stormbrewing

Yep- I had surgery on the 28th, and I appear to be doing great. I lost just over 30 lbs prior to surgery doing a partial liquid diet and working out really hard. As I type this, I'm sitting at home 5 days out of surgery and my guts feel a little bubbly and strange but no real pain. I have no desire to eat whatsoever which is nice, and I'm forcing down the Myoplex shakes. I feel great just being down 30 lbs, and my mind is already focusing on what life at 240 is going to be like. I'm poking around looking at before and after abdominoplasty photos and getting a bit excited. I just can't wait for this finally to be over. I'm also looking forward to getting physical again. I'll probably get back into cardio by Thursday which will be one week out, and then get back into my kickboxing and jujitsu classes towards the end of the month, port permitting. Would you guys all be interested in getting together again for lunch? I'd love to see how everyone is doing. Maybe sometime in early April? Let me know and I'll set it up. Kay- that's great you're down 50 lbs, by the way! Imagine what 50lbs of gristle sitting on a serving platter looks like! (It's nasty but that's the way I'm picturing this weight coming off) Hope to talk to you all soon- John

Hi everyone- Just figured I'd touch base as I haven't for a while. I got banded on the 28th, and I'm healing really quickly and don't have much discomfort at all. The only thing I'm frustrated about is not being able to go right back to my workout routine, which was aggressive. I figure that by Thursday the 7th, I'll be back on the incumbent bike hitting my cardio at the very least. Probably won't be back into the jujitsu and muay thai for a few months. Still haven't figured out the ticker thing, I did what everyone told me as far as cutting and pasting it into the area on UserCP, but it still isn't working. Anyway, I'm down 35 pounds since the 18th of January, hopefully under 300 by the end of March (324 now) I hope all you guys are well... and we should defnitely get together for a lunch again in Braintree. I'd love to see how you all are doing. John

This is a message for the guys. Have any of you lost all of the excess weight you wanted to by adhering to a really vigorous workout program? I'm getting banded on the 28th of February, and I've lost about 20 pounds since 1/18. I also joined a mixed martial arts class that far exceeds any cardio that I currently do. Have any of you that do do a lot of exercise experienced any problems with the port or the band because of stomach crunches or anything like that?

That's good. "Shoveling Compost" reps, although you say it in a funny way, are very similiar to a lot of core exercises that pros perform in the gym. I bet with a good shovelful, you could exceed 30 pounds of material, so that's a significant exertion.

Hi Nana & Everyone else- The diet is going well now. I've evened out a bit and I'm not anywhere near as starving and miserable as I was initially. I'm at 338 now from 358, and I'm looking forward to being able to use my fancy Brookstone scale that maxes out at 330 by early next week. That way I don't have to go down to Newmarket Square in Roxbury and weigh myself on the scale that they weigh pallets of Porterhouse steaks on. Yay for me!

Dezadoo- No I haven't heard about that if you could let me know it would be great. Also, to anyone that reads this, I need help getting my ticker on here. I went to tickerfactory, but just couldn't figure it out. Imagine that....I can put the plumbing and heating in for a multi-family building, but I can't figure out how to use the ticker thing. John

Hi Sherri- The optional liquid diet was offered to me because I was concerned about open surgery due to the size of my liver. Dr. Rehrig said that it was entirely up to me if I wanted to go on the 1200 calorie/day diet, but I really don't want a big, hernia-prone wound in my abdomen. So, if I can suffer for a month on the liquid diet, and shrink my liver substaintially, it will benefit me. As far as booking 5 weeks out, I guess that's their lead time. I thought it was the 21st actually, but I got a letter saying it was pushed back to the 28th. Sigh. I'll keep you posted.

Hi Sherri- That guy with glasses would be me. My name is John, and I'd be happy to keep in touch with you, sorry I didn't formally introduce myself that day. Anyway, I'm on for February 21st, and on a semi-liquid diet till then, by choice. Keep in touch! John

Well, it's entirely optional, but it's in the interest of shrinking a potentially fatty liver. I'd really rather not have a big gash wound in my abdomen if I can help it. To answer your question, yes I can cook but the path of least resistance (for me) is to have 3 Myoplex shakes per day, followed by 'real food' at night, usually a lean cuisine and a 1/3 cup of fat free cottage cheese. I'll hack this, I've done much worse and like I said I really don't want a Freddy Krueger slash wound in my gut.

Just figured I'd let all of you know. I'm on the Pity Pot in a major way. My tenant downstairs is cooking something, and I feel like I'm about ready to eat my cat. Just thought you might like to know. Next step is cannibalism.

Ok ladies, quick update- Dr. Schneider and the army doc, Dr. Rehrig, if you've met him, have set me up for February 21st. They gave me the option of going on this brutal liquid diet (1200 calories) until the surgery, which is more than a month. I've been on it two days....hehehe, but I'm handling it. I have my eye on the prize. I started off at 358lbs, and I'm down to 347 in the past few weeks, because I've been slacking at the gym. Now it's time to kick up the volume and grind, I'll keep you guys posted. Good luck!

Hey it was nice to meet all of you. Thanks for having me there, and no chrispy, being the stud that I am, I'm used to being surrounded by tons of women.....lol. Anyway, it was great to hear your stories, very inspiring, and I'll email you guys out pics as I drop. Thanks again and good luck to everyone! John

Great. I'll see you guys there.

I'm probably going to get my date at the end of January, so I'd like the opportunity to sit down and ask questions with those who've already had it done at BIDMC. I live in Dorchester, and can travel anywhere. Please email me back at johnwood8@yahoo.com Thanks