Peachygal7

Totally Excited..I was able to start wearing 1X shirts this week. Seeing as I started at 3X only 2 months ago.. I am SUPER happy!! yay for a great NSV!!!

Totally Excited..I was able to start wearing 1X shirts this week. Seeing as I started at 3X only 2 months ago.. I am SUPER happy!! yay for a great NSV!!!

Totally Excited..I was able to start wearing 1X shirts this week. Seeing as I started at 3X only 2 months ago.. I am SUPER happy!! yay for a great NSV!!!

Totally Excited..I was able to start wearing 1X shirts this week. Seeing as I started at 3X only 2 months ago.. I am SUPER happy!! yay for a great NSV!!!

well time has flown by in the past 6 months. Can't tell you how good I feel since surgery. Down to 208, from 316. 44 pants to 34 pants, 3xl shirts to xl all good. 34 pants are baggy and can fit in 32's!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!been along time since I wore 32 pants. LOL No more insulin, bp meds, cholesterol meds, none! Feeling wonderful. I can jump, climb, run, anything I used to do back several years ago, before I got sick. If your thinking of this surgery? It's a true winner in my book, other than not doing any buffet's. LOL I'm amazed at how good I feel and you will be also. Good luck

We all have been there. You hit a stall and it lasts so long that you start to believe that your weight loss is done. I know all about stalls...I know everyone gets them, but regardless I still get those little demons creeping up in my mind saying...you arent going to lose anymore weight, you are a failure. This last stall was a duzzy. I had been the same weight plus or minus 2 pounds for almost 3 months. I started to believe that I had let myself down, and started feeling depressed, thinking what was the point? I started eating crap that I knew was bad for me believing that why should I even try to eat right if it isnt going to work anyways. Well just when I was about to give up completely my scale did something amazing.... I lost 5 pounds in a week! Thinking it was just a fluke I got back on the scale the next day and wouldnt you guess it...no I wouldnt have, but I lost another pound! Then a few days later I rechecked to see if I gained any back...and bamb! I lost another two pounds! I lost 8 pounds in a matter of 9 days I just wanted to give a little inspiration to those of you that are in one of those dreaded stalls....just keep positive...keep working that sleeve, and your body will do the rest! keep smiling!

Thanks Ivy. I found more evidence that is is normal for some people to have this 4 to 6 week stall while the body is healing. I guess that's all any of us wants really. Just to know we are normal. Phew...

Frequently after this surgery we don't eat anywhere near what we should be in calories. Our bodies go into starvation mode. Its an evolutionary adaptation that keeps you from dying when times are tough. If you can somehow increase your calories just a bit that may help. You have to convince your body that you aren't starving it (that can be a trick because that is exactly what you are doing). I am 6 weeks out and have only lost 2 lbs in the past 14 days. I hit a 10 day stall and have only lost 1 lb in the past 4 so believe me I know what you mean. This is why I needed the surgery, weight doesn't come off me quickly. It is frustrating, but the good news is, once that pound is gone, it is gone. I know that I will never see it again. In my case, I think my body has gone into starvation mode. I have a lot of Native American in me and that makes weight loss even harder. Their bodies are EXCELLENT for storing fat to help them survive in the cold or when times are lean. Unfortunately, in our society, I don't have to worry about either and that causes weight loss issues. If it makes you feel any better, I am 30 lbs down and not a single person has even noticed. At least you have people commenting on how great you are doing. Look at that as one of your motivators and keep up the good work. If you lost 40 lbs you have literally lost almost a whole lb per day since you started your journey.

LadyIvy,
Thanks for the post! This is very encouraging. I am going on week 4 with no loss. Well, technically week 3 since I did lose 6 pounds my first week. In another forum a couple people were telling me that something must be wrong with me but I am only eating about 500-600 calories a day. I am getting in the Protein and the liquids. I keep thinking that it is physiologically impossible to not lose! But somehow I am not. We will see what Monday brings. Good luck to everyone!

BMI and the scale can suck it! U look great!

It's literally as simple as "Just Do It". Get on the bike for 5 minutes at a time. Do it when you first get up in the morning, or for a few minutes when you first get home. It is a great stress reliever and, honestly, you may not be able to do more than 5 minutes on the bike OR treadmill when you first start. Every little bit helps, though, and you'll soon find that you are able and willing to do more.
Yes, they want you to work out 4 hours per week, but you can start with baby steps. Do 5 minutes today, then add 30 seconds each day. The cardiovascular fitness is super helpful with surgery recovery and you'll be miles ahead of the game for post-op. Working out will also boost your serotonin levels in your brain, which will improve your mood.
I had an EKG last year before surgery and recently had another. I have been concentrating on my outer appearance and the scale, but my pulmonologist told me that my current EKG shows good results from all of the cardio I've been doing. THAT is incredibly sexy to me, and it lets me know that I am going in the right direction health-wise.
Any exercise you do now will improve your health and exercise increases your energy levels, which means you'll be better able to handle those 12 hour work days and chasing your 3 year old. Even once you're up to 1/2 an hour a day, it's not a big time investment, but it will pay big dividends in your energy levels.
Just do it. Start slow, add time in small increments and enjoy the benefits!

@marimar ...... I second that! Happy Mothers Day to all my new friends/acquaintances here on VST ....

To All my VSG friends I hope you have a very wonderful blessed day filled with all the love of your children.

I'm willing to try rain dancing while beating a jungle drum and singing the 'My Little Pony' theme song if it'll help! Thank you and I'm definitely gonna check that out!

A better Me...Hey!! I had the sleeve with Dr. Nick on April 23rd...so I'm about two weeks out. How are you doing now?? I'm down almost 40lbs all together. I'm still on the liquid diet..soooo looking forward to next week. How about you?

I got it from my dentist (Coast Dental), but I've since learned that you can get it at Walmart!

The weird taste is probably ketosis, which is the process that your body uses to burn fat for energy so it's a good thing.
The best way to manage it is to invest in a tongue scraper. There is a kit from a company called BreathRx that has a tongue scraper, mouthwash, and breath freshening spray that was my lifeline during the ketosis phase.

Congratulations on the results of all your hard work! This was so helpful to me because you used dress sizes, not just pounds. Depending on height, starting weight, build, etc, sometimes the pounds don't really help me see the change. But when you throw in towels and dress sizes...I GET IT!!! And I'm very happy for you

So, whenever I would get out of the shower, I would wrap the bath towel around me backwards, leave the back open because it didnt fit, of course....unless it was a beach towel. Well, yesterday I decided I would try to wrap and tuck the towel, see how far I was from being able to wear a bath towel out of the shower...IT WRAPPED, and IT TUCKED..and it was CLOSED!! NOT A BEACH TOWEL, A REAL BATH TOWEL! LOL! I felt normal for once!
I am also excited to announce that I bought a few dresses from Old Navy and of course I go STRAIGHT to XL. Well, they are WAY too big! L is even a little too big. I bought 3 in L and 1 in Med, the Med FITS!! I would like to lose 10 more before I wear the med...just to feel a little more comfortable. I have had to purge my closet AGAIN, I am running out of clothes! But it is great going shopping! I almost got emotional in Old Navy. My head still hasnt wrapped around the weight loss. That is my only hold back. I don't always see the 70 lbs gone.

I cannot wait till I get there too!! You must be soooo happy!! Congrats 