McButterpants

Yes, MEAUSREMENTS!!!! I took my measurements prior to surgery and again during both of my stalls. Both times I could see the difference in the numbers. We are conditioned to give the scale a lot more power than we should - I'm guilty of weighing every day (sometimes weighing more than once a day) and that is really unhealthy. Sometimes our bodies will hold on to Water it thinks it might need - that can move the scale by 5 pounds!

I'm coming off a 23 day stall. I stalled between weeks 3 and 4 as well. I'm not sure if there's any science behind it, but both times, I increased my calories by a little bit, like 150-200 calories and the scale started to move again. Some say you can exercise a bit harder or maybe try something different and that will work. Here's an article from butterthebean's signature line - it's worth the read: http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.html#.UwuiJhZCddg

That is awesome!

The doctor I originally went to for orientation had the sleeve - he walked in carrying a diet soda and drinking from a straw. During the orientation he listed a number of things we wouldn't be able to do after surgery - straws and soda were on the list...We called him on it and he said, "It doesn't bother me". I thought it was a do as I say, not as I do moment. I have had a soda - an adult beverage mixed with Coke. (Please don't judge me.) I felt OK after, but I only had one drink and I nursed it and stirred so there was little carbonation. I would say the soda they gave you in the hospital was an oversight.

Best of luck to you tomorrow. You got this! The day before surgery and in admitting, I almost backed out...more than a few times. I had to think about all the reasons I decided on the surgery - that brought me back. It's perfectly normal to be nervous. You'll do great and we'll be here for you when it's over. Best of luck!

100 pounds in a year is awesome - I was surprised when I heard he got the band though...I would have thought by-pass or even sleeve based on the amount of weight he had to lose. Does he need to lose more to be healthy - yes, but he's healthier today and he was a year ago. I personally believe he did it for political reasons - he wants to be president and he wasn't going to get there with his weight and health constantly in question. I wonder however, if his motivation was political and not pure with regard to his health, if he'll be successful after his life in politics is over. Nonetheless - I'd take 100 pounds!!!!!!

Mr. McButterpants and I had a conversation the other day about what I call The Fat Girl Syndrome. I told him I cannot imagine I will ever get to the point where I don't feel like the Fat Girl anymore - that's been me since I was 17 years old...the Funny Fat girl. (I seriously had a dream that night that the clerk at the grocery store referred to me as "the Big Girl" - I woke up pissed off!!!!!) I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror of a bathroom this morning - I didn't recognize the person as me; I took a double take and realized it was me! My body has changed in so many ways. Even my face sometimes - I don't recognize that person looking back at me. I still get an anxious feeling when pulling on my jeans - prior to surgery, I'd have to lay down on the bed to get them zipped. I'm down 3 sizes and my jeans are loose, but I still feel like the Fat Girl pulling on my jeans. I flew on a plane recently and I felt that same nervousness as before - I don't want to slap someone in the face with my ass as I walk by them in the aisle. I could feel my heart race as I sat down and prepared to buckle the seat belt - OMG how many times did I worry I was going to need an extender. Here I am 60 pounds lighter, I fit in the seat and no risk of needing an extender, yet I'm still worried about it. I know our perceptions of ourselves has to change - my perception of myself has been shaped over 20 years...I'm only 4 months into my journey (I count the month before surgery in that timeframe). I'm starting to like what I see in the mirror. I slather lotion on my body every day - I avoided looking at and touching my own body before. I can talk to people easier and I see their reaction to me is different as well - perhaps I don't have that "go screw yourself" look on my face anymore. I wear makeup and do my hair - I try to look nice every day.

My surgery paperwork said no make-up and no perfume.

I think for me, not telling my husband was more about denial - yes, he knew I was fat and unhealthy, but I think sharing my weight with him, meant I had to acknowledge that same fact to myself.

It wasn't discussed with my doc...I was 3 weeks post-op. I went by the "as soon as I felt up to it" theory

I told my husband my high weight - I've been hiding the number from him for 17 years. I was silently embarrassed that he and I have weighed the same for the past 10 years. He had no clue I got to 256 pounds - he was so shocked at that. I cried when I told him. He understood at that point that I had to go thru this surgery for my health. It wasn't about wanting to be skinny - he knew I was in danger. I now share my weight with him every week (even during this fu*&ing stall!!!!!!!).

I walked immediately after surgery - every hour on the hour I moved. Within a week I could do about a mile and increased from there. As far as healing - within 3 weeks, I felt like my incisions felt pretty good. Exercise - I was cleared for light weights at my 8 week check up. Walking was cleared and encouraged immediately.

Maybe it's a waste of time, but if it can save you $10,000 or more, I would give it a shot. But that's just me - what's the worst they can do - say NO?

I was allowed scrambled eggs from Day 1. I whipped up the egg with some milk - it will make them softer. I didn't puree it because the thought of that makes me want to gag. I just chewed - they are really soft anyway.

I'm not very creative either. I did a lot of canned chicken breast - whiz it up with a little low-fat mayo and mustard. I also liked fat-free refried Beans. I've eaten a lot of scrambled egg, too.

