joatsaint

I was truly surprised to see the calorie difference between 4oz. of 93% hamburger and 85% hamburger. Almost 110 calories per 4oz.! Even though the 93% costs about $1 per lb more, I've noticed that, after cooking, the amount of cooked hamburger is almost the same between the two. There's so much shrinkage, that they are pretty much the same in cost in the end. So I think I'll spend the extra dollar per pound and save 110 calories. I thought it might be enlightening to grab some common calorie counts for ground beef, chicken and turkey and compare them side-by-side. Click on the pics to enlarge them. Standard Disclaimer: This is by no means the definitive numbers for these products. The numbers vary depending on the manufacturer. These numbers are presented to make you aware of the differences in calorie counts and fat content. You can find much more specific details by manufacturer or by food group by searching this database: http://caloriecount....oods&searchpro= George Carlin's Advertising Disclaimer: No cash? No problem! No kidding! No fuss, no muss, No risk, no obligation, no red tape, no down payment, No entry fee, no hidden charges, no purchase necessary, No one will call on you, no payments or interest till September. Limited time only, though, so act now, order today, send no money, Offer good while supplies last, two to a customer, each item sold separately, Batteries not included, mileage may vary, all sales are final, Allow six weeks for delivery, some items not available, Some assembly required, some restrictions may apply. So come on in for a free demonstration and a free consultation with our friendly, professional staff. Our experienced and knowledgeable sales representatives will help you make a selection that's just right for you and just right for your budget. And say, don't forget to pick up your free gift: a classic deluxe custom designer luxury prestige high-quality premium select gourmet pocket pencil sharpener. Yours for the asking, no purchase necessary. It's our way of saying thank you. And if you act now, we'll include an extra added free complimentary bonus gift at no cost to you: a classic deluxe custom designer luxury prestige high-quality premium select gourmet combination key ring, magnifying glass, and garden hose, in a genuine imitation leather-style carrying case with authentic vinyl trim. Yours for the asking, no purchase necessary. It's our way of saying thank you.

I watched as many VSG and bariatric surgery videos on Youtube as I could. I wanted to know the good, the bad and the ugly. I chose to watch people that had posted at least a year of videos covering their progress.

Dealing With Stalls Just be patient. I know it's frustrating when the scale doesn't move. I'm on week 11 and I've had at least 3 different weeks where the scale doesn't move for 7 days, then I'll mysteriously be down 2 - 3 pounds overnight. Your body is just acclimating to the lower calorie intake and sometimes it is holding onto every calorie, trying to replace the glycogen stores in the muscles. I don't have a formula for getting the scale moving again, but I do try to mix things up to keep my body from getting used to a set pattern. I walk a little extra, up my vegetable intake, or eat low carb for a day or two to see how my body will react. I was eating pistachio nuts and sunflower seeds last week and EEEEEKKKKKK! I gained 2 lbs that week. Monday I went back to basics of eating my refried beans and chicken (eating 4oz every 2 hours), this morning I've lost the extra 2 lbs plus another 1lb. For the 1st time in 4 years I'm under 310lbs.

Here are 2 threads you might check out and see the results of losing over 100lbs. You might also send them a private message asking about loose skin. Do a forum search for "selfie" without the quotes to find more threads like these. http://www.verticals...age__hl__selfie http://www.verticals...age__hl__selfie You can also check out the Anti-Jared. This guy lost 225lbs and you can see how his skin holds up. http://theantijared.com/about-me Now if my gut will only look like that when I reach my goal! I would be so happy.

Just got back from my 2 week checkup. Down 21 lbs from my pre-surgery start weight. Doc put me on the puree diet and told me to walk at least 1 hr a day 4 - 5 times a week. That's going to be difficult because of all the rain coming up for the next week. I'm doing pretty well with cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup and peanut butter. But I've tested a tiny bite of chicken, hamburger and Vienna sausages, seems like anything along those lines is still too tough for my stomach. Almost immediately I can feel rolling gas bubbles in my stomach and I have to burp. Found some great food storage containers at Wal-Mart. They seem to be the perfect size for how much I can eat at one sitting.

