The Maintenance Thread

[ms.sss 15,585]

8 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

just speaking for myself here, I eat more volume now, and I eat some things that I wouldn't have eaten before - like the occasional dessert. But I don't really eat things off plan very much - as in I usually avoid crap. When I go out to eat, I still order non-fried meats with vegetables, for example. I might eat a tortilla with my taco now and then (before, I'd just eat the innards), but I wouldn't get a Pasta dish - nor would I order something fried or something with a heavy cream sauce.

as an example, today I had Protein pancakes for Breakfast with a homemade apple/cinnamon compote on top. I put oat flour in my pancakes. I would not have eaten oats when I was in weight loss mode. I stuck mostly to Protein and veggies back then. I did, however, make the compote I had today with Splenda, because I still avoid sugar.

for a morning snack I had a Protein Bar. I did eat those occasionally while in weight loss mode.

for lunch I had a cup of cottage cheese with a tablespoon of tahini mixed in (healthy fat - keeps me full longer) and a homemade blueberry sauce. I would not have had the tahini while in weight loss mode - nor would I have had a second serving of fruit in one day (although I did make the blueberry sauce with Splenda - again, no sugar). I probably would not have eaten a full cup of cottage cheese, either - maybe just half a cup.

I had Light & Fit yogurt for an afternoon snack, with some raspberries on top. L&F I would have eaten during weight loss mode - but I would have ditched the raspberries back then because that makes three fruit servings in one day.

for dinner I'm thinking of having half a burger, on half a bun, with a half a piece cheese, one piece of bacon, a tablespoon of avocado, and a little aioli (it's left over from the other night). During weight loss mode, I would not have had the bun. The other stuff would have been OK, but depending on how many calories I was eating at the time, I probably would not have had all those - maybe just one or two of them instead of four.

SOOOO to answer your question, kind of a combination of both. But I still avoid sugar and crap food most of the time, and I try to average 1700 calories/day

Thanks for this!

[ms.sss 15,585]

12 minutes ago, sillykitty said:

Right now I just eat pretty freely. The only things I do that are "bariatric" is weigh myself everyday I'm home, and log everything. I also inadvertently IF a lot of days because I don't get around to eating until later in the day.

*Required disclaimer

I appear to an outlier. I had an easier surgery, easier recovery, lost weight quickly despite being "off plan" frequently and rarely exercising. I totally recognize I've been incredibly lucky. I don't post a lot about it on here because I don't want people to hate me 😂. I am also fully prepared to adjust my diet and exercise when I start to regain. I believe I'm still in my honeymoon period, and this can't last forever.

...if only we could ALL be outliers *sigh*

(and i don't hate you )

Edited June 4, 2019 by ms.sss

[sillykitty 10,774]

38 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

...if only we could ALL be outliers *sigh*

You are already an outlier ... 110 lbs in less than 8 months .... just saying!

Edited June 4, 2019 by sillykitty

[VIKING 0424 1,107]

well i guess im in this phase a s well now have made my dr s goal and my personal goal still feel i could loose 10 more or soo think i will just keep doing what i have been doing and see what happens with out increasing the calories and increasing the exercise see how i feel and where the weight wants to be i still weigh every week and keep a record of what i consume daily Water and food never hungry so i eat on a clock not when i would feel hungry otherwise i would not eat at all lol

[sillykitty 10,774]

9 minutes ago, VIKING 0424 said:

well i guess im in this phase a s well now have made my dr s goal and my personal goal still feel i could loose 10 more or soo think i will just keep doing what i have been doing and see what happens with out increasing the calories and increasing the exercise see how i feel and where the weight wants to be i still weigh every week and keep a record of what i consume daily Water and food never hungry so i eat on a clock not when i would feel hungry otherwise i would not eat at all lol

I miss not being hungry!

That is the downside of grazing all day. The more I eat, the hungrier I am.

[Cheeseburgh 3,080]

I was convinced I was going to be an outlier and lose weight very quickly since I had such a good metabolism most of my life. It took me at least 5 months to accept that is not the case with me. I’m happy for everyone that loses faster than average and happy for everyone that keeps plodding along. We are all in the same boat, some of you have motors and I have an oar. 😂

[Healthy_life2 8,324]

21 hours ago, ms.sss said:

Do you ladies find you eat more food overall (lots of healthier options), or just eat more foods with higher calories (adding more treats and off-plan items)? Or a combination of both?

