Lissa

LOL Lilee!

Congrats, MeeMee!!! That's an amazing loss this early!! Enjoy and keep doing what your doc tells you to do!

Sally, don't concentrate on skinny. You should be concentrating on healthy. This is not a short-term solution; it's forever. You will lose the weight, but you need to be healthy once you get to goal. The bonus is that you will get to live longer at the lower weight. If you work out and follow the recommended eating plan, you WILL get there and you will feel fantastic. What good is getting skinny if you lose your life over taking something to speed the process? Also, if you lose at a more natural rate, you'll have less issues with loose skin. Good luck!

We're saving you a seat, Jess! I'm so excited for you!!

Muscle weighs more than fat and I'm assuming that you are definitely gaining muscle. With your exercise routine, there is no way you aren't gaining muscle. This is one of those cases where the scale is a liar. You look better, feel better, and are wearing smaller clothes. IMO, that 3 pounds is NOTHING. Don't stress that at all, because you are a success!! Congrats on your weight loss and you look MARVELOUS!!

Time, the first few months we lose weight so fast that it's scary. It will slow down after a couple of months, but just stick to the plan. Get your protein, water and vitamins in so that you lose fat and not muscle and start an exercise program as soon as you can. You're going to be thrilled with this ride!

Small weights (3-5 lb) and high reps are working for me. I do lots of biceps and triceps work, plus shoulder raises, wall push-ups, planks, etc. My batwings aren't gone, but I'm seeing the results very quickly from my routine. Use You Tube's search function and look up some of the arm routines on there. I pull a little from almost every video I watch and it's amazing how quickly the arms show results, IMO. Good luck!

I actually just bought a set of weights that includes 3, 5, and 8 lb weights, plus I have a smaller 3 lb set that I keep on my desk. I work from home, so I have a good bit of time where I'm just in front of the computer. After months of carving out time to "work out", I finally decided it would be a good idea to just use the weights at my desk while I'm stuck waiting on a download or a print session to finish. In just two weeks, I'm really seeing results from that idea! I still have batwings and probably will have them forever, but I can see improvement! That has inspired me to do more, like looking up chair exercises on You Tube and incorporating them into my routine. One thing I don't see mentioned much is that stretching really helps as well. I've been working on getting a good stretching routine going and I feel more limber already.

I recently started using my protein powder in my decaf coffee instead of creamer. I really like the flavor and two cups of coffee gets me 30 grams of protein. Nice benefit, IMO.

I had one of the NSVs at a wedding a couple of weeks ago. I was NOT the biggest person there by a long shot! That felt phenomenal!!

Replace the bad carbs with good stuff. I find that almonds pretty much keep me off the chips, except cheetos. I cannot have cheetos in the house, period, because I will eat them until they are gone or I am almost sick. I'd skip the surgeon's recommendation and create a meal plan that allows for 5 smaller meals a day, with an emphasis on Protein. Also, raise your Water consumption. That may help with the hungry feeling and make sure you're taking an acid reducer. You will get through this. Recognizing a problem is half the work of solving the problem! Good luck!

If your surgeon says it's okay, I'd go with his recommendation. May as well have one recovery period instead of two, right?

I'm a side sleeper, but you will probably be able to sleep on your tummy within six weeks or so. It all depends on how fast your incisions heal and if your surgeon used any internal stitches.

I don't think it's yummy, but I eat protein bars fairly often now...and I adore rotisserie chicken!

I'm game. I've been afraid of the elliptical. I'm going to commit to using it twice next week, time TBD. I also need to take myself to the beach for a walk. I live in Florida for goodness' sake; I should be walking on the beach more often!

As everyone self has said, don't let this ruin your day, much less anything else! This is a journey and we are all walking it while trying to change our past behaviors. Get back on track tomorrow, but you should realize there are no "bad" or "good" foods. It's JUST food. Tomorrow, commit to eating 70 grams of Protein and drinking 64 oz of Water. Then do it. Don't beat yourself up. We all have days where we feel like we could eat everything in sight. The beauty of being sleeved is that we CAN'T eat everything in sight. (((Hugs)))

Welcome back, Jimmy! Sometimes we need that time to get our heads straight before we undertake a journey like this one! Good luck on your surgery date!

