biginjapan

Sorry guys! Most of us will never be professional athletes who have so much muscle that our BMIs don't reflect reality. However, with this being the guys room, I could understand how BMI might not be an important measure since a lot of men who lose weight also do a lot of weight training.

My lowest adult BMI was 23, which I was at for barely 6 months. I was a healthy overweight person most of life, active in a lot of sports and eating fairly healthily. So yeah, I'd like to get back there. My goal is to hit 24 BMI, cause I can't imagine myself any thinner, plus, it gives me some wiggle room in case I do regain a little with the "bounce back". But who knows - I may change my mind if and when I get there (which will admittedly be quite a while from now).

So, I'm not a guy, but like you, I had no pain post-op and have felt great ever since. My biggest issue was that I could consume more than recommended, or what other people could handle. For example, 1 or 2 sips or water was not a big deal for me, nor was half a cup (day 2 post-op when we were given liquids). I'm a month out from surgery now and I usually eat 1/2 cup to 1 cup worth of food at a sitting - something I shouldn't be able to do 6-12 months from now (based on what i've read of other people's experiences). I'm not overeating - I'm in the calorie range recommended by my NUT, and I get 80-110g of protein in every day, and I keep my fat and carb levels low (I try to keep carbs lower than fat grams, but that doesn't always work out). That said, now that I am eating real foods, I do feel the restriction more - I often have to put the leftovers of my meal away for a small snack later on. So the restriction so far has mainly come from eating meat (chicken) and eggs (if I have more than 1). I'm trying hard to stay within recommended limits because I realised that I probably wasn't feeling anything because of the nerves being cut in my stomach. So unlike those that have a hard time with it physically, I have to deal with it mentally and remember to slow down and not worry about finishing everything on my little plate. In the first 2 weeks post-op I got all my protein from shakes (that I mixed myself, not the premade stuff, which I don't really care for). When I was eating strained soups I added unflavoured protein powder to that (make sure to mix it with cool water first, before putting it into the soup, otherwise it'll clump.) Now that I'm eating more food I only need one shake a day to make sure I hit my minimum goal (which 80g at the moment). Anyway, good luck and let us know how you go.

Wow - great story and I think most of us here can relate. Good luck with your surgery on Monday!

Everyone is different. Some have a rough time after surgery, some don't. I didn't. I never had any nausea, very little if any fatigue. Day 4 post op I did 10,000 steps and day 5 over 20,000. I will say I did have to push through some fatigue when I started walking, but once I did, I was great for the rest of the day. Since then I have been doing somewhere between 10-15,000 steps a day. Luckily for me, I have 2 months off work (natural school holiday) but I could have gone back within the first week. That said, although I had energy, I didn't really have to concentrate on anything, so that could have made a difference. Also, I noticed in the first 2 weeks post-op that I felt more tired and more fatigued the more I rested. The more I got up and moved around the better I felt. However, like I said, everyone is different. The best thing to do would be to book as much time off as you can (2 weeks sounds good if you can manage it), but if you feel better sooner than expected, then you could go back earlier, maybe starting with half days, just to see how it works out.

I used to drink Diet Coke/Coke Zero a lot - at least 16oz a day, but often twice or three times that amount. I had that habit for about 20 years. I gave it up cold turkey 3.5 years ago and I haven't missed it since (this was long before I ever decided to have bariatric surgery). Yes, I did have some cravings in the first couple weeks afterwards, but I was able to overcome them, unfortunately with other sweet things, like chocolate. I've heard from people that giving up soda also curbed their sweet cravings, but that wasn't the case for me. In fact, my sweet cravings went into overdrive. But eventually I was able to deal with that too. Based on what I've read, here are the reasons why any kind of carbonated drinks are not recommended, at least for the first six months (or ever): while it does not stretch your stomach, it probably feels like it does, and can be very uncomfortable for you you should be trying to keep the acidity of your stomach down, not increasing it empty calories - do not be fooled by the "sugar-free" label. Yes, you may not be consuming calories, but the rest of your body (your pancreas in particular) still thinks you are and will secrete more insulin to deal with the anticipated sugar rush. Of course, there is no sugar, but what happens over time is that you end up becoming more and more insulin-resistant and/or pre-diabetic/diabetic (if you aren't already). if your stomach is full from carbonation you won't have room for the food you really need soda, for many people, often accompanies other foods they shouldn't be eating, like pizza or burgers or fried food or chips or...You may have trained your body for years with those kinds of associations. It may be a slippery slope to start drinking soda again and not want a bite or nibble of something to accompany it. most people who admit to drinking soda weekly or somewhat regularly again have lost most of their weight and/or are in maintenance. That's a much different situation than being within 6 months of major abdominal surgery. In the end however, it's up to you. To the OP: I noticed that your profile says that you are pre-op. Like so many other habits (coffee, smoking, alcohol, etc) this is one addiction that you should probably get a hold of before surgery. The more you can deal with these things beforehand, the better.

