IcanMakeit

I can't help it. I love clothes. So on the way down in sizes (from size 28 to size 4), I kept buying things because they looked good. Of course, I only got to wear them for a month or so before they became sloppy looking. I should have bought just a few nice things from thrift stores to hold me until I reached my goal weight, but the truth is that I enjoyed having fashionable clothes that looked good on me. What a change from my previous practice of purchasing clothes because they were reasonably appropriate and they sort of fit.

I don't know if it's my new figure, or my age, but I'm finding myself enjoying bold colors and Bo-ho styles. I guess you can take the hippie out of the 60's, but you can't take the 60's styles out of the hippie.

@@maggie409

Lobster bisque without lobster? I don't understand. Do you mean you just had a bowl of flavorful (and buttery) broth? Why couldn't you eat the lobster?

I am also getting complaints and warnings about my weight loss from my friends and family, and I can understand that they are concerned because I look so different. But to have a co-worker make such an inappropriate comment would really get me steamed. I'm glad you're so secure and weren't affected.

Re the photo -- Brava!

Unfortunately chronic Constipation is a very common condition post-op. I never really cured it during my losing phase, but I was able to manage it with Smooth Move, Mira-Lax, and Milk of Magnesia on rotation and Colace every day. I also took daily probiotics and ate yogurt every day, but I'm not sure if they had any effect.

Now that I'm in maintenance and my intake of fruits has increased, my constipation is becoming less of a problem.

@@alilove2631 Actually, we eat at our local Black Bear quite often. My husband loves their country potatoes. I don't think that the food is low quality, just that they pile on too much food.< /p>

My rant was not directed at people who might want to splurge on this over the top burger. I'm just saying that a 3,000 calorie burger is no one's idea of a healthy meal, and I wonder why Black Bear thought it was a good idea.

Welcome back and congratulations on your "interesting condition." A surprise pregnancy is even more stressful than a planned one. Please take good care of yourself.

I don't understand her advice to eat only 2 or 3 meals per day. During weight loss, I ate so little at each meal that I absolutely had to snack to get in the Protein and calories that were recommended. Even now, in maintenance, I still eat 5 times per day. This is not grazing. I just have to spread out my food so that I can get it all in.

This morning's weight: 110

I think the best advice is to stay on plan as close to 100% as you can during the weight loss phase. However, I did eat a couple of off plan things during celebrations after I passed the 5 month post-op mark, and I was able to get right back on track the next day. For some people, one indulgence turns into a diet disaster that can last for days or weeks. You have to know yourself and your history to decide what the likely outcome of eating off plan will be.

Starting weight: 244 (BMI 43.2)

Surgery weight (5/12/14): 202

Current weight: 110 (BMI 19.5)

I just went to brunch at a Black Bear Diner. (Black Bear Diner's are known for their large portions.) For Father's Day they now have a special they call their "Big Daddy" burger. It's 1-1/3 pounds of beef, bacon, cheese, a fried egg, and fried onion rings, served with a side of French fries. My guess is the meal tops 3,000 calories. What a way to show your appreciation for your dad! By buying him a heart attack special.

I don't like to think that they sell any, but I'll bet they do.

Make it myself? That's crazy talk!

Actually that is what my husband and I concluded during the meal. We have a really good wok. What's stopping us from using it, other than inertia?

@@lclemur Do your son's future wife a favor and explain to him that there are a few things that it's never ok to say.

I am 13 months out from my vertical sleeve surgery and my surgeon recently commented that I have lost over 120% of my excess weight (from 244 down to 110). I think the statistics that lead surgeons to believe that the gastric bypass was more efficacious than the sleeve were from studies that looked at one year to 18 months results. At two years, the stats for both surgeries are about the same. Don't make your decision based on estimates of possible weight loss. Either WLS can be successful if you follow your surgeon's instructions and either can fail due to noncompliance with the bariatric program. If you decide that you are willing to make the lifelong changes that WLS requires, choose the type of surgery based on the one you believe will do the most to improve your long term health and the least to harm it. For me, that was VSG. For someone else, it might be GB.

