gamergirl

I worried about this a lot. I also worried that other people lost on these other diets I failed on, why would I succeed this time? I worried I would cut out 85% of my stomach and still be that medical marvel that couldn't lose weight. I will tell you my one regret which is that I tried every diet, but I never tried a modified Atkins where I gave up carbs. I was extremely carb addicted and I couldn't make myself give them up. Always had a good excuse why I didn't need to give them up. I wish I had tried that so I would know how much of my current weight loss is due to the sleeve and how much of it is due to low carbs because that is after all, what the post-sleeve diet is for most of your life. Having said that, the main thing that works is the reduction of calories. I used to be hungry on 1000-1200 calories, and there is no way one can stay hungry endlessly without giving in to food at some point. With the sleeve, I can eat under 800 calories and not be hungry. BUT, that's only true if I eat Protein first and restrict junk food. Honestly, I haven't had junk food so I don't know but I can read what others post and know better than to try it. I do have to control what I eat for the rest of my life. I'm only 4-5 months out and I know this will change, but for now, the fact that I'm not a) starving and sugar-crashing from eating carbs, makes it easier to control my intake. I would strongly suggest eating like a sleever--except higher calories of course--now to see how your life might be. The hunger did go away when I stopped eating carbs, although it was 3-4 days of hell. Once i detoxed from it though? best feeling in the world. Rest assured we all worry that we won't lose weight. At first, it's not difficult to lose weight. As best I can tell, it's not re-gaining it where the discipline and the new habits have to kick in.

I eat three meals and 1-2 Snacks a day. the thing is, there's not much difference in a meal and a snack anymore so really I eat 4-5 mini meals. At each meal/snack, I try to get in some Protein. the exception is a snack of popcorn which I have every night (don't try this until your stomach heals). Other than that, it's 1 Breakfast shake, some kind of meat (2-3 oz), and veg for lunch and for dinner, and either another shake or a protein pudding at night, along with another snack of popcorn with some coconut oil or butter. Sometimes I have a cottage cheese instead of a shake. This gives me at least 60 gms of protein, less than 50 gms of carbs, and I stay under 700-800 calories.

Cool good for you! Gives me hope, I would really love to date another free thinker/realist/humanist/atheist/agnostic lol or somewhere in there.. or a theologian!? just someone I can have an intelligent convo with about religion, history, humanity, science..most religious ppl dont know the books they live by well enough to have a decent discussion about religion ... I just posted a quiz on this forum and yes, a couple of us agnostics did know more about religions than did some of the followers.

Mark here are the pictures. I think if you can, figure out your body fat percentage. With the excess skin it's easy to get confused on what is weight vs. what is loose skin. These pictures are for comparison only. Of course we have extra skin, stretch marks, wrinkles and haven't been photo shopped Don't look at just the stomach area, look at the arms, thighs, etc. as well. I am at 31% body fat, but look more like the 35% lady. My husband is at 22% body fat, but looks more like the 25% guy. According to my height and weight, normal BMI will be around 145-150 for me. But according to my body fat percentage, to ge to 25% body fat, I will be 163 lbs. That's a big difference!

woo hoo!! which kind did you get? I'm buying cheapo bras until I my size stabilizes, but they have their semi-annual sales now so I am ogling all the pretty bras so when it's time, I will know which ones I want

We had surgery in Mexico. I asked my PCP to do the follow-up, and at first she said no. Then I brought her a list of what needed to be done: General wound care, blood tests to monitor Vitamins, Iron, etc., and reduction in medication. THAT she had no trouble agreeing to. I think the more specific you can be with what is needed, vs. saying "Will you do my follow-up care?" the better the response. They worry about being liable in case of serious issues. Now of course, she insists on seeing us all the time, she's totally diligent about following up with us, and her entire office wants to see pictures of us, and it's one big celebration when we walk in there She and I agreed that if I had a serious wound issue, a leak etc., the ER was the best place for me anyway and I told her that was my back up plan. Also in that case, I would have contacted my surgeon, Dr. Alvarez, and based on what I've heard of him from others, I knew he would have taken care of me so I wasn't worried. Once she realized I had a plan that didn't have me relying just on her to "clean up" after someone else's mistake, she was very helpful. I hope that works for you as well.

I can't imagine five days of no power in the winter in Canada! sounds awful, and right at christmas too. So sorry to hear. Glad you are back.

