Use Your First Six Months Wisely

[Fiddleman 4,376]

I have never heard of the term exercise bulimia before, but good point. Been there done that. It is not healthy and tricks you into thinking you can eat more than you should because you are busting it out daily for 3-4 hours. Sorry to say our bodies will in fact gain if your diet is not right. By not rig I mean starving beyond belief or eating too much.

[delta_girl 931]

Ok, your overall point is correct - use the first 6-12 months as wisely as possible to maximize your success. I am totally with you. But it is irresponsible to give advice to people telling them to eat nothing, cut their calories in half (which if they are eating as you did would be down to 250 cal), or work out for four hours. While these things may be "stall busters" - at what cost?

What physician would recommend not eating whatsoever or even just 250 calories - I know this is a short term suggestion - but how exactly are you meeting your Protein requirements? Why would your stall not break due to muscle loss given that you are starving yourself in that way, and if that is the case why is it so all important to you? Exercise can be very healthy, and help with weight loss - but encouraging four hour workouts sounds like a recipe for injury or a path to exercise bulimia. In fact, this whole method described sounds very much like reasoning on the cusp of an eating disorder rather than someone with a plan to pursue health and wellness.

I am not saying that the OP has an eating disorder - but the advice does not sound healthy. We are in fact at risk of developing eating disorders according to my doctor, so perhaps I am a little more sensitive about this.

Meeting goal is only part of my plan - while it is extremely important to me I also want to get there in the healthiest way possible. I am taking advantage of the honeymoon but hopefully not at my own peril.

I may be wrong, but I think that the OP was speaking to the spirit of self-control, not providing medical or nutritional advice. It appeared to be a conceptual approach as she covered a big concept with a relatively short post. I inferred that she meant to do what you need to do to take care of business while you can because you won't get these 6 months back.

Some people see things more literally than others.

[It's all new 453]

Ok' date=' your overall point is correct - use the first 6-12 months as wisely as possible to maximize your success. I am totally with you. But it is irresponsible to give advice to people telling them to eat nothing, cut their calories in half(which if they are eating as you did would be down to 250 cal), or work out for four hours. While these things may be "stall busters" - at what cost?

What physician would recommend not eating whatsoever or even just 250 calories - I know this is a short term suggestion - but how exactly are you meeting your Protein requirements? Why would your stall not break due to muscle loss given that you are starving yourself in that way, and if that is the case why is it so all important to you? Exercise can be very healthy, and help with weight loss - but encouraging four hour workouts sounds like a recipe for injury or a path to exercise bulimia. In fact, this whole method described sounds very much like reasoning on the cusp of an eating disorder rather than someone with a plan to pursue health and wellness.

I am not saying that the OP has an eating disorder - but the advice does not sound healthy. We are in fact at risk of developing eating disorders according to my doctor, so perhaps I am a little more sensitive about this.

Meeting goal is only part of my plan - while it is extremely important to me I also want to get there in the healthiest way possible. I am taking advantage of the honeymoon but hopefully not at my own peril.

[/quote']

I may be wrong, but I think that the OP was speaking to the spirit of self-control, not providing medical or nutritional advice. It appeared to be a conceptual approach as she covered a big concept with a relatively short post. I inferred that she meant to do what you need to do to take care of business while you can because you won't get these 6 months back.

Some people see things more literally than others.

As I stated in the first sentence of my reply - I totally agree with the overall point. The problem is that on this site there are many people pre-op or shortly post-op who are looking for the best path forward. Many of us received very little information from doctors or nutritionists and use this site to make up for gaps in our knowledge. And I think that there is a risk of people taking this type of advice literally. Glad that you were able to look past the particulars to the overall idea - as long as every other reader does the same, that will work out really well.

[LeahMae 34]

Typically something like this:

6am: 8 oz shake light soy with matrix extended release

9am: 3 oz chicken

12 pm: 3 oz salmon or chicken

3 pm: 3 oz chicken

6 pm 3 oz Protein meal ( something my wife makes' date=' or sometimes 3 oz chick, pork or salmon, all very lean). Sometimes a .5 oz veggie, if I really am not full by that point.

