Dysruption

He was my Dr! He's fantastic! I just had the opportunity to go on Great Day Houston on channel 11 with him. Success is within your grasp! Remember to stick with everything the doctor tells you and you will do just fine!

I don't understand the comments saying "Never" on being able to eat normal portions. If that were so true, then why would people start to gain weight again after reaching their goal weight? You read countless studies and they will tell you that eventually you will "eat through" your sleeve, meaning you start to stretch your stomach out again, slowly but surely it can happen. If that were the case, you would only be able to consume 1-2 ounces of liquids/food for the rest of your life, as you did directly after surgery. Your stomach will become bigger ever so slightly as time goes by, which to those of us crazy people who had issues with food and had the surgery for some ridiculous reason other than medical conditions, that's a problem. Thank God for the pouch reset trick that will help you shrink it down again... anyways... if you so desire to eat yourself through the sleeve and have an outstretched stomach again, you certainly may. It's your body, do what you will to it. But if you start to stretch your stomach too much too fast, don't be surprised when you suffer some of those potentially life threatening side effects and have to be rushed to the hospital.

Where is everyone at now? Just curious if anyone else is still around that had their surgery on May 19th 2015. Have you reached your goal? Are you maintaining your weight loss and diet?

How's the androrush? I was looking into that one, but seemed a bit pricey to me. What others would you compare it to? I am going on a 30 day cleanse from stimulant pre-workout's to cycle off. Thinking of getting something different when I get back on them.

I've used Stimul8 by Fina Flex and that is some pretty potent stuff. Only use half a scoop for your first try if you get it and don't consume at least 4 hours before bed. I stayed up past 2am one night because I thought I could graduate to a full scoop. Took it at 6pm that night too. I cycled off it, as you should with all pre-workouts to give your adrenal gland a rest, and now am using C4. I preferred Stimul8 but thought I'd switch it up. I like the steps that @@NewSetOfCurves provided and I will start incorporating BCAA's in my water at the gym. Thanks for the tips!

Standing tricep extensions, chair dips (modifications for bent knees will help if you need it), standing cable curls, stability ball outside curls. Using some tempo changes on these exercises can build the tension in the muscle which encourages growth. More growth of muscle means skin has to adjust. If you're not looking to necessarily build a ton of muscle, use lower weights and more reps. Push-ups build on chest as well as triceps, but I still like them for overall upper body workout. Rowing works mainly back as the primary mover, but triceps are secondary if performed correctly. Just as some advice if you're not already doing so, make sure you are evenly working your entire body. Don't over work just your arms. Be sure to get a well rounded workout schedule and change it up often for best results.

Would you be willing to share your training schedule for the 13 weeks? I was really looking to begin some training in this area. I already run 10k pretty easily, bike ride is no problem, but the swimming I haven't really done. Good luck with your training and keep us posted on your progress!

Your surgeon will tell you most likely that you cannot do any heavy lifting or anything more than walking for about 6 weeks. Which is standard when you have undergone major surgery. Once that was lifted, my surgeon told me to ease in to weight lifting and to know my limitations. That is the key to everything. Don't over do it, or you'll find yourself back at the hospital for a hernia which will keep you out of the game longer than six weeks. Once you're through the waiting period it will be trial and error to find the right amount of working out for your calorie intake. The problem is, you want to ease into it because you could potentially burn more calories than you intake which can cause your body to stall in weight loss if it's held at that pace continually. Meaning, if you have 800 calories in and you're burning 1600 calories for the day, you can only go into the negatives for so long until your body fights back. Keep your Protein high, your Water high and you'll do just fine! Try and start out with stabilization training when you get back in to it. I learned that I needed to work on my balance a lot more with the new shape of my body. Happy training and good luck with your surgery!

