Question:
Why do so many post ops still 'diet' (Atkins)
Ok, I've been on this site for over a year now and have seen dozens, if not hundreds of questions about doing the Atkins diet. So here's my question...Do you think we should really be on a DIET post-op??? I mean doesn't that defeat the purpose of our surgery anyway? Isn't dieting one of the reasons for our yo-yo weight loss/gain? It's my opinion that we should just eat sensibly and not diet. Because unless we plan on staying on the Atkins (or any other diet) for the rest of our lives, as soon as we stop our bodies are going to react with immediate weight gain! I don't want my body to get back into the "diet mentality." Am I the only one who thinks this way??? — Bigboy N. (posted on February 24, 2003)
February 24, 2003
One of the recent posts about Atkins was from a preop who is obviously
under dr's orders to lose weight for surgery. Other than that, I don't
think a lot of postops are on Atkins though they follow a high protein food
plan which may include low carb Atkins products. I couldn't handle the
high fat in Atkins but my protein is high. My postop food plan is about 70
percent protein and 30 percent low glycemic carbs (anything 50 or under on
the glycemic index, I think a true low carb diet would stress 30 or under
on the glycemic index). My goal is healthy eating the majority of the time
but like you said, I did not have surgery to be on a diet. Every now and
again I'm going to have something off plan and that is going to be okay.
— susanje
February 24, 2003
I'm doing a high protein, low carb eating plan. I've found that when I only
eat protein, cheese, veggies & occasional breads & sweets I feel
better. I switch things up with the Zone which adds more carbs. It's really
about balance with me. Basically I think people are relearning to eat. I'm
learning what makes my body feel good. I don't really think of it as a
diet. Just what works for me. Lifestyle & all that.
— LionGirl2k
February 24, 2003
Bigboy, the first 6-8 months or so post-op, usually post-ops don't have to
do anything other than eat their protein and get in enough water to
continue the fantastic weight loss. But the further out you get, the more
the loss slows down, the more the hunger returns, the snacking/carbs creep
back in, the calories taken in go up, exercise slips etc, etc. This can
result in a stoppage of weight loss short of goal or YIKES, an increase.
So, for many of us, me included at 1 year post-op, I have to put myself on
a "diet" to continue the weight loss. Luckily, it is not too
restrictive and with increased exercise I am able to continue a very slow
loss while still being able to have some treats, but everyone is different.
I have read of a lucky few that can continue to eat anything and
everything well past a year and even have to increase calories to slow down
their losses. Others have to work harder to continue the loss. Atkins is
just one form of dieting-I know others who use Weight Watchers post-op.
— Cindy R.
February 24, 2003
The way my Dr. explained it to me was, during the first 6 months you are in
the "honeymoon" phase. You will loose no matter what. He has me
on lean meat and green veggies. He states why not max out the weight loss,
learn a better way of eating and after 6 months do more of a maintanence
plan. He tells me when I reach 160 (goal 145) I can start adding more
carbs. If I hit 140, I need to eat MORE carbs so I can maintain. No one
wants to be on a "diet" forever. I might as well loose as fast
as possible, then I will know how to maintain. Use lean meat and green
veggies when I am in maintanence and have gained 5 lbs or so I can revert
to that until I get my weight under control.
— Sharon F.
February 24, 2003
I guess it all depends on what you call "eating sensibly." For
post-ops, sensible usually means high protein, low carbs. So, is that a
"diet" or just a new way of eating? It dosn't feel like a diet
to me. Eating an unrestricted amount of whatever you want wouldn't really
qualify as sensible, so no matter how you look at it, you have to have some
degree of control over what you eat and some things will have to be
strictly limited or elminated.
— Amber L.
