Fiddleman

Bigger news??

I know! Isn't that whole 60% statistic a sham and scare tactic? Personally, I think the doctors should set concrete goals rather than say something vague like "you will lose 60% of you excess weight." Whatever. Go for 100% folks and don't buy into anything less than what YOU want.

No worries Laura.... You are welcome in an thread of mine.

Amanda - you seem to have a very good head around what you want in your body at goal weight. I think this applies to guys also. Instead of BMI, maybe we should be thinking in terms of body type like Matthew mcconaughey (for me who is not so interested in being ultra bulky)) or Dwayne Johnson ("the rock") or perhaps even Hugh Jackman ("wolverine" - good write up on his lifestyle, diet and workouts in men's fitness this last month). They all have worked hard to reach high levels of athletic body compositions. However, I bet they are all in the overweight section of the BMI chart for heir height. This would be ok with me as long as I can get to this physique without adding on body fat.

Thanks Belladone- I do sense your frustration to be living in a body that does not feel like your own. All those memories of being healthy and super fit. It is hard. Not having been in that position myself, I can offer sympathy but not empathy. However, I can say this : continue to use those images and experiences as a driving motivator, especially when it gets tough because of life circumstances, stalls, you name it. It sounds like you have your hands full day in and day out with responsibility and am glad you see the need to take some time out for yourself. Can you do 30 minutes a day? That might be manageable. When you have those Images and experiences in your mind, it is like a program for your subconscious to line up circumstances in your life to make it a reality. Keep referring back to them and perhaps identify with them in an affirmative way to help you move towards the goal. Block out the distractions in your mind (that little nagging voice) and focus on the images for that was a reality for you not too long ago. There is no reason it cannot be a reality again.

Oh not to mention every designer cuts their clothes e to a different size even though they all have the same number on their tags. Go figure!! Speaking of scales, we just bought the WW body composition scale for my wife as she starts out the journey. It is cool in that it gives body fat %, bone density, BMI etc for several users. It is also very close in readings to what the fancy hospital scale tells us. Yay! I am going to get on it once a week just to keep up with where my stats are at. The only thing it does not do is make a Cappuccino . Lol.

Laura- I still get slimes all the time. Most of the time it is my fault because I have never been good with the 20 minute rule. I have come to know what foods lead to them and then eat those a little slower. Once a food shoveler always a food shoveler. however, I am really good about quantity so never eat too much in a meal. I think my ability to shovel was really fine tuned and honed to a science starting in college because I never had time to eat with taking 18 credits and working 3 jobs to pay for it. It continued into my adult life because I never had time to eat lunch and sometimes dinner because always working on the computer coding. Oh well, what is done is done. I am an old dog who has learned many tricks. The best I can do is learn new tricks. WLS has helped with this by helping me design a good nutrition and fitness lifestyle.

I can understand the frustration. What has worked for many is to do a little of both. Set a long term goal of where you want to maintain. Before hitting that goal, set some mini goals that will pump you up and are going to be hit be sheer fact that WLS works. You can ride on the successes a long the way to give you the ammunition to seek out and hit the big goal. As most will tell you, the last 25 lbs is hard to lose so during that time you need to be sure of who you are and what you want to achieve, in order not to fall short during the homestretch. And then remember this is a lifestyle. Losing and hitting goal is just the beginning...

That is great that you have set a new goal! Being adaptive is key to being happy with success despite circumstances. Thanks for sharing. I like the adaptive approach to picking a goal number because it allows room for refinement based upon the feedback loop of life.

Andi-very good answer and has a lot of personal meaning to you. You are also able to connect a sense of peace, comfort and well being with that number. I think that is going to help you tremendously in being happy with your goal and make it more natural to maintain. Way to go at striving towards an envisioned goal of being a medium. Seeing yourself as a medium is really helpful as it will be something your subconscious can take action on, without it feeling unnatural to you because you will not be fighting it.

Richard, shooting for under 200 is an excellent goal and, I believe, has universal appeal to most sleevers. For many, including myself, that is not a number that has been seen for a long time, in a galaxy far, far way.

Thanks Laura. Are you happy with that decision? Would you change it before you hit it or go full steam ahead with that goal in mind?

That sounds about the right amount of food to eat in a meal. However, it depends on what type of protein you are eating. I can eat way more soft chicken (5-7 ounces) then I can steak or hamburger (3-4 ounces). My sleeve must not like beef that much because it feels like a rock every time I eat it. So I tend to eat chicken or pork most of the time. And not just chicken breasts, but chicken meatballs and chicken patties. I currently am loving the bbq chipotle chicken patties from Costco. So good! I do struggle with eating a lot of veggies after protein. I am most successful with salad or with steamed broccoli or Brussels sprouts. Probably others work well, but these are my favorites. Other steamed or cooked veggies like string beans and zucchini or squash often lead to slimies. It is a toss up with how well I do with raw veggies. Red bell peppers are my favorite, but I have to be sure to chew a lot or I get a really bad case of slimes or worse case, they come up. You have to pay attention to what works well for you and if you want to eat more, perhaps pick certain non slider foods ( sorry, no cheesits).

