Dub

I sip on branch chain amino acid drinks during most workouts. The particular brand I prefer is Xtend, by Scivation Nutrition.

Sleeved ~11 months ago. Use ibuprofen with the blessings of my surgeon. No issues.

Exactly why I don't eat carbs other than what's in Splenda for coffee and minimal amounts in traces of other things. When I open the door and eat something carb loaded.....it simply sets up a crash and craving 30 mins later.....and the cycle of cravings occurs repeatedly until I cut out the carbs. Exactly why I chose to skip puree stage where my NUT's plan allowed oatmeal, creamed potatoes, yogurt and the like. Everyone has their own strategy......for me....it's much easier to sidestep the cravings by not giving in to them. It takes a day or two each time to get back on track and "purged" of them.

It was simple for me. I stuck with Premier Protein and Chike Protein shakes for the first month. My needs were met. Weight loss was good. I didn't have to think about food. Really helped break me away from food focus.

I'm not trying to flirt in the grocery store.......yet these random encounters seem to occur. At 47 I have certain....shortcomings that are age related. The worst of them shows up all the time in grocery store. I've had more than one occasion where a good looking woman saved me from my quandary. The shortcoming is my vision. I'm still great to drive, shoot and otherwise live......but gotta wear reading glasses to read smaller print. I refuse to carry my reading glasses around with me. I was struggling reading a label on some coffee creamer....trying my best to live on the edge with trying new stuff....yet wanting low carb. I hear a, "Wanna let me give you a hand with that ??" and I look over and it's an angel who has swooped in to save me. We had a nice conversation and I was made aware of some good options. Turns out we go to the same gym and know some of the same people. My label reading angst has been noted a time or two since then. Funny stuff. Out of a weakness.....comes opportunity. The grocery store.....from 3pm-5pm weekdays the gals come in after their gym trips. 5pm-7pm they come in from work in their cute scrubs or skirts & heels.........the grocery store is new singles club, lol. Not that I know a damn thing about any of this.........

I slept in a recliner for the first few weeks. Very comfortable.

I think you hit the big ones already. Think of it in terms of heat. For me the mild heat of a jalapeño has always been desirable, the heat of a habanero is tolerable and the heat of a Scotch Bonnet pepper is NOT tolerable. In bariatric terms I can say that I find that eating a cup of food in a meal is tolerable, 1.5 cups of food in a meal is NOT tolerable as it leaves me miserably full and uncomfortable. Eating high sugar content foods is NOT tolerable as it leaves me with diarrhea and upset stomach. Going to McDonald's.....ordering their Artisan Grilled chicken Sandwich and leaving off the buns and lettuce is a meal that is tolerable in size and flavor is to my liking. Diet sodas for me are NOT tolerable due to the carbonation making me uncomfortable. Sort of a random list......sorry.

Different question......how is your weight loss going ? Reason I ask is that the more successful my weight loss efforts are.....the better I feel about everything. The endorphins released from a good gym session are like a natural high......way more effective than beer and cigarettes. No kidding. I used to smoke like a freightrain and drank my weight in beer every month......now do neither. Is there a way you get some time in every week to do something really physical.....that leaves you wiped out...sore.....but feeling good for the effort ? If not....then I hope you can get those feels in life really quick. Good stuff. Sorry....as none of this was a direct answer to your question.

I"m trying to lose weight. Right in weight loss mode now. Down 190 lbs with 45 more to hit my goal weight. Oatmeal......in any form.....is simply not something I'm eating right now. It is not relevant to my current goals. Later on when I'm dialed in and living at maintenance, then some great steel cut oats made without sugar....just some salt, butter and a few blueberries.....sure. Great breakfast. Not during my weight loss phase. I'm sure others disagree and they've gotta do what's best for them. Just because something is "on my NUT's plan" doesn't always translate over to it being the best choice for me at the weight loss stage.

"Get used to never finishing a meal" were instructive words my surgeon used early on as I was starting solid protein again. It's an easy thing to handle. Say for instance I"m at restaurant and my order arrives.....a large piece of salmon and some steamed vegetables. First thing I do is size up the fish and slice off what I know is a proper portion size an get a to-go box for the rest.

I think my meal size those first three months was 1/4 cup. I ate much slower then than I do now. I could feel the fullness coming on as I finished the 1/4 cup of food. It was not a pleasant feeling and one that I avoided. Your stomach has a lot of healing left to do and there is inflammation. You really do need to proceed carefully and stick with soft flaky & moist proteins. Your bariatric practice has done you a disservice by not making the guidelines very clear.....before this point. I'd raise a little hell with them on that next appointment.

And so it begins.................................... I saved the belt I was wearing at the time of surgery. Every now and again I'll take it hold it up and laugh my arse off. And your off to the races now. Clothes are good frustration to have. You are gonna have fun shopping when you deem the timing right. That is awesome. Feels good to retire stuff because it's too big. Great experiences right there. I'll probably be out there looking goofy like Kramer from the Sienfeld show.

Just about all the varieties of Quest bars are of my liking. The pumpkin flavor is off da chain good................

What's odd is that I don't mind blue cheese.......but have hatred for cottage cheese. Doesn't make sense. I am, however, totally down with tuna. Love the stuff. My current favorite is the .2.5oz pouches of Bumble Bee brand Spicy Thai Chil tuna. Super flavor....but one I had to acquire. The name should have prepared me for the hotness. Doubly so since I no longer drink Water with meals. I've pretty much transitioned over to the Bumble Bee brand altogether. Prior to wls I had zero knowledge of such....who knew there were brands that give you nice big chunks and brands that consistently give you soupy mess in a can. Not I, for sure.

