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Confessions of a professional dieter...

I am one week from my surgery, so I think it is time to start my blog. Today I am going to start with my story: I am currently 40 years old and morbidly obese at 323 Lbs. I have been overweight probably since age 3. I remember my earliest attempts at a ?diet? started around age 15. After 25 years of dieting I am sad to say that I have become a professional dieter, and a failed one at that. I have been fairly successful in most areas of my life, with one area that I have never been able to succeed in long term. Early on in dieting I tried many diets and fads: slim fast, nutri-system, good old fashion running, lifting weights, diet pills, sweat suits, fat reduction belts, sports, karate (up to Black belt level), work sponsored personal trainer and doctor led diet system, cardio of every type, interval workouts, several best-selling diet programs, diet software, internet based diet programs (ebooks) etc. With myself as the human guinea pig I know what works to lose weight. Some of the best programs out there that really worked for me and were actually healthy were based on the principles you see in ?Body for Life? and ?Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle?. I know the ways to lose weight safely and steadily. I know how to mostly avoid or break weight loss stalls and plateaus. I don?t know what?s worse, being ignorant and fat or knowing exactly what to do but failing over and over doing exactly what I know is self-defeating. It is like the mechanic who can fix everyone?s car but his own. More about exercise: I inherited my mother?s strong cardiovascular system, anytime I work out during a diet, my heart is back in shape within a couple of weeks. My cardiovascular system far exceeds my physical capability. In other words If I did not have so much extra weight I could run forever?my muscles and joints give way long before my heart or lungs are winded. As an example during one of my better diet runs (the doctor led one sponsored by my work) I got up to where I could run 12 miles and I was still at 250 pounds?my knees and shins gave out that day, but my heart and lungs could have kept going. My goal at the time was to run a marathon and I had built up to this distance over time, but I injured myself and went fell into a terrible slump gaining the weight back and much more. Just this past year starting what would be my final diet attempt I went from 340 down to 320 pounds and was working out hard?just to give you an idea of the heart health I had an EKG at 320 lbs. and my resting heart rate was 44 bpm. The doc who did the EKG and physical made a comment about how healthy my various blood pressure and heart numbers were even compared to some athletes she had seen. I was like so ?I?m a healthy fat guy, how does that help me??. She then mentioned the VSG or Lap band to help me for long term weight-loss. I had not really entertained thoughts of WLS very much?I?m a ?professional dieter? after all who knows what works and what doesn?t (HA!) I am so glad she brought that up because it got my stubborn technical brain to really research WLS. This was reinforced when I had 2 other friends at work have WLS (one band one bypass) and I was seeing their results. For the first time I looked at the surgery objectively and read every technical detail I could about the options out there?this is what led me to the VSG as the best choice for me. My failure in every diet has been my lack of a ?Full? sensation. My mom says I had no full button as a kid?if she put it in front of me, I ate it. I have always over eaten; even when I eat healthy I eat too much in portions. Here is an operation that finally gives me an ability to feel full with just a few ounces, not have excessive hunger, and it does not have the major drawbacks of the band or bypass. So this is not a magic bullet, it is a tool. This is the tool I have been missing in my so called ?professional dieting? career of 25 years. I also know and have already planned to get some mental assistance to deal with the fact that I can no longer live to eat. I start my journey using this new tool on 4/28/2010. I can?t wait to run again and not have to worry about my weight slowing me down! I plan to use my knowledge to benefit me in this journey incorporating the good healthy principles I have learned over the years. Now that I have the right tool to assist me, I will succeed!
Swiftflow

Swiftflow

11
 

Recovering nicely...

