EricaVSGJourney

Sleeved in April-2012 I confess that despite being 5.5 years post-op, I still expect others to see me as the fat and/or unattractive girl. I also confess that I have a greater need for approval/validation and attention than I "should" at my age (41). I confess that I STILL don't know what the capacity of my stomach is (it's small!) - my family jokes about whether it's a "3 or 4 bite meal". It's amazing to me that when my body needs food, my brain has an image of how much food I should want/need. It's never what I can actually consume... unless it's ice cream! I confess that I feel as though I hold greater worth as a fit person; but it makes me sad to think that less body fat on my frame makes me feel as though I can command "a place at the table". That's not where worth comes from. It comes from character and values. I confess that I am relieved that I can finally eat in public and not worry whether people are judging me for what (or how much) I'm eating. I confess that after all these years, I don't take the time to stop and reflect and be grateful for my weight loss like I used to, and that I wish I could/would give back to the Bariatric community - the newbies could probably use a little support and guidance. I confess that getting sleeved saved my life - maybe not in a literal sense, but it freed me to truly be me.

Sorry!! I should add that I have a body fat measurement scale at home, plus my surgeon has a really fancy/expensive one. His is more accurate (at $2K per scale), so I rely on his numbers as the accurate one. :-)

Great that you're thinking about this! Way to go!! First thing - try to select a gym routine that you can commit to in the long term. If you go from little/moderate working out to the regular gym rat, you might burn out. I know I would!! I incrementally increased my workouts. I started swimming with a Master's swim team about 2 months post-op, and did 3 workouts a week for about 9-10 months. I got bored, so I switched to spin classes at the gym. LOVE spin! Even got certified as a spin instructor. All that said... I lost about 7-10 lbs of muscle mass out of the 90 lbs I have lost in total. At 5'3" and about 140 lbs @ 21-21.5% body fat, that's okay. I kept my Protein intake anywhere from 90-130 gms per day (although I haven't officially tracked in a long time). Focus on how you feel. What makes you feel strong? What energizes you and connects you to you body? If you get the protein in and do the exercises that make your body feel good, everything will fall into place healthfully. Many hugs and well wishes to you!!

Thanks you SO much for all the kind comments. What a way to start a Wed and read all that! Big smiles! Also, not to self-promote too much, but I have a YouTube channel documenting my journey (haven't recorded in a long time)... EricaVSGJourney. I always found other people's stories helpful. :-) Much love to everyone...

So sweet! Thank you :-) :-)

Aww thanks so much!! I'm 5'3" and I'm anywhere from a size 4 to an 8. Usually a size 6 (just as a frame of reference) best of luck - it's a wonderful journey :-)

Here are some photos of me at my highest around 225-228lbs in Mar 2012, and then some in the range of 135-140lbs around Feb-June 2013. These are so fun!! :-)

One more random suggestion - clean out your mixer/shaker bottle as soon as you're done with your shake. There's something about the Protein that makes it smells absolutely dreadful if you leave it for several hrs or overnight. I've done that a few times and honestly if I had a weak tolerance I would have given up the shakes a long time ago. Good luck finding the right protein fix! I'd say right now you have to hold your nose and just tolerate as best you can. It truly is medicine; but I hope you're able to find a medicine that you in yummy!!

I agree it's important to be diligent/vigilent during the first 6 months. Fight the good fight as best you can, and be honest with yourself. If nothing else, facing the "real you" in the mirror is the most important thing you can do for yourself. As you lose the weight, you might be forced to face that person in a very unexpected and very visceral way. So start now. I am 10 months out, and certainly eat way differently now than I did during months 0-6. I eat carbs (bad and good), occasionally eat fried stuff (but it doesnt agree with me too well), and basically do whatever I want.. Just in very small amounts. I do however work out more and more as time goes on. My goals are getting bigger as I see myself as an athletic person. I strongly believe that developing exercise routines as early as possible is integral to long term success. For reference - I started at 215.6 on the day of surgery (Apr 26 2012) and am now about 135-137. I got to about 150 at month 6 and am slowly shaving off the rest. My goal is 130. (I'm 5'3" and quite muscular/athletic.)

I wish I had a brilliant suggestion, but unfortunately I don't. I'm 10 months post-op and I still drink Protein shakes nearly every single day. And I eat one portion of Greek yogurt most days.. That's 60 grams of protein just right there - hard to beat, and integral to retaining as much lean mass as possible. Ok, that said.. I've found I have to use Water and not milk. I used to love my milk-based shakes, but quickly after surgery I found the consistency yuck. In the last 10 months I've relied on one protein powder and one alone: GNC Amp wheybolic extreme 60 in chocolate. It mixes well, tastes good (although 10 months later it's just tolerable), and nutritionally is superior to others on the market. Just 2 scoops with 8 ounces of water gives me 40 grams of protein Btw ... I don't get anything for endorsing this product. Just what's worked for me Very interested to see what people post to this!

I bought a ton of these types pre-op and ended up using less than 5. I read somewhere that the protein in these is inferior to typical high-grade Protein powder. Wish I had the article to site, but it was last summer when I read up on this. Might be worth looking into.. This is the building block of our nutrition after all :-)