dgoerlitz

Good for you!!! And yes...guys and weight loss just tick me off! I've been going to water aerobics 3 days a week and walking at least 3 or 4 days a week (2 miles a day). I am a slow loser (had my surgery at the beginning of December 2012), but I am definitely happy with how things are going. I am down 3 pants sizes and almost 2 top sizes (I tend to carry my weight in my middle, so that has downsized a bit more slowly). Keep up the awesome work!

Plus...you'll feel a lot better when you exercise if you quit. I too am a reformed smoker - 16 years and counting. I could never exercise if I still smoked...I would feel too out of breath!

How long since surgery? Your doc will tell you when you can do anything you want...usually between 4-8 weeks depending on the doc. Once you are cleared for any kind of exercise, why not?

I was allowed to walk right away. I was allowed to go to the gym at 4 weeks. I was also allowed to swim again at 4 weeks.

Me too. Protein first, then the others if they fit. I rarely eat bread of any kind, never eat rice, noodles, or pasta anymore. I miss my veggies & fruit, but only eat them sparingly. My NUT said that I could, but to eat 3 bites of protein for every 1 bite of veggie or fruit.

My doctor requires annual checkups for life. He is also involved in research on bariatric surgery outcomes, so I'm sure he appreciates the data he collects from those who've given permission.

You should try St. Mary's in Livonia. Dr. Zeni & Dr. Roberts are WONDERFUL!!! They also just refurbished the surgery floor at St. Mary's and so the patient rooms there are nice and new and the doctor offices are right there in the hospital.

I ate the non-breaded ones during my soft food weeks. They are a great go to though when you haven't planned something else for dinner. And I agree, they are super yummy!

Also take Biotin - 10,000 mg per day. CVS sells a Biotin and Collagen shampoo & conditioner. Also, my hair started falling out about the time my doctor took me from 2 multi-vitamins a day down to 1 multi-vitamin a day (which happened to coincide with my 3 month check-up). I upped my multi-vitamin back to 2 per day, and that seems to have helped a little bit. I am still losing, but not as much. Aside from that, I think the only thing you can do is wait it out. I am at 4 months, 12 days and it has been like this for about a month. They say that it usually stops right around 6 months or so...I am hoping....

Rice is my nemesis. Went to a Japanese steak house with friends a couple of weeks ago. Fell into bad habits of mindlessly eating while talking and ate more rice than I would have if I was paying attention like I should have been. OMG...I was SO SICK! I didn't puke, but boy, just the right bump in the road on the way home and it would have been all over. Rice is the only food I have reacted this way to, so...I guess it's no more rice for me. No big deal though...I can still eat the meat and veggies, so I can still get an Asian fix if I want one.

Carbonation can also stretch your sleeve. This could be temporarily uncomfortable...and long term - you don't want to undo what you just had done, do you? Is a diet coke really worth it?

What about your protein shakes? You should be getting in more protein than 20 g per day. You need the protein for energy and to help your body heal.

Is the point to be able to eat solid foods sooner? You really shouldn't rush the process...it can be a horrible experience to have a leak. Once you get on solid foods, you will get full. I am almost 4 months out and I can barely fit in 3/4 cup of anything, and there are several things that I just absolutely can't eat, like rice or Pasta. Denser foods fill you up, so maybe it is "head hunger"/boredom? If you go into this thinking you will fail, you will...it will be a self-fulfilling prophecy. The surgery is not a silver bullet, and it makes me sad that someone allowed you to think that it was. The surgery is a tool...and a pretty darn effective one if you can get past the emotional/psychological aspect of food. I am/was not an emotional eater, but I am/was a "foodie". I am simply finding other ways to enjoy food now. You still have to work at it with exercise and by saying no to some things. Can you eat a cookie? Sure. Should you eat a whole bag of them? NO...whether you had the surgery or not...it's just that now, you really need to say no so that you don't have to go under the knife again. Why would you put yourself through all of this if you weren't willing to do a little bit of work too? Not being critical...this is just how I think when I see the things that I really like that I can't eat anymore, like rice and pasta and bread and Desserts. It is simply not worth it to me. I would much rather spend my money doing something fun...and a second surgery doesn't qualify.

I would definitely take your protein shakes, also yogurt, applesauce, hummus (if it is ok at this point) and soup....Oh, and LOTS AND LOTS of water! Have fun and don't overdo it!

Oh...it took my incisions about 4-5 weeks to completely heal. I also had a hernia fixed just about my belly button. That one took a couple more weeks on top of that before it was completely healed.

Ok...so I am a December 10, 2012 sleever. I am feeling great! I usually eat 5 times a day...about 2-3 hours in between...and only 3 of what I consider a "meal". I start my morning with a cheeze stick and a cup of coffee on the hour long ride to work. Around 9:00 - 9:30 I eat breakfast - either home made plain yogurt with Special K Protein & a couple of peaches, or just some oatmeal. Around noon I eat lunch. That can vary but usually is based on chicken, tuna, or salmon. I have a snack around 3:00 - 3:30 - usually some home made plain yogurt with some PB2 mixed in, or a Muscle Milk Light bar. And then dinner whenever I get home. I drink water, decaf tea, and decaf coffee in between. I usually eat between 800 - 900 calories per day and between 60 - 70 g of protein. Seems to be working...although every now and then I have had to just eat "bad" for a day or two because I seem to get stuck. Eating a little more with a little bit of abandon on very rare occasions seems to jump start me back to losing.

Senna S (2 in the a.m. and 2 in the p.m.) and fiber powder. I eat a couple of prunes a couple of times too during the week.

How many times a day do you take them? If only once, try taking them at night before you go to sleep.

I take Biotin, but I'm using a product called Terax (a collagen based cream rinse) to repair my hair. There is a shampoo for it too, but instead, I started using a garlic shampoo that is supposed to slow or prevent hair loss.

Let's all remember one thing that my doc said to me at my 30 day check up - this is NOT a sprint...it is a marathon! Helped me feel A LOT better about the speed at which I was losing.

I asked a similar question the other day and fellow sleevers suggested PB2. Its a powdered Peanut Butter protien. You can mix it with protien shakes or in yogurt. I ordered it on amazon and it has great reviews. Good luck! I bought some too this week. I haven't tried it yet though. I haven't had time to make yogurt, so I finally stopped this morning and picked up some Yoplait 2x greek vanilla honey yogurt to try it with. Can't wait til tomorrow!

Eggs, meat (tuna, salmon & chicken breast give you the most bang for your buck), peanut butter, cottage cheese, yogurt (greek is best)...these are all great sources of protein. I haven't done it myself, but I've seen people talking about adding protein powder to their yogurt to boost the protein. Also, the Livestrong website has a pretty good basic list. There are LOTS of high protein meal cookbooks on Amazon, and as I mentioned in another post the other day, there is even a "Dummies" book for people who have had weight loss surgery. There are lots of tasty looking recipes in it.

It only takes about 15 minutes or so to get the milk to temp and back down and mix in the starter. Once that's done, the rest happens on it's own. I usually do it right before I go to bed on a Saturday or Sunday night and then by the time I get up in the morning it is ready for the fridge. If I do it on Sunday night I can even take a jar to work with me Monday morning since it will be in the refrigerator most of the day.

You could start over....you know...liquids, then purees, then soft foods, then regular food. Maybe the process will help your stomach remember that you've been sleeved.

I use My Fitness Pal.