McButterpants

So I did my measurements today because I wanted to see some progress. I'm happy to report, I'm down another 9.75 inches from mid-January. (Total inches lost since surgery is 38.25.) I suggest everyone takes their measurements prior to surgery.

Yep, I'm in a stall. It sucks. It's lasted 12 days so far. I just got back from a week's vacation in San Francisco where I walked, walked and walked some more. Up and down those steep hills. I logged over 37 miles up and down those fu&^%ing hills. I was confident I would come home and be in Onderland, but it was not to be...202 the scale read again this morning, the same as it did on February 1st. I shall carry on, though. This is just another bump in the road. Today I will focus on my Water and Protein and will go to the gym. I will also say a prayer to the Scale Gods and ask for a nicer reading in the near future. Have a great day, guys!

I had bad gas pains the first 5 days or so - about a week after, I still had that pain in my left shoulder, but it wasn't as bad as the beginning. Gas-X didn't help me much, but I did take them. The only thing that worked for me was walking, walking and more walking.

I do find myself looking at my face like it's not my own. My face slimmed down very quickly - I had to reintroduce myself to my jawline, which I haven't seen in many, many years.

You're still very early in the process - I agree, get off the scale. If you look at the numbers, there's no way you can be gaining - you're not consuming enough. You're body is just trying to figure out what you just did to it. It will hold on to Water some days and some days it will think everything is OK. Be patient and be kind to your body and your new tiny tummy. The weight will come off, but you need to recover first.

Awesome!

Try taking smaller bites and more time between bites - that may help with the uncomfortable feeling. It will get better. I promise!

I make a huge pot of chili and freeze it in bags - just pull one out in the morning and it's thawed. I also bake a lot of chicken breasts - prep time is minimal and it takes about 45 to cook. Buy steaks in bulk - season them, then freeze. Pull out the day before or that morning and they'll be ready to cook when you get home. For sides - since I don't eat a lot, I do frozen veggies or maybe roast some cauliflower or broccoli. On a rare occasion, bake a potato and have a couple of bites. I use Sundays as my prep day - I get ready for the week.

My husband and I had that conversation this morning - about the body hanging on. It could be. It was also interesting - I could see a different in his legs, they are more muscular. So, it could be I built some muscle. I agree on the scale - I need to put it away again. I have been weighing every day and that's not healthy for me.

Pre-surgery, my "Me Time" would be when my husband and son would leave the house for a baseball practice or something and I would be all by myself...that's when I would eat. I would eat food and sit in front of the TV. Horribly destructive behavior that I really didn't identify until after I had surgery. Now, my "Me Time" is at the gym or, if the weather cooperates, a nice long walk with the hubs and the dog. When at the gym, I put the earbuds in a rock out. On walks with the hubs, we talk - really talk to each other.

Congrats! Keep walking and sipping!

Completely understand about the stress... For me, I have found I cannot let things I cannot control stress me. That's easier said than done, I know. Sometimes I'm successful and sometimes I am not. You can only do the best you can do today. For the financial stress on the debt - it's like the question, How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Just chip away at it. You're feeling overwhelmed - tomorrow is another day. Make it a good one, OK?

I was allowed two shakes per day and one meal of protein and veggies. My pre-op diet was 2 weeks. Instead of using the 1% milk I was allowed to mix with my shakes, I used that in my coffee and mixed my shakes with water - this helped spread out the calories more thru the day and helped. I also drank a lot of decaf green tea - that helped with the hunger as well. I was hungry on Days 1 thru 4, then started to feel human again on Day 5. I also found that walking took my mind off the hunger - going outside and walking for 30-60 minutes.

I told 5 people - my husband, son, parents and best friend. Maybe in the future I'll tell other people, but right now, I am not telling anyone else. I have a very small circle of people close to me - others I consider friends, but not close. I have seen how these people gossip about others and didn't want to give them any fat to chew on. I'm a private person - I don't let people know my business - it's better for me that way. I'm fortunate in that I telecommute full time, so no one really missed me at work - I took a few vacation days is all. One thing I have found is if you're going to tell people, you have to be prepared for all kinds of responses - I have heard from people that said they found support in places they didn't expect it and others who were surprised when their friends didn't support them. Best of luck to you!