@@lclemur I have had the same thought. My weight loss was pretty steady and I exercised very moderately (and sporadically). I know exercise is important for health, but maybe there's such a thing as too much exercise?

My favorite local Thai restaurant closed about a year ago and since then I have avoided going to other Thai restaurants. The chef at the old place was willing and able to skillfully accommodate my no sugar, less oil requests. I just tried that at another local Thai restaurant. Unfortunately, they didn't seem to alter the recipe at all. My mixed seafood stir fry with basil was sweet. I know. First world problems. But I like Thai food and want to find a way to eat it without waking the diabetes monster. And truth be told, the food tastes much better to me without the sugar.

I used to get frightened stares from small children, like they thought I got so big by eating kids. I don't miss that.

Yeah, I regretted the surgery for about a month after I admitted to myself that WLS was not magic that would cause me to lose weight without effort. When I truly accepted that I would have to make real changes in my lifestyle in order to be successful, I was as petulant as a thwarted 2 year old. But now I actually like my new way of eating. I now tend to make healthy food choices as a matter of habit, with no thought or effort required. I am so glad I decided to have the VSG. It has given me back my health.

For me, the best way to avoid inadvertent overeating when eating out is to portion out the proper amount at the beginning of the meal before you start eating. You can then ask for a to go box and pack up the rest while it's still appetizing and undisturbed and take it home for another couple of meals. This tends to help me slow down as well. I'm distracted from my hunger while I'm taking care of this small chore.

In fancy, gourmet restaurants, I just separate my food on the same plate and then remind myself that the second portion is not to be eaten yet. I know that some people think it's gauche to ask for a doggy bag, but I don't feel embarrassed at all.

I'm sorry you had to deal with a clueless jerk. While it is not ok to return rudeness with rudeness, you are not obligated to continue an uncomfortable conversation. Next time this happens, change the subject -- Clueless Jerk: "Wow, I'll bet you lost more than 100 lbs, right?" You: "How are things with you?" Clueless Jerk: "No really, how much weight have you lost?" You: "My family is doing well. Oh, there's Mary. I'd better go say hello."

I didn't have popcorn at the movies yesterday. I want my first popcorn post surgery (I'm just over one year out) to taste good and be relatively healthy. That means homemade, and not microwave. I'm definitely going to have it in the next couple of weeks. The popcorn odor at the theatre has awoken my popcorn awareness. I just hope I can eat it responsibly now. In the past I used to over indulge.

I'm down to 110. I guess I'll have to start working on building more muscle. All I do is cardio.

Although you love him, and worry about him, he has to make his own choices about his health and the food he eats. Your suggestions are probably counterproductive. He resents your interference so he doesn't really get anything positive out of your advice. The best thing you can do is back off from trying to make him see things your way and hope that your example convinces him down the road.

When I used to diet, I found it helpful to start with a "cleanse." Making a drastic change in my eating habits for a few days did seem to help me take my diet seriously. For a while. But now I'm leaving the diet mentality behind. Now I'm concentrating on nutrition and controlling recreational eating for the long term.

The goal of 135 lbs. was set by my surgeon as a weight that I could definitely achieve. It was not my personal goal. I remembered that I was a bit chubby at 135. My original goal was 125. That was what I weighed when I was taking tons of dance classes in college. But when I hit 125, I still had back fat and love handles, so I understood that I must have a lot less muscle now than I did when I was dancing, and should either weigh less or build up more muscle.

But now at 110, most of my remaining fat is concentrated in my abdomen and arms. I have a LOT of loose skin in both places, accompanied by residual fat. I don't know my body fat percentage. My guess is that it is not too low. Although my legs look toned and my ribs show, the rest of me is still pretty soft.