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Try LittleMissDiva's Boot Camp: http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/28139-the-basics-boot-camp/

Fantastic work! As with anything, no one starts at the 5 mile walk! I do a 3 mile walk every day at lunch, but I'm 10 months post-op and I started with a 1/2 mile walk that kicked my ass! Momoanomo has some great advice about "mixing it up" during the session too. There is definitely truth in going hard core for short bursts......it makes your heart rate jump up and sweat (really feels good to get the sweat going!) and then going back to your pre-burst speeds feels "leisurely"! I've just bought a road bike after 20 years of not riding a bicycle. Weather is too cold to ride yet (- 4 degree Celsius), but I can't wait! That will certainly get my cardio going, and work on building leg muscles like crazy too! Just keep going and build on your success. In time you'll be rocking those long sessions and crazy workouts like a veteran!

I shop at Value Village every few weeks as I move between sizes. I have probably donated 20 bags of clothes in the past 10 months and bought 15 bags! Overall, a net drop (got rid of years of "fat" sizes I'd been saving). It's crazy how much room I have in my closet now! I can actually see each shirt, pair of pants, etc.! And I'm ready to wear most of them now! I buy some that are a bit small (some deals just can't be passed up!), knowing they will fit in a couple of weeks. Other "favourites" get to be too loose or tent-like fairly quickly, and off they go to the donation pile! I am much better dressed now, and spending 10% of what I used to! I could only shop in 1 store (Penningtons) as I was too big for the other "plus" size stores we have here in Canada (Additionelle, Laura Plus, etc.). I HATED having only 1 store to choose from.......if they didn't have something I like, and in my size (4-5 x or 26-28), I was stuck wearing the 2-3 shirts and pants I had. Terrible! Now I have about 10 dress shirts, 6-7 pairs of really nice dress pants, some jeans, T-shirts, sweaters, etc. All from nice top quality brand names, and they all fit! I'm about a size 16 now, in most things. I depends on the style and brand. And I usually pay about $6-7 per item.........and often they are brand new with tags on still! I LOVE shopping now.

I didn't really try drinking any alcohol until I was 6 months post-op. I found I got roaring drunk from half a vodka cooler! I didn't like the feeling and it left me quite dehydrated. So I didn't drink after that until we went to an all-inclusive resort in January (9 months post-op). By that point I had lost more than 100 lbs, was eating closer to 800-900 calories per day and exercising regularly (3-4 times per week at the gym, plus daily 4-5K walks). I found I tolerated the alcohol much better during our 2 week vacation. But it's not something that is part of my normal daily life. I will have a social drink (just 1) during special events, but I haven't drank anything since returning home from vacation (over a month now) and I don't miss it in the least. I was not much of a drinker before surgery, so this is pretty close to my normal drinking pattern pre-op as well. It is said that VSG patients must be extra careful to monitor their alcohol use post-op as there is a risk of "cross-addiction". We give up our addiction to food, and substitute it with an addiction to alcohol! Very dangerous and easily done! If you're going to have a social drink, try just part of one drink at first to see how you do, but I would certainly wait until you're at least 6 months post-op. You need to be solidly into a normal eating routine and above all, make sure you hydrate well before and after the drink, make sure your'e in a safe environment if you get drunk (it may not take much!) and of course, no driving. Follow your surgeon and NUT's guidelines regarding alcohol consumption post-op and you will be fine.

Wow! That is FANTASTIC! That's a CRAZY amount of weight.........and in less than a year! You are doing so well, you should be extrememly proud of yourself!

I have no interested in United States politics. And if they are behaving childishly, it would certainly explain the state of the U.S. economy, foreign policy, national social services, healthcare, etc. I do know however, that this topic has NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with either you and I having this insipid conversation, nor you having an ongoing argument about who apologized for what, or who is a jerk. Let's give the original poster (OP) some respect and stop hijacking their post with unrelated gibberish. That is the point I was trying to make earlier, but it seems to have escaped you. If you feel the need to continue this "discussion", feel free to message me privately, or start a new thread of your own.

