DLCoggin

"Try not. Do...or don't do. There is no try." "You must unlearn what you have learned." "Control, control, you must learn control!" Yoda

Heck, if push comes to shove, set an alarm on your phone to go off for Breakfast, lunch and dinner as a reminder to update your log. Alternatively you could set one alarm to go off in the evening to remind you to update your log. But it is always best to log as soon as possible after you eat - if you don't you'll tend to forget things and those calories can add up quickly. P.S. I just answered your post in another thread about determining the number of calories you need to maintain your weight. I mentioned this thread in my reply not having seen your post here. Sorry!

I don't believe that there is a "one size fits all" calorie goal for maintenance or any other part of the journey. Even doctors and nutritionists can only make an educated guess. They can't know lifestyle, activity, etc. There are simply too many variables. But there is a way that you can determine "your" personal and customizable calorie goal - a food log. The process is simple. Get a food log app (My Fitness Pal is highly recommended but there are several that do pretty much the same thing), in "Settings" configure your log with your height, current weight, activity level and your weight loss goal. Even though you're at your goal weight, I would configure it for losing one-half pound a week. That results in the calorie goal calculated having a bit of a buffer "built in". Now maintain your log for a week and see what happens with your weight. If you gain weight, go back into settings and configure your weight loss goal for losing one pound a week. That will result in a slight reduction in your calorie goal. If you lose weight, go back and configure your weight loss goal for "Maintain Weight". That will increase your calorie goal slightly. Now maintain your log for another week and again, see what happens. When your weight is holding where you want it, that's "your" calorie number. Remember that it really doesn't matter what "weight loss goal" you have configured. All you're doing is using that setting to change the calorie goal up or down. MFP and all other apps use a "one size fits all" formula for calculating calorie goals. But just like your doctor or nutritionist, MFP doesn't know all of the variables. It's important to remember that your calorie goal is all about what I call The Law of Averages. Hitting that exact number ever single day is not realistic, it's not sustainable, it's not necessary and it's incredibly boring. There are going to be days when you're over, and days when you're under, and both are just fine as long as you maintain your average. Logging allows you to see your average calorie intake for a day, a week, or longer. It's the average that tells the story. My maintenance calorie goal is 1620 calories. When (not if) I go over by a 100 or 200 calories, I simply adjust my calorie goal down 100-200 calories for a day or two and I'm right back on track with my average. My target weight range is 153 - 156 lbs. If I gain a pound or two, I do the exact same thing - reduce my calorie goal by 100-200 calories for a day or two. If my weight goes below 153, I increase my calorie goal by the same amount and for the same time period and see what happens. You will quickly become quite adept at dialing in your weight to any number you want. Food logs allow you to manage your weight instead of your weight managing you. Your ability to control your weight with great precision is actually quite amazing. And when all is said and done, it's about control, not denial. Your confidence will soar. Logs will change your relationship with food in ways you never imagined. You can read more in a loggers thread that we recently started - "Food Logs Discussion". Huge congratulations on your success!! I'm betting you're loving the new you!!

I thought so! You can usually spot a logger - specific numbers and it's not "I think", it's "I know". Drop 30-40 calories a meal during the week and you're on track!

It is not realistic or sustainable to hit a specific calorie goal every day of the world. And who would want to? Life is full of special moments and occasions and they often involve an increase in calories. You have to allow yourself those moments. It's part of life and more importantly, part of living and enjoying your life! And it's absolutely nothing to worry about if you manage your calories by "The Law of Averages". Let's play "what if" for a minute. What if you changed your weekday calorie goal to 1280 calories? About a 9% decrease. Five days a week. Now add 3400 calories for weekends. And you'll hit your average daily calorie goal of 1400, every single time. Will you hit that 1280 calories every single day? Almost certainly not. There will be days when you're over, and days when you're under. And when (not if) those days occur, you make minor adjustments to your goal, up or down, for a day or two and you're right back on track with your average. Realistic. Sustainable. You're in control. You're enjoying your life. Your confidence will soar. Life is meant to be good! Your post gives me the impression that you're maintaining a food log. If you are, good for you! If you aren't, starting one will change your life. My Fitness Pal is highly recommended. You can read some great comments from loggers in the thread "Food Logs Discussion". Commit to logging and you will be amazed!! You're gonna love the new you!!

