JamieLogical

Hang in there. It really will get a little better each day. Most people turn a corner around day 4 or 5. For some it takes a little bit longer. I promise, all of this misery will be a distant memory soon! I know that doesn't help in the moment though. I remember in the early days after my surgery I was sobbing, questioning if I would ever feel "normal" again. You will get there! Just have to tough it out!

I relied heavily on those sugar-free syrups back when i was drinking protein shakes! Definitely recommend them for some variety!

Everyone is different. In order for there to be an "average" there have to be 50% of people who are above average and 50% who are below. You are one of the lucky ones that gets to be above average with your rate of loss, so good for you! I happened to be well below average. But the good news for me and all the others like me is that this is not a race. In the end, your rate of loss really has no bearing on your long term success. I lost slowly, but still got to goal and have maintained there for over a year. I hope you have similar success in maintenance. Sounds like you will be there soon!

First off, I just want to say that there are MANY excellent surgeons and facilities in Mexico and you shouldn't let the naysayers and urban legends deter you. As long as you do your research, there is no reason why you can't have a safe and positive experience with surgery in Mexico. I've been to Tijuana for surgery twice. Once for plastics and once for my VSG. Both times I received excellent care and support and felt 100% safe at all times. When it comes to choosing a surgeon, there are a few things you need to think about. Not everyone has the same criteria or priorities, so not everyone would choose the same surgeon as you or vice versa. Here are a couple of things to think about and then you can begin your research and eliminating surgeons based on your specific requirements. Budget: There are a wide range of costs associated with VSG, even if you go to Mexico, where it's cheaper overall. You will likely pay between $3500 and $6500. If you have a tight budget, that might eliminate some of the pricier surgeons. Facility: Some surgeons only work out of surgical centers, some only work out of hospitals, some work out of both. There are pros and cons to both. The higher tier hospitals (Hostpital Angeles for instance) have Emergency and ICU services on site. In the case of a life threatening complication, that could prove valuable. However, infection rates in hospitals are much higher than in surgical centers, because you will obviously be exposed to more germs in a facility that houses hundreds of patients with various illnesses, versus a facility with only a handful of patients, none of whom are actually sick. Reputation: There are world-renowned surgeons in Mexico who are on the cutting edge of Bariatric Medicine, are cited in articles and TV shows, etc. But those usually come with a higher price tag. So you need to think about whether the fact that those surgeons rely VERY heavily on their impeccable reputations and therefor may be more meticulous and less inclined to make mistakes is worth the extra money. Surgical Team: Some surgeon's offices offer a full cast of characters to support you in your journey both pre and post-op. Office coordinators who provide information and set appointments. Travel coordinators who help you with your travel arrangements and hotel reservations. Additional doctors, such as cardiologist and radiologist who might do pre and post-op testing or answer concerns about medications and such. Nutritionists who will provide you with pre and post-op diet information. How many people are on staff, what their roles are, and how responsive they are can be as important in choosing a surgeon as the surgeon themselves. Follow-up: Some surgeons provide more follow-up care than others. Some give you a few guidelines about what to eat post-op and send you on your way to fend for yourself. Some have staff that will check in with you regularly and answer your calls 24/7 for years post-op. It's important to find out how much and what sort of follow-up care the surgeons you are considering offer. Patient Experiences: I highly recommend you try to get in touch with multiple past patients of the surgeons you are seriously considering so you can get a very clear and accurate idea of what your experience might be like. Ask questions. Express concerns. Get as much info out of them as they are willing to give. Reading reviews and forum posts only gets you so far. If you can get in touch with some past patients for an open dialog, that is ideal. Hopefully that's a good jumping off point to get you started! PS: Be sure to check out the Mexico & Self-Pay forum!

I was allowed unlimited amounts of leafy greens, but only allowed calorie-free dressing.

How is 50 pounds in 5 months only 3 pounds a month? My weight loss slowed way down in the later months to where I was only losing 2-3 pounds a month, but I still managed to get to my goal. See my signature for how much I lost each month along the way. Maybe it will encourage you.

You are "devastated" to have "only" lost over a pound a day post-op? What on earth were you expecting. Especially with a lower starting weight/BMI, you can't expect to be losing double digits every week! Hell, I had a MUCH higher starting weight than you and I only managed to lose double digits one MONTH of my entire weight loss journey. I still got to my goal by the one year mark and have been maintaining for almost a year now. This isn't a race.

I am not allowed the applesauce. It's a fruit, so it's high in carbohydrates that are recognized by our bodies as sugar. Check with your nutritionist. Usually salad veggies are the way to go, but limit tomato, carrot (SKIP carrot), and onion. NO peas, corn, winter squash, potato, beets... all are too high in carbohydrate/recognized as sugar. Once again, check with your nutritionist. Yeah, the whole idea of the pre-op diet is no/low carbs and fruit is full of sugar. So I wasn't allowed any. And I had a list of veggies I was allowed to eat, because some are deceptively high in carbs/sugar.

Your surgeon should have provided you with very specific instructions about what you can and cannot eat on the pre-op diet. I wouldn't have been allowed apple sauce. But every plan is different. So make sure you contact your surgeon or nutritionist if you are confused or have any questions.

Awesome! Getting those steps in really does make a huge difference!

