TheCurvyJones

*four days on

Start as soon as you are cleared to Exercise from your surgeon. Start slow and ramp up as your stamina and abilities improve. I lost most of my weight by just walking 2 or 3 miles a day sometimes only 1 mile a day. I didn't even join a gym until after I made my goal of 100 pounds down. Currently I am on a schedule four days on and one rest day and then it starts over. I cycle between upper body cardio and lower body For a period of 12 weeks. Then I'll take a break for a week or so and start back up again December 1. I am 22 months out from VSG surgery and 105 pounds down and still losing.

If you are two weeks out you should be able to transition to soft foods very soon, correct? And then it's only a matter of time before you are eating like "normal".

Follow your surgeons post surgery plan. My plan was seven days of Clear Liquids, seven days of full liquids, seven days of puréed foods, then 14 days of soft foods including scrambled eggs and tuna salad. Eggs are more dense than they seem especially when you're fresh out of surgery. They are pretty filling and I would be surprised if you could get down more than a couple of bites. As far as constipation, you will want to go sooner rather than waiting until you're in pain or "need" to go. The sooner you go the less it will hurt. My surgeon recommended MiraLAX or Colace. I still use Colace from time to time.

Yes constipation can slow your loss. Increase your fiber with flax or chia or a supplement. I use co lace here and there to "move things" and I always see a drop after that.

I weighed every single day when I was in my weight loss phase. I began to see that number as a piece of data that goes into the overall puzzle of my health and well being. 'how you're doing' can be measured by much more than the scale. And for me, I looked more at the trend line. If that trend was still going down, I was doing fine. My loss was slow... I had a lot of days where I saw the same number for weeks. If it's driving you crazy though, I suggest putting your scale in a spot that's inconvenient to just hop on in the morning. The garage, the back porch. I kept mine in the trunk of my car at one point. I knew I wasn't going out there at 7am to get my scale to get on it.

I think you're fine. These feelings are quite normal right out of the gate. Not even a month out.. it gets much better. Capacity will grow and you will be able to eat more than a spoonful of food at a time. Your hormones will also even out and you won't feel so emotional about the process. It does take time to acclimate yourself to this new lifestyle but if you're not trying to shove down junk and throwing it back up, you're doing well! This entire site is about weight loss surgery. This forum is about the sleeve surgery. Talking about your experience isn't putting negative energy out there, it's commiserating with those who know where you are because we have been there. Does your surgeon have a support group, or is there one nearby that you could visit?

Hey hon! Hang in there! I had this moment once a month for........forever. Until I hit goal! Seriously, I was like... why eat good, nothing's happening! And then my shoes were flopping off of my feet and my watch fell off. :/ The butt in my pants was sagging and all my shirts were hanging too low. I was dropping inches like mad but only watching the scale. How far out are you, how much did you have to lose and what's your progress so far? If you are hungry, eat some food! There's no reason to not eat. This isn't starvation. If the issue is that you want to eat junk and shouldn't/can't, then lets find something to reroute your thoughts, something to keep you busy-- read a book, watch a movie. I actually chew gum when I get snacky. My mouth is busy and then I get away from whatever it is I'm tempted to eat. Let us know how we can help! This whole site is your buddy!

From what I have seen, band to sleeve revision patients experience a slower but steady loss. You won't drop 10lbs a week fresh out of surgery but if your band is/was failing, you will return to losing again.

Yeah I think you need to rest, especially after eating. For me it's very easy for food to come back up if I'm strenuous after eating.

Yep, she's probably worried that you're going to have surgery and surpassed her. And now the heat is on. Often, the hard part about losing weight among friends is that it's hard for your "heavy" friends to see you doing what they know they should be doing. Long story short, it's not you it's her.

Most people aren't eating potato at 5 weeks out but that's another post. My surgeons advice is to not let the sleeve dictate when you are done eating. VSG Portion sizes are 2 to 4 ounces at a meal, maximum. If you can eat all of that and be satisfied then you are done. If you become satisfied before you are finished eating that you are done. Some people may have larger sleeves because they had larger stomachs or their surgeon used a larger bougie. Dont compare, everyone is different. If you're losing you're doing fine but get a ha file on your portion sizes. Just because you can eat it doesn't mean you should, and you should be satisfied, not stuffed.

Carbonation doesn't stretch the sleeve. These are words direct from my surgeon. It does, however, irritate the sleeve, so that's why it's important to not drink strong carbonation and to wait until you're well healed.

