So basically i am getting the feeling that we are supposed to be on a low carb diet from now on , does that seem pretty accurate? I have been stalled for 2 weeks sitting between 240-243. Ive been eating low to no carbs for breakfast and lunch and then having a little for dinner. Should i just cut them down for dinner too? I cant say i am having tons maybe a few from crackers or a small portion of potato, or even flat out bread.

How long have you had your surgery, chunkylover? Have you always eaten carbs post-op? Sorry for all the questions - I just try to learn everything I can. Hopefully I'll be sleeved some time in Sept or Oct.

I am 4-5 months out and almost at goal. I eat everything I did before, but less of it. A lot less of it. I don't advocate what I do, but it works for me. I don't want to teach my body that it can't ever have a bagel or Cheetos. I especially don't want to teach my body that 1000 cal is the new norm. 1200-1400 and even 1600 a day is reasonable, and is what a traditional diet amount should be. One thing that I think has made a big difference though is that I cut out the amount of meat and processed sugar.

Thank you for the explanation.

ladivaluz806,

First, congratulations on your weight loss! Your profile doesn’t say your surgery date, but it says you’re down 29 lbs and your first surgeon visit was May 9 – barely over a month ago!

With that information, I really don’t think your “stall” is anything to worry about. Your body may just be catching up. As long as you’re eating like your surgeon said, you’re doing fine. You can keep in the carbs at dinner if your surgeon allows them. Always make sure you ask your surgeon/nutritionist, and make sure your portions are right. If you’re eating right, the weight will come off. You’ll get over the stall when your body is ready, and not a second before!

I eat 3-4 crackers with a piece of turkey for lunch a day or two a week. I absolutely cannot tolerate sugar right now. I had some "diet" juice drink (15 calories) and it gave me a headache and gave me stomach pains. My nutritionist actually told me to add in some carbs. I work out 6 days a week and she said I am just not getting enough in (eat about 300 to 500 calories a day). I sometimes have a teaspoon of instant mashed potatoes with some chicken for dinner.

@@AnA92212 If you are working out 6 times a week, you should definitely try getting in more calories. At 300-500 calories a day, assuming you are burning 300-ish from exercise, you are getting dangerously close to a form of anorexia called anorexia athletica, which is basically where you burn as many or more calories a day through exercise than you are eating. That is VERY bad for you considering you also probably burn at least 1200 calories a day just by living. Your body will go into self preservation mode, your metabolism will slow WAY down, you body will stop expending energy for things that it considers to be "non-essential" functions..... Either cut back on the exercise or work on increasing your caloric intake. Not trying to scare you, just trying to warn you that over exerting yourself and not eating enough can have detrimental consequences. I know you want to lose weight quickly and we all know that weight loss is about "calories in vs. calories out", but our bodies are built to resist rapid weight loss and will do everything they can to "save" themselves if they think they are starving.

I actually lost 9 pounds this past week. I met with my nutritionist and said about 400 to 500 calories is right for the timeframe I am in. Goal for one year out is about 1200. Both she and my doctors are fine with my workout regime. I work out about 5 to 6 hours a week. A variety of cardiovascular on the treadmill to zumba, aqua aerobics, and body pump.

Those are VERY different caloric instructions than the ones I received. VERY different. A LOT lower.

Here's what my medical team recommended:

Month 1 500 calories (I'd have eaten more, but who could during Month One?!)

Months 2 - 4 800 calories/day

Months 5-6 1,000 calories/day

Months 7-8 1,200 calories/day

(Reached goal at 8-1/2 months post-op; lost at total of 90 pounds)

Months 9-10 1,400 - 1,600 calories

(Have lost another 5 pounds since reaching goal)

And although I'm exercising and have been all along, my workouts aren't anything CLOSE to the intensity that yours are.

Just sayin'.

I think the answer to this question is simply "yes". Low carb, not no carb, and pick whole foods over processed, non-starchy veggies and fruits over grains, Pasta and bread. Bonus to the low grain/low sugar diet....less joint inflammation for me!

