EllijayFalconFan

Thanks everyone! Yeah I love it. I'll check back in this September with my year surgiversery!

Hey everyone, my name is Travis. This is my first post here and the beginning of what I hope to be a very fulfilling and powerful journey to a healthier body. I guess I'll start by talking about the root of the problem and why I have decided to do this. I am currently 25, will be 26 in October, and currently sitting at 330 pounds. I have always been larger ever since I can remember and it has always been something that has been a part of my life. Thankfully I do not have any kind of health problems from my weight yet. My joints, cholesterol, and blood pressure are all fine. Obesity does not run in my family, my parents are average and my sister is a varsity cheerleader and a flyer at that. I also wouldn't say that I'm sedentary. Even at my size I play full court basketball, can run a mile, and I am an avid kayak fisherman. It's almost been like I have had these chains around me slowing me down my entire life, and quite frankly I'm tired of it. That is why I am counting down the days to my surgery date, September 13th, 2013. I simply cannot wait to start my new life. My surgeon is Dr. Jaime Ponce in Chattanooga, TN. He seems to be a very knowledgeable and kind doctor with pretty good bedside manner. Haha he managed to handle my mother's 1,000 questions and concerns very well during our pre-op meeting last month. So anyways this is me, I look forward to posting here more and speaking with all of you!

Time for another update!!! 8 MONTHS POST OP I couldn't be loving life more. I have lost 109 pounds in 8 months and I'm healthier then I have ever been. This surgery has completely changed my life and its been the best choice Ive ever made. I concentrate on exercising every day. Which is crazy considering I never would have imagined a year ago that I'd love lifting so much. Muscle building has become one of my favorite hobbies. I eat probably 1500-2000 calories a day but I'm trying to build lean muscle more then lose weight. I still can't eat a lot in one sitting but if you never know I had surgery...I'd say I can eat a slightly less then average amount in one sitting. I have no health problems related to the surgery except a slight lactose intolerance. My hair also never fell out or thinned as others have experience. I feel great... Anyone considering this surgery I URGE you to go ahead. Yeah it can be trying at first but in the long run it is so worth it.

Thanks! This has been the best experience of my life.

4 MONTH UPDATE Well it's been four months since I had my surgery. Life simply could not be better for me. I weighed in at 265 pounds today! I've been using the gym almost daily, I use a serious weight training program and cardio routine. This surgery has changed everything. I am a totally new man and couldn't be happier! Here are some updated pics! Me and the sister! Post workout pic! Best choice I've ever made!

10/29/2013 Update I'm still doing great. Eating has been a lot easier then it was in the beginning. I'm pretty thankful for that! I've been eating probably 500-800 calories a day consistently. I've only found a few things I cannot eat. When I have something really high in sugar I can get an upset stomach. Milk can also have the same effect on me for whatever reason. As far as solids though I haven't found anything I cannot eat. Everyday activities are so much better now. I'm able to move around so much better then I could before, I mean it is a night and day difference. I weighed in today at 289 pounds today so that is 41 pounds gone so far. My surgery was on September 9th so that's not to bad for less then 2 months. As far as exercise I lift a couple of times a week, I also do cardio in the form of tennis nearly every day. Those two things together have really helped me burn calories on top of eating better. If you are on the fence about this surgery let me tell you its the best decision I've ever made. Now this is only experience and I can't speak for others....but for me this has been a dream come true. Here is an updated pic of me. I don't have a before/after sorry!

My energy level has stayed at an all-time high. That is only my experience though, I cannot speak for other people.

Thanks! For some reason I thought the 3 week stall was a stall that lasted 3 weeks. So people normally stall at the 3 week mark?

Here is my 3 week update. Everything is going great. I still have a lot of energy and am getting around just like I used to.....actually better now that I have dropped 20 pounds. Everything I have eaten goes down just fine, I get my Protein in without any problem. The only thing I struggle with is liquids, I just forget sometimes and have a hard time drinking enough. I cannot wait until next week when I can get back to working out and playing sports. I already can move around so much better then I used to. I do have a question though. I lost 12 pounds I think my first week, then 7 my 2nd week, and I only lost a pound my third week. Im only getting 400-600 calories a day and I'm walking about 2 miles. This slow in my weight loss is disturbing. Is it a stall? Can you stall this early? Do I just need to chill out? Thanks for any input!

Whenever I thought of those horror stories I would just look in the mirror. Yeah, complications can happen but the problems a person is going to have being obese are guaranteed.

