Hey everyone! I just wanted to keep you guys posted on my progress since I know i really enjoy reading other peoples. I am now 24 days post op (just over 3 weeks) and have lost 25.6 pounds!!! It's looking like I will probably have a 30 lb loss for my first month, which as a lightweight, was completely unexpected for me! The transformation has already been amazing, and i will be posting before/1 month post op photos on the 22nd. I will also be retaking measurements on the 22nd as well (I'm doing this each month) but so far I am down from a snug 18 jeans to a loose 16 and I am only about 1/2" away from buttoning the 14s. It has been so cool to "shop" in the deep abyss of my closet where I stashed away all my skinny clothes.

As far as food intake at this point, I'm convinced Dr. Garcia gave me a VERY snug sleeve. I had asked him before surgery for a snug 32F boughie and I think I got one because my restriction is incredible! I start each day with two scoops of GNC Wheybolic Extreme 60 chocolate Protein drink which starts me right off with 40 grams of protein. I mix it with Kroger carbmaster Milk which gives the whole shake a value of 51 grams of protein! And it is delicious. I drink Water until lunch, which is about 2-3 tablespoons of either chicken/egg/tuna salad mized with about a teaspoon of light mayo. I have a snack around 3 of an Ostrim Beef and Ostrich high protein Jerky for another 14 grams of protein! For dinner I have been pureeing home made chicken Soups and chili. I tried a little more solid food this week and I just wasnt ready...i can handle scrambled eggs. yogurt, Jello pudding, the light mayo salad, and the jerky really well. I got sick after trying a hardboiled egg the other day and decided to just back off and keep to soft foods a while longer...I have the rest of my life to eat solids right?

I am also at the gym 5 days a week doing 45 minutes of cardio each day right now, gradually building up to a full 60 minutes. Starting next tuesday I am cleared to start lifting less than 10 pounds, so i will start my lifting program (New Rules of Lifting for Women) at that time....2 weeks later (at the 6 week post op mark) I will start lifting upwards of 20 pounds.

I feel amazing. I still feel pretty tired at the end of each day, but I am sleeping SOOOO much better at night! Which leaves me feeling very rested and peppy in the morning...pretty good since my 2 year old gives me a 5:30 wake up call each day.

I hope this helps! I am looking forward to seeing each of you on the losers bench =)

This is amazing !!!!!

Congratulations on being a loser! Thanx for the great info.

Good for you !!! How does ostrich taste like? Never had it before.

Wow! You are doing awesome! I think Dr. Garcia closed my stomach completely up.. LOL! I can not get down half that much in one day and I am 4 weeks post op! i drank an 11 oz protein shake this morning. have had a couple of ounces of water. Just ate my chewable vitamins and I feel like my tummy may explode!

Wow! Congratulations! At what point did your tired feeling go away or improve?

I am jealous, I won't be 3 weeks out until Tuesday and can't start soft foods until then. I so want scrambled eggs.

Mary

Hey everyone! I just wanted to keep you guys posted on my progress since I know i really enjoy reading other peoples. I am now 24 days post op (just over 3 weeks) and have lost 25.6 pounds!!! It's looking like I will probably have a 30 lb loss for my first month, which as a lightweight, was completely unexpected for me! The transformation has already been amazing, and i will be posting before/1 month post op photos on the 22nd. I will also be retaking measurements on the 22nd as well (I'm doing this each month) but so far I am down from a snug 18 jeans to a loose 16 and I am only about 1/2" away from buttoning the 14s. It has been so cool to "shop" in the deep abyss of my closet where I stashed away all my skinny clothes.

As far as food intake at this point, I'm convinced Dr. Garcia gave me a VERY snug sleeve. I had asked him before surgery for a snug 32F boughie and I think I got one because my restriction is incredible! I start each day with two scoops of GNC Wheybolic Extreme 60 chocolate Protein drink which starts me right off with 40 grams of protein. I mix it with Kroger carbmaster Milk which gives the whole shake a value of 51 grams of protein! And it is delicious. I drink Water until lunch, which is about 2-3 tablespoons of either chicken/egg/tuna salad mized with about a teaspoon of light mayo. I have a snack around 3 of an Ostrim Beef and Ostrich high protein jerky for another 14 grams of protein! For dinner I have been pureeing home made chicken soups and chili. I tried a little more solid food this week and I just wasnt ready...i can handle scrambled eggs. yogurt, Jello pudding, the light mayo salad, and the jerky really well. I got sick after trying a hardboiled egg the other day and decided to just back off and keep to soft foods a while longer...I have the rest of my life to eat solids right?

