ms.sss

5'2", ♀️10m PO, maintaining 115.0 lbs Yesterday, Tues Aug 27: Another no-energy day yesterday. Slept in until 11:30am, which is unheard of for me. Also had another marathon nap which resulted in not eating too much due to limited waking hours...had to down a protein shake made with full fat milk and WHIPPING CREAM in an attempt for some calories and fat. I thought I was coming down with something, but I woke up this morning feeling pretty refreshed and manged to go for a run...a short 3k one, but a run nonetheless. Yesterday's Menu: Totals: 712 cals - 57g protein - 22g NET carbs - 44g fat 12:30pm (4 cals) 1 black coffee w/ Stevia 2:30pm (6 cals) 1 cup chicken broth 6:00pm (331 cals) salad greens w/ homemade vinaigrette 100g grilled sirloin steak 8:30pm (371 cals) 1 scoop Isopure Dutch Chocolate protein powder 2 tsp decaf instant coffee ½ cup 3.25% whole milk ¼ cup 35% whipping cream 1¾ cup water Yesterday's Exercise: NONE.

Dunno...but the nurse (and google) tell me high B12 levels is not that common. Apparently prolonged B12 increased levels is not a good thing, which is why they keep checking. I've been high since 3 months post op, and still am as of last month, but the levels have been decreasing, so that's a good thing, i guess. I went from taking my 2500 B12 every 5 days to every 4 weeks....am wondering if I should just get off of them altogether.

Ha! Now I have to add psyllium husks to the grocery list. ?? Now is the "manufacturer", right? this is not a typo? Hahaha, no judgement here. Pork rinds/chicharron are my secret weapon/go to snack to add a ton of protein and fat (and basically no carbs) when I'm in a pinch for calories (and they are also good for "breading" stuff)

Reached the 10 month post op mark four days ago. I've been in maintenance for about 3 months now, having decided to stop losing weight back in the end of May. Still trying to find my "sweet spot" in terms of calorie intake and exercise. It's basically been trial and error, but I think I'm getting close 🤞🏼 Regardless, I feel awesome and am almost used to the new bod. I'm still sometimes taken aback when I see my reflection, or when I fit into clothes that look microscopic to me. Anyhoo, here is a pic from a couple weeks ago (I'm wearing a bikini bottom for effs sakes! haven't worn one of those in decades). And for fun, some BEFORE pics (these were taken last summer, about 3 months before surgery)

Wow, you look awesome, and about 10 years younger!

Ah, I made one of these when you posted a pic of one a while back...yum. Now I have to make another one, but I have to go get some eggs first, LOL.

*whistles*

Yep. I can only chug on an empty/near empty stomach. If I were to chug (or even drink a fair amount normally, for that matter) with stuff in my stomach, I’m barfing it all up. At 10m out, I still stick to the dont-drink-for-at-least-half-an-hour-after-eating rule (but I do drink right up to before i eat, though).

No, not recently (but I have before, in the first 2-3 months post op when I had too much). I stick to dry red wines and the mojitos are of the skinny kind, so i’ve been ok. Note though that everyone is different, you may be able to handle more than me, or maybe less. Trial and error and you’ll figure out what you can handle. Of course you may turn out to not even want to drink at all, as I’ve read many times in here. Whatever you decide, it’s always a good idea to let your team know

I could only drink sips of red wine at first. Im 10 months post op now and I can rarely finish a full 5oz glass...unless I nurse it over a few hours. I have red wine maybe 1-2 times a week. Normally, I can also drink 1oz servings of straight gin occasionally (like once a week maybe, if that). Now, when on vacation or during holidays, different rules apply, lol I usually stick to the same red wine and gin, but will add skinny mojitos and tequila shots to the mix. I generally stay away from mixed drinks (too much sugar). And beer (I don’t like it). I do get affected by the alcohol relatively quickly, but said effects wear off quickly as well (compared to pre-op). And I definitely drink much, much less than I did before.

I didn't go over 500-600 until after I decided to stop losing weight (at around 7 months post op) Though I remember my NUT telling me before surgery that I should be getting 800 cals by 2-3 months postop. Which I didn’t...and she wasn’t overly concerned. Whatever you decide to do, try keep your team informed. I do many things that contradict instructions my NUT initially gave me, but I always let her know when we meet.