9 pm: 8 oz shake Water with matrix extended release.

Rinse, repeat.

I try and drink 125 oz of Water during the day. I also have a serving of GNC super foods extreme every few days. I exercise about an hour a day. Most of the time fast walking, but sometimes ( 2-3x a week), I will do an hour of elliptical ( 800 calls). Starting to use this shake weight infomercial device I picked up for cheap from grocery outlet. It gives your various upper body muscles a good workout. Not too serious about that yet. The moderate exercise I am doing keeps the muscles toned enough to not flab out on me and skin tone is decent. I don't stress to much about eating or exercising, but one thing I don't do is deviate from my focus. Really haven't been that tempted by the old demons, but I have already made up my mind to "just do it". There is no room for excuses or what not, just do it and that is that. As the men's warehouse guy says, " you'll like the way you look. I guarantee it." While I cannot guarantee it, I can say that the sleeve is a tool that has helped me have the discipline to reach towards goal. I don't play around with my sleeve. I take a rather objective approach that is bound to lead to success if I hold up my part of it.[/quote']

Thank u so much!! Sounds like ur doing great and have A LOT of focus.... Keep it up. Ill have to chk.out the GNC extreme food.. Thx again!!!

[chad2rad 491]

Whatever I decide to do with my food and activity choices has to be substainable over the long run. The first year, six months is a gift.

I don't want to be injured and then be unable to workout.

I hope to choose well each day, and quick to forgive if I mess up.

I think one month out now I am feeling better and time to kick it up a notch. Thanks for the reminder.

[FatFreeMe 37]

It's all new: as a pre-we've, thank you - I was getting really nervous about my decision - that I would lose but not all of it and then not be able to lose anymore without working out for 4 hours and eating only cucumbers.

[kadive 21]

Right' date=' going to extremes causes injury and burnout. I exercise max 1 hour a day and still drop 5 lb a week ( except when in a stall). And for that hour, I am not killing myself. I have learned the hard way in the past that diet is king. No matter how much you exercise, it means very little if your diet is of the wrong foods or the wrong quantities. Now I eat like Atkins diet ( really, not that bad with the sleeve), but without the high fat. Low carb, low fat, no sugar, low sodium and moderate exercise is what works for me. Down 120 lb in 4 months with 15 lb to go. I don't really stress about eating or exercising, and i enjoy not being a slave to either. Boy do I enjoy it. My mental outlook has done a 180 since getting sleeved and changing diet. I am going to transition into an organic and/or basic diet with grains, fruits, veggies and low fat meats once I transition into maintenance mode. All is good.[/quote']

Congrats on your success!! Can you share with us a little bit more of a typical day for you? I have to lose 120/130 lbs and I'm really impress with your progress.

Respectfully,

Kadive

[Fiddleman 4,376]

Congrats on your success!! Can you share with us a little bit more of a typical day for you? I have to lose 120/130 lbs and I'm really impress with your progress.

Respectfully' date='

Kadive[/quote']

Rather than re-type my response, please look up a couple posts and you will see what my typical day looks like. I am pretty focused and disciplined, but I think that is to be expected. Having this surgery was a major life event, not something to play around with. One thing you will notice repeatedly in my posts that diet truly is king. A fine tuned and disciplined diet is far more effective towards achieving goal than over extending yourself in exercise. The diet has to be nutritionally sound and be in the appropriate range of calories that optimizes your BMR. This information is given freely from my personal experience. I am not discounting exercise at all, but do advise everyone to find what works for them and something they can maintain for a long period of time. At one time, I was overdoing it in exercise because it was a little like a drug for me. However, i could not maintain it because of exercise burnout and my diet was messed up because of the need to consume lots and lots of calories. i then started rationalizing that it was ok to eat this and eat that because after all, i was busting out 1000s of calories a day in exercise. I never could find the right amount of calories to eat and ended up gaining weight, especially after the exercise slowed down. all in all, Exercise is more about body shaping and toning and less about weight loss. Others will have their own approaches and opinions. Best of luck.

[delta_girl 931]

Losing weight is much more about diet than exercise.