How many of you never got a goal weight number told or suggested to you by your doctor of the WLS center team? Did it bother you? Did you have to make something up, perhaps pulling something out of the BMI healthy normal section? Where did your number come from and what does it mean? Did you pick a different number even though your doctor gave you one? Perhaps because you had a different idea. I know: no simple answer. I am curious because I picked my number from the BMI chart, hit it, but am still wondering where should I end up? It is pretty easy to park at my current weight with my current lifestyle of nutrition and fitness. However, Is hypothetically gaining 10 lbs over my " ideal weight" ok if that places me in overweight instead of normal according to the BMI chart? I am not happy yet with my physique and more needs to be done. i just do not know if I can play the swap game forever with regards to body weight versus body composition. It is a lot of diligent work day after day. The 10 lb gain would be pure lean muscle gain and I have already been playing the fat for lean muscle weight swap game for 5-6 months now with some success. I would like to continue to bulk out with broad shoulders, large quads, well defined calves, powerful back and lean waist. And keep my weight parked on a good goal weight (currently, it is 180 - middle of normal range). But I digress. The real question remains to be answered: how do you pick a goal weight? Think about this topic question. How does it apply to you in your post op experience? What experiences have you had, are having or looking forward to having? I would like to hear from men and women, pre sleeve, newly sleeved and vet, different physical body composition goals, those that have it all figured out and those that are struggling, etc. no one is excluded from answering this topic question and I hope the threads serves as a resource for future VST members.

I think reaching goal is worth way more then 100 dollars, but that is just my opinion. I would go for it and try to drop the 15 lb.

I have finished weight loss during the first 7 months (180 lb goodbye) and the following occurred: 1. Shirt size dropped from 3x/4x to medium or large ( in between). Casual button shirts feel best in large on me. Fitness shirts for running or cross fit feel best in medium on me. Tshirts are good in medium or large, depending on brand. 2. Pant size dropped from 48 to 32. A good fitting Levi feels great! Perfect fit! 3. Shoe size dropped from 11 w to 10. Not a big win for me, but I do like to wear normal size Nike now, especially for running and workouts. Be prepared to go through several sets of clothes as you drop weight. We ended up buying from Value Village or good will and, in turn, donated huge amounts of clothes there. Now I shop at places like Macy's, old Navy, kohls and the likes.i have not really felt the need to step into the really trendy mall clothing stores yet, but that is just me. Too expensive and I am approaching middle age so don't need to fit in that way.

If you are working out for any meaningful length of time, you have a supplementation stack that is working for you. Honestly, I am still trying to figure mine out and could use some suggestions. What do you take to make real gains on your workout days ( resistance, not cardio). Pre workout meal Is it good to have a non fructose carb here? I have been eating 1/2 apple or 1/2 banana with nut butter and 2-3 oz chicken. I read that the liver probably converts fruit into fat so what else should I be carbing up on? I do not et breads or starches so not sure what else there is to try. Maybe I should lax a little and eat sweet potatoes? What are your suggestions. Pre workout I like Hyde and c4. I cycle between them. I also take a good amino acid cocktail to open up my muscles. It really does help to take something like catalyst. Have any of you tried b4? That one looks good also as a fat burner. Have any of you taken stacker 2 or anything like that before working out for the thermogenic and extreme energy? Let me know your thoughts. Recovery shake Here is where I could use some feedback. I have been taking wheybolic 60 for many months now, but feel it is not functionally making the most use of my workout. I take 40 g. I also tried Isopure, but do not care for the taste too much. Please talk to me about recovery shakes that are really going to take the recovery process to another level. I want powerful stuff. Do not talk to me about the typical WLS Protein powders like nectar, matrix, unjury, etc. they have their place, but not as a recovery shake for making big gains in fitness and body composition. Bedtime shake Here I have been using ON gold standard casein for many months ( double chocolate, yummy). Love the flavor and it always, and I mean always, helps lean me out over night. I am tighter and weigh less because of the casein shake. This last week I have tred GNC refeed, but it tastes too much like monkey butt. Really despise the taste, but it seems to work well. I read a lot of the fitness mags so see page after page of different ads for nighttime shakes. What is the best and most effective? Any and all input is welcome. I have had good results as dropped 15 lb in last 2 months and gained 5 lb lean muscle putting me at around 180, which feels pretty good for my 5'11" frame. However, I want to do better. Educate me!