February 24, 2003
This is just my opinion -- others will disagree and that's fine by me --
but I feel pretty strongly about this issue. Alarm bells should go off in
your head if you find yourself thinking, "I didn't have this surgery
just to be on a diet." Whether you realize it or not, Yes, You Did,
with the pouch acting as The Enforcer.<P>When you learn about this
surgery, it doesn't take long to figure out that the initial trauma to the
stomach lasts for just a few months. Then, you can eat more (albeit not as
much as a pre-op), and you can graze (eat lots between meals over the
course of a day). Therefore, you can STOP losing and can actually START
regaining. There are people who regain their weight without
"stretching the pouch" or "pulling out the staples" --
I'd venture to guess that most weight re-gain (admittedly not ALL) is not
about surgical failure. It's what we put INTO the pouch that
matters.<P>I don't know if I "do" Atkins, but I do eat a
high-protein, relatively lower carb, low-fat, low-sugar diet compared to
what I ate as a pre-op. My protein gram intake is about the same as my
carb gram intake -- I won't allow the latter to get ahead of the former,
because that's what works for me. I also believe in continuing protein
shakes indefinitely, for me. I have no illusions that I can get away with
eating whatever I want, because I've failed on too many diets (as you've
pointed out) to think that reverting to "whatever I want" will
EVER work for me. I just make too many crummy choices that way. I've had
a lot of fun learning about good protein foods and snacks, and I enjoy my
food choices (treats or otherwise) a lot more now than I used to. There is
nothing that I don't eat if I want it, but whether or not I *really* want
it (and am ready to compromise some other food or exercise choice to make
up for it) is a question I always think about now. <P>You may not
want to follow any particular "popular" diet, but you WILL want
to figure out what works for you, in terms of weight loss, weight
maintenance, overall health, and controlling your cravings for junk food.
In deciding to have this surgery, or in "re-grouping" as
post-ops, we have to ask ourselves: What's Going To Be Different *This*
Time? If you've got no answer for that, other than just relying on your
pouch, you really need to come up with one for YOU. OK, I'm finally off
the soapbox (for now!).
— Suzy C.
February 24, 2003
I have to agree with the folks who are saying that you can stop your weight
loss by "grazing". I have absolutely no doubt that this is
exactly what I have done. I still cannot eat much at a meal, but I can eat
a few bites of this and that throughout the day and my weightloss has
stopped and I am still 55 pounds away from goal. I know my pouch is not
stretched because I cannot eat much at one time, but I have sabotaged
myself with all the old eating habits......sooooo......yes......I do think
that many of us NEED to "diet" to be successful postop. The good
news according to my doctor is that all the "diets" that failed
before surgery wil actually WORK now. Wish me luck all...I really have to
get serious again if I am gonna get the rest of this off....BTW, I was 340
starting and at 215 for the last 10 MONTHS!!!! Gotta get the scales moving
again!
— A. West
February 24, 2003
This was a revelation for me, too. Just like with any other trauma to our
body, our systems will eventually "recover" or learn to exist in
the new mode. After the honeymoon period, our bodies will want to go back
to the way they were, and we have to control that. This became clear to me
when my oldest and dearest friend of 25 years, also a size 6/7 all her
life, said she's always had to watch what she eats. She works at it, as do
most healthy people. I've only tried to work at at for months at a time,
but never saw healthy living as a life-long commitment. I don't think of
it as dieting, but rather a "change of lifestyle". I agree with
Suzy about having alarms go off with this question. I had to really
finally accept that I have a problem and need to be willing to give up all
the great stuff that comes with my food (not only taste, but comfort,
security, etc) in order to get healthy. Food will not be the source of my
happiness any longer. You might want to examine your reasons for
considering (?) WLS to learn more about how to use it as a tool rather than
a "magic pill". Good Luck!! Juliet in WA.
— toolio
February 24, 2003
As I was reading your post, something you wrote caught my attention. You
said that we shouldnt diet, we should eat sensibly. None of us ate
sensibly pre-op...that is how we all got MO. So for us eating sensibly IS
a diet. I agree with you about the Adkins and other diets, we should all
eat a healthy well balanced diet..but our diet probably will NEVER be.
