Peggy 53

My thought...... Carbs are not your ( or my) friend. So let's get honest.... I didn't get morbidly obese from eating too many carrots, cucumbers or celery. That wobbly stuff hanging off my belly, butt and thighs are those stored carbs.... My carbs are all healthy carbs from fruit and veges...that is if I have enough room left over after eating my Protein. So let's see..hmmm....skinny jeans or Pizza....nuff said.

It doesn't matter how good the doc is if the team...the ones who will carry you to success sucks. I just wonder about those guys...if they are just doing the surgeries cuz it's easy money. This a permanent body change and you /we need that ongoing follow up with a team that can answer questions and help guide along the sometimes bumpy road. When they report failure statistics, people who have not had the support available to them are three times likely to fail and regain. Hang with us girl....we will keep on straight

Ya.. She's nuts alright. Not solid science either. Our guideline are simple and basic. Protein first, protein first, protein first, then non starchy verges, then fruit 1-2 servings, then healthy oils and nuts. The starchy verges are added back as we lose weight and the breads/cereals/flours...well it's suggested that those be put off until we have lost the weight we need/want to lose. Once the weight is gone, add it back in one at a time. Protein goal for a sleeve is 60gms per day for women and 80 grams for men....now if I'm busting my butt exercising, I can increase the protein. The carb guideline is 60- 80 grams per day during the serious weight loss phase. This will increase as time goes on. fruit juice is not favored as it is very high in sugars...but Soup, chili, etc...bring it on. In fact add unflavored protein if you need and extra protein boost. If we stay in those guidelines....the world is mine. I do track my food using My Fitness Pal.....It keeps me honest and informed so I'm not playing any head games...

I completely agree with you on this. This is a very personal journey for everyone. Heck just the decision for bariatric surgery is a personal one. It is NOT for everyone. I don't promote, nor discourage someone from taking a step to better health. It is important to have all the information about benefits and risks for any of the procedures. But I'm always surprised by how many Pre- Bands feel there is less risk. There is not. Band erosion, band slippage, port infections are real problems that will send you back to the OR in a minute. I know too many Banders that are stuck on tolerating " just soup" or they are throwing up. Talk about nutrient deficiencies! Any of the procedures require following the guidelines of your bariatric team. The problems arise, for any of the procedures, when those guidelines are not followed. I am a medical professional and I work in a bariatric practice. Take your health seriously. Make the changes you need to make. Be responsible for yourself. Don't play games. The decision to have bariatric surgery is a serious one.

Oh ya! Just when you think it's good, I got this figured out.....reality steps in and teaches us a lesson....

Sharpie - I bought a whole box of white chocolate raspberry, but didn't care for them. I gave the last four to a friend that came on New Years :-) But I do love the chocolate chunk! I almost feel guilty when I eat one.

I get Quest bars from GNC. they are good Protein and low calories and less than 5 grms sugar... The best one is chocolate chip cookie dough.. but they have a variety of flavors.. I only use them for a quick snack if I am out and about.

I completely agree with you on this. This is a very personal journey for everyone. Heck just the decision for bariatric surgery is a personal one. It is NOT for everyone. I don't promote, nor discourage someone from taking a step to better health. It is important to have all the information about benefits and risks for any of the procedures. But I'm always surprised by how many Pre- Bands feel there is less risk. There is not. Band erosion, band slippage, port infections are real problems that will send you back to the OR in a minute. I know too many Banders that are stuck on tolerating " just soup" or they are throwing up. Talk about nutrient deficiencies! Any of the procedures require following the guidelines of your bariatric team. The problems arise, for any of the procedures, when those guidelines are not followed. I am a medical professional and I work in a bariatric practice. Take your health seriously. Make the changes you need to make. Be responsible for yourself. Don't play games. The decision to have bariatric surgery is a serious one.

Skirts...I wear a lot if skirts! Bought 3 pair of pants because I was going to a conference in early November. Three weeks later my staff is telling me I needed to buy new pants cuz the ones I had were so baggy...... Ugh! I recent bought 2 comfortably fitting dresses that, with a belt as I lose more weight, will still work.

