Fiddleman

Hey, I cop a feel on my abs and hips right when I wake up to predict what the scale is going to do. I have developed a really good intuition about it. It may sound corny, but I like do a little analysis on different muscles to see if and how much growth occurred over night. Oh and I like to check myself out in the mirror to see how the overall body composition is doing.

As a beginner post op ( month 1-3), I liked using Syntrax nectar sweets like double cookie and chocolate truffle. My surgical center recommended them and I found the taste pleasing, they were easy to mix with both milk / water and I did not get tired of them. After month 3 to about month 5, I used Syntrax matrix brand Oreo flavor. It is an extended release formula and keeps you satisfied longer then the Syntrax nectar proteins. Between month 5-7, I used GNC amplified Wheybolic cookies and creme flavor. This shake fueled my running 5ks and 10ks. Between month 7 and 13 ((now), I use 3 proteins to fuel my fitness at home and in the cross fit box : muscle milk lite cake batter first thing in the morning, synth 6 cookies and cream for workout recovery shake and optimal nutrition gold standard casein chocolate flavor for bed time. I enjoy drinking protein shakes and they help me meet both caloric and energy needs for intense fitness. I usually just mix my shakes with water, but will mix with lite vanilla soy on a casino if I really need the extra protein. Every shake is fairly low carb except the synth 6 which has 30 grams of carb instead of 1-2 as the other proteins do. I need the carbs to replace those lost during working out. Hope this helps.

Yup - I ate the whole plate. It was about 5 ounces of shredded chicken and 3 ounces of cucumber. You can eat more further on post op, especially after month 6. This is both a blessing and a bane for folks. If you focus on sourcing your calories from Protein, eating more only makes you lose more weight and get more fit. Do not worry, I went through the same phases as you during the early months post op ( eg only being able to eat 1-3 ounces of chicken). I eat 7-8 times a day now and try to eat about 1700-1900 calories. For this reason, I am always eating every 2 -3 hours.lol. Literally chomping or drinking Water from rise until bed. Never hungry though and still lose weight. last week was 10 lb below original goal and am focused on building muscle to reduce body fat and get stronger (currently at 12% and need to update my picture, from 3 months ago). Just focus on eating clean sources of protein and veggies and you will do just fine when you are able to tolerate eating more. Eating food like this picture is really satisfying and super healthy for you.

Yup, it is heavenly good! Love it!

Home made shredded buffalo chicken with 2 tbsp of bolt house blue cheese yogurt salad dressing and a Persian cucumber on the side. Zesty, Yummy and easy to make!

For sure! Simply beautiful locations. Thanks for sharing the links. I love hiking in the alpine here in the Cascade mountain range, but now I am super excited about coming out there. Maybe next summer!

Wha.....independently own health food store? I do not think I have seen one of those in my life time, but I am a wee bit younger than you (I believe 10 years). The first health food store I have ever been in was GNC. More recently, I have been in vitamin world and vitamin shoppe. However, with the invention of the interweb () who needs those darn retail stores anyways. Any vitamin, mineral or supplement is but one "buy it now" click away.

Laura , you ain't no fat chick any mo'. Seriously, you should not say that because it is not true. We have seen how you look in a recent photos. lookin' good. Keep up the great work! I know it takes a fight every day to keep the cravings away, but I always know you are a very strong willed lady. Stronger than any old weak excuse for a craving. Those cravings are whimpering in your presence.

I know that Portland, OR is like the bicycling capital of the world. Interesting that Washington, D.C. Is way up on the list. You wouldn't think all those politicians, congressmen and lawyers have time to work out.

Hey, maybe someday you will be able to buy a home tongue stamper model for $ 19.99 from the kitchen section of Bed Bath and Beyond or from an As seen on TV store! Lol.

Badboy- Sorry to hear they treated you that way. No health store should treat customers like that because hey, we are all trying to get healthy. Duh. Basic business model is to cater to people like us in addition to the body builders and track stars.

According to americanfitnessindex.org: The top 10 1. Minneapolis, MN 2. Washington, DC 3. Portland, OR 4. San Francisco, CA 5. Denver, CO 6. Boston, MA 7. Sacramento, CA 8. Seattle, WA 9. Hartford, CT 10. San Jose, CA The bottom 5 1. Memphis, TN 2. Louisville, KY 3. San Antonio, TX 4. Detroit, MI 5. Oklahoma City, OK Is your city on here? What makes a city fit? I am surprised to see my city of Seattle, WA on here at 8. I suppose it helps to have a lot of biking, walking, running and hiking trails around the region. So that begs the question: if Seattle is so fit, where did us VSG Seattleites go wrong? Bariatric surgery business is booming here and it seems like everyone is always on a diet. Do you agree with this list? Let's hear your thoughts and theories.

