ouroborous

Isn't it awesome? I'm still not cleared for anything more than walking (but, shh, I've been doing light upper body -- non-abs -- work with a 15 lb dumbbell), but even that feels AMAZING. When our bodies are slim enough that they work right, exercise feels really, really good. The combination of the physical feelings of a satisfied, well-worked body and the mental satisfaction of doing healthy, good things for yourself -- what a rush!

That's amazing! Congratulations! Yes, I think how much we have to lose has a lot to do with how fast we lose it!

Mmmmmm... that all sounds so good... Once I can stabilize my energy level with real food, I'm going to start trying to increase my Fiber (BM's are still... challenging) and control/watch my carbs. Also, I'm worried that I'm getting some gall bladder twinges, so I'm hoping that I can control that before I need to have my GB out!

Oh, thank god (and this, from an agnostic!) I was hoping that this yo-yo between high energy/low energy and full to overfull/ravenous was going to get better. Glad to hear that it will! I'm so looking forward to Saturday. I want MEAT! I cheated a little last weekend and had a tiny piece (like maybe 1g? itty bitty) of juicy, awesome-prepared tri-tip steak at a barbecue. It didn't cause me any discomfort, and it tasted like freaking ambrosia. I'm so tired of Protein shakes and yogurt and... ick. Gimme a steak! Gimme some chicken! Gimme some vegetables!

I wonder how things will go on solids for me. I'm actually finding that mushy/slushy is the hardest part, since most of those go right through and tend to be fairly calorie dense. Hopefully "real" food will make things easier!

I just don't see how 400 net (usable) calories per day is sufficient. I'm going to ask my nut. about it, but I know for a fact that when I eat 800 calories per day and burn 400, I feel miserable. If I eat 1000 calories per day and burn 400, I feel great. So, with the nutritionist's blessing, I'm going to listen to my body! Of course, I've been losing about a pound a day even so, so I don't really have anything to worry about.

Having a lot of the same issues. I have constipation (2-3 days between movements) and REALLY hard stools. My nut. recommended Cholace (sp?) as a stool softener. That worked, but it gave me explosive diarrhea! I think the big problem is I'm getting little to no fiber these days. On Saturday I start "real" food (solids), and I'm really excited to think about eating some actual, real vegetables. Weird, huh? But the thought of a well-prepared, tender piece of chicken and some green beans just seems like HEAVEN right now!

Yeah, I'm starting to think that I need to switch up the content of my meals, too. First, I'm drinking too many Protein drinks. I don't think these give lasting energy, because 30-45 minutes after I have one, I'm down again. Second, I need some carbs. My work gives out free goldfish crackers, and I'm finding that 5 crackers (12 calories) is a nice "snack" that makes my head hunger go away and gives me a tiny burst of energy. Of course, this Saturday I'm cleared for "real food" and I think I need to start eating meat and vegetables again -- more satiety, better quality nutrition, more Fiber... what's not to love?

Thinking about it, I HAVE to track net calories. If I'm truly burning 396 calories on a fast (3.0-3.5 mph) 2.7 mile walk, and if I'm only eating 800 calories total, then that's only getting me 400 calories to live off of. That's just not enough! I'll talk to the nutritionist about it, but I'm starting to think that I need to track net calories. When you eat so little, it makes a difference (back when I was eating 3000 calories per day, 400 calories burned was only about 15% of the day's total; now that I'm eating 800 calories per day, 400 calories is 50% of the day's total!)

So, sleeve gurus, here's one for you. Should I be tracking gross calories (every calorie I consume during the day), or net calories (the calories I consume, minus the calories I burn)? If I track gross calories, I lose weight like gangbusters, but I feel like crap if I do almost ANY exercise. It's like 800 calories is the bare minimum my body wants to live on. If I track net calories, well so far today I've consumed 938 calories, but I've burned 396 calories with a 2.7 mile walk. So according to LiveStrong, I have 258 calories remaining. Any thoughts? I'm going to see the nutritionist on Thursday, and I'll ask her, but I was wondering if anyone has an opinion on this. I feel much better on more calories when I'm working out so much, but I don't want to sabotage my weight loss!

The Premier Protein drinks I drink in the morning are 160 cals and 30 g of protein. That's 5.33 calories per gram of protein. Your drink is 4.6 calories per gram of protein -- even better! As long as you can stomach it all and it's not crazy in some other way (super high sugar or sodium or whatever), it sounds good. And no, the 30 gr of protein at a time thing is an urban legend. It's a persistent one!

Follow your nutritionist and surgeon's orders, of course, but please don't skimp on the B12! I take a B12 sublingual every single day. The reason I'm singling it out is that B12 is probably the most important, most unheard-of Vitamins for sleevers! Without enough B12 you can rapidly develop severe, irreversible brain damage. Check with your doc. I doubt B12 deficiency is causing fatigue, but hearing that you were taking it weekly scared the heck out of me!

Congratulations! It's always so gratifying to get those labs back and hear that "everything looks great," isn't it? As a fatty, I was always waiting to hear that I had diabetes or needed blood pressure meds, or something. Now all the labs just get better and better! So again, congratulations!

Congratulations! That's amazing!