I generally eat about 1200 - 1400 calories a day. Since I am lifting a lot I require more calories from before. I eat Protein, protein, protein. I get all of my protein from foods, as I really dislike Protein shakes these days. My protein comes from chicken, eggs, and I have a very nice low carb, no sugar Protein Bar that I eat. Example of a daily meal: Breakfast - Skinny Crust-less Quiche - and egg white quiche with ground turkey meat, broccoli, carrots, onions. I can never get sick of this! I've literally wore my wife out of making it! 20g of protein lunch - 4-5oz of boneless skinless chicken breast, generally grilled or baked - I mix up the toppings I put on it, mozzarella cheese, BBQ sauce, salsa, whatever I'm in the mood for. 30g~ of protein Snack - protein bar/ homemade protein pack (light string cheese stick rolled in sliced chicken deli meat) - 20-25g protein dinner - Some form of chicken grilled or baked - 4-5 oz - 30g protein Dessert - For when I'm bad occasionally - My wife will make some really high Fiber brownies using All Bran and I'll get a small square with a spoon full of vanilla ice cream. I will always shoot for 100g of protein a day, sometimes more depending on weight training schedule. I unfortunately do not get a lot of vegetables in my diet, which I'm trying to get more of, it's just hard when you only have so much room and need to get protein in instead of vegetables. My work out schedule is pretty demanding, at least 1 hour a day, 5 days a week. Something I enjoy doing now is working with others to helping them achieve their workout/weight loss goals because I know how hard it is to not have anyone to work out with. That's why I'm studying to become a certified personal trainer. Hope this helps answer your questions and then some!

It's been a while since my last post, but I wanted to take the time to encourage anyone out there that may be struggling. I started out a year ago weighing in at 340 lbs and today I weigh 214 lbs. That's right, 126 lbs in just 12 months! The transformation has been so phenomenal that I sometimes cannot believe the pictures when I see them side-by-side. I've taken a new interest in physical fitness and have started studying to get my certification in personal training. I used to hate having to work out all the time, but now it's my ultimate stress reliever. When running used to make me tired just thinking about it, I now think of running whenever I'm tired from a long day of work! It's now therapeutic to run 5k instead of being such a burden! Every day I pass by someone at the office that I haven't seen in 6-8 months and they cannot believe the transformation. This truly has been one of the greatest decisions I have ever made, having this surgery done. My wife tells me all the time that she's married to a totally different man now, which she assures me that is a good thing! I'm excited about the future and can't wait to look back on another year of me maintaining my weight. I'm 4 lbs away from goal and now it's time to find a good groove, build some muscle and enjoy life. Pictures are attached to show the difference. These pictures were taken about a year apart from each other. I wish everyone success in their weight loss goals and smooth journey on their road to being healthier! How about you? Anyone near a year since their surgery and want to share success stories for anyone else? Feel free to share any before and after pictures too!

@@joannct1 I eat some carbs, usually between 50-60 grams now, just because I need them for all the working out that I do. I go on 2-3 mile runs 3 times a week and do strength training with weights also. I'm 110 lbs down now and through the holidays I was a bit bad, but still managed to lose 4 lbs during that time while eating some sweets here and there. The key is always moderation!

Sorry to say that if you plan on going to Ohana's, you will have to pay full price because they charge based on age. I called and asked Disney World customer service on that one before I went. They will however allow you to order from kid's menus where available without giving you any trouble. I steered clear of the buffets because there wasn't much return of investment if you know what I mean haha. Hope you have fun! Track how much walking you do with a fitbit or something like it! It's really fun to see the distance you cover and calories you burn!

Doing fantastic and haven't looked back a day since the surgery! I've lost a total of 96lbs since May 19th, the day of surgery. Likes: Fitting into clothes I haven't wore in years! Dropping from 44 size jeans to 36. Dislikes: Some muscle loss has occurred, but not so much that I'd worry about it. Zero complications! I've been very lucky with everything! Regret: I wish I would have done this sooner! If your weight loss isn't moving as fast as you'd like it to, start moving around more! Push yourself to your limits and you'll see that scale move down further each week! I have 34lbs to go to hit my goal and I can't wait to get there!

