JamieLogical

@@goplay94123 Sounds like a great adventure. I'd count the bathing suite and hot tub chat as part of the adventure! All things that I imagine would have been WAY outside your comfort zone not too long ago! Don't fret about pace. That's something you can work on much later, once you've gotten your stamina and conditioning where you need it to be.

It's okay to work out 6 days as long as you are switching things up and not overworking the same muscles. I'd recommend two cardio rest days where you do no cardio. But you can feel free to do strength training on those days. As for whether you should eat less on rest days, I would say the calorie total doesn't have to be drastically different, but you should cut out your pre-workout carby snack, if you are having one (which you should).

I eat a fair amount of carbs, but in a calculated way. It's certainly true that carbs breed carbs. You need to always be putting your protein first. Are you eating carbs at the expense of protein or in addition to your protein?

Thanks. I know it will be worth it, just as the sleeve itself was. I'm not as concerned with the pain, I have a good pain tolerance. I'm more worried about how much time off of work I will need. I had a breast lift with augmentation, extended tummy tuck, and all-over lipo done at one time. I was originally scheduled for four weeks off of work, but ended up taking more than that. Mostly due to soft-tissue swelling in my lower back that plagued me for months. I worked half days for a while upon returning to work. My recommendation would be to plan for 6 weeks off of work, assuming no complications. And depending on how much you have done at one time.

The pain is for real and the recovery is long. The tummy tuck has the hardest and longest recovery. If you have muscle repair along with the panniculectomy (most people do), the pain is incredibly intense in the early weeks. But even if you don't have muscle repair, the incisions take a long time to heal and fade (took about 2 years for mine to fade to their lightest) and the phantom itching/pain and numbness can last about three years or so. That all being said, I am a little over 5 years out from my plastics and they were WELL worth it. Yes, I had a miserable few months (actually had a complication that meant I was in some pain until 9 months out), but that's a distant memory now. My stomach is still tight and flat and I am happy every single day that I had my plastics! Depending on your age, a few months worth of misery can bring you years and years of joy and confidence. Well worth the trade-off in my book!

Has it really been two years? In some ways it seems to have flown by, but in other ways it seems so much longer than that! On this day two years ago, I weighed 236 pounds. Down from my starting weight of 260. I met with the nutritionist at OCC and she told me my goal weight should be 165 based on my answers to about a million questions, my starting weight, how much I'd been able to lose in the past, etc. Not only did I reach that goal right around the one year mark, but I have now been maintaining at or below it for a full year! When I decided to have WLS, I thought of it as "weight maintenance surgery" rather than "weight loss surgery", because I really didn't need help losing weight. I'd lost weight many many times in the past. Having lost the largest amount (90 pounds) back in 2010/2011. My struggle was always keeping it off. So when I found myself back at 260 pounds (within 10 pounds of my highest weight ever) in the summer of 2014, I knew I had to do something different this time. While I had no doubt I could lose the weight again, I also figured I would eventually regain it, like every other time. I decided to have VSG and I am so so happy to have been right in that decision! I've maintained my weight loss for a full year! I have never been able to do anything like that in the past. Whenever I was "done" with a diet before, I started regaining weight immediately, because I went back to the exact same habits that had gotten me there in the first place. But not this time! I'm never going to be "done" with my sleeve. It works with me and I work with it every single day of my life. And how different that life is now! I am running a full marathon on September 18. I have been training for it since May, after having run a half marathon in April, which I had been training for since January. This summer I think I've spent more time being active outside than I have in the past 10 summers combined! I go out. I meet new people. I participate in activities I never would have thought to in the past. I don't binge to cope with my emotions. I enjoy food, but in healthy quantities. All my social activities don't center around food anymore, but when they do, I'm not consumed with guilt and self consciousness. I wear fun clothes. I actually enjoy clothes shopping now, instead of dreading it. I don't feel ashamed walking into a "normal" clothing store anymore. I can ride all the rides at amusement parks and fairs. I can spend a whole day on my feet. I feel strong and confident and comfortable in my own skin! To any of you who are just getting started or are struggling and questioning whether it's all worth it, I can assure you that it absolutely is! It's hard work. It's sacrifice. It's change. But if you put in the effort, you will be rewarded.

