KarenLR75

Some of you know I was interested in the IF topic but since I'm only 8 weeks out, it is probably not time for me to try to introduce that. As I am a super slow loser and am very metabolically challenged..I tend to opt for a keto based way of eating. Keeping carbs under 20 grams, etc. Keeping fat isolated to much less than the average 'keto WOL' and staying with the healthier fats. I've been stalled at the same weight for 10 days and I have been exercising during this time. Haven't noticed any new change in the way things fit (looking for non-scale victories, etc.)..and before that it took 2 to 3 weeks to lose 2 lbs. Was aiming for 800 calories or less with protein as highest macro followed by fat and then by carbs. When discussing IF on another thread, I posted what my dr recommended and it is based on 800 calories a day with 40% protein, 30% carbs, and 30% fat. I'm so nervous about changing my diet around, increasing carbs, etc. but at this point, I'm so frustrated with my slow losing pace and my stall, that I figure that I might as well try it. I've lost 32 lbs in 8.5 weeks which probably sounds ok to other slow losers but what bothers me is that in basically the last 3 wks of my 8.5 wk journey, I've lost roughly...2 lbs with the past 10 days at a big fat 0. I was ok with just losing 2 lbs a week..but i feel like my weight loss not only started slowing even more in the past several weeks, but it is now trickling to a standstill and I'm only 8 weeks out. I figured I'd see something like this starting maybe in month 4...definitely not month 2. I've tried to stay positive but that it is becoming harder and harder to do so...

Oh my gosh, you have spot-on timing. I'm sitting here working and trying to ignore the ginormous mound of laundry that I piled on top of my kitchen table last night to fold (my laundry room is SO small and for some reason I just don't get how 'normal people' simply fold things as they take them out of the dryer..such craziness! LOL).

Hey MeowAMR! Have been thinking of you. Was also thinking about doing a roll call of all of our fellow July surgery siblings. I actually had surgery 2 days after you (we were in the same week). I had mine on 7/25. Glad to hear the good results you got from upping your carbs. Very happy to hear you've lost 42 lbs, that is awesome! I went and changed my 'target macros' in myfitnesspal. Crossing fingers that this goes well. It would be nice not to be as dizzy as I've been (staying bent over too long is 'not my friend').

Ack...does it always hurt??? I had heard from my doctor's office and others that you will get a buzz more quickly. Um.....ok...if I'm going to feel like h*** the next day, there is no way I'm trying that on the cruise then...

I was a fan of fruity drinks and Long Island Ice Teas. However, as I did keto WOL for so long before surgery, I went to having an occasional diet coke and rum (technically keto friendly), HOWEVER, this was more of a once or twice a month thing before surgery. For me, since I"m only 8 weeks out and I'm in my THIRD stall AND I am a very very very slow loser even sticking to my dr's plan 100%, while I have had brief temptations, I know I'm 1) Not Ready to try this 2) Unsure if I should ever try it 3) Not willing to add something else into the confusing equation of why I am stalled yet again All this being said, I will not lie and say that I feel 100% confident that I will never have another drink. We are going on a Christmas cruise with my 89 year old MIL as she wanted the whole family to be together at Christmas and wanted it to be on a cruise...so we are all going. I have wondered about the possibility of having a drink at this time.. Unfortunately I will be only 5 months out at this time. I wish it was more like 1 year. I'm also unsure if I want to try my 1st drink, if I even do, on a ship with my whole family around...have no idea if it goes awry, how fast I could get to a place of privacy....you know? I have wondered what in the heck I would 'mix' any alcohol with and my eldest pointed out that my Premier Clear Protein Tropical Punch drinks would probably work...I was like "yeah, thanks for pointing that out...and now it is in my head". Only thing I know for sure is that for today, I choose not to drink alcohol.

I second this. It was one of our incredible veterans...like AZHiker, GreenTealael, FluffyChix, Orchids&Dragons (sorry for all of the other super veterans that my mind is blanking on!) that recommended not only Dr. Weiner's youtube videos (which are great) but other wonderful tips as well. I can't remember if we already directed you to it, but when looking for more info and resources such as Dr. Weiner's youtube videos, do a search for a topic FluffyChix started a while ago and read from the start - it is about "The Importance of doing the headwork". Not sure if linking the topic here will work or not but I'll give it a try..lol.

