mi75

BE Inspire. Only brand that my gut will tolerate now. I used Muscle Milk post op and switched to Premier when I started having lactose intolerance issues. BE was the only one that my gut could withstand in the end, but about 1 yr post op I went off all forms of protein shakes/bars/powders all together.

quite simply, you gotta get really real with yourself. Have a serious come to Jesus moment. What's more important? THIS is the moment where you either sink or swim. Seriously. I had gradual regain. I KNEW I was eating the wrong stuff but I ate small amounts and figured i'd 'deal with it later'.....after some scary health news, I got myself focused and back on track. It was that day when I realized that sadly, this is a DAILY battle for me. For many WLS patient, they lose their weight, they move on, and they have a 'regular' life. Not me. For ME, this is still a battle. 6 years out. still a battle. But my health is worth it.

I've been here the entire time. I took off a while post surgery but after I had my regain and got refocused, I came back. I do still post but SO many that were here are long gone. Sadly. In reading many threads over the last couple years I feel like so many pre op and fresh post op people are looking for shortcuts, secrets to manipulate their surgery and ways around the 'work' of being a patient. It is a LOT of work. And yes, six years later I still have to put in the work every day. There are SO MANY foods I haven't had since before my surgery. I was NEVER the person who could go back to eating everything in small amounts. I know some surgeons are ok with that, but not mine, and FOR SURE not my body! Overall, I'm doing great. I am maintaining weight loss. As many here know I had some regain and had a bit of a health crisis. My child goes to a huge national keto clinic for epileptics and under the supervision of a physician there I went hard core keto a few years back. I lost all my regain and more. I am at a bit of a plateau right now after working with a registered dietician and attempting to increase my carbs. I bumped upward a few pounds and put an end to that effort. Back in ketosis now, I'm back on track. I continue to move my weight downward and STILL there are numbers I strive for. It took me FIVE years to get the confidence to join a 'tribe' of exercise folks that I loved. After 2 years of bouncing around different places, attempting stuff at home etc., I finally found a CrossFit box that I love. I go a few days a week. I really enjoy it and will use some variation of this modality for as long as I can because it really works for me. I still do, and will ALWAYS identify as a WLS patient. I am proud of what I went through. I am focused and dedicated. I am positive that I wouldn't be seeing my upcoming 45th birthday had I not had the surgery. I had a massive health issue that was spiraling out of control and I didn't even know it was there until after surgery (after I had some regain and some testing that investigated symptoms I thought were related to regain)...Had I continued to gain weight and skipped surgery, I would be dead now. It's sobering and makes me that much MORE thankful for this option. I don't take it lightly.

I do, but I didn't stat that until I was almost 5 years post op. It does make a difference if you are in nutritional ketosis, and does boost my loss when I fast for longer periods. otherwise, I'm not sure there is much benefit.

I have been a paid member of Diet Doctor for about 3.5 years now. I had some regain, had a very scary health issue and was advised by my GI doc to go Keto. I have had very VERY few issues. I have experienced Late Dumping Syndrome a few times and have to be mindful to hit my macros on point and not just ingest fat willy nilly and I'm fine. I have found that this way of eating works perfectly 5 years post VSG. I am very happy with the weight loss I experienced from eating this way plus it has kept my medical issue at bay. I often get argument from co-workers but there is a ton of science behind metabolic ketosis, around since 1920, as I'm sure you have read on Diet Doctor!

She Fit. HUGE support and you can adjust the straps just by grabbing and tightening. super simple. pricey but good

I am a die hard CrossFitter. I LOVE it. I am 5 years post VSG. I tried CF many times but was shy and had serious gym anxiety and kept quitting. I finally found a box that I love. I totally embrace CF as a way of life. I have made incredible friends there. EVERY SINGLE movement can be modified. Can't do a push up? Do one on the wall. Can't burpee? Use a jump box. Can't throw a wall ball? Use a volleyball. There are options for every movement. And you can just tell the coach ahead of time, they will help you figure out what you can do. What I love about CF is the incredible support there. Everyone cheers more for the LAST person even more than the FIRST person finishing! EVERYONE there had a first day. Don't forget that.

Sadly, even 4.5 years post op I am STILL unable to stomach drinking plain H2O. This is an issue for many post op. I'm using sugar free powerade, unsweet tea, 'stir ins', any form of lemon/lime I can find, and a few other options. Anyone else here affected?