It will damage your metabolism long-term if you daily caloric deficit is much below 1000 calories. I've seen so so many people on these forums over the past two years who come back saying they are regaining weight and having trouble maintaining eating some ridiculously low number of calories, like 600 or 800 calories a day. The ONLY reason someone could possibly be having trouble maintaining their weight loss with so few calories is if their metabolism is completely wrecked. For someone my height and weight, I should be burning 1783 calories per day with no exercise. So only eating 800 calories a day and *gaining* weight would be absurd. Luckily I worked hard to push my calories up even while I was in the weight loss phase, since I was exercising a lot. I got in my 100+ grams of Protein every day. And now, I've been maintaining with a normal metabolism. As I said before, with all the walking I do and the training I am doing for my marathon, I am burning about 2600-2700 calories a day, eating accordingly, and my weight is stable.

What's wrong with good, old fashioned water? I love it! I have noticed though, that post-op, it has to be ICE cold (with ice literally floating in it) for me to drink it. Anything any warmer than that sits very heavy in my stomach, unless it's an actual hot beverage, like coffee or tea.

I think 1150 is just too few calories to sustain your level of activity. Try getting it up to 1300 or 1400 and see how you do on the scale. Don't pay attention to day-to-day fluctuations in weight. Keep track over time and watch for trends. Day-to-day fluctuations can just be water weight. Especially when you are working out a lot. Sore muscles require water to rebuild, so you can retain a lot of water when you are pushing yourself in the gym.

Everyone's post-op plan is very different. It is critical that you stick to the one provided by your surgeon/nutritionist. If you have questions about what foods you can eat and when, I highly recommend referring to the instructions you were given and calling the office if something is unclear.

@@saphfyre14 Here's a guide I put together for people who are interested in starting to run: http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/363681-beginners-guide-to-running-for-the-obese/

Considering I remember how big a deal it was the first time I ran ONE whole mile, it's pretty incomprehensible that I will soon be running 26.2! I was doing C25K back when I was 31 years old. I ran a whole mile straight on my treadmill. I called my husband down to the basement yelling and screaming. He probably thought I was dying! And then when I got off the treadmill, I called my parents crying. That's how proud I was of running ONE mile!

Conventional wisdom is that you want to be maintaining at your goal weight for about a year before getting plastics. However, with your high starting weight and corresponding amount of excess skin, you may have to consider plastics sooner in order to keep losing weight, as the skin could really hinder your ability to exercise and keep losing. There's really no such thing as "too soon" for a consult. You might be better equipped to come up with a long term plan if you meet with surgeons sooner than later to get their opinions on the best approach for your situation.

Absolutely!

@@saphfyre14 I don't want to derail you from your surgeon's/nutritionist's plans too early, but ultimately you do need to figure out what is going to work for you. I am a runner. I am currently training for a full marathon (race is less than three weeks away now!). I have to do what I have to do to make sure I can handle my runs and fuel my body. I am in maintenance now, so it is *especially* hard for me to get in enough food to not lose any more weight. Most people on these forums would think I am crazy for eating the way I do, but it's what works for me. In the last 28 days, I have averaged a burn of 2674 calories a day. I wear a FitBit Blaze with a heart rate monitor 24/7, so I believe that number to be pretty accurate. Do you know what it takes for a bariatric patient to eat back 2600 calories a day?!?! I have to eat 7-8 times a day. I have to eat calorie-dense foods like nuts and cheese. I have to eat 3 Protein bars a day. It's a lot! But it's what I need to do for me and my lifestyle. You will need to figure out what works for you through trial and error, the same way did. Just don't wreck your metabolism by eating far too few calories and causing yourself too large a daily calorie deficit, which is what I suspect is happening right now and why you are stalled.

This is absolutely correct. The point of the pre-op liquid diet is to shrink your liver. Some weight loss during this time is a signal to your surgeon that you did stick to the diet, but there is no target amount to lose. Almost all of the weight people lose on the pre-op diet is just Water weight anyway. The point of it is to shrink your liver by depleting it of glycogen. Glycogen is one of the reasons we retain water. Once the liver is depleted of it, we will retain less water, thus a drop in water weight.

