7 months post op - trying to keep to an 800 calorie diet but its hard!

All of a sudden I find myself being EXTREMELY hungry - yes, I am working out 2-3 times a week, and this 800 a day is just not cutting it. I am beating myself up saying I should be stronger, need to stay under, but by the time evening comes along, I am seriously hungry and craving protein like its nobodys business. Typical day of food:

breakfast - oikos traditional greek yogurt   160cal/11protein    premier protein - 160cal/30protein

snack - nature valley protein bar - 190/10 protein

lunch - chicken skewer (or) refried beans/shredded chicken with cheese and 2-3 chips  160/20 or 230/20

snack  - precious mozarella stick

dinner - shrimp/chicken/

dinner (still hungry) oikos yogurt/another protein bar/more chicken

 

Ultimately I am hitting close to 1100 calories a day - surprised the hell out of me. I do try to eat clean, with an occasional sweet treat like a sugar free fudgesical to satisfy the sweet craving. I am at 82 pounds lost, but lately (last week) I have been stalling at 166 and am stressing out that I am no longer losing due to my increased hunger. how do I control this? HELP.

 

 

I started working out with a trainer 4x/week at month 2, had to up my calories cause I was starving and exhausted. After a month or so I got up to around 1200 calories and that's where I still am (10 months post-op). I was a lightweight to begin with (235 lbs) not sure of your status....but if you feel good, can get thru your workouts, and are loosing weight, then this is fine. I consulted with my NUT now and then on how to increase calories/what to eat, etc, you might want to do the same. Try getting away from protein bars and shakes. I eat normal food but add a protein shake on workout days to get more protein without a ton more calories. You should be eating dense proteins, veg, fruit and complex carbs for all meals and snacks now, right? At least my NUT has encouraged us to get off of the protein bars and drinks. I keep them around, I carry a bar in my purse and have some in my desk at work, etc, in case of emergency, but they are not a normal part of my food plan any more. Eating more dense protein might help with your hunger.

If you want, I can send you the food plan my nutritionist gave me, it's for 1200 cals and has real foods that I eat combined into proper meals and snacks. I can't always get it all in, and some days I eat a little more, but it's basically what I follow.

BTW, no beating yourself up. You have to figure out how to quit doing that. None of us know how to do this, but there's help and support and we'll all figure it out :)

Hello -- you are further out than me but I've been having a lot of morning hunger.  I am making the switch to doing some hard protein for breakfast and will keep my one protein shake for the evening if I need to catch up on protein.  Yogurt is pretty much a slider too so it may not be keeping you satisfied either. 

My only other observation is the Nature Valley protein bars.  That's a lot of calories for not a lot of protein - and I'd look at the carb content.  If the carb content is more than 10 grams it could be triggering the "hungries".   I had that problem with a protein bar that had low protein content versus a higher carb content. 

I would suggest maybe eating more dense protein, especially at breakfast.  I eat 2.5-3oz of dense protein 3 times a day and that helped get the scale moving and my snack is a protein snack.  When I eat cottage cheese, yogurt, etc it does not stay with me as long and I am hungry quicker.  If you were going to up your calories any, I would just do it by increasing protein and see if that keeps the scale moving.

Looking at your regular food intake, I can see two major areas that you might consider changing.  First, you clearly need more lean dense protein.  Second, you need more high fiber veggies at this stage.  Instead of eating yogurt (yes, even high protein yogurt), try starting the day with eggs or other dense protein.  The protein bars are a waste and leave you hungry, try switching to a high fiber veggie snack.  For lunch, skip the beans, cheese and chips and go for a homemade chicken or turkey meal.  Use cheese as a condiment only.  If you are still hungry after your dinner meal, add another high fiber veggie meal at the end of the day or eat more lean protein.  I know that this doesn't sound like fun, but  it will almost certainly take away the hunger and cravings and promote greater weight loss.  Good luck to you.

Took the words right out of my mouth!

YES what Elina said!!!
STAY AWAY FROM THE PROEIN BARS they are the devil!!!
You could have 2 turkey roll ups for just 60cal and add a 1/2slice cheese
To each Would bring it up to 160 calories for 2!! That's less then the "so called" protein bars and you'll be rockin' about 15 grams of protein and its BETTER FOR YOU...how many ingredients can you even pronounce in it..it's full of nothing but fillers and [email protected]....

I avoided the bars, yougurt, and cheese sticks while losing. None of these items are filling. I kept to 600 calories and had at least 70-90 grams of protein a day. I wasnt hungry because I almost always was eating dense meat. I would have an occasional greek yougurt or cheese stick for a snack or treat. I kept my carbs below 40 and usually around 20 or less. It was my "magic" weight loss formula. Good luck!!!

My post was going to be pretty identical to Elina's. I will only add that your day appears to be very carb heavy to me, which could account for some of the cravings you are having.

During my WL phase I worked out 3-4 days per week. I always had a small protein snack before my workout (think hard boiled egg or 2 oz of dense, lean protein). That kept me going very well through my workouts and kept me satisfied until dinner time.

If you are still losing well at your calorie level, that's great. If not, I would advise you to cut back a bit.

I am 7 1/2 months out.  I am still slowly losing and 8 lbs away from my initial goal.  I always eat eggs of some type for breakfast every day--sometimes scrambled hardboiled, or cooked like a pancake with oatmeal mixed in. I also try to eat a little bit of veggie mixed in. That keeps me satisfied till 1030 when I have another snack, I always try to make it heavy on protein, sometimes ham or turkey breast rolled around a string cheese, or greek yogurt with some fruit mixed in.  Greek yogurt does fill me up.  Then on to a protein heavy lunch with either fruit or veggie,  I stay full till my late aftenoon snack--also protein heavy.  Dinner is around 7 with protein and some kind of side. I eat ALOT of meat, and I am rarely hungry.  I still pretty much eat by the clock.  I don't eat protein bars at all (they scare me) I do go in spurts where I will do protein drinks every day for a while, I do like them and have alot left to use up.

Concentrate on dense protein first for your meals and snacks if you are hungry.I eat 3 oz MEAT before I eat anything with my meals.  I have recently increased my calories a bit and started eating a small amount of whole grains and have continued to lose,Actually after I eat all that protein there is not room  for anything  but small amounts of other things. If you are having hunger issues I would suggest sticking with dense protein and veggies and avoiding  carbs for now.  They may be a trigger for you...  . I work out pretty hard 5 days a week, I personally need more than 800 calories, but that is my experience, others do fine on 800.  .

Are you getting plenty of fluid.  Try for at least 100 ounces a day that will help with the hunger

Don't' beat  yourself up, this is HARD.  We all struggle at times There is alot of advice available here on OH, and sometimes people have differing opinions. Sometimes it is hard to figure out what path to follow.

Dense protein first for meals and snacks.  That will fill up your sleeve and should help.

Anne