Although I got my sleeve in Mexico as did my husband, we did that because our insurance didn't cover it. If it had covered it, I would have gone through the 6 month process, attended the meetings with the NUT the PSYCH and learned from it had I been given the opportunity. There's nothing wrong with choosing a good doctor who just happens to be in Mexico if you think s/he is better than your local docs, that you will get better care etc. I certainly felt that way and I live in Dallas which is Sleeve City. But I think a 6-month prep time is actually a good way to get educated and prepped. I spent the 45 days I had reading voraciously, hanging out on the forum and otherwise educating myself. My doc also have very specific instructions for post-op, so I knew even better than some of the people here who were sleeved in the US what to do. But if his office had a 6 month program to get ready? I would have followed it. just my 2 cents. In the long run, as you look back on your life, 6 months is nothing. But being prepared and walking into life-changing surgery with your eyes wide open? Priceless.

Your kids are younger than mine so they may have some of the "What a mom is supposed to look like" thing going maybe? My 24 year old was forced to admire me in my jeans and t-shirt today and he and I have a very close and open relationship. He says to me, "Mom not only are you getting skinnier, but your boobs aren't getting smaller either which is good!" So they do get over the "What a mom should look like" thing

I can relate to the "are we there yet?" bit for sure. I'm wondering at what point I will think it's enough. I see fat rolls and wrinkles more now than I did when I thought I had no choice but to live with the fat. Now, I pinch the fat at my back or my stomach and I think, "This has GOT to go". Talk about demanding right? it's not enough to be in size 10 jeans and a M shirt, now I want to look good naked too. I wonder when I will be satisfied. And of course, I plateau a lot so that makes it less exciting but mainly, it's the same dang thing every day. Wake up, pee, weigh. drink your shake, log your food, drink your water, and do not let up on any of it. Don't eat junk really ever. I know it's what I signed up for, and I'm very, very grateful for the weight loss and the renewed health. But reality has set in for sure and it's just another routine.

Oops vets forum sorry

Tony you will find several of us here who agree with you that fat is not the enemy, rather that some of us have to watch carbs very carefully. Your progress sounds great!

why do you feel guilty? a wise teacher once told me, " all choices are valid if you choose them with wide open eyes." meaning there is something to learn from any mindful choice, no matter hat the choice is.i did not have this surgery to feel guilty over a piece of dark chocolate or tbsp of mashed potatoes. if you are mindlessly eating, then dont feel guilty, change it! It's a great question and I'm not sure I know the answer. I've been wondering this for the last few days. We have a protein pudding we make with 17 gms of protein in it. It tastes absolutely delicious and decadent. Even though my head knows there's nothing wrong with it, I have this residual guilt from somewhere about enjoying decadent food like that that makes me worry I will put on weight. I'm not eating mindlessly, in fact I'm driving my poor husband nuts I'm sure by being extremely detailed about putting in every last bit of food into MFP. So it's not a rational thing, it's some vestigial emotional hang up that I haven't completely understood.

I need some good, healthy, sleeve-friendly ideas. I know I'm making a ham and some grilled asparagus with a smidgen of hollandaise sauce. My kids want corn pudding and scalloped potatoes which we choose not to have, and I'm wondering what else I can make to go with the ham that is not sugar-laden or carb-laden that my husband and I can enjoy. Ideas anyone?

Yeah it's been a rough adjustment. I addition to busy, I feel guilt when I eat stuff that's not protein or veg, even if it fits my calories and other requirements for the day.

Is that the one that phoenix79 posted? We've made that at least twice and we love it! For us the key was to use the kitchen aid to shred the chicken really fine and it went down so easy. I also tried it with bottled light Alfredo sauce. Not too bad but of course not as good as homemade white sauce. Did you have trouble with the wonton wrappers? I tried the taco cupcakes and the wrappers went think so badly I haven't tried them again.

I completely relate to the wanting to eat or drink something to "settle my stomach". I have restrained myself from doing it but the kid thinking persists. I think even the days we do t track, we may still have to measure. Weird eh?

I started this last month but haven't made it to the end yet, so I thought I'd try again. Who's with me? Take my advice, don't laugh when you see 20s for the first day. After 5 seconds the shakes start and you realize this is tough. But totally doable! I got to 100s by the end and that made me feel good. And hey, if I can do it? You can do it! All you have to do is dedicate less than 3 minutes to this, and it can be done anywhere (I mean, don't try it in a public place, but you know...) Attached is a picture and the schedule we can try to follow together. Who's in??

OMG Foodgasm! Sooo good! Pictures and nutritional facts at: eggs 2 scoops Syntrax Peanut Butter cookie Protein powder (Or you could use vanilla protein and add pb2) Method Blend together all ingredients until smooth like a pancake batter Heat a cast Iron or other nonstick pan on medium low. Spray to coat Take a scant half cup of batter and make 3 little pancakes out of it. This is one serving When the batter bubbles, use a very thin spatula and very carefully flip them over. These are more delicate than your usual sturdy pancake batter. OMG! nom them down. Sooooo good! pat of butter and sugar-free maple syrup optional.

