BigViffer

I was off 2 weeks because of the drains and pain ball that I went home with. I have an sit down office job and the lethargy was incredible. If I could have taken another week, I would have done it in hindsight. Any sort of lifting one month post op should not be considered in my opinion. Of course, your surgeon is the one you really should ask and abide by. Don't listen to strangers on the internet!

The chat room turned into a creepy fest all too often. It was very uncomfortable as a man, as a woman I would imagine it be twice as bad. Several women left the forum because of interactions that started in the chat room. Not sorry at all to see that feature gone. Private chat however might be something that would work. Real time chat that is private via an invite or something along those lines.

Totally normal and you are definitely not alone. Not only can the anesthesia and pain killers cause that issue, but there is also the lack of fluid intake that is common the first couple months. It doesn't even have to get to the point of dehydration, just a serious reduction in your normal intake can cause that to happen. Also, if you were a big guy like me , you may have been (or still are) on blood pressure medicine. If your blood pressure (BP) is now low that is pretty much a stiffy killer. I was taken off all my meds, BP, diabetic, cholesterol... all of it within the first week. Amazing what can happen in such a short time when you stop eating convenient fast food poison.

Within the first year post op, the nerve endings in the stomach are still healing and trying to re-attach. Electrical impulses are not always able to travel to the brain. That is why there are areas of numbness in the skin near any incision when you have surgery. Same thing in the stomach. With this numbness, it is very difficult to "feel" full or satiated. Many surgeons preach measuring food portions, but several of them don't go into detail as why. This is the primary reason. It is also to train you as to what a normal portion looks like so that it can become a habit. The reason we burp or have pain after over eating or eating too quickly is because though symptoms are not related to sensation or pain receptors; it is because the volume of your new stomach is at capacity or over. The body will try to rectify it by either forcing it through the pylorus or back up the esophagus. Generally speaking, the lower esophageal sphincter is weaker than the pylorus, so the gas escapes quicker via burping. Of course, this is also why vomiting occurs. However, if one continues to over eat or eat too quickly, the pylorus can weaken and start allowing food into the intestines without being digested properly. This is a bad thing BTW.

That is a pretty vague post. Going by what little you typed, I am going to assume that you are relatively fresh post op. Most likely in the regular food stage. Probably eating too much and/or too fast and not weighing/measuring your portions. Trapping air from eating too rapidly causes the burps and belching. Eating too fast also means you will miss a signal saying you are full and will eat more than you should and that is when the stomach starts to spasm and the diaphragm gets involved with the hiccups. Measuring your food will help if you are a fast eater due to you stopping when the food is gone rather than eating until you think you are full. Or I could be way off and you are talking about something entirely different.

Wow, you have only been on the forum since April and have shown yourself to be a real charmer. Has there been a thread that you have participated where you did not call someone a bully, cruel, or mention your profession? I do question the quality of someones education that is allegedly approaching a doctorate in psychology yet had to resort to surgery to correct a psychological problem. Why didn't you interact with your colleagues in regards to your food addiction? I don't usually defend forum members, but Véronique is nothing but supportive in the threads I have read. However; you attacking her, or trying to make an example of her, so that no one dare question you is a jerk move.

lol, that's cute. Maybe you haven't been here very long? This is the norm for this website. Many people just join for attention and they'll take any kind they can receive; positive or negative. It doesn't matter. Just as long as they get some sort of attention. Just ignore them as best you can.

Any increase in muscle mass will aid in fat loss, and the posterior chain is comprised of the largest muscles in the body. So on one hand, weight in the gym is a good idea. However, if small legs is the goal, then you are right.

Ah, that changes things. I am 2.5 years out. Yeah, you'll need a supplement until you are further out.

Jesus, your boyfriend sounds like an @sshole. I totally understand that he didn't have surgery and doesn't have to change his lifestyle, but it wouldn't kill him to be a little more considerate in the first few months. The first month can be very difficult emotionally. I've seen people literally fall apart and get sloppy wet crying face feeling that they were a failure because they had to resort to surgery. Those same people today are happier than ever and more confident than they have ever been since I have known them. Stay the course, follow the plan, and things will get better.

