KristinaRN

This sounds amazing, thanks for sharing!

Thanks Foxbins! I appreciate your input. I agree with not eating until stuffed, I hate that feeling. And the amounts you mentioned are exactly what I eat now. I was wondering if I will continue to be satisfied with this amount. Just as you can eat more at 6 months out than you can at 3 months out, I wondered if that increase ever stops/levels off? Congrats on your success, you are definitely an inspiration!

For those of you a year or more out from surgery: when did the amount you are able to eat level off so to speak? I am 9.5 months out, and can eat a little more than I could at 6 months out but not much; I was just wondering when your sleeve completely matures and reaches "maximum capacity" so to speak. I am very happy and satisfied with the amount I can eat now, but wondered if it will continue to increase or if this is it. Thanks so much for any input!

I like the idea of a monthly check-in, great idea Libbe! My weight loss has slowed down as well, only 2 lbs in the past 3 weeks. I am down 82 lbs total; I have 18 lbs to go to hit my surgeons goal, and 34 lbs to go to hit my personal goal. The loose skin is a little bothersome, but I'm ok with it. I am in a size 14, from a tight size 24. This sleeve is such a wonderful tool!!!

Hey All-Stars! I am very excited this morning--I am down 80 lbs!!!!!! I weighed 186 this morning, down 1.1 lbs from last week. I will be 8 months out on April 24, and am very pleased with my progress so far. I am not the fastest loser, but I'm also not the slowest. My end goal is finally feeling possible, and that is a great feeling! How are my All Star friends doing?

I have lost almost 80 lbs, and have virtually no skin issues. My upper arms and upper inner thighs are a little flabbier than I would like, but they are getting better with exercise. I would like to lose another 37 lbs or so, and I really hope my skin continues to hold up this well!

Hey friends! I have not checked in for quite awhile, took a little break from the forum. I weighed 187.1 lbs this morning, so that makes me down 4.5 lbs since I last checked in 4 weeks ago. It has definitely slowed down, but I'm ok with that as long as I'm still losing. I have 21 lbs until I hit my surgeons goal of 100 lbs lost, and 37 lbs until I hit my personal goal of weighing 150 lbs. I am playing it by ear, may change that goal as I get closer. It has been so long since I have weighed less than 200 lbs, that I don't really know where would be a good weight for me! I hope you all are having a wonderful week, and I look forward to hearing how you are doing!

I also feel mine on the left side of my neck and collarbone, I HATE that feeling! I only feel it when I have taken one bite too many, so I try really hard to stop before then.

Hi! I live in St. Louis, and had my surgery in August 2011 with Dr. Varela at Barnes. LOVE HIM!!! I have had such a wonderful experience, and would recommend him to anyone. Good luck!

Hey friends, how was everyone's week? I weighed in at 191.6, making me down 1.3 lbs this week. My BMI is now 30, down from 41.7, I am so excited to almost be out of the obese catagory! I really look forward to checking in with all of you each week and seeing how you are doing, I hope we can keep this thread going! I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend

Quest bars are my favorite, I have one every day! Total carbs minus grams of fiber will give you the net carbs. Quest bars have the most fiber of any protein bar, hence the lower net carbs. They are delicious and so filling. My favorite flavor by far is Vanilla Almond Crunch. I usually order mine from amazon, but Vitamin Shoppe is starting to carry them so you may want to check there. Hope you love them!

LOVE THIS!

Hey friends! I had a much better week this week, the scale has finally moved! I weighed 192.9 this morning, making me down 2.1 lbs this week. So glad to see those numbers going down again! I was never one that lost my hunger after surgery, unfortunately, but it was greatly reduced so I didn't mind too much. Well, for the past 2 weeks or so my hunger is coming back with a vengeance and I am scared to death! I still have amazing restriction and get full very quickly, but 2-3 hours later I am ravenous! Since surgery I have been eating every 3 hours or so, per my surgeon's instructions, but now I am actually hungry whereas before I was just kind of empty feeling after about 3 hours. I don't want to feel this hunger again! It does make it harder to make the best choices, that's for sure, but I am doing my best. Any advice? And no, it is not acid; I know that is everyone's go-to response for hunger feelings. Thanks ladies, and I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend!

