Help me... Why can't I do this....

OKay I think I have even posted about this before.  I have done everything I need to do for my insurance except lose the 10% which I also have to get my BMI under 60 its about 72 now.  I weight about 460 and need to be at 375 to be under 60 BMI.  SO really I need to lose 100 pds...  I love food and its my addiction.. I get that.. I think this it this time I can do it.. and once again I don't...  All I have to do now is lose the weight and I can have surgery... Why can't I do it.. Everything in my life is pretty organzied or in control except... My weight...  Can someone help me design a plan liquid diet that I can stick with???   I can't afford medifast or optifast.  How many calories should I eat? How much protein?   Can I feel full with this??? Will Slimfast or those other shakes work? Thanks. Amy

My pre-op diet consisted of two atkins advantage shakes and a small dinner of meat and veggies (3oz of meat).  I lost weight fairly fast on it and it would have been faster if I hadn't cheated some.  I was specifically told not to use slim fast, but that EAS or atkins ready to drink were fine, or most of the powdered proteins mixed with water or skim milk were ok.  Exercise, of course, will speed up your weight loss.  Walking is cheap, but if its too hard to walk, I'd consider renting or buying an arm bike or a recumbent stationary bike (those can get expensive when they are rated for 500lbs though).  Anything you can do to be active can only help you in losing weight and in preparing for major surgery.  I understand where you are coming from - I've never been able to stick to a diet, especially a severely restrictive one.  If you can track your calories and try to keep them under 2000 you will have a good start - then slowly lower your calories over a few weeks and maybe it won't feel quite so much like deprivation.  I was using calorieking.com to track but I've switched to daily plate now since its free.  There is also fitday.com and a few other free calorie tracking sites available.  I don't know what else to tell you - its tough, but if you really want this surgery you can do it.  You have to be aware of every thing that goes in your mouth - throw out the junk so you can't be tempted.  Make yourself accountable for every calorie, and if you fail one day, don't give up.  Dust yourself off and keep on trying.  Most of all, when you are tempted into mindless eating (which is my downfall completely) try to ask yourself if the next bite is really worth your life.  Its not.  Best of luck and best wishes to you.  I know you can do it.  Jenn

Also, on the 2 shakes and small dinner (and a third shake if I had to) I was eating about 75g of protein per day and about 800-1000 calories.  It was tough, especially at first.  You feel hungry, absolutely, and you feel tired and light-headed at first, but it does get easier.  I ate a lot of veggies with my small portion of meat - the crunch and the volume of veggies made me feel like I'd eaten.  (no butter, easy on salad dressing - I used vinegar and oil, but they make some ok spray salad dressings that are light) Try to keep your carbs very low and exclusively in the form of veggies as much as possible. 

I feel for you ! I am glad that I did not HAVE to loose before surgery. I needed the surgery because I could NOT loose on my own.

I think that is one rule of loosing before that needs to be changed and chance you can start that change ????

My prayers are with you,

Pam

omg im in the same boat as you... ive lost half of whats needed but they said i cant schedule surgery til its all gone. crap ive tried if it was that easy i would have done it years ago. but they told me at the surgeons to domy stage 3 plan. so thats what im doing and praying it works.. good luck

Amy, Losing weight before the surgery is a good thing for many reasons.  Must you be under BMI of 60 to qualify or is that the surgeon's rule.  I was 460 when I had my surgery.  If we could stick to a liquid diet for a length of time we would not need the surgery, but I am sure that you can do it to lose some of the weight.  Another positive point is that at the high weight the inital weight will come off quicker.   I am 18 months post op and still do a protein shake per day.  It will not be easy to do but there is light at the end of the tunnel. Good luck to you and happy holidays.   We will be looking for you on the loser's bench real soon. Jeanne

Amy, I know all surgeons have different rules, and I know that many require weight loss prior to surgery. However, not all do. If I would have had to lose weight prior to surgery I'm not sure what I would have done because I could barely move and excercise was out of the question. My BMI at the time of Surgery was 73 or 74 and I have friends who have had BMI's well into their 80's have surgery. I also had mine lap so recovery was not long at all. I have lost 127lbs in the last 7 months and I can move and know I will get to goal.   That's the good part, but here is the rub. My doctor was going to try to do it in one surgery, but since I had so much belly fat he had to do only the sleeve and will finish the DS this spring or summer. It kind of stinks because the closest surgeon that does the DS is 550 miles away from my door.  It is better the smaller you are to have surgery because it is easier to recover, easier to move, easier to clean yourself in the hospital. Its just easier all the way around. If you simply cannot get the weight off though, no matter how hard you try, I would look for another surgeon who has a awesome record and operates on higher BMIs. That just my opinion. Good luck-Amy

You can do it, but it's going to be tough.  If it were easy, none of us would be here.  I know some other posters have offered suggestions on liquid diets, which can definitely work well.  If you can stick with it for the short-term -- long enough to lose the necessary weight -- it will be worth it in the long-term.  Keep in mind that you're not talking about a life-time commitment to a super-restrictive liquid diet; just long enough to lose the weight to qualify for surgery.  Sure you'll be restricted after surgery, but in a different way...  You're savvy in that you recognize that you have an addiction, so it's important to start working on the mental aspects of losing weight as well.  The additiction isn't just going to go away because a surgeon changes the size of your stomach.  Working through your addiction issues will be key to your long-term success, so I encourage you to find a support group or a therapist who can help you with these issues.   Best of luck on your continuing journey, and please let us know how you are doing.  This forum is super-supportive, and a lot of us have started in a place that's similar to where you are.  So we know and understand where you are coming from, and are here to support you!!!! Kellie

amy, you're on the right track, and you've gotten some good advice.  remember that you're not alone, and that's lots of support here. someone else mentioned http://www.thedailyplate.com/.  they have a good calorie counter that has helped me.  do you have a food scale?  if you do, use the food scale to figure serving size by ounce or gram, and thenfigure calories from that.  try to keep your calories to 1000 per day or less.  find the calorie-free stuff that you like and use that when you need to (remember that artificial sweeteners sometimes cause gas). i just had my first shake of the liquid diet.  it tasted bad, and i was scared.  the fear went immediately to 'i'm not going to be able to take off the weight that my doctor made me sign a contract to take off...and i won't be able to have surgery'.  then i blended the shake with ice and some crystal light powder.  much better, and i feel like i'll survive. i'm using 'EAS Advantedge carb control'.  the doctor's office recommended Medifast, but i can't afford it...because it was pay all at one time.  with EAS, i can buy it one day at a time.  it's still $6.5 per day, but that's easier on my budget. any exercise will help, too.  if you're like me, though, you might hurt too much to exercise 'traditionally'.  for us, almost any movement will work though.  try swinging your legs while you sit in your chair.  when you're in bed, try to raise your leg.  lift your arms. if you add me as a friend, we can be cheerleaders for each other.  i know you can do this amy! toni

I am just  getting home from surgery 2 days post op. my pre op diet was opitfast  and I lost close to 20 lbs on it.