Hi all,

I'm starting to plan for my post op lifestyle. I've read here some folks do a low carb diet after surgery and some stick with everything in moderation. I've tried both many times in my life. Lost more and quickly with low carb. But always came slipped back into normal eating. Everything in moderation, leaves me more hungry, but not craving so much.

As far as weight loss and maintenance after bypass, what has worked best? Is it easier to maintain low carb after surgery? Have you seen equal success with eating all in moderation?

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Well, I am in the same part of my journey (planning), and it looks like it will be low carb for the losing phase, and moderation during maintenance for me.

Of course, I think this is a great question (and I'm posting so I can see others' responses).

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I had the sleeve, not bypass. I do carbs in moderation. I have not had bread since July because I just haven't wanted it but have had Pasta once or twice and I eat lots of fruit which has carbs. I also have sweet potatoes once in a while. There is almost nothing I deprive myself of completely.

I've lost almost 80 pounds since July and am about 10 pounds from my the goal weight I set at the beginning...though I am revising that down another 10 pounds or so based on how I look.

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I started low carb, but found that I was having memory issues etc. My dietician told me i needed to go to 100 grams of carbs (Higher than I wanted). I compromised by going to a balanced macro plan. I eat 30-35% carb (complex only). 25-30% fat and 40% Protein. I plan all my meals around these numbers. I was worried that I'd stall or slow by upping my carbs but was suprised to find that my weight loss actually sped up. My main sources for carbs are berries, oats (1/4cup/day),chia seeds, and of course vegetables, so my diet is quite high in Fiber. The above plan gets me to 70-85 grams of carbs a day which ends up being net carbs around 50 grams.

Carbs used to be my weakness, but since I am avoiding simple carbs and all processed food it is a non-issue for me and don't really struggle too much with cravings. (with the exception of popcorn...that will always be my weakness)

This works for me because it is something I can maintain in the long term.

Edited January 29, 20179 yr by Travelher

There are two phases after gastric bypass surgery. These are the Weight Loss phase and the Maintenance phase. The meal strategy is different between the two phases. During the weight loss phase it is best to adhere to the meal guidelines (food types and meal volume transitions during the first 1 1/2 years post-op). For me, I found that when I entered the Maintenance phase the strategy was very different. I included this strategy in the following article. I am over 3 1/2 years post op.

http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery2.pdf

I started low carb, but found that I was having memory issues etc. My dietician told me i needed to go to 100 grams of carbs (Higher than I wanted). I compromised by going to a balanced macro plan. I eat 30-35% carb (complex only). 25-30% fat and 40% Protein. I plan all my meals around these numbers. I was worried that I'd stall or slow by upping my carbs but was suprised to find that my weight loss actually sped up. My main sources for carbs are berries, oats (1/4cup/day),chia seeds, and of course vegetables, so my diet is quite high in fiber. The above plan gets me to 70-85 grams of carbs a day which ends up being net carbs around 50 grams.

Carbs used to be my weakness, but since I am avoiding simple carbs and all processed food it is a non-issue for me and don't really struggle too much with cravings. (with the exception of popcorn...that will always be my weakness)

This works for me because it is something I can maintain in the long term.

What would a typical days meals be for you?

I started low carb, but found that I was having memory issues etc. My dietician told me i needed to go to 100 grams of carbs (Higher than I wanted). I compromised by going to a balanced macro plan. I eat 30-35% carb (complex only). 25-30% fat and 40% Protein. I plan all my meals around these numbers. I was worried that I'd stall or slow by upping my carbs but was suprised to find that my weight loss actually sped up. My main sources for carbs are berries, oats (1/4cup/day),chia seeds, and of course vegetables, so my diet is quite high in fiber. The above plan gets me to 70-85 grams of carbs a day which ends up being net carbs around 50 grams.

Carbs used to be my weakness, but since I am avoiding simple carbs and all processed food it is a non-issue for me and don't really struggle too much with cravings. (with the exception of popcorn...that will always be my weakness)

This works for me because it is something I can maintain in the long term.

Average calorie intake per day? You say 70-85g carb but how much for protein and fat?