Yeah, need to be careful then. The late night Oreo shake would only be one jack in the box drive through away. I hope that as part of sewing on a tongue torture device, that the program also provides solid nutritional and fitness consultation. If these folks truly have an issue with controlling what they put in their mouth, then a patch is not going to keep them from drinking milk shakes and blizzards. And it is only for a month. Of course, we have the same concerns with VSG. However, I think the structured nutritional and support programs that VSG WLS Centers provide over the long term make VSG a clear choice over short term tongue stamping. These tongue stampers will be back to eating whatever they want if they do not reprogram their relationship with food. I honestly do not think 1 month is enough time to make these changes. Maybe tongue stamping is cheap enough that it is sort of a vanity procedure that can be done whenever, like taking a diet pill. Just some thoughts...

Yup-live north of Seattle in Lake Stevens area ( about 1 hour north of Seattle by car when traffic is good). With traffic (in Everett), it sometimes takes 30 minutes to get to Vitamin Shoppe near the Everett mall from my place out in the sticks. GNC is right up the road at Frontier Village. I love going to vitamin shoppe because of their selection, but the people who work there really make me want to drive there. They really are knowledgable and care about the success of he customer way before trying to sell something. I sometimes chat with them for 30 minutes and have gotten to know a few of them very well.

By the way, how does putting a patch on your tongue inflict pain when eating solid food? Are there spikes on it or something?

You guys definitely have food on the brain.

LOL! Edit: sorry, responded to wrong post of your above. I was laughing at your bacon comment.

I did 100+ jumping lunges on Thursday as a segment of a hard cross fit work out (see below). I still have sore quads today. finally, I am sore from a work out. I think that is where real results will come from. I decided to take a rest day yesterday and workout today instead. With respect to this thread topic, I am considering taking rest days on Wednesday and Friday as a way to maximize strength building after cross fit days. That would change from resting on Saturday and Sunday. The interesting thing is I gained a few lbs from Thursday. finally! You probably are not used to hearing about someone deliberately trying to gain weight, but it has been hard to put on more lean mass with my weight at around 175-178. Today I am 181.5 and I can see the noticeable different is muscle mass in my quads. Thank you jumping lunges. I didn't eat any differently, but on my rest day yesterday I sucked down BCAA (branching chain amino acids) all day and chilled out as far as fitness. No activity. I also tried a new product called re-power that is supposed to be a "powerful, multi action anabolic amino formula." Yes, a lot of marketing gibberish. However, I am going to give it a few weeks to see if it will lower my bf more and put on lean muscle mass. It really promises a lot of miracles for those that do "ultra hard workouts", but as the usual skeptic, I need to walk the talk with it before endorsing it wholly. In summary, here is what my week has looked like so far, including today and tomorrow: Monday (timed sets - 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off) 1 mile run (8 min) Light straight legged deadlifts (100) 20 minutes: star jumpers, full dive bombers, jack knives and hip raisers Tuesday (cross fit): 1600 m run 20 unassisted pull ups, push-ups, hip extensions, air squats, ght sit-ups and lunges One rep testing- 350 deadlift, 250 back squat, 150 front squat, 250 bench press, 150 overhead lift (no jerk) My deep squats are getting so much better now that I am starting to get better mobility in my core region. The roller really helps with loosening up this region. Once this area lessens, I have found the hamstrings are loosening such that I can bend over with straight legs and place my palms on the ground without pain in the calves and hamstrings. This is a huge win. Wednesday ( 2 ladder sets counting up and down 1-4-1-4): 1 mile run Light bench press and dead lifts (100) 20 minutes of ladders sets consisting of lunge and twist, one legged Romanian deadlifts, one armed push-ups, supermans Thursday (cross fit): 2000 m row (1:50 / 500m) 15 unassisted pull-ups, push-ups, hip extensions, air squats, ght sit-ups and lunges 5 rounds of 10 back squats at 60-80% max 4 rounds of 8 front squats at 150, 18 vups, 36 jumping lunges (8 minutes) Friday (rest) : lots of stretching and rolling out muscles. Saturday (circuit): 1 mile run (8 min) Light dumbbell deadlifts, bench presses and flies (100 lb total) 20 minutes of 8 rounds of Jumping lunges, bouncy pushups, vups and one legged hip raisers. Each exercise 20 s, 30 second break between rounds) A good full body work out. It still feels like a challenge to me. Sunday ( rest) - I am going to go watch the Seattle cross fit games at gasworks park, perhaps participate as it is open without qualifying to everyone for some events. My motivation is to go study the peak performance of others to gauge what it is like to compete at the regional level. Maybe I will have to try it out tomorrow!! I will definitely start competing soon. The first "real" compete will be for the regional games next summer. My first long term goal is to qualify at regionals next year (2014) and be a top finisher the year after (2015) before competing at the national level (2016).