VSGmary

Im in Australia, so we cant find this product here easily. I found it initially on ebay, however i have since found it from a decent online store www.vitacost.com that can ship it out to me with reasonable shipping prices - if you live within the US it has free shipping. N.b. You may find this cheaper from other online stores like Amazon etc, it just that the shipping costs to australia from those stores is just as much as the product itself for me, so its not worth using those retailers.

I bought a bike! I went out for a ride, fell ass over tit and lol nearly killed myself (slight exaggeration) i got up, had grazed my elbow, went back home, cleaned and bandaged myself up and am super pumped to go out there again when the weather clears up. 6 months ago a bike was just something other people who were fit had, was not even a twinkle in my eye and now look at me????. Loving life to the max!!

Sadly i cant enjoy this type of exercise as i would have to get down on my knees. Having OA on both knees limits me to walking, swimming and cycling (which i love by the way). Wish there was yoga for OA sufferers. *sad panda face* , hmm now that's also a revelation, me wanting to to exercise, who would have ever thought?!? ????

I will try post the link http://youtu.be/EgZsU2jvgVo Hmm it wont let me post the link but the video itself! Strange. Anyway was quite easy to find as per you instructions ????

I thought I would share a super low calorie meal that I found online and tried it out today and I felt the need to share this with you all as it was simply delicious! I did change a few bits of the recipe as this is what worked for me (note, I added lemon juice, garlic and used raw shrimp - they have no caloric difference in the end result). Prep time: 5 minutes Cook time: 20 minutes Yield: 4 servings Serving size: 2½ cups Ingredients Optional*: 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 6 oz dry quinoa 2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth/stock 2 small zucchini, halved lengthwise + quartered 2 summer squash, halved lengthwise + quartered 6 cups spring mix (leafy greens) 1 lb shrimp, peeled 2 tsp minced garlic 2 cups tomatoes, diced 4 Tbsp balsamic vinegar 1 tsp sea salt 1 tsp black pepper 1 lemon freshly squeezed ½ cup reduced-fat feta cheese, crumbled Instructions Using mesh food strainer, rinse quinoa with cold Water. In a saucepan, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add quinoa and toast 2 to 3 minutes, stirring until golden brown. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 15-20 minutes, until quinoa is tender and liquid has been absorbed. Transfer quinoa to a large bowl and set aside - keep it covered. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil on medium heat. Add shrimp and garlic and cook until shrimp changes in color to pink. Remove shrimp and place aside. Place skillet back on the heat and add zucchini and squash, saute until slightly tender, about 6-8 minutes. Add the squash mixture to the bowl of cooked quinoa. Add spring mix, cooked shrimp, tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper. Toss until well combined. Plate 2½ cups of salad and sprinkle with 2 Tbsp of crumbled feta. Note: This salad is delicious served warm OR chilled. Additionally, feel free to swap the shrimp for chicken. Nutrition Information Per Serving: 2½ cups Calories: 334 Calories from fat: 50 Protein: 22g Fat: 12g Saturated Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 91mg Sodium: 930mg Carbohydrates: 36g Fiber: 7g Sugar 13g Calcium: 7mg Iron: 18mg

I use syntrax nectar - fuzzy navel flavour. It mixes really well with water, this flavour tastes like a watered down orange juice, its quite nice. One scoop gives you 23g of protein.

I had a 3 week I'm not going to call it a stall, I'm going to call it a hiccup! I had to re-evaluate what exactly what i was eating, how much Fluid i was drinking and how much exercise i was doing. Well low and behold after tracking i could clear as the sun is shining see that i was not taking in enough calories to burn anything off. I was also not drinking enough (i still struggle with this) but I'm oh so very conscious of it and have made changes to get close to goal.. Ill reach my Water intake target hopefully by tomm! I had to up my calorie intake, i now sit around 800 - 900 calories a day with 70-90 Protein and i track it on my fitness pal, it keeps me accountable, and its really easier than i thought it would be. With regards to fitness, well i have also upped the tempo, i was walking anywhere between 2500 steps a day to 7500 steps a day, over the last few days I've kicked that right out of the park and walked over 11,000 steps on both says. Is this sustainable? I don't know but i'm going to give myself a fighting chance at making it so! (I have OA in both knees). So a combination of the three key factors changing over the last 3 days has seen the weight start to move down again - Im already down 2 lbs!! As @@JamieLogical has mentioned what is you calorie/protein intake at the moment ? Wishing you all the best with your weight loss journey xox

@@Janex43 i had mine removed 3 months after I was sleeved. I woke up feeling extreme nausea, that same evening i was rushed to hospital. Two days later it was removed. Recovery took 5 weeks in all ie thats when i was able to lift things i was previously restricted from doing. I should also say it was removed because i had gall stones stuck in the gall bladder wall, the only option was to remove the whole thing.

Hi stephh, weigh in day ???? i'm 273 lbs this morning - yippee!! Thanks again for running this challenge, have great week ahead ????

This actually happened to me for the first time last night, to the point where to stop it was to rid myself of the water that i just drank! Was a horrid experience, but i know what i did wrong, i drank water too quickly and made my insides feel like they were drowning in water! Ugh i won't be doing that again any time soon! Sip sip sip for the rest of my days, never ever again will i take big gulps!

