BigViffer

@Creekimp13 - yeah it's been talked about before, but it has been a while. It is pretty common for this to happen; for both men and women. Decreased body mass leads to better controlled blood pressure and circulation. Loss of fat around the pubis allows for deeper penetration. Loss of fat around the abdomen and legs allows for greater range of movement too. The increased blood flow to the genitalia allows for greater sensitivity as well. Add all that together and it makes for better physical performance on both sides. The psychological effect of having better sex also leads to the desire to do it again and with more frequency. It's pretty much a win-win scenario for all!

I take dicoflenec (generic Voltaren) daily. I have taken it every day since my surgery with omeprazol. I have severe arthritis and cannot move will without it. I used to take it twice a day, but since losing the weight, I have been able to cut it down to once a day. Having the sleeve surgery doesn't mean you can never take them again, it just means that you will most likely need to keep your PCP and surgeon in the loop. The reason for the aversion is because it can cause ulcers in the stomach. An injected NSAID should be fine. As always, verify with your surgeon.

@Monkeyfulbrighter - adorable! Don't tease though, show more puppy pictures!

Roman candle fights, BB gun fights, cherry bombs and firecrackers, jumping out of the hayloft into snow drifts, riding on a sled being towed by a truck... maybe that is why I never grew up to eat Tide Pods! I learned about my mortality during the formative years!

While I agree that wearing safety equipment is a good idea, I don't think it should be mandated. I wear all the safety gear when riding my motorcycle, but I don't care if a Harley pirate wants to wear just jeans, vests, and bandannas. That's pretty much the definition of freedom. Free to make choices and mistakes that you have to endure the consequences. The examples you give of home schooled kids on both ends of the spectrum are just as prevalent in public schools, if not worse. I went to school with very talented football players who could barely read. Many times the athletic heads would make sure they passed. Other times, there were just some people no one cared about. Teachers can be just as judgmental and jaded as any of us after years of dealing with bureaucracy. Part of the reason I quit going for my teaching degree. As for the atheist thing, I always kinda thought that was a Boolean thing. One either is or is not atheist. So I guess you could say you are a devout atheist!

I survived an entire childhood riding a bike without a helmet. Hell, I'd be up and out the door in the early morning and only come back for Kool-Aid until dark. Maybe they are trying to raise children that aren't complete pansies? As for homeschooling, it is a growing trend, and for good reason. And I am not talking about what passes as "bullying" in the school system. Testing results are consistently higher for home schooled children. Learn at the pace most natural to the child, take tests when you are feeling physically optimal and mentally focused. The only thing I don't like about homeschooling is the social interaction that is missing. I don't mean seeing friends, or participating in extracurricular activities; they actually have sports and clubs usually with the other home schooled kids. But learning to work with groups of people whom you may not like or find difficult to work with. You know, real world adult situations. Many of these kids will be ill prepared to deal in those situations.

The honeymoon period is the period of time that weight loss and maintenance is the easiest. It will be unique to the individual and how well they follow a typical bariatric friendly diet. For me, it lasted from Feb 2015 until June 2016. That is when I surpassed goal and then bounced back up a little bit. I have maintained a stable weight since, but I am probably more strict with my diet and physically active than most. You'll know when you are in the honeymoon phase when your calorie intake week over week is lower than what is needed to maintain your body weight. Once you start consistently hitting a calorie goal that is equal to your BMR (basal metabolic rate) your weightloss will stop. If you start exceeding that rate, you will slowly start gaining until the calories and established weight reach equilibrium. If you are eating more than your BMR plus active metabolic needs, you start gaining weight. This is why tracking food is important for some (like me).

I'm gonna buck the trend here and say, meh. I eat as late as 10 o'clock frequently. I'm hungry, my calorie goal for the day wasn't met and I needed the protein. I'll frequently make a protein cake with peanut butter and "iced" with plain yogurt. Bed time is about midnight. I believe that it really comes down to the relationship you have/had with food. I was a bulk eater, never a snacker. I didn't eat from boredom frequently, so the late night snack isn't a slider habit for me.

Bad news about that Genepro. It's still whey and it's crap:

Avoid Genepro, it is crap and was successfully sued for false claims of "medical grade protein" and the claimed 30 grams of protein. It is actually been proven in court that it is only 11 grams. https://www.pacermonitor.com/public/case/19892822/SI03,_Inc_v_Musclegen_Research,_Inc

I go to a rec center and they have a day care there as well. There may be something like that as well in your area. My children are older (16 & 13) so they don't go, but I have taken them to the gym with me and there is no cost. They just walk on the treadmill or stationary bike and watch Netflix on their phones.

I've had a minor set back. My knee was causing me pain, so I took a month off. I went to a doctor then was referred to a specialist. Looks like I need surgery. My patella has arthritic growths that are digging into the soft tissue beneath. Good news is that it is not related to my lifting. Bad news is that he said it was "maturity related". I.E. he called me old! I have started lifting again, but with a renewed focus on my form. I must have been getting sloppy before because I don't seem to have the pain after deadlifting nor squatting. But I played volleyball with my daughters and that inflamed it pretty bad. Surgery will need to happen, but I want to push it off as long as I can. Since you are trying to lose weight again, are you following a bariatric diet currently?

