FluffyChix

Doing a long fast. Don't know where I'm gonna stop it. Gonna see how far I can go today. I will confess to being totally confused about protein and LBM retention. I "think" (whether it is cognitive dissonance or not), that I'm gonna choose to magically believe in Dr. Fung's premise...that WHILE losing, we don't need to hit the optimal protein goals for longevity because if we fall below our daily protein goals now and then, and do it long enough, then the body WILL go into autophagy and get the proteins from the things we don't need (i.e. extra skin, empty fat cells, broken proteins, old dead cells, etc.) But gosh, I surely don't know the truth. And I don't know how me doing this long fast is any different than @Sheribear68 doing a long IF being still so new to WLS. Wish I had real answers rather than opinions! What I do know is that I'm used to fasting on Mondays and Tuesdays and I kinda "look forward" to those days to get back on track and clean out after the weekend. I guess I don't feel so guilty about the weekends by doing this. I'm not losing much--maybe 1-2lbs/month doing it this way--mostly just maintaining between 142-146lbs. Sigh. LOL. Happy Monday! How's everyone else doing?

@Sheribear68 Welcome. Hope you hang out with us and play. IMHO, you are not ready for IF. Before trying IF, it's incredibly important for your doc/RD to be on board with the program/plan. But it's also super necessary to be able to get in your water every day AND be able to eat enough quantity to get your protein down to meet protein goals--whatever they may be. To me, eating 1/4c of food is too little of a volume to be able to justify IF--you probably are alreay IF everyday just be virtue of your calorie reduction <600 cals/day? You have to do things slowly. Focus on healing your body from the surgery and just keep carbs low while getting your healthy dense protein in each day (and all your water)!!!

I like it. ???? But I’m just incredibly average—so it actually is applicable to me. I played along with my Mom’s opinion that I was just “big boned” all my life until I had the surgery and lost a ton of weight and discovered I wasn’t. LOL, the big fat lie was exposed. I’m average and trying to get into normal. ???

How cool!! Sitting here drink a cup now! ? Doxorubicin=Red Devil. Gosh I hated that drug! But it did it’s job. So weird how things change. 8 years ago my onc made me stay away from all vitamins and antioxidants—especially ECGC in green tea. They didn’t want to risk it protecting the cancer from the chemo and radiation. Won’t it be cool for this to translate to human cancers to become a super killer?!! Thanks for sharing. I always love your shares!

Dang. Welcome to the group and glad you are doing so well! Hope you dive in and post often. Congrats on 100lbs down!

Holy cow! Thanks for sharing and welcome to coming out of lurkdom! Post often! Congrats on being 100lbs lighter and on getting control of things. So happy for you.

I spent $14.99 at BigLots for a Hamilton Beach one--looks kinda like a NutriBullet. Get's the job done on my green smoothies and that's about all I use it for. I have other tools for other things. I skipped the mush/puree stage and went straight to softs per my doc.

Ha! Then come back here and tell ALL the secrets!

Wooohooooo girl!!! Congrats on 16 months of fun and games! Great foods and food pix + great photo journal of you. You're smokin' it girlie! We demand piccys of the bikini when summer hits! You are such an inspiration and an uplifting spirit here. So happy to know you!! ????

Maybe ask your fave Indian restaurant their secret?

You can do it! (Oh god...the summer swimsuit season...*sob*) I can't wait to watch. Will you post your experiment here? Like your menus/volume you eat? I'm still trying to hit my 140lb goal. I was back down to 142, then up to 146. Today I'm at 144lbs. And yeah, would love to be able to drop 10 by the summer. It's so very hard. I'm back to doing 10K+ steps per day. It takes me longer than 1 hour, so I'm going as far as I can and consistently getting over 3miles/day. But little to no movement. Trying to trick my body with doing diff cals each day. Now trying to hold carbs to 30 whole carbs/day again to see if I can get over 0.5 on the keto meter. I did finish eating at 7pm last night, so today I started eating at 1pm so not to push the time window. Would like to start narrowing that back towards 7pm. Having a ginormous green smoothie for first meal. I also put psyllium husk in it (10g) but don't count it cuz it makes me so mad to see the calories and carbs from it when all I'm having is 30g carbs/day. I know it does count and that I'm lying to myself...oh well. LOL.

Ah ok. So hard and fast times/windows. Let us know how it works for you--if it makes it easier?! How many times are you eating during your eating window? I feel like I have to get 3 meals in to get all my food in. ? And often I feel like that just keeps my insulin jacked up cuz there's never enough "non-eating" time in that eating window? Do you feel that way?

'splain please, Lucy? Not following what you have been doing. I pretty much finish eating at 8pm. So then I go to 2pm for a 16:8. Or I go to 4pm for an 18:6. That's what most of my times are. Sometimes though I finish at 6 or 7, then I will take it back the 2 hours to either 12 or 2. Is that what you're saying? I've just flat decided (again) that I can't do longer than 18hours. Cuz I've got to try to get my protein in without over eating portions. ? Listening to Dr. Phinney talk, he really goes way higher on protein reqs than Dr. F. It's highly confusing. But I do know that I've lost lean body mass along with the fat...so dunno. ? What are your thoughts on the whole protein thing? I can post Phinney links about protein/keto and his take on IF if you want?