You look great and have really been successful. Outstanding.

I can't tell you how many "Gonna start my new diet on Monday" weekends that I've had in my life. There is no telling......happened all the freaking time. I just wasn't truly ready.......until April 2nd, 2015. I screwed up my back picking up something with poor lifting technique and the pain that occurred over the months ahead was enough to scare me badly. I missed 6 consecutive weeks from work and I was scared....really scared. The knowledge that my back would heal if I got the unwanted weight off was drilled into my head by a spine surgeon I was consulting. I'd already been dealing with other specialists for a circulatory problem and was concerned that I was in bigtime health trouble. The two circulatory doctors both agreed that massive weight loss would allow my body to recover and heal itself. This knowledge galvanized my belief that I could.....and would.....get the weight off and keep it off. It's been a fairly linear process with a few setbacks here and there. The setbacks were opportunities to learn, though, and I'm grateful for them. You scheduled this surgery for a reason. It's vitally important to keep your reasons for doing so in mind and let them guide you. food is just another aspect of your life that you have to manage. No different than how you budget your money or drive your car. You don't gamble thousands of dollars away on football games or drive your car like a race car driver do you ? Of course not. You simply have to find the keys to managing your decisions to eat poorly. They may be different for each of us....they may be similar. All I know is that Pain and Fear took root in me and got my damn attention.

Cottage cheese is one of the few foods that gross me out. I know it's irrational......and it's not a food that bothered me before........but now.......no thanks....never again.

A bodybuilder in my gym saw that I had been working hard....burning off weight. He approached me one day and congratulated me on the progress. I thanked him and asked if he had any magic wisdoms for success. Turns out....he did. He said, "Look around....everybody in here....well almost everybody in here.....is working hard....busting their ass. That's super. Not all of them will get the results they want, though. We work hard while we are here, but it's what we do the other 23 hours of the day that allow the results to shine". I don't get how you having your sleeve is the worst decision of you life. You have a tool that can help you combat your obesity. Seems to me the worst decisions are all those choices you make during the day to eat poorly and in a way that doesn't support your desire to loose weight. It's a process and it's good that you are seeking professional help. Hopefully you can find a way to flip that switch that's inside of you......your own personal "GO" button......and be able to gain control overall through winning those numerous choices that you make throughout each day. For me it took experiencing a great deal of back pain and fear from an injury and a circulatory condition that was developing. I began to realize that I wasn't going to be around much longer if I kept living like I was. That pain...and that fear were enough to flip my switch. Priorities were shifted really damn quick and my actions....for the most part.....now are aligned with my priorities. I hope you can get to this point soon. You can turn your life around.

What is your surgeon saying about this? Did you have problems with acid prior to surgery ? I've never tried Nexium as I've always been really well served by chewable Pepcid. I'm lucky, I suppose. Those things are excellent relief for me. Maybe there is another med that your surgeon could suggest.

Exactly........taking the leap of faith to have the sleeve surgery is the important step. Crossing bridges later on is easily done.

Coming up on my 11th month post-sleeve. I could pretty much eat anything and have no issues. I enjoy grilling and cooking and use lots of jalapeño, hot sauce, spicy rubs and an occasional habanero. I was glad to discover that I can still enjoy everything the same. I have never had much of a dumping sensation, although I do have an a predictable reaction to foods high in sugar. I seldom have any sweets, candy and equivalent. It's a food type that has really dropped off my radar along with beer and diet soft drinks. For example, just celebrated wife's birthday. She'd asked that I not get a cake. I did, however, sneak by a gourmet cupcake bakery and bought a few varieties that I thought she'd like. One of them was chocolate cake with mint icing and a thin mint cookie on top. She said she wanted the other types and I did my husbandly duties and ate this thin mint cupcake to spare her the horror. I've had these before and loved 'em. Not this time. Tasted like a bag full of sugar. It seemed to be much bigger than I remember it being last time, even though I know it was the same. Within minutes of finishing the sugar bomb.....it hit my system and my system wasn't happy with me. It did what it could to get that stuff outa my body. It's all the proof that I need to know that our bodies were not designed to consume refined sugar. I don't need it in my life and my body doesn't like it so I'd call that a great outcome of avoiding it. I do best when I enjoy meats and vegetables. I've also resumed eating salads. They always have chicken or other Protein in them....usually have kale or spinach as the leafy stuff....and always have eggs, cheese, sunflower seeds and light or no dressing.

I was never a picky eater before my sleeve. Now....it's funny. There are foods that think would make me hurl if I had to eat them. Cottage cheese, for example. Absolutely disgusted by this. Irrational. Used to like it okay. Now.....hurl factor high. Meatloaf. Some Soups. It's a weird list and I fear that it's still developing. Well and fine, though.....as being disgusted by foods......and their misuse.....is a good thing, right ? I still enjoy certain things....but I simply want my portion and then I'm done. It sorta hit me again the other day.....wife came into the den and saw I was having some leftovers for my lunch/dinner. She went into the kitchen and walked back into the den, "Why did you put everything up? What if you'd wanted more?". Silly question to ask me now. I get what I want and I'm done. Almost never finish any meal that is served to me by someone else. Don't like feeling full, either. I freaking hope that never goes away.

Very cool experience @@LisaMergs Seeing a confused look in peoples faces is a great NSV

@@charlie24 why can't you have ibuprofen?

Prior to the surgery I told my family, a couple friends and boss. I did tell my closest buddies at work. After a month or so I had people asking lots of questions about how I was losing weight. I was honest and open about my experiences. It became a nonevent very soon.