I am making this poll, because it's something I struggle with. Let me know how many calories you eat, and it may guide me!

I have heard of people stating they eat anywhere from 600-1500 calories and lost weight, so I am thinking of doing 1200... what about you?

Well my body is...strange and horrible then. I only lose weight if I eat under 900-1000 calories a day. If I eat around 1200-1500 I start gaining... damn.

That seems to be happening to me too... it stinks. I was doing great for the past couple weeks, and now... i've gained a pound or two, and i can't shake them. it's frustrating, i REALLY want to get 180 by my birthday, but it doesn't look like that'll happen.

gotta kick my own ass at the gym tomorrow! 4 days without workin out....:thumbup:

I found the poll helpful!! I upped my calories so 1200 (but often came under) and lost 4 pounds this week!! I hadn't lose in 3 weeks, so I was probably in "starvation mode."

Wow, congratulations on losing again! Has anyone else had this experience? I'm just wondering if I should go a little over 1000 a day. For people who usually eat 1200 calories a day, how much weight do you lose on average each week?

Eating a variety of foods that provide enough calories helps you gain the proper amount of weight.

Man should consume about 2500 calories a day

Woman should consume about 2000 calories a day

Child should consume about 1600 calories a day

I don't really count calories anymore, but I have been doing weight watchers. I get 33 points a day and find that on average a point is 50 calories give or take. That puts me at 1500/1600 a day. I've been banded just under 6 mos and have lost 70# so I must be doing something right. I can't imagine eating under 1000 calories a day. I'm young and very active and I'm sure anything that little would put me in severe starvation mode. On the other side of things, I can't imagine eating over 2000 calories a day anymore and I porbably used to eat twice that many or more on a regular basis.

I'm consuming about 2000 calories a day and still losing 5 lbs a week. I have not been banded yet. I am hoping the band will help me keep it off.

If you have $200 American to spare, check out BODYBUGG :: WELCOME. With the Bodybugg you can see how many calories you are burning. It makes it easier to see what you can eat.

Well, now more than a year after surgery I have completely stopped counting calories at all.

I am still losing about a pound a week and eat what I want. It seems to be okay, but quite slow. I am now finally below the 200 mark and in a size 14!

I'm getting frustrated beyond reason!!! I have been following the rules religiously, I am down 80lbs (my surgery was april 13th), but I have completely plateaued. The nutritionist said to stay between 650-850 calories and I do, but I haven't lost a pound in over a month and a half. I don't know what to do.

I eat 1200 to 1500 daily. I just make sure to choose wisely and eat every 2 hours even if it is half an apple with a slice of cheese.

My advice to anyone who has plateued...just keep chugging along. I got my band July '08. I lost about 30 lbs in the first month or two, most coming from my pre-op diet. I then plateued for the next 3-5 months. It was kind of sad. I wanted to give up. However between January to July I lost about another 20 or 30, and then most recently since I've had a really good fill, I've dropped 35 lbs in about 4 months, which I'm pretty thrilled about. I've learned to not freak out if I don't drop a pound or two a week, my body doesn't work like that. It likes stalling for a long time and then dropping it all at once. Just keep eatting well and it'll happen, but I have to say that my attitude towards the band has had a huge effect. If you think you've failed: you fail. If you love your band and eat well, you won't give up and eventually you'll see the rewards:P

Great advise blackcherry!

You know when I first got my band I obsessed on how much the scale said, how fast or slow I was losing and how much everyone else was taking off. RELAX, your body needs time to adjust. I let my band work for me, watch what I eat and the weight is coming off, Have I had stalls YES, do I continue to lose YES! Give your body a break. Maybe adjust your calories up one day and down the next. Good luck in your journey!

You know when I first got my band I obsessed on how much the scale said, how fast or slow I was losing and how much everyone else was taking off. RELAX, your body needs time to adjust. I let my band work for me, watch what I eat and the weight is coming off, Have I had stalls YES, do I continue to lose YES! Give your body a break. Maybe adjust your calories up one day and down the next. Good luck in your journey!

YES! Thank you so much!

I'm trying to eat about 1800 cal/day. You wouldn't believe how stinkin hard it is to get that many calories in when you actually eat right. But eating that amount, along with running 4 days a week and strength-training 4 days - I am down 8 lbs in 3 weeks. We'll see if I've lost anymore when I weigh in again on Saturday. But my body is DEFINITELY changing even if I haven't been able to weigh in. I have two pairs of pants that I bought too tight and they are both so freaking close to being able to wear comfortably. Running is an awesome calorie burner. :devil_smile: It's much better to burn the calories than to starve your body of them.

My average according to fitday is about 1250 calories/day. Without exercise, I lost about 1.36 lb/week for the first year banded.

I'm now just into my 2nd year post surgery (was banded 06/09) and have began exercising 4x a week so I can continue losing 1-2 lbs/wk without any long plateaus.

I would probably continue losing about a lb/week even if I didn't exercise but now that I'm under 200 lbs, it's much easier for me to move and be active again, and can begin controlling my weight loss more with exercise.