Fiddleman

A serving size is 2 scoops, You will see on the product packaging that it recommends taking 2-4 scoop in the morning, 4-6 scoop before working out, 2-4 scoops after working out and 2-4 scoops scoops latter afternoon. My advice is not to take so much of it for a few reasons: 1. You will use it up in 3 days. There are only 30 servings. 2. Your body will get accustomed to the caffeine and it will become less effective for energy. 3. Each serving has 10 calories. Taking their max recommendation is pushing almost an extra 200 calories a day. Probably not a big deal if you are in fact killing each workout, but something to consider. Check your tolerance for caffeine and take the appropriate number of scoops for you. More on dose size and effectiveness below. I like that the energy comes from green tea and green coffee bean extract. It is a much smoother form of energy that you can draw upon rather than the crazy jittery, upset stomach and crash that comes from most NO products like c4, jack3d, etc. Been there and done that. Trust me, you do not need that. The amino blend is good. The only gripe I have is the quantity of each each ingredient is on the low side per single dose so it takes either mid (4 scoops) or max dose (6 scoops) size to realize the proper benefits during a work out. I have found the low dose (2 scoops) does nothing for me. ON is a little sneaky in creating the product this way because it is not very cost effective for the consumer. For this reason, it is way more cost effective to go with xtend as you get more aminos for the money. Just my opinion. Taste is awesome. I get the watermelon flavor and use it as a pre workout drink. I use xtend bcaa post workout in addition to other times of the day because of the cost effectiveness issue.

Thanks CGJ.

I work out 5-6 days a week, but tend to take my supplements every day (even on off days).

really? None at all? Hunger was back for me during month 5 and elevated as I got more active over next few months. I would say my hunger is only controlled because I eat protein and veggies every 3 hours. I definitely have hunger. If i do not keep eating, I get light headed and "weak"

Yes, he showed me 3 pictures of existing patients who had a similar set of goals as I do. Is 3 enough to see? Probably not. I will ask to see more next time I go back. The results looked immaculate in terms of scar workmanship and he did say they would happily remedy any scar issues free of charge should they come up. I found it a little curious that he did not know the puckering term after reading some information on it here. Puckering must be slang. After we discussed it some, he called it something else. I do not remember the term he used. What do you think about the pricing for either procedure that is being done locally?

I had a good appointment with dr Harris today. He stated that my body fat in the ab region is very low and he would not recommend any lipo work. It is all skin. He said that sutures to "fix " the ab muscles were unnecessary as my muscular definition, while hidden, is very well defined. He recommended either a standard TT or a body lift. The body lift would be a TT plus an incision around the back to pull up the skin over the buttocks and upper thighs. I am leaning towards the body lift. Because my stomach expanded a bit horizontally, he stated that I could get an addition incision that extends from the TT incision vertically to the rib cage in order to pull the extra "side" skin horizontally. He did not recommend it though because the unsightly scar would offset any high definition ab work that comes out of it. And the reason I would get it to show off abs. An ugly scar for all to see while my shirt is off would not help that cause, so to speak. He stated that I would never have a Calvin Klein set of high definition abs even if he did this vertical incision due to genetics. I accepted that. For this reason, my choices will be either TT (5500 cash) or a body lift (8000 cash). My body lift is much simpler than most, so the pricing reflects a discount of about 2000 dollars. The pricing is very competitive because he is relatively new in the Seattle area and looking for patients. He does, however, have 20-30 years of existing experience before moving here a few years ago. For the body lift, I would have 3 drains: 2 in the pubic area and 1 in the back. He says I may even only need 1 in front. TT is a 3 hour procedure and I can go home same day. Body lift is a 5 hour procedure and would have me in the surgical center overnight. Time off is 3 weeks average, less for me if I choose because I have a desk job. I can return to cross fit by week 6 @ full capacity. He did state that recovery from VSG is a cakewalk compared to recovery from either TT or body lift and would require pain meds for about 1 week. The only issue is figuring out how to pay for it with cash. I do not have it. It needs to be paid in full 2 weeks before a procedure. Any feedback from y'all?

BCAA are just the building blocks of Protein that specifically contribute to protein synthesis in the muscles and aid in recovery. Your body breaks down food protein into these amino acids as part of the digestion process. For this reason, you could just focus on eating clean protein like chicken, game, etc. Just a suggestion though. I am not sure it word yield the same results as taking BCAA directly. My guess is that the effective net result would not be the same because there is definitely a large market for amino products. The nice fact about BCAA aminos is that your body knows exactly what to do with them and will transport them to the muscles before other aminos that come out of the digestive process. For this reason, I always drink BCAA Water first in the morning before eating my first meal and first after a workout before eating a recovery bar or drinking a Protein shake. Many protein shake powders also have extra amino acids, but it depends on brand. I am not sure if nectar protein (is that what you are currently taking?) has the extra amino in it, but other brands like ON hydrobiilder, BSN syntha 6 and a plethora of others do. Glutamine is probably one of the most important aminos for recovery, but luecine and a couple others are key. Another product I have tried in the past, but was not that impressed with, is BPI blox. It uses a relatively new researched SAA (Silk Amino Acids) in very specific ratios that are supposed to help more than BCAA (Branch Chain Amino Acids). http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk_amino_acid I may not have given it enough time (3 weeks), but it was too expensive for the little feedback I got from it. That was 6-8 months ago. Best tasting amino drink I have ever had though.

