JamieLogical

Multi-vitamin: Vitaleph (which I have been using since pre-op as recommended by my surgeon) B12: MyKind spray (started off using a sublingual, but my nutritionist wanted me to switch to a liquid) Calcium: Citrical Maximum +D3 (initially used the Vitaleph brand that's the same as my multi-Vitamin, but switched after that first bottle ran out) Probiotic: InSync Those are the Vitamins my surgeon/nutritionist required. In addition I take my grocery store's brand of Vitamin C, coq10, and extra D3. I also take NOW Foods brand Omega 3.

I look at old pictures of myself a lot. I have a bunch up on my old SparkPeople page from when I was trying to lose weight on there years ago. So whenever I need some motivation, I go back there and look at them.

I was allowed any strained cream soup during my full liquid phase, so there were a LOT of options. I literally bought every single one my grocery store had. My favorites were Campbell's condensed cream of shrimp made with 2% milk and Progresso's Chicken Cheese Enchilada. I was also allowed drinkable yogurt in my full liquid phase, so maybe that would be an alternative to soup or protein shakes if you are tired of those?

When I eat out I usually order any coffee or drinks before the food comes and then just cut myself off once I start eating, by setting the cup/glass out of reach. I'm allowed to drink right up until the time I start eating on my plan (I can't fathom why anyone should have to stop drinking before eating once they are more than a few weeks out from surgery). So that has always worked for me.

Yeah especially in the early months post-op I would go from "I'm feeling fine" to "OMG, I'M GOING TO EXPLODE" with zero warning. It's gotten a lot better the further out from surgery I've gotten, thankfully.

I am over 20 months post-op and only had foamies one time. It was at this past Thanksgiving. I ate too much too fast, including dense protein (turkey) and it got "stuck" and thus the foamies happened. Never again! I am super careful when I eat things like pork and turkey now!

Wow, I don't know whether to feel encouraged that you are managing to maintain with such a low BMR or discouraged that it's possible to have that low a BMR.... Sounds like you've got it very well figured out what's working for you, though.

To me that sounds a bit more like overeating than an issue with the pork. If you are only a month out, an ounce of cheese and 3 pieces of lunch meat would be kind of a lot to have at one time, I would think.

I second the use of a food scale. It is invaluable for post-op living. I'm over 20 months out and I still use my food scale multiple times a day! Another thing that was super useful to me post-op were these. little baby food containers that hold 2 oz. each: http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B004QZBEFK And for soft food recipes, you can't beat this site: http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2007/08/pureed-foods.html

How far out from surgery are you? A lto of surgeon's plans don't even allow for beef or pork early on, because it can be tough on the newly sleeved.

Glad things are going smoothly for you in general so far. Just stick with the plan and the scale will keep trending downward. Don't panic if/when you hit a stall. It's completely normal. But it sounds like you did your research ahead of time, so you know what to expect. Keep up the good work with your protein and water!

Which surgeon? Sent from my SM-N910V using the BariatricPal App Ariel Ortiz at Obesity Control Center.

@ Holy cow, you people are lucky! My pre-op was 3 shakes a day and one green salad with calorie-free dressing!

@@DrCollins Was that 790 calories for the entire day in maintenance? That seems CRAZY low. I have seen a couple of people on here that need to eat as little as 1100 calories a day to maintain, but under 800?!?!

That's for sure! You will definitely not be able to manage more than tiny sips in those first few days post-op if you have the swelling most people do. If you are one of the lucky ones who can drink normally right out of the gate, you should do so! Getting Water in is soooooo important!

If you *have* to cheat, doing it with high protein/low carb is the way to go. But definitely best to fight through it.

You're not even 2 full weeks out yet. Your surgeon should have given info on you lifting restriction. But definitely don't expect full range of motion for another couple of weeks still. As for breasts, the swelling can last about 2 months.

God, there have been a lot of great moments.... right now the first one that comes to mind is finishing my first half marathon two weeks ago. *I* ran a half marathon! Me!

There's no reason why you would have to. By the time you are back to vigorous exercise post-op, you should be able to drink normally.

You should be getting 64oz. of fluids a day. My nutritionist said to try to drink 1 oz. every 15 minuteswhile awake. As for avoiding eating and drinking at the same time, I just had to make sure I didn't have water within reach while eating in the beginning. But I eventually got used to it and now I can have a glass of water sitting right there while I'm eating and not touch it. Just takes time to get used to it.

It's shocking that you can gain on so few calories even as a runner. I'm a runner now too and have to force myself to eat 2200-2400 calories a dayto not lose anymore weight at 20 months out. I seriously have to eat 8 times a day to get enough calories in.

I was probably around 260 when I started running and I developed problems with my knees, but I believe it was due to ignorance about how to properly care for my knees, not the weight itself. If you have proper shoes, do a proper warm-up, do post-run stretching, start off VERY slowly and for short intervals, and ice your knees after running, you should be able to avoid injury. Be for emy sleeve I began running again at about 250 and doing those things, I did not experience any knee problems.

It won't always be like this. The difficulty drinking is caused be swelling and inflamation, which will get better and better. Once you are healed, you will be able to drink water without discomfort.

@@GinaCampbell Hang in there. We all know how miserable the pre-op diet can be and it sounds like your situation may even be worse than most. At least being housebound means you can't go out to get foods you shouldn't. Seriously though, you have to hang tough. Do NOT give up on getting the surgery just because you are struggling with the pre-op. It seems like you really need it. Just focus on making it through each day. Don't think about how many days you have left and allow yourself to get overwhelmed.

Depends on what you mean by "recovery". Recommended time off work is 4-6 weeks. If you have muscle repair along with the tummy tuck (which you absolutely should for good results), there will be a good few days where you need help with everything, like just getting up and down. Close to two weeks before you can walk fully upright. 8-10 weeks of wearing compression garments 24/7. A good year or so for your lymphatic system to build new channels. I had numbness and phantom itching for about 2 years due to the nerve regeneration. And I'd say it was about 2 years for my scars to fade to the point they are now. I'm almost 5 years post-TT now, thought and I promise that it was well worth all the suffering!In regards to the phantom itching and numbness is it extreme or just annoyingSent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App Not terrible to the point that it kept me up at night, but it was pretty damned annoying from time to time. I almost never have any of that now, though. Just for the first year or two. And it definitely decreased in frequency the further out I got.