Calorie and loss advice please help

[addouk 17]

Hi all I am 52 days out from surgery and have lost 41lbs since I have my roux en y.

I am so happy about that, let me give a bit of history..

I was a bit of an experiment for my hospital as in my target dieting for eligibility for surgery I lost 56lbs which took my BMI to 30 which was below my hospitals threshold..but after my team argued they granted surgery.

My 6 week post op check was this week, they said I wasn't eating enough Protein, and I had been struggling with getting Water in, they also said that losing 41lbs was a bit quicker than they would usually anticipate and they thought I was a month or so ahead. I had the surgery to help me completely out of control diabetes, and I'm no longer on any medication (goodbye 7 injections and 20 pills a day ).

I have made a better effort with Protein and Water since my appointment, having 60-80grams of protein a day..and 56oz of water and more if I can a day. My calorie intake has been up to 900 calories a day but on some of those days I have swam and burnt off some of those.

My question is, what should I be aiming for protein and water wise, and also what is the max calorie intake I should be going for?

I ask because in the past 6 days I have only dropped a couple of pounds, now I know it slows down but I didn't expect it to slow so quickly. I appreciate any advice, thanks in advance x

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[Renkoss 420]

I feel the same as you do. When I went for my one month post surgery appointment, the surgeon told me I had lost slightly more at that point than the norm. He felt that I would definitely hit my goal by one year.

However, since then, my weight loss has really slowed down. I am almost 3 months out now, and I've lost 40 lbs. I went through a stall that lasted almost a month! But, I've been dribbling down a pound here and a pound there. I know I've eaten a few things I probably shouldn't have (like crackers), but not too much. Sometimes I feel like I'm not doing something right, but I don't know what it could be. I look for Protein in everything I put in my mouth, and I still use shakes/drinks.

All the veterans say that you have to embrace the "stalls" and they will end. As long as I continue to lose, I will hang in there. I don't know what else to do.

Are you exercising? Taking your supplements/vitamins? Get that 64 oz Water in a day (at least) and your Protein. I think all of that is the most important.

[James Marusek 5,244]

Congratulations on your outstanding weight loss both pre-op and post-op.

It seems like you have a slew of questions, so let me talk about them one at a time. The three most important daily requirements after RNY gastric bypass surgery are meeting your daily Protein, Fluid and Vitamin requirements. food is secondary because your body is converting stored fat into the energy that drives your body. Thus you lose weight. So generally your surgical team have given you minimum requirements for Protein and fluids.

Fluids - Your Fluid requirement is met by a combination. It includes the Water you drink to swallow your Vitamins in the morning. It includes Water and milk. It includes the liquid in your Soup. It includes tea and Decaf coffee or crystal light. It includes the water in your Protein shakes. Some people found hot liquids go down easier, while others find cold liquids help. For me, my desires are somewhat seasonal. In the hot summer I drink a lot of crystal light lemonade. In the cold winter, I drink hot cocoa (no sugar added variety). So your requirement is fluids, not just water. Once I understood the fluid requirement and started adding up all the fluid that I drink each day, I found it wasn't hard to meed this requirement. [One of the reasons why you have a fluid requirement is that as your fat cells dissolve, they release chemicals and hormones that were stored in your fat cells into your system. These need to be flushed through your system, then your kidneys and finally expelled in your urine. So you require fluids to make this process work properly.]

Protein - Your protein requirement is met by a combination of the protein from supplements (protein shakes, protein bars) combined with the protein you obtain from meals. Right after RNY gastric bypass surgery, your meal volume is limited to 2 ounces per meal and it is almost impossible to obtain this protein from meals alone. Therefore one relies on supplements, such as Protein Shakes. But as your meal volume increases over time, you will have the option if you concentrate on consuming high protein meals of reducing your reliance on protein shakes. I went from 3 protein shakes a day, down to 2, then down to 1 and finally when my meal volume increased to 1 cup per meal, I took myself completely off protein shakes. This is important because your protein shakes do include calories. As I hit stalls after surgery, this reduction in protein shakes played a major component of breaking these stalls.