Well, it's been 21 days since my surgery. I'm having trouble getting in enough walking. My feet and hips get seriously sore after 20 minutes of walking. I'm not sure that I've fully gotten over my cold because I feel very weak and tired every day. I've noticed that I don't sleep as much anymore. Previously, I'd sleep between 8 and 10 hours but now I sleep about 7 and wake up and can't get back to sleep. I've been stuck at the same weight for the past 5 days. I've been watching my calorie intake pretty closely and know that I'm taking in between 700 - 1000 calories a day. I figure that plus the walking should be making an impact. It could just be a plateau, so I'll just keep on keeping on. One bit of good news, I had to punch a new hole in my belt. So now I'm one notch smaller. The 2nd bit of good news is that I haven't felt hungry since the surgery. Hunger has always plagued me - as far back as I can remember. It was like a little nagging kid pulling at my sleeve. And I couldn't get rid of him. I knew that 2 hours after eating a meal of almost any size, that I'd be digging in the fridge for the next thing to eat. I knew that I was not physically hungry, but the constant need to eat drove me to put something in my stomach as soon as there was room. I believe it was the over production of ghrelin (wiki link) in my stomach that caused me to be hungry all the time. I am sure that I was a food addict. I've been testing different foods. So far I've found that my stomach can handle fat free re-fried beans with salsa and a little hamburger, peanut butter, fat free yogurt, cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soup and hard boiled eggs. I still can't handle chicken, sugar free popsicles or sugar free jell-o. One tsp and I almost immediately feel gas bubbles rolling through my stomach. In case you're interested in how I test new foods, I normally eat 1/2 tsp of the new food. Wait 5 minutes. If everything feels okay, I eat a full tsp. My stomach will usually let me know how it feels about a food after the 1st or 2nd bite. I haven't tried any other drinks besides Crystal Light lemonade and water. I've been drinking Crystal Light for over 10 years and never gotten tired of it. I wish it was out there back when I was a kid. But the only diet drinks back then were horrible! Tab and Fresca - MAN, those were some awful flavors. Anyone else remember Tab and Fresca? Anyone drink more than 1 can before throwing it away?

I guess I was lucky at my 1st try with tasting protein shakes. I got a 4 pack of EAS carb control chocolate at Walmart - and if you like chocolate, they are pretty good, just a little thinner than I like. So I tossed in a scoop of some powdered chocolate protein I already had and made it a little thicker and chocolatier (is chocolatier a word? :-P) Anyway, later on I tried Premier Protein chocolate shakes - I had to buy a 12 pack to test them out - and they are even better than EAS, but I still throw in a scoop of the powdered chocolate protein - I just like the thicker feeling. I tried not to go too overboard with my purchasing and just stuck with the basics. I had previously counted on the reduced food bills as part of recovering the cost of surgery over the next 3 to 5 years. Try not to get too caught up in the excitement of trying new flavors of protein shakes or you may wind up with a bunch of product that you don't eat, wasted money, and get discouraged. You'll only be on the shakes for a short time before your doctor is going to want you to get your nutrition from solid food.

I never took my temperature, but the week after surgery, I felt like I was getting over a bad cold. The feeling went away by the 2nd week.

Without getting to graphic, it was monstrous. I weighed after I got off work and was over a pound lighter. I think I can punch a new notch in my belt tonight.

Gastronomically, things are crazy. I've been passing gas (and I don't mean gas as in gas station!) every night. I wake up at 1:30am or 4:30am belching and farting like crazy. I've passed so much gas I'm afraid to turn on the lights - I might set off a spark and cause an explosion. I can lay on my left side and feel okay. If I switch to my right, I can feel and hear gurgling in my stomach. Don't understand that. But it all stops right after I wake up for work, I guess that's a small blessing for my co-workers. :-) I'm thinking that since my bowel movements have slowed to every other day, the food sitting in my intestines has more time to ferment. Anyone else experience this?

Hey, I am a few weeks pre-gastric sleeve surgery and looking for support groups in the Beaumont Tx area or talk with anyone locally that is planning or has gone through bariatric surgery? Any help or advice would be appreciated.

I felt good enough to drive after 7 days.