Greetings all  ~  It has been a long time since I've been here.  

I had WLS (RNY) May 15th 2011, and I've lost 87 lbs.  I know that doesn't seem like a lot to some of you, but I only have about a 100 to lose.  The good news, which is also the bad news is that my body adapted to the surgery immediately.  There is nothing I've not been able to eat.  I also do not ever vomit under any cir****tances. 

As you can guess, given I am a compulsive overeater, I am quickly slipping back into old habits. 

So before I rag on myself, I must say that I have an excellent fitness program, I religiously take my supplements, and I mostly drink my water.  Yay me!! 

Now, part of what trips me up is that no one has really set any limitations for me other than my 60 grams of protein.  I have in the past been real comfortable with WW, so I am wondering if any of you would know if the points system would work the same.  A nutritionist I worked with said that our bodies are not the same anymore, and that our metabolisms have changed.  

Just would like to know your thoughts and if you had any experience. 

I don't really know anything about WW, but I would say if you can stick to the WW program, you can stick to your WLS program (that sounds harsh and I don't mean it that way).
Protein first, measure your portions. If you feel yourself wanting to graze / eat from "head hunger" go for a walk, a swim or clean your bathroom (nothing seems appetizing after scrubbing a toilet... or is it just me? )

First, if you decide to do WW, be aware that some of their low or no-point foods can still have a fair number of carbs and their system does not inherently emphasize protein, so you will likely need to be  ER conscious about protein intake in addition to tracking the points.

Just because you can eat without getting sick or vomiting does not mean your body "adapted immediately".  It just means you are like MOST people who have RNY.  The people who get sick easily and vomit a lot are the minority... they  just post more because they ARE having trouble.

Keep in mind that 60g of protein is the minimum. it is very possible that your metabolism is lower than it was before you had surgery.  The extended period of time with such severe caloric restriction after surgery can cause some people's bodies to permanently drop their metabolism a bit.  That is part of the reason that it can actually be easier to gain weight (and can be harder to lose any regained weight) after surgery than it was before. Just having a generally lower metabolism, however, does not change how your body responds to foods in terms of utilizing energy.  Too many carbs are still going to be problematic, for example.

Personally, I had surgery to eliminate the dieting and, IMO, you would be better off seeking therapy (if you have not already) to deal with the eating behaviors than to go back to dieting, especially so soon after RNY.  You need to do whatever works best for YOU and your unique issues, though.

Lora

Merlinda,
The following was posted a couple of times last week by a wonderful lady whose name I don't remember.  The blue area might be most helpful to you at this point:

Breakfast: 1 Multi Vitamin/Mineral, 2-300mg Calcium Citrate, 1 Spring Valley 500mcg B12 Sublingual Dot, 1 mg prescription Folic Acid, 1 Vita Lady Tender Dry 5000 IU Vitamin D3 capsule, 1-100mg B1 tablet
Lunch: 1-300mg Calcium Citrate, 1 packet Orange Coromega Omega 3 Squeeze
Non-Calcium Snack: 1-500mg Vitamin C, 2 Sundown 25mg Carbonyl Perfect Iron ***take 2 hours from Calcium/Dairy Products***
Dinner: 1 Multi Vitamin/Mineral, 2-300mg Calcium Citrate
 
*Drink 48-64 ounces Liquids daily (drink up to a meal, wait 60 minutes after a meal) (I add 2 packets sugar free Wyler’s or Hawaiian Punch drink mix in 32 ounces water and 2 teaspoons Benefiber-15 calories)

*Must eat at least 60 grams of Protein a day (100 or more grams beginning at 1200 calories a day)
*Eat no fat/lowfat dairy products
*Eat simple (fruit) and complex (vegetables, whole grains) Carbohydrates (I do not count daily grams)
*No more than 15 grams of Sugar per meal (more grams if able to tolerate-I can tolerate a maximum of 30 grams Sugar per meal from Simple and Complex Carbohydrate sources)

*Eat 3 main meals (B, L, D) no further than 5-6 hours apart
*Eat 1 protein snack at 1200 calories a day at least 2-3 hours from breakfast
*Eat 2 protein snacks at Maintenance calories a day at least 2-3 hours from breakfast and 2-3 hours from lunch
*3-6 Months After Surgery: I ate 600-700 calories a day
*6-9 Months After Surgery: I ate 800-900 calories a day
*9-12 Months After Surgery: I ate 1000 calories a day
*12-18 Months After Surgery: eat 1200 calories a day (I ate 1200 calories a day until 15 months when I reached my goal weight)
*18 Months after surgery (or when goal weight is reached before 18 months): Maintenance calories (BMR/RMR & Activity Level) (Malabsorption of calories lasts approximately 18-24 months)

Good luck,
Hattie

I looked into it but its to carby for me. Is it the support maybe that you need?
No matter what plan you use just do your best to hold yourself accountable.
Exercise drink your water get a healthy hobby.
Wish you good health and happiness.