I totally understand! I'd definitely go back on he Omeprazole. Ironically this past week I completely forgot to take it and yesterday I had a different kind of abdominal pain, not horrid, but not happy. I wanted to smack myself in the head when I realized I had slacked off on taking my Omeprazole. Took it when I remembered yesterday and today. So far, so good. I also did notice that I was still eating way too fast when I did eat/drink. Especially if I was once again eating with the TV on or do anything else that led me to mindlessly eat. I was so focused on 'well, I know I can get 2-3 oz's in with no problem'..and went back to old habits...not eating as fast as I used to but eating WAY too fast for a relatively new pouch. I too wondered if my mind was psyching my body out.....I finally went with as many small baby steps as I could. If that meant only taking in 1 bite of something soft and putting it back in the fridge...then trying again 15 to 30 mins later. It was a bit tedious but my pouch and esophagus seemed a bit happier.

About a decade ago, when I had lost what I thought was a good amount of weight, there was an online group (do not remember it) where you could post sizes and pics of clothes you had and them arrange to swap/send to someone else. Usually whomever was receiving the clothes paid for shipping and sometimes if the item was dressy/expensive/with tags, you would work out an acceptable arrangement with that person. Likewise, as I lost weight, I posted my clothes and arranged for new homes. I realize this sounds maybe complicated but it was vastly easy at the time. Perhaps I had more energy? I don't see anything like this these days. I'm not a big FB person but I guess that might be the likeliest place for something like this to be done..especially if it is centered in your own 'local area'... Just thinking/writing out loud, I guess..

Interesting...I had some sort of weird glue stuff going on...lol

I understand! I wanted back in the pool so bad...my weight loss was very very slow. Even with the same pre-op diet of liquids for most ppl on here for 1 to 2 weeks....even considering ppl closer to my age AND my starting weight, I felt like I was failing as I was losing SO SLOWLY...and those I considered closer to my situation were just dropping weight left and right it felt like. I actually set my recovery back by a good week or more simply by working insane hours (78 hours) a few days after surgery. After that, I resolved that I was going to let my body heal..and that in the scheme of things taking it EASIER for a few weeks was not going to cost me the race..it is hard as my family of origin is/was VERY competitive. Once I did get into some of the more lengthy hikes which for us was only increasing by maybe 1/2 a mile...my weight loss did pick up some. Remember that it takes a full 6 to 8 weeks for our bodies to heal and we all heal at different rates. Our bodies are in shock too..at least that is the way I feel. with having our innards rerouted. I know several folks on here who actually literally walked around in their homes (and some still do..) but if they needed to sit/take a break, they could. Some started using resistance bands. Some folks did yoga if the poses didn't impact their abdomen negatively. Once my dr. gave me the 'all clear' after 2 weeks, I was in my pool in a flash but I still had to take into account the heat (will suck a lot out of a person). My family fretted a lot. You are DEFINITELY not alone! Be kind to your body - you will be getting back to where you were very, very soon I would imagine!

OK...for the non-serious answer...I'll start going to the gym when someone knocks me unconscious and drags my body up there (sorry, I have personal issues with the gym I need to resolve). However, ANY physical activity for me....I found that around 3 weeks...I was still shaky...just shopping at a mall, I found myself having to stabilize my balance by grabbing onto the end of clothing racks. At even 5 or 6 weeks though, I started doing small 'day hikes' with my daughter. Didn't get very far the first time or the 2nd, 3rd, etc. but it is still hotter than Hades here and that impacts my ability to breathe as I have scarred lungs but it felt SO good to move..to be doing something and I NEVER in my wildest dreams imagined that I..would HIKE..wiillingly..anywhere..LOL...so I guess going to a gym may also be in my future..LOL!! I try to ensure we do these things (major or even minor physical activity) on days when I know I'm well hydrated and have gotten a good dose of protein in as when I miss on either of these things, I can have some dizzy spells. Oh, and NOT going when my abdomen has not been cramping. Made a HUGE mistake going on one hike when my stomach was saying NO. The mini-backpack we take now has a small medicine cabinet. We also make sure phones are charged because if either of us was to encounter extreme physical distress, we would absolutely not be able to get the other out so we have to be prepared to call for help...and I pray we never have to do so....

