Eating out after surgery
Moe0112
Posts: 123 Member
So I'm now five weeks out and went out with the fam for the first time to dinally celebrate some good news. Nothing fancy ordered scrambled eggs had a few bites and I was good I was full. Boxed up my left overs to have tomorrow lol. And then I'll be damn as the waitress was bringing others their food part of me wished I could still eat that stuff. But looking at the weight I've lost and knowing the LONG journey I still have... I was ok with the choice I made and actually wished I made it sooner.
What was your experience good/bad or just plain ugly going out to eat after surgery?
What was your experience good/bad or just plain ugly going out to eat after surgery?
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I HATE going out to eat now. I'm finished so much sooner than everyone else and like you, I wish I could still eat. People have been inviting me out to eat and I keep saying no. It's no fun for me. I kinda hope it stays this way though.0
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I'm 3 months out and I enjoy eating out! I decided this journey is about me finally being able to enjoy life and eating out is a part of that. I try to plan my days calories according to eating out, and I find if I truly eat slow, Im not done much sooner, if at all, than anyone else. The key is to focus on the company not the food! Truth is there is really nothing I cannot have, but I am determined to choose to eat healthier. If there is something I really am craving that someone else is having (only family or close close friends! lol!) I steal a little bite just to satisfy the craving. It works for me! I do draw the line at buffets! This surgery has given me a new lease on life. I finally am free to be healthy! I remind myself often that the "restrictions" are not about being denied, rather about being empowered to take control and not let food control me!
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I enjoy going out. At first I'd take a shake or order a cream soup (butternut squash was usually available in the fall after my surgery). Six months out my wife and I will often split a meal, or I'll just order an appetizer. My favorite now, which I can get almost everywhere, is a salad with protein on it. I don't really miss, nor mind being around, bread, rice, pasta or dessert - I simply don't consider them an option.0
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I eat out at least once a week. I generally order something that will make good left overs or I order a salad. Eating out is just a part of life that isn't going to change. I usually try to look at the menu before arriving at the restaurant so I'm not stuck with making a poor decision. Go and enjoy.0
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I enjoy eating out and make sure it's something that I can have leftovers with. I love that I won't have to cook for a few meals. I feel so glad when I eat just a little while others are stuffing themselves which is what I used to do. It makes me feel so fr0
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I enjoy eating out and make sure it's something that I can have leftovers with. I love that I won't have to cook for a few meals. I feel so glad when I eat just a little while others are stuffing themselves which is what I used to do. It makes me feel so fr
It makes me feel so free from the bondage of food. I wish they could join me.0 -
1st time was Saturday after grandaughter s graduation. Will be post op 6 wks on Wednesday. I ordered grilled catfish and requested it to not be prepared with butter. I ate about 2 oz and it was great. Then I messed up. I took 1 small bite of crab meat au gratin (hubby's order) and let's just say I made it to the bathroom, left early, and stopped vomiting 2 hrs later after taking Phenergan. This is a learning experience. I'm not sure if it was my just diagnosed ulcer, the fat in the cheese, the texture of the cheese, or a combination of all of the above that led to my disaster. I just wish I would have not had that one more bite....ugh!!!0
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Similar to LoriB, theres nothing that I cant eat....I just don't eat in excess and if its not worth the cost, I have a little off of my husbands plate!
For example, if I want ice cream but I know its not worth the cost of buying my own cone or sundae, I will usually just eat a bite or 2 from what my husband gets.
Or if I want something but I don't want to waste it (cant save ice cream), I will order a small version and my husband will usually finish it for me!
Buffets, no problem
Either ask for a to go box and pay for it that way or wait for a coupon to make it worth the value of what you know you eat.
For example, I wait till a buffet place puts out coupons for buy 1 dinner get 1 for $2.
Drinks are extra but that's ok because I don't much care for coupons where they make you buy a drink to get the deal.
I know I can eat $2 worth of buffet food but now I would never be able to make their standard cost worth it.
Im learning to enjoy food....everything in moderation because now I get full a lot quicker!0 -
I've found I really enjoy going out for sushi now because I can order a very small amount of really high quality sashimi, get a good meal in for under 10 bucks and not feel lacking. Plus it's easy on the stomach and great protein. Previously we would hardly ever go out for sushi because between the two of us we'd put away $100 worth of food, much of it just rice.0
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lorilbuckner1 wrote: »I'm 3 months out and I enjoy eating out! I decided this journey is about me finally being able to enjoy life and eating out is a part of that. I try to plan my days calories according to eating out, and I find if I truly eat slow, Im not done much sooner, if at all, than anyone else. The key is to focus on the company not the food! Truth is there is really nothing I cannot have, but I am determined to choose to eat healthier. If there is something I really am craving that someone else is having (only family or close close friends! lol!) I steal a little bite just to satisfy the craving. It works for me! I do draw the line at buffets! This surgery has given me a new lease on life. I finally am free to be healthy! I remind myself often that the "restrictions" are not about being denied, rather about being empowered to take control and not let food control me!
