Did anyone eat below 400 or 300 calories for a year post op after gastric sleeve?

[ashleyxx 277]

Impossible.

[Jacqbult 112]

You won't lose your body will be in starvation mode

[Best 0]

Starvation mode is a myth my surgeon say, if u are referring to the Minnesota study done in 1950s from which starvation mode or it's real name adaptive thermogenesis took place, the participant in the study reached 5,per body fat which is more than minimum levels than they stopped losing., we fat people have fat reserves some people who got these surgeries are above 50 per body fat , so it is a myth in my surgeons opinion or it is represented incorrectly .

[Sharon1964 2,530]

If you're familiar with the Minnesota experiments, you'll know that the purpose was to learn more about famine and how to help people in danger of starvation at the end of World War II. You'll also know that the volunteers never went below 1500 calories in a day, and that they also experienced severe depression, emotional distress, hypochondria and hysteria.

Further, the physical effects of the experiment on the participants closely resembled the physical effects that happen to people with anorexia or bulimia.

And all that with four to five times the calories that you are suggesting. I can't even imagine what will happen to a person who drops to the level you are suggesting.

No thanks.

[BitterSweet* 835]

I can imagine. Brings images to my mind of the Holocaust. Back to my original comment. Getting a second medical opinion is a really smart thing to do. People do it all of the time with other diagnoses like cancer or autoimmune disorders.

No reputable medical doctor would suggest such a thing as this. Not a reputable one. It matters not whether they will supervise you or not. I supervise my sh/t when I flush the toilet. So....you get the point.

[LipstickLady 25,682]

Hi all , happy new year 2015 , I'm new to this forum , I would like to know have anyone eaten below 300 calories for a year after gastric sleeve, what was ur starting weight and previously current weight at the end of the first year, , how much u lost , did u felt hungry. How much of ur stomach was removed and what was ur bougie size. How much of ur excess weight do u lost. By the way I will be under the supervision of medical doctors, so please no negative comments. Comment should only be based on the topic, thanks in advance.

Just some background on me. I am 19 months post op, hit my doctor's goal and my personal goal about 9 months ago but am still working (kind of -- when the mood strikes) on my stretch goal. I am still "overweight" per BMI standards but I wear a size 8 in ladies sizes, size 10 in junior's. I have an hourglass figure with bigger (longer, ha!) boobs and a bum. I am quite athletic and have a lot of muscle and little body fat so I don't worry about BMI at all. I have a five pound bounce range, usually between 152 and 157 and I am thrilled. If I never lose another pound, this surgery has done more for me than I ever imagined.

I started at 264 and as of today I am a period bloated 156. I gained four pounds over the holidays (Thanksgiving to New Years), less than I ever have but I know at least two of it is my menstrual cycle that started yesterday.

My bougie was a 36fr but really, bougie sizes have so little difference, it really doesn't matter.

Eaten below 300 calories for a year?

OH GAWD NO! I has Sleeve surgery so I could lead a normal life, eating anything I wanted, only in much smaller portions. I have a very tight sleeve. I can rarely eat more than 1/4 - 1/2 cup so I "graze" all day. I eat 4-6 bites, am full and eat 4-6 more a few hours later. That's on a "feeding day". I wake up some mornings barely able to eat 1/4 cup at a time and there seems to be no pattern to it.

As soon as I was able, I made sure to get my calories to 1200/day. That took about 8 month, I think. I am now easily eating 1600 on my feeding days and probably 900 on my non feeding days. My fear of eating so few calories was the maintenance after the fact. I wanted to make sure that I could maintain at a "normal" person's diet, even if that meant slower loss. I am thrilled. I can have a really shi!!ty day and eat a bunch of junk and not gain a pound. I don't do it often and my perception of a bunch of junk is probably a healthy person's small splurge, but I can't imagine realistically living on such a limit.

I didn't have this surgery to punish myself or give myself more of a eating disorder than I think I already had. I wanted to eat like a skinny person with smaller portions, eating until satisfied, not full, healthier choices and occasional treats. I did not want to live the rest of my life on a strict diet. I do believe trying to struggle through a year on 300 calories would have done exactly that.

My doctor would have NEVER allowed it. I don't think a liquid diet would "kill you" as suggested above, but I do think you would feel like crap, have no energy, be unable to exercise, have a hard time cognitively and would lose all muscle mass along with fat.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

As others have mentioned that is not healthy. While it is not uncommon to only eat that much the first month post-op to do so for a full year is not only unhealthy but verges on disordered thinking/eating commonly seen in ED's. Your body needs food to lose weight. I am only 3½ months in and my doctor has me at 800 - 1000. I highly doubt any ethical doctor would supervise a 300 -400 calorie diet for a year.