Can you please take this argument offline? I know that I am not interested in this childish petty bickering back and forth, and I'm quite certain most of the others trying to read this topic are also likewise uninterested. Thank you!

Wow! Gorgeous (and the dress is pretty nice too.......).

Everyone is different, so I don't know how things will do for you! I know that before my surgery, my period was quite sporadic (due to my obesity). Sometimes it would be delayed, sometimes I would miss a month, sometimes it came early! The hormones in our fat cells can really play havoc with things like our menstrual cycle. If you are someone who is rock-steady (sounds like you might be, if you know you are exactly 5 days late), perhaps it won't be anything like that for you. Do more reading here on the site to see if others have had this issue (there is a SEARCH button in the top right hard corner of every page) and how they dealt with it. My advice is to seek medical attention if it concerns you, or wait to see how things develop if you're not that worried.

Surgery is a major "upset" to the body. Your being off-schedule can be attributed to any number of reasons: 1. Increased hormone release from fat cells during initial weight-loss 2. The body reacting to the major surgery 3. Delayed anaesthetic effect that can also effect hormones, cycles and rythmns etc. As long as you're sure there's no chance of conception (you sound pretty certain to me!), I wouldn't worry about it for the first couple of months as your body readjusts and sets itself into a new routine. Of course if it is really worrying you, as always, consult your medical team for professional medical advice!

LOL. Yes, killing your employees tends to have a negative impact on productivity. Congratulations. Keep up the fantastic work. You surgery date will be here before you know it!

I starting having the hair fall-out issue (I notice it mostly during/after my showers) about 4 weeks ago (I am 15 weeks post-op). I recently had my highlights redone (root touch-up) because I too prefer the golden highlights and wish I didn't get darker hair as I aged. I was white-blond as a child! I don't notice any difference (increase or decrease) in the hair fall-out since I had the highlights done 2 weeks ago. I do notice that most of my hair problem centers around more tangles during/after shampooing that before the fallout began. Weird because I haven't really changed anything (same shampoo, same conditioner). I'm thinking about buying detangler and see if that helps. From what I've read the fallout only lasts a short while (a few months), which is good, because I have very fine, very straight hair. If it keeps falling out at this rate, I'm going to look quite "thread-bare" soon. LOL

hm734 makes a very valid point that I was gentling hinting at in my post above. Foods such as mac & cheese are mostly void of nutrition (especially for VSGers) and contribute to a mindset and lifestyle that lead to obesity and a multitude of health problems. Try to approach your VSG surgery as a fresh start to your entire life. This includes making much more informed and careful choices in your food intake; increasing your activity level in every aspect of your life; and eliminating (to the best of your ability) influences that can lead you to old patterns of behaviour that made you obese and inactive in the first place. For me, I find that includes watching TV (I am a BAD snacker, especially when there are food commercials!), going to events where food is the primary focus (trade shows about food, cooking classes, pot luck lunches/dinners, local/state fairs, etc.), sleeping in late, etc. So you say, what does that leave? All the fun is gone...... You're right, it seems that way in the beginning, but it has to be a conscious shift in your behaviour patterns, and that doesn't happen overnight! If you do go to things like pot luck get-together's, you have to plan it out. Bring a food you like that fits your new diet. It may be the only thing you can eat there! Focus on talking to people and making human connections rather than thinking about the food. It's more fun, satisfying and non-fattening! I'm not saying you have to give up your friends, and your favourite activities and start new on everything. That's is too overwhelming and not what VSG is about. But you do you have to give more thought and planning to things in your life in the first 6-12 months while you're establishing new behaviours. Eventually they will become second nature! And don't stop asking questions! Here at VST, there are ALOT of experienced people who are happy to respond and give you ideas and support. We all started out not knowing how to get through each day, what to eat, how to cope with all the change (mental, physical, relationships, etc.). We help one another, and soon you'll be one of those people answering others and sharing your experience and advice! Good luck!

