When did you try these foods?

[Amie]

Hey guys,

I have a few pre-op foods that were my favorites and was curious if you've tried any of them, how far out you were when you tried them, and what side effects you may have experienced when trying them. Now first I'd like to clarify that I'm not dying to go out and try these things now and end up destroying my gut. I'm not hungry and don't desire food right now. Plus I'm going to squeeze my weight loss window for all it's worth and make life changing habits. But being human I do realize that there will come a point where I'll simply want to try these things again down the road. So I'm curious about others experiences. Without further ado I'd like to know if you've tried the following:

Orange Chicken (Panda Express or otherwise, doesn't matter)
Wheat Thins and Chikin in a Biscuit crackers (my all time favorite crackers)
Diet Coke/Diet Pepsi(I'll admit I'm no addict but I like the taste once in a while)
Chef Salad
Fried Chicken (Homemade or restaurant, doesn't matter)
Fried Rice
Teriyaki Chicken
Ice Cream
Turkey Steak
Corn
Black bean and rice burritos (thinking along the lines of Cafe Rio type burrito)

Yes it's all crap and carby. Yes they're bad and will most likely give me gas. But I know myself and know there's going to be a time when I'll want a taste. But maybe if I hear others experiences the desire will wane just a little bit more

 

[Amie]

I wasn't able to edit the title of this but I meant when did you TRY these foods. Not when did you tolerate them. Sorry for the confusion!

 

[southernlady]

Hey guys,

I have a few pre-op foods that were my favorites and was curious if you've tried any of them, how far out you were when you tried them, and what side effects you may have experienced when trying them. Now first I'd like to clarify that I'm not dying to go out and try these things now and end up destroying my gut. I'm not hungry and don't desire food right now. Plus I'm going to squeeze my weight loss window for all it's worth and make life changing habits. But being human I do realize that there will come a point where I'll simply want to try these things again down the road. So I'm curious about others experiences. Without further ado I'd like to know if you've tried the following:

Orange Chicken (Panda Express or otherwise, doesn't matter)
Wheat Thins and Chikin in a Biscuit crackers (my all time favorite crackers)
Diet Coke/Diet Pepsi(I'll admit I'm no addict but I like the taste once in a while)
Chef Salad
Fried Chicken (Homemade or restaurant, doesn't matter)
Fried Rice
Teriyaki Chicken
Ice Cream
Turkey Steak
Corn
Black bean and rice burritos (thinking along the lines of Cafe Rio type burrito)

Yes it's all crap and carby. Yes they're bad and will most likely give me gas. But I know myself and know there's going to be a time when I'll want a taste. But maybe if I hear others experiences the desire will wane just a little bit more

Orange Chicken, never had it...now Sweet & Sour...about a year out and ONE bite.
Crackers of any kind...I was about 3 months out BUT don't need them
Diet soda....fountain drink about 4 months...canned or bottled, I STILL have to go slow and I'm almost 3 years out.
Salad, plenty of meat/dressing and I snuck up on it. first just the lettuce, then about 3-4 days later add something. If it didn't bother me, I moved on, if it did, I didn't add that topping back. I was 3-4 months out. NEEDED a serious influx of something besides meat at that time.
Fried chicken...I was somewhere after 3 months, made my own.
Fried rice...never appealed to me
Teriyaki Chicken...not a big one with me on this one either.
Ice Cream...about 4 months, and ate it off and on til about 5 months ago...now I do frozen yogurt cause the lactose in ice cream bloats me.
Turkey Steak is an oxymoron.
Corn...basically leaves the body the same way it went in...but about 6 months out.
Burritos...make mine with meat.

I think the magic time frame for most of mine was the 3-4 month but that doesn't mean you need to eat them often.

 

[southernlady]

I wasn't able to edit the title of this but I meant when did you TRY these foods. Not when did you tolerate them. Sorry for the confusion!

FIFY (Fixed it for you)

 

[Joanne]

I'm almost 5 years out and some of the things on your list would still hurt me.

Here's what I think.

Orange Chicken - probably ok, but the orange sauce is very carby and artificial. Tread lightly

Crackers of any kind - I ate these pretty quickly, with peanut butter. I do eat crackers, I try to find some with a high fat content to offset the carbs, and I pile something on them, a very little cracker to topping ratio.

Diet soda - a few months for a few sips. I still could not finish a bottle. Soda makes me burp like crazy.

Salad, plenty of meat/dressing - Probably around month 5-6. I eat lots of salad as long as I can add protein, like Chef's salad, or chicken Caesar salad.

Fried chicken...3-4 months

Fried rice...Rice has me curled up in a ball in pain, even still. Maybe a few bites around month 4-5.

Teriyaki Chicken...Same as orange chicken.

Ice Cream...4-5 months, but go very slow. The sugar would have hurt me for the first year or two. I eat ice cream now. I look for premium, high fat content.

Corn...5-6 months. I added raw and cooked veggies in around month 6. I had no room before then.