IDK. I think you are a fairly unique lady and VET. Maybe in the top 1-3% of people/"types". You DID learn your lessons while losing. You DID incorporate your doc/RD instructions and adapted them to work for you long term. And when you experience regain for any reason, you've set a protocol that is inspiring and amazing to watch. And it gives me hope for my future--that I'm not doomed to regain it all without being able to maintain. Because you quickly and efficiently go back to your roots and get rid of the regain. I feel like the OP has not done the work. Or maybe the surgery was the wrong surgery for him/her? We are all so unique, one solution won't fit all. They claim the reason for the regain and for not getting lower to their goal was based on undisciplined behavior. But if you lack discipline before, what will change this time? How will you magically change for good? Any of us can do things for short periods of time. But being "habilitated" sometimes, even more than being "RE-habilitated" is important. Not all of us can do that on our own. Not everyone learns things the first time. Maybe some of us DO need the surgeon revision or the RD new plan/accountability that meetings provide? Maybe we DO need bariatric therapy to discover what is driving us to self-harming behaviors? It usually isn't the short game that's the problem for any of us...it's playing for the long game. It is about changing lifelong behaviors for long term success. And that's a TALL order for most of us (the other 97%). Dunno...just spit balling here.

Congrats and welcome. Hope you will stick around and post often! Keep up the great work and can't wait to hear how your world unfolds!

You may think I eat the most boring food from this. But the reality is I don't live in deprivation. This isn't a white knuckle journey! But I still manage to eat REALLY healthy, calorie light/nutrient dense real food every day--about 95% of the time in fact. That's why the other 5% I'm ok with having treats. I just had to learn that I had to find replacements for the things I crave. For instance, I love fried chicken as much as every other Southerner! But do I drive through Popeye's or KFC or Frenchie's? Nope. Do I eat the great fried chickie or fried shrimp my sissie makes? Nope. But tonight I'm making air fryer chicken nuggets breaded with a little "cauli-flour" + pork rind crumbs + parmesan + tiny bit of almond flour + spices. It's a fraction of the calories, carbs, and fat. But I will be full and my craving will be extinguished. If I'm feeling energetic enough, I will make smashed roasted cauliflower to replace mashed potatoes, and I will whip up a low fat/low cal brown gravy and have my broccoli or green beans or cole slaw. I know tomorrow I will wake up and not have gained weight from that meal. It fits my macros and calorie target. I've worked out my other meals for the day so I know this big meal will work for me. I log my food: weigh and measure and report everything that goes down my piehole. And today it's working for me. When it no longer works, it will be time for me to reassess and adjust what I put in my mouth and when.

Meanwhile back in "The Land of Oversize Misfit Pouches"... it's all and ? ! bahahahaha ??

You b*****s. Enjoy!

Crap! I was trying to quote this to continue a train of thought and accidentally erased it! Derp! Ok, lemme see if I can recreate it. Sorry, it is harsh. It is a harsh truth. You should see your surgeon about alternatives. Maybe this is the wrong surgery for you? Maybe you need a Phase II = DS which has malabsorption involved with it? Also, get your RD on board to help you with a plan and if you aren't getting help already, ask your surgeon for a consult to a bariatric therapist--one who can help you understand your relationships and how they affect your eating. Surgery is a tool. It isn't magical. Too many try to let the surgery do all the work. But it's not a tool with it's own engine. It's passive unless you apply repetitive force/action to it all the time with each bite/meal. Just like a hammer, it will just sit there like a rock unless you pick it up and actively use it correctly to drive a nail home. You HAVE to want to actively change and give up old ineffective behaviors and relationships with food. You have to be ready to break up with comfort food and crap for at least 90-95% of your daily diet--every day--world without end--amen. Are you ready for that?

Wow really interesting! Very much so because they site that butyrate (the ketone) produced in the gut in response to fiber consumption is the same ketone produced by the body in response to a well formulated ketogenic diet. Only in a keto diet, we may actually produced MORE butyrate in and for the gut!

Oh here's a great Reddit thread on fermentation! I'd go with this one!

Oh no! That's terrible!!! ((hugs)) What a shocker to find that! Here's something from OSU. https://extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/8836/sp50533lowsaltpickles_0.pdf

Wooohooo! GREAT post girl! WTG!

I don't know if the yeast need the sugar to ferment. You should drop him a line on his blog and ask if you can use stevia? Have no idea. But it would bother me to know I'm putting in 1tbsp of sugar into the brine.

You know, this is a quick hack, but I just use unfiltered ACV (Braggs) sprinkled over sliced cucumbers/veg. Or I use Trappey's Pickled Pepper Vinegar (maybe too high sodium, haven't checked). I love em like that. So easy and quick and filling! I get more satiety with the peel on the cucs.