AEdoesRnY

Hello! I'm trying to plan ahead for my first week back with students after having some trouble staying on plan this past week at work. Workshop week before school starts up again is notoriously full of treats/snacks/foods and I wasn't as successful at avoiding them as I wanted to be. I've been saving tons of recipe and lunch ideas on pinterest, but I wanted to hear from all of you: What do you prep ahead/plan ahead for your lunches? Any favorite grab-and-go meals for the work day/school day?

Oh I signed up on computer and joined the rewards program, you get points for ordering stuff and also for posting replies and stuff!

I didn’t mean to be a snack proselytizer but I’ve been having so much trouble with wanting snack food like popcorn/rice cakes/crackers/etc. that I figured finding some of those options with both more protein and portion control would be really helpful!

https://store.bariatricpal.com/products/bariatricpal-protein-cheese-bundle

I got: - Bariatric pal protein cheese bundle -shrewd food protein crisps - brick oven pizza The cheese bundle gets double points bc it’s BP brand, and I used points from posting in here to get $$$ off my order! :)

After unpacking...I’m especially excited about the cheese sampler pack stuff, especially moon cheese! I had the pizza chips and they were really good!

The other day I was feeling so snacky and decided I should plan ahead and have good/high Protein Snacks on hand so I don’t do popcorn...might have gone overboard with my Bariatric pal order?

I had bypass though, not sure if you did that or sleeve!

Puréed food goes down way easier than regular food. I was worried about my capacity for puréed foods and liquids and then as soon as I finally started solids it was a very different story. Call your team if you’re worried but I think it’s pretty normal!

Also when I made a second “anonymous” one for my WLS journey, all the suggested people to follow were people I know. I don’t know if it was using location/email contacts/phone contacts or what, but it didn’t feel private so I gave up and so far my instagram is still just my regular one...

One of the things I'm most looking forward to about losing weight is getting into jogging/running. Each time I was at the bottom of the weight loss yo-yo, I loved doing 5Ks and building up to be able to jog as much of them as possible using intervals. I never got super speedy, but I was pretty proud of the few I managed to finish under 40 minutes (at over 250 pounds). I am one month post-op and looking at signing up for a couple races to look forward to/plan for/train for, and I'm wondering what kinds of expectations are reasonable. For example, there's a 15K race that takes place in mid-April that looks really fun. They also send out a 12 week customized training plan ahead of the race to help you prepare. I can't decide if it's ridiculous to even be considering taking on a race of that length, or if it's reasonable given the amount of time and probable weight loss between now and then...right now I think I'd sign up for a shorter race this fall like the annual Turkey Day 5K on thanksgiving and then build up to the 15K. The smart answer is probably don't sign up for any longer races until I've completed shorter races and see how I'm doing, but I'm curious about your experiences with running an building up stamina post surgery!

P.s. that "plate" is a saucer, made it look really big!

Okay, so I'm finally on solid foods and here's my before and after: This was a wasa (sourdough) cracker and two turkey "roll ups", each made of two thin deli slices of turkey and one slice of provolone. Ate half the cracker and one of the roll ups, even though I was starting to feel pretty full after just 2/3 of one roll up. It changes how I'm going to pack lunches for this week, I think! I had estimated WAY too much food needed for each day...

I wore into the hospital what I planned to wear out - a large, long, loose-fitting dress that would be easy to get on rather than pants that I'd have to button near surgery site. As long as your pants are loose and soft (or worn a little lower) you should be good! I don't think you need more than one pair besides the ones you're wearing if you want to change! I appreciated having a longer cord - mine is one of the cheap 10 ft cables you can get at target/walgreens/etc. If you like podcasts/audiobooks, I'd download a couple for post-surgery. I found that I was lucid/awake enough to want something to pay attention to, but groggy enough that keeping eyes open to focus on tv or a book was more than I really felt like. I went with the socks they provided, and asked for an extra blanket if I got cold. A cozy sweater is a great idea, but just make sure it's not a pull over because you will have tubes! It should be something large/baggy enough and that you can get on one sleeve at a time, I think. I did not shower there or worry about makeup, but then again I never wear makeup so that's up to you! I showered the day after I got home, but I was only in the hospital one night. My surgery was 7:30am Monday morning and I was on my way home around 1pm Tuesday, so it was a quick stay! Best of luck!!! You're going to do great!! (Edited to add additional answers )

You are so prepared and you're going to do great!! Congratulations and don't forget to update us on how it all goes!!!

