VerticalSleeveTalk Newsletter

Hey, Sleevers!

It’s seems as though summer just ended, but we’re halfway through autumn already! The leaves are changing and falling off the trees in many parts of the country and world! Many of us are getting in the mood for the holidays. So, throw or give away your leftover Halloween candy, and start planning to stay with your weight loss this holiday season! scale to Your Advantage

This newsletter is full of updates and information, so keep reading and then head on over to the forums! We hope you like the newsletter, and please keep in touch! We always love to hear from you about the newsletter or anything else related to the boards. Thanks!

Sincerely,

Alex Brecher

Founder

VerticalSleeveTalk.com

Unique Opportunity to Have Your Story Published!

Are you eager to have your vertical sleeve story published in a book? This is your chance! We’re working on a book on the gastric sleeve journey. The book will be a companion to the one we just released! It’s “food and doesn’t have to dread eating. Now, food is fuel. She has the energy to host karaoke shows, and one of her best moments was when she went back to that same restaurant just a few months post-surgery and easily slid into the booth. Another great realization for her was that her sisters have been so supportive of her decision to use the sleeve to get healthy.

Tina calls VerticalSleeveTalk her weight loss family. There’s always someone here to sympathize, offer advice, listen to her and, when necessary, kick her out of her pity party! She loves this forum.

Tina was kind enough to share a few “Tina-isms” with us. Here’s her advice.

• Your journey is yours! You can't expect it to be exactly like someone else's.

• Don't compare yourself to anyone else. Compare yourself to YOU! Look at old pics, keep track of your measurements, do a side by side comparison... trust me, you'll see the difference.

• Enjoy your journey! If you do it grudgingly, the smallest excuse is all you'll need not to work out, not to drink Water, not to refrain from high calorie, but delicious, stuff that slows/stalls your progress.

• Find an activity that you LOVE to do. I LOVE aqua aerobics. I don't see it as exercise (although Jenna the Beast works the HECK out of me!). It's fun, burns lots of calories and helps tone the whole body.

• Affirm yourself! Positive self-affirmations work wonders when you are struggling to finish that last mile or last 5 minutes of a workout. Yes, hearing it from others is good, but say something good about yourself.

• Extend the same love, support, grace, mercy and consideration to yourself as you lavish on others. You're human too right?

• Don't make excuses, MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Thanks for the Tina-isms! We know you’re following them and being a good role model. Thanks for being in our member spotlight and sharing your weight loss journey!

If you know anyone whom you want to see featured in our member spotlight, please let us know in the Protein first at each meal.

Get back in the habit of measuring your portions instead of estimating.

Drink a glass of water each morning two hours after you eat Breakfast.

Taking your dietary supplements at the same time(s) each day so you don’t forget.

How did you complete the challenge? Let us know in the Sleever Challenge forum! We’d love to hear any updates on any previous Newsletter Challenges. You can find them in the archived Newsletter Forum. It’s never too late to try a Newsletter Challenge!

Weighing Yourself: A Short Guide to Using the Scale to Your Advantage!

Weight loss surgery is clearly about…the weight. You want to lose large amounts of excess weight relatively quickly. The scale is an integral part of your weight loss journey because it lets you track your progress, but it can also add frustration to your journey if you don’t use it right. Sometimes the numbers don’t seem right – you think you’re doing everything right but the number on the scale doesn’t go down; or you know you cheated on your diet but the scale actually shows a loss.

You can’t control the numbers completely, but you can take some steps to make the scale as useful as possible for your weight loss journey.

• Weigh yourself at the same time every day. Most people choose the morning, before they’ve eaten anything.

• Weigh yourself in your underwear or without clothes so that your clothing doesn’t affect your weight.

• Only count your weigh-ins once per week. Identify a certain day of the week as your weigh-in day, and only consider that day’s weight number as you think about your weekly weight loss. Due to natural daily fluctuations, you can’t possibly lose weight every day. You’re more likely to see consistent decreases in weight if you only formally track weekly weigh-ins instead of daily ones.

• Have other markers of progress in your weight loss journey so that you’re not disappointed if the scale doesn’t show what you want. You can point to a perfect week of food records or smaller body measurements as signs of progress even when you don’t hit a weekly weight loss goal.

The scale should be your friend on this journey. It’s a source of positive feedback for healthy eating and other good choices, and it can be a gentle reminder to get back on track if you slip up. These simple tips can help you get the most out of the scale. Do you have any others? Let us know in the Newsletter Forum!

Tip for the Forums: Finding a Niche!

The forums can be daunting if you’re a newbie, or even if you’ve been around for a while. We suggest starting by introducing yourself if you haven’t already. Then, check out the forums that are most useful to you – if you’re pre-surgery or post-op, you might like the pre-surgery Q&A forums or post-surgery ones. Everyone can benefit from knowing more about the post-op diet, and that’s a popular board for our member! Don’t forget the special group forums if you want to hang out with slightly smaller groups of members with common interests. Don’t be shy! If you’re not sure where to go, just post your question anywhere. Someone is sure to direct you to the best place.

That’s about it for this week’s newsletter. We hope you enjoyed reading it and are ready to come discuss it and everything else on the boards! You can always check out the archived newsletters at the Newsletter Forum, too. Thanks for being part of our community!

Until next time, take care of yourself and each other,

Alex.

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Day 3 post op. Trying to wear real pants! I am so bloated I can't zip them at all. I still weigh 7 pounds more than surgery. Will my last week sleever friends tell me thi is normal?

I just want to congratulate Tina on being the Spotlighted Member today!! I've learned so much from her, especially about enjoying the journey! This is NOT a race, it's a journey to a new, healthier us...and Tina is the person who taught me that. Her million dollar smile makes it that much better!

Yes!! Congratulations to Tina spotlight! She is certainly a favored one