Thread: Female needs help!!!

I suggest real food... it's the best protein source... Egg whites are great... chicken breasts, turkey, beef, fish... all are great for protein...

how much weight have you lost since september?

good luck

hi and welcome.

60-80 grams of protein a day is actually quite low. for instance 1 can of tuna has about 35 grams in it.

if you were to eat 1 whole egg with 5 egg whites you'd have another 23 grams of protein.

see? 60 grams already in only 2 meals! of course there are LOTS of other choices besides eggs and tuna. (chicken, turkey, cottage cheese, lean cuts of beef....)

hopefully this helps you a bit.

you might want to check out www.fitday.com it will help you find the protein content (and calories, carbs, fat) in a lot of foods.

Craig suggested the Isopure Premade shakes. He has delt with alot of people that have had this procedure done and most use the Isopure premade. Is there a support group in your area for those that have had your procedure done? They would also be a wealth of information.

2 servings of protein shake is 48g for me in 12 ounces of water, so yes 80g is quite low if you feel that you need more.

Originally posted by meadowmuffin& We must have between 60 and 80 prams of protein daily.

Are you sure they didn't mean 60-80% of your calories should come from protein? Like the others, I'm very confused because 60-80 grams of protein is an extremely small amount.

Ya'll have to understand with this type of procedure the stomach is very very small. It will not allow much food to be taken in at one time. People who have had this done can only eat very small amounts at any one given.

Originally posted by JLB001
Ya'll have to understand with this type of procedure the stomach is very very small. It will not allow much food to be taken in at one time. People who have had this done can only eat very small amounts at any one given.

excellent point. but would the procedure mean that the person couldn't get those small amounts from real food as oppossed to shakes? i wasn't suggesting she have any more than what she's been told...just that it wouldn't be too hard to hit those numbers without requiring supplementation.

Most people that have this done use protein shakes, you can use real food. Not sure why it is not used more. Craig says the majority of people that have had this done use shake as the source for protein. Plus they also have to take high potency vitamins due to the stomach being so small and lack of adsorption. You have to think that the stomach does most of the break down of foods and proteins. If it is small it can't function to its full potential. If it is a bypass, they go completely past the stomach and straight into the intentness which can not break down the proteins as effectively which would mean smaller amounts of it.

This is coming from Craig, but he said he would have to know more. He's laying out at the pool.

Originally posted by JLB001
Ya'll have to understand with this type of procedure the stomach is very very small. It will not allow much food to be taken in at one time. People who have had this done can only eat very small amounts at any one given.

I'm certainly not going to argue with that, Meadowmuffin knows what she can and can't do better than I. Where I get confused is that taking even a full 100 grams of protein and spreading it out between four or five meals a day comes out to a miniscule 20-25 grams per meal. Just a single scoop of protein power has that. Again, please understand, I'm not doubting anyone or trying to argue here. I just want to be PERFECTLY clear on the situation before I go giving out advice.

How gastric bypass works

Gastric bypass alters the food path from the stomach to the small intestine. The surgeon creates a very small stomach pouch (approximately 15-20 cc, about the size of a golf-ball) with the upper part of the stomach. The rest of the stomach is permanently separated from the new pouch. The small intestine is cut below the stomach at the jejunum and is rearranged to provide an outlet from the new stomach pouch to the jejunum. Further down the jejunum, a connection is made with the duodenum so that the flow of digestive juices from the lower stomach is maintained.
Now food travels from the new stomach pouch to the jejunum, the ileum, the colon, and is eliminated. Bile and digestive juices are still released from the old stomach and travel down the duodenum and into the jejunum at the new connection.

The surgery achieves its effects by encouraging decreased food intake and reducing the feeling of hunger. The result is an early sense of fullness and satisfaction from a smaller portion of food. There is less likelihood of feeling deprived. Thus, gastric bypass provides a tool with which clients can potentially lose a substantial amount of excess weight, as long as they are motivated to maintain lifestyle changes.

The Gastric Bypass Diet

The gastric bypass diet unfolds in several stages, from "liquids only" to small meals of soft, high-protein foods. Meals on the new menu will be much smaller than normal, and the foods eaten must be very smooth in texture. On all stages of the diet, it is especially important to drink enough water, and to take vitamin and mineral supplements as prescribed.

Originally posted by DrChiro
How gastric bypass works

Gastric bypass alters the food path from the stomach to the small intestine. The surgeon creates a very small stomach pouch (approximately 15-20 cc, about the size of a golf-ball) with the upper part of the stomach. The rest of the stomach is permanently separated from the new pouch. The small intestine is cut below the stomach at the jejunum and is rearranged to provide an outlet from the new stomach pouch to the jejunum. Further down the jejunum, a connection is made with the duodenum so that the flow of digestive juices from the lower stomach is maintained.
Now food travels from the new stomach pouch to the jejunum, the ileum, the colon, and is eliminated. Bile and digestive juices are still released from the old stomach and travel down the duodenum and into the jejunum at the new connection.

The surgery achieves its effects by encouraging decreased food intake and reducing the feeling of hunger. The result is an early sense of fullness and satisfaction from a smaller portion of food. There is less likelihood of feeling deprived. Thus, gastric bypass provides a tool with which clients can potentially lose a substantial amount of excess weight, as long as they are motivated to maintain lifestyle changes.

