aroundhky

Everyone in unison......................"Welcome Josie!"

Bacon..... I understand you completely on the fear of being thin and what scares me...."flabby skinny" or "skinny fat". Of course easing into it is probably the first thing to keep in mind when you get back into the gym. Go light, I mean extremely light, in order for you to get the proper form and technique down. An injury right from the get go will undermine your goals and kill morale. You have a really big frame, so it's a little more tricky for tall people to have the proper form. So be patient and gradually add weight as your technique improves and you will slowly build strength/muscle. Emphasis on "slowly". With a limited nutrition source for our muscles, it will be a slow process, but it will eventually happen. I think it's a good idea that you are wanting a routine, or plan as I call it. Having a plan and getting to the gym for me is 3/4 the battle. When you're there, maybe start with compound lifts like deadlifts, squats, military presses, pullups and dips. Some people do bench press as well, but I rarely do these and I had bad form back in the day and my shoulders are a little screwed up. Also, I'm not sure how much of a functional lift that is, and my goals are to be functionally strong, not just for aesthetics......which is fine too, just not my primary goal. But it's all about your goals and particulars as far as your muscle/strength. Don't forget the importance of proper nutrition as well, or eating to feed your muscles. Plenty of Protein and well-timed complex carbs such as oats, broccoli, quinoa, carrots and maybe even a little sweet potatoes or brown rice. No problem and keep us posted on your progress!

Bacon, I'm guessing if you've worked construction, you already have some good functional strength and muscle. So you'll already have a good base and a head start when getting back to the gym. It's hard to tell you where to start since a lot of it depends on your goals, which is the first thing you want to do if you haven't already. What are your goals as far as lifting, strength and muscle?

Welcome stalker! Most of the people here are friendly, helpful and more than willing to offer up advice, give input and answer your questions. Good luck with your upcoming surgery!

Lift weights, lift weights, and then.........lift weights. I think youth and staying hydrated helps too.

I just microwave mine slightly (just enough to warm it) and I may add a little pepper, but I leave out the butter and salt. It's good to have a plan and the fact that you are excited to hit the ground running probably means that you have an increased chance of being successful. Sounds like you already are doing pretty well. Yeah, I add in some brown rice on occasion, but I try to limit it to only right after a hard workout, and just maybe a 1/4 cup for me. But I can be a little sensitive to rice, bread and Pasta, so I have to watch those kind of carbs. The good carbs will give your muscles energy (glycogen). I know my muscles really fill up fast with glycogen when I've lifted hard and had my good carbs. Then if I low carb it for a couple of days, I can tell they look a little smaller. If you do this too, don't worry, it's not really the muscle tissue going away, it's just that they are not quite as full of glycogen and when you return to eating more good carbs, they will fill back up. On the maintaining muscle mass while you are losing weight, make sure to still lift pretty heavy, just take down the volume a little. Let's your muscles know to stick around and that you still need them during the weight loss.

From what I've read (and experienced), it's true that you can't build any real muscle without carbs and you can't rely on just Protein. However, the carbs that are best are the really slow digesting carbs such a veggies (love my broccoli), oatmeal, etc. And like "mark!" said, everyone is different and I would advise easing into the carb issue and finding what's best for you. Keep in mind that you need to be patient, if you try to jack your cals/carbs way up, you will tend to build muscle, but you will also add a lot of fat.....I've been there and learned the hard way. There are so many variables such as one's age, metabolism, timing of the ingested carbs etc. Personally, my protein and carbs vary. On days that I lift (Mon-Fri typically), I'll eat more complex carbs and lean Proteins, usually is around 80+ grams of complex carbs along with 120+ grams of protein. But by the time Sunday comes around and I haven't lifted since Friday, I'll cut back on the carbs and add in more fats such as almonds, peanuts and Sunday is usually my fish night and I get those good fats in along with around 100 grams of protein. Again, just keep in mind that we are all different (especially when it comes to carb sensitivity), do your research, lift and have fun! "mark!"........curl jockeys......those guys taking up a squat rack doing barbell curls? I hear ya!

Last Thur....20, 25, 33 (got the most I possibly could on last set) Today.....25, 30, 30 (then did a set of 15 hack squats since I was disappointed in my last set of regular back squats)

I have a glass of wine about every 2-3 weeks. I have had a few beers as well, but the bottled or can beers have way too much carbonation for my tummy, so the draft beer is a little easier to drink as it tends to have a little less carbonation. Just keep in mind that many sleevers tend to become a little addicted to alcohol after surgery, and there's also the whole "empty calories" thing.

Thanks "Super"! I'm 6'-3", and to not be overweight by "BMI Standards".....I would have to weigh 199 pounds or less, which would mean losing about 27-28 more pounds and would be really hard to do as I would look weak and skinny. So I don't put a lot stock into the BMI charts.....maybe that's just to help me feel better about myself. Thanks for your input on portion sizes. I guess when I read that someone can only eat 3-4 oz of chicken, I'm thinking that something went wrong with my sleeve, because I can barely taste that much chicken.

Nothing wrong with big bottoms! The posters on here bring up a good point, when your body loses fat, it loses all over pretty much equally. I guess the only way to spot reduce is to get liposuction (spelling?) and I wouldn't recommend that.