^^^^this. To top it off, I generally get 2-3 meals for the price of one. I do miss getting a drink once in a while but I'm just not ready for that.0 -
I'm just over one month out and went out with a couple of friends over the weekend. I was worried, too, but I cut very small bites, put my silverware down, chewed everything down to nothing, then talked for a minute before my next bite. I was finished after them. Also didn't get sick or eat too much because of it. It was great. It was really nice to feel "normal" again, lol.0
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I don't like eating out. There are very few items I find that I can tolerate and I sit there staring at everyone else because I am finished eating first. I get anxiety about dumping in case I was not informed about an incredient. Also, I went to a well known restaurant and asked for a Nutrition menu and was told there was not one available. Eating out is not very Bariatric friendly in my opinion in the earlier stages.0
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I have yet to get to the point to where I can eat grains again, so breads and pastas are off the menu for me at this time. This means I have to be selective about what I eat and where I should be going to eat. But I don't let it stop me!
Going out to eat has always been a social event for me. So the last time I went to visit my mother and she wanted to take me to lunch with her friends I asked, "Where to?" She told me it was to Olive Garden.
You ever look at their menu and try to find something on there that does NOT have some type of breading or pasta on or in it?
I still went. I don't go out often, and if it turned out all I had was soup...then so be it. I wanted the social aspect of it any way.
Turns out they've added a couple of items to their lunch menu, one of them being a meatball sandwich - which I ordered. Just without the bread.
They very nicely complied with my order (although the waiter looked at me strangely when I ordered it...hehe), and since it was the half sandwich it was just two meatballs with sauce and some parmesan cheese. Filled me up nicely.
As far as finishing up more quickly than everyone else - I just ate slowly. Take a bite, put the fork down, chew slowly (savor the food, and chew enough times), swallow, and then talk a little bit before taking my next bite. Rinse, lather & repeat. I finished eating right about the same time as everyone else, satisfied with my meal and experience.
Going out doesn't have to be an embarrassment or horrifying experience. Take control of it and yourself, and then just try to enjoy both the company and the food. Take your time with your meal and everything else will follow.
(Quote from "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by Douglas Adams.)0 -
I am 4 years out and have no issues eating out. As someone else here said, we really can eat what we want, it's really about what we choose to eat. If we are going to a "chain" restaurant, I look at the nutritional menu on line and make my choice before I get there. I actually write it down so I don't even have to look at the menu and be tempted to order something else. If I don't have that option, I like to get a side salad and a chicken breast. I've gotten some wierd looks and once even had to produce the card my surgeon gave me saying I had bariatric surgery and please let me order off the kids menu or ala cart but most of the time it's not an issue. Or I will get something I know the husband will finish (he always says "am I finishing your meal?" so he knows how much to order himself) or something I know will reheat easily. I too draw the line at buffetts as it's not worth the price for me, so I feel we are wasting money. Being careful and mindful of what you are ordering, you can easily eat out.
As for wishing I could eat like I used to? Well yes, but rarely. I think because I know I can eat everything and am just simply choosing not makes it my decision, therefore, for me, I really have no feeling of "I wish I could have . . ." or "I wish I could eat more". It's my choice and when I look in the mirror at how much better I look and can do something that 4 years ago I couldn't, Well any regrets just kind of fly out the window.0 -
I love eating out and don't let myself get to caught up on thinking about it. Almost every restaurant has some protein available. I have had several servers ask if my food is ok when I don't eat much. I smile and just say yes. I don't always take the leftovers if I don't think I (or my husband) will eat them. I keep telling myself that I was happy to pay the price of the meal when I ate all of it, so I should be happy to pay when I have eaten all I need. This has made me feel a lot better about it and allowed me to enjoy the experience.
I agree that it is mostly social for me and quite often I am the last one to finish!0 -
connieamen378 wrote: »I love eating out and don't let myself get to caught up on thinking about it. Almost every restaurant has some protein available. I have had several servers ask if my food is ok when I don't eat much. I smile and just say yes. I don't always take the leftovers if I don't think I (or my husband) will eat them. I keep telling myself that I was happy to pay the price of the meal when I ate all of it, so I should be happy to pay when I have eaten all I need. This has made me feel a lot better about it and allowed me to enjoy the experience.
I agree that it is mostly social for me and quite often I am the last one to finish!
