Originally Posted by Ann2

Originally Posted by lil_lisa

I think they said 800 calories while losing and 1000 at maintenance but I never counted calories. I know mostly protein, then vegies, then fruit, then carbs. One doctor said about 30 grams of carbs a day, that isn't much. I figure like 2 pieces of bread is all I can eat of carbs before I gain. Hope that helps.

First, anyone reading this should know that I plan my daily menus and track all my food on My Fitness Pal. So I really do know how much I've eaten on this journey (calories, protein, carbs, fats, fiber, calcium, etc.) since Day One. FYI, I'm 7 months, 3 weeks post-op. And I'm only 3 pounds from goal.

lil_lisa ... based on my experience, that calorie prescription you quoted above is just wrong. Sorry to be so blunt, and I'm not trying to insult you at all. You may wish to check back in with your surgeon / NUT and make sure what they said.

In any event, my surgeon didn't give me calorie limits, just daily protein minimums. Here's how it's all worked out for me:

Month 1: After the first few weeks (when our tummy is terribly swollen and we are all on a liquid diet), I could only manage about 500 cals a day. However, I worked real hard to get in my protein grams and hit 60 grams on Day Five.

Months 2-4: I aimed for and averaged about 800 calories a day. Most days I hit 60-75 protein grams. I also aimed for the same number of carbs (60-75), because I (1) didn't care about losing "as fast as possible," (2) really wanted and needed the physical and mental energy I knew I could get from good, healthy carbs (colored veggies and fruits, not starchy foods or slider foods), and (3) definitely wanted to avoid the low but real risk of developing something called post-bariatric reactive hypoglycemia (you can look it up; it really sucks). I felt good.

Months 5-6: At my bariatric P.A.'s and NUT's advice, I raised my calories to 1,000/day. Interestingly, my daily protein grams ratcheted up to about 80 grams/day, as did my daily carbs. I ate animal and plant protein, healthy carbs (colored veggies and fruits) and a few whole grains. I felt even better.

Months 7-8: I raised my calories to 1,200/day. And my protein and carbs both went up to 90-100/day. I'm feeling really good. This calorie budget allows me more wiggle room, but I'm still VERY careful not to take in a lot of slider, starchy foods. I have bread and pasta occasionally. I'm really enjoying wine (about 4 ounces/day). I'm still losing weight, but more slowly (5-6 pounds/month). I'm only 3 pounds from goal right now.

I saw my NUT and exercise consultant last week. They and I are hopeful that my maintenance daily calorie budget will be around 1,600-1,700.

I am over the moon with these results. It's never been tough for me. I've not had any serious stalls. Or if I did I didn't worry about them. One week I lost 0.0 pounds. Some weeks I lost only 0.2 or 0.4 pounds. But mostly it's been weekly losses of 1.0 to 4.0 pounds and monthly losses of between 5.0 and 11.5 pounds.

I've considered that every day, week and month was a practice session for the rest of my life.

My sleeve is the BEST DAMN TOOL I'VE EVER HAD TO LOSE AND MANAGE MY WEIGHT! But the discipline I've practiced and gained to control WHAT I eat has been a close second.

(I probably need to calm down. )