joatsaint

I think it was 4 or 5 days post-op before I went. Now I think it was nothing unusual. My system is used to processing several pounds of food a day and suddenly I went 4 days eating virtually nothing. I think there's lots of unused space in my intestines, where food can hide. 5 months out, it's pretty normal for me to go 3 days without going to the bathroom.

Ok, the good news. I graduated from walking indoors to walking outdoors. Now the bad news. Monarch butterflies are bullies! I've finally gotten enough endurance and stamina to start walking outdoors. I still don't like exercising, but I do like the effects. And I just can't make myself use either my recumbent bike or treadmill - they're just too boring. And besides, the computer is just 10 feet away the whole time, pouting from lack of attention. Did I mention that my Dell is an attention wh*re? So I have to get outside to walk. I have a state park just a few miles away and there are some nice nature trails that are about 1 mile in length. I've only been out there with my best friend. That way, if we run into a bear or wolf, I don't have to outrun the critter, I only have to outrun my friend! But this week, my friend is out of state, visiting his sister in Ohio. So it was questionable if I was going to motivate myself to get out and walk today at the park. But I mustered up the energy and drove out to the park. So here we go. I got my bright yellow shirt, the $5 forest green cap that I picked up in Alaska (is says, "If you ain't the lead dog, the scenery never changes!") and shades. Oh goodie, I look like a guy cruising the park looking for other guys - that has been known to happen at this park. Luckily for me the park was almost deserted and even better, no one was on the trails. So I started my normal route. Around the lake, skirt the canal and head back to the car through the flat areas. There are some ups and down areas that I think help strengthen my legs and ankles, but not so steep as to cause me pain, or worse, hurtle down hill out of control! Going uphill is no problem. I just don't do down's very well. I'm not good at getting down, boogieing down or going down hill. Anyway, back to my story. I was minding my own business, walking the trail, hugging the shade, and lost in my own thoughts when suddenly a black shape swoops out of the woods. Mere inches from my left arm. And I did what any manly man would do. I flinched and started windmilling my arms (oops, I meant to say, "used my master karate skills"), to swat away whatever that deadly critter was - to keep it's venomous fangs away from my throat! A lifetime later (or about 3 seconds in real time), I realized it was just a huge Monarch butterfly fluttering by. He casually fluttered across the trail and back into the woods. But I swear, this was no ordinary butterfly. I think it was a Pimp butterfly, cause he fluttered with a limp and was very colorful, like a pimp, and had an attitude. I swear I heard him say, "Punk ass bit*h!" as he fluttered back into the woods. I'm sure he told all his butterfly friends about how he - a 1 ounce butterfly - scared a 280 pound man and made him flinch. I guess I'm lucky he didn't give me two punches for flinching or have a smart phone to capture a video of whole thing. Otherwise, I might be on Youtube ring now, going viral. P.S. The good news is: I managed to walk just over 2 miles AND, as a bonus, got in a killer arm workout. But I fear the psychological scars may never heal. Keep Pimpin that Sleeve!

Any product sold by Monavie just screams SCAM to me. Not the product quality or taste, but that they are a multilevel marketing company and charge ridiculous prices for their products.

At 5 months out, I think I am almost use to eating so little. Only about twice a month do I wish I could eat a little more of something. But I am soooooo happy that I am no longer a slave to my cravings and food. I no longer have cravings and can push my plate away without feeling that "need" to clean the plate. Is this what it feels like to be skinny?

That deserves 2 snaps up in a Z formation! Keep Pimpin that Sleeve!

Oops! My mistake. I thought the title "feet shrink" was a misspelling. I was all fired up to talk about how my "feet stink!" P.S. I hope the feet shrinking thing is not applicable to the hands and um, other parts, I can't afford to lose half a size anywhere else!

I did a google search and found several recipes. I liked one with red pepper. My mom likes hot stuff too, so I forwarded the recipe on to her. Hopefully, we can put up some spicy pickled green beans when I visit on Sunday.

I was sleeved on 12/27. Welcome to the club. Keep Pimpin that Sleeve!

Way to go!

Me too. I weigh every morning right after I get up. This is my official weight. But I also weigh in the evenings after work. And before and after using the bathroom. And, Uh, hang on a sec.... Ok, I'm back - Woot! Down 2/10ths from this morning I don't let the weight fluctuations bother me (too much). It is what it is. I know from extensive experience (5 months now) that the weight will keep dropping as long as I keep to the program. As I try to tell people, I'm not obsessive about weighing myself, I just have a really boring life.

You're not doing anything wrong. Your body is just adjusting to the new conditions. I regularly gain weight or stay at a weight for weeks at a time. Then, WHOOSH, I'll be down a pound or four almost overnight. For example: I was at 284 two weeks ago, went as high as 289 - last Monday, 284 last night, now it's Thursday and I'm at 280 (I had to reset the scales 3 times, just to make myself believe the scale was weighing me right!) - go figure????????? Hang in there and let your body do its thing. Keep Pimpin that Sleeve!