Leah, Im 26 as well, well in a month I will be. I was just as worried as you are and had the same questions. I also have been overweight my entire life and was tired of it. On September 9th I got the sleeve and I am currently 7 days post op. I couldn't be happier, I have more energy then I have ever had and I've already lost 15 pounds. Will you have the same experience I have had? I don't know... but I do know that for me I had to make a change so I could enjoy the rest of my life. So far I feel like I have just made the best decision in my life.

UPDATE Well as of right now I am 5 days post-op. Wow did I ever feel great today. I had so much energy it was crazy. Literally I cannot remember the last time I felt that good and no it wasn't my meds haha. All my gas pain is gone now and I only have some tenderness in my abdomen. I can't really lean back yet but that is to be expected considering I had a large part of my organ removed 5 days ago. Oh, and I have lost 12 pounds already, which is incredible. So as I type this I am 318 pounds, which is very exciting. I definitely still like food though, so I'm going to have to watch what I eat when I have no restrictions. My stomach was an Iron kettle before surgery, nothing ever made it hurt, and so far it has been an iron tea-pot up to this point. Nothing I have consumed has had any problem going down at all. I had egg drop Soup today that was pretty darn eggy and it went down without any problems. I also had a small class of sweet tea just to see how I would handle caffeine and it was fine. I tried out some pineapple/orange juice at lunch to see out citric acid would go down, and it was fine as well. So in closing at this point I could not be happier with my decision. I have very little pain and my stomach doesn't seem to mind being sleeved. I still get hungry but I don't immediately obsess over finding the largest amount of food possible to gorge myself with. I was at a cookout today and was perfectly content eating my eggdrop soup while my buddies were mowing down burgers and hotdogs. I seriously hope things continue in this manner because I couldn't be happier right now.

Feeling great today! Honestly haven't had this much energy in a long time. Had egg drop soup today with no problem at all. Looking forward to how things go!

One thing I'm happy about is food I used to like such as seafood are still very appealing to me. I'm glad because I want some of my first real solid food to eat when I'm ready is fresh baked gulf oysters

Well I said eat but it's just the broth that you are allowed to have. Today the pain has been much better but I'm passing gas like crazy. Thankfully I'm pretty sure the gas pains have passed at this point. Seriously, the more you get around the better you feel. I wouldn't lay down unless I was taking a nap.

I was sleeved on the 9th and I am now at home. My surgery was textbook with no complications. I experienced no nausea at all just a lot of gas pain and cramping. Every time I stand up and walk around I burp a lot. I've been sipping water as much as possible but have gotten very small amounts of protein so far, 10g of isopure maybe yesterday. My abdomen has a lot of bruising and my incisions are very tender. Sleeping is difficult because I am a belly sleeper and obviously with this I can only sleep on my back. I've found that I can only get about 3 hours at a time sleeping like this. My goal for tomorrow is to get as much protein as possible and actually eat two meals. I had my surgery at 330 pounds and as of today I am 323. I know most of that is organ resection and water but hey I'll take it. I hope this pain goes away soon. I don't seem to have a very high tolerance for it but I never really have had anything like this done before haha.

I'm doing ok. This gas pain suck. Ive been up and walking but hurting too. Ill keep everyone posted.

Thanks everyone! Yeah I'll check in when I can. I'll have my phone on me but who knows how loopy I may be when I wake up.

Alright I've lost 6 pounds on the pre-op diet. Between working out and running just drinking shakes and liquid is pretty damn difficult but I'm doing my best with it. Only 5 days until my surgery and I'm pretty scared now. Its going to be a huge life changing experience and it is right around the corner!

Well I have done one week with the protein diet so far. It has been way more difficult then I could have imagined. I did great for 3 days then I flubbed twice, wasn't proud of that. I'm going to do my best to go clean for the next 7 days. Holy crap my surgery is in a week!

That morning at 9:00am.

Well just got some surprising news today. My surgery date had to be moved from September 13th to September 9th. So I start on my liver diet tomorrow. Holy crap!

I am ready for this guy to drop some pounds!

Glad I'm not the only one! It got BAD there for a couple of days. We should stay in touch, I'm assuming your surgery date is around mine? I'm getting the food funeral under control, now I just need to stop with the sodas. I hadn't had one in a couple months and now I'm having a couple a day. I know once I have the surgery they are a no-no but again I guess this is my last hoo-rah. Been hitting the gym with weight training like I always have done. I need to somehow incorporate more cardio into my routine but I struggle unless it's a competitive game.

Alright I'm having my first issue guys! I start my 2 week protein shake pre-op diet on August 31st. So..........I guess I've sort of had my last hoo-rah of sorts with food. I haven't went all out but lets just say I'm not making the best choices. Is this normal? I know I should be getting ready for my future diet but my god this could be my last cheeseburger people!