poohbear1019

You go gurrlll!!! :-)

My endocrinologist put me on phentermine to help me lose weight quickly since I was pre-diabetic. Phentermine is his third choice of weight loss drug but I happened to be allergic to his first two choices. I was on it for 12 weeks. It worked great and killed my appetite. the only side effects I had was extremely dry mouth which went away after the first month.

Meetups.com is a great place to expand your circle and meet folks with similar interests without it being a "dating site".

Congratulations on all your success Nicky! And good luck on this next stage! There is some great advice here and I am sure you will find your way.

Do you have a lambda center? I'm a Cali girl or I would hang out with you
:0) I love going to the mall shopping or to the movies. My gf haaates it.
Lol

Ps.. Congrats on your tremendous success. You deserve a standing ovation.

Hey Everyone!
My name is Nicky, I was sleeved 3.11.13. I've lost more than 200+ pounds. It's so weird...someone called me thin to my face! I'm like are you sure?! Me?! Another person described me to my co worker as "the skinny guy". I'm so not used to this.
What I have realized, is that I look totally different, I can now FEEL how lonely I've been for so long. I'm not talking about sex or hooking up, just a friend to get coffee, see a movie, or just chit chat. I joined an online dating site. I knew I wasn't ready for dating. I just want friendship. I'm in Chicago and would like to meet people locally or otherwise. Any ideas?
Good luck to all of you,
Nicky AKA poohbear1019

Hey Everyone!
My name is Nicky, I was sleeved 3.11.13. I've lost more than 200+ pounds. It's so weird...someone called me thin to my face! I'm like are you sure?! Me?! Another person described me to my co worker as "the skinny guy". I'm so not used to this.
What I have realized, is that I look totally different, I can now FEEL how lonely I've been for so long. I'm not talking about sex or hooking up, just a friend to get coffee, see a movie, or just chit chat. I joined an online dating site. I knew I wasn't ready for dating. I just want friendship. I'm in Chicago and would like to meet people locally or otherwise. Any ideas?
Good luck to all of you,
Nicky AKA poohbear1019

I day I start with a personal trainer. I'm a little over 3 months post-op - was sleeved on April 21, 2014. I've only been doing cardio, for the most part - walking, treadmill, elliptical and now doing the couch-to-5K app outside since the weather is gorgeous.
The problem is that I know nothing about strength and weight training and I'm not the kind of person who can watch a YouTube video to work on it - I need a teacher, I need actual guidance - someone to tailor something for my needs, watch my form and most importantly - keep me accountable!! I'd prefer not to have any more surgery and I think the best way to avoid cosmetics/plastics is to really kick the weight training in/up.
I found a number of people online and she seemed the most reasonable and she actually got me in touch with another bariatric client of hers, which made me feel great!!
I'm nervous! Maybe that's weird but I'm nervous. The idea of failure is always sitting in the back of my mind - can I do this? Will I bail? I don't meet with her until 7 and I've been awake since 4!!
Has anyone else gone the personal training route? Pros? Cons?

I'm not trying to be a shill for Planet Fitness, but for anyone on a very limited budget their membership only runs around 10 dollars a month, and they have free trainers on staff. They do training in small groups... but most of the trainers seem to be quite willing to help out with questions between classes. I imagine having a personal trainer can't be beat, but there are alternatives if you are just starting out and need some guidance.

I was 340 lbs when my journey started, 316 at surgery. I have lost over 160 but have gained over 30 lbs of muscle. It totally can be done. I sit pretty ripped at 190 lbs.

"Haddocks"...I think it's possible, but you have to get your diet nearly perfect and timining of your meals is important along with the actual workouts to stimulate the growth. My goal is more on strength and lifting numbers than on bodybuilding, but they often go hand in hand and only slight differences in the approach (mostly with the lifts). I've been able to really reach some nice strength goals, but it's takes some work....along with a lot of patience (I'm 2 and a half years post op). You can do it and wish you the best!

Do it!!
I love love love lifting... It was discouraging at first to lose as much strength as I did, but I just have to figure : new body, new needs, new goals.
Baby steps. Lol

I just found this post - lolz don't come here enough.
Anyways started lifting about 3 weeks ago and am LOVING it! I do cardio because I HAVE to. Gotta have lifting rest days so cardio fits in there.
Thank you for all the words of encouragement! I really appreciate it. Looking forward to posting a picture some day of my soon-to be awesome guns!

You might look into a classes if your gym offers them. Once a week I take a weight class at my gym - body works plus abs. It's a high rep, low/moderate weight class. I don't use anything heavier than 8 lbs and am sore for days because of the high reps (some of the men in the class use 10s or 12s or 15s). But at the same time, the instructor is really focusing on triceps/chest so we do a lot of push ups and I've seen a lot of strength gain in my triceps/chest because of that and one of my problem areas (triceps) have gotten tighter - and sleeves fit better now than they did a little while ago.

@@poohbear1019
For sure I would try another trainer. I love my trainer. She works within the limitations of my arthritic knees and my lower back pain and still she gives me a great sweaty workout without hurting anything. Talking to her is important. I let her know my goals and limitations and if a new routine causes me discomfort I let her know immediately so we can either skip it or modify it.
A trainer is a wonderful resource when you find the right one. Look at their credentials and interview them until you find the right one. They are not cheap so be picky and choose the one that fits you best.

