boosh10

The anxiety is normal. This is major, life-changing surgery...if you weren't nervous, then you should panic!

This part of the process was undoubtedly the most difficult for me. However, it is all a distant memory now!

I was sleeved May 8, 2013 and my wife July 8, 2013. While my surgery and recovery were textbook, hers was a bit more challenging. She had two hernias repaired and it took about 3-4 weeks for her to quit complaining...uh-hm, I mean start to feel better!

Now, that period of time is a distant memory!

I am down 120 lbs. and my wife is down 80 lbs. (She looks fantastic, but she's on a mission to lose more...I told her not to get carried away, I don't want to feel like I'm hugging a sack of hammer handles!).

You are in for an awesome transformation! Just follow your doc's orders, allow your body time to heal, don't (DO NOT! ) let the number on the scale dictate your feeling of success or failure (If you feel better and your pants are falling off, to hell with what the number is on the scale! LOL).

The first few months will be an emotional roller coaster...don't be afraid to use the folks on this site as a sounding board, I think you'll find this is pretty much a judgement-free zone!

By the way, you're in for one heck of a journey and there's an incredible new you, waiting on the horizon!

Godspeed for a quick recovery!

I will not miss sweating. I swear I sweat in any store like I just ran a marathon, like running down my face sweat. Even in below freezing weather. It's embarrassing.

I just went to a seminar last week and asked that question and dr. said if you MUST take it..take it with a prevacid or pepcid!

My doctor did not give me a "goal weight" at all. I think his inferred goal post was "normal" on the BMI chart. My personal goal is only slightly below that, just wiggle room below. Ultimately, the goal is to be healthier and be comfortable in your own skin. I think other than that a number doesn't even matter. Good luck to you

My surgeon told me that I can expect to lose 50% of my excess weight. This would make the surgery a "success". So he's expecting me to get down to 230lbs. My personal goal is 160-180
For you, a healthy bmi would put you between 140-180. So let's say 160 is normal for your height. That means you are 155 lbs overweight. With this surgery you can expect to lose 77.5 lbs putting you at about 237.5 lbs. At this weight your surgery would be considered a success.
Of course some people lose more some less. It all depends on how you work your tool.

I passed my doctor's goal 14 pounds ago and my personal goal 4 pounds ago. I guess I could stop the weight loss by upping my calories, but I'm eating what I want, when I want, and am happy doing what I'm doing. I decided to just let my body figure out where it wants to be. I've read so many times (and seen it with friends that have had WLS) that you lose a certain amount, then gain a little bit back before you "stabilize". So I'm totally alright with being under goal right now in anticipation of a slight rebound back to goal.

I started at 370+ and my doc said realistically I could expect to get down to 235. And I was more than happy at that weight ( got there in about 9 months).
Then it became a little more difficult to lose weight(as my new sleeve relaxed and I could hold more, and I wasn't burning as many calories between not carrying around an extra hundred pounds and metabolism adjusting to the new lower caloric intake).
Then I decided I wanted to be at 224 (my high school weight) and I got there through diet and exercise, And I am very happy at that weight. Now I want to get to 200, which is where I want to stop - I think. But if I was stuck at 220, I'd be a happy camper for the rest of my life.
So, I do believe the rate of weight loss can be slowed or stopped. It's just easier in the beginning, between the swelling of my new stomach and dramatic decrease in calories. Then there's the phase where you're not carrying as much weight, not burning as many calories and stomach capacity is increasing. Then the final phase where you're completely healed and your metabolism has fully adapted to this new eating lifestyle.

Since I am new to this, I must ask. I see everyone has their goal weight. I have not had my first appt yet with doctor. (next month) Is this goal weight what you have discussed with the surgeon? or is this your own personal decision. AND.... has anyone not wanted to go as low as the weight the surgeon decided?
Im currently 6 foot tall and weight 315 , and im assuming my doc is going to go less than 200. I don't really wanna go less than 200. I felt my best and sexiest at 200-220. I like being thick. I understand that he'll want me to get to a healthy weight, but even at 315 im overall healthy except for the extra pounds. Lots of em.
Is there a way to get to your happy weight and stop? Or is that not advisable ? Or is the weight loss not controllable?
Of course I will discuss with my doctor, but just wanted to hear from experiences!

