MegaBob

I am only 5 weeks out and have not hit a stall yet. this is my own program, but it worked well pre sleeve and is going ok so far. To keep the body from going into starvation mode I take my daily Vitamins, drink my Water, and here is the trick...every third day I eat more calories. On my big calorie day I shoot for at least 700 but less than 900. to get to those levels I have to drink the Protein shakes or muscle milk. on the light days I stay between 400-500. I think it keeps the body guessing.
I posted this before but try changing up the exercise program if you are doing the same things. add some weight lifting and cardio intervals to your program. There have been studies that avoiding food before a workout helps burn fat instead of sugar.

really di not want to tell people about my surgery because I did not want to be in the spot light etc. It has come up with my friends and without except they have given me hearth felt support. of course you have to answer questions about how it works etc buti don't mind, they seem interested. I came to the conclusion that if I do not want to be defined by my weight, I should stop it from being an issue with me first. Now I speak freely about it and it is liberating, and I think helps me prepare for the future. for me it is like the AA step where you admit you have a problem you are powerless over. Admitting your weakness I think gives you the power to conquer it.

I am only 5 weeks post-op and have been losing faster than some but less than others. Have any of you slow losers tried to mix things up? Make sure your basics are covered: Water, Protein and Vitamins. Then try changing your workout, add intervals to treadmill biking or elliptical. If you are doing mostly cardio add some strength training. If you always use the same equipment try something new. For your diet try not eating before you workout, try bumping up your calories after a few days in a stall,anything to trick your body.

My toughest days and nights for food are when I don't have anything planned. if I am sitting around the house I want to snack. I find things to do to keep my mind off snacking. So, look at the bright side it should be easier to manage your intake with minimal planning. As for the workouts, if you want to find the time you will. I used to get up and workout at 5 a.m., get it done for the day. Friends of mine were always the last ones at the gym, that was their time to "decompress". I liked the morning so things did not get in the way and it helped me think through my day and problem solve cases.
Your fear is that you will lose focus and everything will fall apart. You will keep it together because you love losing weight, getting healthy, and looking good.

I had the same debate with myself because my biggest concern was that I would lose a ton of weight then put it all back on. I did that with diet and exercise. I lost #170 going from 386 to 216. I was so focussed on getting to a goal weight I did not have a plan for maintaining. I thought it would just be different because I was so happy being healthy and active. I asked my surgeon why the sleeve is different, and why would I be able to keep the weight off this time when all other attpts had failed. His answer was that the reduction of Grehlin, that makes you feel hungry, would make a big difference. He also stressed the sleeve is just a tool. I told myself from the beginning of my sleeve journey that my goal this time was long term maintenance, to never be gat again. I did all the soul searching I could to figure out why I ate too much. Only after I figured that out did it know the sleeve will work for me. I was fat because I loved food and ate as much as I could at every meal. Not feeling hunger and the forced limited portion size has been great. I no longer crave food, actually I don't care if I eat or not. I eat because I have to.

I am 5'10" and started at 365. I my mind I was big but not huge. It is amazing what we can convince ourselves to believe. You will do great, you will be at your goal weight super fast! Get excited! The prospect of looking good and feeling great should carry you through the second thoughts and nervousness. The smaller you are the easier the surgery and recovery will be. My recovery has been a piece of cake. I think all of us that have trouble with our weight just want to get off the roller coaster and maintain. the sleeve will do that for you if you let it.

I had 106 to lose, and was sleeved 3-12 and already down 30.4 in little less than 5 weeks no stalls yet ( knock on wood) no nausea no vomiting, no trouble eating any foods. 75.6lbs to go so I am hopefully I will be able to get to goal, and sure you will too.

My goal is to have my sleeve restrict my calories as long as possible. The amount of calories is misleading because liquids are easier to get more volume and depending on what you are drinking can really jack up the calories. for instance, if I drink a muscle milk for Breakfast it is 180 calories, but if I have 1/2 cup get beaters it is 60 calories. Also if I eat just lean Protein for meals and Snacks I struggle to get over 600 calories and 75 g Protein.
I chose the sleeve because I really hope that it will give me the life long tool to keep my calories in check.

