Indymom

She is BEAUTIFUL!! Huge congratulations to you and your family, and welcome to the world Tatum!

I'm close to 3 months post-op and my flare has gotten a little worse. My gastroenterologist wants me to have a stool culture to rule out c-diff before he starts me on a steriod. I still believe that ultimately my symptoms will be better with surgery, but I think the flare is the result of the effect of surgery on my body (happened to me after the c-section with my daughter too).

Indymom ~ 239 SW . . . . . 220 CW . . . . . 200 GW . . . LBS to GOAL: 20 September 5 ~ 239 lbs September 12 ~ 237 lbs (-2 lbs total) September 19 ~ 235 lbs (-4 lbs total) September 26 ~ 230 lbs (-9 lbs total) October 3 ~ 228 lbs (-11 lbs total) October 10 ~ 225 lbs (-14 lbs total) October 17 ~ 223 lbs (-16 lbs total) October 24 ~ 220 lbs (-19 lbs total) I'm not likely to meet my goal of 200 by Halloween, but that's OK - I'm really happy with my progress since the start of the challenge. I'm just going to keep on keepin' on!

Beautiful picture!! Congratulations!

Yep, this was mine too. The liquid was gross but it was a small amount (the huge volume I had to drink during my pre-op testing was MUCH worse).

That f'ing carb monster hits me every afternoon at work,around 2:30 or 3. I really need to remember to bring a high-protein snack in to get me through the afternoon . . .

Indymom ~ 239 SW . . . . . 223 CW . . . . . 200 GW . . . LBS to GOAL: 23 September 5 ~ 239 lbs September 12 ~ 237 lbs (-2 lbs total) September 19 ~ 235 lbs (-4 lbs total) September 26 ~ 230 lbs (-9 lbs total) October 3 ~ 228 lbs (-11 lbs total) October 10 ~ 225 lbs (-14 lbs total) October 17 ~ 223 lbs (-16 lbs total) Slow & steady wins the race . . . just trying to convince myself . . . !!

Don't forget to try and walk, too - that will help the gas bubbles pass more quickly. I think that's why my recovery was so easy, I made myself walk right away (even though I felt like crap!). Congrats and hang in there!

I'm getting rid of all of 'em! I will NEVER wear a size 24 again . . ..

I had a bloody mary last night (well, okay . . . 2 . . . ) and it tasted wonderful! I think it was pretty weak because I didn't get much of a buzz, but it was nice to enjoy a grownup beverage again. I'm only 9 weeks out so not making a habit of it, I am still wanting to get closer to goal before drinking regularly, but it was GOOD!

GREAT POST! Thanks for keeping it real.

I felt really icky when I was in full-blown ketosis, early on post-op (I knew I was in ketosis because I still had a bunch of ketostix from one of my failed Atkins attempts). I added in some soft fruits at that point, bumped out of ketosis and felt like a million bucks. I need a few carbs and so far, my weight loss doesn't seem to be affected. I am also working out a ton so like one of the prior posters said, that might be making a difference. I'm trying to stick to whole grains (I've had a piece of whole grain toast a couple times and it went down well) and fruits/veggies for my carbs. That said, there was an unfortunate struggle this evening with a small baggie of leftover chocolate animal crackers, and I'm sad to say that the animal crackers won. Back on track tomorrow morning!

To the OP . . . 27 lbs divided by 4 weeks . . . almost 7 lbs per WEEK! That is amazing weight loss when you think about the "typical" dieting weight loss of 1-3 lbs per week. I'm 9 weeks out and only down 38. I'm trying to roll with it and I know that as long as I'm sticking to plan and exercising, the weight WILL come off.

I was restricted from anything but walking for the first month. I started by walking about 10 minutes after each meal, totaling about 30 minutes a day. I increased it as I could, at this point 9 weeks out I am walking/jogging 3 miles, 3 times a week and taking a strength fitness class 2-3 times a week.

Good find!

I've never heard of the Molina band but I really hope that the removal goes well and that your revision is successful!

Just a quick post on my 2-month surgiversary. Why didn't I have this surgery sooner?!? I'm down 38 lbs in 2 months. I've gone from a 24 pants/3X shirts to size 20 pants and 2X or 1X shirts. I'm walking/jogging 3 miles, 3 days a week, and taking a strength fitness class 2-3 days a week as well. I can't remember a time in my recent past that I had so much energy! I don't get winded from walking anymore, I actually enjoy parking farther out in parking lots and at work to get extra steps on my fitbit. I'm eating 2-3 oz per meal, around 600-800 calories a day max (usually between 650-700). I am sad to report that due to a crashed hard drive on my laptop, I lost my original "before" pics but am going to try and track down something on my desktop computer that shows me in my 'before' state so I can start posting progress pics. While I have great restriction with my sleeve and easily get full on 2-3 oz of dense Protein, the carb monster is always lurking in the back of my brain, trying to take over. I've had a few moments of weakness but I've pushed past the temptations and remind myself every day that I am going to be thin and even more healthy soon! For all of you just starting on your sleeve journeys, especially if you're only a few days or a week out and miserable on liquids/purees . . . know that it gets better very quickly and you'll soon feel like a normal human again!!

I decided to bite the bullet and go ahead and try week 4/day 1 today. HOLY COW! I did it (even the 2 5-minute runs) but it was tough. I'm feeling good tonight though,not worn out or in pain, so I'm glad I tried it today instead of repeating week 3. 40 lbs ago I would have never believed I'd be jogging right now!!

I've found that any of the dense proteins fill me up quickly including chicken, chicken burgers, deli lunchmeat, etc. I also buy reduced-fat block cheese and slice it up . . . that also fills me up. Eggs are really filling - I have one every morning with a piece of bacon or turkey sausage and often I can't finish all of it.

I'd say you'll need at least a few weeks off and then maybe go back part-time for a few weeks to ease back into it. I went back to work within a week but I work a desk job with no physical stresses at all.

Indymom ~ 239 SW . . . . . 225 CW . . . . . 200 GW . . . LBS to GOAL: 25 September 5 ~ 239 lbs September 12 ~ 237 lbs (-2 lbs total) September 19 ~ 235 lbs (-4 lbs total) September 26 ~ 230 lbs (-9 lbs total) October 3 ~ 228 lbs (-11 lbs total) October 10 ~ 225 lbs (-14 lbs total) I'm thinking that it's not likely that I'll hit my goal by Halloween, but I'm OK with it because I'm still losing each week and feeling GREAT!! Keep up the good work, everyone!!!

Updating ... I finished week 3/day 3 earlier this past week. The 3-minute jogs were REALLY hard, though. I'm nervous about trying to progress to week 4 with the 5-minute jogs - I'm thinking I might do another week of the W3 and see what happens . ..

I've had a few bites of fried foods here & there. They seem to go down OK, but I feel kinda icky afterwards. I've been trying to remind myself of this when I'm tempted to have a bite of something that sounds good but probably won't be . . . !!

Was it expensive? I saw the kettlebells at the store and they were REALLY pricey . . . I've heard it's a good workout though.

My nutritionist told me that canned meat didn't have to be pureed . . . . as long as it was pretty moist and mushy, I would be OK. Just constantly remind yourself to chew thoroughly until the food turns to a paste in your mouth, that's ultimately the same as pureeing in a blender or food processor. Just my opinion though . . .