M2G

I'm thinking pork rinds. That is what my brain substituted for the word "scratchings"...not sure either one is a good definition tho. Coops, I love the way you talk.

That is quite the journey! I was originally thinking band, because I just didn't feel like the bypass was for me. Once I learned about the sleeve I *knew* it was what I wanted! Good luck on your journey.

By far the easiest, post-op friendly chicken recipe I have is to throw chicken breasts in a crockpot cover with chicken broth and seasonings to taste and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6. Dump most of the liquid, and then shred your chicken (just scrape a fork through it.) I use it plain, for taco meat, or put a little BBQ sauce on it. I just season it accordingly. Also a great way to make a "few" chicken breasts go a lot farther... something about cooking it broth makes it swell up and generates a lot more food than if you were to grill it or put it in a pan. Makes for great leftovers too that you can just portion out as necessary.

Heyher...BTW, that looks odd. Like what you mentioned. Eeewwww. I wonder if a sharp pretzel stick or too hot of a chile pepper would damage it? It looks flimsy, but I imagine it would have to be fairly strong.

Onesie...like pajamas that cover your whole body and zip up the middle? LOL! That BMI-biatch chart can go to he)) as far as I'm concerned. LOL! WTG Coops...meant for a 15 yo and you fit just fine!

Thought it was a typo too, until I read the article. I think there was something a while back that was similar but different. It was a balloon inserted into the stomach and then inflated to give that full feeling. I wonder what the results of that were? I agree I would also just rather have 85% of my stomach phsyically removed than do this.

I've talked to several bariatric patients and many say their surgeon DID or DID NOT even give them a goal weight. My surgeon belongs to a practice that bears the stamp of "Bariatric Surgery Center for Excellence" and along with having that stamp and those ratings, you can bet that he keeps close tabs on numbers when it comes to his patients. That being said, there is a fine line between encouraging and demanding. Your surgeon (hopefully) didn't just fall off the turnip truck and (again hopefully) realizes that everyone is extremely individual. I'm guessing that he was giving you something to "shoot" for and if you don't get there, then I agree with BTB, maybe he can figure out how to bump your loss higher. My surgeon gave me a goal. It was to have a "normal" BMI. At 9 months post-op he checked his notes and looked at charts and looked me up and down and said "nope that isn't going to work for you, let's raise that number higher." What a relief. Much later he said at a motivational speech (audience comprised of post-bariatric patients at ALL levels of post-op and all types of surgery) "I don't give a da*n what you weigh today. DID you carry forth the promise of living a better life and are you living your life the way you imagined you could when weight was a factor holding you back?" Gotta love a surgeon who says that (when you know he is also all about the numbers!) So I would not go to this appointment with a defeatist attitude. Do the best you can for you, and do not let anyone tell you that you have failed at anything.

Great account of your checkup, Jane. I have not had my labs done since my 18 month checkup. My surgeon was so happy with them he didn't even want to see my labs at my 2 year. Now I'm getting ready to have my 3 year and I'm excited for labs because I want to "know" they are ok instead of just assuming they are. I really like the comment about obesity = trauma. Not only physical but mental as well. That is so interesting and I wish more surgeons focused on this and could make recommendations/help the bariatric community with this. I think generally the normal comment is trauma = therapy. But I think there are smaller ways to heal from that trauma (of course depending on how bad it is, some absolutely NEED therapy as treatment.) But it is most definitely a "process" and I know of some bariatric patients who still struggle with the mental aspect years later. Edited to add: I was just scrolling through the list of post-op classes my surgeon offers and saw this: Moving Forward in the New Year Redefining the History of YOU! In this class you learn how to: Become conscious of unconscious thoughts leading to negative, self sabotaging behaviors Identify and diminish the power of the critic/the voice inside your head (the one that tells you how rotten you are) Deciphering bodily hunger from emotional hunger Become the “observer” of your emotions without acting on them Change the channel on YOUR emotional dial Connect with your power and create a plan to move forward I might try taking this class!

What is your normal Protein intake on a fast day? Mine seems to hover between 30-45 grams. I would like to see it more around 50 at least. What are you all at?

Want to 2nd that!

Totally agree OD! Today, I was very meticulous about logging my food and clocked in at 971 cals. I was shocked. I even ate a strawberry with a tbsp of cream cheese on it and logged it. I fasted yesterday (I think I was 530 cals) but today wasn't feeling hungry. So go figure. I'm waiting until tues to see what the scale says. If I posted today it would say I'm down -8lbs since July 16th. Hoping the scale still says that on Tues!

My sleeve: Oct. 22, 2010 - Lost -100 (but working off a 15lb regain) His sleeve: March 7, 2011 - Lost - 70 (maintains a +/-5lb window...says he would like to lose -10 more) Best thing we have ever done together!

EXACTLY MY THOUGHTS! Really well said Cheri (as usual!)

