High carb, high protein, low fat diet 6 months post op during intense physical activity?

[Gabbee 53]

I'm 6 months post op and have been dealing with a really annoying stall forever. I'm not complaining because at least it's not moving up but I've been working out almost every day and eating pretty well—I average ~1,000 calories and ~100g of protein/day following a mostly Keto diet, though if I wanted to I could certainly eat more. I feel satisfied but not restricted and I tolerate literally EVERYTHING.

Anyway, I just hired an INCREDIBLE trainer that Im really excited about! She is a world champion athlete, has a SOLID reputation, and a background in nutrition. She was honest with me that she isn't super versed in bariatric patients. My Dr.'s staff hasn't given me great info regarding nutrition either so I'm kind of on my own there.

I will be doing intense physical activity 5 days a week and my trainer wants me to try to eat 1,600 calories/day. How in the world I'm going to fit all that in? I don't know! She told me to try having more frequent meals, like 8 per day.

She's also changing up my macros drastically, at least for the first 2 weeks, by reducing fat intake and upping my complex carbs: 1,600 calories, 140g Protein, 180 carbs, 36g of fat.

Has anyone started a rigorous workout regime a few months out from surgery? Were you able to eat enough calories to sustain it? And most importantly, should I even be eating more carbs than protein? I'm like, scared to mess around with that stuff now! lol

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

[Rainbow_Warrior 996]

3 hours ago, Gabbee said:

She was honest with me that she isn't super versed in bariatric patients. My Dr.'s staff hasn't given me great info regarding nutrition either so I'm kind of on my own there.

Warning bells times two.

1. I am fortunate to have a WLS package ... the pre-op supervision, the surgeon, the op itself, the post op supervision by an exercise physiologist AND the post op supervision by an experienced bariatric clinic dietitian.

2. I exercise 29 days per month ... 2.5 to 3.75 hours per day of swimming and pool aerobics.

My calorie intake is set at 900 cals daily with 62grams minimum Protein and serious advice to keep the protein to carbs ratio in the order of 5:3 or, at worst 5:4.

Because of my highly busy exercise regime, I usually need extra calories. I tend to finish each day at 1150 to 1450 calories consumed.

I am in week 15 post op and have lost 1.3kg to 1.4kg average per week. (That's 2.8 to 3.1 pounds).

If she is not experienced with your post-WLS, I'd counsel you to rethink.

If your clinic/surgeon has not provided better info, GO BACK and ask for it.

I am only a single voice but I think you need a different strategy ... I am no expert but I am getting post op help from a range of experts who are "tied" to me for 15 months post-op. That $1000 is well worth it.

[James Marusek 5,244]

Weight loss is achieved during the short weight loss phase through meal volume control. The two operative words here are short and volume. So if you want to maximize your weight loss during this phase, you need to adhere to the program guidelines. I slid into the maintenance phase at 7 months. I had RNY gastric bypass. Sleeve patients lose weight at a much slower pace but often can achieve nearly the same weight loss as gastric bypass patients. Many sleeve patients are still in the weight loss phase 2 years post-op.

[Healthy_life2 8,324]

6 hours ago, Gabbee said:

I'm 6 months post op and have been dealing with a really annoying stall forever. I'm not complaining because at least it's not moving up but I've been working out almost every day and eating pretty well—I average ~1,000 calories and ~100g of protein/day following a mostly Keto diet, though if I wanted to I could certainly eat more. I feel satisfied but not restricted and I tolerate literally EVERYTHING.

Anyway, I just hired an INCREDIBLE trainer that Im really excited about! She is a world champion athlete, has a SOLID reputation, and a background in nutrition. She was honest with me that she isn't super versed in bariatric patients. My Dr.'s staff hasn't given me great info regarding nutrition either so I'm kind of on my own there.

I will be doing intense physical activity 5 days a week and my trainer wants me to try to eat 1,600 calories/day. How in the world I'm going to fit all that in? I don't know! She told me to try having more frequent meals, like 8 per day.

She's also changing up my macros drastically, at least for the first 2 weeks, by reducing fat intake and upping my complex carbs: 1,600 calories, 140g Protein, 180 carbs, 36g of fat.

Has anyone started a rigorous workout regime a few months out from surgery? Were you able to eat enough calories to sustain it? And most importantly, should I even be eating more carbs than Protein? I'm like, scared to mess around with that stuff now! lol

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

Always consult with your medical professionals

Option (1)

Stay on your bariatric plan. How intense is your workout? I worked out five to six days a week on my bariatric plan until goal.

Bariatric plan seems to be working well for you. down 47 and another 47 pounds to go...Really think this through if you choose to go off plan.

Option (2)

Fitting your new macros in. It takes all day eating small meals. If you choose to follow your trainers plan. Monitor and make sure you stay in weightloss mode. If your trainers plan causes weight gain..Go back to your tried and true bariatric plan.

__________________________

A few things I can relate to.....

My surgeons office had no advice when it came down to my exercise/fitness level. I did consult a sports medicine dietitian. She has no experience with a athletic bariatric patient.

I distance run and lift weights. I am at the gym two hours five days a week. I also have long run days. (two to three hours on a route)

______________________________

[Gabbee 53]

Thank you so much for your input! I’ve been itching to reply all week but was having trouble logging on to BP.