@@smoothazz i was sleeved 6 months ago and i could not eat meat for about the first 5 of those months. I was forced to eat a Pescetarian type diet, fish and seafood. I didnt mind it, just wasnt always the first thing i wanted, i just had to adopt recipes to suit my sleeve. I introduced beef and pork Jerky last month into my diet and as of two days ago i was able to eat red meat and chicken as of yesterday! I never though my sleeve would ever be ok with meat, but i guess she was ultra sensitive and needed time to really heal before i could introduce them back into my diet. Wish you every success with your weight loss journey xox.

@@JustWatchMe i read your post and it has me in tears, I just want to give you the biggest hug right now. I wish you every success with your weight loss journey - because you really are worth it!! xox

Thanks @@CowgirlJane this is a timely reminder for me, im half way through to hitting my goal, and i have recently started walking as my current choice of exercise. This is a great post for me to get it in my head that whatever exercise i choose to take up it will have to be for life, not just until i hit goal! The activity may change but i will need to keep moving and keep up the pace to keep it off! Thanks again xox

I'm officially 6 months out today and I'm 110 lbs down (50kg). I am exactly half way there to my goal of 165lbs. Going by my surgeons goal I have 50 lbs to go so this is my short term goal. I celebrated Easter yesterday at my parents home. Dad had a lamb gyros cooking on the spit and i can honestly say this has been the only time i have ever craved meat! I haven't been able to eat meat with what feels like ages. I recently was able to eat meat in Jerky form since being sleeved, and i was ok with that. Well i bit the bullet and tried a tiny piece of lamb with no fat on it. It went down, no feeling of wanting to hurl! This was one great NSV for me. I ended up having 3 more tiny tiny pieces of red meat throughout the day, just enough for the taste! Hehe. I kept to my Pescetarian type diet that i have had to adopt since being sleeved. I am now wondering if i can eat chicken or even have some milk. I have the courage to try these out again and i plan on doing it today! ????. I recently found a delicious high Protein low calorie meal which i posted on the food sharing forums the other day here : http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/336932-easy-shrimp-quinoa-bowl/ And i would love to swap out the shrimp for some chicken! Mmm mmm mmm!

Syntrax nectar Protein range is excellent to have just with Water. I too am lactose intolerant and have tried the Syntrax Nectar fuzzy navel flavour- it tastes and looks like a watered down orange juice. This has whey protein ie the lactose has been removed.

Im almost in the same boat as you . Im just waiting on the final stage of the interview process with my possibly new employer .. Its very exciting to be starting a new chapter in my life where i can walk, where people wont have known me when i was huge, don't get me wrong, i still have some way to go before i hit goal, but i honestly feel like the world is at my feet and all i need to do is take that plunge and start to really enjoy life for what it is!! I thank God for giving me a second chance at LIFE every single day!

I started off having more than 200 lbs to lose, my starting weight was 383 lbs with my goal being 165lbs. i may have it hidden in my profile, I'm not sure as i cant see those stats on my iPad only via the website itself. I am now 275.. Woo hoo- and best of all, i'm still losing! Not everyone's journey is the same. I've never not disclosed that information if i was typing out a response to someone and the conversation required me to do so. Ie I'm not ashamed of where i began, as we are all here to lose this weight and to help one another through this journey. Wishing you all the very best with your weight loss journey . there are quite a few of us in the same boat with lots to lose, don't be disheartened, just reach out, we are here to help where we can xox

I was banded back in 2010, had complications where i formed a pouch above the band, so i was essentially growing another stomach and ended up gaining almost all the weight i had lost over the 4 years! The band was removed in 2014 and i was revised to a sleeve. I am now 6 months out and i have GERD, i cannot eat meat unless its in Jerky form, i don't have that constant one day feeling stuck and next i can almost eat a horse type if feelings i had with the band. Yes its not perfect, but compared to my life with the band i'm a 100% advocate for VSG surgery! I actually have a life now, i can go out for Breakfast, lunch or dinner and not feel terrified to eat. I absolutely love love love my sleeve!

Not all breads are high in carbs, these days there are breads high in Protein and low in carbs.. Just sayin https://www.p28foods.com/baked-goods/p28-high-protein-bread

Mines not very elaborate in any way and seems well to me kind of obvious . VSG for the operation i've had and Mary being my name. Maybe i should change it to my "hooker" name , rofl it would change it to Sally Hunter!!!!

Hi vitacost.com has 24 bars for $24.99 with free shipping for US residents and extremely reasonable shipping costs for those of us outside the US. Ive bought a couple of boxes and have a couple more on the way!

Sorry to see there's been some mis-communication going on in this thread and really unnecessarily. I dont have anything to add to this topic, however i do feel BLERDgirl has been unfairly criticised. I've always read BLERDgirl's post to be helpful, please all take a deep breath and re-read each others posts in a different context ie positive one and you too will see that. Wishing you all the best with your weight loss journeys xox

I did 4 weeks of a liquid diet, didn't kill me, I'm still here standing . I was warned by my surgeon that if he opened me up and saw that my liver wasn't shrunk that he would not hesitate to close me up and have me come back when i was mentally ready for this. Well i showed him how serious i was and after i woke from surgery he was there bright eyed bushy tailed with the biggest grin on his face and then have him thank me for following his advice as it made the surgery go without a hiccup . Wish you all the best with your weight loss journey xox

I see what you did there! You switched the numbers from your original weight around! hehe. Well done you look great!

Best wishes to you