I'm 45, 6 feet tall, and started out at 396 my heaviest (was 366 at the start of the pre-op diet).
I am very, very active. Outdoor work, sports, CrossFit.
I did track my food and, like you, was on way more than 3,000 calories a day.
Now, two months post-op, I am 94 pounds down from my heavy and 64 from the start of the pre-op diet. I eat more than most people—I take in between 1000 and 1400 calories a day, including up to 120 g of carbohydrates, which is unusual for bariatric patients. I am still in the fast-lose "honeymoon" period and am losing 3-5 pounds a week after the initial massive weight dump.
And yet... I'm satisfied. Thriving, even. The only thing is the restricted amount means my strength isn't what it was—probably lost about 30% off my PR lifts. I don't really care, because now I can run, and jump, and my palms can touch the floor, and I'm off my meds.
I do feel hunger when I haven't eaten in too long, but it's not the gnawing "feed me or I will make your life miserable" HANGRY feeling I would have had before. It's more like... "things are not right, please to be feeding me now."
Here are a couple of typical days for me, all approved by my nutritionist:
Meal 1: Fairlife Core Power protein shake
Meal 2 (post-workout): Oatmeal with protein powder, a bit of maple syrup, blueberries, and raspberries
Meal 3: Koussa (summer squash stuffed with ground meat and rice, braised in tomato sauce)
Meal 4: Tuna salad on one of those little dense squares of European-style flat rye bread
Meal 5: Collagen peptide protein and an apple
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Meal 1: Fairlife Core Power protein shake
Meal 2 (post-workout): Scrambled egg with a bit of cheese, spinach, and hot sauce
Meal 3: Ground turkey with sugar-free Korean BBQ sauce, green beans, a bit of rice
Meal 4: Skyr (Icelandic nonfat yoghurt) with raspberries
Meal 5: Lentils with ham
The biggest thing I had to teach myself was that it's okay to leave food on the plate, EVEN IF IT'S JUST ONE TINY BITE. Because the line between "I am full" and "debilitating nausea and acid reflux" is sometimes just that one single bite.