How to Shop at A Farmers’ Market (For Bariatric Patients)

Medically Reviewed by Katelyn J. Mock, US-Registered Dietician (R.D.)

Everyone who’s gone through surgery knows that lifestyle changes occur after weight loss surgery. Here’s a post about healthy eating and incorporating more vegetables into your diet. If you visit the farmer’s market these are some great options to look out for.

Kale

Get some dinosaur kale. It looks like dinosaur scales. It is a little bit tenderer than your regular curly kale.

Cut the stem out and just use the beautiful, leafy, green part. Chop up the greens and use it for some stir fry. You can use some Marinara sauce on it and eat it as a fresh salad.

Benefits of Kale

Kale is good, especially in summer, because it lasts a little bit longer in the fridge than your typical Romaine lettuce, spinach, or iceberg. It is full of nutrients!

If you dress it with salad dressing, it lasts longer in the fridge. It doesn’t wild like lettuce and spinach. Another reason to use Kale!

How to Effectively Use Kale

Remember to massage the oil into the greens. Once you’ve removed the stem and washed it, add whichever oil you want and massage it in.

Kale in a Salad

Our US-registered dietitian shares an easy Kale recipe that can last you for a couple of days. It also saves you a lot of time! She recommends using olive oil or avocado oil in your salad.

Kale in a Smoothie

Another very nutritious way to use Kale is in a smoothie. It blends well. Use it in a smoothie with banana, almond butter, and yogurt. Protein powder in smoothies is always a good idea!

Corn on The Cob for Bariatric Patients

Corn on the cob is a really good idea! Boil it or microwave it with the husk. Even though microwaving takes away from the food, but in the hull, it is pretty good, and it stays super crunchy, which is nice.

Incorporating vegetables into your main dish after weight loss surgery is essential to help maintain your body’s nutrition.

Corn for Early Post-Weight Loss Surgery Individuals

If you are early post-op, corn is probably not going to be great food for you to use immediately.

And again, it could be added to a sauce of some kind, or steamed or stir-fried, would probably be better tolerated but the corn is a little bit tougher.

Broccoli

Remember to always use organic foods. Getting a huge flower of broccoli tells you that it’s organic. Kale and berries are very susceptible to chemicals and pesticides too. So just be a bit careful when you buy these.

Using broccoli: You can use broccoli raw, with just some hummus. You can save some of it and steam it for sides during the week. It could be a good idea to cut up the entire broccoli all at once so you don’t have to do it several times a week.

Broccoli for Early Post-WLS Individuals

If you are early post-op, you steam this till it is soft and tender. It is usually well tolerated but raw; you are going to have to wait for at least 2-4 months out. Some people even have to wait a little bit longer than that.

Using Peppers in Bariatric Eating

Wash your fresh peppers and cut them into strips. You can use these strips in your omelets or in salads with some salad dressing.

You can add onions, peppers, spinach, mushrooms to the marinara sauce just to add some extra vegetables for the family.

They gobble up your marinara sauce, the basic tomato sauce and so, it is an easy way that I can get some extra vegetables into our family without a lot of extra effort. And I will also keep some of the peppers raw, once again, to dip in the hummus.

Healthy holiday eating after bariatric surgery is a challenge but not an impossible one!

This Post Addresses

• Bariatric food shopping list
• Bariatric food shopping from farmer’s market
• Why should bariatric patients shop at farmers’ markets post-bariatric surgery?
• Grocery Shopping after Weight Loss Surgery