Calories - Weight loss is achieved after RNY surgery by meal volume control, not controlling the number of calories you consume. The one exception is given above.

At the end of the following article, I have included some recipes for high protein meals. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

Hi all I am 52 days out from surgery and have lost 41lbs since I have my roux en y.

I am so happy about that, let me give a bit of history..

I was a bit of an experiment for my hospital as in my target dieting for eligibility for surgery I lost 56lbs which took my BMI to 30 which was below my hospitals threshold..but after my team argued they granted surgery.

My 6 week post op check was this week, they said I wasn't eating enough Protein, and I had been struggling with getting Water in, they also said that losing 41lbs was a bit quicker than they would usually anticipate and they thought I was a month or so ahead. I had the surgery to help me completely out of control diabetes, and I'm no longer on any medication (goodbye 7 injections and 20 pills a day ).

I have made a better effort with Protein and Water since my appointment, having 60-80grams of protein a day..and 56oz of water and more if I can a day. My calorie intake has been up to 900 calories a day but on some of those days I have swam and burnt off some of those.

My question is, what should I be aiming for protein and water wise, and also what is the max calorie intake I should be going for?

I ask because in the past 6 days I have only dropped a couple of pounds, now I know it slows down but I didn't expect it to slow so quickly. I appreciate any advice, thanks in advance x

Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Based on my surgeon's guidelines, at your BMI, as a female your protein target would be 80 grams, and as a male it would be 100 grams.

Try to get AT least 64 oz of Fluid, but even more is better.

If you are exercising intensely then you probably want to be closer to 1000-1200 calories than 900. Try adding some more protein and healthy fats to up your calories.

[addouk 17]

Thank you both so so much! I didn't realise I could add the cups of tea I have had or the Water in my Protein shake. In the uk they don't advise Protein shakes but I bought some Anyways as I was struggling to get the food in. I have managed half a tea plate yesterday of food but that was for my evening meal..so am going to switch that around to lunchtime foods.. And try to have a bit less. I will update on my progress

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[addouk 17]

Thanks Renkos, I have started to swim a little and have done some walking but have been going dizzy a lot so have only walked with mum or around supermarket rather than out and about on my own. I hope this stall passes. The hospital said I am only 1 point off being perfect BMI I am 26 now and was told 25 was perfect..but I want to get some more off! After all we went through so much to get here we might as well do it right. I will def up my Fluid intake..I didn't know that milk and tea counted so have been getting more in than I thought but am def going to make more of an effort

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[Renkoss 420]

Thanks Renkos, I have started to swim a little and have done some walking but have been going dizzy a lot so have only walked with mum or around supermarket rather than out and about on my own. I hope this stall passes. The hospital said I am only 1 point off being perfect BMI I am 26 now and was told 25 was perfect..but I want to get some more off! After all we went through so much to get here we might as well do it right. I will def up my Fluid intake..I didn't know that milk and tea counted so have been getting more in than I thought but am def going to make more of an effort

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Just so you know, being dehydrated can cause dizziness. I found that out the hard way in the beginning when it was really difficult to get those fluids in. Hang in there. Things will get better. Sounds like you are doing everything right.

[addouk 17]

Thanks so so much!! Have found out in the past hour by experimenting that by drinking through a straw I can get fluids in much easier . On the other hand today I haven't managed to really eat.. I hope ur right and that this gets better. I've managed a Protein shake so will have another to try and get my Protein level up.. But am not sure I will manage food today..got extreme nausea. I tell you what, if anyone ever comments to me that weight loss surgery is an easy option or a cheat I will give them a detailed account of my journey!

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[Renkoss 420]

This is by far not the "easy" way out! Wow. People who don't realize what we put ourselves through to be healthier have no clue.