Burritos...I only eat the insides, probably did this around month 4. Moe's and Chipotle were staples for me, I ate the insides of tacos and burritos.

 

[Lilyofthevalley]

I am sensitive to flours, corn, rice and sugars. Everybody is different. That being said, here are my experiences.

"Orange Chicken (Panda Express or otherwise, doesn't matter)"
I had a piece of orange chicken when I was 3 months out. I didn't have any adverse affects but I could only eat small portions of white chicken for the first year. Even now I have to be careful. So I didn't push it it I love that stuff and I think I have had some about three times now.

"Wheat Thins and Chikin in a Biscuit crackers (my all time favorite crackers)"
This Thanksgiving, (13 months out) I had wheat thins and a few other crackers with cheeseballs. More then a few crackers will make my stomach cramp.

"Diet Coke/Diet Pepsi(I'll admit I'm no addict but I like the taste once in a while)"
April Ist 2013 (6 months out) I remember because my cousin took me to dinner and I had a child's drink. I drank half of it and didn't notice any changes. I have had it maybe 6 times since but only in resturants. I feel very thirsty afterwards and a few times I have thought it messed with my hydration needs.

"Chef Salad"
I tried my first salad after five months out. Very small and it just tore me up for two days. I tried again two months later and while I had some gas and diarrhea, this time it was worth it. I still only have salad less than once a week. I really love it and make my salads with 1/3 greens and other veggies, and 2/3 protein. I use any reg fat dressing I want. I am not a drencher!

"Fried Chicken (Homemade or restaurant, doesn't matter)"
I've only had it twice, Kentucky fried and it was at least 8 months out. No problem crept stinky gas.

"Fried Rice"
I have "tasted" rice several times since my surgery and each time it just hurts me so much do not eat it. (other than to try it every 3-4 months with the same negative results.)

"Teriyaki Chicken"
No problem but too carby for regular use

"Ice Cream"
just upsets my balance, gave it up.

"Turkey Steak"
Here in Utah we have a place called Maddocks that makes these amazing lightly breaded turkey steaks, and markets them in stores. They are only 6 grams of carbs and are so yummy. I have them 3-4 times a month and tried them sometime in the summer so after 8 months out. They are slightly dry and dry meat can be a big problem for me. I have a narrow esophagus.

"Corn"
First time I tried corn I spent 3 hours in the bathroom and wanted to die. That's all I have to say about that. I occasionally eat something (very small amount) that has corn in it with no problem.

"Black bean and rice burritos (thinking along the lines of Cafe Rio type burrito)"
Beans don't really bother me except the usual way, and I skip the rice but the flour in a burrito can hurt my stomach all day.

 

[brooklyngirl]

I'm 5 months out and the only things on that list I've had are fried chicken and teriyaki chicken. I had a chicken tender at about 6 weeks, bad idea, breading killed my stomach. Now it sits fine, but some places have SUPER thick breading that I try not to indulge in. If I do have some, I only have a little, or the kind that's just dusted with flour and has a thin coat.

I've had homemade teriyaki chicken since I could stomach chicken, but I do not put sugar in my teriyaki sauce. If I want some sweetness I'll add some stevia, but usually don't. I use myfitnesspal if I'm eating from a chain and they usually have a bunch of carbs in the sauce.

 

[Amie]

Thanks for the responses guys! I find this so fascinating.

Crackers of any kind - I ate these pretty quickly, with peanut butter. I do eat crackers, I try to find some with a high fat content to offset the carbs, and I pile something on them, a very little cracker to topping ratio.

Joanne do you eat regular peanut butter like Jif or Skippy with the crackers? Or do you use specialty kinds?

"Turkey Steak"
Here in Utah we have a place called Maddocks that makes these amazing lightly breaded turkey steaks, and markets them in stores. They are only 6 grams of carbs and are so yummy. I have them 3-4 times a month and tried them sometime in the summer so after 8 months out. They are slightly dry and dry meat can be a big problem for me. I have a narrow esophagus.

It's so funny that you should mention Maddocks DeeDee because that's exactly what I had in mind. I absolutely love their turkey steaks and can't wait to try one again. I go there with my family at least once a month

 

[Paula]

Orange Chicken, Fried Chicken, Teriyaki chicken

I don't care for Asian cuisine, so never before and haven't after my DS. Chicken itself was one of those dense proteins that didn't sit well until at least 6 months out.

Wheat Thins and Chikin in a Biscuit crackers (my all time favorite crackers)

Didn't try any until I was a year and a half out and I don't eat them often. I know I'm a carb junkie and it was my go-to totally bad for me food.

Diet Coke/Diet Pepsi(I'll admit I'm no addict but I like the taste once in a while)

Didn't try any carbonated drinks until 18 months out

Chef Salad

Veggies were hard on the system for me until I hit about 8 months out

Fried Rice

Rice was difficult for me with my RNY, so I got out of the habit of eating it and just never got into it with my DS. I tend to just skip rice altogether.

