BigTink2LilTink

I didn't start lifting weights until about 7/8 months post op when I could eat beef again. Right now just focus on getting your fluids in, protein and walking. You'll need a good 6 to 8 weeks just for the incisions to heal up properly before you can do more advanced stuff.

Slow and steady so far. I've been benching around 75lbs for the last maybe two to three weeks. Doing roughly about 4 sets of 10 on those. Bicep curls and dips too. I am trying to not really over do it with the weights as I am also allowing my back to heal up from a pulled muscle about a month ago. I will give it another two weeks before I am fully back into the gym. Besides the light/med weight lifting my cardio has increased. I'm walking between 4 to 6 miles a day, and bike riding about 3 to 5 miles a day in the evenings when I get off work. This weekend I plan on doing a long bike ride with hopes of getting about 10 to 12 miles done. I have a motto that I have been trying to live by every day. Keep moving. No matter how stressful life has become, keep moving forward. No matter how tired you are and wanting to give up, keep moving forward. Every time I have doubt creep into my mind, I repeat that saying over and over again, and then I either hit the weights or take a walk. Hell hopefully I'll really start to believe what it is that I'm telling myself soon.

https://www.yahoo.com/beauty/happened-woman-lost-537-pounds-143626909.html I found the topic of the mental issue post surgery to be far more interesting in this article. I can attest from my own journey through this process that I have been suffering from bouts of depression, post-surgery. Its been new and extremely uncomfortable territory that I have had to travel down so far, but it is good to see article like this that do try highlight the possibility of these things happening. This is one issue I felt that my surgeon totally dropped the ball on. He covered the physical risks of the surgery such as ulcers, hernias, possible death, weight regain, but he failed to mention anything about the mental risks of having this surgery. I can say that in the last 16 months I have been battling depression or "depression like states" at least 8 out of those 16 months and I have thought about suicide at least twice during that time frame. I have been seeing a therapist throughout my entire process and getting the necessary mental help to deal with these issues at hand (Not all of my issues were diet/food related). And I have been taking things literally one day at a time. Some days are way better than other days, but I haven't found myself so deep into my depression that the though of actually taking my life seems appealing. So with that said, I know I am not the only one here that has probably gone through this during the life altering changes that bariatric surgery provides. What have you done to help deal with your depression after having the surgery? Does anyone here suffer from body dysmorphia post surgery? I can honestly say that I don't have that issues. I am amazed at how my body is changing honestly, its one of the few positives I have out of this process that I can constantly turn back to, that helps uplift my mood when I do find myself down.

Trying to cheat the process and eat beef way way before I was medically cleared to. Uncontrollable vomiting and a trip to the ER for vitamin deficiency and dehydration taught me a valuable lesson on following the plan.

I was the exact same way. Took two weeks off, came back to work and was exhausted for about a good month. I was really okay until I got back onto soft solid foods again. And even then my body needed a few weeks of that to adjust. I would say take as much time as you need. We all heal and react to the surgery at different rates. Just make sure you are getting your protein amounts in and water/fluids in per day.

Thank you. However the work isn't completed yet. I still have some ways to go before I conclude my surgical journey a complete success. So fair I would say that its successfully moving in the right direction.

Lets see at my heaviest recorded weight I was 597lbs when I saw my surgeon for the first time in April of 2014. I am pretty sure I was even bigger than that, but I never really touched scales unless I was at the doctors office. The day of the surgery with a pre-surgery diet over that summer and then the two week clear liquid diet before the surgery I had got all the way down to about 463lbs the morning of the surgery. I had my surgery in Dec of 2014, so about 7 months of getting rid of as much weight as I possibly could before the surgery to try and avoid any complications. So far I have gotten down to about 255-265lbs. I have been floating around those same 10lbs for a few weeks now. Goal weight for me is to be at 220-230lbs. So yeah the last 30lbs or so pounds I need to lose have been the most challenging to get rid of so far. With summer coming I had initially wanted to reach that goal by the end of May. I don't know if I will get there, but if I would reach it by Aug 1st. I would be totally stoked. Either way good luck to you. Us over 400lbs people can get great results with this surgery. I have lost more weight in the last year and a half that what I actually weight. To date that number is 332lbs.

