Globetrotter

@Coops - yep our numbers are pretty similar. In the years during which I gained my weight I spent maybe a couple of months my freshman year in college at this weight, not terribly long, so I doubt my body had time to get used to it. In fact, I've never spent long at any single weight in my life, always inexorably creeping higher. I think once I did the math and figured that I had basically gained on average about ten pounds a year since 14 yrs of age or roughly a pound a month for 16 years. I haven't lost weight since the first week of January and in fact the scale shows me as 4 pounds higher than my all-time low so I guess I'm frightened that this will happen again, frightened that my body may turn traitor on me and gain gain gain, that I will not achieve normalcy and non-flabbiness. =( =( I look in the mirror and all I see is a flabby squashy middle-aged-before-her-time marshmallow. =( =(

Hey all - need some advice from me fellow nearly-theres: I have not lost any weight since Christmas and have possibly even gained 3 lbs. Now it is true that I have been struggling with bad foods, there have been doughnuts, snickers, and alcohol (oh my), but even with all that, my calories almost never top 12-1500. Even on the day when I have had a doughnut my calories are at 1200, with carbs no greater than 50. I have a lot of people, friends and strangers, comment on my exercise habits. They are all like, "wow, you work out a LOT". Which got me to thinking, yeah, you know, I DO work out a lot. So, WTF, where are the results? Five days a week I work out, and I do all the stuff you are supposed to do - change it up, cardio, don't let my body get used to a routine, Water, blahblahblah. I run over a mile a day now, do yoga twice a week, dance tango twice a week, lift weights, strength training, eat high Protein... How could my 5'3" body "want" to be at 170 pounds?? How?!! =(

I'm completely mystified as to some of those references Wheetsin, do I even want to know?? illgeturhairdid - This is a totally normal post-VSG sex response! Especially after that first 50 lbs comes off, all that estrogen stored in the fat cells gets released into the blood stream and we get SUPER horny. =P Plus just the thrill of maneuvering a smaller body within intimate encounters ... oh yeah. Enjoy!!

HAHAHAHAHA, Thank you, Wheetsin, you understood the spirit in which this was intended! =) I am by no means a super-grammarian. We do all make mistakes and yes, people for whom English is not the first or even second language absolutely get a pass! Lose and Looser though, aargh! It isn't even like they sound similar, because they don't!! Lose has a hard s like a z sound, and loose has a soft nearly sibilant s, not like there-their-they're, which all sound identical and create totally understandable mistakes, especially in non-native speakers. We all have our "thing", this one is mine, along with not pronouncing the first r in "library" (but that's neither here nor there). =D =D

The stomach contracting the other day with the tuna salad was difficult to describe, it is like the stomach is shuddering around the food and it definitely feels like a warning to not eat another bite and just back off.

The slimes are different for everyone I think. For me it is that one bite too many, that one sip too much, and I suddenly get the worst feeling of needing to vomit only I can't, and instead I produce copious amounts of viscous saliva and a lot of pain. It is HORRIBLE. And after all my big talk about the change in my capacity - I tried to eat some tuna salad for lunch and I barely managed 2 ounces, no bread no crackers just the tuna, and my stomach is contracting painfully =( guess I rediscovered a filling food =/

CLK - that is fascinating! I remember you from back in the day, you had your surgery about a month or so before I did so I've always been interested in tracking your progress. 20 months out and you are still eating like a post-op! That's a good thing, I'm jealous! Are you at goal? I'm still 17 lbs shy of surgeon's, 40 shy of personal. Pasta is still a no-go, even though my capacity is more than yours. Anything beyond say, 5 or 6 spaghetti noodles causes alarm and fears of sliming. Plus my tastes have changed and I would way rather have the meatballs and cheese =) I wonder if the whole slider/carb slider thing has more to do with flour content? Maybe there is something mysteriously and specifically bad about flour that makes our sleeves take to it so horribly well ... hmm. Yep, the day before my cycle I feel like I could do a face plant into a vat of haagen daz and tear the sides off a cow, my God, that first bite of a sizzling juicy fatty cheeseburger, the day before you start, ohmmmmmmygodddddd. foodgasm bliss.

Yep, this just goes for RTD's, overall my favorite is a protein powder called Tera's Whey, an organic dark cocoa. I mix that with a little Click - the espresso protein powder, some almond or hemp milk, and a spash of SF torani syrup. Put it all in my Starbucks to-go cup and noone would ever know the difference!

Guess what? No, I haven't broken my stall , but! I ran a mile and a quarter last night without stopping! And then, I went to yoga class!! Being fit is awesome!

Yeah all other RTDs are just disgusting, bleachh! But this one, I swear, if you are a visual eater, just take this and pop it into one of those reusable Starbucks cups that looks like the kind they serve iced drinks in and you won't know the difference! Especially if you tap a bit of cinnamon or nutmeg on it with a squirt of SF whip! =)

Don't nurses have unions? That sounds like some BS, not being able to have water at the station - that's an issue of hydration!

Of all the RTD's (Ready To Drink) out there, Muscle Milk light in Vanilla Latte is def my favorite, especially if I can shake it up really good or even blender it, so it gets all whippy, with some ice cubes so it is super duper cold - yumm!! And SO filling, I don't know what special thing they do to it but it fills me up and stays for a very long time, longer than any other shake. Win-win!