I haven't had any form of alcohol in several years. It doesn't fit with my lifestyle or choices anymore. I'm 5 years post VSG and had to really overhaul my entire lifestyle. even after surgery and I lost my weight, I got some sobering health news that made me have to tighten up my eating even more. I stick to sugar free iced coffee when I'm out and about, and have some Zevia-flat- for a treat.

I eat Carnivore now and practice IF. Most days of the week are 16/8, a couple days are 18/6, and 1 day a week I do a 20/4. I'm 5 years post VSG. I'm also a Nurse Practitioner now and have found the lifestyle to be very conducive to my work schedule.

5 years ago today was my VSG. What a journey. I'd do it again in a blink. I'm forever grateful. I had regain, had a health scare and got back on track. Lost my regain. Even though I have about 25 lbs to go until my plastics, I KNOW I would have never done this on my own. I am almost without the words of gratitude to my surgeon and team. Although my insurance changed and I can't see him anymore, I think about my experience all the time. It seems like yesterday. So much has happened since then, but WOW what an incredible time I've had.

I'm also 5 years post VSG this year. Dealt with some regain about 3 years ago. Also lost a parent, moved, changed jobs, etc etc etc. My regain was slow and I did the "I can eat everything in small amounts" thing for a while. I went crazy online looking for the magic reset button. I consulted on a RNY revision. I was desperate...then a really ugly health issue (one that I had surgery to help combat) returned and was really bad and I had a very REAL 'come to Jesus meeting' with a doc who told me some cold hard truths. I went full on Keto and haven't looked back. Got the health thing back under control. Lost my regain. The BIGGEST thing- I had to get out of my own head and realize that I knew what to do, I just had to DO IT. So I started attending support groups again, seeking out all sorts of them that were NOT affiliated with my surgeon, since I was embarrassed to run into someone familiar. I also met with a new nut. psych and NP team. I focused on my health and thankfully, mostly got it back again. I know that this will be an ongoing issue for LIFE, for me the work never stops and unfortunately life doesn't just pick up one day as a 'former' WLS patient. I will forever be a WLS patient, working through my plan, dealing with struggles and keeping the focus on point.

5 years ago today was my VSG. Pre-op, I purposed myself to be THE perfect patent, to do everything as I was told to, to follow ALL the directions and do great. and, I did. I lost about 85 lbs of weight and loved life. However, I had a very gentle carb creep and hardly noticed it. Then, one night at work I thought it might be ok to have some watered down diet soda, and that was the beginning of a pretty big spiral downward. I regained in the neighborhood of 35 lbs. It took a pretty major health scare to get me back on track about 20 months ago. I got back on track, went strict Keto, and have lost my regain. I've still got about 25 lbs to go before I'm ready for my plastics, but what a 5 year journey it has been. I left my career path, took a completely new position in my field, went to night shift, went back to grad school, graduated, changed jobs again, went back for post-grad studies, lost a parent, and have come full circle with my career. What a journey. I am forever grateful that I had my surgery. People often ask me "if you lost weight on Keto, why didn't you just do that in the first place"? But they have no idea of my health pre-op, or the battles I faced without my surgery. I would do it again in a blink. I still consider myself a WLS patient, and will ALWAYS identify as a WLS patient. I talk to others about it, and I wanted to share my journey with you.

Yes, I agree go back to your team and start there. I'm 5 years out today. I had some regain and I got inside my own head, searching everything I could to lose it. Once I had a health scare, I got OUT of my own head and went back to doing what I knew. My regain came off. I went back to my team and see them occasionally, even 5 years out! Good luck

Vets- I need some opinions (although typically i'm more than willing to give my own)...I am 5 years post VSG. I did good overall, losing about 85 lbs. Then, I had major life issues and had some regain. Had some ugly health news about 2 years ago, did Keto and lost my regain. I'm cycling on/off keto for the last few months and maintaining, but find that i have serious sugar cravings occasionally. I have some screenings coming up for the said health issue and REALLY want to get myself back on track and wondering if a short-term reboot using my pre-op diet is a better option than just going back to Keto? Strict keto for me is basically meat, eggs, fat, green veg. Might be a stupid question but I would love some opinions.

Not unusual at all! Most of us feel a lot less restriction around the 1 year mark. That's because ALL of the inflammation related to the surgery is finally gone and your sleeve is not impeded by any extra fluid, etc. I wouldn't be overly concerned about 10 lbs, but it might be worthwhile to just log your food, increase your water, etc. If you look at most of the opinions of surgeons, it is normal for almost all bariatric patients to lose dramatically during the 'loss' phase then rebound a bit to the 'healthy weight' spot where they settle in.