I guess I will play along on this. Seeing how I am 6'5 closer to 600lbs when I started this process. Man part did I notice a difference. slightly yes. As some other have stated in here the belly as well as some of the fat padding around the groin pelvic region starts to shrink away more of the "Ram Rod of Doom" will come out of hiding. My girlfriend, lord bless her is now very scarred of it. You add to the few inches that I have picked up along with the flood of testosterone in my system and its like being 14 all over again. Except this time I'm 14 with a purpose and no filter and/or awkward shyness to stand in my way. Copulation is indeed 100% better, and I never really had issues with sex before the surgery and weight-loss, I really don't now. I think I said this in another post, that the only consistent exercise based activity that I could do faithfully with no fear was sex. Now its sex, cardio, weightlifting, and just overall being active in general I have no issues with.

I'm sure its always been there. Its just that now its growing and its long and extremely noticeable now. Hell last night I pulled a hair off my belly and it was almost 2 inches long. The leg hairs around my lower legs (calves)are even longer and more pronoun. Its all very weird and very very new to me. To be going though this whole body hair growth process.

I'm having the exact opposite effects here. I've notice over the last 12 months or so I've had a huge increase in body hair. Where before I really didn't have any noticeable body hair on my body, now however is a totally different story. My chest, belly, back, shoulders and legs are getting totally covered in this new hair growth. Is this common for guys going through rapid weight loss to notice a growth in body hair? I remember reading a post on here about how our body can release stored up testosterone in, fat cells when going through rapid weight loss. Is this another side effect to that maybe? Am I the only one turning into a wear wolf here? Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

This is me. I'm now starting to appreciate my progress so far, yet know I still have a long way to go before I'm satisfied with myself. Of course the long picture is current as of 6 days ago. I'm right at around 250lbs at 6'5. The upper right pictures was me at my absolute heaviest weight. Again that was about 598lbs and about 9 years ago. The bottom left picture was about a month post surgery. It hard to tell in that picture, but I was down 130lbs from my heaviest weight. So the journey continues, but seeing these pictures keep me motivated to continue. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

This is my go to Protein powder. I liked it alot, especially early on in the process because it didn't have a flavor I could add it to the Soups I was taking at the time to increase my protein intake for the day. Now I use it when I make my post work out Protein shakes. Its one form of whey Protein that I will always use. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

It really depends on the person. For me I felt bloated for almost 2 months post op. I started on GasX then switched to a papaya enzymes and have been taking those every since to keep the bloating and gas under control. I haven't felt bloated since. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

Yeah I would think that so soon after surgery you would want to avoid the carbonation in those Monster Energy drinks. I went with the atkins coffee Protein shakes that had some caffeine in it early on when I wanted to consume caffeine beverages. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

Yup the spitts is what I called it when I had it back early on. It lasted about 2 months post surgery for me. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

It was about 6 months for me before it stopped. Gas X and papaya enzyme helped me get the gas and excessive saliva under control. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

*Note these are my answers in that I have personally gone through them. So please take that under consideration when evaluating my answers. But I would strongly urge you to error on the side of caution here and always consult with your doctor/surgeon and dietitian when discussing your meal plan options post surgery.* Soda/carbonated beverages/beer: It's better to error on the side of caution with this. I waited about 9 months to 10 months out before I tried drinking a soda again. The carbonation does bother you a bit and makes things inside the tummy feel weird. So I have kept my drinking of carbonated beverages down to an absolute minimum. In fact if I've had 10 sodas in the past 12 months then that would be amazing, seeing how before I had the surgery I was easily drinking 4 to 6 liters of diet Pepsi a day. Now if I do have a soda, I usually will do bottle over a can soda. Let it go somewhat flat before consuming it. It cuts down the carbonation a bit and make me belch a hell of a lot less. Beer I haven't had since the surgery so I have no comment on it. But alcohol in general I feel the affect of it very very quickly now. This ranges from hard stuff like whisky, bourbons, to more milder drinks like coolers and mixed drinks. And because it gets me buzzed/high so quickly I too keep that to a small amount of indulgence. Basically I've only had two drinks of alcohol so far this year alone. And I'm indeed a one and done guy now. One drink will last me the entire night, because I can feel the affect of it so quickly now. Low carb diet forever? Yes for the most part you are on a low to no carb diet for the rest of your life. Get use to eating Proteins first and everything else secondary. It takes a while to get use to but once you do it will become second nature. Now from time to time I may consume a piece of toast every now and then. Rice give me strong gas/bloating so I will rarely consume it. The safe carbs that I have been able to get down are crackers for the most part and toast. Bread early on was indeed a no no and made me super sick. After I had gotten sick a few weeks post surgery for trying to eat bread, I basically stayed away from it till about 9-10 months out. I waited till I was fine with eating more tougher forms of Protein (beef/pork/lamb). No caffeine forever? I drink medium roasted coffee. It has caffeine in it. I don't drink it every day but when I do drink it, I have no issues with it.

