playlikeworldchamps

you are only 43 that is almost 6 years younger than me. I am post menopausal and have lost 130+ pounds. if you follow the plan you will lose! protein first! you are young! there are many people older than you or me successful with the sleeve. It is all up to you and in your control.

It's the surface tension of water kind of backs it up in the sleeve too. I had the same problem. If you mix with other things like dilute with Gatorade or duet snapple (my choice) it is easier to drink. Also drink room temp lowers surface tension. If I did not switch to diluting with ice tea and Gatorade in first weeks I would have dehydrated.

I used string cheese, and Greek yogurt for Snacks. I used to eat chobani fruit flavors but so much sugar so instead I mix fruit with Fage plain yogurt (about 22g per 8 ounces!) or I mix a Dannon lite and fit Greek fruit flavored with a plain Fage and get about 30g Protein and 180 calories. Yum! I will eat 2-3 Quest bars a week and also 1-2 GNC ready to drink shakes. That it 20-25g protein in one of to either of those!

GNC Lean shakes. I Like the Swiss chocolate the best. Vanilla not bad either. I only do ready to drink. For me powders taste grainy so I like to just chill and pop the top! 25g per bottle and only 170 cals

So true. We are ready for the zombie apocalypse now! Congratulations!

Love getting sushi at wegmans. Yum! I eat more variety now than before weightloss Before I would have cheeseburgers, pizza, subs, wraps, bagels, etc etc all the time. I was fat and didn't feel that great from that food. Now I will have yogurt or eggs for breakfast, a burger or tuna or chili or even a few pieces of cheese for lunch and a small amount of whatever we are having for dinner. I eat guacamole, beans, fresh fruit, cucumbers. I have a trail mix I make with almonds and dark chocolate m&ms. I don't get bad cravings anymore or rarely. When I do a spoonful of peanut butter stops it short. Life is very good! There is no need to get in a rut or be a goody2shoes. Quantities are small so make each bite count and be high quality and also delicious. Life is too short to eat rice cakes and green slime (I think you mean kale protein powder shakes!) but I will eat purple slime - blackberry/strawberry Greek yogurt shakes! Yum!

There are a few things that are a sure thing for me Blackberries. Usually mix with plain Fage yogurt and gets everything moving! GNC Lean shake. Something in that makes me go! Quest bar - same deal as the GNC shake. God forbid I have 2 days in a row!

In the case of what causes limited beliefs I can say from my experience that after I lost 85 pounds I was 230 and I had not been that weight in 10 years and that is about as low as I ever got since having all my children. Although I was 175 in college and when I got married (for a brief time) it was hard to believe I could get there or even down under 200. It was not so much a limiting belief as much as experience telling me that any more was too much to hope for. Wishing to lose more was almost like hoping to win the lottery. I would say to myself - can I really get to 209 and BMI of 29.9? I had to force my thinking and keep pushing to get there. And I was using BMI to set a goal not because I think it was right for me or everyone. Then I wanted to get under 200. To do that I had to push again, and spend thousands on the gym and personal training. But it was slow in coming so I also had to tell myself that even if I never lost another pound I could be happy at 208. So perhaps that is the thought process of the people you speak of. A certain weight may seem like a fairy tale to a morbidly obese person so like with many things in life they perhaps learn to be happy with where they are to avoid the feeling of failure if they dont get to some "ideal" goal. As for me my goal was body fat percentage under 28% which is what a woman my age should be. I didn't really think it was possible since I used to be 50% but I tried anyway. I took time and money and dedication. But I also would have convinced myself to be happy 208 as well if I could not make that further push.

1. Why does it matter what other peoples goals are? 2. BMI is meant at a statistical measure over large populations and not meant to be an individual mandate. 3. My doctor told me that risk of death and medical issues drops dramatically at 29.9 so that the overweight category is great for someone who used to be morbidly obese. There really is no reason statistically to stress over getting under 25 according to him. 4. Using BMI focuses on the scale which is not an indicator of overall health. Rather use body fat percentage instead. My BMI is 26. Should I lose 35 pounds of muscle to make some BMI of 21 like you? Because my height is not going up and all BMI is is a ratio. 5. Body fat percentage should be a guideline for health not BMI. If those people with 30-40 more to lose have a BF that is in the recommended range for their height why should they lose more pounds of muscle/fat. 6. Some people choose a goal they know they can maintain rather than 1 where they will struggle,gain and feel like a failure. 7. Older people should carry more body fat than younger for insulation, and to protect bones and against any illness. (Body fat guidelines are by age) 8. I repeat number 1 above. What's it to you anyway? I offer my congratulations and am happy for you. But why does it matter to you what others "feel" is right for them.

The PCP can order a mammogram or ultrasound for you if the lump seems suspicious. 1 day won't matter though except to your nerves. A lump is not an emergency. Even when it is something bad it takes 2-3 weeks to go thru all the tests etc. I know because I had a bad one and it took over a month to get all the appointments and tests and the waiting is the worst part. 4 years later I am doing great. Most of the time though it can be a cyst or fatty deposit etc and hopefully that is it in your case.

Slightly off topic but whenever I do something extra nice for my 14 year old (like 2 One Direction concerts in 10 days) I make her promise to call me skinny at least once a day! (She's a smart 14 old she knows never to say "too" skinny or those tickets are straight up on stubhub! LOL!)

