GotItDoneInHarlem

So I am blessed to have lost a lot of weight since surgery in December. I'm down 68 pounds since pre-op and I'm feeling a little more attractive and sexy these days.....well a lot. I'm back on match.com and have 5 dates this week, so I'm looking pretty good. What they don't know is the compression shirt underneath and my jiggle. I'm having great dates, but I'm terrified to go past first base. How do you deal with it?

So I am blessed to have lost a lot of weight since surgery in December. I'm down 68 pounds since pre-op and I'm feeling a little more attractive and sexy these days.....well a lot. I'm back on match.com and have 5 dates this week, so I'm looking pretty good. What they don't know is the compression shirt underneath and my jiggle. I'm having great dates, but I'm terrified to go past first base. How do you deal with it?

THIS SURGERY IS ABOUT YOU AND WHAT YOU WANT! You get to be a spoiled DIVA for as long as you want. Tell your mother you appreciate her concern, but that you want to sleep in your own bed and that rest is the number 1 thing you need after surgery. Stairs might be a little hairy, but it's better than suffering through terrible children.

You should be ok. Worst case senario, you have to sit down and enjoy the music or leave before the end. GO!

OK, so for dinner I had an Amy's Light entree that was 8oz. There wasn't a whole lot to it and I never ran into my restriction. I've eaten 5oz Entrees that I could not finish. SO, when my NUT says that my pouch currently holds 4-6oz and that I should Aim for about 5oz, I assume that she is speaking about VOLUME, the space that 5oz of food takes up, and not the 8oz entree I ate which is a measurement of WEIGHT. So how the hell am I to measure my meals. If the box is by weight, and my stomach is by volume and I am eating to satiety, then is this all just a guessing game? I eat slow so I know when to stop, but this particular entree never got me "full" which is a GOOD thing. Is there something I'm missing or am I on the right track? Some days I can eat a whole (small) lean cuisine, most days I split it into two mini meals and stay within my caloric guidelines. For those of you who know my posts, YES, this, is directly tired into my all consuming fear of stretching my pouch even though I am losing weight and progressing well. UGH

Thanks everyone! That really helped put stretching into perspective for me. I gotta admit though I can't wait to get home to my scale and Tupperware.

I have found that the lemonade crystal light does give me a little heartburn, but not enough to keep me from drinking it.

At Disney on a trip with my job, and I've been able I find things to eat and I've been coming in on the high end of my daily caloric intake (which is ok because my pedometer has been logging between 15,000-20,000 steps). What's frustrating me is I have no way to measure my food and no way to weight it. I've found that I'm eating until I am satiated but have definitely gotten to full a few times, but never uncomfortable or pain like the ONLY time I overate. I generally get the feeling that I'm eating more than I should (full) but I am (AGAIN!) worries that I'm stretching my pouch. Are three full meals for a week going to irreversibly stretch my pouch. A stretched pouch is a big fear of mine. Advice?

My stall broke over the weekend and I lost 4 pounds!! I'll try to be more patient next time. Phew...

Today's concern is stretching my sleeve. How does one stretch their sleeve? Would you know if it's stretched? I'm eating 4-6 oz meals as per my nut but panic thinking it's too much Anyone?

Yup! It was HCTZ. Should I still consider upping the calories from about 1000?

I'm doing weights, but nothing close to what one would to for gaining muscle. More toning weight lifting. I'm on a couple psych meds, one blood pressure med, and HIV meds. I just don't understand how I can expend more effort than I take in from calories and NOT lose weight.

I feel like I've got the fitness aspect under control. I really feel like they're high quality. Definitely getting my protein and supplements. I drink water like a fish and have had two glasses of wine since the beginning of December. Do you agree with the tdee and bmr stuff above?

So you're saying I should be taking in more calories. Makes me nervous to ignore the recommendations of my NUT. Iused a couple tdee and bmr calculators and they show my bmr at 2079 and my tdee at 2495. So what would you suggest based on those calculations? If I'm supposed to eat over bmr but under tdee I would be at nearly 2000 calories a day! That doesn't seem right.

