WishMeSmaller

I had no energy on the pre-op diet, but my energy rebounded post-op. Also, my surgeon allowed caffeine at my two week f/u to help with constipation. I have been happily consuming daily caffeine since then. I also take the B12 and my energy is great...until about 9 pm when I can’t keep my eyes open. ? Good luck! ?

Fish and a bit of avocado are probably fine, but be careful of sauces, as they can be high in fat and/or sugar, which can cause dumping. I would avoid any raw veggies for the most part, as they are generally not soft enough. Make sure you chew raw fish really well and stop at the first sign of fullness. Mmmm, poke ?

Lunch today: cheesy white bean skillet (beans, marinara, mozzarella, and eggs). I ate the serving on my plate (1/3 of skillet) with a bit of arugula. About 300 kcals. ?

My takes: Body dysmorphia: I knew I looked terrible at 250+ pounds. I did not recognize myself in the mirror. At the same time, I did not have the perspective to understand just how large I was until I lost some of the weight and looked at pics side by side. It is very surreal to me when I look at those pictures. At this point, I think I look normal in clothes, but without clothes, I have some pretty strange loose skin bits with lumps of underlying fat. I am already starting to get the well meaning, but annoying comments about “losing too much.” I still do not have a normal BMI and I still have plenty of subcutaneous fat. I am the one who gets to decide when I have lost enough weight. Transfer addiction: I was drinking pretty heavily prior to WLS. It was easy to sit at home on a Friday night and drink a bottle of wine...much easier than going out in public wearing my built in fat suit. Since WLS, I have probably drank less than the equivalent of two bottles of wine total. I mostly have sips of hubby’s drinks (whisky, beer, wine), and a couple of times I have had 2-3 oz of wine. I work out a lot and feel lost when I can’t exercise. I am constantly online shopping for clothes. This is really bad since I still have 30 pounds to goal and know the stuff I buy now will likely not fit in a month or two. I just adore putting on clothes that fit right now and knowing I look good after years of feeling disgusting regardless of what I put on. I tried to have body positivity with my fat self, but I failed. Difficulty: Losing the weight has been easy. The first two weeks post op I felt pretty crappy, but really, was still able to do more than I had in years. I have worked very hard with exercise, in an effort to get healthy and maintain muscle, but the weight loss has been EASY. Even if I didn’t work hard with exercise, I would still have lost weight easily. Maybe that is part of why I work so hard with exercise...I feel like a fraud if I just sit back and let the weight loss happen.

Keto turkey pot pie. Crustless for me and with crust for hubby. Ate everything I put on my plate and regretted it. Tasty, but too much food ? hubby loved his with the crust.

Hi Meow! Welcome back! Sorry about your struggles. I have been struggling this month with my food addiction as well. I agree with another poster about intuitive eating. Eating intuitively is my end goal when I reach maintenance. Buy the book and read it. It is actually a good read. This is also MY reminder to go back to the principles outlined in the book and to refocus on my surgeon’s plan. ??

Probably around 3 months. I worked up to them from 15 minute walks the first week after surgery. The big workout days are around an hour of cardio and around an hour of weight training. I worked up to one hour of cardio and then added weights at about 15-30 minutes then working up to the full hour. With all the warm up and cool down, I spend about 2.5 hours at the gym on those days. I just got over Covid though, so I will have to build back up again as I was on the couch for about 3 weeks. ?

At 4.5-5 months out, I am definitely eating more than the other posters. Breakfast: Protein shake 200 kcal Lunch: leftovers from dinner (see below), deli sliced ham with cheese and veggies, tuna salad, frozen veggie enchilada with an egg (200-300 kcals) Dinner: meatloaf with a couple of slices of roasted sweet potato, homemade chili or soup (beans and/or meat based with veggies), chicken (or other protein) with veggies/salad (200-300 kcals) Snacks: I usually have some fruit after dinner, like a handful of blueberries or I will have an ounce of cheese. After a 2+ hour workout, I will have all or part of a Built bar, some more protein shake, or some other high protein snack. If I don’t, I will be too hungry at dinner, which can lead me to overeat. (100-300 kcals). My daily calories are around 1000-1200 on my big workout days (typically 3x per week) and closer to 800-900 on regular or no workout days. I can eat just about anything, but meat definitely fills me up fastest. I try to watch my carbs and fat, but I do not have a set limit. I rarely have more than 40-50 g net carbs per day, but my goal is a balanced diet with protein first.

