rholt35

I am still here .. I have lost 123 pounds but I have gained 13 pounds.. I am so trying to get back on track.. but time really does fly !! I hope you are doing well. It was so easy in the beginning ..But I find it harder to maintain as time goes by ..

Hey, is anyone still around?? It's been three years for us. I'd love to hear how everyone is doing!

Keep up the good work.. I made 2 years out on 12/17/14 .. I will have my 2 year check on 01/16/15 .. He was so booked that I have to wait almost a month to see the doctor

I think we are all a little guilty at this point .. For me at times but it is only when we go to the Mexican will I eat and drink at the same time .

I just had my two year check up. I'm down about 125 lbs. I have gained about 5 lbs in the last 6 months but they wanted me to. My BMI is 21.5 so I'm very happy. My labs were all normal and my relationship with food is healthier. I'm scheduled for abdominoplasty in 3 weeks. Best decision I've ever made.

Life is good!! I'm down 136 lbs and slightly under goal weight. I'm happy, healthy and turned 40. So glad I did this!! Hope everyone is doing great!

Thanks in advance for the support. I'm trying to lose 40 lbs before surgery this Fall. My email: fallentundra24@yahoo.com

I am so struggling right now......I have been going to a friends house and helping her with home health needs and her best friend has a whole lotta crap in the house. It's pure sugar and I've found myself making all kinds of excuses to eat it...... I told her yesturday that unless her friend takes her crap food home, I will not be coming over much....I really don't have the right to make these demands, but I know that I am doomed if I keep going over there and eating that crap... So she agreed, she told me that she doesn't really like the sugary stuff and feels her friend will understand. But it is possible to gain the weight back especially when we can eat when we're not physically hungry... It's head hunger.....
I can eat a lot more now than I use too and that is scaring the pants off me.....

No, it doesn't have to happen. It happened to me though, and it was hard to take it off. You have to be vigilent, and not snack or think you can make a whole lot of changes in maintenance. The farther you are post op, the harder it is to take off weight gained back.
Whatever you're doing now, tracking your food, counting your calories, etc, it's pretty much a life long plan. If you keep losing and you don't want to lose, you can add in a healthy snack, like avacodos, nuts, etc. You'll find your calorie range.

Well congrats to you.. I know in the end it will all work out ????

I do pretty well with food. I hate the uncomfy overfull feeling so I stop when I'm satisfied. Jelly the Sleeve is not very tolerant of being overfull, so I just stop when I'm done. As far as what I eat... while I try to maintain Protein first, it doesn't always happen. I can murder a bag of doritos, so now I get an invididual bag, eat three or four and give the rest away. All I need is a taste and I am done.
I am 19 months out and still losing, but I know I don't lose a lb or an inch if I don't move my butt. If I plateau it is because I have not been working out. That said, I FINALLY hit 100lbs down over the weekend! Very exciting. My personal goal is 169 and I am just a few lbs from that number. My surgeon would like to see me around 145............I laugh every time I think of that because uh.... I'd like to see that too. It's taken me FOREVER to get to where I am, so I'm bound and determined to be happy with the loss I've achieved and keep working toward my non scale goals.
Hang in there, Dec Sleevers! We are all still on this journey!

Okay so today I sat and thought about something weight loss wise.. I remember when I first got out and could not eat a thing everything was small and weight flew off.. Now we have a little more room to play with and we learn after being a year and a half out that we can play hard! Its still all about choices. I'm guilty of pushing my sleeve past its comfort zone.. "when you begin to feel full stop" Yeah I dont ever stop anymore. I keep going sometimes until Im in pain.. But wait.. Am I happy? No I still want to loose a few more pounds so why do I continue to push food in when I feel full? I still dont get hungry mind you.. I have to remind myself to eat or set a schedule for eating times so I wont starve. Why do I allow myself this discomfort? Anyone guilty of the do not's? of sleeve eating? Now let me say I dont gain weight but I dont loose weight either so i kept the weigh toff since my first, second and third goal was set i keep failing at this final goal but point is.... is anyone else guilty of the sleeve sins i have committed?