I guess I’m an outlier. I hit goal in six months. I struggled to up my calories. I added low glycemic carbs (sweet potato, brown rice, whole wheat bread/pasta *nothing white or processed*). Sweet potatoes were easier on my sleeve restriction. I still can’t eat brown rice. I feel bloated as it expands

I eat a combination. Most healthy options and I indulge within reason. 1300 to 1500 is not a lot of food for me to get in. I eat small meals every 3 hours. I can eat this calorie range in healthy foods (protein veggies fruit low glycemic carbs) It just took time and practice.

My diet changes when I distance run. I eat a lot more calories and carbs. It surprises me that I can 2500 to 3000 with surgery. I eat all day long. When I gain a bit, I go back to eating weight loss mode calories.

[allwet 868]

On 6/3/2019 at 11:05 AM, catwoman7 said:

like a tablespoon of peanut butter)

i used this one to pop up calories.

watch those labels. should read peanuts and maybe salt if the list keeps going find another brand

[ms.sss 15,585]

@Healthy_life2, @allwet @sillykitty: as Sleeve maintainers, do you still wait 30 mins to drink after eating.

(I'm not convinced this rule is applicable to maintaining sleevers as the pyloric valve intact...??)

[sillykitty 10,774]

I sometimes take small sips, like if I'm having wine with a meal, or eating spicy foods. But in general I wait longer than 30 minutes. Not because I'm being "good" just because it is uncomfortable for me to put liquids on top of a full stomach.

[catwoman7 11,212]

5 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

@Healthy_life2, @allwet @sillykitty: as Sleeve maintainers, do you still wait 30 mins to drink after eating.

(I'm not convinced this rule is applicable to maintaining sleevers as the pyloric valve intact...??)

could be - not sure since I'm an RNY'er

[allwet 868]

24 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

do you still wait 30 mins to drink after eating

i still do because my restriction is still very much there and i feel way to full after eating to add any liquid.

[Healthy_life2 8,324]

I sip with my meals. I'd rather fill up on food. Than fluids

Sent from my SM-G930T using BariatricPal mobile app

[Losebig 508]

I've been in maintenance for just under a year and had hit goal really quickly (6-8 months), so still had a large restriction when I started. I switched my diet to nutrient dense foods and try to eat stuff that I really like.

Even now I'm still very restricted (5 oz of solid stuff max per meal and if it's like meat it takes a long time to digest (~hour). I'm really active so I have to get in enough calories or I lose weight and if I move off my current weight I just don't feel good. My BMI is still on the high side, but I'm not a good BMI body type (lot of muscle) so the DR's are very happy with me at this weight.

food wise I'm consuming about 2300 calories per day with a range of maybe 1500 - 3k depending on what I'm doing. I tracked in great detail for the first year. Now I still track but only spot check days here and there. My big tracking is a weekly weigh in and as long as my weight is within a 5 lb range I'm happy. If I'm low I make an effort to eat a little more, if I'm high I make an effort to eat a little less or more lean stuff. Foods for me consist primarily of Protein with limited carbs and very minimal fruit and vegetables (I would love to eat these, but I don't have time / room and if I eat them then I don't get enough calories).

I generally eat when I feel hungry and this works out to 3 meals and 3 Snacks per day. Here's an example of what I might eat on a normal day:

• Breakfast: 2 eggs, 1 slice american cheese, 1 bagel thin with butter
• ~10am snack: Apple fritter (450 calories - yeah not the greatest...)
• lunch: 4 oz chicken salad with light mayo, 1 bagel thin with butter, sometimes 1 oz of crackers or pretzels
• ~3pm snack: 10 crackers and 3 oz of cheese slices
• Dinner: steak 4 oz (or 1 sausage or repeat lunch or breakfast)
• ~8pm snack: Plain popcorn with salt or bagel thin, or crackers and 3 oz of cheese or italian ice or if I worked out a lot or am starving repeat a meal
• I shoot for 64 - 100 oz of Water

I don't eat every snack / meal every day and on days when I'm running a few miles, biking or other calorie intense exercise I'll eat more. If I get busy I forget to eat or run out of time so am low on calories. If I feel like I'm eating too much I'll have something that fills me up quickly like 1/4 cup of rice or steak or something else that makes me full and won't let me eat additional foods. I generally don't eat potatos, Pasta or rice as I'm immediately full with these and can easily end up in pain.

Great thread and hope this helps someone. I'm really happy with my new lifestyle and don't feel like I'm missing out on anything food wise and generally just eat when I'm hungry.

[rs 1,473]

I noticed that most of these posts are about the struggles trying to increase calories to stop from continuing to lose weight. I find that interesting. I'm 9 months post sleeve and still have about 15 lbs to go to reach goal. This last month or two it's been real slow to come off. I just can't imagine getting to a point where I have to try to stop from losing.