CharlotteKat

I was down 125 lbs. at month 5. My loss has been on the high side compared to a lot of people. I attribute this to exercising most days 45-50 minutes and also being a vegetarian. I also did precisely what the doctor told me to do concerning Protein and calorie intake.

I have kept a record of my weight since my surgery in June 2015. I checked my week 3 last year and I too, had a stall. You may see another stall in weeks 6, 12 and 16. Please don't get discouraged. Stalls will happen and they don't make any sense. Your body has its own schedule. Most stalls are followed by a big drop the next week so hang in there! All you need to do right now is exactly follow everything your doctor has told you to do. It will all work out just fine.

Gastric Bypass is the gold standard of weight loss surgery. It is the simple truth. You will lose more weight after gastric bypass than any other type of surgery. You will also maintain more weight lost after the surgery in the long term. The sleeve is more suitable for people who have less to lose. If your BMI is 45 or above then gastric bypass should be your first choice if you are healthy enough to have the surgery. Choosing either surgery is a very serious decision. Both require a tremendous amount of commitment to be successful. Be ready to commit to a permanent change of lifestyle. This means tracking your food intake daily and exercising regularly for the rest of your life.

I take TwinLab Daily One with Iron Multivitamin caps. I couldn't stand having to chew up one more Centrum chewable Vitamin and found this. It is a clear capsule with powder inside. All of my labs have been perfect since I switched to this. I was a little worried about the size of the capsule, but I've had zero problems with it. The lowest price on this is www.jet.com.

I am super sensitive to sugar and I don't have a problem with the Quest bars because there is only 1 gram of sugar in the S'mores bar. It's a nice way to be able to eat a tiny bit of chocolate again.

I went to see my surgeon today and the carrots that I ate are the source of my problem. I'll be on Clear liquids for a few days and need to take Omeprazole and Carafate. I've lost 5 lbs. in 2 1/2 days from not being able to keep things down. I'm definitely hungry so going back to a liquid diet is no fun as we all know. This is how my surgeon explained my problem. If you eat food you cannot digest then a chain reaction can occur. The food irritates the opening to your intestines. You try eat solid food later on and throw it up due to the undigested food. This starts a vicious cycle of eating and throwing up food. Your stomach's new opening to your intestines gets inflamed. The more you throw up, the worse it gets. The drugs I've have been prescribed act like a stomach coating and an acid reducer. The inflammation in my stomach has to resolve before I can eat solid food again. I am in for a rough few days until all is calm in my stomach again. My surgeon said that he sees this problem on a regular basis. Hope this info helps other people NOT go through what I have gone through. Pay attention to the list of problem foods that your doctor gives you. There is a good reason those foods have made it to that list.

I am still unable to keep food down. I am wondering if I have a stricture that is still trapping some of the carrot. I'm going to starve if I can't keep things down. It really sucks because I am hungry. I might need to call my doctor's office tomorrow. Thanks for the info.

Premier Protein has a very good Peanut Butter Crunch bar that has 30g of protein. You can find it at Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood grocery stores. They are less than $5/box for 5 of them. These are OK once you have made it to the normal food stage. Quest bars are also good, but a bit expensive. My favorite is their S'mores bar which tastes a lot like chocolate chip Cookies.

I really missed my coffee after surgery. I didn't start having REAL coffee until 1 month after surgery. I started very small and now only drink one large mug of coffee a day. Your tolerance for caffeine definitely changes after surgery. To get through the first month, I put a teaspoon of instant espresso powder in my vanilla Protein shakes. That really helped me feel like I didn't give up coffee. It was such a tiny amount of caffeine that it did not cause any problems.

My advice is to ditch the pre-made Isopure beverages. Get the unflavored Isopure powder and try it with Crystal Light. It vanishes in the Crystal Light. My current favorite is Isopure powder, Water, Cherry Pomegranate Crystal Light and frozen berries. I blend all of this in the blender. It is a million times tastier than anything Isopure has in a bottle. Lemonade Crystal light with some added fresh lemon juice also tastes great with Isopure unflavored.

I am thrilled to be down 160 lbs., but I have an embarrassing problem. My butt makes me uncomfortable any time I'm sitting. It is caused by the loose skin I'm sitting on top of and I am always shifting to get more comfortable. Does anyone else have this issue and is there any trick or shape wear out there to make this darn butt of mine behave????

That's awesome! You have made an excellent choice. You are now on the road to feeling and looking great. You will be amazed at how quickly you progress with your stamina and endurance. It is a real ego booster. That initial 30 minutes will slowly expand over time until an hour seems like no big deal.