I lost alot.. My mons area never had hanging skin but oh my....the tummy, thighs and arms sure did. It didn't bother my boyfriend but the day he MOVED my belly skin out of"the way" during an intimate moment was the day I decided I needed plastics..Haha. I was mortified. Anyway, due to the massive weight loss I needed a lower body lift which is a Tummy Tuck plus. As stated previously, you are pulled up!

"cookie jar" LOL! never heard it called that before!

Btw, I never thought I had a chubby one until I went to get my 3rd plastic surgery consult. The surgeon assessed my loose tummy skin by pulling it down and sideways. Then he tells me "You're a great candidate for this. I can probably remove about 4-5 lbs of skin." Then he proceeds to pull UP my abdominal skin and says, "It'll even make you look better down there." I was thinking Wtf. Down there.....I didn't think anything was wrong with my cookie jar, but apparently I was wrong! Sure enough, there was a noticeable difference after surgery AND made you know what much better.....since my chubby part was gone! Lol! Hope this helps!

When you have a Tummy Tuck done, the surgeon includes lifting the mons pubis (chubby part Lol!) as well. The tummy tuck scar is usually directly above where your pubic hair line begins. Take your time when you research your cosmetic surgeon. The really good ones automatically lift that area without an additional charge. Part of the reason is because the JP drains that are left in place after a tummy tuck are tunneled beneath and through the mons pubis skin so that additional scars aren't left on the abdomen. Chubbier skin, hanging skin is infection prone and surgeons would rather not take the risk, so it's an added benefit that you don't have to pay for.

I love this article. Very effectively separates fact from myth. I have no idea however, why it is accompanied by a shot of cleavage. Whatever. Enjoy!

10 Unbelievable Diet Rules Backed by Science By SHAPE magazine | Healthy Living – Tue, Sep 3, 2013 2:48 PM EDT by Adam Bornstein for SHAPE.com

Ready for this? Everything you thought you knew about nutrition is wrong!When describing how you really feel about the latest miracle fix in the diet and fitness world, you'd probably like to drop an F-bomb-as in, what the fad? After all, how many times have you trusted logical sounding ideas or put all your faith in a diet strategy, only to find out that the time you invested was a waste--and you still haven't dropped the weight?

Consider this your F-bomb-free zone. No fads, no faking, and no frustration. You see, when you really dig into the research, most of what you assume is correct about dieting is actually wrong. Discover the truth here and the only f-words coming out of your mouth will be "Finally. Fat loss!"

1. Skip Breakfast if you want.
The one diet rule we've heard more than any other: A healthy diet begins with a great Breakfast. There's just one problem: A good breakfast doesn't guarantee an overall healthy diet. In fact, according to a survey conducted by the NPD group, nearly 90 percent of Americans now eat breakfast, and yet nearly 50 percent of Americans are either overweight or obese. There are two things you should know about breakfast:

1. Timing isn't as important as you think.
You don't need to eat immediately (or even within one hour) after you wake up. Your metabolism won't be harmed.

2. Eating an early breakfast means you're creating a bigger eating window (you eat for more total hours during the day), which might lead to more fat storage and more health problems, according to scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. If you eat your first meal at 7 a.m. and eat a late-night snack at 10 p.m., that's 15 hours of eating-which might be more than your body wants.

The fad-free truth: No one meal is more important than any other. What matters most is total calorie intake, food selection (think salad versus Big Mac), and then how much time you spend eating each day. So if you don't love breakfast, skip it. If you do, enjoy your morning meal but keep an eye on your feeding window to make sure you're not eating more calories than you need.

2. It's OK to eat a big dinner.
We all know that dinner is the most popular meal to eat with friends and family, but most people think eating after dark is the cardinal sin of weight loss. Nothing could be more incorrect. Italian researchers compared eating earlier in the day (10 a.m.) to eating later in the day (6 p.m.) In that study, there was no difference in weight (pounds) lost, but the late eaters lost more fat. Several follow-up studies concluded the same thing-timing doesn't matter. This statement from University of Oregon researchers sums it up well: "Eating too many calories causes weight gain regardless of when you eat them."