From having an open RNY, I have to munch pills (vits) like there is no
tomorrow...my regular sized friends dont do that. I have to eat mostly
protein, again, my thin friends dont do that. I have to watch myself like
a hawk or I will pig out on chocolate and not have just a piece or 2 like
my thin friends do. The point is, that pre-op and for the first 3 months
post-op, I had the exact same feelings and ideas you have. In fact I
posted a question on here and it is toward the bottom of the 300 Q's list
talking about the EXACT same thing and how I have realized that we will in
fact have an eating plan that is NOT just like the thin people...cause no
matter how much we lose, we are fighting a battle that we will have to
fight for the rest of our lives....the wls just helps make that goal of
getting the weight off possible...it doesnt fight the battle for us....its
like a war..theres the poor guys on foot and then theres the guys in a
tank....I'd be much safer in the tank.but it does not guarantee that I will
not get hurt. Make sense???? Good luck. wanna chat...my email is
[email protected]
— cherokey55
February 24, 2003
You still have to diet and exercise with this surgery. I watch what I eat
now my strictly than I ever did before. I also work out more now than I
ever did before. This was a tool, not an "end all, be all". I do
snack every so often but only on beef jerky and other high protein foods. I
also workout at least an hour a day. It just depends on your goals. I'm 8
mos. post and down 100+ lbs. The surgery allows our body to restrict what
we eat to a point, the rest is on us.
— George B.
February 24, 2003
I've dieted fairly successfully (never got all the way thin, but held the
wt) for 7 yrs. I know there is will power in there. BUT I have a broken
body. I have a fatal disease, whether it is called insulin resistance or
syndrome X this week, it is still broken. I can put myu disease into
remission, but I cannot go back and NOT have the disease. I can work with
my treatment of choice or against it. I prefer to call my lifestyle a
"formula". That makes it feel les restrictive to me. I have
some freedoms I never had, such as feeling fine about non-sugar carbs. I
have the 2 restrictions, milk & sugar, that certainly wouldn't have
hurt me before. As for taking protien & vites, I've done diets that
were way worse than this. Yuck. Don't make me speak of them. At this time,
my "formula" is holding me at goal wt, good labs. I have to
continue to do what has worked. You might want to pop onto the Grad list
to hang out with others who are keeping to their formula, who have
discarded it or traded it in for a better one. No one gets away with
acting like a normie for long. OK, maybe 1% will. And *I*, for one, didn't
make the cut. Grads is for people one or more years out to POST. Anyone
can lurk and I
highly recommend it.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Graduate-OSSG
— vitalady
February 24, 2003
Yes you have to diet after surgery. The thing is the surgery forces you to
do what you should have done on your own and couldn't. There isn't any way
that I could have stayed on a diet on my own. This is why I had the
surgery. You have no choice about staying on one after the surgery. I
have found out after the surgery you don't want much anyway.
— Lana Rush
December 19, 2004
Yes, I think we should watch what we eat or exercise. Now. if you are
walking and exercising I don't think weight gain will be a problem~ But for
everybody that reeached goal and has gotten very comfortable, I need
protein shakes! I need them ....;-)
— walkerl35
December 20, 2004
I'm 15 months out and I don't want to be "on a diet" the rest of
my life either but I do know that I will have to follow a specific food
plan the rest of my life and be ever vigilant. For me, being "on a
diet" meant total, strict adherance to a very restrictive list of
foods and one slip usually meant the end of the diet. I did a lot of
research before I had this surgery and knew going in that I would have to
severely limit, or eliminate, sugar and white flour. I don't particularly
care for sugar but bread was like manna from heaven for me so I thought
that eliminating bread would be the hard part (it hasn't been so far). I
don't consider this way of eating being on a diet but I do know that I
could very easily blow it if I started eating white bread regularly since
it makes me extremely hungry so I limit myself to whole grain bread only
and I don't have that everyday. I usually start with protein first, then
complex carbs (something low on the glycemic index). Usually by the time
I've eaten those, I have no room for anything else so I seldom eat fruit.
I know I have a lifetime to go of being alert and careful with what I put
in my mouth but I still don't have that diet mentality which made me so
miserable in the past. If I have one day that I don't follow my eating
plan, I just get much more strict the next day and it balances out. Just
know that you will ALWAYS have to watch what you eat, when you eat, and how
much you eat. Doesn't really matter whether you call it a diet or not.
It's just sensible eating.
— scbabe
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