It's very different for very people. However, for both my girlfriend and myself, we get a feeling of being "run down." Sort of sluggish and sleepy. You can feel this coming on, and I'm learning to interpret this as "oh, I need to eat something." Also, I get a weird hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach -- almost like hunger, but just dialed way, way down. Finally, there's the clock. Honestly, I mostly judge when to eat by the clock. I try to consume a little snack (100 calories or less) every 2 hours or less. So far this is working for me.

Just for reference, I've lost 40 lbs in 5 weeks. Of course, I'm a man, and I had more to lose than you. But still, yeah, you should be able to do it.

Yes, bone loss is the one big thing that is a risk for PPI's. If you're having any signs of osteoporosis, it's good to talk to your doc about it. Truth be told, however, osteoporosis is also a risk for ALL weight loss surgery, so I'm not sure how much worse it is. Still, I scratch my head at people acting like PPI's are heroin or something that you have to "kick." Our knowledge may certainly change (hey, we used to think that Phen-Fen was a good thing, and we used to think that Vitamin C cured the common cold!), but as of right now, aside from the osteoporosis risk, PPI's are considered VERY safe and VERY well tolerated. I even asked my PCP about this because I thought I had an ulcer before surgery. I said "is there a risk with being on omeprazole long-term?" And he laughed and said "if there is, then about 30 million Americans are in trouble!" So that's how I learned how to stop worrying and love the bomb-- er, the acid blocker pill :crying:

Hmm, this (dehydration/healing) might explain some... related male issues I've been experiencing.

Thank you! My feet are MUCH more comfortable now that I'm about 40 lbs. down from my high point. I just bought a new motorcycle and when my girlfriend bought me some new riding boots as a birthday present, we were surprised to discover that instead of an 11 wide, I just wear an 11! That's a pleasant side benefit -- shoes should fit much better and be much easier to find in my size! Who knows, maybe my "fallen arches" will improve, too! :crying:

Scratch that: 40 lbs.

I'm really having to re-learn how to eat! Before the sleeve, my girlfriend used to joke that I ate like a camel -- one GIANT meal a day, and nothing else. She would just about faint if she didn't eat every few hours. I used to sort of scoff at that. Now -- wow, the shoe is on the other foot. If I don't eat a little something every couple of hours (and I'm STILL trying to work out the best schedule), I start feeling miserable. I get grumpy and moody and no fun. I get a weird "hollow" feeling in my stomach (which I think is actually hunger). And if I go too long, or if I exercise really vigorously without putting in some "fuel" first (and preferably some sugar- or carbohydrate-rich fuel, at that), I really run out of steam! When my girlfriend and I took our 1.9 mile walk yesterday, I started out really strong, but by the end I felt like I could barely pick up my feet. I wasn't in pain or breathless, just... no energy. Then we got back and I got super sleepy. I'm noticing THIS, too -- I think when I'm just out of fuel, I get sleepy, like I just want to take a nap. It was only 6:30 pm -- way too early for me to sleep -- but I was nodding off. Then I had a Protein shake, and really perked up, for about 45 minutes. My girlfriend suggested that, now that I'm nearly in the solid food phase, maybe liquid food is just not providing a long-lasting enough burst of nutrition. That might explain why I get energy for 45 minutes to an hour after having a Protein Shake, but not for longer. Between sipping Water -- not too fast, not too slow, not too close to meal times -- and stopping to eat a little bit of food every couple of hours, this is a completely alien way of eating to me. It's probably healthier in the long run, and good for me to learn good eating habits, but it's really completely the opposite of the way I used to eat. I'm having to re-learn everything!

I have to say this makes me nervous. My surgeon has me on PPI's and Carafate for at least 6 months. He says that excess acid can actually damage the sleeve and delay the healing process. This makes me very nervous for your "day 3 hell on earth" with no PPI's only 5 weeks out -- what is all that acid doing to your staple line? Are you risking a stricture or esophageal erosion, or Barrett's esophagus, or a gastric or duodenal ulcer? Is it REALLY worth it just to avoid taking a fairly low-risk pill for a few more months? I'm happy for you if you're feeling better, but me -- no way, no how. I'm following my doctor's orders and staying on the PPI's for at LEAST 6 months. The risks of PPI's are WAY less frightening to me than the risks of severe, uncontrollable acid reflux.

I would think it's possible. But for women, and especially those who start with a lower BMI, the unfair truth is that you're not going to lose as fast as us guys do. 30 pounds in 10 weeks is doable. Just make sure to follow your doctors' instructions to the letter (in terms of hydration, exercise, portion control, total daily calorie intake, and so on). Also, try to keep your carbs lower (I'm not part of the wildly anti-carb gang -- I've seen some folks make great progress even with *gasp* 80-100 g of carbs per day, but still I believe that you should try to pick lower carb choices when possible). And of course, make sure your Protein and Vitamin levels are good. But yes, you should be able to do it.

Oh absolutely! My legs -- under the fat -- were like tree trunks of muscle. That's what you get from hauling around 330 lbs of man up and down hills. I'll be sad to say goodbye to some of that muscle (since hauling around 210 lbs will be much less "every day" exercise), but I'm thrilled to find out that I can walk at almost a jogging clip now without getting out of breath!

The girlfriend likes the Wii Fit more than I do (she's into yoga and whatnot). I like the regular Wii games -- upper body workouts galore in the Wii Sports games!