Calories at four months post-op?

[laffypatty 47]

Just wondering how many calories per day I should be eating at four months post-op. Most days I try to eat no more than 800, and I totally beat myself up if I eat 1,000. I'm not getting much exercise because my 3-year-old and 10-month-old are completely sabotaging that. (But that is for another thread.)

[Catherine707 253]

I found that I needed about 1200 per day to lose consistently. Anything under 800 and I get vertigo and feel like crap the next day. I haven't been able to exercise at all post surgery because of an ankle issue, and I had surgery on my ankle in Oct. I have been completely sedentary since then. Just starting to walk around and exercise on the bike now.

I'm guessing that running around after 2 small children gives you more "exercise" than you think! Have you thought about getting a fitbit or other tracking device to monitor your activity?

Good luck to you!

[laffypatty 47]

Yes, Catherine! I am extremely active between my two little ones, housework and full-time job. I do have a fitbit and get just under 10,000 steps per day without even exercising. On the weekends, i average 12,500 steps!

[Catherine707 253]

Well that all counts as exercise in my book! Sounds like you are doing exactly what you need in order to be successful with the sleeve! Quit second guessing yourself about calories as long as you see a downward trend!

[laffypatty 47]

Well that all counts as exercise in my book! Sounds like you are doing exactly what you need in order to be successful with the sleeve! Quit second guessing yourself about calories as long as you see a downward trend!

Thanks for the encouragement. That's the problem. The scale hasn't moved in a few weeks. I KNOW I need to do some purposeful cardiovascular exercise and some weights. In the past, I've had better results with exercise. I'll get there. Eventually.

Edited January 14, 2014 by laffypatty

[Sassy Pants1 186]

I just emailed my NUT today because I want to know as well. I'm getting around 900, but something tells me it should be more. I know their goal was to get me to 1,200, but I don't know at what point I should be there.

[laffypatty 47]

I just emailed my NUT today because I want to know as well. I'm getting around 900, but something tells me it should be more. I know their goal was to get me to 1,200, but I don't know at what point I should be there.

Curious to know what your nutritionist's response was. Please do share!

[Sassy Pants1 186]

I would love to provide an update, but they haven't responded yet. I will try to remember to come back to this thread once I hear something.

[AllisonKara 46]

Well the University of California, San Francisco has provided some necessary guidelines and recommendations on Protein and supplement intake after a bariatric surgery that applies to all. This includes eating protein rich food. A line from the site: "High-protein foods include eggs, meats, fish, seafood, tuna, poultry, soy milk, tofu, cottage cheese, yogurt and other milk products. Your goal should be a minimum of 65 to 75 grams of protein a day. Don't worry if you can't reach this goal in the first few months after surgery."

[laffypatty 47]

Well the University of California, San Francisco has provided some necessary guidelines and recommendations on Protein and supplement intake after a bariatric surgery that applies to all. This includes eating protein rich food. A line from the site: "High-protein foods include eggs, meats, fish, seafood, tuna, poultry, soy milk, tofu, cottage cheese, yogurt and other milk products. Your goal should be a minimum of 65 to 75 grams of protein a day. Don't worry if you can't reach this goal in the first few months after surgery."

Thanks for this. I'm definitely reaching, and exceeding, my protein goals.

[livvsmum 2,368]

I struggle with calories. Most days I don't get up to 65-75 g of Protein because I am too full, and I usually don't make it to other foods either because of that. I'm usually right around 500-600 calories per day. I am also kind of stalled right at 202 as well...lol. it's very frustrating and I'm thinking I probably need to start some exercise to jumpstart things.

[scarlet333 386]

At almost 11 months post op I am getting around 1100 calories per day and meeting my Protein needs. I do exercise almost every day and am very close to my goal although weight loss of course has slowed. I also attribute the slow loss due to the fact that I am close to my "normal" BMI. My surgeon though is very strict and tells me 800 calories to loose weight and 1000 calories to maintain. This is very hard to me but I try to keep the calories low each day. As you get father out it gets harder to do since you are able to eat more.

[Jenny12 361]

At 4 months out I stuck to 500-600 calories. If I got up to 800, I considered that off track by quite a lot. I'm a year out now and in maintenance I need 1600-1700 to maintain at 116 pounds.

[Gina1010 86]

About 800 to 1000 max

[laffypatty 47]

You have all been very helpful. I do not have a reliable nutritionist as part of my program, which I know is a major flaw - especially since I paid for a service I'm not receiving. I will go back down to 800 calories per day. Somewhere along the way, I got off track. I suppose that happens in the journey. Making a conscience effort today to not exceed 800 calories, which is what I'd been doing until about a month ago. Could explain my current stall. Thanks again!