You may feel an intense craving for mac & cheese, but if you were to try this (assuming you're healed enough to tolerate it and your medical team has signed off), you may find you don't actually like it! Many people who have had VSG surgery find they don't tolerate Pasta well at all post-op (same with bread........). In addition, if you're following your post-op diet closely (you should be, to make the most of this fresh start at a healthier food life!), you'll note that our focus is to eat Protein first, vegetables next (if you have room) and carbs as a last resort. Mac & cheese is very nearly 100% carbs (the cheese is negligible, especially if it's boxed mac & cheese that uses processed cheese powder and not real cheese). So your nutritional value is very low, carbs are very high (usually an impediment to weight loss) and may make you feel unwell, bloated, nauseous and generally unwell! So my recommendation is to try a bite or two from a friend (don't cook it at home....you'll be left with a pot/pan of it left that you can't eat!) and see how it sits. I'm nearly certain it won't give you the happy contented memories you remember.....

I am in a very similar boat! I am approx. 15 weeks post-op and I've lost approx. 62 lbs (I have another 120 lbs to go!). My normal "pattern" has been losing for about 3 weeks, then stall for about 10-12 days. This most recent stall started approx. 3 weeks ago however and is still going strong! I'm finding my discipline is wavering a bit during these long stalls. I'm more likely to eat high carb limits then I regularly do. Also feeling less motivation to work-out or exercise, and more easily tempted by bad foods! On the weekend, I decided that I needed to so something to break my mind out of the stall I'm in (along with my body!). So I'm doing 3-5 days of liquids only to purge myself of the carb cycle and remind myself what it was like when I started this journey. I'm hoping it will snap me back onto a better routine and get my body moving again (weight-loss and exercise!). Good luck. Try your best to hang in there!

It's a slippery slope. Sometimes it only takes the first "stray" and then you "give yourself permission", since you've already blown it........ Most important thing to remember is even if you go off track, the next thing you put in your mouth is totally up to you! You have the ability and control to get right back on track. One slip doesn't mean the day is lost........you can make good choices after a bad one! Learn from this and you'll do better next time. None of us are perfect, believe me. The most important thing is to do your best and not beat yourself up when you slip. Just to use it as a way to improve for next time and feel good about learning a lesson.

If you had swelling in ONE leg/ankle, I would say there is a chance you have a blood clot or vascular blockage of some kind. But with both legs, that seems less likely a possibility! I agree with Dorrie........please make sure your doc checks you out as soon as possible! Most common serious reasons for swelling of this kind (do not freak out when you read this list.....it's only a list!) is: - high sodium intake (not likely, you said) - blood clots/deep venous thrombosis - renal impairment - elevated blood pressure (could be due to renal impairment, or could be cause of renal impairment!) - liver impairement or failure - heart failure It may be something completely unrelated to any of the things I've listed above, and easily resolved! In the meanwhile, why stress yourself out worrying about the possibilities........get things checked and our remove the stress! Good luck and let us know how things are as soon as you can!

Wow, I'm lucky to get HALF your numbers in on a good day! I'm about 60g protein, 30 g fat and I struggle to get in 64 oz of fluids!

As far as I understand it (and I'm no expert, by any means), stretching your stomach takes REAL EFFORT! liquids tend to pass through the stomach quite quickly and easily. In order to stretch your stomach out, you have to overeat to the point of pain and nausea on MANY REPEATED and closely timed occasions. Honestly, I think you would get tired of being sick and vomiting etc. before you were actually able to stretch the stomach enough to "fail" the VSG surgery. Of course that would all be LONG after the surgical healing is completed (can take as long as 8 months post-op!). If you put too much into your stomach in the first few weeks/months post-op you could cause life-threatening complications, leaks, rupture, etc. (Just pointing that out for those on the forum who are new and don't necessarily know......). To stretch your stomach significantly and permanently, you have to work at it...........and hopefully no one here on VST is going to self-sabotage that badly! Liquids are highly unlikely to do it........and the pain will make you stop when you've passed the "full" point.

Wow, that is a GENEROUS nosey co-worker!