Nah, at my 9m follow up (last month) the nurse said my iron levels were “excellent”. I was however, still a little low on Vitamin A (better than at 3 months, but still low) so am continue with those supplements until they check me again at 1yr mark. Also my B12 was still too high so I now take my 2500 B12 pill every 4 weeks instead of every 2.

5'2", ♀️10m PO, maintaining 115.1 lbs Yesterday, Mon Aug 26: I was super tired all day yesterday and aside from doing some grocery shopping and errands (and doing regular house stuff), I spent most of my time sitting/laying down. I even had an unintentional 4 hour nap on the couch after dinner, and was still tired enough to conk out at midnight for an uninterrupted sleep overnight. Interestingly, I was also feeling hungrier than normal yesterday (or maybe not hungrier, maybe I just was in the mood to eat since I was couch potato-ing...?) Felt like another day of all-day eating. *Also had a dumping episode about 30 mins after the protien ice cream eating from below. Which makes me wonder why I didn't dump at all during vacay when I was eating waaaay more sugar/crap than my measly protein ice cream portion last night..??? Yesterday's Menu: Totals: 1743 cals - 139g protein - 56g NET carbs - 86g fat 10:00am (3 cals) 1 black coffee w/ Stevia 11:00am (624 cals) * ate about 1/2 of this * 65g chia pudding with protein powder, blueberries, pumpkins seeds & 1tbsp almond butter salad greens & cucumber w/ homemade vinaigrette 30g cheddar cheese 100g pan-fried chicken 12:30pm * ate rest of 11am meal * 2:00pm (97 cals) black coffee 2 wheat thins with some peppercorn pate 1 square of dark chocolate 5:00pm (295 cals) 1 fl oz Rose Gin salad greens & yellow peppers & jalepenos w/ homemade vinaigrette 1 tbsp fried sweet onions in butter & olive oil 15g cheddar cheese 60g grilled sirloin steak 11:40pm (724 cals) * ate all this over a 2½ period...dunno why, really just felt like eating * salad greens & yellow peppers & jalepenos w/ homemade vinaigrette 1 tbsp fried sweet onions in butter & olive oil 100g grilled sirloin steak 52g peppercorn pate w/ 50g beef jerky "chips ¾ protein ice cream Yesterday's Exercise: NONE. Planned 10K attempt was a no-go.

@Bmanns01...I think you could probably even go a size or two smaller on those jeans! Congrats on the weight loss (and the fun had at the park), you look great ❤️

Hmmm...I suppose our bodies have the final say. Only time and experimentation will tell? The one main takeaway I got from all this is that there is no exact scientific cause-effect explanation to every situation. At first I upped my cals to ~1000 and lost almost 9+ lbs the first month. Then I upped it to ~1200-1500 and lost 2+. Then I did 3000+ cals daily over the course of a week and post-poop lost 2 lbs. For now, maybe go by how you feel and/or your inches measurements and/or how you look in the mirror vs that number on the scale? (though in your case, Fluffy, get a second opinion on your assessment of your mirror image cuz you seem to think you are bigger than you actually are ❤️)

You're right, that's probably another contributor...ah carbs...like a high-maintenance boyfriend.

(EDIT: I was in the middle of writing this and was going to ask for maintenance updates from others when the posts form Cheeseburg and Fluffy came in...we are on same page this morning, literally LOL ) ---------- Ok, meant to write this up a couple days ago on my 10-month post-op "month-aversary, but better late than never, I guess. Anyhoo, an update on the maintenance path so far: I'm now about 3 months into maintenance and I'm feeling the groove. Yeah, I lost 2+ lbs this last month, but I'm not sweating it. I'm still in a healthy BMI range, feel and look great, and comments from the annoying 2-3 people now roll off my back for the most part (though on my less patient days I say a silent "eff you" underneath my understanding smile). Not counting my record-breaking calorie intake when on vacation this month, when I was upward of 3000+ cals a day, I'd say I've been averaging about 1500-2000 for the non-vacation days. But I think my sweet spot is still a liiiiiitle bit higher based on my exercise level*. I notice the loosening of my restriction. I still can't eat very much nor very fast compared to people with normal stomachs, but I'd say I can eat about 25-35% more in volume than 3 months ago...specifically, I can eat about 6-7 bites in a row now before feeling the need to take a break. *My exercise level has increased. I suspect I transferred my focus from weight loss to fitness/exercise. I am obsessed with running a 10K consistently and have been super motivated by the results of my arm & stomach toning efforts to keep it up. I often see people doing stuff and think, "hey, I can do that too", and then I do it or keep trying. I'm reverting to being the annoying little sister my siblings complained about who lives by the anything-you-can-do-I-can-do-better mantra. What is happpppennning??!? Mr. loves it though, he is totally digging that I'm interested and doing all his fave things with him (well except cycling, I will never love it...it hurts my bony butt...so not sure about a previous lofty goal of completing a triathalon next year...but I digress). Finally, I am trying to wean myself off my PPI. It has not been successful. I find that I can go without for about 2 days and then I get to too acidy. Have an appt with my PCP this week to discuss. Would love to hear/read other maintainers' updates ❤️❤️

