Weight loss Surgery Question RNY 4/27

slepygrl
slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
edited November 13 in Food and Nutrition
Hey All!
I have RNY weight loss surgery on 4/27/16. Up to now I've been in survival mode. Just trying to learn how to eat with my new stomach. So far things are going well. I'm down almost 60lbs. I feel good. I'm very happy with my decision.
My question is. How many calories should I be taking in daily? I haven't been tracking my eating. But I'm starting too.
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Replies

  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    edited August 2016
    I would think your care team would have set you up with a post-recovery plan. It would be best to ask them.
  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
    No stranger on the internet can tell you that - talk to your care team.....
  • slepygrl
    slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
    Why the weird judgment? I am healthy. I eat right, exercise. I'm off all meds. (The pic in my profile was taken today.)
    This surgery process took 6 very long months. I'm doing EVERYTHING I was told to do.
    I only came on here to see what other people are doing.
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    slepygrl wrote: »
    Why the weird judgment? I am healthy. I eat right, exercise. I'm off all meds. (The pic in my profile was taken today.)
    This surgery process took 6 very long months. I'm doing EVERYTHING I was told to do.
    I only came on here to see what other people are doing.

    It's not judgement. Its a blunt presentation of facts. @MKEgal 's post sums up the confusion as to why you don't have a plan in place already. Weight loss surgery by its nature permanently alters the calorie and nutritional needs of the patient for life. It's a big deal. Your care team should have taken care of this long ago, and if they already have, you don't need advice about calories from other people. You should follow what was given you.
  • slepygrl
    slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
    edited August 2016
    FOR F*** SAKE! I know all the ins and outs of the surgery. I know how it's done. I know why. I'm only wanting to see what other people are doing. Calorie allowance varies from person to person. I'm active. I do stuff. WTF! THERE IS NO CONFUSION!
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    edited August 2016
    slepygrl wrote: »
    I'm only wanting to see what other people are doing.

    [snip]

    WTF! THERE IS NO CONFUSION!

    Well...
    slepygrl wrote: »
    My question is. How many calories should I be taking in daily?

    ...?
  • MKEgal
    MKEgal Posts: 3,250 Member
    slepygrl wrote:
    Why the weird judgment? I am healthy. I eat right, exercise. I'm off all meds. (The pic in my profile was taken today.)
    This surgery process took 6 very long months. I'm doing EVERYTHING I was told to do.
    I only came on here to see what other people are doing.
    .
    Your original post said:
    I have RNY weight loss surgery on 4/27/16. Up to now I've been in survival mode. Just trying to learn how to eat with my new stomach. So far things are going well. I'm down almost 60lbs. I feel good. I'm very happy with my decision.
    My question is. How many calories should I be taking in daily? I haven't been tracking my eating.
    .
    Which throws several red flags saying that you did not get good information, or were not following that instruction, did not know what to do:
    Survival mode, learning how to eat, how many calories should I be taking in, haven't been tracking my eating...
    If you were doing what your medical team taught, you would be paying close attention to your nutrition / intake.
    .
    The best advice any of us can give to someone in your very unusual situation is exactly what we said:
    see your doctor.
    You are medically strange, and I don't mean that in a bullying sort of way, but being realistic here, your needs are now (and will remain) so far out of the norm that only someone who has been through it or who deals with those patients regularly has any hope of answering your question in a way that won't lead to harming you.
    .
    And even if you were a regular everyday noob popping in to ask for help,
    we'd need lots more info to be able to answer your question about "how much should I be eating".
    Age, height, current weight, goal weight, activity level.
    Which is one reason I keep that BCM.edu tool link handy.
    The person can put everything in for her/himself, not have to answer questions from strangers, play with the numbers to get to a healthy BMI, see how many servings of foods they will get with various amounts of activity, etc.
  • smotheredincheese
    smotheredincheese Posts: 559 Member
    slepygrl wrote: »
    FOR F*** SAKE! I know all the ins and outs of the surgery. I know how it's done. I know why. I'm only wanting to see what other people are doing. Calorie allowance varies from person to person. I'm active. I do stuff. WTF! THERE IS NO CONFUSION!

