So I just had my 2 mos follow up after enduring another one week stall

I am 28 lbs down since surgery. 72 down overall.

So i ask him about Proteins vs carbs etc. He told me not to worry about that, and that I should be eating the least amount of calories a day that fill me up. He said its all about your caloric intake. I am so confused ughhhhhhhh

But after stalling...I will try it. But he told me not to worry and that the weight will come off.

Today, for instance, I'm having a Protein bar for Breakfast since I was craving it: 10 g protein, 115 calories, 12.5 g carbs/no sugars, 1 g Fiber (this is 1/2 of a Think Thin Brownie Crunch bar). For lunch, grilled fish (probably 2 ounces max) or some boiled shrimp with sauce. Midafternoon, iced coffee with milk and lite Hershey's syrup. For supper, 2 tablespoons of taco meat and 1 tablespoon of nacho cheese and a few tiny cubes of tomato and 3 Beanitos (baked chips made from pinto Beans and flax seeds, and completely delicious) to dip. Maybe a few almonds or some melon as an evening snack. And I'm full, happy, and losing weight. As I said, I know this is really different from what most people do, but it's working for me, and I feel good.

Cheers!

Meg

OK, all I want to know is WHERE DO YOU GET BEANITOS????? Kathe

Heya sweetie! I totally agree that Protein is the foundation to good weight loss, however, not everyone will get into ketosis and it's absolutely not needed for weight loss. Weight Watchers is a hugely successful program that cuts calories and increases exercise, or at least, they used to. At any rate, science is science and if you're burning more calories than you're putting into your body, you will lose weight. Science. Fact. Another fact is that just by being alive you burn calories. We have very very small tummies now and can't hold a lot of calories so yes, we will lose weight, especially at first because we're drastically reducing calorie intake. Does this make sense? Ketosis IS the way for some people but not everyone has to, needs to, or even should put their body into ketosis. Granted, Ketosis is not the same thing as ketoacidosis (a very dangerous condition that happens to diabetics) but ketosis can be dangerous for some people and I wouldn't want anyone to think that ketosis is the ONLY way because then maybe that would turn someone away from having the surgery when in reality, it may save their life.

A proper diet for anyone would be protein first, then veggies / fruits and then empty carbs like Desserts. This is a good diet for anyone to follow in order to be healthy. I have to say though that this may or may not end up being low carb, depending on your choices. Hope this makes more sense

Renee`

Oh- I did not mean everyone should aim for ketosis- the only part I was addressing was that you had said if your calories are too low your body will feed on itself in an unhealthy way- and I wanted to point out that if you are taking in the recommended protein it will feed on fat cells and not muscle!

Ketosis works for me- and I actually felt so dumb to not have been doing low carb in my most recent diets. I was doig lo calorie only- and it never worked. I should have thought back with my aging brain to the times I did Atkins- it always worked well for me! That was back during the FIRST craze! Bought the ketone strips and everything ;-P

We all have to decide what works for US- that is absolutely true! I have actually upped mycarbs a little to account for my two workouts a day.

Interestingly my nutritionist , when I brought it up, said the concept of "starvation mode" or shocking the body in to action again, etc. has no scientific basis and in her life as a dietician makes no sense. She basically said we all entered that "mode" when we had our stomachs amputated and we will lose weight if we stick to the rules. Interesting!

I believe that those of us who have or are prone to having the Metabolic Syndrome must restrict our Carbs intake in order to avoid high insulin and all its effects

.

Not only must we eat fewer carbs but we must be careful not to load our bodies at any meal with a high surge of carbs. This is why we should spread our carbs throughout the day and also choose healthy low glycaemic options and avoid the highly processed ones. High insulin does havoc to our blood sugars and ultimately to our hunger levels and cravings.

Not only do we have to be careful of our carb intake but we also have to keep within the calories in/calories out level to lose weight.

Those who have not got the Metabolic Syndrome have a healthier metabolism and just have to worry about the calories in/calories out equation to lose weight. Of course they also need to eat a healthy balance of food groups especially Protein and supplement with Vitamins and minerals as appropriate.

If you carry your fat around the middle you are probably prone to having the Metabolic Syndrome.

The good news is that exercise and weight loss improves the metabolism !

I don;t know a lot about glycemic index but this sounds interesting. My question is -do you know how many carbs would be considered a surge? I am limiting to 40 cers/30 net carbs a day but sometimes I might have 12 or so at once in a yogurt or something like that...

She may say there is no scientific evidence (there is no scientific evidence / studies done on the sleeve either, keep in mind) about the body going into what's commonly known as starvation mode, but I've seen it time and time again when working with Don. The body stops losing, up your Protein and calories and the weight comes off again and quickly. I've seen the many small meals a day used to up the metabolism and again, it works. Building muscle to burn calories? That works because muscle burns fat, but in order to do that you're right, you have to feed your muscles and that takes protein.