Wow, how great is this?! I've been doing this a while and this is the first time I've seen the formula of protein calories vs. total calories. I drink Pure Protein shakes. 35g of protein and either 160 or 170 calories depending on which flavor I'm drinking. So 140 calories from protein, 20 or 30 from other stuff. Check. I also occasionally have a Pure Protein bar. 20g of protein and 200 calories. So 80 calories from protein, 120 from other stuff. So with the shakes, other stuff calories are 15-20%. With the bar, other stuff calories are 60%. And pumping egg whites to boost your protein - how cool is that!! Thank you Music!! Great stuff!!

Jenn, do you maintain a food log? It might help a LOT in avoiding the bad habits. Crazy as it sounds, it is amazing how just knowing that you will be logging, will change what you will be logging!

"I feel pretty good, plenty of energy, alert, and sleeping well." And you're losing weight like crazy. You're doing things right!!

White rice. Only had it twice post-op. Late dumping (hypoglycemia) both times. I actually measured my blood sugar the first time - 37. The second time was an experiment to see if maybe my tolerance had changed. Nope - still the same. I can live without white rice!

Most if not all doctors and nutritionists would agree that it is always best to get your protein (and all nutrients for that matter) from real food. The key is that you need to get ALL of your doctor's recommended protein. That's where supplements come into play. My doctor requires her patients to get 100g of protein a day. I drink one 35g protein shake for breakfast practically every single day and I hit that 100g goal 95% of the time. Without the supplement, I found it pretty much impossible to do that consistently.

It's quite remarkable how the simple act of logging your food changes your perspective so dramatically. I know folks who don't log think I'm crazy when I say I often don't eat something because I don't want to log it but it's absolutely true. Generally speaking, you can increase your calorie goal by the number of calories you burn during soccer season and still maintain your weight loss or weight maintenance. When all is said and done it's always about the calories and if you're burning more, you can eat more! How cool is that?!

Well based on my experience, they wouldn't reschedule if there was any significant problem with your blood work so that's good news. But it doesn't make the scheduling time off problem any less frustrating. Just keep doing what you're doing - you're definitely getting results!!

Absolutely makes a lot of sense (when you're in maintenance mode) and that's exactly why I do it as well. It is surprisingly easy to adjust your calorie goals up or down a little to keep your weight within your target range. Losing or gaining a pound or two is a snap. The scale tells you what you need to do - the log makes it easy to do it!

By all means PLEASE add to it and shoot it back to me!! I would absolutely love it if EVERYONE would do the same. I try to update it as often as possible but there's only one of me and time is always a challenge. Thanks so much!!

True confession time. This has to be our secret. If you tell anyone I said this I'll deny it. You ready? Here goes - I weigh pretty much every day. BUT - I didn't until my weight had stabilized. When I was in the rapid weight loss part of the journey and I'd lose five pounds one week and nothing the next, it was too much of an emotional roller coaster. But when my body decided it was where it wanted to be, weighing every day made a lot more sense and is a lot more FUN! Shhhhhh - our secret!!

Just emailed!!

Welcome Ms. Kristy and than you so much for sharing your experience!! 196 lbs is nothing short of amazing - you are my hero!!!

No Jess - thank you!! You probably have noticed that I am "passionate" (sounds better than fanatical - Lol) about food logs. I know exactly what you mean about it being addictive. It is a very unfortunate fact that us loggers are a small minority. I believe that a lot of folks stress, struggle and some even fail with controlling/managing their weight when they could be huge success stories by investing the effort in maintaining a log. Every one of us in this thread are helping to get the word out. I sincerely hope that this thread grows to hundreds of pages of success stories from hundreds of loggers!! We are changing the RNY world - one logger at a time! LOL!! Congratulations on your amazing loss so far!!

Last week I was over my calorie goal every day except three days. But...my AVERAGE calories for the week was only about 100 calories above my 1620 MFP goal. It's ALL about the AVERAGES. Don't stress about being over for X amount of days. Focus on the average and you'll be amazed at how easily you can make minor adjustments for a day or two and be right back on track. That is a GREAT, OVER THE TOP confidence builder. You might want to try nuts for increasing your fats - very high in fats and very healthy. The often cited "Nurses Study" followed more than 80,000 nurses for five years. One of the things they found was that nurses who ate at least 5g of nuts per day reduced the likelihood of heart attack by a whopping 35%. Pretty much all nuts, including peanuts, are healthy. Just be careful with portions, they are high in calories. I eat 5g of nuts just about every day whether I want them or not! Lol.

