catwoman7

I stuck to a stationary bike and water-based activities when I was really heavy. And a "NuStep", which is sort of like an elliptical machine, only you're sitting instead of standing. All worked great!

I lost about that much prior to surgery, too - and our starting weight is about the same. They absolutely won't tell you that they won't approve the surgery because you can lose it on your own. The whole purpose of those supervised diets is to see if you can stick to a plan long term - and you've clearly demonstrated that you can! The only issue with losing too much weight beforehand is if you end up with a lower BMI than what they'd normally approve (like below 35 or 40), but you're not at risk of that. Don't worry about it and lose away! You'll be glad you got rid of a lot of pounds before the surgery - I know I was!

see what happens after they resubmit. It could have just been a simple keying error on the part of the insurance company. Since they approved you for sleeve, I can't imagine they wouldn't approve you for bypass.

I've been going to the Y's pool since I weighed over 300 lbs. If you go during the day, it's mostly seniors there. And if you go during "adult lap", or whatever your Y calls it, it's the serious swimmers who just want to get their laps in. Neither groups looks or cares.

I've always carried my weight the same as you do (i.e., high). I'm losing from the top down.

I've also been told the bypass is technically reversible, but it's a very complicated surgery and they only do it for really serious medical reasons - not because people don't like it.

you're right - not all surgeons require it. Consider yourself lucky!

the first three days were tough - then it got *a lot* easier. I think I was supposed to have 5-6 Protein shakes a day. I could have all the Clear liquids I wanted, plus something like a cup of tomato juice or V8 a day. I ate *a lot* of sugar free Jello and sugar free popsicles because they were the only somewhat solid things on my list. I also liked the tomato juice/V8 because it had some substance. But I kept the liquids coming too (Crystal Light, broth, etc). It's tough but it does get a lot easier....

I think they booked 2.5 hours for me as well, but my husband said my surgeon came out to the waiting room after about 90 minutes and said I was done. He was surprised how quick it was. Although it could be the resident, nurses, et al stayed behind to clean things up. And I suppose they book a little extra time in case they run into problems (there were none with me).

not everyone dumps - I think I've read that about 30% do. as for eating, most of us are on high Protein, moderately-low to very-low (depends on surgeon) carb diets, but i can eat pretty much anything in moderation.

yes - not me (I was told early on that bypass would be better for me because I had GERD), but lots of people plan on sleeve but then find out that bypass would be more appropriate for them. I went with my surgeon recommended (bypass) - in my case, no way did I want to risk having the GERD get worse (it went away completely with the bypass)

I'm not - although I know it's very common!

we can - although I never eat more than about 1/3 of a banana on any given day because of the sugar.

it seems like the vast majority of post-op patients have that problem. You'll have to experiment with different remedies and combos of remedies to find one that works for you. For the last three months, I've taken Benefiber twice a day, 800 mg of magnesium citrate every day (400 mg in the morning, 400 mg at dinner), and a cupful of Miralax twice a week whether I need it or not. Haven't had any problems since.

some programs are ultra-low carb, others are moderately low carb. The ultra-low people seem to have a limit - like under 40, for example. My program is in the moderate camp. Like the poster above, they never gave me a specific limit, but between all the other requirements I have (Protein, fluids, etc), my carbs are always below 100 - and usually below 80.

I'm eating 800-1000 at six months out - although I'm usually at the higher end of that range. I think 800 would have been a challenge for me at seven weeks out.

I didn't have any restrictions on spicy or acidic foods once I was a few months out. But my sense of taste has become more intense, so spicy things taste spicier now (and sweet things sweeter, etc), so I don't eat as many spicy (or sweet...or salty...) things as I did before.

in the morning I mix a scoop of Upcal D powder into my yogurt (it'll supposedly mix into anything, but the filler is kind of sweet - so it works best in sweeter things like yogurt). During the day, I drop two Calcium citrate tablets into my 16 oz two-scoop (fruit-flavored) Protein shake. I mix fruit flavored Protein Powder with Crystal Light lemonade, so the acid in it makes the calcium tablets dissolve (takes awhile, though - but then I sip on the shake all day long, so it doesn't matter). after dinner, I take a Calcet Creamy Bite or a Bariatric Advantage chew. Both taste like dessert. They're also both kind of expensive, but then, I only take them once a day.

I take my shaker bottle, several individual packets of protein powder, and some protein bars with me when I travel.

I can't speak for others, but personally, I didn't need any. Other than very sore abs, I had no pain after surgery. I didn't use my morphine pump, and whatever it was they sent me home with sat unopened. Although I'm guessing if you're in a lot of pain, they'll give you something - they wouldn't let you sit there and suffer (I hope....). But from reading this board and others, it sounds like most people have very little pain with this - if any.

I was never given a number on calories (just fluids and protein), but it looks like I was averaging 500-600 then

looks like you're about a month out. Call your surgeon's office. Could be a stricture, and if so, you need to get that fixedd. I had one at four weeks and another at eight weeks (haven't had once since...)

I also started lifting about eight weeks out

hi - as you know, I also live in Wisconsin. I looked into this earlier even though I'm only six months out from surgery and have a long way to go. It seems there were a couple of really good ones in the Chicago area, which isn't too, too far....

I went out to a few of my favorite places that last week, but I didn't really "pig out". I kept it to "normal" person portions. But like someone said above, I can eat a lot of the foods again - just in (much) smaller amounts