Anyone have surgery during weight loss?

dontcallmecandi
dontcallmecandi Posts: 17 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi folks!

Quick question- I am 25lbs into a 100lb goal weight loss. I will be having surgery the end of July that will end up with both my legs in casts (not fun). Obviously I won’t be at goal but I am hoping I can get another 15-20lbs off by then (I’m a slow loser- it’s taken me since January to drop the 25lbs...).

Obviously I will not be able to exercise and I am terrified about stopping or halting my weight loss. Obviously these are all things to discuss with my doctor she I know after surgery isn’t the time to try and lose weight but I was curious if anyone has experienced something similar, where whether planned or unplanned, surgery interrupted your progress for 6-8 weeks? How did you prevent gaining? Or were you able to continue to lose without the exercise portion?

I was thinking of continuing to track my food (I don’t want to break the habit) but possibly setting my calories at maintain. Obviously (again) it’s something I will discuss with my doc at my pre-op and I doubt I’ll be in any shape to do any food logging for the first several days anyway.

I guess I’m just looking for encouragement that surgery won’t be a reason for me to gain back all my weight and set me back further?

Replies

  • Remoth
    Remoth Posts: 117 Member
    My mum had a hysterectomy during weight loss. It substantially hindered her progress but no harm came out of it. She came out of the hospital weighing 10 lbs more than when she went in. And that was just overnight. (All water I'm sure). And it took her 3-4 weeks to lose it again. She did not stop her tracking and eating in a slight deficit during recovery, but we eat a diverse diet and she was eating twice the food at home as she was at the hospital.

    I would say if you are in a massive deficit (like 3+ lbs a week) to maybe lighten up closer to maintenance, but if you get no shortage of nutrients, I dont see any reason to stop. Your body will supply the energy it needs from the food and fat burn. The important things are to stay hydrated and keep the nutrients up.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    Eating at maintenance calories is a good idea while recovering from surgery. Your body needs adequate nutrition to heal.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    Remoth wrote: »
    My mum had a hysterectomy during weight loss. It substantially hindered her progress but no harm came out of it. She came out of the hospital weighing 10 lbs more than when she went in. And that was just overnight. (All water I'm sure). And it took her 3-4 weeks to lose it again. She did not stop her tracking and eating in a slight deficit during recovery, but we eat a diverse diet and she was eating twice the food at home as she was at the hospital.

    I would say if you are in a massive deficit (like 3+ lbs a week) to maybe lighten up closer to maintenance, but if you get no shortage of nutrients, I dont see any reason to stop. Your body will supply the energy it needs from the food and fat burn. The important things are to stay hydrated and keep the nutrients up.

    It is virtually impossible to gain 10 pounds of fat literally overnight. What your mom experienced was water weight gain, likely due to IV fluids, medications, and/or the healing process. That sort of water fluctuation has no bearing on fat loss and should not be used to determine how many calories to eat.
  • Phirrgus
    Phirrgus Posts: 1,894 Member
    I've had two surgeries for a total of about 5 months without being able to really exercise. My doc recommended eating at maintenance as has been stated already...I went a bit over and put about 8-10lbs back on, but that was solely due to me getting lazy about my food choices. No need to worry about putting much weight back on if you don't go over maintenance.
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
    Definately expect water weight gain. I agree that eating at maintenance is probably a good idea to allow for healing. You can consider it a diet break at the same time. If you continue to log it will help you to have an idea of what to expect when you get to goal. I am impressed at your sensible approach to losing weight. That is how I was finally successful. You will be too!
  • sarajean1976
    sarajean1976 Posts: 5 Member
    While it wasn't surgery, I broke my tailbone this winter while I was 50lbs into my weightloss journey. The doctors recommended no exercise for two weeks after the break, after those two weeks I was able to slowly ease back into my walking routine. It was only after six weeks that I was cleared to begin training again. It doesn't compare to the amount of time you'll be unable to exercise, but I know I was very diligent with my logging and meal prepping during that time. Initially I had some water weight gain from the injury and healing process - but if you can keep logging at maintenance calories (your body will need that for healing!) you'll do great. You're just hitting pause, not stopping!
  • Sharon_C
    Sharon_C Posts: 2,132 Member
    I had a hip replaced during weight loss. It takes calories to heal so make sure you're not eating in a deficit. Your body needs the fuel. Follow your doctor's advice and if you have a physical therapist, do everything he/she says to do.
  • DanyellMcGinnis
    DanyellMcGinnis Posts: 315 Member
    I had a hysterectomy during maintenance and I put on 10 pounds during recovery (not talking about the constant fluids from the IV drip, which took about a week to get out of my system through my kidneys). Still have that 10 pounds, a year and a half later. Not really wanting to go back down to the level of deficit I had while losing so trying recomposition instead.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    I've had one major knee surgery while actively trying to lose weight and four in total. You will gain a lot of water weight, but it's just that - water weight. Given that you'll likely be dealing with swelling for an extended amount of time, I would try very hard not to worry about it. Eating at maintenance is probably a good idea opposed to in a deficit.

