Calories Intake

Hello Everybody,

I have been trying to find all my old WLS stuff and can't seem to find them.

My question is how many calories should we be eating to help with weight loss?

Based on my current weight and height I was told 1600, I know that is WAY to much and not right for a person who has had WLS.

Be Blessed,
Sharonne

Hi Sharonne,

Not necessarily is 1600 too much.  Now many on here my disagree with me but the 1200 calorie blanket statement irks me.  LOL.

We are all individuals.  Yes, we all had surgery but we are different sexes, ages, genders, different builds, different muscle mass, body structure, bone structure, etc etc etc... there is no one size fits all caloric intake.  

The only way to find out what is right for you is to have your metabolism tested.  You can google search "body gem" or "new leaf technology".  There should be a zipcode locator so you can find a center near you to test your resting metabolism (the calories you expend at rest, doing NOTHING else.  This is not your caloric limit, they will give you an eating range for calories when taking into accnt your test results and lifestyle activity level together).  It costs anywhere from 60-100 bucks from what I have heard from others.  Mine was 70ish.  This includes a mask that you own once they fit you with it and then when you do additional tests its cheaper as the hardware has already been purchased.  You simply sit still breathing into a mask for about 15 mintues and this is hooked up to a computer software program that figures all of this for you.  You can also do an active one that looks at your body during exercise using a cardio machine of your choice.  (this is pretty advanced and more for the avid exerciser wanting to know how they burn fuel and at what heart rate etc.)

I weighed 135 lbs when I had mine tested.  My *resting* metabolic rate is 1680 and was told I could eat up to 1800-2200 calories to maintain.  I thought they were nuts.  It was right on.  No lie, as long as I kept my exericising consistent and lifestyle consistent.

I do think some people are doing their metabolisms an injustice by limiting it and this will in turn lower your body's metabolic rate and it will get used to the 1200 calorie level and if you eat more you will gain.  I am not giving a "ticket" to overeating but I do think that getting your metabolism testing is such a valuable tool to help guide you in the right direction.  I *HIGHLY* recommend it.

Good Luck!

Thanks for the information, Melissa and I would love to get that done maybe oneday. We are currently living off of one income, since I decided to stay home with our children (childcare was killing us).

Be Blessed,
Sharonne

Sharonne~

my insurance company paid for mine both pre surgery and a follow up one 2-3 months ago.  I went in complaining of fatigue and along with some blood work, I suggested a repeat which my doc agreed to.

Is that possibly an option for you so that you can be sure of what the numbers are?



Just a suggestion....

Anjanette

i've found that to be a VERY individual thing.  Everyone's body is different.  I can't eat nearly as many calories as most people, but I know that and eat accordingly.  Before surgery I could never eat the 1000 calories and lose - and I still can't.  But others can and if you can and lose, I believe you should.

Thanks for responding!

Be Blessed,
Sharonne

For my weight and height it says I can eat around 1500 and I usually eat around 1100.  I excercise a lot though so that helps.  Your body does need fuel in order to burn it.  I get mine off of the daily plate.  Your GP or NUT could probably give you an accurate calculation too. 

Good luck!

Thank you!

Be Blessed,
Sharonne

Hi Sharonne

I agree with what you said about 1600 calories is too much and not right for a person who had wls. and I find this to be true because ... it doesn't matter whether how much you weigh / height...etc. I read on the boards every single day ... wls patients gaining their weight back ... why ? because they up their calorie intake. this is what i believe.... and it is very sad to see especially when we all had wls.

At about 2 years post op....I spoke to a nutritionist  ( not my regular wls nut )  and a personal trainer who helped me with my calories/ workout routine. They had me up my calories and carb intake to balance out with my work out routine. For me , it didn't go over so well. About 2-3 weeks into this program with them....I noticed that I gained weight back. I went back to my wls nutritionist - *****ally knows my personal weight and history..etc. and she told me that i was eating WAY to much and to cut back on my calories/carb intake.  She said 1,000-1,200 calories a day ...is what i want to stay at. She said I was also eating too much in between my meals. EVEN if it was good and healthy food when I was snacking. So I went back on my surgeon/nutritionist's WLS rules/ diet plan and ever since then ...I stick to it like glue. I plan my menu everyday and what i want to eat. I find if I plan ahead , and prepare my foods , it is a lot easier and better for me. The same thing goes with my work out routine, first thing in the morning , i wake up, have my cup of coffee, then i go work out early, get it in and i am done by 7am. When i stick to a routine/schedule and plan my day out., i find it is easier to maintain my weight loss. So, perhaps planning a menu and work out routine will help you with maintaining your weight loss.

i totally agree with Happylapbander. it is a individual thing. Everyone's body is different. It is VERY hard for me to get in the amount of calories that will balance out my workout routine... that is required for me to eat at my activity level. I can not eat a lot. My body frame is very small. I can only eat what I can get in and handle, nothing more. I will be 5 years post op on June 8 and I've been eating 1,000-1,200 - calories .....but somedays it is less about 800 calories when I get very busy and i am running around like a chicken...lol...and those days when I get busy i make sure i supplement with protein shakes and protein bars to reach my calorie intake... but i will tell you that... I have been maintaining my weight loss ever since. I weigh 135lbs and to be honest with you, i LOVE being this weight.....so ... i refuse to up my calories and carb intake. Because when I do, its like watching a plane cra**** gets VERY ugly! Once I play around with my calorie and carb intake , its ALL over! I start to gain weight.  And it is very upsetting to me. I feel this is how much calories my body wants .... so I don't ever play around with it....You will have to play around and see what your magic number is. I suggest if you want to start to lose weight , lower your calorie intake and eat 1300-1400 calories a day instead of 1600 calories a day. and see what happens. However , I suggest you to get in touch with your WLS nutritionist and sit down and go over what your nutritional assessment intake requirements are for you. And when you find out what your nutritional assessments are, then i suggest to stick to them like glue, like i have. You will maintain your weight loss and have better control of your eating/dieting AND your workout routine ..in the long term wls post op life. Good luck to you :-)

hugss
Lizzy

Hi Lizzy and thanks for the advice. I see we had our surgeries the same time. I had 2 babies in 07 & 08 and gained 30lbs that I am NOW trying to get rid of. My weight before I got pregnant was 145 and I loved it. If I could get to 150-155 I would be delighted. I can eat between 900 and 1200 calories a day, but I try to stay closer to 1000. This has been the first week in a long time that I have monitored my calorie intake and also exercised. My DH threw away my scale 2 years ago, so I would just weigh myself at my doctors appointment. I am actually going to go buy one on Saturday and keep it in the laundry room, I dont even think that he knows how to get in that room.

Be Blessed,
Sharonne