Hey,

i do have a question about Maintenance calories in general,

I lost around 135kg's in weight in the first year, and im "slowly getting there" and even considered recreational surgery now,

but i have problems with the idea of Maintenance Calories and goals. So thats why i ask here now.

Is the General Maintenance kcal after the surgery lower than the ones for a normal "person" ? or do we kinda "slip into" that?. i know all the math about calculating it, but is the normal Calorie intake calc. for people with a rny Bypass even a thing?

The answer to that question is it is different for everyone. It depends on how your metabolism responded to the surgery, how much exercise you get, your body composition (fat compared to muscle), and even what kinds of foods you eat. Some people must maintain at a lower than average caloric intake while others can eat much closer to a "normal" amount and do just fine. It's very much a trial and error process to find what works for you, and you may need to make adjustments as time goes on, too.

Nope there’s no normal. You have to work out what you need in regards to nutrients and calories to maintain & your body to function effectively. Gender, height, age, weight, activity levels, how your body functions, etc. all play are part.

For example 2000-2400 calories is the recommended calorie intake for a woman. If I ate that I’d be as big or bigger than I was before surgery. In fact I never ate that much when I was obese. When my weight first stabilised I ate about 1300 calories yet a year or two later I began consuming about 1600 & still maintained - my needs obviously changed or stabilised. If I weighed more, was taller, younger, more active I would need to eat more. As to working out what I needed, I just slowly ate more as I was able until I stopped losing and my weight stabilised.

A basal metabolic rate calculator can give you an idea of what you may need calorie wise but much like BMI calculators they’re not perfect - don’t consider genetics, health needs, muscle mass, etc. I found the one below pretty on point for me but …

https://www.calculator.net/bmr-calculator.html

Edited November 6, 20241 yr by Arabesque

Everyone is different. I am almost 6 years out. I made it to my goal weight about 1 1/2 years after surgery using the Fast Metabolism Diet for the last 6 months of that. I went back up 15 pounds but my body is happy here. I have never thought about calories. I have always concentrated on how many ounces I eat at a meal. I never go above 3.5oz total. 2oz protein & 1.5oz. I also eat 5 times a day. 3 meals & 2 snacks like cheese or fruit.
You have to figure out what works best for you.

I wish I could say from experience but I never made it to the maintenance phase with my sleeve and I’m early out from my revision. From being on the boards though it seems what most people do is to add like 100 healthy calories at a time and wait and see if that makes them gain and keep upping it until they find what their body is happy with. Of course if you level of activity or type of calories changes you may have to adjust so I think if you don’t choose to log your food daily you may want to at least spot check it like once a week just so you can see if your habits change gradually and keep on track for what works for your body. Congratulations on nearing maintenance!!

it took me 4 months (and ~15 lbs) to figure out my maintenance calories were. i also had to get over my fear of gaining all my weight back and actually start eating MORE.

maintenance level calories are VERY individual, and vary greatly from person to person. and even then, it varies greatly form time to time for the SAME person.

4-ish months after achieving goal, i finally figured out that i needed 1800 cals a day to stop losing weight... AT THAT TIME.

over the years, this amount has changed depending on my activity level. luckily, i am anal and i track my food intake and weight DAILY so i am armed with data to figure out what i need at any point in time.

i am 6 years post op now, and these days i need about 2300-2500 to maintain my current weight (i exercise alot). had i continued to stay at 1800 cals from the before days i would have shrunk beyond what i wanted.

soooooo....long story short: your maintenance calories will change depending on your output and input, on your sleep patterns, overall health, stress levels, age, genetics, etc....its up to you to notice what affects you and act upon it. so, so, so, so, many times i read folks on here saying "i gained/lost weight and i just don't know why!". the answer is PAY ATTENTION....you will know why.

P.S. i do know that "normal" people don't need this level of attention to stay at a healthy weight. i also know that i am NOT a "normal" person. i mean, i got to a BMI of 43 (from BMI 23), in 10 years. it takes more "effort" for me to stay at a healthy weight that a "regular" person. so i do what i am willing to do.

Plateau