    Woah! Why the anger?
    Noone here can tell you how much you need to be eating, that's something you need to discuss with your doctors and if they haven't already offered you advice on calorie intake, thats pretty worrying.
  • slepygrl
    slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
    MKEgal wrote: »
    slepygrl wrote:
    Why the weird judgment? I am healthy. I eat right, exercise. I'm off all meds. (The pic in my profile was taken today.)
    This surgery process took 6 very long months. I'm doing EVERYTHING I was told to do.
    I only came on here to see what other people are doing.
    .
    Your original post said:
    I have RNY weight loss surgery on 4/27/16. Up to now I've been in survival mode. Just trying to learn how to eat with my new stomach. So far things are going well. I'm down almost 60lbs. I feel good. I'm very happy with my decision.
    My question is. How many calories should I be taking in daily? I haven't been tracking my eating.
    .
    Which throws several red flags saying that you did not get good information, or were not following that instruction, did not know what to do:
    Survival mode, learning how to eat, how many calories should I be taking in, haven't been tracking my eating...
    If you were doing what your medical team taught, you would be paying close attention to your nutrition / intake.
    .
    The best advice any of us can give to someone in your very unusual situation is exactly what we said:
    see your doctor.
    You are medically strange, and I don't mean that in a bullying sort of way, but being realistic here, your needs are now (and will remain) so far out of the norm that only someone who has been through it or who deals with those patients regularly has any hope of answering your question in a way that won't lead to harming you.
    .
    And even if you were a regular everyday noob popping in to ask for help,
    we'd need lots more info to be able to answer your question about "how much should I be eating".
    Age, height, current weight, goal weight, activity level.
    Which is one reason I keep that BCM.edu tool link handy.
    The person can put everything in for her/himself, not have to answer questions from strangers, play with the numbers to get to a healthy BMI, see how many servings of foods they will get with various amounts of activity, etc.

    You know what? You are totally right. And I'm sorry for being a butt. I feel kind of ganged up on.
    Here are my stats.
    5'5
    37 y/o
    Female
    165 lbs currently.

    Having WLS is a lot like being a first time parent. You read all the books. You buy all the stuff. Then the baby comes and you have NO IDEA what to do. Even though you have all the information. Your brain is mush.

    I don't track what I eat b/c I eat about the same thing every day.
    Very little carbs. No sugar. 90+ grams of protein a day.

    I'm pretty active. I run and do yoga. And my job can be pretty physical.

    This process is very different for everyone. The 6 months leading up to the surgery, you learn how to handle life right after surgery. Not 4 months out. I have a TON of info. But it all stops when I was post op 1 month.

    Again. I am sorry for being a butt. I am only looking to see where other people like me are at. MFP may not be the best fit for people like me.
  • slepygrl
    slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
    astrampe wrote: »
    slepygrl wrote: »
    FOR F*** SAKE! I know all the ins and outs of the surgery. I know how it's done. I know why. I'm only wanting to see what other people are doing. Calorie allowance varies from person to person. I'm active. I do stuff. WTF! THERE IS NO CONFUSION!

    Why are you yelling and swearing at strangers who tried to help you?? WOW....Maybe you need psych help, not nutrition.....

    Honey. I had a psych eval. I'm all good! :-P
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    You didn't receive a care plan past 1 month?
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    edited August 2016
    slepygrl wrote: »
    MKEgal wrote: »
    slepygrl wrote:
    Why the weird judgment? I am healthy. I eat right, exercise. I'm off all meds. (The pic in my profile was taken today.)
    This surgery process took 6 very long months. I'm doing EVERYTHING I was told to do.
    I only came on here to see what other people are doing.
    .
    Your original post said:
    I have RNY weight loss surgery on 4/27/16. Up to now I've been in survival mode. Just trying to learn how to eat with my new stomach. So far things are going well. I'm down almost 60lbs. I feel good. I'm very happy with my decision.
    My question is. How many calories should I be taking in daily? I haven't been tracking my eating.
    .
    Which throws several red flags saying that you did not get good information, or were not following that instruction, did not know what to do:
    Survival mode, learning how to eat, how many calories should I be taking in, haven't been tracking my eating...
    If you were doing what your medical team taught, you would be paying close attention to your nutrition / intake.
    .
    The best advice any of us can give to someone in your very unusual situation is exactly what we said:
    see your doctor.
    You are medically strange, and I don't mean that in a bullying sort of way, but being realistic here, your needs are now (and will remain) so far out of the norm that only someone who has been through it or who deals with those patients regularly has any hope of answering your question in a way that won't lead to harming you.
    .
    And even if you were a regular everyday noob popping in to ask for help,
    we'd need lots more info to be able to answer your question about "how much should I be eating".
    Age, height, current weight, goal weight, activity level.
    Which is one reason I keep that BCM.edu tool link handy.
    The person can put everything in for her/himself, not have to answer questions from strangers, play with the numbers to get to a healthy BMI, see how many servings of foods they will get with various amounts of activity, etc.
    MFP may not be the best fit for people like me.