Cheri, as always thank you so much for your insightful and well-thought out response to my question. It is heartbreaking to hear a daughter (sorry I don't have boys so I can't comment on how it feels to have a son) have any sort of negative self-image. I'm truly shocked at how much of it comes from society, as opposed to home. Prior to surgery, my husband and I never talked about our weight in front of the girls. In fact their little minds had a hard time comprehending WHY we would have surgery. Cheri you sound like you have done a super job trying to undo what the stepdaughters mother has created. You are sweet to care and talk to them about it and I'm sorry that some of their negative talk has rubbed off on your daughter. My 12 year old spent elementary school as a little bit "chubbier" than most of her peers (a girl in 3rd grade told her "you need to wear a BRA!") but suddenly she hit about 11 years old and just spouted really tall. Her waist shrunk in and her curves started popping out. She actually has a beautiful figure but it's not stick thin. I definitely compliment her on way more than her looks. She is super-smart and very athletic. She has a lot of positive stuff going for her. We talk a lot about healthy eating habits, and what would be a better choice rather than the DON'T, NEVER EAT, etc. We don't buy soda or drink it, BUT I do allow my girls to order soda if we are out to eat or if they are at a friend's house. I'm smart enough to know that completely and total deprivation CAN ultimately lead to obsessing and overeating of whatever is being restricted. As I said the girls DO know about surgery and honestly I was worried when I started the 5:2 plan, but now that it's been almost 3 weeks I have noticed that really there is no need to explain or make excuses. So that has been a big relief. Thank you again Cheri. You are wonderful!

OH and I forgot to mention...so on that drive from Denver to Glenwood Springs, I CANNOT tell you how many insane...er biking ethusiasts I see biking over the moutain pass from Vail to Silverthorne and vice versa...OMG, that moutain pass taxes CARS and I cannot fathom being out there on a bike. It's humbling to watch, really. Let me know if you are ever in the area!

Oh my gosh there are too many to list. There are a lot up by the divide, but you have to be careful. Denver's weather can be unpredictable. The old adage around here is "if you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes, it will change." One that is close to by where I live is called Castlewood Canyon and there are several trails to take (no boredom) that are clearly marked with varying degrees of difficulty. http://www.parks.state.co.us/parks/castlewoodcanyon/Pages/CastlewoodCanyonHome.aspx Another that I have heard about (but never done) is up near the Continental Divide (that is an area where the weather is also several degrees cooler than whatever the temp of the day is down in Denver) We pass by this all the time because while we live in Denver, my whole family lives between Glenwood Springs and Apsen, so we DRIVE by it and never stop to hike it. Prob. need to change that. http://funcoloradohikes.com/tag/continental-divide-trail Anyway, there are hiking trails just about everywhere you look. It's really just a matter of preference. We also have over 53 "Fourteeners" that are coveted by the hiking enthusists. http://www.14ers.com/ Sounds like Denver would be worth more than a stop thru the airport for you Fiddle...

I take a class called fusion at my local rec center. BUT the class *right* before my Fusion class is a class called Tabata. Sometimes I get there early enough to watch for a few minutes. The lady that teaches it is hard core. She scares me. lol My Fusion instructor does a bit of tabata in our class as well. One day I will get up the nerves to go take the "scary" instructor's tabata class. lol

Waving from Denver! It's funny because my surgeon actually talks about this in his seminar and I'll be darned if I can remember exactly what he says. Because even being #5 on the list, and knowing all the running jokes about having bikes and skis attached to cars that are worth more than the cars they are strapped to, I will tell ya what, my surgeon brings the crowds when does his seminars. I think he basically talked about the data and how's pretty skewed because it's still a LARGE % of Amercians that are overweight/obese/morbidly obese and beyond. I will say one thing about Denver, there are a lot of health nuts here (waving to Boulder... ) and honestly we get so much sunshine it's hard not to be addicted to getting outdoors. I think we have a really high number days of sunshine per year...300+ I believe. :wub: Even on the snow days sometimes we all just wait for the sun to come melt the snow. We're all slightly addicted to that because people here get grumpy about more than 2 days of no sunshine. Not sure if that helps put us up higher on the list, but thinking there might be a correlation.

Wow, I think this is one of the best "NSVs" I've ever heard!

Totally second this post Georgia!

JUNIORS SIZE? Awesome! I have a daughter who wears juniors sizes and they ARE cut small! WTG! Just do the best you can while on vacation and get back to it when you are home. I found that I lost a lb while up visiting my mom for 5 days. That NEVER happens. But I wasn't going to argue with my scale.

You sound like YOU would make a good PT!

I'm sorry, but you just made my day. I'm laughing because I "get it" and nothing is worse than being put under the glare of perfect strangers.

Well, honestly Fiddle, I'm nearing in on 3 years post-op, and from what I can tell things have improved from when I was about 9 months post-op, so I think that is a completely valid response. It really depends so much on age, heredity, amount lost, amount of time spent being obese, etc. There is just not one way that works for everyone. I also drink a ton of water, but no amount of water is going to shrink what I've got. I'm still very much undecided on plastics. I'm currently in a mode of trying to love the skin I'm in. I'll let you all know how that works out for me. Ooooh let's have a contest...which is worse...no triangle to cover it, OR the huge giant poster size computer screen that magnified the skin! I hope you get your money soon!