AMAZING!!! I am looking forward to hitting that goal myself! Still a ways to go, but it WILL happen.

Yay, Reddi!! That's an amazing feeling, isnt it? You're gonna adore your sleeve as your best friend before it's all done! As mad as I get at Rex for keeping me from eating all of something, every time I get on that scale or drop a size, I remember to thank him for the work he's doing!

Concentrate on your liquids. Make absolutely certain you are getting in a minimum of 64 oz of Water a day. That will help with the hungry feeling. Keep taking the antacid, but if the hungry feeling continues, you may need a different one. Talk to your doctor's office and let them help you. This isn't a science. We are all working trial and error here, which may be why this board is so active! Good luck!!

I'm still working low weight and high reps and seeing incredible results in my arms and legs. I wish I could say I'm seeing the same results in my abdominal muscles, but the skin there keeps the abs from being visible still. I may never have a six pack, but I'm WAY stronger now than I was six months ago. I'm hoping my genetic predisposition is to long and lean rather than bulky muscles. I don't know because almost every woman in my family is BIG. Those who aren't big are so skinny that they look emaciated. I'm gonna find out what we look like as normal weight people! LOL

FL doesn't require weight on Driver's Licenses, thank goodness!! However, my picture vaguely resembles me now, if you look closely. Mine is due for renewal this year, but I'm trying to wait until the last minute to do that so I have lost the maximum amount of weight possible by the time I get the new picture. Since I'm a notary and identifying people is my job, I know how important it is to have good, accurate identification.

You can fall into bad habits again. The surgery doesnt fix our head issues with food. It just keeps us from eating too much food at a sitting. Now soup is actually more liquid than anything else, so it can go through very quickly. Just because you drank 8 ounces of soup does NOT mean that you'll be able to eat huge amounts of food. You said that you basically failed to plan and ended up taking in more/wrong food. You already know that you're going to have to plan better from here on out. I assume you're on clear liquids since soup is freaking you out, so make sure you prepare things that are allowed at this stage and take them with you. Later, it's a good idea to keep a couple of protein shakes handy and/or carry a protein bar at all times. I do lots of driving, so I make sure I always have a protein bar in my purse. That way I don't stop and eat somewhere that doesn't have good food choices for me. BTW, you are NOT a bad girl. You're in a learning process right now and it does take some time! Good luck!

Awww, (((Deb)))!! Isn't that just the most amazing feeling!?! To know that you CAN do whatever you like, need or want to do. I remember feeling like Rocky Balboa the first time I walked around the lake in my apartment complex and the first time I walked from one end to the other of the mall without having heart failure! You go girl! THAT is what it's all about. We take our lives back instead of giving them to the fat and letting ourselves die a slow, painful, ever-less-satisfying death. Congrats!! You've earned that NSV!!!

You are leaving more behind than you think. Not only will you eat less food and drink slower than you do now, but you'll also leave behind lots of unwanted fat. You'll leave behind the look of pity in other people's eyes as you slowly kill yourself with food. You'll have to get used to being able to walk longer distances instead of huffing and puffing from the car to the store. You'll lose the aching joints from carrying too much weight and you'll lose the constant fear that any little pain might be a precursor to a heart attack. You will have to get used to buying clothes that arent made by Omar the Tent Maker and, heaven forbid, you'll have to give up shopping in the big and tall/plus sizes section. I know that you will miss being forced to accept whatever Omar decides would look good on an obese person...or at least give maximum coverage. You'll also lose the fear that you won't be able to perform in bed...and sex might actually become fun again. That may make up for a whole lot of glasses of wine. Oh, and you will gain back some length on the equipment, or so I read in the Man's room. I know that won't be an important and exciting side effect! Most importantly, I know you won't like the feeling that you get from taking control of your life and your health. I'm certain that won't make up for all the things you'll have to give up. Good luck on your journey!