ms.sss

Wait, what? I say trigger! Lol and I’m def not a kid (at least not in chronological age..I’m 50 my friend) Oh, and FYI, smoking doesn’t cause cancer in Canada as well.

That’s cool. Sounds like you have a solid plan for yourself and the resolve to follow through. There is another fella on here (can’t remember his handle at his moment) who is also of the No-Scale persuasion that hasn’t/hadn’t weighed himself in years who was/continues to be successful. You know you best, and recognizing triggers and situations that may lead you off course is awesome. Good Luck! ❤️

I think a portion of it has a lot to do with an individual’s recovery experience. When I has WLS is was totally fine, mentally. My recovery was uneventful and short (I was just mildly sore and got tired easily for a couple weeks). I had food aversion, but it didn’t bother me. I felt better than great. But when I had plastics a year later, my recovery was not as ideal (a lot of it was my own doing, but I digress), and I went through a good couple weeks of tears and feeling really bummed. So yeah, things may feel sucky right now, but it won’t always. I’m glad you have a therapist though…that will def help. Good Luck! ❤️

This is what my doc told me as well. I don’t know how tall u are nor your starting weight, but 60 lbs was essentially 60% of my excess weight at the start of it all, which is the AVERAGE percentage excess weight loss statistic he was basing this on. I ended up losing 120 lbs, so go figure 🤷🏻‍♀️ How much you lose is pretty much up to you. Good Luck! ❤️

What @catwoman7 said. But to answer your question, I was sleeved 3+ years ago and: Sleeve Starting Weight: 235 lbs (2 weeks before surgery) Current Weight: 117.6 lbs this morning Date of Sleeve Surgery:  October 2018 P.S. I’m 5’2”

Sunday brunch with BFF and our Kids. I ordered the smoked salmon benny and the Kid got mascarpone stuffed french toast. What made it into my tummy: one of the bennys (including the English muffin base) + one breakfast sausage link from BFF’s plate (not shown) + 1 bite of the Kid’s french toast: estimated at 357 cals consumed. Our leftovers were promptly gobbled up by the boys when we got home…too bad cuz I really wanted to eat the salmon later.

Short answer, No, it is not selfish. At all. If an activity (or person, or situation, or whatever) is going to cause you anxiety then either deal while doing it or take a break from it until you can. Longer answer: i loved/love to bake. I never stopped even after surgery. In didnt eat any of it, nor did i even taste test stuff during weight loss phase (which was challenging as i always needed someone around to do it for me). BUT it was easy for me to do this because i was just not into actually wanting to eat it. i LOVED to smell it and look at it though, and watch others eat (and plate, decorate, take pictures, read menu descriptions, look up recipes, shop for baking equipment). Yes, i probably have issues lol…i am still the same way now at 3+ years out, but now I actually eat the stuff i bake, just at a fraction of the amounts i used to pre-wls. I too tried baking with sugar substitutes for a while, but in the end, i just don’t eat enough desserts to justify making a whole separate batch, as my fam is anti-fake sugar (but ha, little do they know i make my ameretti cookies with 1/2 the sugar subbed with monk fruit! Lol). but yeah, i love the idea above of teaching the fam to bake themselves ❤️ And if you see it as worth it, then make separate batches with sugar subs. Or just sub the sugar in all of it. Or…be ok with taking a baking hiatus for your own sake. Good Luck! ❤️

Oh dear lord that look Ah-may-zing 🤤

He brought home Five Guys for dinner. I don’t normally eat burgers with buns This was probably my 2nd (maybe 3rd?) time eating a burger (well PART of a burger at least, lol) since surgery 3+ years ago. I had a Little Bacon Cheeseburger w/ ketchup, mustard, grilled onions, grilled mushrooms, jalepeños with a handful of fries. Ate all the fries and 1/4 of the burger. Estimated 304 calories + another 75 cals for the toppings i forgot to add to MFP before i took the pic below. Was good, but probably would’ve enjoyed a salad more. Or a cookie. 😂

…but how will you calculate your (hopefully decreasing) BMR without weighing yourself?

Ladies, you probably already know this, but i’ll say it anyway for the benefit of anyone else reading this: being afraid does nothing for you, especially for something you have some sort of control over. You are prime examples of weight loss success and YOU did this yourselves. As we all know, weight doesn’t come back on by itself. Its the result of lifestyle choices given your current situation. Yeah, it may be a little more difficult to maintain a certain weight and require more effort than previously expensed as time goes on, but you already know how to do it (and are doing it presently). Don’t be afraid of doing what you’ve already been doing! ❤️ P.S. further, you may find that any further weight gained or lost is just fine with you and not worth the effort to change. P.P.S. Or you may just stay they same with no changes at all! Bottom line…being scared is a waste of time and energy that could be better utilized for funner stuff lol. But yeah, i know, easier said.

Yeah, these are more for peeps who actually exercise. Though i imagine someone with 6 percent body fat with little to no muscle would essentially be comprised literally of just skin and bones! ”semi-ex boyfriend”….😂 LOVE. IT.