I went on a family trip to Disney when I was a little over 5 months out, and I had some concerns as well. Fortunately, most of those concerns were for nothing. I lossened up on my diet and ate pretty much what I wanted, within reason. My sleeve doesn't tolerate bread, pastas, potatoes well anyway so I stick more to protein naturally. But I did indulge in a few bites of dessert every night! I had a few drinks while there as well, no problem. We ate at quite a few buffet restaurants, and all I can say about that is you have to get over the fact the you are not "getting your moneys worth." Once I got over that mentality, I realized buffets were actually a great option b/c I could pick and choose what I wanted to take a bit or two of and move on. You will be fine, enjoy your trip! Oh, and by the way, I lost 3 lbs that week!

I have the same problem. I will be watching for any ideas you all have!

You look beautiful! So proud of you girl, you got this!

Hey there All-Stars! So I meant to post this yesterday (Saturday) but I got busy and forgot. Consider this our Saturday check in a day late! I weighed 195 lbs yesterday, same as last week, so no loss for me this week. Even though I know this will happen at times, and that the scale will move again, it still bums me out a bit to see the same number 2 weeks in a row. On the bright side, I am losing inches and dropping clothes sizes, so I know things are still working. Here's to an even better week next week! Kristina

Guess I'm a slow loser! I started at 266 lbs, and at 6 months I am down 71 lbs. But I have lost steadily with no real stalls, and only have 45 lbs until goal, so I am happy! Good luck to you!

Hello friends! I weighed 195 lbs Saturday morning, making me down 2.7 lbs this week. I am still losing steadily with no real stalls, but it is definitely slowing down. I am not complaining though, at least it is still going down! Libbe, I think you are doing wonderful! Your body is healing from such a major trauma, plus you are close to goal, so it could be moving slower than you would like. But it sounds like you are doing what you're supposed to do, and if you keep that up there is no way you won't get there! So proud of how strong you have been through your ordeal, I know you can do this! Debbie, I am so glad you are feeling back on track! I had a few days this week where I too was feeling less than successful, but I really do feel that we can do this, and that a few poor choices will not stand in our way. And I am so thankful for this forum, in particular this topic. You all are what keeps me focused. I look forward to our Saturday check in each week so I can see how you each are doing! Have a great week All-Stars!!! We may be 6 months out, but we still got this!

Welcome back! Can you share what life is like 2 years out?

What a great NSV!!! So happy for you. And now I am off to Old Navy

I am so proud of you! You have done amazingly well, and are such an inspiration to me. I have really enjoyed reading your posts over the past year, I think you have such a great attitude about this whole crazy journey we are on. Sometimes we do well, other times not so much, but this is REAL LIFE and we just keep plugging along! I can only hope to be as successful as you. Thank you for sharing yourself with us, I know I appreciate it!

My surgery was August 24, so I was 6 months out yesterday and I am down 70 lbs as of today. I started light exercise, mostly treadmill, about 6-8 weeks out from surgery and have slowly been increasing the intensity and adding in strength training. I weighed 266 lbs when I started the 2 week pre-op diet, weighed 258 lbs the day of surgery, and now weigh 196 lbs. My goal is 150 lbs (I am 5'7") so 46 lbs to go! I would recommend starting slow with exercise, treadmill for cardio and light strength training for muscle tone. The key for me has been to steadily increase the intensity each week so it doesn't get too easy and my body doesn't get bored. I have also started to mix it up a bit with classes such as boot camp. Hope this helps, let me know if you have any more questions! I know I am not the fastest loser here, but I have lost very steady with no real stalls so I am happy with my progress. Most importantly, I am making changes to my eating and activity that are permanent. Best of luck to you!

I think you are doing amazing! Don't beat yourself up over less-than-optimal choices; this is real life, this is forever, just brush yourself off and move on. We got this friend!

I felt much the same way before my surgery. Now, almost 6 months out, I no longer feel that failure is an option. The sleeve is not a magic wand BY ANY MEANS, you still have to put in the effort, but it is the tool I needed for my efforts to work. YOU CAN DO THIS!!! If you decide right here and now that you are commited to changing your life moving forward, no regrets and no looking back, then I believe you will succeed. Much luck to you!