What are you guys going to eat? Rooting for my hometown hawks!

Touch down hawks for the lead!!!! Finally...

Trying to remember. I think mine was more of a beach ball. Yup, just asked my wife and she agreed, no hesitation.

I agree BTB. Amino acids before combined with caffeine and carbs really make a difference. Big time. Just finished running a 9.5 mile run on my treadmill averaging between 7.5-8 minute mile. Comments: 1. It took about 20 minutes, even after a 5 minute warmup run, for my body to get in the running groove. Before then it was really rusty. 2. A slight dehydration became noticeable around 35 minutes. Did most of my sweating up to 25 minutes. 3. I did not bonk at 45 minutes. Still lots of energy. 4. I still felt really good at 70 minutes and was able to sprint the last 5 minutes 6-6.5 minute mile) to the end 5. My core felt phenomenal around 30 minutes to the end. All the aches and pains of beating myself up @ cross fit vanished (endorphins?), especially around the hip region. 6.i feel really good afterwards (now). A little tired, but nothing much. The treadmill is great because you can make micro adjustments to speed and incline as you go. Boring to stare at a white wall though. I had muse pumping in my ears. I say the xtend, caffeine and carb combo works well. I just did not like feeling dehydrated 1/2 way into race. This time I ate two spoonfuls of a lentil bean salad my wife made about 10 minutes before running and xtend / caffeine about an hour before. This morning I drank my usual ton of water and also had a big bow of oatmeal, Protein powder and Fiber one carb heaven in anticipation for running this afternoon. Slurped on bcaa for a lot of that water this morning. I drink a lot of that stuff. And it helps not only in running, but in the cross fit stuff also.

The Dukan diet looks similar to Atkins diet, but with two major differences: exclusion of high fat, inclusion of oat bran. I like that it is high Protein and encourages the consumption of targeted vegetables. In a way, it is how most post op WLS folks are encouraged to eat until they relax their diet a bit. More information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dukan_Diet However, It is #5 on the list of diets NOT to follow according to the British Diabetic Association: http://www.bda.uk.com/news/131125BadDiets.html I got a kick out of reading about some of the celebrity diets on this list.

I am sorry this had to happen to you. Keep calm and carry on. Perhaps while you are waiting for another trainer / buddy, keep your lifting rotations between 60-80% of your max for each lift and use free weights (barbell and plates) in case you need to bail. Learn how to effectively bail first where you can safely get out of a failed lift before lifting heavy in a compromising position. You can also stick to other body weight exercises that are more on the gymnastic and mono structural axis like double unders (general balance and coordination), hand stand push-ups (upper body, shoulders,) , chest to bar pull-up (grip strength, forearms, lats, traps, delts), weighted back extensions (back), weighted GHD sit-ups (quads, core), kettle bell swings (forearms, grip strength, posterior and anterior chain), farmer carry, goblet squats, wall sits (quads), planks (core), l sits (core, triceps), ring dips (core, triceps), sprints (cardio efficiency), etc. Any of these can scale up by going faster and /or increasing weight. For weighted exercises like kettle bell swings, farmer carry and goblet squat, just increase the weight of the dumbbell or kettle bell. For pure body weight exercises like push-ups or planks, add a plate to back or exercises like pull-ups or hand stand push-ups, wear a weighted vest. I am not expecting you to have access to weighted vests or other straps to hold weights to your body, so plate on back for planks or plate above head for lunge might be more suitable. These can all be done without a spotter and build strength, decrease body fat as well as improve general athletic ability. Be sure to put in enough mobility time before and stretching time after. And drink a lot of water. It will work out for you. Keep at it.

Thank you for the very practical real life report on being a DR Harris patient. It would be great to see any pictures of scar work you are able to share. Is it common to have a lipo with a TT after VSG? I do not need one, but find that an interesting option that is not talked about much with regard to post-WLS plastics. Seems like a good idea though.

Oooohhhh yeah....!