Yay, new maintainer (and you are a REAL one, lady)! Once you start loosening up your food menu plan, I suspect it will feel a little bit different ❤️

So cliche, but TIME. Give yourself some time to get used to your new status and find a new normal routine and you will eventually find your head in a better place. Trial and error will get you there!

5'2", ♀️10m PO, maintaining 115.6 lbs Yesterday, Sun Aug 25: I swear, I felt like I was eating NON-STOP yesterday. Btw, another Spoiler Alert: I didn't even attempt the planned 10K run this morning, I woke up super-unnaturally tired and achy and meh despite the calorie and carb increase yesterday (Yeah the carbs were still on the low-ish side for a regular balanced diet, but not for me) This got me to thinking to another possible reason as to why I've been feeling so unenergetic/tired/un-10K-runnable: Keto Flu! I went from being super carbaholic for over a week and then back to 30-40g daily carbs. Sooooo, modifying my experiment: will keep carbs at a level I know I like (while still upping cals in form of fats) and see if this lethargy passes in a few more days and the 10K comes back to me... Yesterday's Menu: Totals: 1910 cals - 112g protein - 70g NET carbs - 111g fat 9:30am (2 cals) 1 black coffee w/ ½ packet of Stevia 11:40am (560 cals) salad greens + 37g cucumber + low-cal vinaigrette 87g pan fried chicken 2 slices bacon 50g cashews 1:35pm (157 cals) salad greens + balsamic vinaigrette 1½ tsp roasted pine nuts 3 calamari rings 2:45pm (368 cals) 2 chicken wings w/ apple butter BBQ sauce 2 carrot sticks w/ ranch dip ½ pecan butter tart black coffee 6:30pm (284 cals) ½ tsp wasabi + 1½ tsp soy sauce 32g seaweed salad sashimi: 1*salmon + 1*scallop + 1*blue fin + 2*hamachi + 3*sweet shrimp + 4*masago 7:30pm (360 cals) 50g cucumber + 2½ tbsp cream cheese + 1 slice bacon ½ stalk celery + 2 tbsp almond butter 8:00pm (180 cals) 2 shots of Rose Gin Yesterday's Exercise: 15m strength training (arms) 15m strength training (core & butt)

So jazzed for you . Run, @DeeberLee, Run!!

@Sheribear68, you seem to have really got into a groove with your eating/meal planning/exercise! That's AWESOME.

Looks like your wedding was a fun time There must be a good story to the paint.....?? (Now I'm off to dig up my wedding dress and take a pick of me in it...LOL)

OMG. The transformation!

5'2", ♀️10m PO, maintaining 114.3 lbs Yesterday, Sat Aug 24: Menu: Totals: 922 cals - 98g protein - 19g NET carbs - 49g fat 10:45am (3 cals) 1 black coffees w/ ½ packet of Stevia ½ black coffees w/ ½ packet of Stevia 1:00pm (451 cals) ** ate about ⅔ of this ** salad greens + 23g carrots + 17g cucumber + low-cal vinaigrette 29g walnuts 118g pan fried chicken 3:30pm ** ate the rest of my 1:30pm meal ** 8:00pm (468 cals) salad greens + 19g carrots + low-cal vinaigrette 87g pan fried chicken + 1 slice bacon 125g full fat cottage cheese 1 fl oz pumpkin seeds 1 slice bacon Exercise: 4k run + 6k walk 15m strength training (arms)