I find it so amazing that when you read the story your log tells, you learn so much. Not only about what you're eating, but how your diet affects other aspects of your life. Your observation being the perfect example - increase your protein and you sleep better. I drink a 35g Protein shake just about every morning of the world. My protein goal is 100g a day. I usually hit it but it is almost impossible for me to do that on a regular basis without the shake supplement. The weekly calorie summary in MFP is a great tool. The week runs Monday to Sunday. So you can check it at any time during the week and it will show you how far under/over you are compared to your weekly calorie goal. And you can see the information in three formats - bar graph, pie chart and the detailed page. The "Summary" tab is on the same page and will show you how many calories you have remaining at any time during your day. Really useful for making adjustments to your next meal(s) based on the number of calories you have remaining. And if you really want to "fine tune", you can look at the detailed view of the "Daily" tab to check any of your nutrient totals AND see your goal and how much you have left to meet your goal for the day. Powerful. 81 lbs in six months - how cool is that?! Congratulations!!

Terry, I'd say your calorie count and what you can eat are pretty "normal". We hear it so often but it is undeniable that everyone is different. The real story is told in your blood work and I'm guessing that your doctor has ordered it for your three month follow-up. Your weight loss is excellent - congratulations! I've never used the SparkPeople app but they have an excellent reputation. The calorie goal is obviously not calculated for RNY folks but that really doesn't matter. Any calorie goal is just a reference point - meaning that at an average of X number of calories per day, you're losing an average of X amount of weight per week. If you and your doctor are satisfied with your weight loss, then I'd say your goal in the 650 range is fine. As you have noted, weight loss following the surgery can vary quite a lot from week to week. That's perfectly normal and the real story is always in the average. If you ask me, 45 lbs in three months - amazing! Well done!!

Terry, what daily calorie goal did SparkPeople give you and what is your weekly weight loss goal?

Just emailed!

I don't believe that there is a "one size fits all" formula for the number of calories that you should shoot for at any given point in your journey. Doctors do the best they can but even they cannot take into account countless variables including activity level, genetic variations, changes in gut bacteria, the way an individual's body responds to bariatric surgery - the list goes on and on. There are simply too many variables. But there is a way to determine "your" calorie goal for your particular point in the weight loss journey - food logs or diaries. You configure an app with your current height, weight, activity level and how much weight per week you want to lose. The app will calculate a calorie goal based on a "one size fits all" formula. Now maintain your log for a week or two and see what happens. If you lose more than your goal (you certainly can lose too much too fast), then change the settings in the app until your calorie goal is increased by 100 - 200 calories a day. If you lose less than your goal, change the settings until your calorie goal is decreased by 100 - 200 calories a day. Then maintain your log for a week or two and see what happens. You will very quickly zero in on "your" number. When you lose the amount of weight that meets your goal, that daily calorie intake is "your" number. Keep in mind that your calorie goal must be treated as an AVERAGE. There will be days when you exceed your goal and days when you fall short. Both are fine as long as you maintain your AVERAGE. So if your goal is 1500 calories and you have an 1800 calorie day, all you have to do is reduce your goal by 100 - 200 calories (in your mind, no need to change the app) for the next day or two and you're back on track with your average. It's quick, it's easy, it's free and it can be customized to your personal lifestyle. Research studies have repeatedly shown that folks who log lose more weight, lose it faster and perhaps most importantly are much more successful at maintaining their goal weight long term. Logs create accountability, dramatically increase your confidence and peace of mind, and will change your relationship with food in ways that you never imagined. With the exception of a three month break (big mistake), I've maintained a food log every day for the last two years. Starting weight was 285, weight stabilized about eight months ago at 155, and my weight this morning was 151.8. My average calorie goal has been 1620 calories for that eight month period. My weight has not gone below 151 or above 156 in that entire eight months. I'm confident, I'm in control and there has been no "bounce back" weight regain after reaching my goal weight. You're gonna love the new you!!

I'm about half way through the book and it is excellent. Highly recommended. Well written, well organized, easy to read and exhaustive citing of sources for information. There's information here for everyone whether you're considering RNY or two years out (like I am). Great book.