Dub

It taught me many lessons that I hope to never forget. My joints and back will be reminders of the heavy times, but I am recovering a lot of mobility already. My stride is lengthening and pace is quickening. Still taking it carefully.....but certainly feeling much better this quickly. I'll always remember how critical good health is and how much we control this ourselves. Overeating and underworking is the pathway to an early grave. This makes it easy to eliminate certain foods from my life and easy to adopt a whole new way of eating. I'll remember how hard it was to recover from various surgeries and illness like the the simple flu bug or sinus infection. Being heavy compounds the impact of these. Being lighter and more agile will certainly make future recoveries much easier. Understanding that I can slide right back into old habits and poor overall health is clear in my mind. I'm so very grateful to not be as heavy as I was......and hoping and working to be lighter next week, next month, next year and maintain forever. Living with a new way of eating is not a short term diet, but something I'll be doing for life.

How absolutely easy this was going to be......I wished I'd done this years ago. Seriously. I have zero complaints about anything related to the sleeve surgery.......liquid diet and all. Everything has been straightforward and within my ability to handle. I don't understand all the complaints from folks who've not had complications. Too much whining. I'm really enjoying the reduction in joint & back pain that I'd been dealing with last year. That persistent pain had limited my mobility a great deal. It had even begun to make me a grumpy bastard for sure. I've lost more than just weight. A lot of pain has gone with it. A lot of medication has, too. The more unpleasant part of the surgery is simply the wait time for the surgery itself. The recovery and the new way of eating is simple and easy. I"m 7 weeks out and am laughing at the clothing situation already. I've dropped a couple "xx"'s from the shirt size and several sizes smaller in the waist on pants. I feel like I really haven't even gotten started good, yet. The best losing and rebuilding is ahead. I have lost some muscle along with the fat. I'm learning how critical it is to take in my Protein like I'm supposed to. I'm guessing that I'll be reliant on Protein shakes for a long time.....one a day. Looking forward to the hernia repair fully healing so I can start a structured weight training program. Was going to book a vacation in March/April........but I think that I"m going to punt it back until May/June. Shirtless at a beach-pool will be a heap more fun if I can get a few months of good gym work in.

I try to take my time....15 mins or more. Occasionally, I'll forget and jump on it too fast. I get a nice reminder when I do that.....and it lasts for a long and uncomfortable time. One would think I'd quit forgetting. I love my sleeve and what it's done for me in this short time. Very easy to live with. Zero complaints from me.

I'd love to have that recipe. Novel idea.

Looking might good. Superhot, in fact. Well done !!!!!!!!!

I've read all the posts on it........some stall.......some don't. All I know is that I have followed the plan and done what I was supposed to.....activity has been low and I'm upping that now as back feels better and hernia repair has healed along nicely. Surgeon saw me Monday and said he's not concerned with first month's scale readings. He started me on soft foods and challenged me to experiment with various Proteins and to stay well hydrated and have fun with it. Scale hasn't moved in over a week which has been weird.......but clothes continue to get more baggy and I feel better each day. I'm sticking to the plan and enjoying the changes and see how easy it is to get overly scale-focused. All is well. All is on course. Just had to laugh and say that I had the same 3-4 week stall that I'd seen posted so often. No worries. All is good. Just a funny occurrence along the way towards losing the weight.

I grew really frustrated with my insurance company. I am generally an easy going and polite sort of person. I was 3 months into the deal and getting bounced around by UHC and lost my patience with them. I felt as if I was being manipulated and delayed on purpose. I wound up cussing out every level of supervisor I kept getting escalated to. It didn't do a thing to help my situation.....but I certainly felt better after letting it ride on every one of them that I could. I opted to self fund and had my surgery a moth later. I would still be waiting for surgery right now had I not done so. One of the best decisions I've ever made in my life.......EVER. UHC can form a single file line........and pucker up and kiss my big shrinking arse. I've got something they can manipulate.

Definitely on your way !!!!!!!!!!! I think most of us are our own best complimentors. We feel the looser clothes and the diminished joint pain....feel the pep in our step........and see the leaner person looking back at us in the mirror. Just wait until beach season gets here and you are strutting around in the bikini in your avi. You'll be growing tired of the compliments.

