Some Reassurance Please!

[mendymayhem 52]

So I'm supposed to start purée tomarrow. Tonight I went ahead and had a SF pudding and added about 15 grams worth of protien powder to it. It went down fine, felt a little rumbly in my tumbly but fine. I can't put my finger on it , but the feeling was not what I had hoped for. Not hungry, not full. And now it's gone, will I ever feel satisfied again? I keep reading how you all get full after a few bites. Really? Does the solid food make that much of a differance , stay longer in your sleeve?

[LaBelle509 326]

The restriction is coming. Don't worry. Dense Protein like chicken, fish, turkey and beef will make you feel full sooner and sit on your stomach longer. I remember at first, 2 oz of chicken was a full meal for me lol!!

[mendymayhem 52]

So what's a full meal now? And how far post surgery are you ?

[VSGJean 68]

I'm 6 weeks out and when I fix my plate at home I use a dessert/bread plate. If you go out for dinner, I can't eat a whole chicken strip. I can't even eat half a sandwich. I like to get a small chili from Wendy's and it takes me 4 hours to eat the whole cup...

[Webchickadee 716]

I am nearly 6 months post-op and a full meal for me now is approx. 3 oz of dense Protein (chicken, steak, etc.) and approx. 2 oz of veg. If I have even 1 bite too much, I feel very uncomfortable, get the "slimies" (excess saliva production and alot of swallowing) and usually need to walk around or lie down flat for it to pass.

You WILL feel the restriction, believe me! Once you're past the mushies, it will surprise you, how little you can eat and how quickly you get full! I still struggle with eating too fast and not chewing enough on occasion. Especially if I've been busy at work or doing errands and missing a meal time by an hour or so. I usually eat too quickly and after about 3-4 bites, I'm done and usually overstuffed!

The most important thing for you to do right now is to proceed slowly and introduce new food items, textures and options one at a time to see how you tolerate them. Things you ate before may not sit right, may not taste the same (or even taste good) and it will catch you off guard. Just remember you've been through a major surgery and your body is still healing (and will be for the first 6-8 months!). It takes time for your tastebuds to readjust, your stomach to accept everything and learn how to digest again.

The biggest challenge really, is to let your brain catch up with your body. You will look at your tiny portion of food and think "wow, that's not enough to feed a bird. I'm going to be starving in 30 min". But you won't be......it's just that your brain is used to bigger portions, more frequent eating (you won't be interested in snacking NEARLY as often as you were before) and craving items you either can't eat right now or shouldn't eat because that's what got you into trouble in the first place.

Don't let your brain trick you! Follow your surgeon and nutritionist's instructions, ask questions here on VST and go slow. You'll do great!

[mendymayhem 52]

You've lost a lot of weight in six weeks! My goodness. What is your food/ exercise routine?

I'm two weeks out, down 20 lbs. I should also mention that I'm slow at navigating this site! Lol

[mendymayhem 52]

Thank you both. You know ,I have read about the slimies, thanks for explaining!

[Webchickadee 716]

You've lost a lot of weight in six weeks! My goodness. What is your food/ exercise routine?

I'm two weeks out, down 20 lbs. I should also mention that I'm slow at navigating this site! Lol

6 months, not 6 weeks! LOL

I don't think I'd want to lose that fast.....I'd be swimming in excess skin! As it is, I know I'm into lots of skin issues once I get to my goal. That's why I've joined a gym and a trainer to help me build more muscle and help my skin readjust.

Until now I was mostly walking, with the occasional swimming session. It's amazing how good walking is for you and fairly low stress on the joints (which can be an issue when you're very obese!). You could say walking is mostly cardio, especially when your fitness level is improving and you starting increasing your pace and finding bigger hills. However, since I was quite heavy, I also considered it a muscle building exercise. It takes some serious leg muscles to get a nearly 320 lb body moving, believe me!

At this point I know I need more and I'm starting to see flabbiness with quite a bit of the fat gone. I want muscle, not flab! That requires resistance training (weight lifting), so I'm working out a good routine with my trainer and keep changing up the exercises, repetitions and weight amounts when I stop seeing improvement.