I am only 7 weeks out from surgery so they want me to get around 400 to 600, working up to 1200 to 1400 by around the 1 year mark. I typically get fewer calories because I just don't have the time and I can't get it down. I have a newborn, work a full time hectic job, I am a grad student, and an active with my church. My nutritionist had me add some carbs into my diet a couple weeks ago. We have to remember that everyone's body is different and reacts differently to foods, exercise,and the surgery itself. It really is NOT calories in vs. calories out. It is much more complex than this. Trust me, I have YEARS of experience with this, and have worked with many specialists. I have more energy than I have had since my early 20's. Everything I do is supervised by 2 physicians (an endocrinologist and my surgeon) and a nutritionist. We are all at different points in our journey and everyone's body is different. Please remember this before you start handing out diagnosis or eating/exercising disorders.

I'm allowed up to 140 grams of carbs a day y and no less than 50. I find that I lose best if I eat no more than 100 grams.

I don't do low carbs. I look more at the source. As other have mentioned complex carbs are good for you. I also allow myself more carbs before and after a workout as your body uses the fuel. Most of my carbs are coming from Beans, whole grains, nuts and dark green veg. The carbs I limit are those that come from breads, pastas and white rice.

I eat carbs, but I also exercise quite heavily. I'm training for a half marathon, which is 4 runs a week, and I strength train 3-4 days a week and have gotten into lifting pretty heavy. If I don't eat enough and if I don't have carbs, my body doesn't have any energy and I get lightheaded. Which is dangerous when you're lifting heavy weights or out on a run outdoors. Do I eat white bread and potatoes and cake? No. I get my carbs from fruit, yogurts, granola and Quest bars. The occasional whole wheat tortilla or wrap, but mostly I don't eat "carby" stuff because it fills up my pouch and I don't have room for my Protein. And I get a general "I don't feel so good" feeling if I overload on carbs, especially not the good kind.

WLS aside, a low carb, moderate fat, high protein diet has been proven to be the most effective for weight loss and weight maintenance. I plan to maintain a LC/MF/HP diet as much as possible until my doctor or nutritionist tells me otherwise because it's what's working for me.

Because I've always been overweight and have PCOS, I've been told to eat low carb my entire adult life. After surgery I was diligently keeping my carbs under 30 grams a day but had chronic fatigue and my muscles started to randomly twitch and seize. I went to my doctor and he said, "Your carbs are way too low. You've completely depleted your glycogen stores. You've got to eat some carbs." I looked at him like he was crazy. He laughed and said, "That doesn't mean French fries!" And I said, "So...I can eat a banana?" He said, "PLEASE eat a banana. Eat a banana every day."

Well, I started to allow myself a little more carb but not a lot. Then this month I took the Whole30 challenge. It says no food tracking. Just eat healthy, whole foods and lots of delicious fats from avocado, coconut and other nuts. So I ate. No tracking. I just ate. I'm guessing I probably ate 1,200+ calories a day, the most I've eaten in 7 months. I lost 10 pounds this month. That's a LOT for me because I'm so close to goal. Only 14 to go! To put it in perspective: from April-May I lost 8 pounds and from May-June I lost 5 pounds. I was expecting to lose 3-5 this month. 10 is amazing.

I definitely plan on keeping this Paleo-style eating probably 80% of the time. I'm human so occasionally I'll have a corn tortilla or maybe something sweet. Yay healthy carbs AND fats!!!

Low carbs is the future. I really that is what the tool of weight loss shoed me. Like others I use lettuce for wraps and cucumbers for crackers. Sometimes I do eat rice cakes but try not to because that just leaves me wanting more. My carbs come in fruit form and Quinoa- which I use as a replacement for rice. I found out that I have a wheat sensitivity when I cut out bread and so now have less itchy skin and allergic breakouts on my skin and lots of skin.

Ditch the carbs.

Only as long as we want to maintain our hard won weight loss.