I was sleeved in December, not a revision. I take Prilosec everyday and have no problems with heart burn or acid reflux. I have no hunger at all, no stomach spasms, or any other pain. Love the sleeve so far. I have not heard anything good about the band.

I kept my smaller clothes from when I lost before and as I regained. I hope to just wear the old stuff for awhile because it is way too expensive to replace dress clothes every month and tailoring only looks good one time.

The Bad:
1. Three weeks out still have some soreness around the major incision so I feel better sleeping in a chair. I really miss sleeping with my wife.
2. I am cold most of the time.
3. Because I am never really hungry, it is hard to tell when I am full.
4. I have never had that "too full" feeling and can eat 2 oz of meat without a problem, so it makes me wonder if the sleeve is going to be the long term answer. I really thought I would struggle to get my Protein etc but I haven't, and I am not sure that is a good thing.
The good:
1. I am losing weight. Not as fast as some say they are, but faster than other. I am OK with being in the middle.
2. Back to the gym, I like to work out and maybe that will speed the weight loss.
3. I love smaller clothes.
4. The best is that all the second guessing about how fast I lose, and is it working, the logical part of me says I know I will lose the weight, whereas with diet alone the possibility was always there that I would fail.
5. I am much better prepared this time to keep the weight off. I try to learn from past mistakes, and because I have had many, I am smarter for it. LOL

I was unusually calm on my way to the hospital and waiting to start the procedure, I was ready to have sustained weight loss. I had no pain or nausea post surgery. I waked, and walked , and walked at the hospital. It was very helpful with the shoulder pain. It also helps the recovery. Do exactly what they tell you to do post op and you will do great. I look at my sleeve date as a birthday.

My back/shoulder pain was related to the gas they use to inflate your abdomen. I found that walking until I had to burb was the best cure. I did not have to walk far. As soon as your bowels start working normally it will go away quickly.

I was unusually calm on my way to the hospital and waiting to start the procedure, I was ready to have sustained weight loss. I had no pain or nausea post surgery. I waked, and walked , and walked at the hospital. It was very helpful with the shoulder pain. It also helps the recovery. Do exactly what they tell you to do post op and you will do great. I look at my sleeve date as a birthday.

I feel the same way but will add that I have the same feelings now about my skinny pictures. I was keeping one visible on my desk as motivation. It was after I ran a personal best at a marathon, I was in the best shape of my life and happy. What I learned is that instead of motivating me it made me sad, triggered feelings of failure, and I would beat myself up over gaining the weight back.
I am working on getting to a state of mind where I accept that is who I was at the time and stop having such an emotional response. It is getting better.

I feel the same way but will add that I have the same feelings now about my skinny pictures. I was keeping one visible on my desk as motivation. It was after I ran a personal best at a marathon, I was in the best shape of my life and happy. What I learned is that instead of motivating me it made me sad, triggered feelings of failure, and I would beat myself up over gaining the weight back.
I am working on getting to a state of mind where I accept that is who I was at the time and stop having such an emotional response. It is getting better.

I was planning on a RNY 6 years ago. I did the diet and exercise thing and had great success (179# loss). I kept it off plus or minus 10 pounds for a year. Then next year I put 65# back on, then lost it again plus an additional 15. I hurt myself training for a marathon and used that as an excuse to work out less and started eating more. I ate my way back up to almost where I was, which brought me back to the surgery option. I wanted the weight to come off as fast as possible and to have as long lasting effects as possible, so I was thinking RNY. I know people who have had both procedures, including my family doctor, and see that the sleevers are having a better time keeping the weight off. My Dr. chose the sleeve for himself and his wife because he was more comfortable with still having an intact stomach and being able to more naturally digest food. Another consideration is that there seem to be fewer complications with the sleeve. My bariatric surgeon's data, and national data shows that the RNY v. the sleeve has pateints lose faster, but just a few percent. The long term numbers for keeping the weight off are also within a few percent. I only know two people that has kept the weight off with RNY and a dozen who have not.. The sleeve people I know have all kept the weight off over 3 years. My surgeon is doing almost all sleeves now because the percentage of excess weight loss is close with the two procedures, and the sleeve has fewer complications.
I did the sleeve because you are less likely to have reflux and dumping. I think the biggest advantage of the sleeve is that most people do not feel hungry. In the 3 weeks since surgery I have never felt hungry and only consume 500-700 calories. I still have to remind myself not to eat just because I am board, but even if I do the amount I can take is limited.
I am losing about 6# a week and that is fast enough for me. I see others on the forum are losing faster, good for them. The bottom line is which procedure is going to give you the best long term results and best fits your lifestyle? For me the sleeve was the obvious choice. I want to be able to eat normal foods but just be forced to limit the portions. The sleeve will be perfect for me.

