Hi! I have been on BariatricPal for a while now but now that I am starting my two week liquid diet on Monday, I really want one thread where I can document my journey.

I am 37 years old with a weight of 232 and a height of 5’6. That puts me at a BMI of 37, and I was approved through Cigna (approval took 48 hours) due to severe osteoarthritis. I had a total knee replacement at 36 and my other knee is pretty bad too.

I have always been active and in the gym. I played high school and college soccer but was always heavier than the other females. I was an avid jogger but had to stop because of the knee issues. I’ve also been a yo-yo dieter all of my life. My highest weight was 269 and my lowest was 169. I’ve taken phentermine and had short term successes, but ultimately gained it back when I had my daughter. I also found that it caused high levels on anxiety and extreme fatigue, after taking it several times throughout the years. It just wasn’t worth the way it made me feel anymore.

Anyhow, I start my two week liquid diet on Monday. We are allowed one meal at night so that helps. I have my last appointment with the surgeon on Thursday, and he may let me off of the liquid diet if I have met the goal he gave me when we started the process. His goal was 12 pounds and I lost 9 the first two months, but these last three pounds seem to be fighting me at every step. I hope that three days of the liquid diet will help with the plateau.

I love to write and I think documenting my journey will help me a lot. Perhaps it might give a few other people some insight as well. Good luck everyone!!

Age: 37

Height: 5’6

BMI: 37

VSG scheduled for 4/16/18

GW: 160

MFP: Fit4LifeAR

Well, a quick update on my TKR. Looks like I will be having surgery again soon, as much as I hate the idea. I went to see my original team, even though my surgeon retired, and like the first opinion, they agreed that I need larger spacers put in my knee. We are going to try physical therapy first, but my team is not confident that it will work. Unfortunately, the ligament issue makes me a high risk for dislocation and hip issues, so it's not something that I should put off (none of which were explained by the first doctor). Luckily, the surgery is nothing compared to the replacement but they still have to cut into the original scar and open it up. I really hate the idea of another surgery, but if my knee dislocated, I would be looking at a whole new tkr. That would be worst case scenario at my age. Anyhow, I am really going to give PT a good try for the next 6 weeks, and the surgeons will look at my knee again on Aug 27th. If it is not better, we will start the process or getting it surgical repaired. I guess the only good thing is that I have hit my out of pocket maximum for the year, so I wouldn't have to pay for any of it. I guess that is another reason to do it before the new year, instead of waiting for later. [emoji19]

Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app

We just got back from the beach and we had a good trip. I wasnt very diligent about my food choices, but I am ok with that. I weighed in with a gain on 1 pound this morning, which is probably water weight. We ate some fried foods (shrimp) and I had more alcohol than I planned. Lol and let me say, I am a cheap date now! One frozen margarita had me feeling pretty good. Anyhow, I am going to rest today and get back to it tomorrow. I am 21 pounds to my personal goal weight, and 31 to my doctor's goal weight for me. My goal is to be there by November. Depending on what I do with my knee, we want to start trying for our second baby as soon as I am at my goal weight, so hopefully we will have an exciting update by the new year. [emoji3][emoji3]

Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app

We'll hold you to that promise, you know. Early 2019 is?time for TexasMommy80, her Texas Daddy and l the Little Texan in her house. Just promise me they won't be Austin, Houston, Crawford or even Greg Perry, that would be too much, sorta like Lukenback with Waylon, Willie and the boys.

So today is August 19th and I am now over 4 months post VSG. I thought I would write an update on a few things that I regularly see asked on this forum.

1. Hair loss-

I am definitely shedding more, and it is pretty annoying, but not alarming. I noticed it start at about 3 months out, and decided to add another protein shake to my daily intake. I figure it will last another month or two, based on what I have seen other people post. Honestly, though, it is not something I am worried about. I am not having huge clumps of hair fall out, and thank goodness for that! I have really fine hair already, LoL.