Bypass surgery REQUIRES exercise for long term success. There are no shortcuts. It's OK to hate to have to exercise. You still have to do it. The thing they can't describe to you is how good you are going to feel after each workout. I am always amazed at how good I feel when I finish a workout. It is a shame they can't bottle the feeling. One simple thing to try is to commit to just 7 continuous days of exercise. Doesn't matter what you do each day as long as you exercise. The idea is to build a string of successful days. It's a great place to start. At the end of the 7 days, take a rest day and think about how you feel. You may really surprise yourself.

I have been wondering if anyone has been able to make and eat corn tortillas. I've been debating about whether to risk them, but would like to hear other people's experiences eating them.

How about just store bought corn tortillas? Are they safe or hard to handle?

WARNING: Giving up tracking and measuring is a slippery slope. This is how pounds can creep back very slowly and you are left wondering how it happened. If you are serious about your weight loss and maintaining it, there is no giving up measuring or tracking. Expect to track and measure for the rest of your life. I know that sucks, but this is the hard cold reality of successful weight loss and maintenance.

I am so glad to hear that I'm not the only one squirming in my seat because of my Shar-Pei looking butt. I did find some relief thanks to James above. His idea to get a pad really helped. I found a $6 high density foam cushion at Walmart. It's 18" x 18" x 2". I put it on my office chair and it feels so much better. I may have to go a couple more of them to put elsewhere.

My "cushion" is gone. I hadn't thought about get a gel pad. That is a great idea!

I recommend investing in a Ninja Nutri Ninja Pro BL450 Blender to make the Protein shakes starting on day 1. (It was rated #1 by Cooks Illustrated.) I'm post surgery 8 months now and I regret not having bought this thing sooner. I've only had mine for 2 months and it is worth every penny. Plain ol' Crystal Light, ice cubes, Water and unflavored Protein powder actually tastes better after you blend it. I use the Ninja daily for my shakes. I even travel with it. It pulverizes anything you put into it including rock hard frozen strawberries. Things that I bought that I didn't end up using - liquid Tylenol and liquid Calcium supplement (yuck!). Stick with chewables. You'll have all the pain medicine you need initially so you probably won't end up needing OTC pain meds..

I was worried that I was on the high side of losing, but my surgeon said that I'm just ahead of the curve. People lose weight at different rates after surgery. Some lose faster than others. Rejoice in being down 100 lbs.! As far as looking sickly, well, that is just certain people's opinions. If folks compare your thinner face/body to your old face/body then someone could potentially perceive you as looking sickly now. Do you look sickly? Absolutely not! I think family members and co-workers are the worst culprits on this. They feel compelled to warn you not to get too thin and that you will start looking sickly if you don't stop losing. What they are really saying is that they are very uncomfortable with your success and they don't know how to process your new physical image.

I shopped scales pretty heavily before my surgery. One of the more reliable brands is Tanita, but I am pleased with the EatSmart scale that I bought online. I had to buy a scale that could handle more than 300 lbs in the beginning and this scale has done really well. It shows Fat %, Water %, Muscle %, Bone Weight and Weight. I thought it was wrong at one point and tested it with an unopened 5 lbs. bag of flour. The scale showed exactly 5 lbs.. Can't argue with that. The scale was 100% correct. The price on Wayfair is the lowest I could find online. http://www.wayfair.com/EatSmart-Precision-GetFit-Digital-Body-Fat-Scale-ESBS-06-L3874-K~EES1010.html?refid=GX83188700940-EES1010&device=c&ptid=18283950120&gclid=CjwKEAiAxfu1BRDF2cfnoPyB9jESJADF-MdJizJ7U_EHcD43pa09F8Ai1v_L8GeQ5yaRNfb-k8UULhoCB5vw_wcB

I use Isopure Unflavored whey Protein. It is easy to find at Vitamin Shoppe. It has 26g of protein per scoop. My favorite recipe right now is frozen strawberries, almond milk, Isopure, Splenda and a dash of Torani sugar free Vanilla syrup. I use a Ninja blender to turn it into a smoothie. It's delicious and you cannot taste the protein.

I'm 3 1/2 months out from surgery. I'm thrilled to have no appetite. It makes everything easier. I have heard that my appetite (the real one and not head hunger) could return as soon. Some folks say that it is gone for 6 months. How long did it take for any of you to have your real appetite resurface?

James, When you say that you manage your hunger with fats, what do you mean? Do you have an amount of fat grams you try to reach?

Every NUT seems to have a different opinion. My NUT said I am OK with eating as little as 2 oz. a day as long as I get in my Protein and supplements. Don't feel like you have to work up to a certain portion size. That can spell long term trouble. Once you stretch your stomach, there is no going back to a nice small pouch. My NUT said to stop eating when you feel full. I'm over 3 months out and 4 oz a day is all I can handle. I'm in no rush to eat more.