I went to the free introductory seminar at the hospital followed up with a one-on-one with the bariatric doctor.

I think this is interesting - I had to lose 50 pounds before anyone said anything about my weight loss. OMG - 50 pounds before I got an "Atta girl" from someone other than the 5 people that know I had weight loss surgery. I was actually quite upset at my brothers and their families for not saying anything at Christmas time about my weight loss. Then I got to thinking - I'm more than my weight to them. I'm their sister, sister-in-law, crazy aunt, etc. They don't identify me as "The Fat Girl" like I identify myself. It takes me back to a comment my (skinny) brother said about 5 years ago when I told him I'm trying to lose weight...He said, "Why?" I was like, "You've seen me, right?" I can tell things are changing from an internal perspective - I was on vacation recently and went to a restaurant where you have to maneuver around many tables to get to your seat. 50 pounds ago, I hated that place. Now, I glide in between people to and maneuver around like it's no body's business. I have no qualms about slipping in between chairs and tables. We sat down and my husband looked at me and said, "I like the new you!" I looked at him quizzically. He said, "Your more adventurous and you're happy." WOW. I also found myself striking up conversations with people I don't know. Wow, that's the old-old me - like from my 20's and about 100 pounds ago! I kind of like the new me, too!

I suggest getting back to basics - you know what you did when you were 6 weeks out...logging your food, measuring your food, concentrating on Protein and Water. Here's my story - You and I are both at 12 weeks. I just got back from a week's vacation where I allowed myself some slack. Now, I need to get back to tracking everything - it's hard, but I've been doing it all day. And, I feel more full than I did when I was eating things off plan. You got this.

I'm with RJ - hide the scale. Look at your numbers - you're going to lose weight. You're body just goes thru adjustment periods or stalls. You can only control what you put in your mouth and how much you move your body - if you do your part, your body will do it's part...in its own timeframe. You're doing great - hang in there.

I was allowed 2 shakes a dinner of lean meat and some veggies. I was fine with my meal being the last thing I ate at night - I just pushed back my meal time to a little later than normal. I usually had it around 8:00 pm. I was fine until the next morning when I had my approved decaf coffee. I opted to use my milk allowance in my coffee rather than my shakes. This helped me. I drank lots and lots of green tea - it was approved on my plan. It helped with that hunger you're bound to feel. You're probably going to feel bad the first few days. I started feeling human again around Day 5. Days 1 thru 4 sucked - I was moody and hungry. You're going to do great - it will be over before you know it!

I felt like there was a food commercial on every minute or so the days leading up to surgery day. It also seemed there were more restaurants!!!! LOL. It's only three more days - don't let the commercials or food establishments drag you in. Stay strong - it will be surgery day before you know it! Best of luck to you.

What a great article and greater man! I've caught the exercise bug - I find I want to push my body to see what I can do and it feels good.

Oh yes - I felt the same way. So much to do and not enough time to do it. I think it's normal. You're feeling overwhelmed; I did, too. So, I did something I rarely do - I asked for help. I asked my husband to help and I asked my parents for help. They were glad to do it. With me asking for help, I also had to relinquish control - I had to let them do things their way and not the way I wanted something done. It was freeing, actually. I even asked my son to do his own laundry - so what if things were put in the wrong drawers - He is 14 and he can figure it out. If you don't have a lot of help, prioritize the important things you want to get done. The world will continue to spin on it's axis and the sun will come up tomorrow, even if you don't finish everything you think you have to get done.

I think the straw thing is due to sucking in air while you drink - I think I remember that. My doc gave out a Camelback type Water bottle that has a straw...He didn't say "no straws". As far as alcohol...I had my first drink in four months just the other day. I was a little nervous. I didn't make a good choice - I had a DiSorono and Coke. The Coke was a bad choice, but I did it and I enjoyed it - I stirred a lot of the carbonation out of it. I drank about 2/3 of it - I sipped slowly. I can tell you, however, when I got up, I felt tipsy, like buzzed, not drunk. I had another one the next day and tolerated it fine. A better choice would be a Vodka/cranberry or Vodka/Lemonade.