The fad-free truth: Living in a world where you can't eat at night and can't enjoy food with your friends and family is restrictive and doesn't adhere to any science-backed rules of weight loss. You won't become fat by eating at night-that will only happen if you overeat at night. If you're aware of how much you should be eating within any given day, you can place those calories in whatever meal works best for your body.

3. Snacking does not affect metabolism.
We know that when you eat, you burn calories. So about 30 years ago, it was determined that if you eat more frequently, you must burn more calories overall, and thus the "grazing" method was formed and a nation of people began consuming four to six small meals per day. One small problem: French researchers found that there is "no evidence of improved weight loss" by eating more frequently. They even went one step further to show that when it comes to the number of calories you burn per day (i.e. your metabolism), it does not matter if you graze or gorge, assuming that you're eating the total number of calories you need to lose weight.

The fad-free truth: If you're told to eat 2,000 calories per day, it doesn't matter if it's separated into five 400-calorie meals or two 1000-calorie feasts. (However the composition of those meals does matter.) What works best for your schedule should determine the number of meals you eat. When Canadian researchers compared eating three meals per day to six meals per day, breaking the six into three main meals and three Snacks, there was no significant difference in weight loss, but those who ate three meals were more satisfied and felt less hunger.

4. Eat carbs to get lean.
From Atkins to the Paleo movement, carbohydrates have been criticized more than all of the ladies on the Real Housewives shows-combined. Here's the real reason why carbs get such a bad reputation: Up to 50 percent of the carbohydrate intake in the typical American diet is in the form of highly processed carbs and sugar. So when people say carbs are bad, they're usually just talking about eating lots of sugar. But that's not really fair to every other food that also is labeled a carbohydrate.

When compared to a typical American diet, a low-carb diet looks like the undisputed champ. However when compared to a good carb-based diet that is low in sugar, refined foods, and gluten (like the "Japanese Diet"), the results are very different. Before 1991, when Japan was considered a carb-dominate society, diabetes and obesity rates were never greater than three percent of the population. If carbs in general were the enemy, with their high starch intake via rice and sweet potatoes, the Japanese would be the fattest, most diabetic, and unhealthy population on the planet. However this was not the case, and their levels of obesity are a "problem" people in the United States wish they had.

The fad-free truth: Your body needs carbohydrates. If you completely remove this essential nutrient from your diet, you could experience a down-regulation of the hormones that control fat loss, making it harder to have the lean, sexy body you want. A good general rule: Eat more carbs on the days you're active and fewer carbs on the days you're sedentary. And make sure most of your carbs come from whole foods such as fruits and vegetables.

5. There is a weight-loss pill worth buying.
Most miracle "fat-burning supplements" are about as effective as an hour of Prancercizing. But if you want to take a pill to help promote fat loss, your best bet is a Vitamin that you associate with the sun. Researchers from Canada found that people with higher levels of Vitamin D also have lower levels of body fat. The connection isn't a coincidence. Vitamin D helps you feel fuller because, according to Australian researchers, it releases more leptin, a hormone essential to weight loss. It also helps you store less fat by decreasing parathyroid hormone, which makes you hold on to your love handles. Best of all, Vitamin D literally burns more fat by reducing production of the stress hormone cortisol.

The fad-free truth: Buying supplements to help you lose weight is not the best use of your hard-earned money. Your foundation is a healthy diet and exercise. But some supplements can help fill nutritional gaps that will help your body function more efficiently. Supplementing with 2,000 to 3,000 IU of Vitamin D3 is a smart investment for your overall health and fat-loss goals.

6. Exercise on an empty stomach.
If you exercise with a high intensity, there's nothing worse than feeling sick to your stomach because you felt forced to eat before you hit the gym or pavement. There's a lot of science that shows eating before a workout is important, but "before a workout" is a much wider time range than you might think.

In the simplest sense, your digestive process is very complicated. When you eat, the food does not go directly to your muscles or your gut. It takes time-a lot of time, in fact. So if you eat many hours before you train, there's still plenty of fuel to help you perform and feel great.

The fad-free truth: Research published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism found that the Protein you eat digests anywhere between one gram per hour and 10 grams per hour. So if you have a meal consisting of 25 grams of Protein, that meal could last in your system for up to 25 hours. Hydration level and sleep patterns also play a significant role in performance, so make sure you're well rested and have plenty to drink, and then eat when it feels best for your body, even if it means a small meal or no meal at all.

