How many calories?

A question about calories.

I eat a keto diet, so around 20g carbs a day, the rest fats and protein. It's just hard to know what my calorie intake should be.

For example on a day when I eat 1600 calories, with 60 percent of those coming from fat and 30 percent from protein - according to 'DS Maths' I should only be absorbing about half of those calories or less.

But if I'm only absorbing 800 or so calories a day, why is my weight loss so slow? I lose about 4lbs a month at most with the above macros. Often several weeks go by with no loss.. Previously I have lost faster and I'm not sure why it's so slow this time around.

I was at 140lbs (down from 320) but regained a lot after a bereavement. The weight just doesn't seem to be coming off the way it should and has in the past and I realise I never figured out what calorie level to eat at.

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Should I eat more? Should I eat less?

I have at least 50lbs left to lose...

could people tell tell me how many calories they eat?

I can honestly say I have never in 16 years counted calories. Sorry but I only track protein and carbs. A couple of years ago I wanted to lose 20 pounds I simply limited my carbs and that did it for me.

Personally I don't think you're eating enough. You still have the old "diet" mentality and when you have the DS, standard diets don't work.

Forget about calories and focus on protein and carbs (high protein, low carbs). Also make sure you're drinking enough water (sometimes we forget about at least 64 ounces of water per day - at a minimum).

The trouble is, my carbs have been under 20g a day for a very long time, barring a 'relaxed' week at Xmas. Restricting carbs and eating at this calorie level always used to work for me but now it doesn't work as well.

I drink about 3l of water a day, always.

I'm going to try eating more calories but keep my carbs under 20g and see if it helps, thank you.

I am still curious from anyone who does track what calorie level they actually eat, as I really want to understand how our system works a few years out.

Thank you, the old mentality of dieting is hard to go away. My problem is I must take my Iron pills on a daily basis, and when I try to eat right I get constipated. I have to take a daily stool softener.

How can I lose and not be so constipated. Its only when i eat a bunch of sugar that makes my life easier.

Janet how much protein do you recommend if you are losibg weight?

I don't ever track calories, but just for fun because you asked, I did this for what I ate yesterday. I ate about 2450 calories. This is roughly what I usually eat and I am trying to maintain at one half my Preop weight (@around 145 lbs). But before surgery, I was probably eating 1,000 calories more than that or more. Your calorie needs vary by age, size, and activity, and I am an older, short, sedentary person.

A thought.. the DS works from both restriction and malabsorption. The surgery changes your stomach as well as your gut. I eat many very small meals, every 2-3 hours. Maybe that would speed your metabolism.

The other thought is that all DS surgeries are not alike. If you have one of the single anastamosis procedures or a long common channel, say 250cm, you can't use DS math. My common channel is 100 cm. Whatever the DS math says about fat, I don't eat big quantities of fat. I limit large amounts of fat because it gives me severe diarrhea at times. Every meal, I eat protein first, carbs last. I eliminated all liquid calories and that includes protein drinks, soda, beer, juice, and any sugar or artificial sugar products, regardless of calories or carbs.

I am never hungry, so this doesn't feel like a diet, and I figure I am getting a lot more calories than I could have to maintain my weight without DS. Good you are being so serious about losing the weight increase.

My common channel should have been 80cm according to my surgeon but that was 10 years ago, I don't know quite how absorbtion changes. It was the standard DS.

I'm in my early 30s, 5'2" and also sedentary. My malabsorbtion must be working as I have had issues with iron deficiency (on infusions now) and have developed osteoporosis (working on it).

I find if I eat 'normal carb levels (100g+) I get severe diarrhea. If I eat low fat I get constipation. Eating about 70 percent of my calories as fat means I go to the toilet once a day on average and it doesn't smell bad.

Artifical sweetners and fibre can sometimes make it smell bad. I don't eat too much fibre, it doesn't agree with me.

I don't drink any sugary drinks or drinks with calories in, just tea and flavoured water - it's sugar free and i need some favour because i hate plain water. I drink a lot daily.

I just wi**** was a bit more straightforward - we all seem to be so different, and the health service here has no idea because there are very few DS patients. I've seen nutritionists and they just want me to eat as if I had a rny.

You can make it more straight forward. your are overanalyzing too much.

Don't even - with the calories. I can consume 3000 without even trying.

Bravo on hydration, now protein, fat, veggies (for garnish). Some have added intermittent fasting if the body resists. You know how to eat. Just don't stress over it so much.

I've never had any problem with 100g+ of protein and 120g+ of fats, and I eat less than 30g of carbs. As I say, I've been doing this without losing weight.

I'm trying to get my calories higher but actually find it hard work to eat more than about 1800 calories a day - a little higher than I have been eating. But I'm going to try for at least a couple of days a week of 2000 calories as it does seem to help.

Can I ask what you eat in a day to get 3000 calories without trying?

My day, for example:

Cheese and peanuts

courgetti with two eggs in some butter

steak and egg or steak and prawns

bag of pork rind

tea with collagen

1700 calories