longlong10

I got the call that I have been waiting on. My insurance has given their blessings for me to have sleeve surgery!!!
 
I'm so excited! I just can't hide it!
 
On June 11, 2013, I will begin a new and exciting chapter in my life.
 
Good bye Big Mama. Hello healthy mama.

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.

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

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Update:5/23/2013
Man, reading these old blog entries is strange. It's only been 5 months and I'd forgotten almost everything that happened pre-surgery.
 
After these few months post-op, it just seems that I've "always" been living this way and my previous lifestyle never happened. I feel like I've "always" eaten such small portions and could walk away from food. I've "always" gotten out and walked around. I've "always" had a positive attitude and energy.
 
Anyone else feel this way?
 
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Being my first blog entry, I plan on keeping it short and sweet. I'm about 3 weeks pre surgery. Had my psych eval, NUT counciling, chest x-ray, liver/kidney ultarsound, blood work and EDG. I am going in this Sat. for the pre-surgery diet counciling.
 
Expected surgery date is 12/27/2012. I am on the "fast track" for surgery. Got the insurance approval in just 2 weeks.
 
So far my out of pocket expences have been about $3000.00, that includes the doctor's office visit and tests at the hospital and gas going back and forth (my docotor and hospital are 2 hours away.)

Today was one of those scary days were it seemed like I just never got enough to eat. I have days like this on occasion and don’t really know what triggers them. I haven’t strayed from eating “good” foods, so I don’t think it has anything to do with the foods that trigger my hunger monster.
 
But, the amount of food I have been able to eat is really starting to scare me. With everything I’ve eaten, I definitely feel full, but the feeling doesn't seem to last but an hour or so.
 
So to combat those feeling of “I’m going to obsess about eating until I’ve eaten something,” I keep plenty of lean protein in the house. Grilled chicken breast, grilled pork loin and plenty of low sugar sauces. I don’t keep any temptations in the house to ward against days like this. Maybe I need a WLS voodoo doll with pictures of bad food and pins stuck through them.
 
I really started thinking about how and what I've been eating. And I have read the warning stories about people regaining their weight after surgery and it is a really scary feeling. I would never forgive myself for having gone through all this just to gain all the weight back.
 
So, I've set some limits on myself. Not so strict as to feel deprived, but not so loose as to let myself get out of control.
 
I will eat healthy food first. Protein/vegs/fiber every day.
 
I will let myself try a dessert, but never eat more than a bite or two. (And by bite, I don’t mean “as much of the cookie as will fit into my mouth at one time” bite. :-P)
 
I will not bring unhealthy food into the house. If I want something that bad, I’ll have to get off my butt and drive to the store. Most times, the craving does not overrule my need to stay camped out in front of the TV in my underwear or by the time I DO get there, the “craving” has worn off.
 
I will make my own lunches to bring to work. That way, I can’t rationalize going out to eat and making food bad choices, convincing myself that eating healthy food costs too much.
 
I’m trying to be realistic and know that I’m not always going to be faithful. But having the rules reminds me to stop and think before making a food choice. It’s a tool, just like WLS.
 
Knowing that I am allowed to eat SOME bad stuff removes the stress of “I can’t ever have that again!”
 
Knowing that I CAN eat a little of anything puts the power back in my hands and puts the responsibility on my shoulders to CHOOSE to eat the right way. It is empowering to feel like I am allowed to eat anything I want, but it’s my CHOICE to pick a different food option.
 
I like this new lifestyle and after 5 months of hating to get out and walk, I am beginning to WANT to go on daily walks. Although I don’t necessarily like them, I do like seeing the scale drop and my energy level go up!
 
Keep Pimpin that Sleeve!

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!

Prior to surgery I made a list of my non scale victories (NSV) on my iPhone but somehow erased them. So I decided to make a new list. I'll be adding to this as I come up with new ones.
 
 
Buy clothes from a non-plus size store
Purchase bra/panty from Victoria Secret
Get a makeover
Take boudior photos for my honey
Maybe wear a pair of heels
Ride a roller coaster
Walk/run in a marathon
Not be considered obese
Not be afraid to wear a bathing suit
Fit comfortably in a booth at a restaurant
Own and ride a bike (especially long distance)
Go zip-lining
Always use the stairs
Go cart racing
Dance in public
Sit at a regular desk (in school)
Finish my degree
Go to law school
Volunteer work
Plant a garden/landscape yard
Attend Zumba regularly
Incorporate clean eating in my new lifestyle
Stand on my feet longer than 30 minutes