 I have to say...in WW i learned HOW to cook my food and basically i learned to eat low fat/low sugar foods.  Those were my biggest things i learned from WW.  I also learned most any food is ok as long as its in moderation.  So you want a cookie?  don't deprive yourself and go ahead and have a cookie but don't eat another and another and another.  Don't buy a bag and sit and eat them all.  WW does not really cater to the non carbs either although they do push using brown foods instead of white foods.   
I also have been able to eat almost anything since my WLS.  My problems i am having now is head hunger and grazing.  I have to be constantly aware.  I always think wait if i eat this little piece of food then i am going to have to wait 30 minutes before i can drink and i am thirsty and that food isn't worth the wait.  
As far as the chart given.  Its pretty true. Eat your vitamins and drink your fluids and eat your protein.  But my calorie intake is much higher.  At 5 months i eat around 800 - 1000 calories but i eat 3 meals a day and usually 1 small snack.  Of course i have been on a stall the last 3 weeks again also.  
Keep with your program and you should do ok.  

No unkindness here!

I will say my main problem with WW is that I don't think it empowers people to know about what they are putting in their mouths. It's easy to assign points to something and give you a number of points, but do you KNOW what you're eating? Do you know the composition of your daily intake?

I'm sort of passionate about folks knowing that when they are trying to lose weight. Not everyone has to be a zealot like me, but I think folks should have a basic understanding. This is the tenet upon which I've built Bariatric Foodie - to help people understand food better and know how to make decisions for themselves using information that is available to us all.

So, all that is to say I don't know whether WW would work better for you. Only you know that! There are some NUTs that will sit down and take down information from you (how much you exercise, etc.) and help you come up with targets that will work for you. That could be an option as well.

Let us know what you decide and best wishes!

I did WW for my 6 months pre op diet.  It is a good program if  you have a good leader and group.  The support is great and they teach a lot of good strategies  to help get eating under control.  It sounds like that is part of what you are looking for.  I haven't sat down and crunched the numbers, but I would think the points system itself would be too much food for following GBS.  They had another option at one time where you could eat as much or little as you wanted but concentrate on whole grains etc.  They might be a better way to go. 

• These are the rules I followed/follow: 
•  

• Breakfast: 1 Multi Vitamin/Mineral, 2-300mg Calcium Citrate, 1 Spring Valley 500mcg B12 Sublingual Dot, 1 mg prescription Folic Acid, 1 Vita Lady Tender Dry 5000 IU Vitamin D3 capsule, 1-100mg B1 tablet
• Lunch: 1-300mg Calcium Citrate, 1 packet Orange Coromega Omega 3 Squeeze
• Non-Calcium Snack: 1-500mg Vitamin C, 2 Sundown 25mg Carbonyl Perfect Iron ***take 2 hours from Calcium/Dairy Products***
• Dinner: 1 Multi Vitamin/Mineral, 2-300mg Calcium Citrate
•  
• *Drink 48-64 ounces Liquids daily (drink up to a meal, wait 60 minutes after a meal) (I add 2 packets sugar free Wyler’s or Hawaiian Punch drink mix in 32 ounces water and 2 teaspoons Benefiber-15 calories)
  
• *Must eat at least 60 grams of Protein a day (100 or more grams beginning at 1200 calories a day)
• *Eat no fat/lowfat dairy products
• *Eat simple (fruit) and complex (vegetables, whole grains) Carbohydrates (I do not count daily grams)
• *No more than 15 grams of Sugar per meal (more grams if able to tolerate-I can tolerate a maximum of 30 grams Sugar per meal from Simple and Complex Carbohydrate sources)
  
• *Eat 3 main meals (B, L, D) no further than 5-6 hours apart
• *Eat 1 protein snack at 1200 calories a day at least 2-3 hours from breakfast
• *Eat 2 protein snacks at Maintenance calories a day at least 2-3 hours from breakfast and 2-3 hours from lunch
• *3-6 Months After Surgery: I ate 600-700 calories a day
• *6-9 Months After Surgery: I ate 800-900 calories a day
• *9-12 Months After Surgery: I ate 1000 calories a day
• *12-18 Months After Surgery: eat 1200 calories a day (I ate 1200 calories a day until 15 months when I reached my goal weight)
• *18 Months after surgery (or when goal weight is reached before 18 months): Maintenance calories (BMR/RMR & Activity Level) (Malabsorption of calories lasts approximately 18-24 months)
• * I do not participate in a formal exercise program due to Rheumatoid and Osteoarthritis. I do move around a lot more and do a lot more walking.

merlinda wrote, "As you can guess, given I am a compulsive overeater, I am quickly slipping back into old habits."

My opinion is that the word "compulsive" suggests that you have problems beyond those which Weigh****chers can deal with.

Please refer to Lora's last paragraph, about 7 posts up from here.