That I don't know! Hopefully someone who runs this site will read this and be able to give us an answer. Also - in the "status updates" bar on the left, just below the title there is a space that says "What's on your mind?" You can add your update there too, or do you not see that either?

Yeah, I keep fumbling around with this since the new update. But here it is: In the top menu bar, next to your username on the right, it should say "+Create". If you click on that there is a dropdown menu and the very first item is for status updates! Actually that create button is a shortcut to all the main things you may want to do on this site. Cheers!

It's been a month and a day since surgery. I lost 23 pounds pre-op, but only 15 pounds post-up. I've been stalled for 2 weeks, although my weight has been fluctuating up and down by the same 1 or 2 pounds. I've cut back on dairy, which has helped with a lot of issues, and I'm trying to get my calories in (my NUT wants a minimum of 800 daily), which I can do, but I feel like I'm either full or eating all day. I would have liked to have lost more by this point (I was hoping for 20 pounds post-op) but I put on a pair of jeans today that I haven't been able to wear in over 2 years, so that's a nice NSV. I've also noticed that my fat seems more loose and jiggly (I was always kind of solid before), and that I've got some weird bulges in my thighs that I never had before. The inches are coming off, I just want that d@mn scale to move!

Interesting! I sent away for my DNA to be tested by 23andme back in February, but I'm still waiting on the results to come in.

I had IBS when I was younger and it developed into full-fledged ulcerative colitis by the time I was 30. I've been on meds for it off and on since then. I had my surgery 3.5 weeks ago and I have to say I haven't had any symptoms. I think. It's hard to know what's normal after sleeve since I've never had a sleeve before. Unlike many other people, I do not suffer from constipation post-op, and usually have a bowel movement 3 times a day - it's always loose and soft, similar to what I had pre-sleeve. However, I do know that when I went on the pre-op diet, which allowed lean protein and non-starchy vegetables, and was no dairy or alcohol or caffeine, all of my symptoms cleared up immediately and I had no issues. The big difference between then and now is that I am eating cheese and greek yogurt to help meet my protein goals, but I wonder if that is affecting my BMs. However, I'm not going to change anything until I back to full foods and can cut back on the dairy. I'm not taking any meds for the colitis at the moment as I don't know how well they'll work with my new sleeve. I'm going to go talk to my gastroenterologist next week about it. That said, I've done some research about it and it seems that the sleeve really helps alleviate symptoms. I know colitis and IBS in general are not exactly the same, but as I have suffered from one or the other for over 30 years, to me there is little difference between them.

I love them - they've been my go-to protein powder since I started with my pre-op diet. They mix really well (no clumping) and have natural flavours. That said, since surgery, there are a couple of flavours that don't taste quite the same for me (but not all of them).

Actually, it's hard for me right now, because this is usually a time I do a lot of shopping online in order to have some new clothes for the start of the school year here in Japan (which is April 1st). But I'm reluctant to buy anything because of the anticipated weight loss. The only thing I really need are leggings (capri ones of course) so I can wear them under skirts and not have wear nylons (of which I have a ton, but will probably never wear now). I'm off to Europe next week so maybe I can find a few things while I'm there.

I've got sizes from 24/26 down to 18/20 here with me in Japan. I know that I can shop from my own closet, but I have a feeling that I've got a real mixed bag of stuff - maybe lots of shirts, but not so many pants (most die pretty early due to the dreaded "chub rub" of my thighs+heat+humidity), etc. - it may not be enough to cover me for work. Luckily I can go pretty casual if I need to, and hopefully I'll be able to stick mostly to those items until summer hits and I can do some shopping at home IRL, as opposed to online.