I am also at the gym 5 days a week doing 45 minutes of cardio each day right now, gradually building up to a full 60 minutes. Starting next tuesday I am cleared to start lifting less than 10 pounds, so i will start my lifting program (New Rules of Lifting for Women) at that time....2 weeks later (at the 6 week post op mark) I will start lifting upwards of 20 pounds.

I feel amazing. I still feel pretty tired at the end of each day, but I am sleeping SOOOO much better at night! Which leaves me feeling very rested and peppy in the morning...pretty good since my 2 year old gives me a 5:30 wake up call each day.

I hope this helps! I am looking forward to seeing each of you on the losers bench =)

I'm glad to hear you're feeling so well! My Dr says he uses a size 36 bougie and I'm a little nervous I won't get the restriction. I wonder if it's something that can be customized for each patient? I'll have to ask.

It sounds like you're working really hard to get a ton of protein in. From what I've read, that's really key to get things going early on. Are you taking any Vitamins or supplements as well?

I can't wait to be on the loser's bench with you! Only 5 more weeks before I'm headed to Mexico myself.

~Kat

Hey everyone! I just wanted to keep you guys posted on my progress since I know i really enjoy reading other peoples. I am now 24 days post op (just over 3 weeks) and have lost 25.6 pounds!!! It's looking like I will probably have a 30 lb loss for my first month' date=' which as a lightweight, was completely unexpected for me! The transformation has already been amazing, and i will be posting before/1 month post op photos on the 22nd. I will also be retaking measurements on the 22nd as well (I'm doing this each month) but so far I am down from a snug 18 jeans to a loose 16 and I am only about 1/2" away from buttoning the 14s. It has been so cool to "shop" in the deep abyss of my closet where I stashed away all my skinny clothes.

As far as food intake at this point, I'm convinced Dr. Garcia gave me a VERY snug sleeve. I had asked him before surgery for a snug 32F boughie and I think I got one because my restriction is incredible! I start each day with two scoops of GNC Wheybolic Extreme 60 chocolate Protein drink which starts me right off with 40 grams of protein. I mix it with Kroger carbmaster Milk which gives the whole shake a value of 51 grams of protein! And it is delicious. I drink Water until lunch, which is about 2-3 tablespoons of either chicken/egg/tuna salad mized with about a teaspoon of light mayo. I have a snack around 3 of an Ostrim Beef and Ostrich high protein jerky for another 14 grams of protein! For dinner I have been pureeing home made chicken soups and chili. I tried a little more solid food this week and I just wasnt ready...i can handle scrambled eggs. yogurt, Jello pudding, the light mayo salad, and the jerky really well. I got sick after trying a hardboiled egg the other day and decided to just back off and keep to soft foods a while longer...I have the rest of my life to eat solids right?

I am also at the gym 5 days a week doing 45 minutes of cardio each day right now, gradually building up to a full 60 minutes. Starting next tuesday I am cleared to start lifting less than 10 pounds, so i will start my lifting program (New Rules of Lifting for Women) at that time....2 weeks later (at the 6 week post op mark) I will start lifting upwards of 20 pounds.

I feel amazing. I still feel pretty tired at the end of each day, but I am sleeping SOOOO much better at night! Which leaves me feeling very rested and peppy in the morning...pretty good since my 2 year old gives me a 5:30 wake up call each day.

I hope this helps! I am looking forward to seeing each of you on the losers bench =)[/quote']

Wow thanks so much for that detailed information I will be sleeved 2/27 with Dr Garcia

Thanks for the update, Armywife29. I am so happy to hear that you are doing well... you are really workin' it!

Good for you !!! How does ostrich taste like? Never had it before.

The Ostrim jerk sticks are delicious! You can't really tell that it's "ostrich" it tastes just like any other jerk stick...except it is very lean.

I am jealous, I won't be 3 weeks out until Tuesday and can't start soft foods until then. I so want scrambled eggs.

Mary

I know the feeling Mary! I couldn't wait to have a scrambled egg either! Be warned, you probably won't be able to eat a whole one, and go easy on the salt and pepper. I was only able to eat about 1/3 of the egg the first time. You can also mix in a little skim cheese for a little bit more Protein.

I'm glad to hear you're feeling so well! My Dr says he uses a size 36 bougie and I'm a little nervous I won't get the restriction. I wonder if it's something that can be customized for each patient? I'll have to ask.