2. Vitamins and water-

I take my vitamins and drink at least 64 oz of water daily. Those are two things I don't mess with. The one supplement that is not included in my vitamin is iron though, and it tends to give me stomach issues. I am able to regularly eat 1200 calories per day, and my blood tests have come out normal, so I am on kind of "wait and see" pattern for that one.

3. Caffeine and soda-

The food police will not appreciate my moment of honesty here. I do drink caffeine but it doesn't bother me at all. I drink the grape flavor of crystal light, and the small amount of caffeine helps me get going in the morning. Yes yes, I know that not all doctors approve of it, but I need a boost. And for soda, even before surgery, I had a calorie-free soda at night as a "bedtime snack". It was always my reward for drinking at least 100 ounces of water (I miss being able to chug water, lol). Well, I now have a small glass of sprite zero at night, as long as I hit my water goals beforehand.

4. Portion sizes -

I feel like I can eat decent size portions, similar to a kid-sized meal. I see people post that they can only eat 2 or 3 bites of food, and that just is not me. For example, we eat breakfast tacos (with low carb tortillas) often. I can eat just over half of a breakfast taco. If we are eating crispy beef (or turkey) tacos, I can eat one whole one. I can also eat a small chicken breast, turkey patty, fish, etc. Honestly, I eat just about everything, although I make it a habit to make healthy choices most of the time (I am totally eating half of a strawberry shortcake cupcake as I write this, but don't tell anyone, lol). I still don't like rice (nothing new), and definitely can't eat fried foods anymore. I had issues with that after I had my gallbladder removed (5 months before surgery), and it is even worse now.

5. Daily caloric intake -

I am eating roughly 1200 calories per day and I am losing weight really quickly. I have lost 45 pounds since the day of my surgery, which is a good amount considering I started with a lower BMI (38). Today I weighed in at 184 and my personal goal is 170. My doctors think I will easily surpass that, but I would be content at just hitting that weight. I worry about that though, because my doctors want me to lose more. At a height of 5'6, they prefer that I weigh 140-150. If and when I get to 160, I will increase my calories to maintenance , and hopefully stay between 160-170.

6. Excess skin-

I am doing ok with this right now, although my arms look like wings at this point. Saying that, they have looked this way for years from previous weight loss and weight gaining patterns, so I don't contribute it to my VSG. I may consider having surgery in the future, but not until we are done having kids and I build my muscle back up. As for the rest of my body, I am doing well, no issues to report. I hope that it remains that way, but time will tell. I think at this point though, even losing 20 more pounds will not make enough of a difference to justify plastics (outside of my arms).

Thanks for updating us, Texas Mommy! It's always good to hear from you again ???

So when I was heavier, I had a double chin, so I always kept my hair long. The few times that I did cut my hair short, I immediately regretted it because it really seemed to bring attention to the extra weight around my face and neck. Now that I have lost weight, I am excited to cut it shorter again. I figure it is a good time because I am shedding anyhow, and then if I feel like I want to grow it out, it should be longer by next summer, when the Texas heat kicks in. I also want to color it, but I am going to wait until it is closer to Thanksgiving.

Here is the plan for Friday...woo hoo! My hair is currently about 6 inches longer than this, so it will be super scary. I am ready for a change though.

So when I was heavier, I had a double chin, so I always kept my hair long. The few times that I did cut my hair short, I immediately regretted it because it really seemed to bring attention to the extra weight around my face and neck. Now that I have lost weight, I am excited to cut it shorter again. I figure it is a good time because I am shedding anyhow, and then if I feel like I want to grow it out, it should be longer by next summer, when the Texas heat kicks in. I also want to color it, but I am going to wait until it is closer to Thanksgiving.

Here is the plan for Friday...woo hoo! My hair is currently about 6 inches longer than this, so it will be super scary. I am ready for a change though.

It ended up being about 4 inches but I love it!

Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app

I am weighing in at 177 lbs, and the weight loss has been super slow the past few months. That is my own fault though, and I have really buckled down to lose these last 8 pounds to hit my personal goal. I am 17 pounds from my doctors goal, so I am not too far away, who hoo!

Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app