Weight Journey

I love my compression band!

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My surgery is Dec 17.

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Dec. 5th here.

Just got home from my post-op. 10 days out and he said I'm doing great. I've been cleared to go to the gym! Up to 15lbs, but hey! That's so exciting to me. I am 20.2lbs down since November 26th, which I'm excited about. Still full liquid until January 1.

Oh no. I'm so sorry. Hopefully the med change will help. My follow-up is tomorrow. I'm on full-liquid for 21 days post-op, so I will be liquid until January 1. I'm beginning to get creative!

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I started this journey @ 470lbs. I'm 8 1/2 weeks post op and today I weighed in at 399lbs!

This word is for all the pre-op/recent surgery folks. Stick with it...Follow the steps. It's more than worth it.
Good luck and God bless us all on this journey!

This time a year ago, I was lying in hospital having had open surgery. I had my gastric band removed, including the port which had been replaced using mesh which had rolled up and caused a few issues including abscesses and infections on and around my liver.
I had the band removed, and a ‘fobi pouch’ variety of the RNY - with a slightly longer but narrower stomach than is usual, with a small silastic ring sutured loosely around its middle - no stomach stretching for me!
Initially I made my weight goal the same as my gastric band low - 80kg (176lbs) and then as the weight dropped, reset it at the top of the ‘not overweight bmi’ range for my height 70kg (156lbs) - this seemed wildly optimistic to me.
I dropped just below that at my 6 month mark - remember, though, I was a ‘lightweight’ at the start at 106kg (234lbs) pre surgery, down from my 260 top weight pre the gastric band 10 years ago.
I dropped another few kilos when I got gallstones, bringing me down to about 145lbs or so, and all together pretty healthy and happy. But getting OFF my weighloss treadmill (metaphorical) was a challenge. Changing to maintenance eating was harder than I imagined, and giving away that desire to see the scales drop a small bit every morning was very hard indeed. I could see how eating disorders could take root at that point!
Anyway, in July I decided that if I was going to have a successful maintenance, exercise needed to be a regular feature in my life. I started the Couch 2 5k programme using an app, and from not being able to run for one full minute at the beginning, I now run 5-8km (3-4 miles) three times a week, and do weights at the gym the other four days. And I am loving LOVING the new me! Being mid 50s and starting running is a bit unusual, but building muscles long since forgotten is a new challenge and I love seeing the gains. Running a bit faster has replace being a bit lighter. Lifting a bit heavier has the added bonus of toning and making that lose skin a bit less bothersome!
I eat 1200 calories a day, including 70-80g Protein at least. I have three meals a day, with one healthy snack - necessary to get the calories up - I really needed to stop losing weight as I got down to 130lbs briefly and it felt TOO light - 135-137 is a good range for me, mostly psychologically! I try to limit useless carbs - if I eat sweet rubbish (even sweetener instead of sugar) the sweet cravings return with a vengeance. I suspect this is addiction-like and I will have to guard against backsliding in this area for a long long time.
The worst part of the journey? - dealing with people constantly asking when I will stop losing weight, telling me I am too thin, telling me I am taking it too far etc. Only women, by the way - blokes have been uniformly complimentary. Most women too - I love being told I look strong. People comment on how much more energy I have, how strong I seem. People literally don’t recognise me in the street. I see them thinking ‘I think I know this person’ and then jolting in surprise.
I have not one, single bad word to say about this whole experience - but, I utterly, religiously and with the help of many here, stuck to my programme. No excuses. Some slips - but straight back in the saddle (after a ‘penance’ session on the hated elliptical!)
THIS WORKS.

I had mine on Dec 5th. I'm doing great. I started pureed foods today

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It’s not a food funeral.
Last thanksgiving I was on my liquid diet preparing for my surgery. This thanksgiving, I will be about two weeks away from one year post op.
You will eat turkey again. You will eat small amounts of other favorites like mashed potatoes or stuffing. You may even have a bit of pie for dessert. The idea that it will be the “last” time you eat something, well that’s false. It may be the last time you are physically able to eat a pound of food, but that’s a different story.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving but I guarantee next year you won’t believe your eyes!
😉

Shimmy,
Congrats on the 4th surgery date! I too have gone through the seminar, the classes, and talking to the doctors. I'm not really worried about the surgery, more about failure. I've tried so many things to lose the weight and I am so motivated that I can do this, so I am very hopeful on the outcome.

Hello! This is my pre-op phase. Exicted but nervous as well.
Does someone have suggestions for the liquid diet? Has anyone had Soups from bariatricpal?

Thank you. Good luck to all! :)

Shimmy,
Congrats on the 4th surgery date! I too have gone through the seminar, the classes, and talking to the doctors. I'm not really worried about the surgery, more about failure. I've tried so many things to lose the weight and I am so motivated that I can do this, so I am very hopeful on the outcome.

I just got my date today....December 4th! I'm also having the bypass. I attended a 3.5 hour seminar where they explained both the sleeve and the bypass surgery thoroughly. You should definitely know what the surgeon will be doing to your body! I'd ask your nurse navigator (if you have one) for more information about the surgery itself. You can find a lot of information on reputable websites such as WebMD. I thought I had to do 2 weeks of liquid diet prior to surgery but it's just one week so that was a bonus. I'm also nervous but not so much about the surgery itself but of failure. I'm hoping I will always feel as committed and positive as I feel right now! Good luck to you, we can keep each other posted. We got this!

Congratulations! Mine is scheduled for next Tuesday and I’ve spent a lot of time going through the previous months users experiences and the summer surgery threads just to get a feel for what others went through. Good luck!

Congrats on your Dec 5 date...Waiting for my date...I am excited and nervous also. Ive been checking out ideas and recipes for the 2 weeks b4 and the 2 wks after...Good Luck to YOU

I'm excited and nervous about my upcoming gastric bypass on Dec 5th. Any suggestions for preparing myself for this. 😁
of course my doctor and nutritionist have gone over things, however, they have not gone through the surgery
Thanks!