    MFP is fine for pretty much anyone and everyone who is trying to lose weight, get fit, or whatever. It's good for calorie counters, macro counters, muscleheads, bariatric surgery patients, morbidly obese, "just want to lose 10 vanity pounds," or whatever. You can customize your macro and calorie goals according to your particular situation, and find support from others going through what you're going through. However, until you have instructions on what those goals are from your care team, all anybody should be telling you is to speak to your care team first.
  • slepygrl
    slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
    You didn't receive a care plan past 1 month?

    My care plan ends at day 33 (post op)

    I'm making an appointment in the morning.

    :-)
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    slepygrl wrote: »
    You didn't receive a care plan past 1 month?

    My care plan ends at day 33 (post op)

    I'm making an appointment in the morning.

    :-)

    Really? I hate to be negative, but I feel like you got ripped off, either by your care team or your insurance. 33 days isn't right. There are loads of complications that need to be monitored for for pretty much the rest of your life.

    It's good that you're going to make an appointment, though.
  • chrisraevsg
    chrisraevsg Posts: 2 Member
    I had the sleeve and I'm 4 1/2 months out and I get anywhere from 700-1400 calories a day. Every day is different as some days I can eat more than others.
  • Ehmeeheart
    Ehmeeheart Posts: 11 Member
    I'd suggest checking out the obesityhelp website. it has a lot more useful info than what you will find on MFP (for this type of question) im still pre op, so no expert, but i also asked the same question as you, and received a lot of useful information. Basically protein first, but calories are king. the feedback seems that most try to keep 600-800 calories until they reach goal, and then increase as your stomach and maintenance allows (1000-1200 ish from what i see). the bulk of these calories from protein, and minimizing carbs. (of course some people are exceptions)

    All of which lines up with everything i've received from my bariatric clinic. It just good to hear it from others in a similar situation.
  • Colorscheme
    Colorscheme Posts: 1,179 Member
    Ehmeeheart wrote: »
    I'd suggest checking out the obesityhelp website. it has a lot more useful info than what you will find on MFP (for this type of question) im still pre op, so no expert, but i also asked the same question as you, and received a lot of useful information. Basically protein first, but calories are king. the feedback seems that most try to keep 600-800 calories until they reach goal, and then increase as your stomach and maintenance allows (1000-1200 ish from what i see). the bulk of these calories from protein, and minimizing carbs. (of course some people are exceptions)

    All of which lines up with everything i've received from my bariatric clinic. It just good to hear it from others in a similar situation.

    Stupid question. I've never had weight loss surgery, but is 1200 really maintanance? Let's say someone is 5'4" [average height for a woman, more or less] and 140 lbs and active. 1200 cals seems really low. I know once you have wls, the stomach is teeny tiny so you can't eat a lot at once, but surely CICO still applies.

    I can't imagine being on 1200 cals as maintance since my TDEE is around 2400 cals/day.
  • Ehmeeheart
    Ehmeeheart Posts: 11 Member
    Ehmeeheart wrote: »
    I'd suggest checking out the obesityhelp website. it has a lot more useful info than what you will find on MFP (for this type of question) im still pre op, so no expert, but i also asked the same question as you, and received a lot of useful information. Basically protein first, but calories are king. the feedback seems that most try to keep 600-800 calories until they reach goal, and then increase as your stomach and maintenance allows (1000-1200 ish from what i see). the bulk of these calories from protein, and minimizing carbs. (of course some people are exceptions)

    All of which lines up with everything i've received from my bariatric clinic. It just good to hear it from others in a similar situation.

    Stupid question. I've never had weight loss surgery, but is 1200 really maintanance? Let's say someone is 5'4" [average height for a woman, more or less] and 140 lbs and active. 1200 cals seems really low. I know once you have wls, the stomach is teeny tiny so you can't eat a lot at once, but surely CICO still applies.

    I can't imagine being on 1200 cals as maintance since my TDEE is around 2400 cals/day.