Damn. Just Damn. Glad things are improving for you. I guess I took a lot of basic stuff for granted up until a year ago....when things began to unravel with my overall health. I take nothing for granted now......not even a good pit stop in the bathroom. I'm grateful for the hernia repair at the time of the sleeve. Now, there are no fears from any internal pressure. The 'roids are calmed down now and my pit stops are brief......and infrequent due to the greatly reduced food intake. Life is good. EDIT: Looking back on the surgery experience......the first two weeks afterward were not fun at all in the #2 department. I was worried I was going to rupture sutures or some other horrid outcome. I'm 6'4", son is 6'7" and my wife is 5'11".............................and we have standard height toilets in the house. The act of sitting/standing hurt like hell. I kept thinking......we are tall people......why in the hell do we have toilets made for freaking Hobbit folk ???????? I vowed to install at least one supertall toilet in the house really soon.

Total agreement !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chike Nutrition makes two versions of the their coffee/mocha Protein powder that mixes really well with Water and ice. Great stuff that tastes really, really, good. I sometimes throw in a scoop of vanilla or chocolate powder with it. Highly recommend it.

Well.......forgetit needs to come back sometime and update us on her progress.

A lot of the stalls do occur at times when folks are making diet changes. You stay on low calorie liquid only diet for almost two months and then transition to food. It's going to take a bit for your body to adjust again. Be patient and let yourself heal. The real diet and weight loss is ahead of you. You'll see......the weight will come off. The ones you are referring two who only lose minimal weight after a year are probably not committed and eating all sorts of junk. Nothing will stop a patient from making dumb choices. Stick with it and you will lose bigtime.

that's what the dishwasher is for Dishwasher comes into play with the shaker bottles for sure. I think I'd be tempted to put stuff in the blender that I should't be eating, anyway. Protein powder, water, ice.......anything more than that seems to get me in trouble when it comes to shakes or thin consistency stuff.

I was sleeved on Oct 13. I'm at work tonight and about to have my second cup of real coffee (as per my doctor's instructions). I was able to since the 4th week out.

Mine was way more loud until the hernia was repaired along with the sleeve. It does get loud at times now......but nothing like before.

Never fooled with purees. Figured that's what proper chewing is all about. I use the shaker bottles, ice and Water to mix Protein powders. I just don't want to fool with the clean up and mess of a blender and have yet to see the need.

One of the things that my improving health is doing is allowing me to return to the things I enjoy doing. For instance.....walking up the driveway and into the front entrance of the house yesterday I notice that there is gunk built up between the bricks.....driveway is looking dark, too. Working through the weekend and will get off next Thursday for a day off. Instead of laying around and recovering, I think I'll buy a pressure washer and clean up the driveway and front stairwell. Why keep paying someone else to keep doing it ????? Several home repair/update issues like that awaiting some attention. Gas Honda motor chugging away and a Water jet......what could be more fun. Another thing that I am preparing myself for is to get back to deer and duck hunting.......in the Fall/Winter of 2016. I live in a border town between two states and have hunting buddies in both and huge tracks of public land to hunt in each. I need to get in killer shape in order to keep up with them, though. The deer hunting, for instance, will involve long hikes while wearing a climbing stand on my back......and hopefully some long deer drags out of the woods. Even if I get in top shape there will be some taxing moments, I'm sure. A 5 mile walk over wooded terrain with changing elevation in the dawn & dusk hours is going to be something to work up to. I've gotta log some serious uphill miles on the treadmill in the months ahead. The duck hunting isn't a heck of a lot easier, either. Wading through flooded timber to get set up or paddling skinny water boats into position will be it's own workout. Toting a sack full of weighted decoys and a 28" shotgun to boot. Some of the deer hunts will find me not even taking a rifle. Bad right shoulder is keeping me from archery hunting, so I'll carry a revolver only and hunt the thick cover areas. Fun challenge. If I feel really confident by March 2016, I may jump in on some turkey hunts with the guys. These will be good tests to see how far off I am. I'm now in the process of doing what I can with my gear situation. Not only am I losing weight.....but I'm whiling the ounces down on my gear, too. The type of hunting thats coming will be different than my old style......no more 4-wheelers to ride in/out with. Old fashion boot leather is what's going to be used for this hunting. I just ordered a 6.33 lb rifle that should arrive next week. The lightweight scope & rings/bases came in today. An aftermarket recoil pad is on the way, too. For the March/April turkeys I'm going to try using a lightweight 20 gauge. I have a great turkey choke for it that I just need to pattern with some of the loads my buddies have recommended. I'm under no illusions about using that little 20 gauge on anything else. I'll break out the boomstick on those ducks. I may very well get a sling for it, though. Sure will make it easier to lug around in the woods. I was in the stores recently and was shocked at the great selection of ultra comfortable snake-proof hunting boots. I'll wait a little while before buying them, but I'm encouraged to know that a nice comfortable pair will be available. Sure is fun seeing progress and knowing that the things you enjoy doing await you. The woods are calling me......all I have to do is rise to the challenge and keep moving.....working.....humping it. I can hardly wait. So grateful !!!!!!!!!!

