etc. etc. etc.

I lost 26 on the pre-op diet, then 60 since then. I've had a good experience so far. I've had good results, I know. But there's still so much left to get through. I'm now "only" as fat as I was 10 years ago... when I was also fat... and also needed to lose a bunch of weight. Still a long way to go...

How is everybody doing in terms of loose skin? I've been pleased so far that even at a greatly reduced size, my belly isn't sagging. It has some positively amazing stretch marks, but no sag yet. There's a little bit of loose skin at the top of my arms, nothing hanging, but a slight sort of web of loose skin underneath/between my shoulder and upper arm. And my thighs--which were reasonably firm even when I was pretty big--are like ziploc bags full of jelly. That's a little weird and I hope that firms up some. I guess it's early, so I have to wait and see.

So maybe a day or so after I said here that none of the jerks I work with had noticed I was losing weight, someone finally said something. A co-worker said, "You've really been losing a lot of weight! You look great!" I just thanked her for the kind word and went on about my day. So I guess even when people do notice, you don't have to tell them much of anything. Just say something bland but appreciative and walk away.

The Protein Water is good though. I swear by that stuff. Coconut and Mixed Berry are my favorite flavors. I also like FairLife skim milk, which has twice the protein and fewer carbs than regular skim milk. A glass of that is also good for relieving hunger pangs between meals.

GenePro is a little controversial in the bariatric community. Some people swear by it. But they've been sued as a scam, too. All I'll say is that they say you get 30g of protein out of a single tablespoon. And a tablespoon is 12.5 grams. They say they have reasons why that makes sense and maybe they do, but it sure makes you wonder.

I let myself have treats but only when I've sort of budgeted for them. Yesterday, I had a low-cal, high protein mini-quiche (some Special K thing) for breakfast, a Starkist Tuna Creations packet for lunch, boiled chicken (left over from my wife making soup) with a little barbecue sauce and some bell peppers for dinner, and a bottle of Protein2O as my only caloric beverage. I was good on protein and very, very low on carbs and calories. So then I had a fun size Baby Ruth from my kid's Halloween candy, a glass of wine, and even a bit of Halo Top ice cream. I still came in at 950 calories and only 50 carbs for the day. Basically, I go as restrictive and low as I can sometimes to allow myself some slack later in the day for a tiny treat or two.

I told very few people and really, it's worked out fine. Many people who know you casually will amaze you by their ability not to notice something huge like you dropping fifty pounds. Other people might say something like, "Did you lose some weight?" but can be batted away easily by something vague like, "Eh, maybe. I also bought some pants that fit better." I've lost like 25% of my body weight and most of the morons in my office have never noticed.

My doctor didn't forbid me from alcohol, but he did forbid me from anything carbonated, which he said can apply pressure onto my sleeve and cause stretching or even a tear. So no beer or sparkling wine or mixers like soda or tonic for me. I have had wine every now and then. I feel the effects much faster than I ever did before, but it still wears off at a normal pace. I don't think I'd ever want to drink if I had to drive later that day, but I can have a glass of wine here and there. The tricky part is just fitting in that kind of empty calories. It's hard enough to get protein in with burning 130 calories on something like wine.

I was sleeved on 8/18. I've been walking 2-6 hours a week (depending on weather and what I have time for during my lunch breaks) and being fairly strict about staying within recommended limits on calories, carbs, and protein. I've lost 50 since the surgery. I'm getting impatient though, because the weight is coming off in fits and spurts lately, rather than ticking down smoothly. I also wish I could go to the bathroom like a normal person, instead of getting so constipated it hurts or having to take a suppository or something. I'm pretty frigging sick of tuna fish and protein shakes.

Clif bars taste pretty decent, but they do look like someone chewed them once already right before they went into the package. Pretty high in carbs, too. Though, if I remember correctly, you're vegetarian, so I gather you have to approach the carbs/protein thing very differently than I do.

Keep in mind that not only do we have different surgery dates, a lot of us include the weight we lost through the pre-op diet when talking about our weight loss, because it's the total number that's the most satisfying to say. It can make the numbers seem to track weirdly. I've lost 78.8 pounds, but that's total. Since the surgery in the middle of August (2 1/2 months ago), I've lost 52.4 pounds. At the two month mark, I'd lost 43.8 pounds. And 43.8 pounds is not that much higher than 35. Plus, there are adjustments for gender, height, total start weight, etc. None of this is apples to apples. Don't beat yourself up comparing yourself to other people. You'rte doing great.

The one thing that truly nauseates me since surgery is cigarette smoke, which never bothered me before. My wife smokes, too, so this has been a struggle. On the positive side, when I started this, I got her to promise that if I get below 200, she would quit. I think she only agreed because she thought I'd never pull it off. But now it looks like as early as February, she may have to give 'em up.

I used to love pasta but I don't think I care if I ever eat it again. It's so much work to avoid carbs and eat enough protein that the idea of eating a pile of carbs with zero protein... not for me. Are you all having foods you used to love but don't think you want anymore?