[Kindle 8,667]

Hi all , happy new year 2015 , I'm new to this forum , I would like to know have anyone eaten below 300 calories for a year after gastric sleeve, what was ur starting weight and previously current weight at the end of the first year, , how much u lost , did u felt hungry. How much of ur stomach was removed and what was ur bougie size. How much of ur excess weight do u lost. By the way I will be under the supervision of medical doctors, so please no negative comments. Comment should only be based on the topic, thanks in advance.

@Best. My question is, why? You asked to hear from others that have eaten below 300 calories for a year, and obviously there are none. As you can see by the many examples, VSG patients lose and maintain a significant weight loss (for me over 100% excess weight) on 800-1500 calories. Why would your doctor (or perhaps this is your idea) suggest and support a 300-400 calorie diet for that long? You've already heard all the angles of why this is unhealthy, so I would like to hear the reasoning behind why this is a good plan and what the benefits would be compared to all of the other postop diet plans that include 2-3x the caloric intake. (Personally, I think if you had the willpower to maintain such a diet, you certainly don't need surgery.....your sleeve will be no help in maintaining that kind of regimen)

[Best 0]

@Best. My question is, why? You asked to hear from others that have eaten below 300 calories for a year, and obviously there are none. As you can see by the many examples, VSG patients lose and maintain a significant weight loss (for me over 100% excess weight) on 800-1500 calories. Why would your doctor (or perhaps this is your idea) suggest and support a 300-400 calorie diet for that long? You've already heard all the angles of why this is unhealthy, so I would like to hear the reasoning behind why this is a good plan and what the benefits would be compared to all of the other postop diet plans that include 2-3x the caloric intake. (Personally, I think if you had the willpower to maintain such a diet, you certainly don't need surgery.....your sleeve will be no help in maintaining that kind of regimen)

first of all I thank u all for commenting and second kindle u wanted a reason behind it but I have no reason , I told my surgeon I want biliopancreatic diversion a malabsorptive procedure, he told me I will perform the procedure but for the rest of ur life , u will have to live with problems. He said u can achieve the same results with sleeve by following a very low calorie diet for a year after sleeve and he said only a year then we will increase the calories. He give justification for it For eg when u have a malabsorption procedure u eat calories but most of them do not absorb so u are dieting in starvation mode , if u are eating 1000 calories only 300 will be absorb, so why not eat below 400 calories with sleeve and achieve the same results of malabsorptive procedure . But kindle u made me curious by saying a sleeve can make u only eat below 300 calories and u will feel hungry is it true?

[BitterSweet* 835]

You've got a lot of research to do and I hope that you have plenty of time to do so before having surgery. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[Jacqbult 112]

My Dr. believes in starvation mode as do I. You even mention it in your last post...

You will see very quickly why you can not live on 300-400 calories when you try it yourself. Please take our advice and follow a healthy eating plan.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

I lost weight on a medically supervised liquid diet once. It worked great until I went insane and then I regained that weight so fast plus some friends... I did not have success!

In the first month post op, i probably ate this little, but I am 3 years out and maintaining a 160# weight loss and I never ate that little after the first month. As reflected in most of the comments, what you are discussing is quite "outside the normal"

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

Best, your BMI is only 42 - you can get to goal in the first year without eating uber low calorie. My BMI was about 51 and I am maintaining a "normal" BMI now. It took me 14 months to get to goal and I dont even count calories... I do an intuitive eating approach (not for everyone!!). My gut tells me that this is "all or nothing" type thinking from my obese days. You CAN be successful eating in a way that is sustainable over the long haul.

[roundisashape 712]

I don't know that anyone out there would have the willpower or ability - even sleeved - to sustain such a low calorie diet for that long. If I were, I would still be afraid of what comes after. One of the best things we can do for ourselves during the losing process is to learn and establish new habits that will keep us from ever regaining the weight, and it doesn't seem like there would be much room in such a restrictive plan to do that.

Good luck with your decision!

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

Are you self pay? If you want a faster result why not get the bypass? At 300 - 400 you will lose muscle, your skin will look sallow and saggy and likely your hair will fall out. You will not look healthy at all. As you can see from the many posts above this have shown, at your BMI you can safely eat 800 -1200 calories and lose weight. It's concerning that you want to go to such extremes as to set your body up for mal-absorption. There was a gentleman on here not too long ago who went overboard and ended up having to check into a clinic for an eating disorder. Remember the goal is to get healthy.

Edited January 6, 2015 by BLERDgirl