One of the things a lot of us sleevers have in common is a lifetime of putting ourselves last, of training ourselves to be our most skilled abusers. The sleeve forces us to put ourselves first. I have friends that are RN's, I know how rigorous and straining it can be, but you "couldn't" take care of yourself at any time in those 12 hours? Couldn't, or wouldn't? This isn't a criticism of you (no flames plz everyone!) but rather gently trying to point out that you are WORTH it, that you come first - no ifs ands or buts! That in all liklihood, the world wasn't going to go down in flames if you took 15 minutes alone in a supply closet to breathe, sip a protein shake, and focus. You HAVE to put yourself first, physically, emotionally, in every way. It is too cruel, and dangerous, not to.

wahHOOO! Yeah Meg! It is SO awesome to hear that it CAN be done! =) =) And I had a good laugh too, I wonder if every single sleever has the Double Goal Standard - there is surgeon's goal and then our personal goal, and our personal goal always seems to be about 20 lbs less than surgeon's, lolol! I'm sadly not even to surgeon's yet (150), 17 lbs to go, and 40 till personal. Good for you - yay!!

I used to weigh absolutely every morsel, for about the first year. After doing it so much I became quite good at eyeballing my portions until now, I can cut a piece of something, judge it as say, 3 ounces, put it on the scale and it will be spot on. Basically I can handle about a cup of anything, and about 3/4's of the way into it I will stop, wait 15 minutes, and finish it off. Depending on my sleeve's mood that day I could eat again in 2 hours or be done for the rest of the day. I must say, my sleeve has some capricious moods, one day I can chug along steadily eating every three hours, and others I have to force myself to put something in my mouth at least once.

I am 18 months out and the other day for breakfast I had; half a slice of buttered toast, half of one over-medium egg, and half a slice of bacon. I was STUFFED, and that's a year and a half out! Lunch was most of a child's size grilled cheese sandwich - STUFFED! Then for dinner I had a 2 inch by 3 inch slice of vegetarian lasagna and a tablespoon of polenta and was STUFFED. See the trend? =) However, it must be said that the day before my cycle I seem to have expanded capacity and have been able to down almost half a cheeseburger in one sitting and finish the burger a few hours later.

Between the headaches and the bloat I am definitely going to say you are dehydrated, I know you think you are drinking enough, but you aren't, it was really difficult for all of us to gauge our amounts early on. sip sip sip!

Of course you are mourning your former self, you just amputated a part of you, which will lead to a diminishing of your physical self! It is natural and healthy to go through and recognize a mourning period. As for my regrets, only that I didn't do it sooner, and perhaps hindsight being 20/20, I would have taken better/gentler care of myself in my first 3 months, would have hired a personal trainer, but that's it!

A coupla things about running: I'm a new convert to it, I've avoided it all my life even when I was a teen athlete, now I'm a total addict! I started out just running for a single minute, then ignored the time and went for distance, a half mile at first. That became a whole mile, though with several breaks for speed walking. So now I have some questions: 1. Pace - the guy at the running shoe store told me that the ideal pace is 180 steps per minute, or 90 pairs. At least I think that is what he said, can anyone confirm? I do like that pace, it keeps me at a fairly nice prance. 2. Change in body - After you have incorporated running (not walking or jogging but real running) into your workout, what changes have you noticed in your body, in your shape? I would like to know if what I think I'm seeing is real, versus hopeful imaginings. The scale hasn't really moved but I think my pants might be fitting better. 3. Arms and the rest - It's obviously good for your legs but what do you runners do to keep the rest of you toned?

Thank you for that Foxbins, anybody else have any advice? Words o' wisdom? Anything?? =)

Oh and an addendum - I checked the tag on those Gap curvy cut pinstripe trousers and they were size 8, not 10, wooh!

Brown Cow Organic Greek Yogurt, not only does it have the lowest carb and sugar count and highest protein of any greek yogurt, but you have the peace of mind knowing that there are no freaky hormones or chemicals in it.

What a great topic, I look forward to all of the responses! I hated mushrooms all of my life but suddenly in the past 4 months I can't get enough of them, the way they soak up flavorings, with a little butter and salt and pepper, mmmmm!!!! Also, greek yogurt is a perfect sleeve food.

Mmmmm, this sounds like it would also be an amazing marinade for chicken, or the dressing for a chicken salad, mmmmm!!

Hey all! That mean ole scale is still being a jerk to me, still am not seeing the lowest number that I saw while I was sick with a GB attack where I lost 4 "pounds" in one day, I know it wasn't real but still it was so cool to hit a lower number. Anyway, haven't legit lost down to that number yet BUT, about 3 weeks ago I started running and people are really starting to comment! Asking me if I've lost weight (strangers who aren't in-the-know), telling me that you can really tell changes in my body, and some of my clothes are definitely fitting differently! So, I really recommend running! And TRX, as that has definitely contributed to my overall tone and strength. Actually, I'm kinda anxious right now about that because I had to quit my TRX this week for $$ reasons, it was just too expensive on top of my gym membership and I'm afraid of losing all of the toning and strength gains I've made. I know myself well enough that I know I need to be in guided classes in order to adhere to proper workouts. But, anyway, running! Woohoo!! =)