The main thing I wish I had known before my surgery is that all of the little things that are causing you stress and anxiety are going to be inconsequential in a couple of years. I'm now almost two years post-op and all of my pre-op worries amounted to nothing. All of my post-op panic and discomfort and concern that I would never feel "normal" again is just a distant memory. All of my frustration over how slowly the scale was moving seems so irrelevant now. I have been maintaining below goal for over a year. How fast I got there turned out not to matter in the slightest!

Sorry to hear about your knee and your setbacks with exercise! Definitely take this time to heal up. If you want to be running that half marathon next year, you have to make sure you are doing everything you can to get better now. I know the weight loss has been a struggle for you and I imagine that not being able to work out is making it that much harder. Just focus on your healing and taking care of your body.

It is incredibly common for weight loss to stall or even to gain a little around 3 weeks post op. Search for the "dreaded week 3 stall" on these forums and you will see hundreds and hundreds of posts about the same thing. You just had major surgery, likely have internal swelling, your body doesn't know what to make of everything that's going on. Just give it time! Stick to your plan. Focus on healing. Focus on getting your water and protein in. Focus on getting up and walking around every couple of hours. Those are the things you CAN control right now. Your body's reaction and the numbers on the scale are things you CAN'T control, so don't stress about them!

I was told not to eat soup after my post-op food stages, because it's a way of "drinking your calories". But every NUT and surgeon has a different plan. I agree with @@Inner Surfer Girl that the high sodium content would cancel out any hydration from the liquid though, so I wouldn't count it toward my 64 oz. I'm honestly kind of surprised you are still having trouble meeting your Water goals at 6 months out. What sort of problems are you having specifically that are preventing you from getting your water in?

It will definitely be well worth it in the long run. This is only a very minor setback in the grand scheme of things!

Very very common to be angry, bitchy, and have mood swings in the weeks post-op. First of all, you are probably a little hangry. Second of all, you are healing up, pretty miserable, frustrated, and just having kind of a crappy life right now. And then, finally, like @ said, you have all sorts of hormones stored in your fat that are being released back into your blood stream as you lose weight.

A couple of things. The issues with not being able to chug Water and having to eat very slowly are only a factor in the early months post-op, as you are still healing. I am now almost 2 years post-op and chug water all the time. I also eat most of my meals in under 10 minutes. I am training for a full marathon in September and ran a half marathon back in April. I burn a LOT of calories from all of my training, but I AM able to eat them back. My weight has stabilized and I am no longer losing, despite all of my intense exercise. There will be a period of 3-4 months where drinking is hard (especially in the first couple of weeks), you have to move through the food stages gradually, you have to eat very slowly, and you can only eat a couple of bites of food in one sitting. But that is temporary. I still have restriction and can't eat NEARLY as much as I used to at one time, but I do eat normal foods (Protein first!). I eat out all the time. I drink TONS of water. People wouldn't know I had surgery unless I told them.

You can do it!

Awesome! Congratulations!

I had this problem too. I exercise very heavily (was training for a half marathon and now training for a full marathon) and it is a challenge to eat back the calories I burn. I started approaching it just like I had approached weight LOSS in the past. I started tracking all of my food again and I got a FitBit with a heart rate monitor, so I could accurately track how many calories I burned each day. Then it just became a numbers game. Try to eat close to as many calories in a day as I was burning. It was hard at first, but I got better at identifying calorie-dense foods, knowing when it was okay to eat carb-only Snacks, etc. I did have to bump up my number or meals/snacks to 7 or 8 a day, which was initially hard to fit in until I got into a routine with it. My day looks something like this now: Breakfast: Protein Bar Morning Snack: carbs Lunch: 2 oz. of cheese and 1 oz. of peanuts if I'm home or chicken/beef/cold cuts if I eat out Afternoon Snack: Protein Bar Pre-workout Snack: Clif Bar Dinner: meat of some sort After-dinner Snack: carbs Bedtime Snack: Protein Bar If it's a cardio rest day, I will usually leave out the Clif Bar and one of my carb-only snacks.

Are you saying you haven't lost any weight since surgery and you have now gained 2 pounds? If that is the case, I think you definitely need to have a talk with your surgeon and/or nutritionist. While everyone loses weight at a different pace and you shouldn't set deadlines for your weight loss, the scale should generally be trending downward over the course of a couple of months. If it's not, there must be a reason and your surgeon or nutritionist can help you get to the bottom of it.

What the heck? There is no deadline for losing this weight. Are you sticking to the program? Are you getting all your protein and water in? If so, you are doing okay. At 6 weeks post-op, your "working out" should consist of brisk walking and that's it. Talk to your surgeon about when you are cleared for strength training and more intense cardio.

@@rydersmama I listed out the stretches and strength training I do in my original post here: http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/363681-beginners-guide-to-running-for-the-obese/?hl=%20guide%20%20running

@jt925 I'm sorry the responses you got were so unhelpful. I hate when people read the topic and spout off before even bothering to read the actual post. I hope you were able to get the answers you needed from your surgeon, since you couldn't get them here. Please don't hesitate to ask questions here in the future though! This site can be very very useful sometimes. It's just sort of a mixed bag once in a while. Maybe, moving forward, be conscious of what you put in the topic and how that might be interpreted by people and what kind of responses it might attract.

There are specific types of stretches for specific types of knee pain/weakness. So maybe do a little bit of research about the type of sensation you are having and find stretches that might benefit you. I'd be happy to try to help some if you can describe what you are feeling. Another thing you can do is some strength training on you off days. That can help build up the muscles that support your knee. I have a whole list of ST exercises I do for my knees if you want me to send you that.