So, I'm doing my pre-op low carb/high protein diet. My surgeon didn't give me any exact numbers; he just said low carb/high protein. He said I can eat all the veggies I want (no fruit though) and a bit of fat. I've been tracking my nutrition using cronometer, and of course everything is a mix of carbs, fat and protein, so I can't get 0 carbs, but I'd like to have a number to shoot for, especially because I'm eating a lot of vegetables, which are mostly fiber (ie. carbs). I've averaged 1200 calories, with 102 grams of protein, 56 grams of carbs, and 69 grams of fat (which I know is too high) for the past three days since I've been dieting. I could cut my carbs down if I swapped out some veggies for another protein shake, but I'd rather not if I don't have to. Does anyone have any ideas of how many grams of carbs are ok? Or even what percentage of my total calorie intake can be carbs?

Veggies are not the carbs you need to worry about. Most veggies (except for corn, peas and potatoes) are pretty low carb.

I did Atkins for 18 months and lost over 100 lbs., but you can never really get to 0 carbs. Generally, under 40 carbs a day is considered low carb. Atkins induction (the first phase) is 20 grams of carbs per day.

Edited May 16, 201412 yr by Scylla

My hubby is an Atkins fan. He aims for as close to 0 as he can. He'll include a few veggies a day but rarely goes over 10-15 when he's actually working the program (right now he's "taking a break" - eating all the carbs he can).

While Atkins doesn't make scientific sense to me (I'm pro eating fruits, veggies, healthy brown grains, and lean meats and cheeses) I can't argue with the fact that it works. Not sure for how long tho. Not sure anyone can go forever with eating as close to 0 carbs as u can. Atkins Induction (first 2 weeks) calls for 20 or less. Hubby is ALWAYS on induction and carbs are like poison to him.

Good luck!

Atkins makes perfect scientistic sense if you lead a sedentary lifestyle. Keep in mind it advocates low carb, not no carb.

I'm about 3 1\2 months out, and the only carbs I get these days are veggies. I never thought I'd see the day, but breads and breading kinda grosses me out now. I feel no I'll effects.. Quite the opposite.

I think I'm still ending up with roughly 50g of carbs a day because even though I'm only getting them from non-starchy sources (veggies, lemon juice, tofu, dairy), since I'm pre-op, I'm still eating a pretty large volume. I'm gonna see if I can cut it down to 30g, but I'm already getting sick of protein shakes, and I know I'm gonna really need those later so I don't want to hate them already. I'll see how it goes today.

Just to clarify a little on the Atkins - you actually count net carbs - which is total carbs, less fiber carbs and sugar alcohol carbs. So your carbs from the fiber in the veggies would not be included in your daily total

I don't know about a total percentage. But my doctor told me to try and get in between 40-50 grams of carbs a day and 70-100 grams of Protein a day. I do not eat bread, if I do it is whole grain and in a pita form to make a chicken sandwich. I stick with veggies and some nuts and berries. Also I have slowly started to introduce back in my diet fruits. I am not much of a fruit eater but lately I cannot get enough of them. My biggest thing is getting my calorie intake higher than what it currently runs. Right now it runs between 500-700 and I burn that off quickly with my exercising. I wouldn't swap out your veggies with a protein shake, those are the good carbs you want. Its all down to choices, if I didnt have my have my carbs up at 40-50 grams then I would be craving the junk food instead of the good food. I have found this out with trial and error. I would press your doctor some more to get a good estimate on where he would like to see you. If he doesnt have an answer for you I would talk to a nutritionist. Good luck!