The soft foods diet is an exciting time. You can finally feel like a normal person again by eating foods that much of your family eats without having to puree it. You’ll still want to make sure you’re choosing low-fat, low-sugar foods and avoiding carbonation, caffeine and straws. It’s such a relief to actually get to this point in your journey. The hardest part is over, but a new challenge is beginning as you learn what to eat and when. I can’t stress the importance of chewing each bite 20 to 30 times. It will help your stomach digest the food better.
Examples of Soft Foods
Some of the new foods you can eat on the soft foods diet stage are canned meats, like tuna, chicken and salmon. You can also have cottage cheese, scrambled eggs, hard-boiled eggs and soft canned fruits. You can eat bananas, oatmeal and Cream of Wheat. Any foods that are soft, meaning you can cut them with a fork, is able to be eaten.
You can also continue with any of the foods from the previous phases. Sugar-free ice pops, Jello and pudding were still some of my favorites even at this stage. They also help you reach your hydration goals for the day. It’s so nice at this point to eat these foods without having to thin them down or zap them through a blender. At this point, you should start feeling human again. You should have some of your energy back and be able to do more things. Your weight is most likely dropping, so you are probably feeling amazing.
Tips
Just because you are feeling really good, doesn’t mean that you can lax on the rules. You still need to be eating two to three ounces of food per meal over 20 to 30 minutes, taking 20 to 30 chews per bite. Your food should be low-fat and low-sugar. Make sure you are weighing and measuring all of your portions so that you know you’re not overeating. Try one new food at a time to determine tolerance. Sometimes, the first time you try a food after surgery it doesn’t agree with your stomach. Wait a few weeks and try it again. You may need to eliminate it all together from your diet, but it shouldn’t stop you from trying it again just in case.
Protein First!
Always eat your protein first! I can’t stress this tip enough. You need to be meeting your protein goals every single day. If you eat your fruit or vegetables first, you might not have enough room for your protein. It’s important to eat your protein first, as it is more important for your healing body than vegetables or fruit. You probably won’t be eating any carbs at this point, unless you have oatmeal or Cream of Wheat. You can add protein powder to these meals too in order to boost the protein content. Protein is king and should be eaten first. Chew each bite 20 to 30 times to make sure that it can pass through your new stomach opening, which is now the size of a pencil eraser. Take your time and eat slowly. Put your utensil down between bites. Savor the food.
Soft Foods Diet Recipes
Cooking starts to get fun again at this stage. It’s almost like a game to me to see how much protein I can add to a meal and have it still be delicious and satisfying. Make sure your ingredients are low-sugar and low-fat, as you don’t want to experience dumping syndrome. If you want more information on dumping, check out this article from the Mayo Clinic. It’s a horrible experience, and both gastric bypass and sleeve patients can have dumping. Give some of these recipes a try. You won’t regret it!
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