I guess I counted Monday, the day of surgery as Day 1 but really that should've been Day 0. Anyway - I weighed this morning at 268! I've lost 15 pounds in the first 6 days. I am still on liquids so I am attributing this to water weight and just the shock of my body going through the surgery. It makes me really wonder what the hell was I eating and how much was I really eating before surgery?! jeeeez. I admit that I am a restaurant lover. If I could, I would eat every meal out. I actually like cooking but hate the shopping, preparation and clean-up. If I could be a t.v. cook and have everyone do all of those other things for me I'd be sooo happy!! I could sweep in and prepare a fantastic, healthy meal for me and my family and walk out of the kitchen with the first bite! Ah if only!

Anyway, I'm guessing that a lot of my recent weight gain came from

1. Not exercising

2. Eating out at restaurants or fast food places at least 5-6 times a week

3. Eating snacks late at night

So because of this I'm trying to change those 3 things. The late night snacking I've gotten under control but that is mainly because it takes sooo little to fill me up. If I eat dinner around 6 or 7 pm I will usually have a sugar-free jello or pudding or popsicle around 9 or 10 pm and that's it. I drink water until I go to bed but I really want to learn to tame the night time eating.

Today we went out to eat for the first time since my surgery. We were away from home and I had only had some crystal light with protein powder at about 9 am. By 2 pm I was feeling a little light headed. I could feel a teeny tiny bit of hunger but just barely. We met some friends at a phenomenal Mexican restaurant with a huge menu. The smells were amazing and I admit, for a moment, I was bummed I couldn't devour my usual basket of tortilla chips, salsa, 3-4 tortillas, 3-4 drinks plus my entree. I am supposed to be mainly on liquids until tomorrow so I ordered Caldo de Res, a vegetable/beef stew with broth. We were there with friends and 1 of my good friends knows I had the band and that I was planning on having plication. She was pretty amazed at how I was able to get around relatively well, considering. Anyway I really enjoyed sitting with friends and my family, enjoying their company. I sipped my broth and didn't feel weird or excluded or anything. I did take a bite or two of some super mashed, refried beans and a bite of the egg off a chili relleno, which were out-of-this-world!!! Other than that, I was pretty much on track.

Everyone left complaining and holding their stomachs and I left pretty full myself but not miserable and stuffed (like usual). I'm so happy that things are going so well. I am still fairly sore and still take pain medicine at night before bed to help me sleep. I am planning on being off of work for another 4 more weeks as I have a very active profession so I'm hoping to fully recover before returning to work and to be able to start an exercise regimen.

Take care,

Jenn

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