will vary greatly from day to day but my favorites are Chicken Lo-Mein (about a cup), a slice of pizza (white broccoli pizza preferably), a hamburger with only half the bun or none at all, bar-b-que chicken (1-2 small legs), a cup or so of a green vegetable and more recently Shrimp with Broccoli from my favorite corner Chinese restaurant. I also love making spaghetti, ravioli and pierogies. Pasta always seems to go down nicely for me no matter what type it is.

I do tend to stay away from bread. I hardly ever eat anything sweet except for fruit. I have been enjoying Kentucky Fried Chicken's Original Recipe chicken legs and one of my favorite nicer eat-out foods is Veal Marcella or Parmesan. I can't eat rice products anymore since they seem to swell in my stomach too much and I tend to still get sick with it. I hardly ever drink soda anymore and when I do, it is always diet and caffeine free. When I drink caffeine it feels as though I have had 10 times the amount of caffeine that I actually had to drink so I prefer to avoid it unless I'm really in the mood for soda.

I do still get hungry, but I think it is what I call mind hunger. I still feel the emotional bondage of food at times and I still want to binge all the time and "hurt" myself with foods I shouldn't be eating, especially when I am angry or deeply upset about something. It is so much better now though because my body won't allow me to eat like that anymore.

Snacks:
My favorite snacks have been low-fat cheese-its, low-fat Ritz crackers, fat free Saltines, no sugar added Fudgsicles, sugar free popsicles and any fruit I can get my hands on. I am still a muncher, but I feel better when I don't grab the high fat or high sugar foods and they really do taste good! Promise!

Exercise:
I purchased a wonderful 21-speed mountain bike and spent some time enjoying the cooler weather in the spring until the heat of the summer hit. I was only riding about once a week, but those times I did go I went up big hills and really pushed myself. Now that the weather is cooler again I still can't exercise because of healing from my abdominoplasty (8/26/99). Starting in November I will be joining a club and get into some weight lifting to hopefully tone up some of that flabby stuff!

Update 2/00:
I decided to join an aerobics and toning class with some friends last month. I loved it! Unfortunately, I am still experiencing some pain from my abdominoplasty and had to quit after 3 short weeks. :( I contacted my surgeon and he seems to think I have a pinched nerve, so I have to go in to see him and talk about it in a few weeks.

Update 11/4/00
Well, here it is November and I still haven't joined a club or really done much of any type of exercise. I have found it fairly easy to maintain my weight without it. Although I know it is more healthy to exercise to keep my body overall fit, I know I am just not the type to keep up with it, so I guess you could say, I gave up the fight when it comes to exercise. Interestingly enough, though I found that I lost about 4 lbs during a recent move just by the very nature of moving all day long and not having the time to munch.

updated 11/00

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A Little About Me and a Great Milestone Story
My Weight Loss Surgery Story
My Plastic Surgery Story
Before and After Pictures
My Weight Loss History Chart
My Eating Habits
My Favorite Links
Poetry and Writings
One Year Anniversary Musings
Suggested Post-Op Medications
Recommended Items For the Hospital
Reading Eagle/Times Newspaper Article - 11/14/99

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