Fiddleman

Show me a post op that will win the Darwin Award for their stupidity?

Oh I can see it now. After you step on that cruise line, it is going to be drink heaven. Lol. I have only been on one cruise in the Caribbean formerly and utterly enjoyed it for the quality and quality of food and drinks. That was during my heavier days of course. A cruise is truly a place to live it up!! I am not sure exactly what I would do if I went on a cruise again. Those boat rides are almost designed for eating, drinking and for some, gambling. Perhaps this time I would go the healthy direction and attend fitness classes, drink tons of water, practice yoga, swim, work out on the bow set of machines, etc. not sure though. It may beat the purpose of the cruise if you are not living it up! What would you do?

I am going to try making this Long Island ice tea at home: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/mrs-baxtons-long-island-iced-tea/ It looks like a keeper according to the reviews.

Awesome it is!

What good is a soda if you are not using it to wash down the cheeseburger you ate at dinner or the popcorn and chocolate candy at a movie!

So that is what tape worms are good for.

I started taking one Pack a day 2 days ago because I have heard good things about it if you are training. There are quite a few amino acids in it. Both times I take it I get a headache after 20 m that goes on for hours and am fatigued (as in sleepy) by it. I also get very mild cold/ flu symptoms. Have any of you tried the animal Pak and know what is going on? I haven't changed anything else, drink about 1-1.5 gallon Water a day and do sleep the 7-8 hours a night. I am thinking about returning this back to amazon even though I used 2 packs. Here is a review of the Animal Pak: http://voices.yahoo.com/review-universal-animal-pak-multivitamin-multimineral-3221931.html?cat=5 I am taking these to help with building muscle, being that is a goal of mine. These are not to be taken during weight loss phase of VSG post op.

Anyone who eats a cheeseburger needs to wear a Scarlett letter 'C' on the chest for everyone to know. The shame! The shame! Lol.

Thanks. I know we are weather complainers ( or is that weather babies) up here in Seattle. We cannot have it over 72 and we cannot drive in even an inch of snow. Lol. 60-70 is perfect. Here is the route I am thinking of working towards: http://www.mapmyrun.com/us/snohomish-wa/centennial-trail-starting-at-snohomish-t-route-18924616 It is about 20 miles. I really like MapMyRun for the sharing capabilities. It is easy to go find a route that someone has already done given a criteria like length, elevation gain, location, etc.

As for sweet tea, think about getting the McD version that is SF and add as many splenda as you like for sweetening. For a large, I add about 8 splenda. It was a good drink in the first few weeks post op when out and about. McD is everywhere. Cheap too @ 1 dollar for a large.

Thanks for the warning about not running in the sun. Unfortunately, I missed running before sunrise today. I've only run in the sun once where temperature was 95 and humidity was near 100% when in Washington DC as a high schooler on some school trip. I remember it being grueling even though I was in shape and on the cross country team. It was only about 3 miles, but seemed like so much more in the hot weather. Maybe not a fair comparison to my current running ambitions, but it is all I have to compare with in my own memory banks. I found this website for hydration belts: WWW.fuelbelt.com It looks like a good option and this company has been a pioneer in these types of products for marathons and triathlons.

I think trader Joes carries the Bolthouse.

Yeah, I have protein bars on the mind often too. Cut em though! I can't eat them ( the chocolate ones) because they make me want more. My favorite deserts were oatmeal raisin cookie, Oreo cookie, apple fritter and old fashion donut ( or holes). They were so yummy. Now you are probably wishing you had one.

Wait until you are at least on solids (5-6 weeks). That being said, are you sure you want pizza? It is up to you, but there are better choices that will help you reach weight loss goals more quickly. And if you do eat pizza, eat the toppings only. The bread will only cause pain as it expands in your GI tract.

It very well might have been the steak also because it was a dense cut. I only had those two things and the Beans came up so I blame the beans.

Be sure to cook and chew your veggies enough. I was eating some boiled string beans last night and chewed them, but not enough, i guess. They all came up along with a little steak 20 minutes later. It is possible that they were not cooked enough either. At least my body gives me about a minute warning ("the feeling") before rejecting something so I have time to shuffle over to the bathroom.

BTB- By the way, how are those sketchers working out that you previously had mixed feelings on?

5-HTP is a naturally occurring amino acid that helps regulate mood among other things. It is metabolized into serotonin by the liver so one must be careful when taking it with other SSRI antidepressants. You do not want to increase serotonin in the blood stream to the point of triggering serotonin syndrome. You can buy 5-HTP over the counter at most natural food stores, in the Vitamin section of your grocery store or online from a place like Amazon. It is supposed to promote a positive mood, but I am not so sure about this claim. It can also be used to potentiate pain medicine with opoids like hydrocodone or oxycodone in case you need pain medicine to work more efficiently. It can also be used as a sleep aid because of the inclusion of tryptophan. All in all, 5-HTP has many uses. Do understand the neurological interactions that 5-http may have with your other medications or supplements before taking it. To the OP- I do believe it is OK to take 5-HTP as my WLS Center sells it in their store. It works well as an antidepressant because of the affects it has on the mood (or so the literature claims). If you are already taking an SSRI antidepressant then you probably should not also take 5-HTP, especially if your antidepressant is an SSRI like effexor, celexa,prozac,etc.

I had to look up gimlet as never heard of that one. Looks pretty popular!

I see where you are coming from now BTB. For others - One super approach to developing good form with quiet impact is ChiRunning. Both BTB and I run with this technique and find injury is way down and run potential is way up. I happened to have learned ChiRunning before buying my expensive fitted running shoes. I still encourage everyone to get fitted in addition to learning how to run softly, with grace and relaxation. It will also help you win races (disclaimer: no experience with racing yet, but it sure helps with endurance, speed and stamina).

Lots of good drink ideas folks. Keep them coming!

If you have significant weight to lose, I would not switch now @ 2.5 months as this type of eating that I describe above is not really designed for weight loss. This is just my opinion and you are of course welcome to do according to your desire. Another opinion of mine: Low carb is a good approach to dropping weight along with daily exercise (45 min or more) and lots of Water (90 oz or more) and high Protein (80 g or more). I ate between 10-30 g carbs, 125+ oz water and between 125-150 g protein for most of my weight loss. My exercise has been between 45 min and 1 hour 3 x a week during weight loss period. Yes, I stalled like the rest of you every month. However, I also dropped 90 lb by month 3 and then another 20 by month 5 and then the final 40 by month 7. Lost about 30 pre op. Did not cheat. Stayed on plan. After month 6 I began to have an occasional drink ( max - 2x a month). Starting in month 5: I began running, but got really serious about working out like an athlete in month 7 ( also the month I reached goal). At this point I started to really change my diet in order to have enough fuel in my body. I exercise 5-6 x a week now with 1 day rest. Still only 45 min to 1 hour of either running or cross fit on alternating days. Cross fit is very intense cardio with weights. I do yoga in the evenings. Now I am working every day towards a set of fitness goals. Some are gym related like being able to Olympic lift 450 lb or being able to compete in a cross fit thrown down (will enter in 3 months or so), but others are larger then that and out doors like running 1/2 marathon and trail running for 72 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail. I have also signed up for 4 5k run events this summer and a 10 k in October. I am also thinking of getting into MMA after in cross fit for a while. Maybe next year.