AZhiker

I am totally doing IF with about 10/14. It is boosting the final bit of weight loss, but better yet, I feel so good. Lots of energy, no hunger, mentally alert. I really want the long term benefits of knocking out the senescent cells, decreasing risk of dementia, decreased osteoporosis, and increased vitality unto old age. I will probably be doing this for the long haul.

Estroven Double Strength was my life saver through menopause. The hot flashes and night sweats woke me up 10-20 times each night. I thought I would kill my whole family before I jumped off the bridge myself! Costco is where I got it and used it twice a day for a while, then just in the evening.

I absolutely craved all the fresh veggies from my garden, but was not allowed to have any (even cooked to mushy) until 8 weeks. Pure torture! But I followed orders. My doc did not want any roughage to irritate the new surgical sites. I just kept telling myself, "This, too, shall pass." And it did.

I did not realize you were talking about full blown, knock-your-socks-off work outs. I agree that iron man/woman workouts can wait until later. Many bariatric patients would not be able to do those kind of work outs until some substantial weight comes off, anyway. But building in some reasonable cardio and strengthening exercises should start from the beginning, IMHO.

Wow!!! Can’t wait until I get to where you are!! Congrats! Thank you!

Thanks!

I respectfully disagree with Dr. V. Other bariatric surgeons will say quite the opposite. I think exercise needs to be part of the total package from the very beginning. That can take the form of walking, light weights, climbing stairs, yoga, bicycling...….. I think more studies show that people who do NOT exercise and build that into their lifestyle have slower weight loss, will not lose as much total weight, and will have a harder time maintaining.

Some docs don't care about straws at all. The concern is for swallowing air and taking big gulps. Personally, I found I could control my sips better through a straw.

Looking at my food diary, at 7 weeks I was consuming about 500 cal/day. Only 2 oz of protein at a time, however. 1/4 c beans. 1/4 c cottage cheese. 1/4 c cooked mushy veg. So it looks like 1/4 c was my volume limit, and only 2 oz of chicken, meat, or fish. My smoothies, however, were larger volume, but sipped over time. You may not be interested in eating for a while. This a blessing! Use this time to reframe your thinking about food, build new tastes, develop new habits like exercise and food journaling. The first 6 months are golden. Probably also the next 6 months, as well, but you want to maximize the weight loss opportunity you have right now. Your appetite will eventually return and your restriction will be much less. That's why you gotta build all the healthy habits now so you will be prepared when that time comes. As far as volume, you have to listen to your own body. Your nutritionist can give guidelines, but she doesn't have your sleeve. Learning to stop eating when you are full (or several bites before you are full) is a skill that must be learned and one that will benefit you for life. LIsten to YOUR body. Volume will come later. You are making great progress. Let it play out the way your body wants to do it.

This takes, courage, for sure! There is always the thought, "I should just try it again on my own." My PCP brought me back to reality by telling me, "If you could have done it on your own, you would have by now." She was so right. The jitters are normal - after all it is major surgery that you are electing - not like an appendectomy that there is no decision to make. We understand.

At two months, yoghurt and cottage cheese were my staples. Also smoothies made with berries, spinach, protein powder. You just have to play around and figure out what works for you. Eggs did not work for me. Salmon was great. Cod was not. Calf liver was awesome and went down so easily. It's so different for each person.

Some of the worse ulcers ever were at the anastomosis of a gastric bypass patient who started drinking a little wine again - 14 year post op!!!! Many others, as well. Those surgical tissues remain fragile forever, I'm thinking. Alcohol is a terrible irritant to tissue of any kind, but for surgical areas, even worse. Everyone makes their own decisions and takes their own risks, but for me, alcohol is on the "never again" list.

Don't you have a 2 month follow up appt? The surgeon's office should be giving you guidance on this.

I am a nurse in the GI department of our hospital. I've seen the damage that alcohol can do to WLS patients, even years post op. I will never touch a drop of alcohol for the rest of my life. I've worked too hard to add any additional risk.

