cfbarre

Greetings, everyone! Well, after a great December, my January was far from stellar (probably because I didn't participate in January's challenge due to our move, etc). However, I'm back and excited to put up good numbers in February :-)

My Numbers:
My surgery was on July 15, and my starting weight was 379 (370 the day of surgery after 2 weeks liquid diet).
I've lost 76 lbs. total, which I guess qualifies me as a slow loser, but hey, I'll take it! :-) Still have a long way to reach my goal of 160, but I'm sure I'll get there if I don't give up

I got my surgery date! On January 29. I will join the losers bench! I am so excited.

My hair is shedding like crazy too! I still have enough hair on my head to make about 3 wigs, though. lol. I really don't mind shedding cause my hair is super thick but I hope I don't end up with bald Patches like some people do. If you feel your loss is slow maybe you should get together with your NUT and have them look at your daily menu's to see if you're going wrong somewhere. 46 lbs is still a lot of weight to have lost in 3 months, be proud of that. This journey is not easy and staying on the wagon is extremely difficult. I was in a stall for about 2 weeks and I went back to basics for a week and it broke my stall. Maybe you should try that and see how your body reacts. Maybe you're taking in too much sugar or eating food that are not high in Fiber. There is something that a lot of ppl do also that keeps the metabolism going and keeps your body from getting used tot he same routine and it's called "Carb Cycling". A lot of people are finding them are losing faster when doing that. Good luck and hang in there!

I was sleeved on 7/18. I'm down 64 lbs. Exercise is a challenge but joined a fitness challenge at work and it helps. My weight-loss stalled for a while. My doctor admonished me about not getting enough Protein. Since I committed to a Protein shake (30 grams) every morning, the weight really started coming off. I don't count calories but I do eat very healthy. Very low fat and low carb. But a glass of whole milk every night to avoid Constipation And I have a treat every few days...a few M&Ms or a mini candy bar.
My hair has thinned out incredibly. I'm taking Biotin and waiting for it to come back. In the meantime, a good volumizing mousse and texturizer are camouflaging it pretty well.
Good luck and stick with it!

My hair is shedding too. I am just trying to up the Protein and taking Biotin. As long as it looks decent I will be ok. Now if I start to look mangey I may freak out about it. As far as eating goes, I can eat anything. Nothing has seemed to affect my tummy in a negative way. Which is sometimes a bad thing. I find that PMS takes over and I tend to eat "bad" foods those fews days but really what woman doesn't crave something during that time. Now instead of a candy bar then 2 more because of guilt I eat a funsize, small amount, of whatever and I am good. Other than that I can stay on track because the cravings are not really a problem otherwise. I have never tracked my food and have always allowed myself a treat within moderation and the rest is fuel (i.e. healthy and balanced). I made a promise to myself before surgery that I would never beat myself up again over food. Living my life that way and having a better outlook when it comes to food, heck life, has been the best thing for me and has kept me sane. 46 lbs in 3 months is an awesome accomplishment and don't let your self doubt take that victory away from you! You still have a tiny little tummy in there that can only hold small amounts of food! Use that tool and just get back on track. This is a life long commitement and your little tummy isn't skipping out on you because you haven't been eating as you should. So don't skip out on yourself. Hang in there and know we all fall the wagon so to speak. You seem like you are off to a great start! 46lbs ain't nothing to sneeze at! You got this!

S W: 258 lbs
C W: 216 lbs
2 months post op
G W: 135-140 lbs
I've got a long way to go! Making slow and steady!

Hello my vertically challenged friends. I would love to hear some updates on everyone's journey. I have lost slowly but that is fine with me as long as it is coming off. I am down a total of 50 pounds in 4 months. At first I was really into walking and exercising and now I have hit a not so active time. I have to get myself motivated to get moving. I'm not a lucky one with this surgery, I have had to work to lose weight it just isn't falling off. So I need some words of wisdom. I have 50 more pounds to lose and need some encouragement. I have always been one to sabotage myself and seems like I'm doing it again. Anyone else having issues with this?

Good for you!! Luckily I don't have to buy clothes either because I was a size a 18 just about 2 years ago so luckily I'm okay in the clothing dept. And yes, it feels like gaining a new wardrobe. There's so many cute things in there that I forgot about and I'm glad to be back into lol. I've heard Mederma scar cream works pretty well But first I have an appt with my dermatologist next week so I'm going to see if there's anything he recommends. I'll be happy to pass on the info! I know what you mean about the water retention. I personally believe I'm having issues with that too. My stomach always feels super bloated when I wake up and also I think the rapid loss has messed with my hormones big time. I've had my period 3 times since surgery! I have an IUD so I'm not used to this as I hardly ever get a period. Also my skin has gone absolutely haywire and I have an outbreak of PD and that's been gone for about a year now. Oh well, these things are minor in the grand scheme of things.

I don't know which one counts the first or second surgery? So I'll just go with the initial one which was July 15th i'm down 31 lbs and counting maybe 32 tomorrow of i'm lucky

Sleeved 7/23, lost 17 on 2 week preop diet and 32 post op for total of 49. Loss has slowed last 2 weeks. Started c25k this weekend, seems to be helping.