I feel that I am able to eat a lot more than most with the sleeve at 1 year + post op. It does vary somewhat, but in general I can eat a whole chicken breast with several bites (1/2 cup) of broccoli without any problem, then 2-3 bites of a fruit. I've been able to eat this much since about 6-7 months post op. It is a lot more than I was expecting to eat after the sleeve. Before surgery I could eat tremendous amounts of food, maybe 2-3 times the amount I eat now, but I'm guessing more like twice the amount that I eat now. From what I've read, most sleevers eat roughly about 20-25% of what they did before sleeve? With me, it's more like 50-60%. I don't drink anywhere close to my meals, and I generally eat protein first. I think being able to eat a good bit more than most sleevers has contributed to my slow loss, but I eat better foods now and I'm still off all of my medications, so even though I'm probably not going to reach goal, I'm still happy with my sleeve. I'm just hoping the portion sizes don't increase a few years down the road, if not, I'm ok with the results of my surgery. Actually, I feel like I now eat "normal" portions as compared to the general public. I was ALWAYS able to eat way more than others before the sleeve. Makes me feel like my stomach size and appetite are now back to "normal" ranges that I should have been born with, instead of the incessantly ravenous nature I couldn't shake before the sleeve.

If you're working out a lot, hopefully you're still dropping fat and adding muscle. If so, it will not be reflected so much on the scales, but more in body fat % and maybe even in inches. How are your clothes fitting? Still getting looser? You're right, maybe cut out weighing yourself or limit it to once a month, when you hit a stall or add muscle, the scales can drive you nuts. Hang in there and keep doing the right thing and good luck!

Did squats today and mine was more like 20, 30 and 30. That last set did me in. I'm used to doing 4-10 reps per set...so my legs feel like jello.

I'm not an expert, but from what I've read, they are 3 essential amino acids (leucine, valine, isoleucine) that our body can't produce on it's own and we have to ingest them or get them from the food we eat. They are the primary aminos that make up our muscle tissue. They seem to come in really handy when we are at calorie deficits and taking them is supposed to keep them in our muscles where they are supposed to be and results in our body not turning to muscle as much for energy when our calories are low. They are usually found in the protein shakes that we drink, which is why the Dr's usually suggest that we get so many grams of protein......for muscle retention during weight (fat) loss. These BCAAs are also available in just their pure form if you want them without all of the other aminos that come with protein shakes. I haven't either as I always got plenty of protein and aminos through the abundant food I ate in the past. Just do some reading/research when you can, it is some fairly interesting reading and helpful for us as well. Yes, the people on here are really helpful, so if you have any questions/concerns, just post it and you'll probably get some good feedback.

Yes...I'm game!!! The thing with squats....if you're not used to doing them.....embrace the muscle pain/soreness and push through.....you'll be glad you did. Now I'm talking about muscle as it pertains to quads and maybe a little hamstrings, not joint or back pain. From my experience, doing pretty much anything lower body releases those "feel good endorphins" and though I may be a little physically tired, doing squats puts me in a great mood! Use good form, stretch properly and let's get to it!!

Almost impossible to keep all of one's muscle during rapid weight loss. Of course sufficient protein helps and depending on your Dr's pre-op requirements, if you have low/no-carb, low fat protein shakes, you could have all you want of those and it will help some. The Branched Chain Aminos (BCAAs) really help retain muscle during weight loss. Some people also use L-Glutamine, but I'm not sure about the effectiveness of it, but it's fairly cheap and worth a try I guess. Also, make sure you still lift and do resistance training during the weight loss pre-op diet. I wouldn't recommend doing really high rep/high intensity lifting, but you want your muscles to know that you still want them around and need them, so use them, even during the weight loss period, just cut back on the intensity and still lift. Because you will be limited for a few weeks POST-OP already and will lose muscle mass during those few weeks at an alarming rate, but it's better to limit that weight loss period to those few weeks post-op than to combine those few weeks with another few weeks pre-op. When you do lose some muscle mass post-op, try not to panic like I did. When your Dr clears you to lift, ease back into it and gradually build it back up.....and be patient...... it will eventually return with good hard lifting, protein and well-timed complex carbs after a workout. Good luck!

I have some caffeine maybe a couple of times a week. Usually only those mornings that I really struggle to get going and to focus. I've not had any problems, but I also don't have it after lunch, so my sleeping is unaffected.

Thanks Mike! I still have a ways to go as far as goal weight and I'm not sure I'll even make it. But to do it, I want to lose slowly if I can, which will help with my muscle retention. I still need some work on my chest and legs though. Yeah, the closer you get to 200, the better idea you'll have of where you really want to be. The Dr's almost seem to put a gun to my head and made me give them a goal weight. I really had no idea, so I'm not sure the 215 suits me now. If I can get to low 220's and maintain, and stay off meds, I'm good with that. Good luck bud!

Same here, I know what you mean. But in the end, you need to lookout for "Number One" and do what's best for you, especially as far as health goes. Supportive friends/family goes a long way and is very beneficial, but some of us don't have that support, so we often come here for it. Thanks! My overall weight loss is not very much, but I'm A LOT healthier now and that was my main goal.

I say if you don't notice any issues with muscle loss/strength...then go for it! Everyone is different and their bodies respond in vastly different ways, so I think it's really all about trial and error. Yeah, or almost impossible from what I hear, especially for people that have lifted before. I don't really do the "bulking/cutting" thing like some people do, but I do cut back my complex carbs on days I don't lift and add a few on days that I do lift. I nearly freaked out the first month or two after my surgery when I noticed my muscles had almost completely left my body. I was like....WTF?!?!?!? Looking back, I probably overreacted a little. Good luck and keep us updated!

Congrats Kari! I was similar in that my initial decision was the lap band as well but I ended up going with the sleeve and I'm glad I did, as I'm sure you probably will too. I am much happier now with a partial stomach as opposed to a valve stem, tube and band that can come off and possibly not work all that well when it is in place. Most all people here on this board are very helpful and have lots of insight. Some have even gone back and revised to a sleeve after first getting the band. Please keep us updated on your journey and I wish you the best!!!