Gained a pound overall, or since yesterday? I've been gaining and losing the same 2 pounds over and over and over again these last couple weeks! I'm just trying to be patient and not obsess...though I'm not always successful

This sounds like you’re almost quoting my inner monologue verbatim, haha!

I’m back to school as a teacher so PLENTY of stress haha, last week was our workshop week and I’m back with kids on Tuesday. And I’m taking an evening graduate class...maybe too much to take on right after surgery, oh well! Right now I’m trying to plan ahead and have meals prepped for the week so I don’t end up not eating for too long or eating something crappy...pinning a million Keto/high protein low carb/ WLS recipes on Pinterest right now and hoping to actually make some of them!

Both of us went back to school last week, right? My NUT said sleep and stress can cause plateaus too. Which is super helpful because now I’ll be stressing out about not being stressed about plateauing (and the whole start of the school year thing). Maybe our bodies just need to readjust to the new routine/schedule?

I’m over two weeks into a stall and have been super down about it, thanks for sharing that yours has ended and that it lasted 3.5 weeks! I know I should know better after researching and reading this site and all that, but I’ve been really stressed and frustrated by this whole extended plateau thing!

I bought some crusts from cali’flour foods and I am FINALLY going to try it tomorrow for my first day of solids! I read about them on a different thread on here and my sister and I both ordered some weeks ago (she’s skinny/does low carb not for WLS reasons). She raved about them snd already ordered more crusts so I’m extra looking forward to it! They’ve been sitting in my freezer waiting for so long and I finally get to have one!!

Hello! I apologize for asking a question that I'm sure has been asked before, but as I'm awaiting returning to work on Monday for back to school teacher workshops before students arrive the following week, I've been so anxious and nervous about how I'll react and what I'll say to people who comment on my weight loss. I'm a very private person, my decision to have WLS was a complex one and not something I feel like discussing with all my coworkers. I feel like it's inevitable that people will comment, and I just really don't want it to be an ongoing conversation. It frustrates me that losing weight all of a sudden makes your body "up for discussion", like people think it's then appropriate to ask you all sorts of questions and make all sorts of comments they otherwise wouldn't. I'm curious to hear from those of you farther along how coming back post surgery went, what you said/didn't say, and how much of a "thing" it was once you were back at work... THANKS!

I think for some they notice that you look great and if they otherwise can’t put their finger on it, that’s what they comment on. OR many people feel uncomfortable commenting on someone’s weight loss so dying your hair gives them a way to compliment your progress without directly alluding to it! Haircuts do the same kind of thing!

Thanks for the thoughtful and thorough response! Cross training and slow and steady will always be part of my training plan for any race, but I’m not willing to wait until I’m at 200lbs to jog/run. I’ve done plenty of 5K races walking and doing combination of jogging/walking, and working toward events and tracking my paces is a major motivation for me in both cardio and strength training. Jogging/running is something I’ve enjoyed every time I’ve been more in shape, even though I have been around 250lbs at minimum! I’ll keep what you said in mind and maybe I’ll kick myself later, but I’m going to be working up to jogging/running as soon as I can along with the strength and cross training!

It went fine! I had a couple “you look great” comments but no conversation beyond that. I’ve been finding it hard to stick to my plan but that’s a whole different element that hopefully as first weeks of school are over gets easier (with fewer treats constantly around...)