Recovery after surgery should I stick to 1200 cals?

jacksmummy2011

Hi everyone,
I'm currently doing well on 1200 calories per day, energy levels & hunger is fine. Losing between 0.5kg- 1kg per week.

Everything is fine except I'm going in for abdominal surgery in a weeks time and will be on bed rest for anywhere between 2-6 weeks (depends how the surgery ends up going at the time).
I won't be allowed to lift anything for 4-6 weeks either.

What I'm wondering is what I should do with my calories?
Obviously I can't stoop below 1200 and I won't be out and about exercising until I'm ready either.

Will my weight loss stall for potentially the entire recovery period?

Thanks for any advice x

MGarcia0504

I'm curious about this too since I'm hoping to go in for surgery in November to correct some tearing I had after my panniculectomy and won't be able to work out for about 6-8 weeks.

awildmiri

Personally I would say not to worry about calories for at least a week after surgery! Your body might need more food while it's healing, so as long as you're making sensible choices still I would say try not to deny it for a while.

While you're not working out, though, it depends on your BMR. You probably won't lose anything while you're bedridden (and that's okay!) unless your BMR is particularly high, but once you can do some gentle walking and be active that way even if you don't do gym work for a while, you'll find that 1,200 will have you losing again. I lost 1lb-1.5lbs with mostly standing and walking as my exercise, so you'll be fine - and remember that your focus first should just be getting better! Good luck with the surgery

vegangela_

As a nurse I'd recommend eating at maintenance while recovering. If your body is not getting adequate nutrition you will not heal as quickly.

oh_happy_day

jacksmummy2011 wrote: »

Hi everyone,
I'm currently doing well on 1200 calories per day, energy levels & hunger is fine. Losing between 0.5kg- 1kg per week.

Everything is fine except I'm going in for abdominal surgery in a weeks time and will be on bed rest for anywhere between 2-6 weeks (depends how the surgery ends up going at the time).
I won't be allowed to lift anything for 4-6 weeks either.

What I'm wondering is what I should do with my calories?
Obviously I can't stoop below 1200 and I won't be out and about exercising until I'm ready either.

Will my weight loss stall for potentially the entire recovery period?

Thanks for any advice x

I think you should discuss this with your medical team and see if there is a hospital dietician who can provide advice. Your activity level will drop (obviously) but it's all really important to feed your body appropriately and sufficiently while you heal.

I suspect you'll see fluctuations on the scale because you'll also be losing muscle mass from inactivity (I mean bed rest, as opposed to not just working out). This is another reason why it's important to eat enough calories - you don't want to lose additional muscle mass.

Basically I think you'll need to set aside the scale for a while, focus on your health and recovery and get back to it once you're cleared. I'm not suggesting that you undo your hard work but I think watching the scale over this period could drive you a bit nuts.

RodaRose

Depending on medical advice, you will need to eat at maintenance or above so that your body has the calories it needs for healing.

jacksmummy2011

According to the online calculators (I'm not sure how accurate they are) my bmr is 1600 calories.
Would you stick to that or add a little bit more?
Thanks everyone x

oh_happy_day

jacksmummy2011 wrote: »

According to the online calculators (I'm not sure how accurate they are) my bmr is 1600 calories.
Would you stick to that or add a little bit more?
Thanks everyone x

You really need to talk to your medical team and/or a dietician at the hospital. No one here knows your medical situation and what your calorie requirements will be under these circumstances.

auddii

RodaRose wrote: »

Depending on medical advice, you will need to eat at maintenance or above so that your body has the calories it needs for healing.

I would agree with that. If your bmr is 1600, you should eat a little more than that (I believe sedentary activity level is 1.2). You're going to be a little sedentary I would think, but your body is also going to be trying to heal, so I think it's a good level; that would put you at 1800-1900 calories a day. Also keep in mind, depending on how much pain you are in, you may not be hungry, but if you are, I think maintenance is a good idea.

Good luck with your surgery!!

jacksmummy2011

Thanks guys,
I will ask the dr at my pre op appointment (it's scheduled the day before the surgery)
Just thought it was worth discussing/thinking about in the meantime.
I'll let you know what the specialists opinion is when I ask them x

J72FIT

awildmiri wrote: »

Personally I would say not to worry about calories for at least a week after surgery! Your body might need more food while it's healing, so as long as you're making sensible choices still I would say try not to deny it for a while.

+1 to the bolded...

mbaker566

vegangela_ wrote: »

As a nurse I'd recommend eating at maintenance while recovering. If your body is not getting adequate nutrition you will not heal as quickly.

this is up to what the doctor says but i would agree with @vegangela_

callsitlikeiseeit

i would say dont worry about calories at all for a week or so. Your body will need the extra energy to help heal.