Hi Sleevers,

I am in need of some tough love.

I am probably one of the very few that has fallen off the wagon so early on. I am only 11 days post-op and I've already cheated. Today, I had such a giant craving for some bread that I drove down to Trader Joes and bought myself some rolls. My only saving grace, I think, is that I chose the rolls that seemed the healthiest because one roll had 10 grams of Protein and 5 grams of Fiber. Well, I took those puppies home and ate one with a small bowl of creamy tomato and bell pepper Soup. I did not eat it all at once, as it would not fit, but I did manage to eat it. It did feel somewhat weird in my stomach for a bit but it do not come back up or cause me pain.

What is wrong with me? Why am I already messing up? I am supposed to be on full liquids for 3 more days and then transition to pureed foods, but I'm already eating bread.

I paid for the surgery myself, so I was able to get it very quickly and without any hassel. I did not have to see a nutritionist or lose weight to qualify or anything. Maybe this is why I am being so weak, so early on. I've already dropped a total of 15 pounds since starting my 7 day pre-op diet, and I'm feeling good about how I look. This might also be why I'm veering from my path, or maybe I'm subconsciously afraid to get thin, or something. I don't know what is wrong with me, but if I don't straighten myself out now, then I can be sure that more and more cheating will soon come.

Does anyone have any good words for me? I appreciate your help and support.

Adriana

You will be fine; I am just saying leaks can continue to occur even far out if you do something outrageous or just are unlucky...just follow the rules of your doctor and you will be in good hands.

Thanks for the pep talk and the reassurance. I am determined to follow the rules for the remaining weeks of healing.

I will keep you in prayer,because i know it's hard but hang in there and be careful you do not want to get sick and have to go in the hospital,and they will have to go back in your stomach and remove the bread that is stuck and blocking you from eating any more food,and than you will have so much pain,that they will have to put you on meds to control the pain,are you getting it now just wantrd to scare you a little Did it work ??

I will keep you in prayer,because i know it's hard but hang in there and be careful you do not want to get sick and have to go in the hospital,and they will have to go back in your stomach and remove the bread that is stuck and blocking you from eating any more food,and than you will have so much pain,that they will have to put you on meds to control the pain,are you getting it now just wantrd to scare you a little Did it work ??

Thanks for the prayers! Yes, I am scared straight now, and on the straight and narrow. I credit almost all of my newly found determination to all of you that took time to comment. It has put me back in the right mindset.

All of you are awesome!!

I cannot rationalize in my mind how this would be good for anyone. Do you have any science behind this number of calories? This low number, to me, seems like something that an anorexic would consume. I've never seen a diet plan that was this low in calories. Do you know why it is so little?

Thanks for your help!!

Actually this would be a lot of food for an anorexia to eat. They eat about 300 calories a day at the most..... so this is not what an anorexic would eat........They get little nutritional value and waste away. We start off with low calorie intake and focus on Protein and supplements and the further out you get, the more you will be able to eat.....Please focus on protein right now to maximize your weight loss.....

600-800 calories is not too low when you have recently been sleeved. Remember you can only eat about 8 oz. at a time at the most, and most of it is protein. And if you're not that far out, you are lucky if you can eat 4-6 oz. at a time. You will no longer be consuming high caloric foods such as "junk!" I am 15 months out and at my goal and And I should have atleast 1,200 per day to maintain, and I can't even get close. I still can only eat 8 oz. at a time. As long as you are taking ur vitamins daily and eating the right foods now, you will not get anorexic!

Actually this would be a lot of food for an anorexia to eat. They eat about 300 calories a day at the most..... so this is not what an anorexic would eat........They get little nutritional value and waste away. We start off with low calorie intake and focus on Protein and supplements and the further out you get, the more you will be able to eat.....Please focus on protein right now to maximize your weight loss.....

Where are you getting your numbers from? Hmm...

I just googled anorexica, out of curiosity, and found lots of different caloric values can be considered as this level. One post said that anorexics typically eat between 50 and 800 calories, depending on the severity of their disorder. Another site said that anything below 1,200 calories can be considered anorexic behavior because a person is consuming less than their resting basal metabolic rate.

I would really like, just for my piece of mind, to know why someone would recommend between 600-800 calories post-op bariatric surgery. Does our resting basal metabolic rate change after surgery or does it slow down our metabolism? Does anyone know? I still see no logical reason for going so low, but there might be a key piece of information I'm missing.

Thanks for your input.

Just hang in there and stay focused . It's head hunger these cravings your getting. That is crazy you were able to eat all that at 11 days out you have to be carful we don't want see you to injure your self.

When i i have been getting these cravings I have been just drinking lots of water and if its to bad I go for a walk. I am 11 days post op and I had to advance my diet -I did it with out talkin to my Nut. I was feeling back to normal and I needed some substance example purée shrimp parm, 4 shrimp ,table spoon of Garvey , pinch of low cal Mozzetta cheese ,I throw in my ninja and its the best thing I tasted in a long time 22grams of protein on top of it. Just do your best to stay focused and tell your nut or doc what you did they might to chk you out. Good luck hang in there

Hi you are going to find a lot of people here that "strongly" suggest that you should only consume 600 to 800 a day but there are a lot of people will also tell you 1000 to 1200 is target in several months what does your doctor say? And I think some people have their "sweet spot" and think that works for everyone.

Now granted you are very early out and I'm sure you don't even come close to 600 to 800 a day.

Track you liquid right now and your protein. Worrying about the calories will come into play soon enough ...

Where are you getting your numbers from? Hmm...