Ummm.............What was that second thing again???

OK, golfball sized stomach. Yeah, I guess the person's not getting his or her money's worth at the local buffett. I'm still thinking 60-80 grams per DAY is easily reachable with some protein supplementation. Am I wrong?

http://www.endowsec.com/pated/edtgs22.htm

this website has all the stages listed and shows that you are correct in the macronutrient numbers you posted earlier.....the new "stomach" is not able to deal with much more food than that...so all the "typical" things we talk about on this board don't apply to you.

the protein does still seem very low and i know that all the women i have come across who have had this surgery (about 15 of them that i met)...have been very happy with the results and have all joined some type of support group either on-line or near their homes where they discuss diets and supplements, what worked and didnt work..how things taste, cost,etc.

i would suggest looking into these...so far it seems like the concesus is that Nature's Best Simply Protein shakes are needed to up the protein to avoid some unwanted problems that may develop from not ingesting enough protein.

Much of the breakdown of solid protein normally takes place in the stomach, which you don't have anymore....I would think that a more easily assimilated protein would benefit you....this is where supplementation comes in. It is not what you eat...it is what you ABSORB....if the whole-food protein you eat is not broken down properly you wont absorbit and utilize it to the fullest and you cant afford that when you are consuming such small quantities of food.

by the way...all this sounds a little confusing and probably scary to you...everyone i know who had this done has been VERY HAPPY with the results....so hang in there...you'll get it all figured out!

OK, at the risk of being serious, I'm gonna try to get back on track here. Meadowmuffin, you asked for advice on protein supplementation. Well, let's start off with real food. Your best sourcES (I highlighted the plural because it's very important to get your protein from multiple sources throughout the day.) are; eggs (Whites if you're being REALLY strict but whole is preferable.) relatively lean beef, tuna, salmon, chicken, turkey. Those are in no particular order and they represent my favorites so I may have missed one or two. Now, when it comes to adding a protein powder the generally accepted truth today is that whey protein is the best. It's the best because it has the highest bioavailability. In other words, for every gram you take in, your body uses a higher percentage of it than it would a different type of protein. The thing to remember though is that we're talking pretty small numbers here. If you have a choice between a whey protein that costs $2 per serving and a soy or egg or caseine that costs $1 per serving, I say get the cheap stuff. You're not preparing for the next Ms. Olympia contest so spending the extra $$$ to get the absolute best of the best of the best isn't worth it..................................In my opinion.

it was nature best isopure shakes i was referring to...not simply protein...sorry...too damn many brands...i get confused

Thank you to everyone who gave suggestions and I liked the discussion everyone was having. Just a little more background about the surgery, me and my 'problem'. My doctor told me my stomach was now the size of my thumb. I can only eat 2 or 3 oz at a time; three times per day with a protein snack in between, plus at least 64 oz of water. I love water and have only been able to tolerate water the last 6 weeks or so. Before it would give me stomach cramps. It could be luke warm, room temperature, tap or ice. It didn't matter. I also have a "HUGE" belly button hernia, which doesn't help me situation. I can only eat about 3 or 4 very small bites before I'm full. And I always eat my protein first. And that is my "meal". Drinking a protein shake also takes about 30 to 45 minutes. Trying to eat and drink everything I'm supposed to is very difficult for me. I was hoping for maybe a protein supplement in pill form and was wondering what if any someone could recommend. I have lost 133 lbs and have 145 still to lose. I do take two multi-vitamins and calcium caltrates daily. I really appreciate everyones input and time to help me out. Thank you... :o)

Oops... I have 105 more pounds to lose, not 145. Sorry!

Meadow! You are doing awesome! I know it must have taken alot to actually have the surgery performed. You are an inspiration!

Congratulations on all you've accomplished so far. Hopefully you'll feel better and better as time goes by.

is it bad that when i see the title of this thread the same thought always goes through my head... Don't they all????

JLB001, Thank you. Actually it wasn't difficult to make the decision to have the surgery. I consider myself still young at 52 and when I was told I would only have about 5 more years and all the health problems I had and they were getting worse, it wasn't difficult at all. I can already do so many things that I forgot how enjoyable they could be.

nikegurl,
Thank you very much. I do feel better with each passing day. I am alive again and can do so much more than I thought possible. I enjoy cleaning house, working outside and being able to slide into a booth at a restaurant again.

HoldDaMayo,
Yes, I believe we do all need help ! But not as much as we try to make you and all the other men believe we do... Question is: Where would you be without our help? (Huge smile!)

Thank you everyone.

Hey Meadowmuffin! I hope that everything is going well for you and that you are enjoying all those things that you havent been able to do for a while. It truly must feel great!

I dont really know of any effective protein supplement in pill form. You could possibly use some sotr of amino acids pill... but those generally have a limited amount of amino acids anyways. I'd say your best bet would be a whey protein shake for optimal absorption. I know its probably a pain to drink it over 30-40 minutes, but it will be the easiest way to get your protein. Two other easily digestible foods are eggs and fish... followed by chicken probably being the next most easily digestible. Anyways, good luck with your continuing progress!