No drain. The only times I have heard of drains is when there is excess bleeding or a suspected leak.

I've been stuck on a stall for two weeks now. I think it's related to stopping a blood pressure med that was a diuretic, but whatever. I've also been taking Miralax which retains Water as well, but it's either poop or death so I choose poop. I have been STUCK at the same weight despite all efforts to move the scale. I've increased working out at the gym two-fold, I've lowered my sodium and carbs. I'm eating EXACTLY as my NUT wants, and am in the gym 5 times a week doing cardio each day PLUS lifting three times. My cardio sessions are an hour long and I'm burning 700-800 calories each time. I'm only eating 850-1000 calories a day. How is it possible that I'm not losing weight. I'm taking in WELL below what I should be to be losing 2-3 pounds a week. Are my pants looser? Yes. Did I lose another notch on my belt? Yes. Do I feel better than ever? Yes. Did I fit into a size large shirt for the first time in 5 years yesterday? yes. BUT I WANT THAT DAMN SCALE TO MOVE. I've been in a stall for ALL of my month two now. How long do these last? Anything else I can do to kick start losses again? I put the scale away for a week as recommended and DAM*IT I gained a half pound. It's SO HARD to not be discouraged.

Colace and miralax keep me regular

Gotta face your fear sometime. You've made a huge step in the right direction!

For dinner tonight I had 2 boca burger patties grilled (180 calories and 34g of protein!). The box said that the 2 patties are a total of 5oz in WEIGHT. My surgeon told me to aim for 4-6oz meals, but I'm thinking that's a VOLUME measurement. When I finished eating I was no longer hungry and was satisfied. My restriction was telling me that I could not eat any more. Bottom line. I ate 5oz of quality Protein and am full. Am I stretching my pouch in any way? Should I have eaten less and then snacked later, or is the 5oz amount in line with what my surgeon said and I need to relax? I'm worried that I'm stretching my pouch. (I don't eat and drink either).

Why on earth would you start back up? Many surgeons will not do surgery if you smoke or plan to start again. Smoking and the carbon monoxide and other chemicals in your blood stream hampers healing and you're more likely to get a staple line leak. I quit before surgery and have no plans on starting back up. I feel so much better. I hope that you'll reconsider quitting with the intention of starting again.

Avocado/ Guacamole - Yes! Much smaller quantities 1/8th is enough to spread on a sandwich in place of mayo Sweet Potatoes/ Yams - Great complex card. Eat 1/3 of a yam. Corn Tortillas - You can but I'm skipping them all. Tacos rolled in lettuce wraps are awesome Coconut Oil/ Olive Oil - In moderation Agave nectar - STLL SUGAR. NO GO. Splenda tastes the best in my opinion and they have a brown sugar mix too. Spices are fine, but not for the first few weeks.

So I am really excited I have stopped taking a blood pressure medicine, but it seems like I'm gaining weight! The medicine is a diuretic so I assume it's Water weight. Who else experienced this?

POOP QUESTION ALERT So I've been clogged up. Had to go the fleet route to get things flowing but it was still bad. So I started taking colace 1x day and that did nothing. So now I'm tAking 2x day. I've noticed that I've GAINED 2 pounds since doing this. Is it making me retain Water? Why the weight gain?

Ok. So I've been doing the "cook a bunch of something and eat it for days" routine but it's getting REALLY old. I have a pretty strict 4-5 restriction and I get Protein in and not much else. I'm just getting so bored with food. What do eat to provide 1) variety 2) protein and some veg 3) more variety 4) NOT yogurt. I'm so bored of yogurt Is anyone eating the small healthy choice frozen dinners?

Call your NUT and express how you are feeling. Are you on full liquids or Protein shakes ONLY? If full liquids you'll most likely be able to do fat free yogurt and there are other protein options, like Isopure drinks, that are protein but different enough to get you through it. Again, call your NUT.