Many thanks x

I carb cycle. It works for me. I started strength training at 8 weeks post op. (Rny) I was very dizzy during training. My trainer explained to me how I needed carbs...good carbs. And explained how to carb cycle. I've bought the book Choose to lose, the 7 day carb cycle. By Chris Powell. Very interesting read.

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I started low carb, but found that I was having memory issues etc. My dietician told me i needed to go to 100 grams of carbs (Higher than I wanted). I compromised by going to a balanced macro plan. I eat 30-35% carb (complex only). 25-30% fat and 40% Protein. I plan all my meals around these numbers. I was worried that I'd stall or slow by upping my carbs but was suprised to find that my weight loss actually sped up. My main sources for carbs are berries, oats (1/4cup/day),chia seeds, and of course vegetables, so my diet is quite high in fiber. The above plan gets me to 70-85 grams of carbs a day which ends up being net carbs around 50 grams.

Carbs used to be my weakness, but since I am avoiding simple carbs and all processed food it is a non-issue for me and don't really struggle too much with cravings. (with the exception of popcorn...that will always be my weakness)

This works for me because it is something I can maintain in the long term.

Average calorie intake per day? You say 70-85g carb but how much for protein and fat?

Many thanks x

I get between 850-950 calories/day. Today was balanced 30/30/40 ish so it was 77grams carb, 32grams fat 88 grams protein. If you use a macro plan it doesn't really matter what your calories are. It works at 600 calories and 1200 calories. Because it is percentage based. Just have to set your macro goals in my fitnesspal and do your meal planning from there. Today my fiber was 25 grams. So net carbs were 52. Am travelher on myfitnesspal if you want to look at my diaries.

Edited January 30, 20179 yr by Travelher

I think everything in moderation is fine after you're at goal. Before then, however, low carb, low calorie is the way to make your goal weight.

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My NUT believes in moderation and so do I. We are to eat 5 times a day and two meals may have 1 serving of multigrain and two meals may have 1 serving of fruit AFTER Protein and we can have 3 servings of good fat (includes nuts). I don't eat much bread (and if I do its toasted so it won't swell) but I do eat multigrain crackers and popcorn. Fruit every now and again because there just isn't much room left after eating the protein. I must say I haven't had any issues with clumps of hair falling out and don't have much problem with constipation. I've lost over 60 pounds in 3 months.

My current diet tends towards low carb simply because I am gluten and lactose intolerant since my bypass. Gluten free products are not worth the effort to eat. I do occasionally eat some lactose free cheese when I crave it, but the fat in it still upsets my stomach, so the craving has to be pretty serious.

My carbs mainly come from fruit and once a day I might have a bit of steamed potato or sweet potato but not if I am eating salad.

I do believe in balance/moderation so I never feel like I miss out too much. I do miss pizza on the rare occasions that the family orders one and I sometimes miss being able to eat a fresh soft white bread roll. But missing those things is worth it for the health benefits of losing weight. For birthdays I have one or two bites of birthday cake (and suffer the consequences) just so I don't feel I am missing out completely. I have to say though, the dumping after makes me wonder if it was worth it.

So I am about 10 pounds away from goal and starting to think about maintenance. My loss has slowed to only a pound a week, sometimes less. I am hoping that things will naturally get into balance somewhere between a BMI of 24 and 18 otherwise I might have to do something more drastic. That is the plan anyway.

On 29.1.2017 at 2:38 PM, Monasmle said:

As far as weight loss and maintenance after bypass, what has worked best? Is it easier to maintain low carb after surgery?

It doesn't matter what works best for other people or the majority of people. The only thing that counts in the long run is: what is best for you to reach maximum weight loss and maintenance.

You will have to experiment, no way around it. If you're lucky your first shot hits perfectly but maybe you will have to try different styles of eating/nutrition.

A lot of people on this board eat low carb (or low carb/low calorie or low carb/low fat/low calorie) and a lot of nutritionists seem to favor this style these days so my bet is that you will try one of these low carb approaches as your first shot. If you're lucky, it will be your thing. If not, try not to feel like "a failure".