looly

Gyms and pools are currently shut in the UK. When they opened (during the summer) I went to the pool but not the gym. I reckoned that the chlorine would deal with the virus in the pool, but the indoor gym was too risky, with all that huffing and puffing going on. At the moment, I do two or three outdoor runs a week (either 3 miles or 6 miles). I'm doing 2 or 3 weight training sessions a week and 2 or 3 indoor HIIT sessions. A lot of it depends on the weather (I'm a great big wuss who doesn't like running in snow or heavy rain!). I work out 6 days a week and vegetate on the 7th I've recently bought a skipping rope...we'll see how that one goes! The only downside with all this exercise is that it makes me hungry. It's all very well having healthy snacks available, but calories are calories, where-ever they come from. 😞

You don't look old to me, GradyCat! You look smiley and youthful! I'm 53 and I only started running in March. I only did it because of lockdown, but now I love it...I'm continually surprised by what my body can do now. You might be surprised too. 😉

For the first 6 months after surgery, I only did regular walking and (once my wounds had healed) some gentle swimming. After I'd lost a lot of weight, I upped the swimming (to the point where I got out of breath) and went to a gym. During lockdown, I started running. I really enjoy these exercises, but if I'd started exercising hard when I was still heavy, I don't think I would have enjoyed them and I think I may have put my joints at risk. Also I felt more confident about my body after I'd lost a substantial amount of weight. I'm glad I waited before I started to push myself - it was right for me.

Don't worry Jane - if you're like me, you won't be feeling pants for too long. I had the surgery 2.5 years ago. I'm 8 stone down, enjoy eating small portions of tasty food and I regularly run 5km - sometimes 10km. The temporary nausea and discomfort after the op was absolutely worth it.

I ran 10K again on Sunday, 20 minutes faster than the first time I did it (and I had surgery In August, so I had a break in training). I actually put weight on during lockdown, but I feel fitter than ever!

My gallbladder is gone and all is well! 🙂

Well....the title says it all really. I was wondering what the first signs of gallstones were for those of you who suffered from them after being sleeved. I've had a couple of episodes lasting a few days (a couple of months apart) of severe abdominal pain after eating anything containing even a little fat. I wasn't sick or nauseous and didn't have diarrhoea (though my stools weren't right). It didn't feel like dumping syndrome. I've tested my urine with a dipstick and there's elevated levels of urobilinogen in it. I've got a doctor's appointment, but there's quite a long wait for it, and the pain seems to have passed. I've had recent blood tests that show I've been getting adequate vitamins and iron. Does that ring a bell with anyone? ps On the plus side, I lost 4 lbs in a week while my tummy was dodgy!

I'm having my gallbladder whipped out in two days because of stones. How long was it before you guys started to do strenuous exercise, like swimming or running? It was about 6 weeks after my sleeve, but I was wondering if it was more or less after the gallbladder surgery?

I had some knee pain after about the third week of C25K. I bought some elasticated knee supports and they really helped. I don't wear them all the time, but if my knees twinge, then I wear them on the next run - they work a treat! As for me running 10K, it was by accident really. I planned to run 5K downhill and then phone my other half to come and pick me up. But I felt OK and just started to run back. I walked up the really steep hills and I kept thinking "I'll phone him in a bit", but I was having such a nice time pootling away, listening to music and generally nosying into other peoples' gardens, that I just kept going. Before I knew it, I was home!

I ran my first 10K on Monday...I think I've been taken over by a body-snatching exercise-loving alien....don't know what's wrong with me! 😉

Since the beginning of lockdown in the UK (and the closure of the local pools) I've also started to do Couch to 5K. I'll be running Week 5 Run 2 tomorrow....it feels amazing to do any kind of running without my back, hips and knees hurting. I never imagined I'd ever run, but I'm actually beginning to enjoy it.

Hi Rob! I was over 50 when I had my op, and it worked a treat - over 120 lbs gone so far. I wasn't given lots of detailed instructions about macros, so I didn't feel overwhelmed. I was told to favour water and protein, but otherwise to eat a healthy diet in very small portions and to take dietary supplements. I was told to gradually build up my exercise levels. These broad principles were easy to follow and worked for me! 🙂

That's an interesting point of view, summerset: I hadn't considered that possibility. I suppose there's a fine balance to be struck between feeling contented with your weight loss and avoiding significant regain. Life's complicated, innit?!

…..However, as regards when you know you've lost enough weight - it's when you're happy with your loss and feel good surely?

This is an interesting question, because I thought I'd finished losing weight after 19 months. However, I recently had to do another liver-shrinking diet in anticipation of another operation (subsequently cancelled). I had to diet for 5 days and lost 4 lbs. I ate about 600-800 calories a day. I was surprised that I could manage this and it made me think I could use this again in the future....I could lose weight for 5 days, then just carry on maintaining my weight the rest of the time. Hmmmm….could work!

The second liver-shrinking diet has done me a favour, because my weight loss had sort of bottomed-out, 19 months after the sleeve. It's a boost in troubled times!

I was due to have my gallbladder removed today, and it got cancelled at 3.15pm yesterday. I was upset for a while, although I understood that coronavirus patients had to be prioritised. On the plus side, I had to do a liver shrinking diet for 5 days, and I lost 5 lbs. 😊

I haven't particularly suffered with GERD since the op (about 18 months ago). Constipation was a bit of a problem, but that's easier to deal with. However, I do now have gallstones, which is a possible consequence of rapid weight loss. I wasn't made aware of this at the time of the op, but I think I would have gone ahead even if I'd known. I am now waiting to have my gallbladder removed, but I still absolutely recommend the VSG - the positives heavily outweigh the negatives.

Amboyle - your cats are beautiful - I'm well jealous! My icon is my dear departed Mrs Woo, who died 3 years ago. Haven't been able to find a replacement for her yet, she was such a perfect cat.

OMG amboyle, your cat is gorgeous! Can you post a bigger picture please? (BTW 600 cals early on is fine!)

It all depends on what your surgical/dietary team told you to do. Medical opinions differ considerably. Some doctors tell you to eat protein and very little else...my team told me to eat a healthy balanced diet. There's more than one way to make the surgery work.

I ate muesli (with bits of fruit and nut) from 4 weeks out and I've never had a problem.

I chose the sleeve because it didn't alter the basic structure of my digestive tract and I was less likely to get dumping syndrome afterwards. I don't really get a problem with GERD, but I didn't before the surgery either.

I had the gastric sleeve in June '18 and I've lost over 100 lbs (which is lovely) and gained gallstones (which is not!). Since being diagnosed at the end of December last year, I've been following what the doctor calls a 'wait and see' policy and what I call a 'grin and bear it' policy. After a trip to the local Accident and Emergency department yesterday, I've decided to ask to have the gallbladder removed. Of course, I've inevitably been googling how gallbladder removal can affect the course of weight loss. Some say it increases weight loss, some say the opposite. I suspect that it's all down to just eating the right food in the right quantities, but I thought I'd ask you guys. Has anyone experienced this and how did it affect the continued course of your weight loss? Thanks in advance for any replies!

Thanks for replying! I suppose that many people have their bariatric surgery and gallbladder removal at the same time, so there may be fewer people who have the two surgeries months apart - and therefore fewer people to answer my question. The results of my googling have suggested a couple of theories.... The first theory suggests that the removal of the gallbladder means that fat is digested less efficiently, leading to weight loss. The second theory suggests that the removal of the gallbladder leads to the removal of pain when fatty food is consumed, which consequently leads to the unconscious consumption of more fatty foods. Both theories sound plausible.....