I was a type 2 diabetic from Jan of 2006 all the way up until this Jan when my A1C showed that glucose levels were well within normal range. When I was first diagnosed with diabetes I was on metformin for about 2 years before that was no longer affective and I had to switch to Lantus insulin pens.

This was me today at the gym. Hurt my back yesterday helping some friends move so today's workout was cut really really short. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

Isopure Unflavored is my main go to mix. I have never tried Unjury but I have heard a lot of great things about it. Early on I was doing the Atkin's premade shakes, and Isopure protein water, and pure performance protein shakes. I liked the Atkins and Pure Performance, however Isopure's protein water is by far horrible. I just couldn't take the taste of them at all.

Yeah texture temperature can all play a role on how we consume food now. Also for the first 6/12 months post surgery the microwave was a huge gamble for me when it came to reheating food. Some days I was okay. Other days I couldn't eat nearly as much as I could the night before when the meal was fresh. And then there were days when my stomach did a total revolt of all things microwaved. It has gotten better now and I can for the most part tolerate foods being reheated via microwave. And yes if I eat something very carb dense like oatmeal, then I'm not gonna be all that hungry for food later on and the volume of what I can consume is greatly decreased. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App

So far it looks like I am the only guy that has commented in here so far. I was also going to suggest shopping at second hand stores such as Savers, and other thrift stores for clothing. I have a local retailer in my town that buys old stock from normal department stores like Marshalls, Sears, JC Penny, ect and resells them at 20 -75% off retail prices. That place is called 1/2 off 1/2 and I love it. I have saved so much money by shopping there. So I have been going there as well as Savers, and Walmart. Yes my ass has been going to Walmart and buying clothes out of there. To go from a 5XLT to now wearing an XLT and a 58/60 waist to now a 38 waist, finding myself buying clothes in a non big and tall section of a store, or just B&T store altogether is very exciting. Never was a huge clothes shopper cause whenever I would go before I would only find out how I've gained weight. So to see it doing the reverse of that trend and seeing how I'm getting into smaller and smaller clothing is like some sort of emotional high. Anyway I'm not that far off from the weight goal that I'm shooting to be at, so I don't see me shrinking too much anymore either. I see me finally stopping at like a 34/36 waist and maybe a Large or LT large/Tall in shirts. But honestly I'm very happy where I'm at right now in a 38 waist and an XLT shirt. Just need to firm up my mid section (belly/ass/the giblets)

I too have Blue Cross/Blue Shield through my employer, and I think I paid around $400 total out of pocket to cover some of out of pocket expenses. However within the past now 18 months, I've saved over $1k in diabetic medicine/supplies that I no longer need to take anymore. So yeah I would totally pay that $4/500 upfront cost to have the surgery again.

You should be able to get PB2 at Walmart for sure. I got a16oz container from there a few weeks ago. I think I paid about $4 for it.

Thiamine effects memory and concentration. I didn't have the bypass, but instead sleeved and had a huge B1 deficiency afterwards. Was put on prescription Thiamin for almost two months. Now I take an over the counter Thiamin suppliments every morning and my last bloodwork showed my B1 levels within normal range again. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App