DLCoggin

You would have to eat a lot on a consistent basis so it's pretty rare but it is possible to suffer from "protein poisoning". Normally there isn't a problem with protein but...if you have kidney or liver problems, too much can overwork one or both. Good idea to follow your doctor's recommendation for your daily protein. If you want to exceed that for some reason, ask your doctor first.

Just emailed!

Born and raised in Lubbock. Currently in Calif but my heart is still in Texas!

Great job Jen! Huge congratulations!!

Webster's defines "disease" as "A condition of the living animal or plant body or of one of its parts that impairs normal functioning and is typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms." Obesity is a disease. Nothing more, nothing less. When you suffer from a disease, you seek the most effective treatment possible. Life threatening diseases such as cancer and yes, obesity, often require more invasive treatments. Who in their right mind would say to a cancer patient that they are "taking the easy way out" by having surgery? If surgery is the most effective treatment, that's what you do. So why is it that folks who would never tell a cancer patient that they are taking the easy way out find it acceptable to tell an obesity patient that they are taking the easy way out? I believe the answer is ignorance. People who have never suffered from obesity, defined as having a BMI of 30 or greater, believe that diet and exercise is the answer for any excess weight. And they have that belief because they or others that they know have been successful losing 10 or 20 pounds through diet and exercise. So they conclude that a little willpower and self-discipline is the answer to any weight problem. Absolute nonsense based on ignorance of the facts surrounding the disease. The statistical, well documented failure rate of diet and exercise for treating obesity is almost 100%. You cannot effectively treat obesity with willpower any more than you effectively treat cancer with aspirin. Our responsibility is to seek out and take advantage of the most effective treatment medical science has to offer for our disease. We owe it to ourselves, to our families, to those we love, and to those who love us. Painful though it may be, the fact that we may and often do encounter ignorance on our journey is not relevant in the big picture. We can help ourselves. Helping others overcome their own ignorance and prejudice - that's a job best left to a higher power.

I can't answer what is considered older but perhaps it would be better stated to say "On average, older people don't lose as much." There are very few absolutes in the business of medicine. I'm sixty-two and although my metabolism may have slowed, I reckon I've done pretty well with my weight loss. It's all about The Prime Directive - lifestyle changes. Understand that, embrace that, commit to that - and nothing can defeat you.

Although there are still unanswered questions when it comes to dumping, there is little doubt that it is related to blood sugar - which includes too high (hyperglycemia) and too low (hypoglycemia). That implies that if you eat "X" food when your blood sugar is high, dumping could result. But eat the same food when your blood sugar is low, and you may not experience any dumping. About 2/3 of folks who experience dumping have "early" dumping which usually occurs within 15 to 30 minutes after eating and sometimes (but not always) results in vomiting. 1/3 experience "late" dumping which usually occurs two to three hours after eating but may occur as late as twelve hours after eating. Vomiting is less common with late dumping although the overall shakiness and fatigue are still quite unpleasant. And about 50% of folks never experience dumping at all. It's a good idea to also remember that although dumping is most commonly associated with sugar, it can occur as the result of eating too many carbs or fats as well.

No regrets here except I wish I had done it twenty years ago!

Always a good idea to watch the carbs (and fat and protein). In my case, it was not necessary to wait until I had reached my goal weight to enjoy a few chips. I maintain a food log on a daily basis with the goal of maintaining a 40/30/30 calorie ratio of carbs, fat and protein. The log allows me to know, at any time of the day, exactly where I'm at. If my carbs or fat are above the goal percentage, I plan my next meal accordingly. I almost always exceed the 30% protein goal but my surgeon recommends 100g a day so I expect to exceed the 30%. Food logs are very powerful tools that really put you in the driver's seat when it comes to making mindful food choices!

Turkey chili is an excellent source of protein, very filling, and it tastes good! Dang near the perfect food!! Of course, in the interest of full disclosure, I should mention that I am originally from Texas. Lol!

Highly unlikely that you have anything at all to worry about following overeating by two extra bites. You're aware, you're committed, and you're gonna love the new you!!

If your blood sugar was relatively low when you ate X the first time, the subsequent rise in blood sugar may have not been enough to develop the symptoms of dumping. The next time you ate X and your blood sugar was higher to begin with, the subsequent increase was sufficient for dumping to occur. There are still a number of unanswered questions regarding dumping but there is little doubt that it is related to swings (high and low) in blood sugar.

Walking in a park near my home with my Lab was the key for me - but it didn't come easily. I literally forced myself to do it for the first six weeks or so. Amazingly, I woke up one day and just sort of came to the realization that I not only enjoy it, but I notice the physical and mental changes if I don't walk for more than a couple of days. It took a little while to get to that point but some kind of exercise really is quite addictive once you get into the routine. Like so many things, the hard part is getting started. And like so many have said, it's crucial to find something that you enjoy and that may take some experimenting. But there are a lot of options and your efforts will absolutely be rewarded many times over. The benefits are countless including the really big one - you'll lose more weight and lose it more quickly!

Hear hear!!!