Good response! , but your range is wrong, close, but wrong..... A diet controlled diabetic, off insulin, is 65-99. Your A1C is about 5.0-5.5. Pre diabetic range is 5.7 to 6.1 Yes endocrinologists will tell people on insulin to keep blood sugars 100-120. (I have an Endocrinologist) but after surgery...new ball game...new rules. Normal blood sugar is 70-80 for non diabetics. Get rid if the starchy carbs - get the carbs from fruits and veges and you'll stay on track...oh and don't for get your Protein. Critical for keeping all blood sugars in balance. I primarily I use stevia...stevia in the raw to be exact, but will use Truvia.. Splenda only if I absolutely have too. HOWEVER, at the latest Obesity Week conference in Atlanta (Nov 2013), There were presentations that discussed the use of artificial sweeteners and there were no critical findings to not use any of the artificial sweeteners. Now I've done a fair amount of research on the matter and from my clinical understanding of how the body, ( liver, tissues and cells) as well as the brain (dopamine, serotonin) use artificial sweeteners, I'm sticking with stevia....

This thread actually inspired me to go cut up an orange and a lemon and fill a pitcher with Water to infuse it with the citrus and no sugar.
When all else fails, the strong start cooking their own healthy versions.
See what your thread did Sheila? thank you

I completely agree with you on this. This is a very personal journey for everyone. Heck just the decision for bariatric surgery is a personal one. It is NOT for everyone. I don't promote, nor discourage someone from taking a step to better health. It is important to have all the information about benefits and risks for any of the procedures. But I'm always surprised by how many Pre- Bands feel there is less risk. There is not. Band erosion, band slippage, port infections are real problems that will send you back to the OR in a minute. I know too many Banders that are stuck on tolerating " just soup" or they are throwing up. Talk about nutrient deficiencies! Any of the procedures require following the guidelines of your bariatric team. The problems arise, for any of the procedures, when those guidelines are not followed. I am a medical professional and I work in a bariatric practice. Take your health seriously. Make the changes you need to make. Be responsible for yourself. Don't play games. The decision to have bariatric surgery is a serious one.

I hadn't checked in for some time.
Surgery 8/28/13. Pre-op 229...DOS 221... Today 184. I'm 5'0. My goal is 140's. I'll need radical surgery to get lower than that or change my breed to a Shar Pei
I'm out of a size 24 and into a 16-18. I've stopped buying pants and now just wear skirts to work as they're easier to alter and I can get more than 4 weeks wear out of them before they look like clown clothes. I've been thru the closet once and once winter is over all of those clothes will be going.
Zumba and yoga are on my to do list for 2014 and I'm looking at getting a hybrid bicycle....time to kick up the walking routine too... I don't know of my knees could mange a C25K...but it's work a try.

"Normal" is a relative concept. Your belly is getting accustomed to having a restriction around it. It could take a week, it could take a month. Every one is different.

"Normal" is a relative concept. Your belly is getting accustomed to having a restriction around it. It could take a week, it could take a month. Every one is different.

My surgery was on a Wednesday and I was back to work the following Tuesday.....no problem, but then again I have a desk job

Hi guys. I asked my husband to write something for my blog. Like a "WLS from a spouse's point of view" sort of thing. I will preface this by saying, my husband is my rock and I love him to pieces (sure, some days I want to push him off a cliff, but...).
This is what he sent me - I wanted to share with this audience because we all have loved ones that drive us crazy at times. I think sometimes we open up in a different way when we put pen to paper as opposed to speaking to one another. What would your spouse or significant other write if you asked them to? I was surprised by what I read here...
The wife recently asked me to write a little something for her blog. Not much on writing more than witty quips in response to my friends Facebook posts, my first response was a “oh sure” and then to politely ignore the request. It’s a tactic that works I’d say 75% of the time. I was hoping that she would be so excited (or distraught) about weight loss/lack of weight loss/not pooping/pooping/someone else pooping or not pooping, she’d forget that she asked. So a week passed and then I get a, “So I’d really like you to write a post for my blog. You know, from the spouses point of view.” I thought I was home free with her focus on the stall. Guess not.