Cooked up a storm yesterday. So here are some super easy WLS-friendly cheese sticks that make great appetizers. recipes I see for cheese sticks are heavily breaded and fried. So we did these with panko breadcrumbs to get a light coating, and they turned out very well. The kids enjoyed them too. Great appetizers but best eaten hot. Ingredients 8 Mozzarella String Cheese Sticks ½ C. Panko Bread Crumbs ½ Tsp. Garlic Powder ½ Tsp. Black Pepper 1 Egg Method Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line small baking sheet with aluminum foil Open string cheese packages and cut cheese into two even pieces. Put bread crumbs, garlic powder and pepper in zip lock bag. Close bag and shake until well mixed. Spray fry pan with Pam oil and preheat on medium low burner. When pan is hot, pour bread crumb mixture into pan, and stir often until crumbs are a golden brown, about 8 minutes. Don’t skip this step. We tried it without toasting them, and they tasted undercooked. Pour crumbs into bowl and let cool. Whisk egg until well mixed. Dip a piece of cheese into egg mixture, roll in bread crumbs and place on baking pan. When all cheese is coated, place pan onto middle rack of oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove, let cool until very warm and eat while warm.

Oh nothing. Just a cheese souffle that my amazing husband decided to whip up out of the blue for an afternoon snack. Can you believe that? Picture at eggs 1 shallot minced 3 tablespoons flour 3 tablespoons butter 1 c skim milk 1 c grated low-fat swiss cheese 1/2 c grated parmesan cheese Salt Pepper Pinch of grated nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar Method Separate three eggs, cold, out of the refrigerator (yolks less likely to break this way). Set aside to warm to room temperature Turn oven to 350 degrees, place rack in middle position Spray the inside of a 1.5 qt souffle bowl with Pam. Sprinkle in two tablespoons of parmesan cheese and shake to cover the sides of the pan. Discard excess. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and add minced shallots and stir until shallots soften, about a minute Add the flour and stir until well incorporated. Cook 3-4 minutes for flour to lightly brown. Slowly add 1 c of milk and whisk constantly until the milk comes up to a simmer and thickens. Remove from heat and stir in 1 c grated swiss cheese and whisk well. Add 3 egg yolks and keep whisking until incorporated. Beat egg whites in stand mixer or hand mixer with 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar. Beat on low, until eggs start foaming, about a minute. Beat on medium high until the eggs form stiff peaks, about 3-4 minutes. Add one fourth of the egg whites to the batter and stir in gently with a spatula until there are no white streaks left. Add the rest of the egg whites and gently fold into batter just until lightly mixed. Pour into prepared mould and sprinkle 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese on the smoothed top Bake 24-27 minutes until the top is golden brown and the top just jiggles a little when you shake it. Remove and let it set 3-4 minutes. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Pictures and nutritional facts at pizza for days. We used to get pizza once a week and although we got the “healthy” kind (thin crust, veggies, with half the cheese), it still wasn’t that good for us. I’ve been thinking about how to recreate this and although I’ve seen lots of cauliflower crust, meat crust, ground chicken crust etc. recipes, they seemed a bit contrived. So I tried this with Flatout bread and it actually worked out very well. The nice thing about individual serving pizzas is that I was able to make one with just pepperoni and cheese for my son at the same time. Makes 2 sleever servings, 1 serving for a non-op Ingredients 1 piece of Italian herb flatout bread (I got it at Tom Thumb but wal-mart carries it too) 2 tbsp ready-made pizza sauce (you need so little it’s hardly worth making your own I think) 10 slices pepperoni 1/8 c diced onions 1/8 c diced tomatoes 1/8 c diced mushrooms 1/2 c shredded mozzarella cheese You can substitute other toppings of course, but the nutritional info here is for the ingredients listed above Method Heat oven to 350 degrees Place flatout bread directly onto the rack. Do not put on a cookie sheet Cook for 5 minutes. It will be fairly crisp by this point. Remove from oven, spread sauce and cheese, and spread toppings Carefully put it back into the oven, and cook for another 3-4 minutes until the cheese has melted and the toppings appear wilted Cut into pieces and serve. I was only able to eat 1/2 of one.

We're having what my kids call "church waffles" which are waffles my husband makes on weekends. Fanny farmer recipe, lightest, best waffles I've ever had, with a sourdough batter. But I will be making banana protein pancakes for my husband and me, maybe try them in the waffle iron to see how they cook in there.

That was funny Oh the stomach and eating and drinking was ALL I could think about for at least 3 months. I had to kick myself into work gear which is unusual for a workaholic like me. It took up all my mental bandwidth for sure

45.5 MTD and I just had the best Christmas dinner ever. Nom nom nom