@@UndercoverBariatricGal First, thanks for digging up this old thread. Second, yes, I am guilty of "sleeve sins" as you call them. Funny term, lol! I sure try not to, though. I think it's maintenance. We have to learn how to live a normal life and maintain our weight. I can't, and don't want to be on a super restricted diet my whole life. Don't get me wrong - I know that I have to watch what I eat everyday, and I have to stay in control, but sometimes I want to let loose a little. I have been experimenting with that, and trying to find that balance. If I go overboard on the weekends (seems to be the pattern) I really try to dial it back through the week.
So, yeah, once in a while I eat when I'm full. I really don't want to do it, because I do think you can stretch your sleeve to some extent. I still don't drink with meals. I do have carbs sometimes, mostly on weekends. But for the most part, I try to continue to stay the course and make it a permanent life style change. I think it is evolving over time. For me, I can never let go of the fear of losing total control and regain - I know the minute I let my guard down is the day I'm doomed. Even when I don't follow the rules, I track every calorie I eat. I force myself to face it, otherwise I know I won't really know what's happening. For me, tracking is the one rule of success.

I am also agree with Undercover Girl .. I have not really lost weight I bounce up and down 2 to 3 pounds but I can not lie either I have been eating really bad .. My surgery day was
12/17/12 ..

You have done an amazing job.. I'm like you been stuck where I'm at for wow about 6 months now cant seem to loose more but I also wont lie I eat foods i shouldn't as long as I dont gain I cont care.. If I would drop slider foods and pick up positive foods I would surly loose more weight i just make poor choices and maintain what I am and again im fine with that if your eating carbs (Bread rice Pasta foods with sugar and so on) then that may be the issue when I stick with low carb meals I seem to loose without a problem

You are not alone but again I'm happy with the restrictions we did this for a reason

Sleeved on 21.12.12 and down 50.1kg, 110.4lb. From Clothes size 22/24 to 12/14 uk size

Great question, and I'd also love to hear how much others can eat. I think I can eat too much (not that I do very often)- like easily as much as 4-6 oz dense Protein, or 8 oz of other things like vegetables/salad. I also avoid bread, rice, Pasta, don't drink pop, don't drink with meals, and get in about 75 gm protein a day.
I think more in terms of volume, and I know I can easily hold a cup of food, maybe more depending on what it is. I wish it wasn't so, and I've been careful not to over eat, but it's just the way my sleeve is. I wish I had more restriction than I do, because I could easily eat enough to gain. Even so, I'm thrilled with my results so far, and I would do it again. Even though I can eat more than many, it's still much less than before, and pretty much like the normal population of people.
The weight is not coming off like it did - no matter what I do. I agree that it's partly due to what we eat, but I think there is more to it than that. It's also got to do with age, activity level, genetics, and probably other things we don't even know about. Having said that, I think we can all get the weight off - it's just harder for some than others.

May I suggest you not eat any complex carbs at all and see how that works for you I'm not placing judgment but a lot of people say the sleeve fails them but I notice they eat ALL the wrong foods.. Instead of NO NO foods try for example 4-6 ounces of of yogurt with maybe two small turkey/light sausages for Breakfast then for lunch have a few slices of turkey/deli chicken slices with a slice of low fat cheese and maybe a half of a greek yogurt then for dinner some baked chicken with any salad/ green leafy veggie..... and if you want a snack go for another yogurt or a salad.. The sleeve is not failing you.. Your choice of foods most likely are hurting your success.. No bread no rice no Pasta no sauces no sugar these are the things that in most of our cases made us fat let them go and see how low carb high Protein works for you.. If you can tell me you not loosing weight eating that then yeah I agree But deep down inside you know like I know your not eating the best food choices mix it up a bit have tuna no crackers no bread have some baked fish no bread if you throw in the complex carbs your going to have little to no loss.. I have tried to throw carbs back in my diet bad idea i gained 5 pounds back fast its not for everyone some people can eat carbs and get away with it and some like my self cant. I feel like your slapping yourself in the face if you dont put your best foot forward after having this surgery you allowed someone to cut you open take away more then half of your stomach and for what? To fail? It shouldn't even be an option! I wish you well.. Change your mental on what your allowed to have and I can assure you that the sleeve is working just fine!