Great job at losing 120#. That represents a lot of hard work, focus and discipline. Do not fear eating, treat it like an enemy or give it any power in your life. We need to eat a certain amount for proper mechanics of the body. Part of moving into vet territory is coming to grips with eating in a normal way that does not elicit fear, anger or any other negative reaction. food is just energy. If you find your weight increasing a tad, cut back a little or increase exercise, but do not let food take on any more power than being fuel. Listen to your full signal. Your body may be comfortable with eating 1/2 cup or 1 cup of food now, but is that beyond your satisfaction signal or at your full signal or beyond? Everyone has different satisfaction and full signals and these responses to eating change as time goes on. Full signals are easier as a new post op than satisfaction signals. They are burping, hiccuping, sneezing, runny nose, etc. this is important to receive these signals because a lot of post WLS folks are still learning what it means to eat. Eating past a full signal as a new post op results in best case some sliming and in worst case pain. You do not want to do this for obvious reasons. That is the power of WLS during the initial months. Later on, it takes more food to receive the same full signal and more attention to recognize the satisfaction signal. However, you always want to eat to satisfaction and not to being full or beyond. Satisfaction might illicit a sigh or some little nuance you get trained to listen for. If you continue to eat to full post 1 year and longer, considering you are near or at goal, you may want to reevaluate what it means to receive satisfaction from a meal. And by meal I mean any time you eat. I happen to eat 7-8 times a day. Definitely make smart and informed choices about eating in terms of quality and positive impact on the body. Quantity will not be such an issue if your food selection is clean and healthy. Your body will adapt and burn more calories by raising the BMR, especially if you become fairly active. Dense Proteins first, leafy green veggies second and low glycemic carbs third. Try and pick foods low on the Glycemic index that illicit a normal and steady response of insulin in your blood. Focus on good adrenal health which directly influences the endocrine system for optimal pancreatic, pituitary gland and thyroid responses (align these and your body will improve the BMR).

Thanks sweet pee for your question suggestions. You are probably right that a male versus female TT are fundamentally two different approaches. I have not considered this. However, it totally makes sense given the extra T men are endowed with. I think men also focus more on abs as an outcome of TT than women, but, as in all things, there are exceptions, especially for the athletic women who want those abs...

Some additional information: I had VSG on July 2nd, 2012 @360 # and reached goal @ 180# in February 2013. Since then. I have been reshaping my body with eating clean, exercising 5-6 days a week with cross fit and running. I have not been losing any more weight because my calories tend to be between 2000-2500 daily (7-8 "meals"). However, I have been trading body fat for lean muscle over the last year. There was a period of several months when my weight was between 170-175, but I have found 180-185 is better in order to maintain athletic build.

Some of these smack you right in the forehead. Wow. It goes to show conventional wisdom is not always right and we should always be seeking out better information. Thank you for posting this.

Recently, I have been mixing up chicken slices from Costco with a green verde sauce, but also like mixing up chicken slices with different Indian and Thai sauces. Super easy for a non cook like me to prepare in minutes, yet really tasty for lunch or a snack. Mix, nuke in microwave, done.

Plank holds!! Try holding them longer and longer and longer. This will build phenomenal core strength and tighten up the abs without moving at all.

You know, phad Thai used to be one of my favorites too. That is the only dish I would order for the most part. Never got tired of it, but felt bad that here I was eating 1 thing from a menu of 100s of different choices (figuratively speaking). After surgery, I never had phad Thai again. I probably could have, but did not want that interfering with my weight loss nor did I want food to control me anymore. Long story short, I decided to start ordering things off the Thai menu I was always a wimp about before. Now I can eat at Thai all the time and know that there are many different lower calorie options that are not noodle based. So go ahead and try different options from the menu. You might find something you never knew you had a taste for.

yes, that is the NOW product I use. I typically mix together xtend, creatine and beta-alanine into the same drink in the morning when I wake. 1-2 scoop of xtend, 5 g of creatine and 4 g of beta-alanine. Sometimes I will also add my 5 g of magnesium powder into this drink (relaxes muscles and improves flavor a tad).

For xtend I typically pay a little more than 50 for the 90 portion on Amazon. It is not cheap and wish I could find it for less. Again, expect to pay 20% more if you order this retail from GNC or a store like that. Retail typically carries the 30 portion version which runs out too fast for me. A well respected brand is AST for creatine monohydrate. http://www.amazon.com/AST-Science-Micronized-Creatine-Monohydrate/dp/B00117ZSOO Stuff is cheap and will last forever. It is a well respected brand in the body building community for a clean pure source of creatine monohydrate. The consistency is like powdered sugar and doesn't mix too well in my opinion. I switched to NOW brand because I was getting nauseous from the AST for whatever reason. The consistency of the NOW brand is like table sugar, mixes well and does not make me nauseous.

One thing I have been curious about is id creatine is effective to take on off days. I have been under the impression that the answer is yes in order to keep muscles "loaded, " but gave also read it does not help. What are your thoughts? Thanks!