I was sleeved 3/22 and I'm down 27 lbs post-op with a total loss of 45 lbs. I'm sorta at another stall as well, scale wise but my clothes are also literally starting to fall off so I don't let the numbers distract me. I also measure myself once a month. I'm not due for another week or so to do it but 4 wks after surgery I was down over 10 inches overall. I have also went from a size 24 to a size 18. I went into Lane Bryant a few days ago to try on a military jacket and was convinced that the size 20 would fit. Was so happy to see how huge it was on me. My scars are healing well. One of them was slightly infected but that's because it's the incision that sits directly under my bra line but it's all healed up now. They are still a purple color, though. Going to look into some scar cream.

I just have to "weigh" in. This is based on no real
knowledge, training or education. (That's my legal disclaimer:)). What I have a problem with is people complaining about "only" losing X amount of weight. We had WLS, not quadruple limb amputations, or a magical procedure. While 100 pounds in 4 months would be awesome, and I have read of a few who have done it, I just don't think it's realistic for most people. If we could just pour off the weight at lightning speed, none of us would be here. Our species would be extinct. A few bad winters in the past and our ancestors would have all promptly starved to death. Our bodies are amazingly and awesomely designed to keep us alive, through feast and famine. For most of us, this is the first famine we are experiencing and our bodies are responding beautifully, and as designed. Some people lose weight at a steady rate. Some drop a good amount rapidly, then "plateau", like stairs. Neither is better or worse. I think everyone needs to take a deep breath and GIVE YOUR SELF A BREAK! Our poor bodies have been through a major trauma, but they are still showing up for us, doing their job, day in and day out. Not to mention, we have abused them and treated them like crap for years to get here. They aren't complaining about any of it, or the fact that we cut out a perfectly healthy and non offending organ, while leaving the guilty party intact (nobody wants a lobotomy, I guess). If you lose "only" 15 pounds a month on average, that will still be 180 in a year. We are all successes. Use reason when the scale shows a weight gain. Even if all 7 or 8 hundred calories came from pop rocks and cotton candy, you could not possibly gain 5 pounds of fat. Its not possible. That gain is simply Water retention or your crazy ass digital scale. We get this hyper focus on the scale. Don't do it. It diminishes what you have accomplished. We have all suffered so much being overweight and being judged. Don't do this to yourself when you are finally, finally doing awesome. Use your head and self talk to build yourself up, not to introduce fear of failure and recrimination. Even the "slow losers" seem to be about 30 pounds down by now. We've got this! We didn't gain 100 pounds in 4 months (I don't think), and we aren't going to lose it that quick either (I'm more certain). But, If we keep focused, keep making mostly good choices, and keep moving, we ALL, have to lose weight and have success. Figure out your average weight loss, think about the last time you lost that much in that amount of time, pat yourself on the back and repeat, "I am strong, tough and have taken back control of my life. I will do this, I AM doing this, I will succeed and I will not berate myself or waste precious time with negative self talk!"
And all God's people said, "Amen!"
Sorry so long. This is a Rah! Rah! Post. It's not intended to rant:)
Elaine

I do not believe I was talking about you, I was talking about the Pasta eater who also dabbled in some cake and cheat or slider foods.. I was looking at my emails reading posts and did not realize there are 3 different threads labeled "July 2013 sleevers" again I was not being a "blank blank blank" I was trying to point out that things need to change or a person can gain it all back plus some! I was also ranting a tad because I'm doing everything I'm told to do except I'm exercising more than what my dr said. I am starting to assume my dr is way more strict on what foods he wants his patients to eat! Also he never talked about slow losers, all he talked about to me was how fast I should loose! I guess he's had a high success rate of fast losers! December will be my 5 month mark and he had said I should have 100 or more lbs off by then easily! I guess my dr along with myself have gotten too high of hopes but its not totally 100% me, I was listening to the man who operated on me as well!!

Don't worry you'll get it soon enough. I dont think any of us are pros at this yet. It's still early on and its a big adjustment. I try not to kick myself when I mess up or eat something wrong because we are still learning what works and what doesn't. Just give it time

My leak is officially closed!!! I had my PICC removed Monday and my drain comes out tomorrow! I am so so so thankful and cannot wait to have my life ALL the way back!! I've lost 44 pounds in 7 weeks and I cannot wait to blow that numbe away cause its not enough!

Finally broke my stall!! Lost 2 lbs over the weekend. So now I'm down 22 lbs since surgery. I wonder if it was because I slightly changed up my diet this weekend and ate foods that weren't exactly pureed. Also, put on a pair of sandals I bought right before surgery, and they are too big now! If it weren't for the ankle strap I would've walked right out of em. Wish that would happen with my jeans already! lol

I was 3.5 weeks out at my last weigh in and lost 14 pounds since surgery. It's kind of disappointing since I lost 11pounds in the first 10 days. I'm hoping the weight loss picks back up after my body adjusts to the new normal. Also, I only just got cleared to return to the gym, and will be much more active once the school year starts and I am back to work. Hopefully it will be faster!

300 calories is really low for a whole day. My program's minimum requirement is 75g. of Protein and 800 calories. I'm not always able to get 800 calories but I'm over 600. My dietician said it's like a car...the more fuel you put in, the farther it can go.

I have found that if I get in less than 500 cal. I don't loose, but when I
get just over 600 cal. I loose around a lb. a day. I track everything I put
in. It has been very consistent. I add unflavored Protein to get to 600
cal. I average about 4-5 oz of food 3 times a day and plus a snack to get
to 600.

23 days out, 19 lbs since surgery... 36 total