Sleeved 12-23-13. I had no pain except when I had to lay on my side for the suppository. each day post surgery I waited and thought "today is the day I will feel like I was hit by a bus", but it never came. I hit the gym hard leading up to surgery trying to get the heart working good. I also knew I would use my arms and shoulders frequently to stand up and adjust my position, so I worked on those muscle groups. At the hospital I walked as much as I could tolerate. The nurses all said I walked more than anyone else. I think it really helped with recovery and for expelling the gas so my shoulder/back would not hurt. Once I got home I kept moving every hour. three weeks post surgery I feel great. I did not need any pain pills at home.
the issues with surgery and coping with the liquids pre and post surgery are just short term hurdles to long term health. the time will fly!

My experience has been that the people who found out or I told after surgery were very supportive. I lost a bunch of weight 3 years ago with diet and exercise. My friends, family and associates were very proud/supportive. Then they watched me put the weight back on over the next years, struggle with eating right, and slowly quit going to the gym. The most common response has been "good for you, don't give up, keep fighting". Which honestly surprised me. People that are close to you or care about you will support you, and rest don't matter.
I only told a select few before surgery because I just didn't want to answer the same questions over and over, and was afraid people would try to talk me out of it. I spend more time explaining it to people I think are in need of doing something about their weight and are showing interest.
I was also shocked how many friends had family members that had some sort of WLS so it really was not a big deal to them.

I was sleeved on 12-23-13. I have another week before I start my soft regular Protein. I had no pain after surgery and have no nausea at all. I don't know if I am the exception but the whole surgery and recovery was really easy for me. I lost 20# from my two week liquids to my one week check up, so about 6# a week average. At my two week check up I only lost another 3#. I was a bit disappointed but am trying not to focus on the scale at all. I know I am drinking less than 750 calories per day so the weight will come off. I know my body is fighting me because of the low caloric intake. That will change over time and so far I have been not been focusing on the scale. I am really looking forward to some real food, even if it will be a few bites. No regrets so far. I am glad to be back to work because sitting around the house with food I could not eat was getting difficult.

I lost 170# with diet and exercise and it was HARD! I am one week from surgery, doing pre-op diet and it is Hard!. I am sure post op and the next 6-12 months will be hard. But the hardest part for me was that after counting calories, working about 10 hrs a week, and doing the right things for about 2 years I STARTED TO PUT THE POUNDS BACK ON. I lost the 170# and was doing triathlons, ran marathons and was up for any physical challenge,..but the weight came back. It was hard to be fat again after being thin/healthy. My skin was loose but not as bad as I expected. I think the exercise helped greatly in that department. when I was at goal I convinced myself I would never be fat again. Well, I was clearly wrong. I put 150 pounds back on. Now am hopeful that the surgery, exercise, and the knowledge I got from the last time failed attempt I will keep the weight off. I am sure it will be very hard but I think the surgery is my best hope for sustained weight loss. Plus, if we all looked great naked, there would be no need for clothes.

BMI 54. My doctor's result are that his sleeve patients are within 3% of the RNY for excess weight loss, but with much fewer complications. He also thinks that sleevers will do better long term because the hungry hormone is lessened with the sleeve. I chose sleeve because I don't want to experience dumping and believe our bodies work best when our nutrients are absorbed. Friends have had the sleeve and the combination of not feeling hungry and limited portions have been keys to success weight loss.