7. Eat saturated fat.
books like The China Study and movies like Forks Over Knives have pointed the finger at saturated fats-and all animal fats-as the reason for countless health problems. Yet all the research used to support this hypothesis took a very slanted bias and completely ignored populations that were incredibly healthy despite diets based on saturated fats. For example, people who live in Tokelau (a territory off of New Zealand) eat a diet that is 50 percent saturated fats, and they have cardiovascular health that is superior to any other group of people. Even Walter Willett, chairman of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard, has publicly stated (after a 20-year review of research) that fats-and more specifically saturated fats-are not the cause of the obesity crisis and are not the cause of heart disease.

The fad-free truth: Cholesterol actually acts as an antioxidant against dangerous free radicals within the blood. When there are high levels of undesirable substances in the blood (caused by inflammation in your arteries from eating highly processed foods and large quantities of sugars), cholesterol levels rise in order to combat these substances. Cholesterol is also necessary for the production of a number of hormones, some of which help fight against heart disease. Plus, research shows diets higher in saturated fats are often lower in total calories consumed.


8. Consider fasting for better health.
Any diet that has you not eat at all is not a diet-it's starvation. But there's a difference between withholding what your body needs and reprogramming your body so that you can control your hunger and let your body recharge. The idea of fasting is nothing crazy. You do it every night when you sleep, which is a time that that is essential for optimal health. Yet the idea of going several hours without eating during daytime is frowned upon.

When done correctly, fasting can actually help your body burn fat, recharge, and stay healthy. You've probably heard of cleanse diets that supposedly rid your body of toxins, improve the functioning of your internal organs, and help you age better. Most of these don't work as advertised. The only real cleanse occurs at the cellular level. It's called autophagy, and it's your body's ability to regenerate and become better. Autophagy makes your brain function a little better, helps with fat loss, and even assists in your ability to walk and breathe. But the more time you spend eating-as in actual hours during the day eating-the less time you spend in the autophagic process, which is why fasting isn't a bad thing.

The fad-free truth: Researchers at the University of Utah found that people who fasted just one day per month were 40 percent less likely to suffer from clogged arteries. While there are many ways to fast, the important point is that you shouldn't feel forced to eat if you're not hungry. Short daily fasts (for 12 to 16 hours) or a once-per-week daily fast can have health benefits, and it will teach you to separate boredom or thirst from genuine hunger.

9. Going organic won't help with weight loss.
I love my local farmer's market, and I always do my best to purchase products from the best sources. That said, slapping "organic" on a label does not mean it will help you lose weight, and in some instances it won't even guarantee that a food is healthy. Research published in the Annal of Internal Medicine reviewed 200 studies that compared the health benefits of organic foods to conventional foods and the results were surprising: There were no clearly distinguishable benefits of eating organic foods, whether measured by preventing disease or an assessment of overall health. Specific to weight loss, a random comparison of organic to non-organic foods found no significant difference in nutritional information, including calories.

The fad-free truth: More research on organic foods needs to be conducted. There's no doubt organic foods have fewer pesticides and toxins, the real question is if the sometimes-small difference in toxins makes any scientifically significant difference on your health. More importantly, labeling a food as organic does not mean its weight-loss friendly. Organic sources of sugar are still sugar. And organic products loaded with 1,000 calories are still 1,000 calories. If you want to reduce the potential of anything bad entering your body, feel free to purchase organic products but still keep an eye on the label.

10. There's no such thing as too much protein.
You may have heard that eating lots of protein can cause all sorts of health problems, including kidney stones and gallstones, but this is a moot point for most people. Why? Because there's no research showing any relationship between eating a lot of protein and developing kidney problems. In fact, a study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research tested eating up to 400 grams of protein per day without any negative consequences.

If you have a preexisting kidney problem, it's possible that a higher protein diet could be hard on your body. But if you have a kidney problem, you should be talking to your doctor about your diet anyway.

The fad-free truth: If you're healthy, you are clear to eat protein and not worry about any health problems-because there are none. What's more, protein is one of the most metabolic macronutrients, meaning that the more protein you eat, the more calories you burn. Just remember that calories are still calories so the rules of total intake still apply.