I get one annually. Including my first baseline one, i’ve had 4 so far. I can’t remember exactly what the number was at the very beginning…but it was something in the low-mid 40s (talking about percentage of body fat stat) But at Year 1 it was 13% (i still maintain the machine was broken that day) Y2: 22% Y3: 24% For funsies, am including some google searched images of what body fat percentages look like on men and women below (this is just an example!!) Though despite what it shows below, i looked NOTHING like that first example pic in my first year (before plastics) I was waaay less FIRM-looking lol.

Another thing to note is you will “notice” more muscle definition the less overlaying tissue you have covering it (i.e., fat and skin). Prior to my arm lift, I needed to flex to see see any muscles. After the arm lift, they could be clearly “noticed” with my arm just hanging by my side (full disclosure: my muscles are in hiding again these days due to pandemic laziness, lol) But of course, just because you can’t see or notice them, doesn’t mean they aren’t there! Best way to determine lean muscle mass gain is to get scanned. Good Luck! ❤️

Spent the morning making homemade Empanadas (54 of them to be exact!)…and now am enjoying the fruits of my labour Ate one (so yum if I say so myself): 144 calories

Yes, I’m home ALL. THE.TIME. 😂 I’ve never really though about setting an alarm now (unlike during weight loss phase when my alarm was always going off for some reason or other: to remind myself self to take a bite of food, drink some water, get up and move, etc). Other than being shocked at how hungry I am all of a sudden some days, I don’t seem to have any negative physical nor mental issues on the days I forget. So I just go with the flow. I do notice though that the days I forget to eat are the days I am out and about. Conversely, on the days I am living my best couch potato life, I almost always eat more…as well as more junk. P.S. haven’t seen much of you on here lately (actually there are lots of folks during “our time” that have been MIA for a while. How are you??

If I ever get a chance to get on a plane again, I”lol def look into this, lol

I did. I was 235 lbs at the start of my 2 wk pre-op diet (I’m 5’2”). My surgeon said losing 60% of my excess weight would consider me as a “success”…so for me, that meant a 60 lb weight loss, based on a BMI 25 “normal” weight. Anything over that was just gravy. But I chose 120 as an arbitrary goal weight only because it was in the mid range of normal BMI for my height (meaning a 115 lb weight loss).. By the time I got to 127, I decided that was enough as I didn’t like how my face was looking so gaunt. Ended up getting down as low as 109 anyway. These days, I hover around 115-120 and have been basically within that range for over 2 years. My actual surgery was 3+ years ago. Funnily enough, I actually look less gaunt now than I did immediately after weight loss phase despite weighing less today. Long story short, your body and your lifestyle will determine your final weight, goals are just numbers. What’s important, in my humble opinion, is to be at peace with whatever weight you feel good at AND can maintain. It may not be worth the loss in quality of life to achieve some magic number. Goals are great, but being able to adapt and accept is even better. Good Luck! ❤️

3+ years out and i still have days when I forget to eat. Once I realized its already 3pm and i haven’t eaten yet, I was STARVING. So here is my way too big, 474 calorie salad. Eating it now and anticipate that I’ll likely get through at about a 1/3 of it.

Sure, im game…i’ve been gaining and losing the same 5 lbs for over 2 months now!

Ah soup, how i miss eating it the “normal” way. I’m 3+ years post op and i still have to eat soup in stages: first slurp up all the liquid/broth, then I eat all the solid bits. If I don’t, i’m guaranteed to get super full, super fast and likely barf. BUT…I’ve read of folks on here who have no issue having soup with liquid and solid at same time. Best way to find out is to try. But go slow if you tend to be a barfer like me! Good Luck! ❤️

I went ultra-low carb (20g net carbs a day), but I’m not vegetarian so it would’ve been easier for me. This was not my prescribed program, i chose to do this on my own (and fully disclosed it to my NUT). I didn’t eat any fruit during weight loss phase save for the occasional berry (least amount of sugar in the fruit family). But i do now at 3+ years post op. You can try google-ing Vegetarian Keto for some food/recipe ideas, but i think that so soon after surgery you may not reach your bariatric protein requirements and stay below your maintenance calories to be true Keto. So maybe a modified version of it?

My doc had a goal of 60% excess weight loss, which was 175 lbs. I chose the mid-point of “normal” BMI range for my height: 120 lbs. I ended up revising my goal and ceased weight loss efforts at 127 because I felt I was looking too gaunt when I reached that number. Am 3+ years post op now and weighed 117.2 this morning. My insignificant opinion is to set a reasonable goal weight and adjust as necessary given how you feel, how YOU think you look, and the efforts you are willing to put in. Good Luck! ❤️

Yep. Further, at 9 months post-op, I renewed my passport early (2 years before it was set to expire) because it was getting annoying/stressful having to explain that i was in fact me at airports. Im 3+ yrs post op now and a few months ago, I renewed my driver’s license and its nice to not have to explain my appearance to the people at the liquor store when I get carded. Though getting carded at all is an NSV in itself cuz im like 50 years old. Lol. Congrats, and enjoy the broken face!

Dinnertime! Cucumbers tomatoes feta cheese anchovies and balsamic vinegar…yummers! Ate it all: 198 calories