I'm so anxious now because some time in the next month or two, my weight loss should go from "looking better" to "looking GOOD." I think by my anniversary in April, I should be well below 200 pounds... I weighed 220 when I met my wife and I've only gone up from there. She's loved me at every size (thank goodness) but I think she's as curious what I would look like below 200 as I am.

My wife and kid are both ice cream addicts. I bought a small container of Halo Top Sea Salt Caramel and when they have full on fat/sugar ice cream, I have a little of that. It let's me feel like I'm not being left out, but has way less calories, carbs, sugar, etc. And it's pretty good. Even that stuff, I only have maybe once a week, but it's a nice treat.

This is something sort of funny you guys may appreciate... I think one of the reasons my co-workers may not have noticed I'm eating so differently is because I bring in sweets semi-regularly these days. The thing is, I don't do it to be nice, I do it to get junk food the #$%@ out of my house. Neighbor sends a plate of cookies? Take 'em to work, get 'em out of my face. Brother sends us some fancy caramel corn as a thank you? Caramel corn for the office. And of course I eat none of it.

I can eat around 4-5 ounces per meal now without too much difficulty. It depends on the food. If I go too far, I have found I get a little warning, where my body sort of tells me I am entirely full and need to stop right away. I don't mean I eat until I'm nauseous or in pain, because I don't. But I do get a little shift in my stomach that happens when I need to knock it off. If I do, no harm, no foul. If I do not and I try and have one or two more bites, I'll end up on the couch holding my belly. I've never pushed it further than that though, as I don't want to end up puking.

Part of me wants to say, "I can eat anything," but really the truth is, "I have been able to eat everything I have chosen to try so far." I've been mostly careful and kinda nervous in sticking to the rules.I have not eaten anything fried. No treats made of real sugar. Very few forms of bread, and mostly just minimal amounts of lower carb bread. And I have not yet tried salads, no. We had ribeyes for dinner last night. (Well, I had a small segment of a ribeye, personally. And some sliced tomatoes.) There's a piece left over I think I may put onto a salad tonight.

I've lost 69 pounds overall (including the pre-op diet) and 40.6 since being sleeved on 8/18. I'm pretty happy with the overall results, and more and more people are starting to notice. That said, I was relying on glycerine suppositories to be able to poop for the first six or seven weeks, but since then they don't seem to do much. I had a cup of coffee the other day and that helped, but I'm not really interested in bringing back my caffeine habit. I have a whole list of incremental goals... the next one comes when I get below 261, which would be when I'd cross the line from severely obese to obese, according to some charts. The pants I am wearing today are 10 inches smaller in the waist than the ones I wore to the hospital on the day of my surgery.

No matter how much guidance I got from my NUT and my surgeon, it never feels like enough advice on how much to eat. What numbers do you try to stay at for calories, carbs, protein, etc.? I've been trying to stay between 750-900 calories, less than 60 carbs, and 90 or more carbs per day. Lately, I feel like maybe I could go a bit higher on calories. How about you?

Protein20 drinks really help me out. 0-4 carbs, 60-70 calories, and 15 grams of protein in drink not too different from Propel in style and taste. I also love FairLife skim milk, which has twice the protein of regular milk. 8 ounces of that mid day helps with hunger, too.

There is also a company called Core Power that makes shakes. The regular ones they have in groceries have a bunch of carbs/sugar, so they're not ideal. But they have another line called Core Power Elite and sometimes I see those at convenience stores. Those have 42 grams of protein and lower carbs. They're not bad and it's a great way to get a headstart on my protein for the day.

What are the foods and beverages you depend on to make sure you're staying on plan, getting your fluids, getting your proteins, keeping your calories down, etc>? Two things I depend on: Protein20 waters: these are flavored, 60-70 calorie waters/drinks that each contain 15 grams of protein, Adding one to two of these a day has made it much easier for me to get my recommended daily protein in. Basically they take a lot like Propel waters, though you can pick up on the presence of something extra. Not all of the flavors are awesome, but I do really like the coconut water one. I'm okay with the mixed berry and lemonade, too. The grape didn't agree with me and the wild cherry tastes good but has 4 carbs, which is more than I want to use on a beverage. Starkist Tuna Creations - these are those little pouches of tuna salad with seasoning. They're 70-100 calories, less than 1 gram of carbs, and have 15-18 grams of protein each. They're a good way to get some protein into your day without using anything beyond the minimum for carbs and calories. It saves me some wiggle room to eat something a bit more substantial for another meal that day.

This morning, I was weighing myself and my eight year old jumped on my back. Together, we still weighed less than I did when I started! It's going slower than it was at first (3.5 - 4 lbs. per week) but I'm still pretty happy.

Do any of you get nauseous from your vitamins? I'm on the three part Bariatric Advantage vitamins my doctor's office recommended (Orange chewable multi 2x a day, caramel calcium citrate chew 3x a day, passionfruit chewable iron 1x a day). I had no problem with them at all the first 3 weeks. Now, all of a sudden, if I try to take them before my meal, I get violently ill, like heaving and tremendous pain. I did the obvious thing after this happened a couple of times and started making sure I take them with something on my stomach. I don't get nauseous that way, but I do get queasy. And overall, they've gone from no problem at all to something gross that I dread.