Anyway, I decided to follow your advice and consult with my Doctor. As I said they arent as great with giving detailed information on nutrition but this time they took their time with me on the phone and explained everything. They said if I’m going to be spending more than 300-400 calories per day on exercising (and I definitely burn 2-3x that amount accordinf to my fitbit), I definitely needed to up my calories. So they cleared me for 1,600 calories when working out,140g of Protein (as long as I drink a lot of Water to protect my kidneys), and the 36g of fat but said absolutely no more than 100g of carbs/day which made a lot of sense to me. My trainer said she can work with that. I’m going to try it for a week and see how that goes but will follow your advice and monitor closely. If I start to gain weight I’ll go back to Keto for sure.

[travelergirl 142]

You did the right thing going back to your Dr. I'm 8 months post op. I workout with trainer 3 times a week. I try to keep my carbs around 100g on gym days. Otherwise my goal is more like 60g.
My key is still to keep to the Protein first. I add in starchy veggies on gym days so that I don't start back down the path of bread and rice which I can easily over eat.
Also stay hydrated. As I moved back into more and intense workouts I found that I needed to make sure I had my 60 oz of Water during the day before my workouts (we do evenings).

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[Gabbee 53]

Thanks@travelergirl. How is your diet/workout routine going? I’m also working out with my trainer 3x/wk and another 3x by myself. I have to say I am absolutely amazed at what my body has been able to achieve so far! I went from not being able to run for more than 90 seconds to running my first mile in the span of just 2 wks! And although the scale has been moving in the right direction again (down 3 lbs in the first two weeks we trained together) the measurements have been the best part. 3 inches of belly, 2-1/2 of thighs, and 2 inches of boob GONE!

It’s really hard work and I treat it like a job but for the first time in my life I am SO PROUD OF MYSELF! My trainer mentioned casually last week that she admired my strong will, I almost choked on my Water? Me? Strong willed? Ha, Ive never been able to stay head strong about anything in my life. But you know what, she’s right? I’m kicking butt at this and it feels great!

[raeancin 6]

I'm following this thread. I'm in a similar situation. I am 6 weeks post op. Before surgery I trained hard as a triathlete, so swimming, cycling, running and strength training. I am currently following my post op diet but I have no energy. My program requires me to get 60-80g Proteins per day. My trainer thinks this is way too low. I'm finding the bariatric program to be out of date. Lots of talk about calories, low fat, sugar free foods. Instead of balancing macros I'm taught to only look at calories. The Protein is the only macro they talk about and only to stay within that range. My trainer says I need way more as an endurance athlete. I guess they are not used to dealing with athletes. I will continue to ask these question to the dietician but ultimately I will listen to my body.

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[GotProlactinoma 458]

Gabbee, so we have lost similarly, same time table too, and are getting fit. I loved your post. Yes, we are getting stronger and strong willed. I’m loving it. Congrats to you.

Im in a stall right now with weight loss, though. I wish I knew exactly what to do. I think I do have more appetite now, and my calories have crept up to over 1000, some days even 1300. Going to try to eat less calories but I’d rather play with macros so that I am not actually “going hungry” as that never worked for me before. Any ideas that have worked for you?

[Gabbee 53]

@gotpractinoma, congrats to you! It feels so good to shed the constant self doubt and to finally feel proud of ourselves for doing it, doesn’t it?

Regarding your stall, I’d actually encourage you to eat MORE calories, not less. It took me awhile to accept it but it did help with my stalls. I’m currently eating ~1,500 calories (on days when I work out, which is most days) and that is 100 cals less than my trainer and dr told me to eat. It’s just hard to get that much food in my sleeve! This means I eat every 2.5hrs or so. Here’s a sample menu of what I eat on a workout day:

Breakfast: 1 egg, 2 egg whites scrambled with some veggies (peppers, onions, spinach, w/e I have)

1 cup of fairlife milk 2% fat in my coffee (which I take all morning to drink)

Snack:

cheese string if Im still full, cottage cheese and strawbery if Im hungry

Lunch:

2 oz lean ground turkey

2 oz of boiled japanese sweet potatos (my trainer swears by these as the best source of good carbs and they are absolutely delish. I eat them a few times a day)

1 oz of a veggie or salad

PM snack 1:

Sargento snack tray (my favorites!)

Pre-workout:

Blended shake that consists of:

1 oz boiled japanese sweet potato (sounds weird but it makes my drink sweeter and SO CREAMY!)

1 scoop of whey Protein (I use gold standard)

Something for flavor. I alternate between fresh strawberies and a scoop of PB2 (tastes like a snickers milkshake to me!)

Post workout:

1 Premier Protein shake

Dinner:

2-2.5 oz of chicken breast

2 oz of carb (sweet potato, brown rice)

I usually complement with whatever macro it looks like Im short on. Fried egg over my rice if i need more Protein and fat, starchy veggie if i need more carb. Maybe even a protein Water to drink with it.

Pm Snack 2:

Something light. String cheese or boiled egg. This is the hardest time not to binge for me and I often crave sweets so when I do I curb them by eating a few banana chips.

By the the way, do you have a trainer? They should be able to calculate your metabolic rate based on your weight, height, and activity levels and make a recommendation of calorie and macros intake you can bring back to your doctor to get their opinion on. Thats how I landed on mine: 1,600 cals, 150 protein, 80 carbs, 50 fat.