@@saphfyre14 If you aren't willing ot give up your workouts (I'm right there with you by the way!), then you need to focus on properly fueling your body for them. You need to be getting in probably closer to 1400 calories a day with the amount of exercise you are doing. Absolutely make sure you are getting in 85-100 grams of protein a day. Start tracking if you are unsure how much you are getting. And for days you work-out, try having a pre-workout snack that is mostly slow burning carbs (I know that's a dirty word!). I usually do something like a Clif bar or a piece of whole grain toast with some peanut butter. If you have issues with getting dizzy or light-headed after a workout, eat a few gummy bears.

I would say I really felt settled in and like my surgery wasn't "THE THING" in my life anymore around four months post-op.

If there is one thing I learned VERY early on post-op, it's that comparing myself to others was a recipe for disaster. I was a "slow" loser by every definition of the word. Of all the people on these forums who had surgery around the same time as me, I was the slowest one. But you know what? None of that mattered in the end! This isn't a race! I still got to my goal and I've been maintaining for a full year. I never look back now and say "man, if only i'd lost the weight one month sooner!" It's completely irrelevant now. I got to goal and I am happily living my life there! The whole rest of my life! A few weeks or months makes so little difference in the grand scheme of things!

If you are just asking for the sake of FUTURE stalls and not referring to your specific Week 3 Stall, then there are some more things you can do to try to "break" a stall. Whether any of them work is anybody's guess. It certainly might make you feel better to try. But I would be wary of correlation versus causation. Most stalls will eventually break on their own as long as you are sticking to the plan.

It's hard in the early weeks. I cried almost every day worrying that I would never feel "normal" again. You will get there! I promise. It may not be your old normal, but you will get to a new normal and be able to live your life like a real human being again. It's hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel so early out, but you will look back at these posts one day and it will all be a distant memory. Just focus on one step at a time right now. Work on your protein! Go to GNC or Vitamin Shoppe, if you have one in your area, and try some sample sizes. Try getting your protein from other sources too. I relied heavily on greek yogurt and string cheese in my early weeks post-op.

Focus on liquid first. Yes, Protein is important, but dehydration will be much more of an immediate issue. You really really really need to be getting water/liquids in. Try for 1 ounce every 15 minutes while you are awake. It's hard, I know. But take tiny sips and pace yourself. One thing that helped me a littler was marching in place while sipping. You need to work at Water and protein like it's your full time job these first few weeks.

You just had major surgery. You likely have a lot of internal swelling. Your body is reeling from everything it's been going through these past few weeks. Just follow your plan and stay off the scale. You DO NOT need to be weighing yourself in this first little stretch. You need to be focusing on healing and caring for your body properly,

Well, you should count your blessings that you are allowed to eat so much! I was only allowed 3 shakes and one green salad with calorie-free dressing per day. You should be able to make it on 6 shakes and all those extras for sure! It won't be easy. The pre-op diet sucks for everyone. But it's only 14 days and you have your whole life to live, so just hang in there! The first 3-4 days will be hardest as your body enters ketosis. You will likely have headaches and light-headedness.

I think nearly every single one of us has experienced a stall at one point or another. I'd say about 90% of us go through the Week 3 stall around three weeks post-op. Very few people escape that one. And for that one you really need to just stick to your surgeon's post-op plan, get your Protein and Water in, walk as much as possible, take your Vitamins, and give your body time to heal and recover. If you are further out and experiencing a stall, there are several things you can do. Wait it out. If it's only a week or two, your body might just be adjusting, so just stick to your plan and see if the scale starts moving again on its own. shake things up. If you've been in a rut with your food and exercise routine, maybe just try to shake things up a bit. Try a new workout. Try working out in the morning instead of the evening or vice versa. Try some new foods. Take a scientific approach. Really start tracking every bite of food, sip of water, and minute of exercise and see if you can identify what the problem might be. Are you meeting your protein goals? Are you eating too much or too little? Are you exercising too much or too little? Are you eating too many carbs? Are you eating too much sugar? Are you not drinking enough water?