I agree with this totally. Many of us have experienced regain and lost the regain by getting our heads right again. It's easy to fall off track after some time and almost forget that you are a WLS patient, but that should always be part of who you are! The only true way to know if there's stretch is to have an EGD or a barium swallow. Most bariatric surgeons will tell you that a sleeve can't truly stretch because of the basic muscle type involved. I went back to my NUT, went back to the psychiatrist, went full on Keto and lost my regain. For ME, It was really about getting out of my own head, finding what I know works, and getting back to work.

Kathy just checking in to see how you are?

I'll be 5 years post VSG this month. I lost about 80# initially-give or take...stress, life etc and I regained almost 40. Went strict Keto and lost that regain. But i'm still wavering with about 25 lbs to go until my ultimate goal. It's a serious marathon here, but I feel like at least I'm still working at it...

So I'm about to celebrate my 5 year post VSG anniversary. What a wild ride it has been! Lost about 90 lbs initially, had some serious life issues, regained about 40. Went full 'clean' keto and lost all my regain. Still have about 25# to go until ultimate goal, then plastics. Part of my journey included getting my master's degree, and now I'm also about to complete post-graduate studies in about 8 weeks. As I have already begun my new job-and hopefully final career path- I've decided to finally PURGE my life. My house is FULL to the brim. My hubs and I married 19 years and lots of memories. 1 teen and 1 adolescent add to the chaos. I'm ready to Kon-Mari the whole place!!! Now, the tough question....WHAT do I do with it all? I have stuff that is really good quality, tags still on, etc. I don't want to do a garage/rummage because I seriously just don't have the time. Some will go to the Salvation Army, but I'm trying to find a really GOOD cause to donate the better stuff to, and of course trying to brain storm HOW to sell a lot of antiques and vintage items. I'm still in the last leg of school, work full time and really want to streamline it as much as possible. Any ideas?

TRUST ME, do SOMETHING, do ANYTHING, BUT DO IT NOW. I'm 5 years out. I exercised for the first 6 months. Lost my weight. Did great, I was the model patient. Then my life started going chaotic- job change, move, back to grad school, graduated, went back again, lost a parent, changed jobs again, and on and on and on... In the midst of this all I stopped exercising. I started eating everything in 'small amounts'. I regained about half of my weight. An UGLY health scare about 18 months ago got my act together, but I STILL struggle with finding my 'tribe' for exercise. I've been to classes. Didn't fit in. I tried CrossFit. Loved it but couldn't keep up. I walked. Joined the Y. I have terrible social anxiety specific to exercise. If I had stuck with it from the beginning I would have reached goal, gotten over my anxiety and been fit today. I lost my regain but still can't find where I fit in for exercise. Just get up and do something. Find what fits, and stick with it.

Also just about 5 years post op, had some regain too and lost it all with keto. Still trying to get the final push so I can have skin surgery. Keto worked 100% for me for the regain

There are lots of good macro calculators online, I use one from ruled.me because everyone there is helpful. Yes I tailor to my needs. There are some dairy options that I don't do great with related to my surgery so I've cut those out. I keep it pretty straight-on as far as the macros, I occasionally go higher on my protein but being so far out from surgery, high protein isn't really an issue for me now.

Ok so don't laugh. I'm 4.5 years post VSG. I lost about 90 lbs, had some regain, had some health issues, had a doctor put me on LCHF eating (keto) and have lost all of that regain. But I never made my initial goal so I have about 25 lbs to go before I'm there. That same doctor who gave me some ugly health news has ORDERED me to start an exercise regimen. I have a cushy membership to my local Y, which is PLUSH. seriously, very very nice, clean and a huge facility. Bottom line? I'm absolutely scared to death to go. I've talked with a couple of the trainers, There is only one female, and I need to work with a female for sure. She is decently versed in exercise and fitness but not at all in the metabolic needs of bariatric patents nor anything about LCHF. I have this really bad fear of being watched, laughed at, etc. Don't know why. Used to be a gym nut many years ago in college. How do I conquer this?? Any suggestions for the gym-phobic??

I started walking as soon as I got home. I started slow and short distances, but within a few weeks I was walking several miles a day (all ok'ed by my doc). It took a lot longer for me to get back into a gym or formal program but I finally did that too.