I agree - you should be known as that amazing CPA tax pro who looks awesome in men's yoga pants!!!!! I haven't been to my office in almost a year - I've lost 56 pounds since my co-workers last saw me. I think I'll have to go into the office in April. I'm actually dreading it a little because I don't want the attention.

Well, this is what happened to me - I knew I had the exclusion before I went to the surgeon for consultation. They submitted the pre-approval paperwork and the insurance company denied it. I could have gone thru the appeals process at that point.

My insurance doesn't cover ANYTHING weight loss related - it's a complete exclusion of anything weight loss related. I asked the insurance coordinator at the hospital and she said she has never seen a reversal with my exclusion. With that said, it's worth a try. If they deny, I'd appeal and push the issue.

I'm sorry you're going thru this right now. You're right this should be a safe place to bring things up. So, my suggestion for you - get back to basics. Do those things you know worked in the beginning. For me, that would be 2 Protein shakes/supplements per day and 3 meals with 2-3 ounces of protein and a few bites of veggies. Log your food on myfitnesspal or whatever app you want to use - be honest and track everything that crosses your lips. Focus on getting Water in. If you're not exercising and are able to, WALK - it's not only good for your body, it's good for your mind. If you're open to getting counseling, do it. If not, find a support group or a good friend that you can confide in - sometimes just talking things thru helps clear things in your mind. Most importantly, be kind to yourself. Treat yourself like you would a friend - do not get down on yourself or tear yourself down with negative self talk. You have enough "negative" going on in your life now - be positive. I wish you good things.

I was lucky enough to have two doctor's appointments this week - my three month follow up with my local bariatric doctor and my PCP. I lamented to my bariatric doctor about my stall. How I haven't lost anything in the past 18 days. I was kind of whiney about it. She just looked at me like I grew a 2nd head. She said, "You're going great. You've lost a total of 50 pounds. What was your expectation?" I got to thinking about that - really, what number was going to make me happy? If it was 53 pounds would I automatically to over the happy side? What about 63 pounds, is that the magic number? She pointed out all the good things going on - lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, my ability to walk seemingly forever pain-free, my increased energy level, etc. All good stuff, right? So why am I so hard on myself about the number on the scale. She asked how often I'm weighing - I'm back to weighing every day. She told me to stop that, but I weighed again today. The best thing she said about my weight was this - "If you graph your weight loss, the line won't be linear, it's going to be more of stair step." And you know, she's right. I graphed my weight loss to date and it looks like stair steps. This morning I went to my PCP whom I haven't seen since late-October, about 2 weeks before surgery. Her jaw dropped when she saw me. She cannot believe the difference in my appearance. Then we started going over the labs and she was amazed. She actually said "You are glowing! You look happy. Your eyes are clear and bright. The transformation is amazing." Sometimes we get so hard on ourselves because we're not losing a the rate in which we think we should. "I'm a slow loser!" "So-and-so is losing so much faster than me!" We need to STOP! This is marathon, not a sprint. I didn't get to 256 pounds overnight, I'm certainly not going to lose it overnight. Sometimes it's good to step back and look at things from a different angle.

I have the FitBit Flex (I purchased the month before they announced the release of the Force). I used to have a One. I love it, love it, love it. There are articles that I have read that state that FitBit is one of the more accurate monitors out there, but nothing is full proof. The steps are pretty accurate, but know that when you ride a bike, it will calculate steps - I take it off when I ride and I manually enter the activity. I use it as a baseline for activity - when I first got the FitBit One years ago I wore it for a few days and realized I was only getting in about 4000 steps per day. I made my goal the next week to do 5000 steps, then up from there. I figured even if it wasn't calculating my milage correctly, I can track my steps accurately. I don't synch with MFP - I log all my food on FitBit and it's a great tracker. I have not issue with MFP, I just started with FitBit and chose to log there.

I've been telecommuting in some form for 15 years - the last 8 have been full time. Most days I consider myself very fortunate - I don't have to drive to work, I get to go to work with my dog every day, I'm here when my son goes to school and comes home, there is a certain amount of freedom. There are drawbacks - you miss the proverbial Water cooler and it's easy to be "forgotten"...out of side out of mind. YOu miss the joking around the office. You can get passed up on promotions. Then there's the "I roll out of bed and start working syndrome" - I really let myself go when I started telecommuting full time. There are days where I don't shower until 5:00 PM and perhaps don't put on real clothes - my work attire can be a t-shirt and yoga pants and no one knows. This makes it easier to not notice the pounds creeping on and let yourself go. Now that I've been fairly successful at losing weight, I realize I need to be accountable for cleaning myself up and putting on big girl pants!

Walking was the only thing that helped the gas pains for me - I walked every hour on the hour. Gas-X didn't help because it was the gas they pumped into me that was causing the pain. It will be gone soon - hang in there, it will get better.

I telecommute full time - I had surgery on Thursday and was back to work 1/2 days on Monday. I probably could have done full days, but it was nice to not be pinned down to an actual 8 or 9 hours. I was able to nap, take walks, etc.

Not sure - you can go to his member page and look at his activity to try to find the thread your looking for. He has a lot of activity so be patient if you go that route. Here are a couple more articles that may help as well. http://www.ketogenic-diet-resource.com/weight-loss-plateau.html http://www.builtlean.com/2012/05/22/weight-loss-plateau/