What's been helping me is bodybuilding.com and there body space app you can choose a workout regimen like I just started a 12 week plan that even had a diet plan. And im starting to notice some definition in my arms and chest

I like them,but only use them in emergency type situations where Ijust don't have anything else. Protein bars and other "protein" foods that are manufactured (cookies, cereals, bread, chips, etc.) are what I call "frankenfood"--- just because they are low carb does not mean they are good for you. Whenever I can I eat REAL food-- but if I need to grab something and don't want to eat crap, they are good in a pinch.

My friend who is a bariatric surgery nurse and has lost 200 lbs since his surgery 18 months ago swears by them. Only ate half at a time for about 6 months but now can eat the whole thing.

Ok..I am a Quest bar junkie. Let me be clear about that. No more than one a day though for good reason. While a few posters are saying the Fiber numbers are inaccurate, I am here to tell you there is a good amount of Fiber in them. How do I know? Probably because I went about a week without them and when I started eating again I spent a good amount of time visiting my bathroom! Yes, they ARE good for that! ( FYI to those with Constipation issues) I have read online sources about impending lawsuits due to mislabeling. but I also read the response from the Quest brand CEO. He emphatically denies the allegations and will fight any lawsuit. ( For the record there has been talk of said lawsuit for some time, but no follow through as of yet) They have had their nutritional information evaluated from independent sources and the results are the same as the labeling. That being said they are sort of high in calories and carbs but low in sugar. The carbs are mostly from fiber, which to me is a good thing. ( They fall well under my bariatric team's guidelines for sugar intake) The calories may be high, but I take that into account with my daily totals. I am always rushed and cannot make time in the morning for a lean, Protein dense Breakfast. Therefore, Quest bars are my meal of choice. I purchase at GNC, have been for many months. They are always buy 3 get one free, with the occasional sale of buy two get one free. I find that better than buying by the case. Also, I like variety. I can pick and choose the flavors I want. While they do offer variety boxes, I prefer to make my own variety pack. ( also cheaper)

I like Quest bars, and i don't think they need to be microwaved. Bottom line though, too many carbs... too tempting. I just try to stay away from Protein bars in general...

They are great... good for the Protein content vs. the caloric content. But, they can be expensive unless you shop for the best prices in quantity.
LW

Love Quest bars! My favorites have changed, so I highly recommend revisiting some if you don't like them at first. I didn't like the white choc. raspberry one, and now it's my favorite! chocolate chip cookie dough was my favorite, and now I find it a bit too salty. I order mine from luckyvitamin.com, which lets you order by bar or by box, and it's still the same $2.09/bar.
My husband is a Quest bar hater, because he doesn't like the texture. Basically it's Protein powder held together with a thick fiber Syrup. But he likes them cooked/incorporated into another recipe.
These are delish!! I've made them a whole bunch of times..
Quest Bar Peach (or Cherry) Cobbler (4 servings)
Ingredients:
Crumble:
1 Quest Bar Vanilla Almond Crunch rolled flat
1 teaspoon coconut oil
1 teaspoon dry oats
¼ teaspoon butter extract (optional)
Filling:
2 medium peaches or 37 cherries
1 scoop Protein Powder (I use Body Fortress Vanilla - 30 grams of protein/scoop)
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Optional Topping:
2 tablespoons Fat Free whipped cream
Method:
Preheat oven (I use a tabletop toaster oven) to 400 degrees. Roll Quest Bar out with rolling pin (I put the bar in a folded piece of wax paper so it doesn't stick to the pin), spray pan, and bake for 3 minutes or until slightly browned and crisped. Remove from oven and cool. Reset oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, stir together the peaches, Protein Powder, stevia and cinnamon. Divide between 4 small ramekins. Take the Quest Bar and pulse in a mini blender FIRST then add coconut oil, butter extract and sweetener. Stir in dry oats. Sprinkle on top of the peaches. Bake for 15 minutes.
Pro: 13.75; Cal: 126.5 (peach) or 135.5 (cherry); Carb: 8.5 (peach) or 10.5 (cherry); Fat: 3.5
Fat Free Whipped Cream: 0 - 5 - 1 - 0
There are many more recipes. Check out Quest's "cheat clean" videos!
Like I mentioned before, Quest Bars are basically Protein powder with a fiber syrup. It's called VitaFiber, which you can order from here: http://vitafiber.myshopify.com/. I haven't tried them yet, but there are a whole bunch of options for making your own "Quest" bars.
Pecan Pie Quest bar- 1/4 cup caramel flavored protein powder
- 2 tbsp VitaFiber
- 7 pecans
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 baby cookie, crumbled into small pieces

Thanks for all the great advice! I am 4 weeks post op and I am going on a 10 day vacation and very nervous about eating during that time. I am concerned about getting proper Protein for my meals. My nutritionist told me to find some good Protein Bars to bring along just in case I had a hard time finding a good protein option for a meal. When I read this yesterday, I immediately ordered several to take with me to try.

So, with you I used a Dominican Republic plastic surgeon too after my weight was stable . his name is Dr. Raul Perez Pimentel. I have great results. I would recommend his to anyone.