It sounds like you're working really hard to get a ton of Protein in. From what I've read, that's really key to get things going early on. Are you taking any Vitamins or supplements as well?

I can't wait to be on the loser's bench with you! Only 5 more weeks before I'm headed to Mexico myself.

~Kat

Hi Kat! Congrats on your upcoming surgery. Yes, each day my priority is protein and Water. I'm so glad discovered the GNC Wheybolic 60 because immable to bang out 90% of my protein goal by Breakfast. Please note that i make the shake at 7:30 am, and it takes me until nearly noon to finish it (when 2 scoops are mixed with 8 oz milk it makes about a 12-16 oz shake). I add some water too to thin it out a bit, otherwise it's pretty thick and sits heavy on my sleeve.

As far as supplements, I take nexium (PPi) and Actigall (to preserve the gallbladder daily). I also take flintstones complete multi vitamins. I will only take the actigaull for 6 months, and the nexium as needed after that. I did purchase an Iron supplement just in case, but probably won't start it until my 3 month labs are done, and only if my iron is low at that point. I'm a big milk/yogurt eater too, so I haven't needed any Calcium supplement, I'd definitely meeting a healthy level each day.

Honestly, I think the biggest key to my loss right now has been the gym. I started back at the 2 week mark doing low impact cardio (elliptical, bike, arc trainer, incline walking) and I'm pretty sure that helped me skirt past the dreaded 3 week stall that most people encounter. I had been weighing daily at that point and noticed my loss starting to slow dramatically (.4 pound for 3 days straight) and decided it was time to up the ante a bit. Since that point I've been losing .5-1 lb a DAY. Hoping to prolong this as long as possible...so if I see another slow down I will change up my gym routine again.

My intake is around 450-550 calories a day, with 64 oz water/liquids and minimum of 60 grams protein a day...most days I'm hitting a good bit higher (today was 94!). Hope this helps!

Its nice to hear that your doing so well and rocking your sleeve like a pro. I was going to mention that's a lot of Protein for your body to absorb in one sitting but looks like its taking you most of the morning to finish... I think the rule of thumb is 30g max every 1.5 hours, but you probably already knew that lol.

How are your incisions healing? Are you planning to apply anything to them to help with scaring?

Congrats to your beloved Baltimore Ravens... wish my niners won, but it was a very entertaining game.

Give my regards to your mom

Hi Kat! Congrats on your upcoming surgery. Yes, each day my priority is Protein and Water. I'm so glad discovered the GNC Wheybolic 60 because immable to bang out 90% of my protein goal by breakfast. Please note that i make the shake at 7:30 am, and it takes me until nearly noon to finish it (when 2 scoops are mixed with 8 oz milk it makes about a 12-16 oz shake). I add some water too to thin it out a bit, otherwise it's pretty thick and sits heavy on my sleeve.

As far as supplements, I take nexium (PPi) and Actigall (to preserve the gallbladder daily). I also take flintstones complete multi Vitamins. I will only take the actigaull for 6 months, and the nexium as needed after that. I did purchase an Iron supplement just in case, but probably won't start it until my 3 month labs are done, and only if my iron is low at that point. I'm a big milk/yogurt eater too, so I haven't needed any calcium supplement, I'd definitely meeting a healthy level each day.

Honestly, I think the biggest key to my loss right now has been the gym. I started back at the 2 week mark doing low impact cardio (elliptical, bike, arc trainer, incline walking) and I'm pretty sure that helped me skirt past the dreaded 3 week stall that most people encounter. I had been weighing daily at that point and noticed my loss starting to slow dramatically (.4 pound for 3 days straight) and decided it was time to up the ante a bit. Since that point I've been losing .5-1 lb a DAY. Hoping to prolong this as long as possible...so if I see another slow down I will change up my gym routine again.

My intake is around 450-550 calories a day, with 64 oz water/liquids and minimum of 60 grams protein a day...most days I'm hitting a good bit higher (today was 94!). Hope this helps!

Thanks so much for all of the information!! I'm telling myself now that I won't be obsessed with the scale, in hopes of not being hooked on watching for that 3 week stall. I doubt I'll actually manage that, though, since my OCD probably won't be that forgiving.

I've gotten some Protein powder samples already but will add that specific type at GNC to my purchase list. I know a lot of people struggle getting in protein initially, so I'd like to get the biggest bang I can out of the powder I use.

I'm not super active now (shocking, I know...lol) but am looking forward to feeling better and having more energy post-op. I will add in cardio early on, too, as I think that's a key component to early, consistent weight loss.

Thanks again for sharing so much.

~Kat