    For sure, cico still applies, but there seems to be a bit of an exception to this. from what I've read, and been advised, some people (esp morbidly obese) when they lose massive amounts of weight, and yo yo weightloss have a messed up metabolism. Studies are showing that someone who has weighed say, 140 all their adult life can maintain that weight on 2000 calories, but someone who loses 150lbs to get to a maintenance weight of 140, will have to eat a lot fewer calories per day to maintain. Which is why wls is sometimes the best choice, for some people. It can help minimize hunger. And give you a chance to get a handle of behaviour changes needed when the restriction begins to fade. (For some)
    The last study I saw in the media was about the regain of biggest loser contestants. This was separate from behaviour change. A study of their metabolic rates before and after weightloss.
    But I'm definitely no expert, I'm just figuring all this out for myself, and seeing what works.
  • teanahk
    teanahk Posts: 81 Member
    MKEgal wrote: »
    here's a simple tool from the Baylor College of Medicine which will take into account your age, weight (either current or goal), and activity level when telling you how many calories you need to maintain that weight and how many servings of the various food groups you should be eating.

    No, Just No.

    This Nutrition calculator is intended for Children. It is wildly inaccurate for adults and will suggest unsafe calorie goals for adults. It will give a 35 year old sedentary person with a BMI of 18 a calorie goal that is below their BMR and gives starvation level numbers for older people.

    I know you mean well but please stop linking people to this site. It's not intended for adults and following the advice it gives could be dangerous.

  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
    Just my dumb question - but why would you undergo very serious surgery, just to be limited to 600-800 calories afterwards, and a maintenance of 1200 - if you can stick with 1200 and lose the weight anyways?
  • Colorscheme
    Colorscheme Posts: 1,179 Member
    edited August 2016
    astrampe wrote: »
    Just my dumb question - but why would you undergo very serious surgery, just to be limited to 600-800 calories afterwards, and a maintenance of 1200 - if you can stick with 1200 and lose the weight anyways?

    Because it's usually a life or death matter, so the dr makes someone lose a certain amount of weight for surgery for that it's safer. Usually people are able to stick with the plan short term because it's motivating for them enough to do the surgery.

    I've never had WLS but it's supposed to be a last ditch effort when nothing else works and there's a low quality of life. At least for gastric bypass. Now are there less invasive, reversible procedures like the lapband.
  • Ehmeeheart
    Ehmeeheart Posts: 11 Member
    Re why have the surgery if you can maintain a weight loss on 1200. The reality is most obese people can't maintain that lifestyle long term without a powerful tool like RNY. And medically at this point, weight loss surgery statistically has the best long term outcome for maintaining significant weight loss vs diet and excersize alone.
    Basically, it becomes the third pillar. Healthy diet +excersize + Rny = best likelyhood for reaching a healthy weight.

    Of course there are always exceptions, and that's great for them. My grandmother has maintained a nearly 150lb loss for 30 years. Me, not so much. Again, surgery isnt for everyone.
  • bbontheb
    bbontheb Posts: 718 Member
    I have a question for OP. I looked at your profile pic and and the stats you posted mentioning you are 165 at 5'5 now and have lost 60 lbs since WLS. That doesn't seem that high for WLS to me. When I've seen people getting the surgery they are double to triple the size they should be (bmi) etc...although that could be wrong. I'm not judging it at all, I'm curious because I've wondered if it was something I would do due to my struggles with volume eating but for me, the focus is on behaviour management for right now. If you feel like sharing, I would love to hear more.
  • 157isgoal
    157isgoal Posts: 21 Member
    astrampe wrote: »
    slepygrl wrote: »
    FOR F*** SAKE! I know all the ins and outs of the surgery. I know how it's done. I know why. I'm only wanting to see what other people are doing. Calorie allowance varies from person to person. I'm active. I do stuff. WTF! THERE IS NO CONFUSION!

    Why are you yelling and swearing at strangers who tried to help you?? WOW....Maybe you need psych help, not nutrition.....

    This...
  • slepygrl
    slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
    astrampe wrote: »
    Just my dumb question - but why would you undergo very serious surgery, just to be limited to 600-800 calories afterwards, and a maintenance of 1200 - if you can stick with 1200 and lose the weight anyways?

    A lot of the time WLS will reverses diabetes. I am totally off diabetic meds. Normal blood sugars.
  • slepygrl
    slepygrl Posts: 249 Member
    157isgoal wrote: »
    astrampe wrote: »
    slepygrl wrote: »
    FOR F*** SAKE! I know all the ins and outs of the surgery. I know how it's done. I know why. I'm only wanting to see what other people are doing. Calorie allowance varies from person to person. I'm active. I do stuff. WTF! THERE IS NO CONFUSION!

    Why are you yelling and swearing at strangers who tried to help you?? WOW....Maybe you need psych help, not nutrition.....

    This...

    Bless your heart....
This discussion has been closed.