You have a great plan, but the truth is that you are going to be hungry because your body is used to eating about double what you are giving it now.

Before surgery I gave up everything white including flour, sugar, rice, potatoes.  I also gave up all the starchy vegetables, all fruit, and all whole grains.  It was pretty much meat and cheese and berries.  I walked one hour a day and drank lots of water.  I did that for one year and lost twelve pounds.  I gained it all back in a few weeks and then decided to have surgery which meant a six month diet and exercise program. 

I was always hungry when I dieted post-op.  Having RNY surgery gave me the malabsorption and the lack of hunger.  Hunger has never come back for me.  I still have to watch my intake and weigh daily, but the lack of any physical hunger has been wonderful. 

Thank you for sharing.  I'm still getting into the habit of weighing and measuring food.  Not being hungry would be a great thing.  I eat for more reasons than hunger, but it would be one less demon to battle.

If you are looking for restriction a month or so after surgery, try Trader Joe's Baked Tofu (or any other baked tofu).  It comes in a bunch of flavors, is very dense, packs almost as much protein per ounce as chicken and fills you up exactly like chicken or meat.  Regular Firm Tofu is too mushy to help much with restriction down the road.

I will have to look for this next time at TJs.

I can so sympathize with this! My first thought is that if we could eat 12-1300 calories a day and feel satisfied, we never would have become overweight in the first place and we wouldn't need WLS to help lose it. For close to two years, I had a pattern with MyFitnessPal -- I'd do great during the day, keep eating after dinner until I'd blown my calorie budget (usually 1800-2000), then decide the day was screwed, so I'd just stop logging and eat everything in the kitchen. My 6-month program required a resting energy expenditure test (metabolic study), and I found out my metabolism is actually 144% of predicted for my age, sex, and BMI. So I upped my calorie budget to 2200 and finally started being able to stick to my budget most days. I'm still working on the evening snacking, but my therapist has helped me learn to ride those urges a little better. I've taken my budget down a little in the last few months, but I'm still eating 2000 calories a day and have lost over 60 lbs since October, so I'm not in a huge hurry to drop it any further until my 2-week liver-shrinking diet starts.

I know if I upped my calorie intake I would gain weight. Are you really active?  I'm very sedentary. 

I work out for an hour 4-5 days a week, but I factor that in...2000 is my usual net intake. I just noticed in your signature though that you're under 5', which now makes sense as to why MFP would recommend so few calories. So I'll echo what everyone else is saying here...limit the carbs, and up your dense proteins. Whenever I carbo-load (which used to be ALWAYS), I was never full. Someone else spoke to the insulin spikes carbs cause...that insulin then runs around in your system after it's done its job and makes you hungry for more. It's a vicious metabolic cycle that I'm sure is what caused me to develop diabetes as age 23.

I took your words to heart today and this is what I ended up with.  You'll see the differences if you compare it to the original plan I posted this morning before I started eating.  I ate protein first when I could and made sure I had protein snacks.  And I wasn't super hungry between meals today.  Corned beef and cabbage is my all time favorite meal so it was easier to eat a little extra meat.  I still drank water with my meals.  That will be a hard one to hurdle.  One thing at a time I suppose.  Thank you all for your suggestions.  

Your Food Diary For:

  Sunday, March 15, 2015

Hi there! My question is, why did you set a goal of 1 pound a week?  You are concerned about losing too much weight (you said 25 lbs max, and 1 lb/week over 6 mos is nearly 25 lbs).  Since your program does not give you a set amount to lose, I think it could be more helpful to focus on adapting to the different habits that will help you after WLS:  low carb/protein first, limi****er within 30 min of meals, limit fruits, find exercises you like to do, find a therapist and/or support group, start to recognize your triggers and difficult food times.  that kind of thing.  of course, tracking everything in MFP is a great habit too, and it will help you to be accountable and help you to lose some weight so that you do qualify for the insurance coverage.

From this post and others of yours, you seem like a very motivated person.  I am not suggesting that you not be motivated or have goals.  But after about a month of dieting, it can be very very hard to  really achieve a loss of 1 lb/week, without WLS, and without exercise. It could become demotivating and possibly backfire.  That is just my opinion, of course.  I am new to living after weight loss surgery.  But I  spent many years losing weight!  (And stalling or regaining, like many others on the OH boards.) I can say with real conviction that even with diet and exercise, 1 lb/week may be unachievable for some people, for reasons we do not understand.  

I just think that if you could judge your success by your behaviors more than your goal of 1lb/wk, that might help you long term, since it will set you up for success after your planned WLS.

What a thoughtful reply, and very sage advice, I might add.