Fitness and healthy eating- comparison of "then" and "now"

So I have a few questions in reference to eating habits related to fitness after RNY. Before surgery, I always believed it was very important not to eat and then sleep on a full stomach so my last meal would take place at least an hour before bed time. Recently, I started back at the gym and the best time for me to go is at 6am after I finish working my 12 hour night shift. I get it in and out of the way and I get to go home and rest until it's time to get up and go back to work. I also always believed that you should replenish your muscles with protein after a workout so I go home and drink a whole premiere protein shake, shower, head right to bed. Does this sound like a good plan? Do we stop worrying about the times we eat in comparison to sleep and exercise since we have this new tool to help us in our weight loss? 

Also, my diet has been great while tracking EVERYTHING in my fitness pal but I gained 1.6 lbs this week since I started both aerobics and weight lifting this past Monday. My calories are between 600-700, 80-100 grams of protein, and at least 64 oz of water. has anyone else experienced a little bit of weight gain at first when starting to exercise hard or should I focus on some adjustments in my diet to rid myself of that 1.6 lbs? I was always told that you gain muscle and then that begins to burn fat, does this still hold true after WLS?

All I know is this is day five and I can't sit, walk, or move without looking rediculous since my entire body aches!!! Tomorrow is a much needed rest day! Anyone with eating habit and exercise tips please feel free to help a woman out! I want to be strong and thin :-) 

Okay, I can't answer everything you asked, but yes, when you start to exercise, you start to gain muscle.  Muscle weighs more than fat, but it also burns calories faster than fat does.  So, you will have a bit of a bounce up in the weight dept. after you start to work out.  Your body may also be retaining water, as you start to exercise.  

Tracking your food is a great idea and I love Myfitnesspal for that.  

Other than that, hopefully someone else can answer the rest of your questions, as I'm only 2 weeks out from surgery.  

Good luck!

Muscle does not weigh more than fat. That myth drives me crazy. A pound is a pound period. Saying muscle weighs more than fat is like saying 1# of butter weighs more than 1# of cream cheese. They are both a pound-- just occupy space differently. Same with muscle-- it occupies space in your body differently. One does not weigh more than the other. 

Exactly right Peach. However because they occupy space differently you could gain 1.6 lbs and still lose inches. 

http://www.livestrong.com/article/418620-do-muscles-hold-wat er-after-a-hard-workout/

When first working out though, the weight gain is more likely to be caused by sore muscles and cells retaining water as part of the recovery process. 

Okay, Peach is right, to clarify, what I meant is that muscle is denser than fat, so when you are adding muscle and losing fat, it will take up less space, but you aren't necessarily losing weight when you are first replacing one with the other.  See picture here:   https://erinpersonaltrainer.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/fat- vs-muscles.jpg

Does that make more sense? 

Eventually the muscle will burn more calories than fat, though.  http://www.livestrong.com/article/447243-is-it-a-myth-that-m uscle-burns-more-calories-than-fat/ 

I had this same dilemma recently with if eating then sleeping is ok-- and if protein is necessary after a workout. 

Feedback I got was that; since protein takes time to metabolize-- if you have it prior to your workout it's just as much as a benefit if you have it after your work out. ... so if the rest of you days eating plan was low on protein-- maybe chug your shake on the way to the gym instead??

Also, regarding eating then sleeping, I always herd the same thing- bottom line for me (some times I work out late  at night) is I just don't feel right taking anything in afterwords. It would be a Gateway for me to eventually replace protein with junk. Not worth the risk IMO. I get plenty of protein through the day. 

listen to you body when It hurts, and rest for a day or work a different set of muscles. any time you start a new routine you will be sore. I work out regularly and am sore from a new routine a trainer showed me. 

Thanks! I am soooo sore and throughout the week have worked all different parts of my body except my trainer has not paid special attention to my core yet... I'm afraid that will be on Tuesday's agenda lol The days I wasn't lifting, I was doing cardio.. I think I'm going use tomorrow as my rest day since the gym hours don't work with my work schedule. Then back at it on Sunday. 

Peach- I often see that you regularly workout, have you had any problems with your weight loss slowing after you began? I didn't even walk after my surgery other than what my job required so the fact that my scale has stopped going down, it freaked me out. 

No, I didn't see my weight loss slow as a result of working out. I didn't start until I was maybe 3-4 months post op and gradually built into what I'm doing now. Loss has been consistent and anytime it slowed it's because the honeymoon was ending and/or a direct result of my eating choices. 

When you start to exercise (again) the muscles are prone to store more glycogen and glycogen binds loads of water. I gained quite a bit when I started to exercise again within a few days but the ratio of LBM to fat mass also shifted, indicating the retention of water.

I am not and expert, but I would not drink protein shake before a workout. You body may burn it as an energy , instead of fat. 

Instead - I would try to drink protein shake after a gym. Do help with rebuilding the muscles. 

If you plan to hear dense proteins - I would not do that after a workout or imidiately before it because workout caused the blood to be pulled to muscles and eating food that needs digestion - require blood to be pulled to the gut. Protein shake is "predigested" proteins so they require a very little digestion.. 

I eat almost until I go to bed... I don't eat dense proteins at least 1-2 hours before bed because they would just sit in my gut and ..spoil..but I may eat some nuts, or nut butter, something that would keep me BS stable over night without cause sour stomach in the morning. That did not stop me from losing weight or maintaining so far. 

Exercise on empty gut - forces body to use stored fat...you may need to slow down first because getting fat out of fat cells is a slower process that burning sugar in the blood...but if you are consistent - you may "train " your body to do that... If I absolutely  need to have something - I choose something rather complex nutrition - for me - but butters - 1 tsp just tells me body "we are cool" ...and I am at goal and I do have relatively low body fat % now...

The initial weight gain is due to inflamation of the muscles. You push your muscles - the get damage (pain) and inflamation sets in. I am surprise on only 1.6 lbs.. When I start exercise - it is typically 3-4 lbs..

To me it indicate you probably lost app 1- 2 lbs. 

Fyi- I am a "skinny *****" now and my body weight can fluctuate by 3-5 lbs in any given day. That is 3%-4 % of my body weight.  Hydration, inflammation, water retention due to more salt, not getting enough sleep, stress (cortisone causes water retention) , BM (pooping) etc etc... I can be 156 one evening ..then 149 36 hours later...

Relax... Enjoy the workout... And try things...