@@bellabloom Here is my go-to list 1. Breakfast. Skinny crustless quiche 2.00 cup(s), All Whites 100% liquid Egg Whites 0.25 tsp(s), Spices, pepper, black 0.25 tsp(s), Salt, table 0.50 cup, shredded, cheese, mozzarella, low moisture, part-skim 1.00 cup, Cottage Cheese - Non Fat 0.25 cup, chopped, Broccoli, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt 0.33 lb(s), Ground Turkey 85/15 - 3 Lb. Pkg You can substitute carrots or whatever other veggies you want. It makes 8 servings and is 113 calories roughly, 15 grams of Protein. I put some pineapple citrus salsa on it to spice it up a bit. I'll switch it up every now and then and just do whole egg, scrambled and some kind of meat to keep me full until lunch rolls around. 2. Lunch. Low fat Turkey meatloaf 1.00 lb(s), Fit & Easy 99% Fat Free Ground Turkey Breast 3.00 oz(s), Tomato Paste, 100% Natural 1.00 tbsp(s), Tomato Paste, 100% Natural 1.00 egg, Large Egg - Yummy and Delicious 1.00 large, eggs - White only, raw 2.00 tbsp(s), Cheese, parmesan, grated 3.00 clove(s), Garlic, raw 4.00 tablespoons, Restaurant Style Salsa Citrus Pineapple 1.00 cup, Chopped White Onion makes 4 servings, 186 calories, 8g carbs, 32g of protein 3. Snack Light string cheese, 50 calories a piece - 9g protein or non fat greek yogurt - 80 - 100 - 12g protein or Pure Protein Bar - chocolate deluxe - 190 calories, 21g of protein 4. dinner. Depends on the day really, sometimes I eat 4 oz grilled chicken breast, sometimes I have some beef or turkey meatballs in some marinara sauce. Up to this point in my day, I've pretty much met my protein quota, but I still like to get a little more in. 5. Late night snack. I try to stay away from this as much as possible. But if I am going to snack, I get something light, 1 oz of mixed nuts or a yogurt of some kind. After a long week, I will grab a bowl of ice cream (exactly the serving size! not opening a pint and finishing it). You appreciate it so much more when it's only once in a while and not every night. Plus Blue Bell is back on the shelves in Texas! Throw stones if you want, but I've never hit a stall more than 2 weeks because I always keep my body guessing! The moment you start getting in a routine, your body gets used to it and you got to shock it with some good calories every now and again. As you can tell, I did not mention anything about Protein shakes. I quit protein shakes when I was able to start eating meat because I get enough protein that way. I absolutely hate protein shakes now because of the first 6 weeks of nothing but powdered protein...yuck! If I never have to drink another one in my life, I'll be happy!

I workout at least 5 times a week, sometimes twice a day if work schedule permits or if I'm just not able to sleep that well. I'd like to start heavy lifting, but no one to go to the gym with and getting a weight set for home just seems like too much money right now. I'm on my last few weeks of P90X3 which has been an amazing workout! Just 30 minutes a day, as short as one episode of your favorite show. Since I began that I've lost about 25 lbs, trading off with some muscle has been nice too. I will say it's not always easy to workout. Sometimes you get that feeling that you're just not up to it. I'd come home after working a 12 hour day and just want to sit on the couch, but that's how I go into this mess before. So I drink my pre-workout and get to burning a sweat! This may be vain, but after a workout I look in the mirror and remember why I just pushed myself through the 30-45 minutes of pain... to not look like that 340 lb fat guy I used to see in the mirror every day. Sure, you could lose the weight without working out that much, but why waist the tool you equipped yourself with? Don't let the winter rob you of the accomplishments you've made. And don't let it slow down, you've got to push yourself to see the changes you saw in week 1 to week 6.