Taking the good with the bad

So, good news! I now weigh less than I did when I graduated from High School in 1989! Can you believe that? I barely can. I've been losing a steady 2lbs/week since my surgery on 11/20. Not as much as some fast losers, but it feels like nothing to sneeze at.

Bad news... Food is truly stressing me out. I don't get enough water or enough protein. My surgeon's office says eat 1000-1100 calories, 150g carbs, 60-80g protein, 20g fat and drink at least 64oz water. I can't do that!

Experienced sleevers say eat low carbs and high protein, which translates into much more than 20g of fat. I don't drink protein shakes, so getting that much protein is a real struggle.

So, I feel like I'm always eating, thinking about eating, worried about food, stressing about what I haven't eaten or what I need to eat. I feel like I'm a hostage to food in a way I wasn't before my surgery!

Where are the quality, peer-reviewed studies? Does LCHP work in the long term? Is "keto" a fad diet? How can fruits and vegetables that have natural sugars be bad for me but protein shakes with sugar substitutes be good?

Mostly this is just a rant. I look at what people are eating to get ideas. But that doesn't assure me that I should eat that way. My surgeon's office is hopeless and I don't trust them to give me quality advice.

Finally, my wedding ring doesn't fit! I had to take it off and wear it on a chain. This makes me feel weirdly sad even though it's a good sign.

Congratulations on your loss! And I understand. I cannot eat much at a time and I'm 15 months out. I do 85grams protein, 30 g fat, and the remainder of about 1200 calories in healthy carbs, mostly vegetables. Fruit causes a rapid rise in blood sugar, and then I crash.

I do use the protein shakes (in my coffee in lieu of creamer and sweetner.

I eat eggs, tuna, lean hamburger, lean beaf, chicken, black beans & cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese.

I do feel like I spend a good bit of time on meal planning, but I am healthier and have more energy than I have had since I was 40, which was 25 years ago!

You'll find your way. But my doc said I do NOT have to do 3 meals a day -- I can eat 5 meals, as long as I don't "graze" all day.

The numbers your surgeon's office have given you seem.. not very useful. That's a lot of calories and carbs, and not nearly enough fat.

If I were you, I'd focus on your protein and liquid goals. 60+ grams of protein a day and 64+ ounces of liquid a day. Eat protein first and don't eat other things until you reach your protein goal.

Quality, peer-reviewed studies can be found at pubmed.gov

Are you seeing a therapist to help with your stressed/anxiety feelings?

Congrats on your success so far!

I am so glad to see you here! I just posted a reply on your blog:-)

Your surgeon's office is giving rotten food advice, you are right to be skeptical. I personally agree that sugar substitutes and protein shakes/bars are not good for you, but neither is sugar even if it is from fruit or grains. A good diet is one of whole unprocessed real foods: meat and fish, lots of healthy fats (primarily grass fed butter, coconut, olive, and avocado oils), some colorful non-starchy vegetables, fermented vegetables, sea vegetables, occasional berries, and most importantly, eating 2-3 meals per day rather than endless snacks.

Push the fluids, and everything wet counts towards that 64oz minimum. I know it's hard, but today I drink that much before lunchtime, so I can attest that it IS possible.

Don't sweat the fat to get in the protein. Newer studies now say that eating fat doesn't make you fat. All we learned about eating in the 90's was wrong. Keep with lower carb, or at the very least, turn your back on the simple carbs (bread, sugar, anything processed). Eat whole foods, unaltered except by the way you cook them. Do that and stop stressing about the small stuff.

I'm feeling a lot better since my posts. I took the weekend to just... relax a bit. Yes, I still tracked what I ate, but I wasn't trying to eat any specific amount. I did ok with my liquids and my protein is up quite a bit. I'm not eating salad or cooked vegetables much. My carbs are way down to around 40g. I do eat fruit though. Fresh or frozen. I like it and it's refreshing and tasty and fruit eating certainly didn't contribute to my fatness in the past.

Thanks for all of your encouragement.