Just wanted to blog my recovery experience for those going into this process new and want to have some details.   I went into the hospital as planned at 6:30 am to get ready for my vsg. My only real concern was that something would come up and they would have to postpone my date--I waited and wanted this done so badly that I was relieved to see that everything was on track. They called us to the pre-op area right away and proceeded to take my vital signs and weight me in for the anesthesia (right at 320.8 lbs). I got gowned up and the rest was a blur of everything coming together quickly I.V., heparin shot, blood pressure, etc. Then I talked to the OR nurse and my surgeon about getting a DVD of the laproscopic procedure--they said they could probably do that. Before I knew it, it was time to kiss the wife good by and ship me off to surgery. The anesthesiologist had told me we would go in and they would have me switch beds etc etc.. but I don't remember anything after saying goodbye to the wife. They say the cocktail you get pre anesthesia does make you forget those few minutes...   I woke up in recovery and boom I felt some pain. My head was so cloudy I could not shake this cloudy dizzy feeling and the pain what seemed to be all over. They were watching me to see when I woke up so I let them know right away that I needed something for the pain. I remeber checking down my gown to see if I was one of the few who needed a drain--whew no drain--so I was happy. (Dr. Stewart does drains if needed, and they told me about 1 in 10 get them.) They shot something in my IV and I was able to dose off a bit. I woke up in another room after that--I saw the TV so I knew this was the regular hospital room, so I asked about my wife. Some confusion there, but they use a portable pager to notify any family that you are ready--Dr Stewart did see them right after to let them know all was well, but the next notification post recovery was not done yet. It was around 11 am then and they reached my wife who had been joined by my mom. When they came in I was still foggy but ready to get this healing process going. I needed to go to the restroom and they asked if I wanted to use the portable urinal and I said that I wanted to get up and go. I took the trip to the bathroom slowly but then I insisted on making a lap around the hallway as well so I could shake some of the gas I had been belching up. I did OK on the walk but the anesthesia post effect was just plain annoying making me feel like there were cobwebs in my head. The walk did get me nice and tired though so I went down for a nap and sent my wife and mom out to grab there lunch. This nap seemed to do the trick and my head finally started feeling clearer. Although a true nap was somewhat difficult. They had anti-clot things on my legs inflating and deflating non-stop and every 30 mins the blood pressure cuff on my arm would auto check my pressure during the first few hours. That thing just annoyed me :cursing: They had set my first liquid intake at 6 hours post op and that was due at 3pm. My first pain med was wearing off about 2:30 and I could feel it wearing off because each gas bubble or shift would give a slight more pain. I asked for meds and they gave me the option of oral liquid or IV. Since it was still before my 3pm time I was scared to drink so I asked for the morphine via IV--OK the morphine does work, but let me tell you that crap stings like hell going in the IV and through your body for a sec. I wish I had taken the liquid--anyway, that got me feeling better so it was time to pee and lap the nurses station again. I got into a habit of walking every chance I could to help speed recovery. I took about 2 ounces of liquid at a time, but that crystal lite lemonade was too sweet for me so I switched to ice and plain water. Later on through the evening I tried jello, sugar free pops, chicken broth, etc getting up to 4 ounces per hour or more if you included the ice chips I kept chewing because it helped with the cotton mouth. I kept timing my meds at 4 hours and would walk even late at night right after the meds and then nap again after the walk. All through this time I did have to burp with every drink or bite of ice--probably the gas finding a way out as valves opened. Walking also brought on some burps.   By Thursday morning I was up and around quite a bit and got free from my IV, so I would surf the web, walk around, and then nap as needed until the doc finally came by to release me that afternoon. I was really feeling great. The wife drove us by the Doc's office, we picked up the DVD from the surgery and said hello to the staff there and headed on home.   Anyway, sorry for the long story, but I figured I would detail it here for those who may be going through this process soon.   Overall it was a great recovery! Looking forward to the journey ahead.
Swiftflow

Swiftflow

4
 

One Month Out today...