This is exactly how I feel I eat what I want when I go out just not much of it. My husband and I had a date night on Saturday and went to a very expensive steak house. I ate half of my steak and 2 pieces of asparagus and was full. The waiter boxed up my meal for me and I had 1/2 of dessert. I didn't feel guilty at all. My husband had the remainder of my steak for lunch the next day.0 -
the wife and i started going back out to eat about 1 month after my surgery. the first time we ordered 2 meals and had lots of leftovers. after that we just order one meal (that we both like) and i use the "bread plate" and take part of the meal to eat. no one has questioned my choices and we both end up satisfied. i just take small bites and chew, chew, chew.0
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I eat out when I want. I get a low calorie meal and eat half of it. that's about all I get down anyway! I don't eat pasta or bread, I usually get Salmon, Crab, Scallops, Tilapia, Lean steak, buffalo, Chicken or something like that, I stay away from anything fried, breaded or high calorie meals. I check the nutritional information before I go places.0
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I am almost 9 months out and enjoy going out to eat a couple of times a month. I usually order something off the appetizer menu that is high-protein, low-carb; a meat/veggie; or a salad with grilled protein. The other day I really indulged and got a lobster club salad. I had it for two meals and wound up throwing some away (Not the lobster, though. Never the lobster!) About once a month I'll have a bite or three of dessert.
My only struggle with restaurant eating is that if I get distracted I can too easily have that "one bite too many", so I've asked my husband to help me by reminding me to ask for a box when he sees me getting close to 1/3 finished!0 -
Going out to eat used to be one of my favorite things--now, not so much. When all I can manage is 1 egg and a piece of toast, or a few bites of fish and some veg (can't eat that AND soup, salad, appetizer and dessert), its just not the same. However, I have found that there is always something that I can order that is high in protein. I always have a doggy bag at the end of the meal. I'm 20 months out from RNY. But in the grand scheme of things, I'd rather forego big meals at restaurants and maintain my 100 pound weight loss. For me that old saying is true--Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.0
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I'm 2 months out and still enjoy going out for date nights with my husband or the occasional family meal. I do try to scope out the menu beforehand, but know that I can usually find a cup of soup, some fish or shrimp, or even the toppings of a cobb salad that will fit my protein needs pretty easily.0
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Thank you for all the helpful advice. It has gotten a lot better over the past few weeks
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I'm glad to hear it. I thought of you last night as I 'suffered' through 1/2 of an appetizer of mussels in a white wine sauce. 0
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9 days since surgery and eating out seems like a monumental task, but I am looking forward to sharing a meal with my family again soon! Thanks for all the great tips here. 0
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I went out with my husband over the weekend to a Chinese buffet of all places and it went well. It was nice to get out and do something, I got some seafood soup while he did the buffet and I just enjoyed my soup. I normally would have totally bypassed it and it actually tasted really good, and was such a different taste than chicken broth:)0
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rnin02, you're braver than I am, I wouldn't trust myself at a Chinese buffet. that's the last place I'd trust. myself to go. I'd try to get my money's worth there, cause I really like Chinese buffets.0
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rnin02, you're braver than I am, I wouldn't trust myself at a Chinese buffet. that's the last place I'd trust. myself to go. I'd try to get my money's worth there, cause I really like Chinese buffets.
Well, this was 4 days postop so that might have helped:) and they let me pay for just my soup, I didn't have to pay for the whole buffet.
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I eat out too. I can order a hamburger and toss the bun. Or a grilled chicken salad. I ask the wait person to leave off anything I don't want or can't eat from a salad. I have dressing on the side. I love steak so I will order a steak and it can be several meals. I don't mind taking part of my meal home. Lots of places have steamed veggies too.0
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So I'm now five weeks out and went out with the fam for the first time to dinally celebrate some good news. Nothing fancy ordered scrambled eggs had a few bites and I was good I was full. Boxed up my left overs to have tomorrow lol. And then I'll be damn as the waitress was bringing others their food part of me wished I could still eat that stuff. But looking at the weight I've lost and knowing the LONG journey I still have... I was ok with the choice I made and actually wished I made it sooner.
What was your experience good/bad or just plain ugly going out to eat after surgery?
I avoided eating out until this weekend. I am 3 months out and my family had a celebration at Olive Garden *my favorite by the way* and it was better than I expected. I was caught up in conversation and didn't have time to obsess over what I was missing out on. I will admit when my brother ordered my favorite dish I had a twinge of jealousy, but he took a bite looked at me and told me it tasted terrible with a smile on his face. My family us very supportive and that is the biggest support for me. I am sure it would be different if it was just me and my husband, but I also know that I am not in a place to do that right now. Baby steps for me as I continue to maintain the boundaries I put in place with foid. Sounds like you did well. 0 -
I hate eating out. The waitresses always think something is wrong with the food and constantly ask if I'm ok. I have the band and if I'm not careful and not chew well, the food gets stuck so I end up making multiple trips to the bathroom to spit out the slime or throw up. It's not enjoyable at all.0