You gotta walk through the door or you will never know what is on the other side. My surgeon gives all his patients a journal - a way to track food, weight loss, exercise, vitamins, etc. On the front it says," As I'm getting smaller, my world is getting bigger." I never really understood it until I lost about 50-60 pounds and could be more mobile and pain free. Now my world can't be big enough! I feel no limits - only by my own mind. I believe I could hike the Grand Canyon now, or ride in the 100 + mile El Tour de Tucson (bike), or hike the 830 mile Arizona Trail, or take flying lessons. Or kayak without swamping the boat, or get on and off the floor with my grandkids, or walk up hills without being winded, or ride my mule, or buy SMALL size tops and size 12 pants. It's an unbelievable world right now for me - a world I would never know without walking through that door, scared as I was (crying in preop, wondering if I should just get up and leave.) Surgery has been one of the best decisions I have ever made. It is a whole new life!!!!!! A life I never thought I would see again. Yes, there can be complications (I got a blood clot in my leg), and yes, recovery is a bear. But there is a whole new world waiting for you on the other side of that door.

Try adding some nuts and seeds. Now would be the time to add some nut butters, as well. Add a scoop of protein powder to your smoothies and yoghurt. Top your yoghurt with seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, chia,) and slivered almonds. You can easily slip in an extra 200 cal with nuts and seeds. AND they are really good for you. They will add protein and fat, and lots of good nutrients. I am also 6 months out and volume is still quite an issue. The only way I get all my protein in is to use the powder and add it to anything I can. I also use PP shakes.

LOTS of Intermittant Fasting posts here. I find it tremendously helpful. BUt….. you gotta cut the sugar. It is so addictive and will undermine all your efforts. After 3 days you won't have the cravings unless you try a bite. Then it will come storming back. I am gluten intolerant so I do not eat anything with wheat. I cut the sugar before my surgery and I have NO JOINT PAIN and my inflammatory markers are down. Sugar is such a deadly, inflammatory substance. None of us need it, especially those of us who are working toward lifelong health and weight loss. You can do it! Oh, I also cut out caffeine, and without the sugar and caffeine, my energy levels are so good and consistent throughout the day. No afternoon slump at all. I can't believe the difference. The biggest impacts for me have been giving up wheat, sugar, caffeine and also doing IF. Powerful, powerful stuff there, if one is willing.

WOO HOO!!!!!! 100 POUNDS GONE!!!! Such a milestone for me. I can hardly believe it, it seems surreal. BMI is now NORMAL!

It's a wonder to me, as well. I can lift 50 pound bags of animal feed, but if your strapped two of them to my back, I would be pinned to the ground. How on earth did we carry so much?

Yes. But not for a while. It is so high in calories and hard to stop at 1 tablespoon. I am 6 months out and very close to goal. I will have a tablespoon of peanut butter on a rice cake ONCE IN A WHILE, as I am gradually raising my calories to ease into maintenance. I am also getting all my other daily nutritional requirements met first. Early on, however, you need to focus on protein and then getting the veggies, legumes/beans, and at least 2-3 months before adding nuts and seeds.

It truly is a strange world. I had breakfast with my mom today and she told me my boobs had gotten too small and I should do something to lift them up! Really?????? Hers sink to her waist! I told her I was 63 years old and I could wear my boobs anywhere I wanted. (With a smile, of course.) (My boobs are just fine with a new, well fitting bra. I really don't know what she is talking about!) I also told her it was getting tiresome to be asked about my weight loss all the time. and that how strange it is that no one talked about my weight when I was heavy, but now my personal weight loss seems to be everyone else's business! ( I am also getting the comments and advice to not keep losing and "you are too skinny.") What a strange, nervy world!

Agree that you need to stop the juice. Don't drink your calories.

Protein powder. Add it to yoghurt, smoothies, soup, refried beans, just about anything.

Dilation is a common procedure - very quick. You go to sleep, have a great little nap, and wake up able to swallow. Don't be afraid of it.

Pressure pot