vida1015

My photographer friend asked me if I would model for her boudoir portfolio. I said yes because I thought it would be a good way to Celebrate myself now. Still, it's shocking this is me. I still feel fat sometimes and I admit these make me feel really good!!
    
Me before:

WLS Do’s and Don’ts

DO remove the word ONLY from your vocabulary. Ex: I’ve ONLY lost 10 Lbs in 2 weeks… Now let’s look at this again without the word ONLY: I’ve lost 10 Lbs in 2 weeks!! See what I mean? Perception is reality folks!!

DON’T assume you’ll never eat all of your favorite foods again. This is just an excuse your brain has designed to allow you to indulge. You WILL eat all your favorites again someday, just much less but find it to me more enjoyable. Which leads directly into the next:

DON’T do the “last meal” syndrome. You will only sabotage your weight loss you might have pre-surgery or set you back further from your ultimate goal post-op. This surgery is very serious and is for the serious minded. Use this time wisely to get the feeling of how life might be like post op.

DO learn all of the rules pre-op that you will endure post-op. Such as, no drinking with meals, using smaller utensils and plates, engaging in some type of workout routine, limiting your sugar and sodium intake, joining as many WLS support groups as you can.

DO Celebrate every single pound lost! Imagine one pound of butter. Yeah… that’s gone from your body forever. It is noteworthy and worth every bit of a pat on the back as any others that may go along with it.

DON’T compare your successes and losses to others. Chances are very high that you will only come out on the short end and only find yourself disappointed. Everyone’s journeys are their own…

DO keep track of your losses in many different ways than just the scale! Examples:

DO keep one set of your largest clothes you’ve ever worn. Make it a point to try them on, especially when you’re having a down moment. You will find this will really pick up your spirits! This is a real rollercoaster of a ride, and anything that will keep you positive is what you should do!

DON'T keep any other fat clothes around. Get rid of them ASAP. You're never going to fit them again, right? So... off to donations they go.

DO take photos of yourself just before your surgery. Keep them close. Again, having a bad day? Look at them and compare them. As a matter of fact, take photos of yourself often. You will also find that the more you lose, the more you will want to take pictures. Nothing wrong with that!!! That goes with celebrating your losses.

DO take measurements of yourself often. Keeping track of all your inches lost will really keep you on the right track when your scale is being stubborn!!

DO reward yourself every time you hit a mini goal. Make some more worthy than others. I like to go shopping when I hit a goal, it is my favorite thing to do now.

DON’T let the scale define you. Great majority of us will endure many fluctuations and stalls in this journey. It is what it is… patience is the key here. Meditate and envision yourself months down the road at your goal. Smile, then move on!!

DO find out about measuring body fat! It’s more than just weight loss, FAT LOSS is the real goal here. Keep in mind that the BMI scale is greatly inaccurate and most Health Studies do prove this. According to the American Council on Exercise (ACE) our body fat % ranges should be average: 25-31% for Women and 18-24% for men. Any higher is considered obese. However it does go more in depth, according to ages and more. Everyone has different genetic make ups, frame sizes and fitness levels... even a different ethnicity can post differences.

DO have many goals in sight. Having only one, especially a simple weight goal you will find can be difficult. Have many MINI goals along your journey, and more than just ones that involve the scale. Such as, clothing size goals, body fat% goals, fitness or workout goals, dietary goals, etc…

DO challenge yourself always!! Whether it’s a global challenge with others, or personal challenges... It will keep you motivated and always willing to go further than you ever thought you could!

DO have a mentor! Find someone that you can trust and confide in, and that you know has “been there”. Preferably someone you know in person. You will find many folks in your life who have been there, for obesity is worldwide now and there are so many who have been able to defeat this demon. It’s not easy! It quite literally is the toughest feat I’ve ever had to endure. I can say this too, my job will never be done. This is for life!
DON'T believe the myth that your tool has an expiration date. Yes, it's true you will lose the most weight in the first year and it's also true that the further out you are and the closer you are to goal, the harder it is to lose. However, as long as you keep up with your healthy eating and fitness routines you will continue to lose weight and / or keep it off in the many years post op. It all boils down to calories in vs. calories out.
DON'T believe the myth that having WLS will keep the weight off forever. That is our individual responsibility.