Jerky is great......but can be super high in sodium.

I've had both bypass (12-4-14) and sleeve (03-16-15). Cause I'm that lucky. I have a sleeve now. Wow. You are doubly experienced with this. I've not heard of anyone going in this particular direction before. You must have a very unique perspective on wls in general.

@@bellabloom I always thought you were a bypass patient due to the profile information listed on the left side of each of your posts. I've had a mild......very mild form of dumping when I had something high in sugar this week while visiting with family. It was enough to convince me to stay far, far away from such foods as I didn't like the feeling one bit at all. My body has not anything with refined carbs like that in months and it put me in a tailspin. It was nothing like a "dumping" experience that my sister, a bypass patient, has described to me, but it was enough to alert me that it wasn't a good food choice for what I'm trying to do.

I'm 6+ weeks out. So far, my exercise has been the exact same thing that I did in the hospital 3 hours after surgery.....walking. I walk a fair amount with my job and that has been the extent of things so far. Hernia repair has been healing up....still too early for weight lifting.......back pains easining up some with the weight loss thus far......hoping to begin treadmill and elliptical work very, very soon. I feel like all I've done so far has been adjust my way of eating and I haven't really done much "work" or "sweat equity" to lose the weight. I'm hoping that December will be my best weight loss month to date.....due to adding the treadmill & elliptical machines on my days off. I've got this cool feeling that the real fun is about to begin once this occurs.................

Thank you !!!!! You nailed it there. Looking forward with optimism is so much better than dreading time to pass waiting for the next health scare or loss of ability to do things. I had not realized how "down" I was just 6 weeks ago at the time of my surgery. Feeling better each and every day and gaining confidence that I can commit to things.......finally. So grateful. Cool thing about this is that the land is really close to home. I'll be within an hour of the house. No camps.....home to a hot shower, cup of java and a warm bed every night. No need for hunting duds. Down here in the Dirty South we hunt nekkid. Just kidding.....I actually will have to start over on the hunting clothes. Great opportunity to take advantage of all the light, yet warm, high tech moisture wicking-wind blocking fabrics. Probably more comfortable than any other clothing imaginable. Of all the gear that I can be picking up now, on sale.....the clothes will be last minute. I'm going to work hard to be at my goal weight by then......that'll be right at 12 months. It's going to be cutting it close. I'll imagine clothing expense will be a big deal around that time....work clothes, casual clothes, suits.....ouch $$$$. Sure is nice to think clothing will take more of my funds than the crazy medical bills of this past year did.

One simplistic way to deal with that is to not keep tempting junk like that around. I say that, yet I've had three bags of Halloween candy sitting here in a candy jar and have avoided it. No longer have any cravings for sugary stuff. So dang grateful.

My knee pain has improved a great deal once you take into account how little Advil I consume now. I haven't done anything earthashattering as far as gym work goes yet, either. Still nursing a trick back. I am really looking forward to beginning my gym visits as all the weight I've lost since June has been while barely doing anything.