TES

>>I like to make Chai shakes, I get sugar free chai powder mix from World Market and mix it with a vanilla shake and some almond milk - YUMMYYYY. Oh, that sounds good! Thanks for the great idea, MakeMyOwnLuck!

Thanks for posting this--I've been wondering how much the portion of the removed stomach weighs!

will they let you add protein powder to clear liquids (like Crystal lite or Mio) or no protein at all? Adding to clear liquid would still technically be a clear liquid vs a full liquid diet. My surgeon told us that protein the first 2 weeks after surgery is critical to healing and to preventing future hair loss.

I don't like how MFP adjusts your daily calorie target when you exercise, so it shows you have a calorie (and protein, carb etc) deficit for the day when you input exercise. So I changed the formula for all of the my exercises so it says I burned 1 calorie (from 50 minutes of water aerobics or 1 hour of walking!). But then I can see what my calorie targets really are without it automatically adjusting when I input the exercise. Otherwise, I love MFP. I used to use another app and they had a lot fewer foods in their database, so I was always adding in new ones.

I've been getting mine every 3 weeks since surgery (I'm usually exactly 28 days) and they have been really heavy. It's a bummer bc the 10 days of fluid retention comes more frequently and makes it difficult for the scale to move during almost half of the month.....

I made some kale chips in the oven with cooking spray and added nutritional yeast for a protein boost. Tasty.

I like the Muscle Milk Lite in chocolate--I put it in a shaker and add a little almond milk to make it frothy and less thick. Much more palatable. I also add unflavored, vanilla or chocolate powder (Designer Whey, Unjury or Celebrate) to diet hot cocoa. I find the protein goes down a lot more easily when the beverage is warm. Just add the powder after heating the liquid for about 1 min 40 sec--the temp can't be over 140 degrees or it will clump. It's good in coffee, too. I also like vanilla protein powder in Mio orange tangerine water--tastes like an orange creamsicle.

Ugh, that has to be frustrating! Have you tried bumping your calories, protein, and water intake back up? Maybe you could add some walking?

I would ask both your gyn and your surgeon about the IUD--and I would def. use a back-up method of birth control. Definitely don't want to conceive while you're in the main losing phase. My last cycle was horrible. Absolutely horrible....

I'm very sorry that this happened to you. Her comments were very insensitive. I'm also very sorry that you lived through a sexual assault. Congratulations on your amazing weight loss.

YES.

I wore sort of stretchy pants and a sweater to the hospital and planned on wearing them home, but I was pretty uncomfortable and ended up wearing the sweater and a Wal-Mart tuxedo home (pajama pants). I was covered up by my winter coat and we went straight home, but I still sort of can't believe that I actually did that. I'm sticking with my theory that the pain meds made me do it.

If it makes you feel any better, my mom (who just retired as an OR nurse doing robotic and laparoscopic procedures--mostly gyn) says that the single incision techniques don't give the surgeon equal visualization compared with the multi-incisional laparoscopic procedures. Honestly, I would rather have a few extra scars vs not having them able to see as well what's going on in there....

My surgeon says not to donate for 6 months after surgery if you are post-VSG.

Hang in there! I can empathize. I think some of us have bodies that are resistant to losing weight quickly (metabolically efficient is a good thing in a famine!). I am 10.5 weeks out and I have only lost 25 lbs since surgery so far (about 20 lbs in the 6 months before surgery). I get in my water and protein every day and exercise, and I haven't gone off plan once. I track everything in MFP. At first I was frustrated, especially after losing more quickly the first 2 weeks, but I am still losing steadily and definitely going down size-wise. Plus I know that this weight is gone forever and hopefully I will have less loose skin bc I'm losing at a reasonable rate. btw my BMI is similar to yours and I believe that it's a myth that all higher BMIers lose really quickly (some do, some don't--just like mid and lower BMIers).

I can no longer eat fresh ground pepper--it's way too strong tasting to me and ruins my food. I have to eat pre-ground pepper. I've been eating fresh ground since I was a kid and always loved it--it's sort of strange.

A lot of people like Wendy's chili (I don't eat it bc I'm a vegetarian) or a side of refried beans from Taco Bell. You can also get salad with a side of black beans (Taco Bell, Chipotle). Better if you can plan ahead to avoid fast food but those are some good options.

boo!

I started eating lettuce at about 5 weeks and other veggies at 6 weeks and have done fine, but I usually eat them as a snack bc I don't have much room for them once I eat my protein. I would be more worried about the wrap than the stuff inside--at first, you should only try thinly sliced very well-toasted bread, but I don't even do this bc it's empty carbs and calories. I have hear of people vomiting from eating wraps for the first few months.

good for you--congratulations!!!!

You could add unflavored whey protein to water and SF Hawaiian punch and add some ice--zap it in the blender. Like a SF, protein-packed homemade tropical Icee. Also good with Mio orange tangerine--like a creamsicle. You can make protein ice cream with a small ice cream maker--basically make a protein shake with soy milk and follow manufacturer's instructions.

it's weird--my restriction seems to vary by day. Today I feel like I'm getting restriction just from drinking and don't seem to want food at all. Other days, I feel like I can eat 3/4 to a cup of food--mostly lettuce with a little protein on top (more fibrous veggies fill me up more and I can eat about half a cup). I'm about 10.5 weeks out.

Wow! You look amazing. congrats!

So sorry to hear this! Any chance that you bought trip insurance or that you still can? (sometimes you can add it on after the fact).

You both look great! Your husband reminds me of the actor who plays Tessa's dad on Suburgatory.