mi75

diva- congrats on your surgery! it is a tough road but definitely worth it. the only words of advice i have for you is to stick exactly to your program. i followed it as exactly as i could, even getting out of bed early to fit in extra Protein shakes. i have walked twice a day since my surgery and that has really helped too. nothing major, just a few blocks to start with and now i do 1 mile twice a day. i think that for ME, it was very important to get moving and also to make a commitment to work out as well as eat right. i have slowed a bit in the past 2 weeks but i also note that i'm not walking the way i should be. now i've joined a gym so hopefully things will pick up even more. good luck!

Chele, you need those Fruit of the Loom bras they used to carry with + and - sizes (A+)!!! i wonder if they still make those, they were genius! as for me, my butt is GONE and boobs are on their way. i'm happy though, i want to be fit, taught, toned, and strong! i want muscle definition and a 6-pack and to look like the gals on the cover of Oxygen magazine. i have already seen a plastics guy and asked him how SMALL he could go to reduce, lift and reshape me! i'm pretty sure he had never heard that question before...

i FOR SURE don't miss anybody asking me 'when are you due" (this was especially hurtful after 2 years of failed IVF treatments)... i don't miss looking down and seeing a large stomach that caused me physical and emotional distress all day i don't miss my thighs rubbing and chaffing i don't miss having to stop half way up stairs and sucking wind like crazy i don't miss my 3 chins i don't miss having to constantly buy bigger sizes i don't miss sneaking third and fourth portions of dinner after my hubs goes out to the barn for chores i don't miss not participating in games/activities with my kids i don't miss knowing that i would be dead in the next few years i don't miss paying hundreds of dollars for prescriptions every month SIMPLY due to being fat lastly, i don't miss ANYTHING about the former me. not one thing. i was fat, sick, depressed, sad and lonely. no more!

i go in the other direction. mine have always been large and sagging. i LOOK FORWARD to having them significantly reduced and lifted! i actually asked my plastic surgeon how small he could go... i have been top heavy all my teenage and adult life and now that i'm losing weight i'm also weight training and strength training and i look forward to being seriously toned, fit, strong, and small enough chested to just throw on a tank top!

not sure if you can do puree/softs on your program at this point, but it IS fall and that's a great time for chili! you could do a 'chili bar' include nacho chips, onions, cheese, jalapenos, sour cream, etc and allow everyone a mug to make their own little meal, you can have some of whatever your program allows! this allows you to still have some food at your event AND food that you can enjoy too! in my neck of the woods, this would be a saturday evening event, complete with an outdoor bonfire, hoodies, stories, marshmallows for the kids to roast, and some awesome fellowship!

i hear ya! me too. i have always found the gals on the cover of Oxygen magazine way more awesome than the gals on the cover of Vogue. just my opinion, but to me, fit and STRONG is way more healthy looking. again, just my opinion! today i am joining a gym and i am 11 wks post surgery. i have been losing nicely but it's slowing a bit and i still have about 30 lbs to go until goal. i figure starting some training now will both tone and tighten and boost my metabolism to lose the final pounds.at that point i really want to start building. i wanted to just train at home but i realized i will never get to where i really want to be on my own.

been there. i had many people tell me i could do it without srugery. yet the more i tried, the fatter i got. and the sicker i got. sleep apnea will help you get approved, and if you lose like you WILL, it will be cleared up and gone in no time! just look at this negative piece of news as a MOTIVATING factor for WHY you really need to do this! hang in there and post as you need to. best thing i EVER did. good luck!

i started at 233, that was 11 weeks ago, now i'm at 187 and only 37 lbs from goal. it goes very fast. i would say WELL under a year, you will reach your goal. shakes- the only ones i like now are either unjury or Muscle MIlk Lite 100 pre-mixed. i bought a bunch of them pre op. most of what i liked then i don't now. obviously the ones like Unjury are probably a little more balanced for bariatric patients but any will work. during my 2 wk pre op DIET i was required to have 3-4 shakes a day and did either Unjury or Muscle Milk lite. period- i read on this site that many gals experienced an unexpected visit within days of surgery. after 20 years of PCOS, having not ovulated spontaneously ONCE in that time, a week post op there it was. i have been fairly regular since and surprised! i went back on the pill because obviously, my fertility is returning (and I am done having my babies). if it arrives before your surgery, just inform the nurses when you arrive at the hospital. they have these little mesh underwear that they will give you to accomodate your needs. hunger- i am finding myself HUNGRY this week due to hormones, but for the most part i follow a very regimented diet plan every day and plan out most of my intake each morning so there is no room for the unexpected. i am experiencing hunger now, at 11 wks out, but it is much different. it is NOT the stomach wrenching, twisting, growling thing i had before. it's more of a "Hello, i'm down here, could you give me something"?? very slight. i HOPE it will continue this way when i have it at all. this is BY FAR the best thing i ever did. i regained my health. my surgery had very little to do with vanity or appearance, but my health was very bad at 38 and i took 13 pills the morning of my surgery. now i am taking only one (the birth control) and feel like a totally new person. wouldn't change it for anything!

