JamieLogical

I 100% promise you that you are not gaining fat. It is not scientifically possible for you to gain fat on that few calories. To gain a pound of fat, you have to ingest 3500 more calories than you burn. Likely you are retaining water for some reason. It could be too much sodium. It could be sore muscles. It could be hormonal. You really really really should just stay off the scale in these early weeks. You are going to drive yourself crazy.

Well, I am training for a marathon (this Sunday!) so I do burn a lot of calories, but not a CRAZY amount. I run twice a week during the week for about 4.5 miles and the I have a "long run" every weekend, which varies in length according to my training schedule. In all, I probably burn an extra ~3000 calories a week from my running. That works out to about 428 calories a day on average. If you are walking 1.5 hours a day, you are probably doing at least 300 calories a day. So not WAY far off from my calorie burn. Plus you are taller and heavier than me, so your resting metabolic rate should be higher than mine.

@@LisaMergs Mine's very specific too. Explicitly states it doesn't cover skin removal as a result of weight loss.

You got an easy one! Mine was just 3 protein shakes and one green salad with calorie-free dressing per day!

I would worry about both the skin and the seeds. Ask your nutritionist!

This is a myth and has been debunked by the Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/caffeinated-drinks/faq-20057965 I was allowed caffeine beginning at 30 days post op. Different surgeons and nutritionists have different guidelines regarding all sorts of things. I encourage you to follow those guidelines in the early months post-op, during which you are getting to know your sleeve and learning new habits, but ultimately YOU are the one who has to live the rest of your life. You need to figure out what works for you and what you can live with long term.

You are eating 1000-1250 calories a day and GAINING?!?!?!? I was eating 1400+ calories in my weight loss phase and now eat about 2200 a day in maintenance. There is definitely something wonky with your metabolism. No way it has anything to do with a stretched sleeve.

If nothing in your routine has changed, I wouldn't think it would be due to stretching of your sleeve, since you aren't eating any more than you were before, right? Stretching of your sleeve, if there were such an issue, would be allowing you to eat more, which could cause you to gain. But you said you aren't eating more, so that's clearly not the problem. Has your body composition changed at all? Is it possible you are gaining muscle or retaining Water?

If you are getting your protein in, you shouldn't have to worry about calories or carbs, as it is unlikely you are getting too much of either. If anything, count calories and make sure you are getting ENOUGH to sustain your current level of activity. The mistake a lot of people make this early out is starving themselves, which can lead to long stalls and reduced metabolism.

Awesome to see you are still going strong and rocking your sleeve at 3 years out!

I do have to supplement with Protein Bars. The rest of my protein comes from meat, cheese, nuts, and yogurt. Back in my weight loss phase, my daily intake looked something like this: Breakfast: Protein Bar (~20 grams) Morning Snack: String Cheese (~8 grams) Lunch: Meat of some sort, usually leftovers (~16-20 grams) Afternoon Snack: Greek Yogurt (~12 grams) Dinner: Meat (~16-20 grams) Evening Snack: Protein Bar (~20 grams) For the "meat" mentioned above, it was always the protein portion of whatever my husband made for dinner (I was married back then). So if he made meatloaf and mashed potatoes, I just had meatloaf. Shrimp and Pasta, I had the shrimp. chicken and rice, I had the chicken. You get the idea.

I don't count carbs either. During my weight loss phase, I found that getting my 100 grams of protein in meant I didn't have room for many carbs anyway. In maintenance, I still get my 100 grams of protein, but actually have added back in some "carb only" snacks like toast with peanut butter or a Clif bar before my runs (I'm a runner now).

Do you count it as 15 or 30 grams toward your daily Protein goal? I would be so hesitant to count it as 30 with no third party studies backing up their claims. Would suck to only be getting half as much protein as I think I am.

@ As long as you keep training and working toward it, it's definitely attainable! @@goplay94123 Pretty soon you'll be running marathons with me!

For me, setting specific fitness goals kept me motivated. Finishing a fitness program (think the 90 day ones), training for an event, etc. Working out for the sake of working out never motivated me. I had to have a goal I was working towards.

Not necessarily before/after, but they are just photos of women that you can search by weight, height, body type, and age so you can get a sense of what you might look like at your goal weight: http://www.mybodygallery.com/

No, I didn't have any comorbidities. If I had, I might have had a chance of qualifying for insurance coverage.

@@goplay94123 That is a fantastic pace and time! You must be so psyched!

40 grams is WAY too low on protein. Especially if you are working out that much. Aim for more like 85 grams and try to increase your calories. I am positive that will get the scale moving again.

@@Thecloude1 has a good point. When I do eat bread, I always eat it toasted. It doesn't expand in the stomach as much that way.

@@goplay94123 Good luck! I am confident you can finish, even if you end up having to walk a lot of it.

Wow! That is very impressive. I agree that the sooner you can get up and moving post-op, the better.

You clearly aren't eating enough. No way 1250 calories is enough with gym 4 times a week and hiking on weekends. Try getting up over 1400 at least!

Once I was cleared for bread (40 days post-op), I still didn't eat it much because it's just so filling. When you are trying to get in 100 grams of Protein a day and have a tiny pouch/sleeve, it's just not worth wasting space on bread. My NUT never gave me a limit on carbs, just told me to always prioritize protein and make sure I got in my 100 grams. In doing so, I found I had to pretty much cut out bread completely. Even now, 2 years out, I never eat bread with a "meal", because I just don't have room for my protein AND bread. I will occasionally have a piece of whole grain toast with Peanut Butter as a snack before a long run (I'm running a marathon on September 18) just to try to get some carbs in to help fuel my long run.

It is common to have serious buyer's remorse int he first couple of days. I had a really terrible time getting fluids in too. Some people do, some people don't. It really just depends on swelling and how your body reacts. The good news is, the swelling only lasts a few days to a week or two. So it is temporary and will get much better. My situation with fluids was that every single time I took even the *tiniest* sip, I would experience this whole sequence of events where my esophagus constricted, then I had this gurgling in the back of my throat, then I would usually have to burp. It was a whole production with every single sip. I did find that marching in place while sipping made it a little easier. And also tried experimenting with different temperatures of liquids. Hot liquids (tea and broth) definitely seemed easier in the very beginning. It really does get better every single day. Just focus on one minute to the next, getting your fluids and Protein in, walking as much as possible, taking your Vitamins, etc. Taking care of yourself in this first stretch is your full time job. It sucks and it is hard, but you will get through it! And if you need to cry it out, then cry it out. I cried SO MUCH in those early days!