I just googled anorexica, out of curiosity, and found lots of different caloric values can be considered as this level. One post said that anorexics typically eat between 50 and 800 calories, depending on the severity of their disorder. Another site said that anything below 1,200 calories is a anorexic behavior because a person is consuming less than their resting basal metabolic rate.

I would really like, just for my piece of mind, to know why someone would recommend between 600-800 calories post-op bariatric surgery. Does our resting basal metabolic rate change after surgery or does it slow down our metabolism? Does anyone know? I still see no logical reason for going so low, but there might be a key piece of information I'm missing.

Thanks for your input.

Anorexics have a normal size stomach. People who have been sleeved have had 85% of their stomach removed. So you are not even comparing apples to apples!

Don't even be thinking of calories until you are on solid foods. Eat protein, measure what you eat(tablespoons, 1/4 of a cup). You must realize the reason for the strict diet in the beginning: they have removed 85% of your stomach!!! Think of this the next time you have a "head craving" and go watch the sleeve videos on Youtube, this should stop you. How about reading about what a leak can/would do to you, hopefully this will be enough to get you back on track. You will need to change your eating for life, this surgery isn't a magical pill and if you are not careful all the weight you lost will come right back on. Good Luck.

600-800 calories is not too low when you have recently been sleeved. Remember you can only eat about 8 oz. at a time at the most, and most of it is Protein. And if you're not that far out, you are lucky if you can eat 4-6 oz. at a time. You will no longer be consuming high caloric foods such as "junk!" I am 15 months out and at my goal and And I should have atleast 1,200 per day to maintain, and I can't even get close. I still can only eat 8 oz. at a time. As long as you are taking ur Vitamins daily and eating the right foods now, you will not get anorexic!

It's not that I'm worried about becoming anorexic, but instead that eating this low amount of calories does not make logical sense to me. At 5'10" and 222 pounds, my basal metabolic rate is about 1,700 calories. I'd need this many calories to just maintain my current weight, doing absolutely no extra exercise. Do you see where I'm coming from? If this 1,700 value is correct, then 800 calories is extremely low.

Where are you getting your information from? I'd really like to understand the rationale for these caloric numbers. I have heard that taking in extra protein might help in the healing process, although I've not heard the research behind this. Do low calories also help in the healing, or something like that?

Thanks for your information!

It's not that I'm worried about becoming anorexic, but instead that eating this low amount of calories does not make logical sense to me. At 5'10" and 222 pounds, my basal metabolic rate is about 1,700 calories. I'd need this many calories to just maintain my current weight, doing absolutely no extra exercise. Do you see where I'm coming from? If this 1,700 value is correct, then 800 calories is extremely low.

Where are you getting your information from? I'd really like to understand the rationale for these caloric numbers. I have heard that taking in extra Protein might help in the healing process, although I've not heard the research behind this. Do low calories also help in the healing, or something like that?

Thanks for your information!

I am getting my info from my doctor and my NUT. Your metabolism changes dramatically after you have this surgery. Protein boosts your metabolism. You will see that as you progress and when you have your checkups and he measures your body fat, BMI, muscle mass, etc. Your body cannot consume high caloric foods like it used to. You will make yourself sick if you do that. You are now eating the right foods and can only eat a few ounces at a time. You are not even far enough out to worry about counting any calories. When you are put on solid and regular foods, then your doctor and NUT should guide you based on your specific numbers I only counted calories for a few months on My Fitness Pal, then I stopped cuz I did't want to have to feel like I was on a diet. It becomes a new way of life for you. I never had to worry about going over my calories cuz I knew I wasn't eating anything I shouldn't, and I knew I cold only eat a few ounces of whatever I chose to eat. But i was always told, as many others on here have, as long as you are losing definitely do not go over 1,000 calories a day. If you are that concerned, maybe you should call our doctor or NUT and ask., but I am sure they will also tell you not to worry about it this soon. They will be more concerned with ow your stomach is healing at this point. Don't forget that 85% of your stomach is gone!

Hi you are going to find a lot of people here that "strongly" suggest that you should only consume 600 to 800 a day but there are a lot of people will also tell you 1000 to 1200 is target in several months what does your doctor say? And I think some people have their "sweet spot" and think that works for everyone.

Now granted you are very early out and I'm sure you don't even come close to 600 to 800 a day.

Track you liquid right now and your Protein. Worrying about the calories will come into play soon enough ...

I'm not tracking, but I suspect I'm well below 600 calories daily. I'm just not able to get that much down. I sip, sip, sip, but, between the Water and the protein, it takes me too long to finish anything.

My doctor gave me a list of foods but never said how many calories to take in. All I know is that I need to get around 60 grams of protein or more daily. However, for the last 20 years of my adult life, I've been paying attention to calories and seen many warnings against not getting enough of them, that is, going on crash diets. This is probably why it's alarming for me to be consuming such a low number, and this makes me anxious.

All I really would like to have is some sound medical/scienfic rationale for this caloric recommendation, so that I can put my mind to rest. I hope this makes sense. Do you happen to know?

Why not ask your doctor or NUT for the info you want to see then?

Anorexics have a normal size stomach. People who have been sleeved have had 85% of their stomach removed. So you are not even comparing apples to apples!

I'm sorry, but I don't quite follow what you're saying because the size of our stomach does not determine, to my knowledge, the number of calories a person needs to carry on a normal day of activity.

I'm not really comparing WLS patients to anorexics, I'm just sorta pointing out that this caloric intake level is not considered appropriate even for dieters. Do you know what I mean? Why would a WLS person be asked to intake about 800 calories until they have gotten to goal weight? There must be something that I am missing...