Mostly vegetarian diet after RNY?
Sounds like she doesn't tolerate meat not that she is a vegetarian. That's good because I don't think the two are easily compatible with success .
Having surgery with chronic pain is also something to research. Long acting narcotics and NSAIDs are a no go after surgery.
Does she want to have surgery?
My wife lost around 100 pounds after my surgery. She loses about 10 pounds a year these days. She is a diet controlled diabetic (got herself off all meds)and a 30+year vegetarian.
My wife's a 100 lb vegetarian and as a result I don't eat a lot of dense protein. I enjoy it but there's just not a lot of opportunity. I don't shy away from complex carbs in the least.
I think getting 60 grams of protein is fairly easy even without the dense protein but that's at least 1 premier protein shake a day and then a commitment to always eat yogurt/use protein powder/eat beans etc.
I also think a lot of people don't eat fish because they never really get good fresh fish.
on 3/5/18 11:00 am
I had VSG surgery 2/2011, lost 100 pounds and have kept it off. I had a very difficult time eating animal protein. It felt like a painful rock in my stomach. Eventually I became vegetarian and now I'm completely plant based and I feel SOOO much better!!
There is a huge misconception about the nutritional content of vegetables. All plants have protein! Here are some examples:
Broccoli 5% of the calories Sweet potatoes 6% of the calories Regular potatoes 11% of the calories Oatmeal 16% of the calories Beans 28% of the calories (and no, they don't need rice to be a complete protein)And by the way, you can also obtain your RDA of calcium from plants too. I'm very happy I had my surgery because I never thought I could ever loose the weight by dieting until...I discovered Chef AJ and her Ultimate weightloss program. Even though I don't need to loose weight I follow and believe in her program. It is also a wonderful source of support, motivation and reinforcement. Perhaps your wife might want to give this a try since she is hesitant to have the surgery? http://chefajwebsite.com/about.html -and- https://www.facebook.com/chef.aj1/?ref=br_rs
Here's a great video on calorie density. It explains how you can eat as much as you want by eating foods with high nutritional density & low calorie density and loose weight. It's long but well worth watching. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CdwWliv7Hg Hope this helps. I wish you both all the best on this journey!
Yes, there is protein in broccoli; a 50 calorie serving (1 cup) has 4.2g of protein. In order to get to the minimum recommended protein level of 60g/day, you would need about 14 servings-- or roughly 7 full bags. I don't know of anyone, surgery or no, who could eat that many veggies in a day.
Sparklekitty / Julie / Nerdy Little Secret (#42)
Roller derby - cycling - triathlon
VSG 2013, RNY conversion 2019 due to GERD. Trendweight here!
Cheese would add protein at least :D
VSG with Dr. Salameh - 3/13/2014
Diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder and started Vyvanse - 7/22/2016
Reconstructive Surgeries with Dr. Michaels - 6/5/2017 (LBL & brachioplasty), 8/14/2017 (UBL & mastopexy), 11/6/2017 (medial leg lift)
Age 42 Height 5'4" HW 319 (1/3/2014) SW 293 (3/13/2014) CW 149 (7/16/2017)
Next Goal 145 - normal BMI | Total Weight Lost 170
TrendWeight | Food Blog (sort of functional) | Journal (down for maintenance)
I absolutely believe it's possible. I'm not a vegetarian, but I eat very little meat. In fact, I haven't had any meat in probably 2 weeks. It's not a morale or even a specific health reason, it's just that meat can be difficult for my pouch, so I have adjusted to non-animal proteins as my primary source of protein intake. My surgeon is not anti-meat, but actually encourages us to eat at least one meal of non-animal protein a day.
The majority of my protein comes from beans, lentils, yogurt, nuts and eggs. I eat a ton of fruits and vegetables as well. I dropped 180 lbs in 10 months (333lbs to 152lbs) and have been in maintenance for about 15 months now.
Today is another no meat day (as I'm traveling for work and when I travel for work I rarely eat meat). I took a look at my MFP stats for the day and I am looking at 1,203 calories for the day with 74g of protein.
I do eat a tremendous amount of carbs compared to your average WLS patient, but I do not eat refined carbs. No sugar, no rice, no bread, no pasta, etc. Here is a breakdown of what I ate today if you're interested:
Breakfast:
2 Eggs & 1 tsp butter
Morning Snack:
1 Orange
1/2 cup of Cucumber
4oz Grape Tomatoes
Lunch:
1 can of Amy's Lentil Soup
2.5 oz Sugar Snap Peas
1/2 medium Red Bell Pepper
Afternoon Snack:
3oz Raspberries
3oz Blackberries
1 Dannon Lite & Fit Greek Yogurt
Dinner:
1 can of Amy's Split Pea Soup
1/2 medium Red Bell Pepper
4oz Grape Tomatoes
Evening Snack:
1 Small Banana (80g)
1 Dannon Lite & Fit Greek Yogurt
It's a ton of food, and generally I don't end up eating all of it, but I plan for it. Here are my daily totals:
1,203 Calories
74g Protein
177g Carbs
45g Fiber
25g Fat
When I'm home, I eat similarly, but instead of the canned soups I make homemade meals in advance for lunch - most of them vegetarian. Generally, the only meat I consume is "family dinner" as my wife is a meat & potato type person, so we always have a meat protein for dinner so I have that and a large side of whatever vegetable she makes that evening.
Sorry for the long, detailed post, but I definitely think she can do it, and wanted to give you an example of what a somewhat normal days looks like for me.
Hi folks. I had my RNY a year ago and have eaten a high protein diet with mostly dense protein. Only in maintenance have I added more veggies, fruit and some healthy carbs like oatmeal. It has worked well for me.
My wife is also SMO with co-morbidities and our PCP is really pushing her to have a RNY especially now with my success. She is very hesitant even though she would like to lose weight for a number of reasons such as chronic pain and fibromyalgia, which make it hard to exercise. She says that her main reason for not having surgery is because she doesn't process dense protein very well. That is true. Sometimes she gags on meat and doesn't eat any fish but has no problems with beans, eggs, yogurt and milk, all of which have protein, but also have more carbs. She sees me eating mostly dense protein and isn't sure that she could do that.
What do you think? Can a vegetarian be successful with weight loss after a RNY? I don't know what to tell her and how to help.
Thanks for your thoughts.
I know several vegans/vegetarians who have done well. If she has no ethical issues with eating animals, she can supplement her protein with protein shakes and smoothies. Just need a good nutribullet or nutrininja.