Here is a fascinating study on the subject:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/01/dieting-vs-exercise-for-weight-loss/

[FishingNurse 1,211]

My experience doesn't sound much like yours at all. I never did 500 calories -- got up to 1000+ as soon as I could, and ate at least 1000 cals per day from like six weeks post-op. After a few months it was 1200-1500, and now it's 1500-2000. I've lost just fine, and worked out not at all the first nine months, then started going to the gym three times a week. But multiple-hour workouts are not really necessary IMO. I'm almost two years out now and still losing slowly here and there, not with some huge extra effort or anything. I think the honeymoon period is a 'thing' but after the honeymoon you're still married as it were.

I have the same experiences for sure. I eat 2000 a day as well.

[Fiddleman 4,376]

Losing weight is much more about diet than exercise.

Here is a fascinating study on the subject:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/01/dieting-vs-exercise-for-weight-loss/

This is such a fascinating read. Thanks!

[swizzly 901]

Maybe you missed it, but I DID reach my original goal, and then I moved it lower for the hell of it. I'm about halfway to the newer one, but not too fussed about getting there. I'm already pretty small and lean -- I will have a full-body and dexa scan in a couple of months, but the doctor already believes my muscle mass is pretty good. I should add a couple of things -- I'm not a binger or emotional eater, so I don't have trigger foods or binge eating. I also don't eat wheat at all (or most grains for that matter), so I automatically get fewer carbs, apart from the chocolate I eat daily. And I don't use my car at all, I do walk to work, walk around town, etc., getting at least a few kms every day just in walking -- so it's possible that I just burn more calories due to that (but my resting metabolic rate pre-op was already nearly 1900, so I don't have a bad metabolism at all -- and I didn't have any intent to mess with that). Anyhow, I'm not speaking from a normative perspective, I'm just telling my experience.

Very low-cal diets ARE a trigger for me, as is too much exercise, or getting obsessive about it -- those are the areas I've had to be careful with.

I do eat very healthily and get a lot of Protein and veg in. I snack on nuts, olives and chocolate -- and some days I'm sure I'm higher than 2000 calories, not very often though. And a lot of days I'm probably below that. Tracking is another behavior I have to be careful about, so I mostly just do it in my head. If I wasn't still losing/maintaining overall, I'd be doing something different, but this is what works for me.

My clinic does NOT use shakes, liquid phases or calorie/protein counting -- it's all about real food, nutritional eating and moderation, and thus that's the focus. Might not work for everyone, I don't know -- but it works for me.

ETA: All my blood levels are awesome, my BP is low-normal now, and my Iron levels are spot on. These were amongst my top goals.

[windycitymom 60]

This is awesome input swizzly.

How did you determine your resting metabolic rate? is there a "scientific" way to measure that, how accurate do you think it is? or did you use a commercial thing like a fitbit?

[Butterthebean 8,146]

Losing weight is much more about diet than exercise.

Here is a fascinating study on the subject:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/01/dieting-vs-exercise-for-weight-loss/

That is a very good article. But the thing that kinda gets lost here is that exercise has many, many benefits besides weight loss.

Also, weight loss and improved health are not necessarily the same thing. A balance of both are my goals. The keyword being....balance.

[delta_girl 931]

That is a very good article. But the thing that kinda gets lost here is that exercise has many, many benefits besides weight loss.

Also, weight loss and improved health are not necessarily the same thing. A balance of both are my goals. The keyword being....balance.

I completely agree! That just happened to be the point of discussion. Exercise has TONS of fantastic benefits. It is great for improving your blood/oxygen level, great for your skin, great for your cholesterol levels, it decreases appetite, is a mood elevator, provides a relief of stress, helps you sleep better at night, provides muscle tone, improves balance, ...on and on and on. The last time I lost any significant amount of weight (and then unfortunately gained it back plus some), I was doing a fair bit of cardio and strength training. Even though I am quite short at 5'3", I was getting some definition at 155 lbs and my skin looked the best it ever has. That was 9 years, the death of a husband and a brother, a home foreclosure and 8 moves ago, but I remember!