The thing to worry about in regards to swimming pools is the bacteria and all around nasty crap people do in the water. If you still have healing surgical scars, you shouldn't be near a pool for risk of infection as well as tainting the water. The same goes for going to the gym. Gyms are terrible for germs and bacteria and not a place you want to be immediately post op.

I have this at least 3 times a week. I make my oatmeal like normal, but I like mine a little runny. After pulling it out of the microwave and letting it cool to an edible temp, I add a scoop of my protein powder. Doesn't matter what flavor to me anymore.

Does it have to be a supplement? Can you increase your food intake of foods rich in iron? I have liver and onions about once a month and spinach pretty frequently for that exact reason.

How do you measure a portion size and log it in an app if you don't weigh it? A portion of ground turkey one day could be 2 ounces but 4 the next meal. There is about a 12 gram difference in protein there. Not picking on you, just curious.

Yep, 2 kids. I don't find it to be time consuming at all. There are many BM tracking apps available for various reasons. Sit down, start the timer. Finish up, stop the timer. At the end of the year I export the data and put it into my personal matrix spreadsheet. Been doing it now for about 2 years. There are examples on my profile page in the gallery. I keep track of my major lifts, my food, and BM's.

I have no recommendation for unflavored protein powder, just about anything is decent as long as it is not Genepro. They were just recently successfully sued for their misleading marketing practices. There is not 30 grams of protein in a serving. They used to say that magically compressed the protein then they changed their story to say that it is the equivalent of 30 grams of protein because of the rapid absorption. Here is a better post about it because I don't feel like typing it out all over again"

I had this problem early on. I believe the issue is not so much that they are gross, but they do not taste as they "should" It's like picking up a Sprite and taking a huge gulp only to find out it is water. The wrongness of what you were expecting vs what you were tasting causes an immediate urge to spit it out. My recommendation would be to try a food you have never had before or a food you like but prepared extremely different than what you have ever had before. For example, you say you can't stand chicken. If you have never had Indian (dot not feather) cooking before, you may find that curry chicken appeals to you. The spices are not something you have a preconceived taste associated with so you have nothing to compare it to from pre-surgery.

I often see the question, "What's the best protein (powder/shake/bar)? The answer is always the one that you will use. I don't remember if I tried Inspire or not, but I personally really like Gold Standard. I'll recommend it to anyone, but in the end it comes down to personal preference. Except for Genepro. It's just crap.

They are simple to make. Here are some fancy ones: https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/5-insanely-delicious-protein-mug-cakes.html

Genpro is snake oil and a crap product. They were successfully sued starting in November of last year and ruled on in June of this year. Their claim of their protein being "medical grade" and being equivalent to 30 grams of protein were debunked. At best you are getting 10 grams of pre-digested protein enzyme. Yes it is still being sold, even on this website. It's the same as the 8 minute workout videos that promise fantastic results with little effort. It is a product that preys on the trusting and uninformed. Avoid it.

Making the preparation of a meal can become the substitute ritual that becomes a habit. Instead of eating being the focus, the preparation becomes the ritual then the habit.

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I disagree. I am 2.5 years out and I still use powder and protein bars to supplement my diet. Of course I am using it to help with my weight lifting so my protein goals are much higher. They do not limit your intake of nutrients unless you are using them for your sole source of food. As for encouraging thoughts about other sweets, I find the opposite to be true. Why bother with a chocolate chip cookie when I can have a protein bar? Why have a milkshake if I can have a protein shake? Cakes don't interest me when I can make a coffee cup protein cake.

Not really that bad. The salami and peanut butter are fat dense, but that is no where near enough to cause a stall. Since you are still so soon post op, I would recommend taking measurements. Measure your arm circumference, neck circumference, tummy and waist circumference separately, then thigh circumference. Pick a day of the week to do that and do it every week on the same day. That is a better way to track your progress than the scale IMO. It is the one thing I wish I would have done the first year. Those measurements will carry you through the stalls.