My wife's weight has never really been an issue for me. We met over the phone and had a 3000-mile long distance relationship before the Internet and unlimited phone service. We worked in the same industry and developed a relationship over months of hours-long, bank-account-crushing phone calls. We have always said that if we had come across each other in a bar or other typical meeting place, we wouldn’t have been each other’s type, physically. Since we fell in love before we ever met, we got what we got. Which by the way, I was pretty happy with upon our first meeting. So when she informed me of her thoughts on surgery I tried hard to keep the slack jawed WTF look off my face as much as I could. I initially thought, “Your going to cut out most of your stomach just to lose a few pounds. What?” What I didn’t realize is that it wasn’t a few pounds. Much like your surprise when someone comments on how much your child has grown because they only see him once a year, I hadn’t noticed she had gained a hundred pounds since we first met. She had always just been my wife, my best friend, the person I would spend a long wonderful life with. My attachment to her has always been so much more than physical, and when I look at her I still see that 25-year-old girl I fell in love with. So when she told me how much she weighed I thought, “Holy shit, when did that happen.”

My blessing of the surgery wasn’t without hesitation. I know what obesity does to a body over time and have witnessed it first hand in my father and mother-in-law. The breaking down of joints, the insulin injections, heart issues and on and on…I know, preaching to the choir. But what if something happens during surgery and I lose the love of my life? What if our boy loses his mother? The mere thoughts made my heart hurt. How would I ever cope if something tragic actually happened? But you can’t live life on the basis that something bad MIGHT happen. Its what kept my mother from fully experiencing life and I always hated that. I wanted to have the healthiest wife possible as we get older. I wanted her to be comfortable in her skin. I wanted her to wear clothes she likes, not just the ones that hide the most. I wanted her to not feel awkward around others. I’ve never really struggled with weight. Sure I could lose more than a few pounds, but it falls off with little effort. I don’t fully understand the angst that the weight causes my wife but I know she isn’t as happy as she could be because of it. Life isn’t a dress rehearsal. You gotta make the most of it. So I agreed, reluctantly.

After coming to grips with the minimal risk involved and nervously waiting for good news from the operating room, it’s been a pretty easy journey for me. I’ve had to do very little except listen. Listen about the surgery, shakes, stalls, pooping, not pooping and then pooping again. My wife is hard-core about obtaining information off the internet. So much so, she once gave her GP a tutorial on thyroid testing and the latest acceptable ranges for each test, which came as news to her doctor. Still not sure why we had to pay for that office visit. So nothing came as a surprise. It made my life easier knowing that if anything came up post op that might freak me out, she had the stats on how many patients experienced the same thing, why it happened, how long it will likely last, and what the next day, week, month has in store. Easy for me, but I know it hasn’t been easy for her and that each day brings a new challenge. I am so grateful for what she is willing to put herself through for a healthier future with our son and me. Recently she’s been in the dreaded stall, but it’s subsided, and she has a little pep in her step. I love the gleam in her eye when the scale tells her what she wants to hear. I love how she gleefully shows off how crappy her clothes fit. Mostly I love that each day she seems to feel more comfortable in her skin and happier with herself. What more can you really ask for?

I set MFP based on my gram needs not the percentages. Total calories are 1000. My Protein is set for 75 gms, Carbs for 60 gms. I let the program balance out the fat to get to the 100%. Interesting thing is that over a weeks time my percentages actually come out to 40-40-20. My calories are usually about 800 in actual intake- protein is usually 70-80 and carbs are about 60. It works for my body

I hadn't checked in for some time.
Surgery 8/28/13. Pre-op 229...DOS 221... Today 184. I'm 5'0. My goal is 140's. I'll need radical surgery to get lower than that or change my breed to a Shar Pei
I'm out of a size 24 and into a 16-18. I've stopped buying pants and now just wear skirts to work as they're easier to alter and I can get more than 4 weeks wear out of them before they look like clown clothes. I've been thru the closet once and once winter is over all of those clothes will be going.
Zumba and yoga are on my to do list for 2014 and I'm looking at getting a hybrid bicycle....time to kick up the walking routine too... I don't know of my knees could mange a C25K...but it's work a try.

Oh ya...... I'm real careful when I'm out or at work to avoid the 'aftermath' of too fast, too much, or not chewed well enough and definitely NO drinking to 'wash' it down. Love my sleeve .... As long as I follow the rules!

Oh ya...... I'm real careful when I'm out or at work to avoid the 'aftermath' of too fast, too much, or not chewed well enough and definitely NO drinking to 'wash' it down. Love my sleeve .... As long as I follow the rules!