Core training (abdominals) is also a big part of it (might even help prevent the need for an abdominoplasy later on!). Building muscle also helps you burn fat! During cardio (which is a GREAT energy burn) you're using up all the glucose in your system to power your muscles (including the most important muscle of all, your heart). Once all the available glucose is gone, your metabolism turns to the next available source of energy, which unfortunately is not fat. It's muscle! So sustained cardio without adequate blood glucose will cannibalize muscle (which is easier to break down and convert to energy than fat is)! That's why athletes usually "carb-load" before a game or training session. So they have lots of blood glucose available for quick energy stores. Cardio energy burn stops when you stop exercising.

When you do resistance training (weight lifting) you build muscle (if you have enough Protein in your body to do so.....). And muscle requires energy at all times, even when you are not using them. So when you are resting, sleeping, etc. your muscles are still burning energy. Since it's the muscle that requires the energy, the metabolism turns to fat for an energy source once the blood glucose is used up. So you lose body fat, even while you sleep!

Pretty cool huh?

Keep in mind though that muscle is quite dense. It's not "heavier" than fat. 1 pound of muscle = 1 pound of fat. They both weight 1 pound. But 1 pound of fat takes up A LOT less room than 1 pound of fat. So you may not see dramatic weight loss once you start resistance training (as compared to cardio), but you WILL see big changes in your body tone, shape and measurements, as well as your strength and muscle endurance.

I do both cardio and resistance and I'm constantly refining the balance (I'm very early on in my new routine!). That way I think I'm getting a good combination of both types of exercise to maximize my results.

By this time next year, I would like to have completed a 5K run, a 10K run and a "Tough Mudder". That last one (look it up) requires good cardio AND alot of strength!

[VSGJean 68]

I've joined a gym, but have only been once. I've been busy at my son's school.. Really need to go, I know I would start dropping the lbs quick. I like the treadmill and I will do weights. Might do some Zumba..

[Webchickadee 716]

I've joined a gym, but have only been once. I've been busy at my son's school.. Really need to go, I know I would start dropping the lbs quick. I like the treadmill and I will do weights. Might do some Zumba..

Start slow. I see that you're about 6 weeks post-op. Check with your surgeon to see if it's okay to start doing more strenuous exercise. Most people are given the "go-ahead" at about 6 weeks, but you should be sure before you go too hard.

As I mentioned, walking is a great way to start. You don't need to change into "workout clothes", take a shower afterwards (usually! LOL), travel to the gym and wait for the treadmill/machine/free weight, etc. If you're already got the membership, great! If not, walking is a great "free" option in the beginning (depending on whether you live in a warmer climate or not, this might be more difficult with snow and ice, like we are starting to get here in Canada!).

[michelline 0]

Hello,

I'm just about 4 wks out and am having trouble with Constipation, and stomach cramps. But working on getting that under control. Was wondering if you guys feel hungry ever? I am really starting to feel hungry and it is really scaring me! I am eating soft solid foods, tonight I ate about 21/2 oz of meatloaf and was so full I thought I would puke. But 3 hours later I feel hungry, just like I used to before surgery. Will this continue?

[Daniels 3]

I was told that im going to eat any where between 6-10 small meals a day. 2 1/2 ounces of meatloaf is good. Just think, before the surgery would that had filled u up? It takes me almost all day to eat one weight watchers meal. And I also get hungry shortly after. But small portions of good food fill me up. Im 4 wks out almost and im hitting the stalling period but its ok:) cause I have have lost almost 23 pds. And I know that if I continue to eat small portions and walking im going to loose. This wasn't a quick fix. It was a life change. Continue what ur doing and enjoy the outcome. Best wishes!

[kmoore 97]

If I am not mistaking, I think a SF pudding is only about 1-2 grams of Protein and not a dense protein. You can eat more of it and not be full. Try Refried pinto or black Beans with melted cheese...can top with a mild, and not chunky salsa. Very flavorful and is a denser protein that will fill you longer. I do have to eat a small something about every 4 hours or my tummy growls I am having finely shredded chicken salad (2 ozs) for lunch today...was full before the full 2 ozs was finished BTW...I am on purées too