Ice Cream

Didn't try any until at least a year and a half out and don't eat it often. I pay for it with gassy copious amounts of poo, those who share my space suffer too.

Turkey Steak

I wasn't able to really handle turkey until at least 6 months out

Corn

Probably after a year out, but not often

Black bean and rice burritos (thinking along the lines of Cafe Rio type burrito)

Rice and tortillas produced gas and uncomfortable feelings.

A lot of this is going to boil down to you making personal choices that are going to be conducive to maximizing your weight loss window and how badly you want to adopt the new way of living. Little bits here and there are okay, but high carb eating is going to slow down weight loss. Returning to high carb eating is what did me in as far as my RNY was concerned. So I try to be as careful as possible because carbs are a very slippery slope for me.

 

[Munchkin]

There's pretty much nothing on this list I hadn't 'tried' by three months out or so. And nothing bothered me either. I still can eat anything. I was eating steak at 10 days.

Seriously, if it has carbs don't eat it! At least not till you are below goal!

 

[newanatomy]

Amie!!!! How are you feeling? I am so glad to see you up and about, lol. At least on here. How did everything go? I leave for SLC on Tuesday, I would love to know anything you care to share.

 

[shann]

My thoughts:

Orange Chicken -- can eat a few bites, probably at least 1 year out

Wheat Thins and Chikin in a Biscuit crackers -- Wheat thins have something in them that makes me sick, I can eat other crackers. I eat Ritz all the time.

Diet Coke/Diet Pepsi-- first at 3 months out and I could only drink a little bit before I got really full. Now I let myself drink one Diet Coke per day and I'm back to loving it.

Chef Salad-- can't eat lettuce still at 3 1/2 years out (not typical, I don't think)

Fried Chicken -- eat it all the time, no problems, probably at 9 months or so?

Fried Rice-- no problems, but probably at least a year out

Teriyaki Chicken-- again, a few bites and I do better if I make it myself. Restaurant chinese doesn't do very well with me anymore

Ice Cream-- gives me gas, but I still eat it

Turkey Steak-- don't eat it??

Corn-- no problem at all, eat it all the time

Black bean and rice burritos-- I eat salsarita's a lot, but never flour tortillas, just the bowl. When we eat mexican, I eat something made with corn tortillas. If I have a flour tortilla, I just take a bite.

 

[SHales]

McDonalds makes me sick. EVERYTIME I ate there. The worst pain I ever had besides childbirth was from flour tortillas (I tried once at about 3 years out and again at 6 years out) not going there again. I eat pretty clean, boxed, canned, well anything with chemicals and preservatives makes me feel kind of yucky and I can taste the chemicals. I can eat orange chicken and teriyaki chicken but I usually make my own.

 

[Bagaof4]

This is such a personal thing. I see I may be the exception rather than the norm, but thought I should post my experience anyway!
Orange Chicken (Panda Express or otherwise, doesn't matter)
4-5 months out.

Wheat Thins and Chikin in a Biscuit crackers (my all time favorite crackers)
Wheat Thins are my weakness, too! I load them up with cheese or break up for a crunchy topping on soups and have no problem with them. Haven't tried Chickin in a Biscuit. Had Ritz crackers smeared with lots of butter no problems.

Diet Coke/Diet Pepsi(I'll admit I'm no addict but I like the taste once in a while)
Not a real soda lover, but have had some from time to time at about 3 months out. Finished about half.

Chef Salad
Tried a Chicken Fiesta salad from ElPollo Loco at about 1.5 months out. Did not upset my tummy, BUT I ate one bite too many and was hurting for an hour. My main problems had to do with volume.

Fried Chicken (Homemade or restaurant, doesn't matter)
Eat it all the time from 4 months out. No problems.

Fried Rice
Rice is another issue. Tried a bite at about 3 months out. Ended up having emergency appendectomy the night. I think I still associate the two and still avoid rice. I doubt that the small amount I ate had any effect, but still can't bring myself to eat it again.

Teriyaki Chicken
No problem.

Ice Cream
At an entire pint of rich, luscious full fat ice cream just like a crackhead at about 4 months out. Thought I was going to give birth. Curled up in the fetal position for an hour. Now at 15 months out, ice cream doesn't bother me at all.

Turkey Steak
No problems.

Corn
3 months out. No problems.

Black bean and rice burritos (thinking along the lines of Cafe Rio type burrito)
Beans give me gas, see above on the rice.

At this point, I pretty much eat what I want, knowing that flour rich, sugar rich things WILL give me toxic gas. I don't have pain anymore (unless of course I try to contain it!). I wait until I get home and am alone if I feel the need to have a treat of some sort. I carry Devrom in my purse just in case. It's all a choice and I can see that we are all so different. I can also eat quite a bit now although that varies as well.
(Scones have been quite unpleasant BTW)
It is all just trial and error. You will need to take it slowly and listen to what your body tolerates. I am thrilled that I don't have to deny myself the things I love!!!!

 

[Lilyofthevalley]

To be honest I hope rice and white flour never stop causing me pain.