Averages can be very deceiving. If the "average" is 60%, that means that many folks lose less than that and many folks lose more than that. BMI is probably a better measurement although there are some problems with it as well. For example, muscle weighs more than fat so if we say a "normal" or "healthy" BMI is <25.0, it's a good yardstick but is much less accurate for someone who has a lot of muscle mass. A growing number of doctors prefer waist measurement relative to your height. Your optimum weight is reached when your waistline is 50% of your height in inches. So if you're six feet tall, 72 inches - your optimum weight would be what you weigh when your waist is 36 inches. There is no one size fits all formula. Ultimately, I believe that your body will tell you when it's at the weight it wants to be at and that's the point where you're gonna love the new you!!

Comparing your weight loss to mine (or anyone else's) is always a mistake and a sure recipe for frustration. We are all individuals and all unique. There are just too many variables to judge your success against someone else's. Just keep following the protocol, stay active, and stay away from the scales for at least a week and two would be even better. You're gonna love the new you!!

Frustrating as they are, stalls are part of the process for almost everyone. Follow the protocol as closely as you possibly can, stay active, and stay away from the scales for at least a week and two would be even better. Trust the process and allow your body to find its own way in its own time. There is absolutely no doubt that you will lose weight and you're gonna love the new you!!

Unfortunately, sugar is sugar - your body makes no distinction between natural and any other kind. Some folks will experience dumping from fats or carbs as well. There really are no absolutes and the only way you can determine what your body will tolerate (and what it won't) is to try it.

Stay away from most of the protein "bullets" and "shots" that you will see in stores and read about online. If you look closely at their ingredient list, you will see that they are made with "collagen" protein. These products are attractive to bypass patients because they contain very large amounts of protein in very small volumes - usually 3 to 4 ounces. The problem is that collagen protein is an incomplete protein (meaning that it is missing one or more of the nine essential amino acids that your body requires and cannot manufacture). In addition, collagen (aka "gelatin" protein) has a PDCAAS (Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score) digestibility score of 0.08. The PDCAAS has been adopted by the Institute of Medicine at the National Academy of Sciences, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the World Health Organization as the standard for measuring all proteins. Proteins are ranked on a scale of 0 (least digestible) to 1 (most digestible). Whey, Soy, Milk, and Casein proteins all have a PDCAAS score of 1.0. All the protein in the world is useless if your body cannot digest it.

About half of all bypass patients never experience dumping. It's difficult for researchers to put a firm number on it because some people experience dumping without recognizing that it is dumping. Others may experience vomiting and think it is dumping when it isn't. Doctors also break dumping into two types - "early" dumping which usually occurs 15 to 30 minutes following eating and "late" dumping which usually occurs two to three hours (and as much as twelve hours) following eating. Some folks believe that dumping is only caused by sugar. In fact, sugar is the most common cause but dumping can also be caused by carbs or fats. For anyone interested, you can read more information in my post "Dumping the Confusion About Dumping" - http://www.rnytalk.com/topic/2665-dumping-the-confusion-about-dumping/page__hl__%2Bdumping+%2Bthe+%2Bconfusion .

That's a good question to ask your doctor but I would think two to three months should be fine.

Decaf is decaf - I don't see any problem. My one ongoing indulgence is flavored creamers for my coffee. The 35 calories per cup have not been a problem and the enjoment I get is priceless!

We are all individuals and everyone's weight loss is different. Comparing your weight loss to someone else's is always a mistake (there are just too many variables) and a sure recipe for frustration. That said, are you getting in ALL of your protein every day? Do you have an exercise routine that you follow at least four times a week? Are you drinking enough water? How many calories a day are you averaging? Do you maintain a food log? All of these can be contributing factors to your weight loss. If you're comfortable sharing the answers, there is absolutely no doubt that you'll get lots of good ideas! In the meantime, follow the protocol as closely as you possibly can, stay active, and stay away from the scales for at least a week and two would be even better. You're gonna love the new you!!

Caffeine can be inflamatory to the new pouch following surgery which can result in unnecessary bleeding. I love coffee and I love k-cups. I switched to decaf following my surgery and was quite surprised to discover that the decaf k-cups are almost as good as the caffeinated ones. It really wasn't a difficult transition at all and I was previously not a fan of decaf at all. Donut Shop and Green Mountain make some excellent decaf flavors!

This is the first time that I've read of a situation quite like this. It isn't surprising that folks have strong feelings about their personal choices but some of the comments are at best quite uncalled for, at worst just plain misinformation. In some cases the choice of which surgery is dictated by medical reasons (for example the sleeve or band are usually not recommended for folks who already have problems with reflux). Beyond medical considerations, I believe the most important question we all have to answer is what surgery will be the most effective. RNY has the longest track record of any of the surgeries and is the single most effective treatment known to medical science for type 2 diabetes. It also has the best record for losing the most weight (followed closely by the sleeve). And almost every day new studies are showing it to be the surgery with the best record for long-term success (again followed closely by the sleeve). Effectiveness is, or at least in my opinion should be, the key.