Agree with built2livenotexist, I would start your pre op diet. I did several practice runs before surgery. See if you can get your surgeon to agree that if you lose the 8lbs by say Mid November that they'll submit you before the end of November. If you have access to a pool you could swim. Maybe Pilates moves that dont involve standing? Since you can't exercise strenuously, you'll have to severely modify your diet to create a deficit between what you eat and what you burn. Maybe do shakes during the day and something good and healthy for dinner. I actually like to keep dinner fairly light so I ate during the day and had a shake for dinner. You can pump the shakes up with fruit and veggies and a good Protein powder and maybe something filling like flax. Also make sure you get in lots of Fiber so that you errrm evacuate on a regular schedule! Good luck to you! I really hate the dangling of the carrot that your doc is doing. Reasons why I self paid and went to Mexico.

Right after lunch she usually gets going. ONe time I was having a conversation and my stomach was LOUD like it was trying to join in. Coworker was trying hard not to laugh.

Just think about how low your caloric intake is, compared to how much you eat before surgery. And how much energy you're expending. So long as you're feeding that hunger with Protein, don't be afraid of eating! A lot of people need to eat every 2 to 2 1/2 hours. I see people 9 months out, afraid to eat because they can get full off of more than 3 bites. That won't last. Agreeing with CowGirlJane, you must learn to manage it. Also make sure that you're taking an effective PPI (Proton Pump Inhibitor). This would be like Prilosec, Nexium, Zantac and the like. Hunger a half hour after eating sounds more like acid than hunger. Just to be sure, make sure you're taking (or increase or change) your PPI to combat that feeling. I don't know what to think about juicing, but I do know that if you resort to liquids, that doesn't mean like 300 calories all day. Make sure you're still getting in a recommended amount of cals (my surgeon likes to see us at 600- 800 or so cals a day through the first year. If I can, I would recommend you pick up my surgeons book on the Gastric Sleeve. He's Dr. Guillermo Alvarez and you can find his book on AMazon. He's just printed a second edition -- it's packed with great information like the history of the gastric sleeve, pre op, post op and success beyond the first 12 weeks. Also if you're on facebook, seek out his private facebook support group-- it's Endobariatric.com in Groups. Lots of people there with good info and some Spanish speaking patients if you're more comfortable in another language.

Yep that's more than 10lbs a month which is fantastic. I agree with Jessiquoi. We need measurable data. You also should consider curbing any alcohol for awhile. Reason being that it is carby and when your body burns, it will burn the alcohol before it burns any fat. Our rule is always Protein first. If you're sticking to that, you should be fine. Your loss is GREAT. I know it's hard but try not to compare yourself to others, especially because a person losing 70 lbs in 5 months may have started MUCH heavier than you did and therefore they have more to lose. Eventually EVERYONE slows down... there's no race, so do it right, not fast!

Haaaaaaaaahahaha. My stomach is SO LOUD. BEFORE I eat. WHile I drink something. AFTER I eat or drink. Noise noise noise. It's pretty funny after awhile.

You could try a seltzer Water with some sugar free syrup... there's a water company that makes a sugar free beverage that is flavored.........can't think of the name of it off hand. Thought... right after surgery you probably aren't going to want a soda. Your sleeve is going to be swollen and capacity will be at a minimum. Plus any kind of carbonation early on will be painful. My cravings have declined gravely since surgery. I just don't want the same things anymore. And honestly when I do get a soda, I rarely finish it. Those things are 12 oz and I don't have the capacity to drink it before it goes completely flat or gets too watered down, unless it's in an insular container.

Advice from my surgeon who doesn't expect people to NEVER eat or drink certain things again: The sleeve is often irritated by carbonation, so pour your drink into a glass FULL of ice. Let the ice melt in it a bit and let the fizz settle down. Drink SLOWLY, thru a straw if you can handle it. I have maybe a soda a week. My sleeve REALLY does not like carbonation much. I shake it, open it, shake it, open it... until most of the fizz is gone. That little that is left plus some COLD ice is refreshing! I would advise waiting until you are further out and completely healed, like 12 weeks or more.

Yes your face will get smaller. See how big these glasses are on me now???LOL

Dr A just published two books. One is the Second Edition of his first Book, Successful Weight Loss with the Gastric Sleeve. The other is 34 Sleeve Patient Stories: The real truth about Gastric Sleeve surgery in Mexico. More info on the Endobariatric website HERE.

RNY is fantastic for people with comorbidities. I was healthy, just very overweight. I chose the sleeve because the loss seemed more natural. All I have is a smaller stomach. Everything else is up to me.

Band to sleeve losses tend to be a bit slower, but still VERY effective! Keep the faith!!!