And finally…

DON’T ever beat yourself up! We all make mistakes, and dare I say not one person on this Earth is perfect. I try hard to be, no doubt! I always admit that I’m a perfectionist – but I’m far from perfect. I just try to be… The only thing you can do is pick yourself up, give yourself a pep talk, perhaps contact your mentor for reassurance and move on!!! Again, this is for life. Every day you wake up is a second chance.

DO look for solutions to your problems. Otherwise they will just become excuses.


DON’T EVER GIVE UP! I don’t think any explanation is necessary here.

DON'T expect the scale to post a loss every single day. As a matter of fact, don't expect it to move that much even weekly! Just keep doing all the right things and the scale will move in the right direction when it needs to.

DO expect to see fluctuations on the scale, both down AND up. DON'T lose your head over it either. This isn't a miracle cure and the weight isn't going to magically disappear in a few weeks. You have to keep pushing with healthy eating, some type of workout and getting plenty of Fluid.

DON'T let the scale define your journey when there are so many pieces to that puzzle!!!



Good luck to all of you. This journey is a tough one, but if you are here, then you believed in yourself enough to give yourself the life you’ve always dreamed of. YOU WILL BE successful. Always keep that in mind.

Add-ons by other experienced sleevers:

DO keep a list of NSV (Non scale victories) to reflect on when times are getting hard. Can you walk up 2 extra flights of stairs before getting winded? Cross your legs?" and

"DO NOT be afraid to change things if they aren't working. Stalls happen even gains happen. If you are on a long stall look at your eating and decided if changes need to be made. Utilize your tool!" -- Southern Sleever

DO: Keep a food diary of what you eat and drink. This is a great learning tool as to which foods have what amounts of fat, Protein and carbs that add up to your daily intake goals. There are many ways to diary your food - from old fashioned pen and notebook to many options via smartphone apps. Keeping one is the important thing - however is right for you. I use mine now to look back for meal ideas when I hit a blank as to what to prepare for a day or a week.

DO: Realize this is not a diet to be followed for a while then set aside. This is a permanent lifestyle change. Yes, the amount of food you eat will increase as time passes, but your relationship with food will be forever altered. How you Celebrate your joys, successes and holidays will be different. How you mourn your sorrows will be different. Some people need outside help to get through the sometimes overwhelming mental changes this process brings. If you need help with this part of the deal- reach out and get it. -- SKCUNNINGHAM

DO roll with the punches!! -- fern

I was able to wear large scrubs at work today. Never wore a large in anything since fouth grade????

As a comparison here is a before pic, and a current pic. 

Buying scrubs today in regular size L (pants) and M (tops). At one point, I had to wear 4X pants because the 3X were too tight when I sat. Hard to believe.

Went from a 40d -40b. Three months out????

Every day I see new posts from people who feel guilty about "cheating". Some are coming clean about it or are embarrassed about it and amazingly enough, some seem to be bragging or feel empowered by it.
But is it really cheating?
I assume that most all of us are adults here. I also assume that most of us have had, are about to have or are researching WLS. We should know the dietary plan at this point (or there would be no "cheat"), and we should also know the risks associated with eating off plan pre or post op, yet every day people ask if what they are doing is OK and/or look for justification for their actions.

What in the world? It truly makes me scratch my head.
To me (and this is just MY opinion), there is no CHEAT. It's a CHOICE. I chose to have this surgery. I chose my surgeon because I trusted his skills and his knowledge. I chose to have sleeve over bypass or band. I chose to limit the amount that I can eat and drink by drastically altering my body. I chose to eat right 100% of the time on my pre-op (yup! not lying!) and I chose to eat right 90% of the time post op until my doctor said I was free to do otherwise.
I think it's FINE to ask your surgeon/NP/NUT questions if you think you are ready to do anything other than prescribed. I think it's OK to question their answers. I do NOT think it's OK to ask a bunch of strangers on an internet forum to justify choices that aren't good ones-- especially internet strangers who are or were in the same boat as you.
If you want to eat and drink at the same time, more power to you. If you want chocolate and bread and shakes and fries, have at it! If you lick a dorito or chew it up and spit it out, good for you (not really, but...)
I love the "coming clean", I love asking for support, I love asking for coping ideas. I just ask that you take a moment to ask yourself if you are truly cheating or if you are making a CHOICE to do something you should not.