Um you don't need a tummy tuck! Now if I wore a bikini you would see someone who did. My grandmas famous jello mold dessert was way firmer than my tummy. Hell applesauce is firmer than my tummy! Save your money for when you're old like me and everything needs lifting :-)

It's phentermine. It's been around forever and a safe drug for the most part but can only be used temporarily and can make you jittery. One thing about more exercise. Yes it does make you hungrier when you do a lot. That's normal. You may need to eat more not less when you exercise harder. Sometimes we stall because caloric intake too low. Also as for diet I notice if I keep sugar grams under 25g the weight can fly off. Of course I can't always keep so low because sugar seems to be everywhere but I can usually keep it under 40g and it makes a big difference. I also lean towards the high fat low sugar eating. Not low carb overall (I eat Beans and nuts that increase carbs up there) but my diet is about 40-50% fat! Mostly good fats in real food like nuts and cheese and the like but the higher fat diet works for me. You may want to change up yours. When I eat fat I have plenty of calories to support vigorous exercise too.

Congratulations! Wear it with pride.

Yes told my trainer though I don't tell everyone. Basically I do a need to know basis. But trainers at my gym take continuing education and learn about bariatric surgery, working with people who are obese or have asthma etc. so it is good for them to know.

A Dr-Patient said don't do anything to please others. When people say you look too thin tell them that according to your doctor you are just the right healthy weight and that in time they will get used to seeing you this size. When I get told not too lose anymore or that I look skinny I outright say that I'm 180 pounds and at that weight I would need to be 6'11" to be considered underweight. (I'm 5-10). The irony is that the main person who says this to me is a woman my same height who is 145lbs. She used to say how she gained so so so much weight while pregnant and weighed as much as 180! But I guess on me that's too skinny!

I could not tolerate water in the weeks right after surgery so at recommendation of nutritionist, diluted regular Gatorade and diet snapple with water. It saved me from dehydration.

I want to thank you for starting this thread. It is a reminder to stay vigilant. I am 18 months out and learning maintenance. Relatives whisper about me saying "when is she going to stop". They don't mean losing weight. They mean going to the gym and watching my intake. They don't understand that the answer to that is never. Exercise and mindful eating has to be a way of life or I won't keep the weight off. This is a chronic disease and the treatment is vigilance and there is no cure. In answer to another question about how strict to be from the beginning regarding carbs, exercise, etc, I think that will be very dependent on the individual. Some people need to be vey strict. One bad bite will trigger cravings. Other people need a splurge once in a while or are in danger of having a "blow up" For my part I decided that no food is off limits to me if I track it. I refuse to feel guilt. I have learned from tracking what my patterns are and what can trigger cravings or weight gain. Does that always keep me in line. Well no but it's a start. I also don't freak out if I don't get my four days a week in the gym. Life happens and I get there the next time I can. But I also do allow wimpy excuses like I used to. Again thanks for starting this thread. I am only 18 months out but I am hoping in 5 years I will still be within 10-15 pounds of this weight. Ideally the same weight but I am practical. In any case it will take work.

I don't have that problem! I can eat 1200 easy. My maintenance amount is currently 1550 and I have no problem hitting that either! But that why I only care about protein staying high and sugar staying low. I ignore fat calories. My diet is 40-50 percent fat. Probably why I am never under MFP s 1200 threshold for yelling at us. Maybe you need to save a frequent food as "MFP nagging calories plug" and set it to 600 with no listed macros and use that everyday!

Just go to the pie chart and switch to the detail on the iPhone On iPad I get nice counts right on the diary I am sure ther are similar options on PC and android. In fact the details on my iPad diary I had to choose from the web PC version. So far today for me is attached. I focus on protein and sugar grams

I had a hard time with water too. I had to mix it with sugar free diet Snapple or Gatorade. That lowers the surface tension and then it would go down. If I did not discover that I would have been on an IV too.

Don't start with those carb rich foods. They won't fill you and cause you to be hungrier. I know if I start a day with carbs I will be fighting hunger the rest of the day. Start with a rote in Breakfast like a couple eggs I also eat Fage Greek plain yogurt with some Dannon Greek lite flavored yogurt mixed up to give it taste and lots of flavor but low sugar. I am 18 months out so I could eat a bagel or Cereal or oatmeal for breakfast just fine. But as much as I love those foods I'd rather maintain my 130 pound loss and not fight the hunger monster all day. So I make a conscious choice to go stay with the number one rule of the sleeve: Protein first.

I am in the tracking food camp. I use MFP and have a caloric goal however I do it more to make sure I am getting all the protein, limiting sugar carbs and finding trends. I do not obsess when I go over my calorie goal. I just dial it back a little the next day. Also the accountability helps when I think I really blew it and when I enter everything in it is not always as bad as I thought. I know my old habits would creep back over time if I stopped logging and so would the weight. I really don't mind tracking and it helps me make good choices. I look up food before I eat it many time especially if I am at a restaurant. It helps me make better choices. I hated logging when I was doing WW but now with the success the sleeve it seems a minor effort to ensure I maintain.

Did it for health reasons but maintaining it because of how I look and feel! let's face it once the health reasons are not there it's hard to use the lack of them as motivation. Now have to be motivated by the mirror, clothes size, and the awesome feeling of being thin!

Lady in article sounds like extreme case. Reactive hypoglycemia is one of the forms of "dumping". More likely to happen with RNY but can happen in sleeve but not usually (I get it with sleeve if I eat too much sugary stuff but would never be so bad as to pass out. )