CoachColvert

I too have stalled....am 5 months out and have lost 115 pounds, still have another 65-85 to reach my goal..... Have been at 312-318 for the past month.... Now part of that is various holidays and vacations....tend to be a little more free on the foods you eat (and things you drink) during these times... I have been noticing that I am able to eat a little bit more food than I was at first and that I am grazing, but not near like I used too....just a matter of keeping busy... I also workout on the eliptical for at least 30 minutes / 4 days a week.... So here is my belief.....you have to change what you are doing in order to get back to losing weight.....I am a strength coach at a Texas HS and this is the same principle as lifting.....you will eventually plateau when doing the same routine over and over..... Change the foods you eat and the type of exercie you are doing..... If you are lifting for strength, swith to more cadio / circuit type lifts..... For cardio, mix it up...I need to change from the eliptical to something else..... Change up your routine and I am sure you will find that the weight will start to fall off again....

Well I am almost 2 weeks out and can't wait until I can actually put real food in my mouth. It is not that I am hungry, I just want to chew on something and experience the different flavors again. That has by far been the hardest part of the recovery process. Doc says to give it 3 weeks on liquids and I wont have any leakage problems...My current daily menu consists of strained Soups (tomato, broc/cheese, potato, etc.) with added whey Protein, crystal light mix drinks, and my favorite, a virgin spicy bloody mary made with V8 (awsome, have about 3 a day)...oh yeah and sugar free popsicles (a must have).... I had my sleeve surgery on Jan. 25th 2011. Surgery was easy, no complications or major problems....1 night stay in the hospital and was home by 3 the next day. Other than the normal soreness to the left side of my stomach, my recovery has been pretty easy. Returned to work 6 days after the surgery. I went to the consult with my doctor back in December and weighed in at 430....after the pre op diet (which you really need to do to shrink your liver...my doc said it made my surgery very easy), I weighed 407 the day of surgery and in the 11 days following I am now down to 384. Very pleased with the results thus far...After next week I can start on soft foods like cooked veggies, ground meats and fish, soft fruits, etc. I will ease into these as I want my new stomach to get used to the diet change so I dont have any problems. I don't think I am going to miss the big portions that I used to eat. I am looking at it this way...instead of looking on the menu for the plate with the most food, I can now order something of more quality in smaller portions. Fillet instead of porterhouse. Scallops instead of Fisherman's platter. specialty enchiladas instead of the Mexican Feast. You get the idea. Cooking at home wont be a problem, we never fry anything...I do almost all of the cooking and I love to grill so almost everything we eat is grilled or baked. We love veggies, especially grilled. It was always the portions that got me not what I was eating...will be interesting to see how much money we save on food since the amount will have to go down significantly with my new appetite. By the way, what they say about the Gehrin hormone that the stomach makes is absolutely true...I have not felt hungry since my surgery. Now I have felt an empty stomach, but not the head achey, starving feeling I used to get when I was really hungry. I will update every now and then....hope this posts helps anyone who is considering the surgery...Just make sure you know why you are doing it....Me, I did it for my kids.....I am only 33 and if I dont change my lifestyle, I could be dead by 40...I want to make sure that I have the ability to play with my kids, watch them grow up, and walk my baby girl down the isle one day... Good luck to everyone...hope you all find success and achieve your weight loss goals....I know I will conquer mine...