yet another vote for Quest! they are the BOMB. like a candy bar for bariatrics! i love Cookies and Cream and the choc chip cookie dough are good too. they are an easy way to get in 20 grams of Protein and each bar has about 17 grams of fiber!

great! thanks everyone for the input. i actually HAVE some dumbbells and a kettle bell too so they are a great start! i guess i didn't even think of youtube...today i did some old fashioned Sweatin To The Oldies and it was a great aerobic workout, but i have to get moving with some strength training.

i would pick up the phone and get an emergency appt with my nutritionist FIRST then go from there

it depends on if your particular policy has ANY coverage for plastics. most do not. the exception with bariatrics is if after your weight loss, you have a significant apron on your lower abdomen, some insurances will cover removal of it due to mobility, infection and hygiene issues. generally, this is usually NOT a tummy tuck, but a paniculectomy. many of the BCBS policies have clauses that if they will provide ANY coverage of this sort, it involves a specific amount of time also- ie you must lose your excess weight AND maintain a weight within certain BMI parameters for 6 months-1 yr before they will cover it... lots of clauses, loopholes, etc.

NO foods are off limits in my program, but each program is different. i am 11 wks out tomorrow, eating ALL foods, losing like crazy and feeling incredible! this surgery was THE BEST thing i ever did for myself, not one regret. i have had a fairly easy path too, no real issues to date.

Not all insurances consider it, since it is a SYNDROME and therefore, the ICD-9 code for it can be refused by billing as a billable diagnosis... your only way to know is to call your specific insurance and ask them.

I make sloppy joe (meat and canned mix) and put 1 tsp each, on 2-3 nacho chips and a tiny bit of low fat shredded cheddar melted on top. lunch-done. cold taco salad with mostly lettuce, tomato, onion, cukes, and meat and just a sprinkle of nacho chip crumbs Ezekial bread toasted with Peanut Butter P3 pack of any flavor egg salad with a couple of Wheat Thins Rotisserie chicken and some fresh sliced tomatoes cold Lentil salad roasted pork loin with butternut squash Chili just a few ideas! i have been eating fairly 'normally' for a while and enjoying all these foods, and more, in very limited portions.

awesome Jen! can't wait to sit down this weekend and view...

i am using the Twin Lab chewable ones right now from the Vitamin shoppe but i'm not a big fan of them...also using gummy calcium and love them. i get labs done at the end of sept so i will find out if i need to change anything up...

tonight i made the Key West chicken that i found over on the food board and that is marinating right now. going to have that with a broccoli salad and some fresh tomatoes-nothing like a fresh Michigan tomato in the summer! tomorrow i am going to make grilled shrimp and a really good cold lentil salad with tomato, red onion, cukes, red bell pepper, garlic, lemon juice, evoo that i found online. YUM! later in the week i have a new recipe from the current issue of Oxygen magazine that is a chili spiced chicken breast with a corn/onion/avocado relish and some cole slaw. another YUM! can't wait to try other new things, please keep the ideas coming!

keep up the great work! I started ABOUT the same starting weight as you, and i'm now 10 wks out (tomorrow). i vividly remember hitting the ONe-derland mark, but stalled just before i got there. now the scale has been steadily moving nicely and this morning i hit the 180's! hang in there and work your program, it will happen!!

i'm going to make this today on the grill for the holiday weekend! looks awesome...

i didn't feel anything 'different' really, when i woke up. i had no pain at all, until about 24 hrs post op my one largest incision was hurting me and i took some pain med for that. i also stayed on liquid pain med at home for about 7 days just to keep away any discomfort that i could have had. i could not have ANYTHING to eat or drink for 27 hrs post op while i waited for my leak check so i didn't know what to expect. when i finally did drink, it was very small amounts. no pain. no discomfort. i was SUPER cautious though and took it very easy with all intake. i think the only thing that feels much different now, is if i eat to the point of 'overfull' i can feel it in one specific spot and it can be painful. my surgery was pretty easy and so far i've had a good path, no real issues.

i have simply walked since surgery, at least 5/7 days. sometimes on a treadmill at work, most of the time outside. i try to change up my route or add a little to it every few days. my hubs and i are joining a gym just simply because i am losing muscle and need to better define what i have, so that will be added in too. we are joining a planet fitness which is open 24 hrs from monday-friday and i'll be getting up at about 430am to go and get my workout...

i have had severe hypertension for years and was on 3 meds twice daily for it. i'm down to 1/2 of 1 pill a day, but since i've been back to work i notice that my BP is elevated right when i get home. with about 10 more lbs i should be off of it all together! super excited for that.

looks good i am bumping up to use this weekend!

hey everyone, hang in there! I am the OP of this thread and now almost 10 wks post op and scale has steadily been moving downward! sometimes a little slower than others, but over all doing great! keep up your activity and it WILL start to come off again! good luck!