I love capris! They're a still a little short, but I don't mind since it rains so much here - those extra inches off the ground make a big difference to keeping dry. I've only ever bought mine from Nordstrom (when they have them in stock), since they make a pair that isn't horrible on my pear-shaped body, and they ship to Japan. What I really want though, are some wide-leg pants (also cropped)- I've been wearing some for the past year, and they've been great for work. However, I can't seem to find any that are cheap enough and that aren't linen or cotton (would never last more than a month for me in the humid heat we have here). Anyway, I feel your pain. At 5'3" the Petite sizes are sometimes too long for me and/or they don't fit me as nicely as the regular sizes do. I will shorten pants myself, but of course it's never as good as buying something made for your height. Over the past 6 years I've mostly been wearing mid- to longish skirts for work, since they're easier and hide my extreme curves a bit better.

I'd also like to get back into hiking. My weight, my knees, and my feet have all prevented me from going places that I either used to hike, or would like to. As I get more fit and active I'd like to work towards a really big goal, like doing the Camino de Santiago or climbing Kilimanjaro.

You look great! What an inspiration - I hope I am as successful as you a year from now!

I struggled with the no drinking 30 min before and after eating during pre-op, mostly because I'm such a creature of habit. Now, even if I pour myself a drink (water), I'll let it sit in the kitchen and will only go back for it once my 30 minutes has passed. I do chew until there is nothing left to chew, but I'm still eating and drinking faster than I probably should be. That said, I feel full for a good long while afterwards. I'm on vacation now, but I know once I start back to work I really will have limited time to eat, so 20-30 minutes to finish whatever is not going to cut it, especially for snacks. But I'll worry about that when the time comes.

Are you drinking any Protein shakes? What stage are you at? I'm at the end of 3 weeks, 4 weeks begins tomorrow which means I can introduce regular foods (slowly), although I started 2 days ago with chicken breast. I usually hit 80-90g of protein a day. I always have one Protein shake, which I make with soy or almond milk, plus Protein Powder (20g). That can get me between 25-35g of protein, depending on what I put in the shake (sometimes I also blend greek yogurt or a small block of tofu into the shake which also ups the protein even more.) I also try to have one or two eggs a day, and I usually have some string cheese as a snack as well (sometimes 2). When I started purees I ate canned tuna (with a little cheese) or the ricotta bake for one of meals. I also added unflavoured powder to blended Soups. This is all really protein heavy, but it gets me to my goals. Now that I'm starting with regular foods, I will be adding more veggies, when I can, and will try to cut back on the cheese, so that my diet is more balanced.

What a great NSV! I can't wait to be able to wear white pants! And tuck in a shirt!

I'm worried about this as well, but I seem to be handling cheese and yogurt okay. I don't use milk (and haven't for years) - I make my shakes with almond or soy milk, although I've noticed that I have issues with soy now that I'm post-op. Unfortunately it's hard to find almond milk here in Japan - my local supermarket does have it, but in the tiny 200ml juice box size.

I'm 3 weeks post-op and I basically have liquid poo coming out at least 3 times a day (occasionally it's more 'formed'). Based on everything I've read here I was expecting constipation, so I guess I should be relieved about that. That said, I do sometimes have to be careful when I cough or sneeze.

I've lost a housecat since surgery, a cinderblock including pre-op diet, but my total goal is to lose the average adult woman.

I'm going through something similar. I had my sleeve done on Feb. 9th, lost 11 pounds in the first 10 days, and haven't lost any in the past 10 days. I hit my water intake, protein, and calorie goal every day. Like others have said, stalls are normal, and I know that, but as you and others have mentioned, it's frustrating not to see the scale move. That said, mine appeared to be wavering this morning, so maybe I'll see some progress soon.

It's probably the dreaded 3-week stall, although I have never heard of any plan allowing rice or bread, especially this early. I'm also 3 weeks post op and haven't lost for over 10 days now - all I have lost post op is 11 pounds. The only carbs I get are from almond/soy milk, and tofu occasionally when I add it to a shake.