I agree with undercoverbariatricgirl. The analogy I make is to school.
Suppose you sign up for a class. You check the syllabus and know what the rules are, what the homework is, and when the tests are. Half way through the class, you have a C average. Some of your classmates are getting an A and you wonder what the difference is. Are you going to class everyday? Are you studying every night? Do you do all the homework? Do you take advantage of the teacher's office hours?
So, the sleeve is a tool. You signed up for it. Now you need to take full advantage of all it can teach you. Your sleeve gets bigger with time, but hopefully we will be retrained to eat appropriately.
I'm a rule follower and these are my rules.
1) Protein first. At least 70 gm per day. (Usually more like 80 to 90)
2) 64 oz of Water per day. For me, no caffeine or pop. Diet coke is a gateway food for me. Haven't even had a sip since before surgery.
3) Fat less than 45 gm. (Sometimes I get up to 50 but I try to keep the weekly average good)
4) Carbs less than protein. So if I eat 95 gm protein, my carbs are usually 70 to 90
5) No bread, no Pasta, no potatoes, no rice. This is my rule, not my nutritionist. Again, another gateway food group. I did have some mashed potatoes with gravy over the holidays but it made me crave more. The only "bread" I eat is lunch on a sandwich thin- whole grain of course.
6) weigh yourself once weekly
7) record your food diary daily. I use myfitnesspal. I don't beat myself up over a bad day because I can look at my weekly average and see that I did okay.
8) my doctor's office wants me to contact them if I gain 5 lbs. They don't want us to wait until it is 10 or 20.
9) Exercise 3 hours per week.
10) Take my supplements. Calcium and Iron need to be separated by 2 hours.
So, take advantage of all your resources and if it still isn't working, call your doctor or see a nutritionist.

I hated Protein Shakes even the no flavor one had an after taste to me, I did them for only the first 3 months then depended on food intake for protein... My hair is fine and I always seem to have enough energy I only take Vitamins from time to time because my blood work shows my food intake is doing me just fine all my levels for everything are normal I usually take in 800- 1100 calories a day it depends on my day nuts will definitely increase my count but I throw them in every other day as a snack I love salad but try to get my meat in first I always try to get at least 3 ounces when I do tuna/fish/chicken then I focus on the veggie of choice I have not had any rice for over a year i only do manicotti when I choose pasta and I can count on 1 hand how many time in a year i have had that.. so translation I have done hardly no pasta I have had very little potato's same as pasta I can count that on one hand too and I dont do any sugar unless its already in the food I purchased I might have had some form of bread product about 10 times in the year and its usually one slice with turkey meat and low fat cheese and light mayo and so on .. translation I am doing fine blood level wise without all the protein products and so on and I have been very successful in weight loss without all of that.. everyone is different I am due for more blood work soon and as long as it says Im normal I will continue with what I been doing if they say I need it which I doubt since I feel fine then I will do what needs to be done.. Come on sleevers stop cheating yourself out of success change your mind set and make changes so that you can feel as good as the sleevers who followed their doctors instructions and let go of the complex carbs if your not loosing find foods that you not only enjoy but that will keep the scale moving down. Don't give into food you can do it!

Started over 2 days ago. No carbs
A little yesterday but feel so much better. I will not let food control me.
I know if I make the right choices I will do better at weight loss. I've been upset at myself at all the wrong foods I have been eating.
I can so this!!

Wow that's great!! I was sleeved 12/09.. & down 19( 50 lbs total post op& wit required classes)

Don't give up but don't focus on those last 10 pounds for a week or two. Take a dancing class ballroom,line dance or something else fun like that might just be what you need to get loosing kick started again. My son got married in October and we took dance lessons. I had a blast and lost a pound or two in the process. Don't give up.