Never heard of doing that. Can you direct me to a recipe? I'm sure my mom would love to try pickling them.

Ok, in the interest of full disclosure, the 1st part of the title isn't true about green beans - at least not in my case, they don't give me gas. But the good news is, they do make me "regular." Garden season has sprung in Texas and my dad's green beans are coming up like weeds. As usual, he planted waaaaaaay too many green bean plants and is complaining about having to get out there and pick them. And when I say waaaay too many, I mean just that. He has 3 rows of green bean plants - each row about 40 feet long. That's a lot for just my mom and dad. I know that he secretly loves the fact that he has too many. He enjoys giving away the extras. But is always complaining that no one wants to come and pick. I try to tell him, "Grow something that people want and they'll come. No one wants to come dig turnips!" Now a normal person would just pick what they could use and let the rest rot on the vine. Not my dad. He grew up at the end of the Depression and can't let anything go to waste - even if he never uses it. So they will pick and can fruit and vegetables until the garden dies. Then, a year later, he's throwing out the old canned and frozen stuff to make room for new. Mom, dad, and me picked about 5 gallons of green beans off one row, and that was AFTER they had already picked the row two times previously! So, they gotta lotta beans left to pick on the other rows. Now I have a freezer stocked with fresh green beans. Cooking them is simple: put in water, bring to a boil, add garlic, salt, and onion to taste. Boil for about 15 minutes. Poke with fork to test tenderness. Grab one with tongs for taste test. Blow on green bean to cool it off. Taste. Hold ice cube on burned tongue. Eat meal with green beans - not being able to taste anything because of burned tongue. I've eaten a cup or two every evening for the past 4 days and I've gone to the bathroom once a day since I started eating green beans. My normal schedule is once every 4 days, until now. So I'm crediting the fiber in the green beans. A cup of green beans has about 40 calories - 2 grams of fiber - 2 grams of carbs. All varieties of green beans are low in calories and contain healthy nutrients: dietary fiber, calcium and iron. One cup has 200 milligrams of potassium, plus beta carotene and vitamin A. Next month: One potato...two tomatoes Keep Pimpin that Sleeve!

Here is one that I'm dying to try. I got the ingredients, but haven't made them yet, but they look really tasty. I put the ingredients into one of the calorie calculators and the total calories for the recipe was about 1200. So cut the bars into the desired calorie counts.

My favorite way to slow my eating is to play Bloons tower defense. It's a free online game. I take a bite, play one wave of bloons. Take another bite, play another wave. I try to incorporate activities in my meal that require my attention. I basically live at my computer, so it's easy to do things like read part of a blog, take a bite, read some more, take a bite.

Congrats on your NSV! Please post pics as proof!

Congrats! Do your happy dance. I was thrilled when I finally got below 300.

Yes, they make turkey pepperoni. I've bought the Hormel brand at my local supermarket. I found it in the lunch meat case. It tastes very good.

Ahh, progress. We have a new supermarket in my neighborhood. It is beautiful, brightly lit, with almost anything you could want, from artisan bread to flat screen TVs. And as with all businesses, they are doing everything they can to make the shopping experience as awesome as possible. But they may have jumped the shark on this one: There is automatic water mister to keep the produce fresh and pretty. Just before it goes on, you hear distant thunder and smell fresh rain. When you pass the fruits, you smell fresh cut apples and peaches. When you pass the vegetables, you smell hot buttered corn on the cob. When you pass the milk cases, you hear cows mooing and you experience the scent of fresh mown hay. In the meat department there is the aroma of charcoal grilled steaks and sausages. When you approach the egg case, you hear hens cluck and cackle, and the air is filled with the pleasing aroma of bacon and eggs frying. The bread department features the tantalizing smell of fresh baked bread and cookies. I don't buy toilet paper there any more.

Funny ya'll should mention the "secret menus". I just read this article. It lists some of the more popular fast food joints that offer a healthy alternative "secret menu." And it has links to some of the "secret menus." Panera is on the list. http://health.yahoo....st-food-finds#6

See, I wasn't kidding when I said it was like eating little bites of heaven. :-)

Is this just evil or the ultimate "Man" food? OMG! Just had a piece, tastes like little bites of heaven! Little bit crunchy, but still a little chewy - call it al dente. Basically tastes like bacon. No surprise flavors! 2.5 servings per bag per serving: 130 cals 1 gram carbs 12 grams protein 9 grams fat

I agree with Magpie, eat the eggs slowly. Like 1/2 teaspoon per bite, and wait a minute between bites to see how your stomach reacts. My stomach did not like eggs at all the 1st time I tried them post-op, no matter how much I chewed them.

Now that IS an NSV to celebrate! Not too TMI for this crowd. Keep Pimpin that Sleeve!

It took me about a month to get back to feeling normal. It just takes time and patience.