You are obviously not alone! I also have eaten like crap the last two days. I have not gained weight, but I don’t feel physically well or happy with myself. Today is a new day and I have the ability to make better choices for myself. We can do this, Friends! ?

I adore my Apple Watch. I had a FitBit years ago, which I could not love and ended up returning. I find the Apple Watch to be intuitive to use (iPhone and iPad user). I like to be able to glance at it to read texts without pulling out my phone. For activity tracking, I find all of the little reminders are annoying and motivating at the same time ? I use it to track all of my actual workouts, in addition to steps and general movements. I cannot speak to the modern FitBit, but I don’t plan on having anything other the an Apple Watch at this point.

That jumpsuit makes you look tall! And I envy your itty bitty waist. ? I too have been shopping online more than I should. I am going to blame being quarantined with Covid? Edited to add: I have heard online shopping debt is a known side effect of Covid infection. ?

I think an activity tracker is the perfect self gift after WLS! I bought an Apple Watch for myself right after surgery. For Christmas this year, it is all about clothes. I am feeling great buying regular sizes and knowing I just look like a normal woman these days, rather than a morbidly obese woman. Best gift of 2020 was definitely my bypass surgery though!

Congratulations! Woohoo! ??

Love tracking everything! Even though I obsess? I bought the same one as @ChubRub. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N1UX8RW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Thanks you guys! I guess I just needed some reassurance that I wasn’t doing badly. ?‍♀️ I want to maintain muscle and BMR as much as possible. If you both think my muscle loss is reasonable, I will accept it and keep doing what I am doing. Happy Thanksgiving! ???

I love them too. I don’t eat them everyday, but I do eat several per week. Sometimes I just take a couple of bites of one after a workout and save the rest for another day. As for your original topic question, I don’t really see protein versions of junk foods as “gateway” foods. That might be because I usually find them to not be satisfying. I would rather just do without. If they are satisfying to you, I think eating them in moderation is the key. It seems like a bad idea to replace “real” foods with protein snack foods on a consistent basis, IMO.

Ok, smart scale peeps, I have suddenly become concerned obsessed about my 5 pound muscle loss over the last two months. ? I work out typically 7-8 hours per week, of which about 3+ hours are dedicated to strength training. I eat my protein, 60-100 g/day. In spite of this, my trend from my smart scale shows a 5 pound loss of muscle (28 pounds total loss) over the last two months (since I bought the scale). What gives? Anyone else noticed muscle trending down on their smart scale during weight loss? I am frustrated since I have been working so hard to maintain muscle through this process.

Buffalo chicken soup, celery and carrot stick. Homemade blue cheese dressing. A bit high in kcals at 350. Ate all of the soup and the veggies, with only a tiny bit of the dip. Hubby is eating keto right now and was VERY happy ?

Absolutely fantastic! ???

I think I want to be you when I grow up! This is fantastic!?

Trader Joe’s black bean and corn enchiladas (1/2 package), with an egg and a bit of cheddar on top. About 250 kcals. I am stuffed, but it was soooo good! ?

I have an exercise transfer addiction and there was no way I could exercise that much at 3 weeks. I was trying to get 20-30 minutes of gentle exercise (walking the dogs in my neighborhood) about 5 days per week at 3 weeks, but that was it. As you heal and lose weight, it will be much easier to exercise. Take it easy on yourself right now, and just work on moving a bit more each day. It is ok to go for a 5 minute walk as opposed to a 5 mile walk.

First post-COVID workout today after two weeks with nothing more strenuous that short, slow, walks in the neighborhood with my dogs. 60 minutes of cardio. Hopefully I did not overdo it. It is great to be off quarantine ? Lunch: ham slices filled with cream cheese, micro greens, banana peppers, and some tomatoes on the side. 200 kcals. Yum!

I definitely cannot go smaller as I lack a waist, and any smaller they will cut me in half. Lol. Jacket is an XL from “before” but has the cinch-able waist, which sort of gives me a waist. You would need to put on your penis cap to hang out in my jacket ? (swimmingly) ? Temp today was high of 50 F and low of 26 F, so definitely jacket weather...especially since I am now freezing all the time. I am in Northern Nevada at about 4500 feet, 30 minutes from Lake Tahoe. It gets cold here. Not Canada cold though ????

A bit of both...some a bit more chewy and some a bit more crispy. I usually just google recipe for oven heat and times. I call it mushroom crack?