I've been an Atkins advocate for years and I know the low carb thing works, my only point is it's not the ONLY way and it's not for people with kidney problems because it can be dangerous. To tell people that it's the ONLY way the body can lose weight is a huge fallacy! There are many ways to lose weight and this journey is your own. You can listen to advice but at the end of the day it comes down to YOU and the choices you make for yourself. I know that low carb works for me and yes, I will use that later on but for now with the hard time I've had with this, I'm more concerned about feeding my body something / anything that agrees with me and getting some nutrition into my body. I have the ketostrips here at home and I've used them. I'm not in ketosis and yet I've now lost 31 pounds. My calories are extremely restricted (this was the reason for surgery after all!) which is why I am losing weight.

After spending so much time with Don and learning how he did things and seeing the results that he got (in living color in movie theaters...he was diet / fitness guru to the Hollywood crowd) I know that he was right. Low Carb living is a choice. For some it's the right one, but not for everyone. I tend not to listen to dieticians because I was there too many times when he debunked them to their face and left them speechless. I disagree with what my own doctor gave me as my take home instructions because it left no wiggle room for someone like me that couldn't follow the things he said because I was literally living on Gatorade and that's not healthy. My instructions didn't cover dumbasses like me because my body was seriously pissed off and to a point, still is. I've had to fall back on what I learned from Don and pave a new way for myself because nothing else was working. I'm not stupid, I have a background in nutrition and a bit in biology and I know what to do to get past this hump. What concerns me is someone making a blanket statement "you have to get into ketosis to lose weight" to people that may not know that this isn't the truth and try to follow it and do damage to themselves. OR someone considering surgery that has kidney damage and just turning away because they believe this to be true. What works for one doesn't work for all.

Like I said, I've always been a huge advocate of Atkins and while it works for the vast majority, some people are left floundering and searching for information or feeling like a failure because it's not working for them. Being obese, I have felt like a failure many times and it's not something I would wish on anyone.

Hope this helps someone and that I haven't offended anyone

Renee`

I don;t know a lot about glycemic index but this sounds interesting. My question is -do you know how many carbs would be considered a surge? I am limiting to 40 cers/30 net carbs a day but sometimes I might have 12 or so at once in a yogurt or something like that...

Eating carbs and Protein at the same time reduces the surge of the carbs. Yogurt should be no problem. People who are sensitive sometimes even eat fruit with protein, nuts, cheese or something like that to avoid a spike.

Eating carbs and Protein at the same time reduces the surge of the carbs. Yogurt should be no problem. People who are sensitive sometimes even eat fruit with protein, nuts, cheese or something like that to avoid a spike.

Yes, I agree . Carbs should be balanced with protein to prevent those flucuating blood sugars and insulin spikes and hunger/ cravings.

I am not sure this is as critical to us now since we had our surgery , as we are eating our protein anyway, as we are less likely to go wild with our carbs! We are already less hungry and more in control of what we eat. Well I am anyway. That's the main reason I like the sleeve.

Before I was sleeved I used to keep my carbs intake below 30gms at any meal and also made sure to combine it with at least 14gm protein. When I did this I got rid of my cravings and felt satisfied, and also could lose weight. I could never eat carbs on their own without subsequently feeling hungry. Although I always felt satisfied and lost weight while I followed these principals, it was hard work being so organised. I seemed to spend my life shopping, chopping, cooking , freezing, and preparing food. This regime does work if you would stay with it. It is also healthy as you are eating fresh wholesome food and avoiding all processed junk.

In the past, I also , occasionally opted to go into ketosis. You do not need to be in ketosis to lose weight, but while you are in ketosis you are never hungry so I used to feel in control. Also, food preparation was much simplier and you did not have to be organised to the same extent.

Now, I try to continue to balance my carbs with protein, and try not to eat carbs without some protein. I am restricting carbs throughout the day in as much as I am concentrating on never having too many carbs at any one time. I try to keep my carbs down to 15gms at every meal but sometimes allow myself to go up to 30gms, but never ever over that. And always with protein first.

The food choices from The South Beach Diet are heart healthy and can still be useful to us while we are in maintenance. I suppose The South Beach could be described as High/normal protein, and Low/moderate carb restriction with a low glycaemic twist.

To keep our calories down in the losing phase I Ibelieve we will have little choice but cut right back on the carbs, but how low depends on each person's own metabolism, degree of insulin resistance, age and amount of exercise taken.

I am so happy to be sleeved as it really makes life easy for me.

Yes, I agree . Carbs should be balanced with Protein to prevent those flucuating blood sugars and insulin spikes and hunger/ cravings.

I am not sure this is as critical to us now since we had our surgery , as we are eating our protein anyway, as we are less likely to go wild with our carbs! We are already less hungry and more in control of what we eat. Well I am anyway. That's the main reason I like the sleeve.