Yes, collagen is the most abundant protein in the body, but that doesn't mean it's the miracle protein solution to add to a supplement. Heck, nitrogen is the most abundant gas in the atmosphere, that doesn't mean it's the best gas to breathe in. Did you know there was a time that cigarettes were actually prescribed by doctors to treat emphysema? A favorite discussion on this forum in the past was how the low fat or sugar free foods we used to eat had more calories than the normal versions. But people bought those products in droves because we wee told that fat was bad and carbs were bad because at the time there was allegedly extensive and rapidly growing body of scientific research supporting their claims. But as time went by, those research studies were proven wrong and turned out to be funded by the people selling the very product to solve the epidemic at the time. Ever notice on a bag of pork rinds that it states "Not a significant source of protein" even though the nutritional label says there are 8 grams per 100 calories? It's because the FDA requires them to put it there: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=101.9 To quote the relevant part: In lay terms, amino acid composition of pork rinds sucks. PDCAAS is the standard used here, which compares the quality of the protein to milk protein. Pork rinds (collagen protein) are full of fairly useless amino acids and severely lacking in a lot of the important ones. Adding Collagen to a protein blend is truly nothing more than filler. A cheaper way for people (any people, not just bariatric patients) to help their joints with a supplement would be glucosamine. Don't get me wrong, I know you are just offering a product Alex because you have a business to run. But the way you copied/pasted the marketing material as a post makes it look like an endorsement.

@Miss Norway - Hoping you perhaps get a notification of this comment. It's been a while and I was curious if you decided to move forward with surgery or keep up the power lifting? Anything new with the lifts?

lol, Clinical Strength protein... medical strength protein... those are MARKETING labels, not medical labels. There is no prescription, clinical, or medical grade protein. That would be like a prescription beef. And even if there were such a thing as medical grade protein, you can bet your bippy that it wouldn't contain collagen as the first ingredient of it's "protein matrix". For those not aware, collagen is like chewing your fingernails. Or eating jello. Or pork rinds. It is not a significant source of protein. And having whey sandwiched between that and casein does not make for a compelling product. For $30 bucks, buy a tub of 100% whey concentrate or isolate. Or go for Soy if you're vegan. But avoid collagen because it does nothing for the rebuilding of muscle tissue. It MIGHT help skin elasticity or hair loss. (I am not saying that after you stretch the hell out of your skin this will help with stretch marks. That ship has sailed.)

lol, I am going to assume you have not worked at a place that has a pool. I mean no insult, but just speaking from personal experience, I have seen people use the pool as a bathtub. Don't shower before getting in after getting hot and sweaty, couples having sex in the water, kids peeing, adult peeing, women who honest to god believe that they stop menstruating once submerged in water (I am not even joking on that one), and people with open sores or infections that think that the chlorine will clean the wounds. That last part is true; but still, ewww. I remember the sanitation crews talking about how people don't bother wiping because the pool will take care of it. There is a very good reason to avoid pools and especially hot tubs & saunas, post surgery. The amount of bacteria is staggeringly high.

The thing about pools and gyms in general is that they are a hotbed of bacteria. First rule is to ask your surgeon. Rule of thumb would be to wait until you have completely healed incisions that you no longer need so much as a bandaid to cover.

@FluffyChix - the liver I can get behind, liverwurst though... that's just nasty.

I'm very interested in this cricket protein. I'm going to have to do some research. Thanks for bring it up on the forum. I was concerned about my iron levels post op even though I am a sleeve patient. However, it turns out that my iron levels are now much higher than pre-op. To the point that my doctor was concerned and thought I might have developed hemochromatosis. Turns out I just needed to cut back on my kale, spinach and other high iron foods. I was evidently over compensating.

Ladies - I know the topic probably just popped up in the New Post filter or Unread, but this question was posted in the Guy's Room. (Still wished this place was changed to The Humidor!) Todd - weightlifting is my major stress reliever. Then in the warmer months, motorcycle touring. The latter has become so much easier and more enjoyable since losing the 100-ish lbs.

Yes it is tasteless and dissolves well, but that's because it's worthless. These are just some recent posts about it, there are literally hundreds already on here though.

Respectfully, I disagree with almost everything you said. Most of the comfort foods I used to love I look at now and just kind of wonder why I was so hung up on them. Food for fuel is almost a mantra for me. I check my macro's throughout the day before deciding what I will have next. If I am low on carbs prior to lifting, packet of oatmeal. If I am low on protein come dinner time, piece of meat or protein bar. Food is meant to keep us alive, the companionship of a meal can be pleasurable though. Taste preferences is where I will agree with you though. My tastes changed drastically while people I know have zero change in their tastes. As for beating emotional eating, you may be right that you can't kill it. But you can learn to recognize it and stop before it becomes a problem.

There is no evidence that Kombucha is "healthy", but there is mounting evidence that it may be unhealthy. And the alcohol is no more naturally occurring than the alcohol in wine. Both occur because of fermentation through the introduction of bacteria to a sugar base/broth. I am not a wine drinker, so I can't recommend anything. But I do want to say good on you for waiting on drinking. Wish more people would be conservative in this regard.

I always cringe when I see this factoid put out there. Protein absorption and synthesis happen at different rates for everyone. A 120 lb individual will have protein different absorption rate than a 230 lb individual. The 30 gram number is just an average rate of absorption from whatever sample was used. All of that being said, any protein above the one hour absorption threshold doesn't get discarded or turned into fat. It is still being digested for use. The body will process all the protein ingested. Any protein in excess of the necessary amount for synthesis could be excreted through urination or converted into fat.

If it really bothers you that much, you can always report the post. In the upper right hand corner there is an icon for sharing. Hover over it and the words "Report post" will appear. A little box will appear for you to enter a description or reason for the report. Me personally, meh.