I was able to wear large scrubs at work today. Never wore a large in anything since fouth grade????

You lucky ladies have husbands! Try bring single and losing this weight! Oy!

Blackberry Barbecue Sauce Prep Time - 2-3 minutes
Although I prefer this with 1/4 c of honey rather than the stevia when using on the grill, this certainly gets the job done as a dipping sauce. Turns out we use a LOT less when we brush it on before grilling, and eat a lot more of the stuff when dipping. Thus, I give you, the dipping "go wild" version of this tasty barbecue sauce.
Ingredients:
Blackberries - 1 cup
Tomato Paste - 1/4 cup
Stevia Powder - 1 tsp
Apple Cider Vinegar - 1 Tbsp
Ginger Root, Raw - 1 Tbsp
Onion Powder - 1 tsp
Cinnamon, Ground - 1/2 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Pepper - 1/8 tsp
Preparation
Place all ingredients in a blender of food processor and blend until smooth.
Nutrition (per 1 Tbsp)
Calories - 14
Fat - 0 g
Carbs - 3 g
Protein - 0 g
Sodium - 49 mg

I was able to wear large scrubs at work today. Never wore a large in anything since fouth grade????

I was able to wear large scrubs at work today. Never wore a large in anything since fouth grade????

I was able to wear large scrubs at work today. Never wore a large in anything since fouth grade????

I was able to wear large scrubs at work today. Never wore a large in anything since fouth grade????

I was able to wear large scrubs at work today. Never wore a large in anything since fouth grade????

At first i couldn't stand Water either but after a couple of weeks im able to drink room temp water. Still not able to get in 100 oz but im doing 60 at least.

Nice little story there. Unfortunately, we are all slaves to our own choices. I definitely make no excuses for the bad choices I have made in the past. I guess I got to a certain point where I decided that I want to at least experience a life that was always just out of reach for me because of my weight before I die. But I wouldn't feel right imposing that on someone else, because at the end of the day, it's a very personal decision.

Hey my nutritionist is Christine Sarkissain she is located at beverly oaks surgery center. Really nice nutritionist. She helped me with preparing for my vgs.

OK, here's one I haven't seen addressed: what's with all this low fat, diety food? ?? I thought maybe it would make more sense after my surgery, but it still doesn't. I'm 4 weeks post op and can only eat about a quarter cup at a time. My nut says 3-4 quarter cup meals a day. How can you possibly gain weight on 1 CUP of food a day, even if you are eating full fat meals???? Better yet, how can you NOT lose weight on one cup of food a day?
Before I started this process, I was actually eating pretty healthy. Healthy fats (avocado, coconut, EVO, even some clarified butter). I avoided simple sugars, grains and dairy; ate mostly meats, eggs, lots of vegies (with fats thank you) and some fruit. Some juicing too, mostly veggies with about 10% fruit to make them palatable. I was still overweight (portions and hormones?), but low bp and cholesterol. Healthy. Since starting this program and especially post surgery, I'm told to eat a TON of dairy (which I don't tolerate well), and lots of chemical laden sugar free fake foods like the Protein Shakes and jellos and puddings and Protein Bars, etc. And told to do low or no fat. Sites like the Bariatric Pal are constantly advocating diet food and low cal recipes.
So I just don't get it. I'm not talking about eating high fat, high calorie food all day long, but I don't see why eating healthy food with moderate fat should be a problem. So you don't lose quite as fast. Wouldn't that be healthier and maybe less issues with sagging skin? I just don't get it.
Input from veterans please...what am I missing?

Hey everyone I'm getting sleeved on the 24th of this month. Good luck to everyone!

Good luck Mduffield!

Hey everyone I'm getting sleeved on the 24th of this month. Good luck to everyone!

Hey everyone I'm getting sleeved on the 24th of this month. Good luck to everyone!

I am getting sleeved on the 19th...it's so CLOSE!

Hey everyone I'm getting sleeved on the 24th of this month. Good luck to everyone!