According to the scale in the surgeon's office, I am down 5.6 lbs this month. Yay me! They want me to lost 14 total in the three months prior to surgery.

I've made more changes than I thought possible:

1. cut out between meal Snacks

2. cut out most of the crap

3. cut back on the volume of food at each meal

I still haven't added exercise to the mix, though. I have been blocked mentally with everything I think I'm going to start doing. I'm not sure why, but I think it has to do with living with my boyfriend. I want to exercise with him (in my mind, because I imagine it to be a healthy activity we could share), but in reality I don't ENJOY exercising with him, because I like to be totally focused on form and put in 100%, and him, not so much. And once I'm home, I don't want to go out again without him. And it's been way too hot and humid for me to handle walking outside, so there's another excuse. Ugh.

So I talked about this with the exercise physiologist on the team at yesterday's visit, and she gave me a great idea. I'm going to start stopping off at various big box stores on the way home from work and walk them for 20 - 30 minutes before I get home. I'm thinking I can work this into my chores so I can accomplish stuff I would normally do on the weekend after work, and kill two birds with one stone. I just need to get STARTED. I really enjoy the feeling of exercising regularly, but man I'm so hard to kick start.

I found out I only have to do 4 days of all liquid right before the surgery, so I'm hoping I won't have as rough a time as others I've read about. And I found out that I don't have to worry if I don't exactly make the 14 lbs they asked me to lose... as long as it's obvious that I'm working successfully to lose weight, it's ok.

Here's to the next month, 2 of 3 pre-op! I have all of my tests except the endoscopy and colonoscopy scheduled for next Friday. That's my next milestone. I think the time is going to fly. I'm on track for a late September/early October surgery date.

Congrats on your success so far - you're doing great and making great changes.

A couple of suggestions for the next couple of months to prepare you for post-op living...

Practice eating slower - there's an app called Eat Slower than you can download on your phone. It will chime when it's time to take another bit. You will be surprised how quickly you feel full on less food.

Change to appetizer forks and spoons - this will force you to slow down and take smaller bites, a must post-op.

Practice mindful eating - sit down at the table, turn off the TV and eat in peace. Savor your food and concentrate on how you feel. Again, you'll probably eat less.

Walk - get in the best shape you can prior to surgery. You'll be able to walk right after surgery and walking, in my opinion, is the best medicine for recovery. Move your body.

Start trying out different shakes and experiment with different flavors. Torani sugar-free syrups are a great way to enhance the flavor of shakes. Don't over purchase - your tastes may change post-op, so something you liked before surgery may taste bad post-op.

Hope this helps!

Congrats! We are on almost the same track...my first month is over 04 August. Love the "shop it off" approach to get started. Would help here in AZ this time of the year because it is freakin hot right now...lol Good luck in month 2!

@@4me4them, good luck to you too! I'm glad to meet someone in the same place in the process as me. Looking forward to sharing.