What nutritional values (protein, fat, carbs) would you do pre-op to start working on new...

I am wanting to start working on new habits prior to WLS... example: not drinking 30 min before/after eating, chewing well, portion control, etc.  What I would like is your input as to what you would suggest for daily nutritional values for total calories, protein, fat, carbs in terms of calories/grams.  

Here is what I am thinking... 1200 calories per day, 100g of protein, 50 grams carbs, I don't know what to do on fats and 60 oz of water a day.  What would you suggest?  I am thinking of doing protein drinks for snacks and 2 meals and allowing myself 1 meal a day.  Do you think these goals are realistic or not?  

My current diet is 1700 calories per day.  I have already lost a lot of weight and have been stalled this past 5 months and really want to get another 50 off before weight loss surgery.  I currently weigh 480 lbs so that would put me at 430 for surgery.  

Thanks in advance for your input, it is very much appreciated!!

How far before surgery are you? Your diet 6 months before surgery will be different than 2 weeks before.

First, you can drink right up until you start eating. No drinking during eating, and 30 minutes after.

For now, 1200 calories is great. If you have a minimum for protein, a maximum for carbs and calories, the remainder will be fat, and you won't have to worry about it.

Make set times for eating, and only eat at those times. No grazing. If you can do all of the above, you'll be off to a great start.

Thank you for your input!!  Have a great day...

Wow Thanks for the clarification! I thought that I couldn't drink for 30 minutes before and after!  

Yeah when I went for my orientation, they said there just isn't evidence to support the no drinking 30 mins before meals, so they were revising that recommendation!

I'm pre-revision and currently doing 1500 calories per day, between 80-100g of protein is what I primarily focus on, and making sure I drink enough water.   I'm doing protein drinks for breakfast/lunch and a healthy meal for dinner.  For snacking I'll do things like apple with a little pb, or string cheese with grapes, or even a EAS Advantedge protein shake since it's only 100 calories and packs some good protein :) 

I'm going from a band to an RNY...and they just unfilled the band after we discovered that even with a tiny amount in it I was still way too tight to eat without chucking. Unfortunately this has made it a bit more challenging to stay feeling 'full'...but its temporary so I know I'll get through it.

My biggest challenges are with the planning meals and remembering to take all the vitamins when I need to - because I have a band I can technically take all my vitamins whenever....but I know that's going to change post-RNY so I am trying to teach myself beforehand.

Oh - and handling stress....that's my other big challenge.  If I get stressed, or sick....everything tends to get all discombobulated (case in point I've been sick for three weeks now with bronchitis and my water-intake, my diet, and my vitamins went off the rails).


Best of luck!

Thanks Kelsey, your information is very helpful!  Good luck in your journey...

It depends on how far out you are from surgery, but in my opinion, I'd suggest working more on the behaviours needed post op, than calories etc. At this point.

For example, logging everything you eat. This was super helpful for me to be able to see what my patterns and triggers are. Before logging, I would have said I was just hungry all the time. But that wasn't actually the case. Sometimes I'd feel terrible that I'd over eaten for dinner and into the evening (which could turn into days of over eating) But once I saw that on days that happened, I'd actually only eaten a few hundred calories all day, so I was starving come evening. That wAs fixable. I also realized not all triggers are Negative. Going to visit my parents was a big one. I was able to mitigate that by getting more active, organizing walks or projects on the farm etc.

My plan includes the elimination of alcohol, carbonated beverages and caffeine. If yours is similar, I'd suggest phasing them out now, gradually.

id also suggest cutting back on carbs now too, where you can. It will make the transition to protein forward diet post op a bit easier.

as other said, you can drink right up to meal time. But it's a good idea to stop drinking with meals now to get used to it.

doing all the above, even though I wasn't actively reducing calories caused me to lose 15lbs before starting the actual pre op diet.

take care, keep posting!

During my process, I tried really hard to do 1200 calories a day, but found myself failing miserably.  If you find that you struggle at 1200, don't beat yourself up too much.  I upped my intake to 1500 a day in the months leading up to surgery and was able to maintain that pretty well.  I have eating issues, so I wasn't always perfect, but my eating was so much better than before I had started trying.