Before I was sleeved I used to keep my carbs intake below 30gms at any meal and also made sure to combine it with at least 14gm protein. When I did this I got rid of my cravings and felt satisfied, and also could lose weight. I could never eat carbs on their own without subsequently feeling hungry. Although I always felt satisfied and lost weight while I followed these principals, it was hard work being so organised. I seemed to spend my life shopping, chopping, cooking , freezing, and preparing food. This regime does work if you would stay with it. It is also healthy as you are eating fresh wholesome food and avoiding all processed junk.

In the past, I also , occasionally opted to go into ketosis. You do not need to be in ketosis to lose weight, but while you are in ketosis you are never hungry so I used to feel in control. Also, food preparation was much simplier and you did not have to be organised to the same extent.

Now, I try to continue to balance my carbs with protein, and try not to eat carbs without some protein. I am restricting carbs throughout the day in as much as I am concentrating on never having too many carbs at any one time. I try to keep my carbs down to 15gms at every meal but sometimes allow myself to go up to 30gms, but never ever over that. And always with protein first.

The food choices from The South Beach Diet are heart healthy and can still be useful to us while we are in maintenance. I suppose The South Beach could be described as High/normal protein, and Low/moderate carb restriction with a low glycaemic twist.

To keep our calories down in the losing phase I Ibelieve we will have little choice but cut right back on the carbs, but how low depends on each person's own metabolism, degree of insulin resistance, age and amount of exercise taken.

I am so happy to be sleeved as it really makes life easy for me.

I agree. It is more work to balance... I do cook, and make up little packets to throw into my lunch. I have been experimenting a little more with carbs, and I have to say, I was really hungry yesterday and I think the brown rice and lentil salad (delish) was the culprit. :^( ...live and learn!

Yes, I agree . Carbs should be balanced with Protein to prevent those flucuating blood sugars and insulin spikes and hunger/ cravings.

I am not sure this is as critical to us now since we had our surgery , as we are eating our protein anyway, as we are less likely to go wild with our carbs! We are already less hungry and more in control of what we eat. Well I am anyway. That's the main reason I like the sleeve.

Before I was sleeved I used to keep my carbs intake below 30gms at any meal and also made sure to combine it with at least 14gm protein. When I did this I got rid of my cravings and felt satisfied, and also could lose weight. I could never eat carbs on their own without subsequently feeling hungry. Although I always felt satisfied and lost weight while I followed these principals, it was hard work being so organised. I seemed to spend my life shopping, chopping, cooking , freezing, and preparing food. This regime does work if you would stay with it. It is also healthy as you are eating fresh wholesome food and avoiding all processed junk.

In the past, I also , occasionally opted to go into ketosis. You do not need to be in ketosis to lose weight, but while you are in ketosis you are never hungry so I used to feel in control. Also, food preparation was much simplier and you did not have to be organised to the same extent.

Now, I try to continue to balance my carbs with protein, and try not to eat carbs without some protein. I am restricting carbs throughout the day in as much as I am concentrating on never having too many carbs at any one time. I try to keep my carbs down to 15gms at every meal but sometimes allow myself to go up to 30gms, but never ever over that. And always with protein first.

The food choices from The South Beach Diet are heart healthy and can still be useful to us while we are in maintenance. I suppose The South Beach could be described as High/normal protein, and Low/moderate carb restriction with a low glycaemic twist.

To keep our calories down in the losing phase I Ibelieve we will have little choice but cut right back on the carbs, but how low depends on each person's own metabolism, degree of insulin resistance, age and amount of exercise taken.

I am so happy to be sleeved as it really makes life easy for me.

Excellent post!!! I completely agree.

I have a very intense workout schedule and I can withstand eating a little bit more carbs than others. It does not keep me from losing weight at all and I believe helps me to perform better. However, as with anyone else the more sugar I eat (empty carbs) of course it will hurt my weight loss. We all just have to find what works for us as individuals. I have found mine and I won't change it unless I feel I need to. It has carried me this far and I'm very close to goal so I seriously doubt I need to change anything at all. When I stall I just look over my recent choices (and it usually shows I'm NOT following what I know works for me) or shake things up (adding more calories, more fats or more workouts) and it works every time.

I think my personal main concern here with this thread in general is the idea that there is only one way for all to lose weight. That is simply false and misleading.

Thats true Miss Diva....I have always lost weight counting calories in the past with Weight Watchers for example. Even if I ate "bad foods" but stayed within the calorie constraints, I lost weight Not to say that is the way to do it, and balance is definitely key. But there definitely isnt only one way. Its cool to know what works for different people though

I have pretty much the same story as everyone else. I am also a slow loser, but I am happy with where I am at this point. I do hit stalls in my weight-loss, but I keep doing what I know is best. It is usually because I need to switch things up a bit. I am currently in a stall, but I am OK with it because I know that it will stop and I will begin loosing again.

Keep your chin up! We are all in the same boat, we just might be hitting some different bumps along the way!