Often here people use the term "slip" as some sort of rationale for making a decision to eat something. It is an old term that in the 12-step world is used....but is inappropriate.
By definition a "slip" is. 1.an act of sliding unintentionally for a short distance. synonyms: false step, misstep, slide, skid, fall, tumble ! a fall to a lower level or standard. OR. 2. a minor or careless mistake. synonyms: mistake, error, blunder, gaffe;
If I were to eat a meatball that was filled with bread and didn't know it, that would be a slip; if I were drink a beverage I thought was sugar free, but wasn't, that's a slip. But to make an intentional decision to eat a food or drink a product that I have a craving for, that I " miss" , that I just can't resist....that is not a slip that in an intentional decision. Now for some people, one bite may be fine...but for someone else it will be the beginning of ongoing poor choices that will unravel any hard work.
Yes....addiction is real! You have to know yourself and even if you do know yourself you have to be able to trust yourself that one bite will be okay. If not, then it is important to be honest with yourself to know that one bite will never be enough. EVER! If you go back to doing what you used to do, your going to get the same result. No, the surgery did not fail....you did! What may be okay for me, may not be okay for you. It's important to be honest with yourself if you plan to be successful.
Here's a good question, if using a food log is too hard...is it because you are afraid of being honest about what you are really eating?

Often here people use the term "slip" as some sort of rationale for making a decision to eat something. It is an old term that in the 12-step world is used....but is inappropriate.
By definition a "slip" is. 1.an act of sliding unintentionally for a short distance. synonyms: false step, misstep, slide, skid, fall, tumble ! a fall to a lower level or standard. OR. 2. a minor or careless mistake. synonyms: mistake, error, blunder, gaffe;
If I were to eat a meatball that was filled with bread and didn't know it, that would be a slip; if I were drink a beverage I thought was sugar free, but wasn't, that's a slip. But to make an intentional decision to eat a food or drink a product that I have a craving for, that I " miss" , that I just can't resist....that is not a slip that in an intentional decision. Now for some people, one bite may be fine...but for someone else it will be the beginning of ongoing poor choices that will unravel any hard work.
Yes....addiction is real! You have to know yourself and even if you do know yourself you have to be able to trust yourself that one bite will be okay. If not, then it is important to be honest with yourself to know that one bite will never be enough. EVER! If you go back to doing what you used to do, your going to get the same result. No, the surgery did not fail....you did! What may be okay for me, may not be okay for you. It's important to be honest with yourself if you plan to be successful.
Here's a good question, if using a food log is too hard...is it because you are afraid of being honest about what you are really eating?

Often here people use the term "slip" as some sort of rationale for making a decision to eat something. It is an old term that in the 12-step world is used....but is inappropriate.
By definition a "slip" is. 1.an act of sliding unintentionally for a short distance. synonyms: false step, misstep, slide, skid, fall, tumble ! a fall to a lower level or standard. OR. 2. a minor or careless mistake. synonyms: mistake, error, blunder, gaffe;
If I were to eat a meatball that was filled with bread and didn't know it, that would be a slip; if I were drink a beverage I thought was sugar free, but wasn't, that's a slip. But to make an intentional decision to eat a food or drink a product that I have a craving for, that I " miss" , that I just can't resist....that is not a slip that in an intentional decision. Now for some people, one bite may be fine...but for someone else it will be the beginning of ongoing poor choices that will unravel any hard work.
Yes....addiction is real! You have to know yourself and even if you do know yourself you have to be able to trust yourself that one bite will be okay. If not, then it is important to be honest with yourself to know that one bite will never be enough. EVER! If you go back to doing what you used to do, your going to get the same result. No, the surgery did not fail....you did! What may be okay for me, may not be okay for you. It's important to be honest with yourself if you plan to be successful.
Here's a good question, if using a food log is too hard...is it because you are afraid of being honest about what you are really eating?

I agree with your overall message.... We shouldn't freak out over a little slip. But you have no clue how life is gonna be this time next year....or the year after that. Your assertation that your sleeve won't allow you to eat high sugar food in large quantities is just plain wrong. Embrace healthy eating habits now while it's still easy. Cause later on it gets a lot harder.