For my one month update I wanted to share from my overall experiences both good and bad. Lets start with the good: Surgery was on 4/28 and today is 5/28 and I have lost 30.4 pounds. 30 pounds in a month is awesome and I am so thrilled I made this decision. I do feel my restriction and get full very quickly. 4-6 ounces is about my capacity depending on the type of food. Slider foods like Greek yogurt I could eat more of but I just eat a 6 oz container and stop there. So far I have been lucky to not have hunger *knock on wood*. I have felt thirsty though--but this could be psychological because I used to always have a diet coke nearby to drink from--now its water or crystal light but I still have the need to have liquid around allot. Needless to say, I always get my fluids in and usually more. This may be TMI but my urine is usually clear (which is supposedly a good thing) Now lets talk about my diet. Some people say this is not a diet and not to treat it that way- but technically your diet is what you eat so everyone is on a "diet" all the time (neener neener, HA!). I stick to the general doctors orders here for the most part on most days. I count protein, but I have not really bothered with calories that much. I get very full on protein so I try to have some type of fruit or veggie when I can fit in an ounce or more. I think I could still add some more here but I will explain why later. 3 out of every 4 days I am pretty much by the book vsg diet low carb, high protein (70-80). Where I have drastically differed is on my 4th day. I up my calories and do count calories on this 4th day because I want to try and hit from 1800 calories or more. This would not really be possible for me to do without pure junk food IF I tried doing this with just food just based on how often and how much I can eat. So I supplement with a "weight gain" drink called Suplimed. It was developed as a well balanced formula to help those who have lost weight through illness to regain weight. One 8 oz shake in water is 500+ calories and more if its in milk.(sometimes I do half at a time) So I typically do 2 whole shakes plus food to get me to the 1800+ on my forth day. As I can eat more real food in time I will lower the shakes or half them. Why? because I am trying to avoid any weight loss stalls and not allow my system to adjust to low calorie metabolism--and I use the shakes because I don't want to use junk food to up calories. I am not recommending this to anyone, because that would differ from what your doctor would have you do--I am happily the human guinea pig for this and I just want to see how this works for me over the next couple of months. So far no stalls *knock on wood*. This zig-zag calorie method has been in the body-building world a long time--so I did not think it up on my own. I just could never do it pre-op with all my hunger. I started my first high calorie day on my second day of full liquids and have stuck to the 3 regular days 1 high cal day since then. Honestly, I don't look forward to the high calorie days because it is a chore to get the shakes and food in when you have no hunger--but I stick with them like a prescription medication for now--if they stop being effective over time I will drop them. Supplements I take: BA multi vitamin. The orange was nasty but I can tolerate the berry flavor. Twin labs sublingual B12, Vitamin D weekly 50,000IU (set by doc based on pre-op low levels), prescription to prevent gal stones(help me keep the gal bladder), and I take a tablespoon of Barleans Omega Swirl to get necessary fats in. Protein supplements as needed too.   Ok the Bad: It has not all been roses--or maybe it has been roses, but there are a few thorns . Let me preface this by saying I am very happy with the sleeve and would not trade it. Post op--I had a wonderful experience until about one week out where it felt like I pulled something on my large incision. It was painful and I had to rest it a couple of days--luckily I did not tear it or have a hernia (internals protrude through incision) but it was a wake up call to me. I should admit this now I guess-- I hit the Stairmaster Stepmill (real stairs that rotate) the day before this happened --STUPID ME! I just felt so darn good and the stairmaster has been my punisher of choice for years--nothing happened that day but the next day simply bending over without bending my knees and popping back up quickly caused the oh crap moment. I talked about the bending over part before, but I had to come clean on the Stairmaster part so someone might learn from my idiocy. This from a guy who skied 1.5 days with a broken collar bone back at age 18--I did not know it was broken but my pain tolerance is a little off and dammit I had paid for those lift tickets! Anyway, I thought I would be super sleever at one week out. That stairmaster is going to get its ass kicked at 6 weeks out I will tell you though! With a couple of rest days I luckily had not messed anything up--whew what a wake up call. The next item I have had to learn after moving into regular food is to slow down. Its easy to remember this with dense heavy foods, but for foods like scrambled eggs--I used to inhale those. Bad habits of not chewing foods like this have led to me throwing up--I would stew for like half and hour trying to walk it off until finally my stomach says "nope!" and up it came. So yes you have to chew even the smaller soft foods. Last but not least I have dealt with some constipation. This is why I think that I need more fruit or fiber in my diet. I have used Miralax (or the Walgreen's equivalent) to clear this issue up some, but I want to get the food right so I don't have to.   So there you have it the good and the bad so far at one month out. I am loving my sleeve and the results have been awesome. Feel free to post any questions if you are pre-op or new to this. Thanks!
Swiftflow

Swiftflow

3
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