    Surgery was really a blip in terms of weight loss. It definitely hindered my ability to exercise outside of physical therapy for over 6 weeks, and once I was able to get back on a bike inside, I wasn't allowed to use more than minimal resistance. Honestly I think your main focus should be on recovering. You likely won't burn any appreciable calories via physical therapy until after you're able to bear weight (and even then, only if cardio is part of your PT), but you will gain mobility and strength that was lost and help make your recovery as swift as it can be.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,204 Member
    Another vote for the idea that managing your eating is the key thing to prevent regain, and I 100% endorse your plan to eat at maintenance for a few weeks. I didn't do that after my gallbladder removal, and it wasn't a great plan at all. Fortunately, my body prioritized healing high, so that part went OK. But my energy level/strength took a big hit, and it took some weeks to recover.

    Like others, I saw several pounds of weight gain on the scale right after surgery, from healing-related water weight. It could be quite a lot, with surgery as extensive as yours. It took some time, maybe a couple of weeks, for mine to subside after surgery. Don't let it freak you out. If you manage your calories, you'll know you didn't eat enough to gain that much fat, and needn't worry about it.

    Best of luck with your surgery and recovery!
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
    I've had two TURBT surgeries (removal of superficial tumors in the bladder). I took on a fair amount of water weight which was gone a few days later. Had to take a few weeks off of strength training until I got cleared to lift more than 15lbs again. Fortunately, cardio was fine, so once the catheter bag came out, I was back to walking.
  • Remoth
    Remoth Posts: 117 Member
    apullum wrote: »
    Remoth wrote: »
    My mum had a hysterectomy during weight loss. It substantially hindered her progress but no harm came out of it. She came out of the hospital weighing 10 lbs more than when she went in. And that was just overnight. (All water I'm sure). And it took her 3-4 weeks to lose it again. She did not stop her tracking and eating in a slight deficit during recovery, but we eat a diverse diet and she was eating twice the food at home as she was at the hospital.

    I would say if you are in a massive deficit (like 3+ lbs a week) to maybe lighten up closer to maintenance, but if you get no shortage of nutrients, I dont see any reason to stop. Your body will supply the energy it needs from the food and fat burn. The important things are to stay hydrated and keep the nutrients up.

    It is virtually impossible to gain 10 pounds of fat literally overnight. What your mom experienced was water weight gain, likely due to IV fluids, medications, and/or the healing process. That sort of water fluctuation has no bearing on fat loss and should not be used to determine how many calories to eat.

    I understand that. I did mention that it was likely all water. However it did take her 3 weeks to get back down to pre-surgery weight. So enough fat and water loss to bring her back down. It only hindered her progress in the number on the scale.
  • dontcallmecandi
    dontcallmecandi Posts: 17 Member
    This is great insight, thanks everyone! I really appreciate that you took the time to respond.

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