OMG, I almost said it was on a forum having to do with Atkins! Too funny! Thanks for the reminder about ebay! I get worried I won't get the stuff shipped out on time but I need to get past that.

Thank you! My recommendation "make them hear you" I think if you felt that your concerns were being given due consideration, that some of your own fears would be lightened. That's just a guess...I only 'play doctor' in my own house to much eye rolling from my family...LOL I also understand that many WLS staff have seen a zillion of us so sometimes maybe when we feel we're being given a rote answer....they are doing so out of habit and are not intentionally 'not hearing us' but my gut usually has me trying to ensure that I'm heard...cuz this is a big dang step so I need them to hear "Karen"..not patient 'XYZ" At the end of the day, usually no one can advocate as well as we individually can

I was..oh gosh..3 weeks out or less...when I started feeling what felt like an abnormal 'restriction kick in'. Now I had RNY but I'm going to share my situation in case it helps. I could have drank NOTHING at all and sipped on 2 oz's of water and my chest would hurt and my pouch or whatever I was feeling felt like it went on lock down. I had periods of almost agonizing discomfort. I ended up getting dehydrated and got sent to the hospital just for the day to get hydrated with an IV. Felt so much better. A week later..maybe more..same thing. Couldn't get water in. Tried protein shake and 2 oz's made me feel like I had filled my pouch with a gallon or more (hyperbole). Finally dr. sent me to hospital and made me drink this awful soapy crud..and they scanned my esophagus, pouch and lower intestines. Appeared everything was ok but I was so uncomfortable..to the point of pain. Happened again and was admitted to hospital this time but during the scan the dr did catch my esophagus spasming - not every time but often enough, but they figure this was contributing to my situation. I was miserable at this hospital as I was in horrific pain and they felt IV tramadol was the solution. I couldn't wait to go back home. I don't have this situation happen as often as it did back then, but when it happens, I stay home and curl into a ball and just try to live through it. Most people that have spasms aren't in this much pain but since I've been looked at twice and scanned twice, I've given up on going to hospital/ER for answers (and that includes my dr too - he is a good surgeon but at last hospital I was told "I've done over 1000 (maybe he said 10K) of these and never had a person have this issue." I didn't know what to say except "well, guess I'm your 1st as I'm not making my own esophagus spasm". Sheesh. If it becomes bothersome enough or interferes enough with you being able to take in what you need..maybe ask for a scan? Lord knows I haven't reached the ideal answer but I'm hoping you'll have better luck than I did. Oh, I did forget one thing, the dr that did the scan sent me home with a RX for Hyoscyamine? I have taken it when extreme distress but am not quite sure how much it does for my 'gut' vs esophagus....

If I start hitting Day 3 and I had been eating actual food (am almost 8 weeks out but have days when my pouch was irritated so went back to a soft/pureed stage), I will try a stool softener but definitely by day 3 or 4, I'm taking MOM. This was approved by my doctor. I just had to take something this morning...sigh...

One main thing I personally think is INCREDIBLY important and I think almost all of us have encountered that...and that is telling a doctor, medical professional, nurse, or what have you.....that we have a concern and when we get a reply like 'you'll do better after XYZ', is that sometimes I feel like I'm either not being heard or that my fears are being glossed over. And then, I'd get even more worried or stressed as I sometimes feel I was being 'pacified' not answered. Sometimes this was true, sometimes it was not. Whether it is something as major as this surgery or maybe something not as big, I remind myself that despite the "relationship" of dr to patient, therapist to patient, etc. is that I am the client. With this surgery and all of my concerns at one point when I did not feel I was being heard, I kindly and patiently pushed the issue. Everything was then resolved to the happiness of everyone. And everyone has their own individual level of what it takes for them to feel heard. For many this could be simply hearing them say "you'll do better after surgery". For me, that would not be enough but the IMPORTANT CRITICAL thing is if it is enough for you. If it is, that is great! As you can see, you will get much support here whether you have the surgery tomorrow or a year from now. I wish you nothing but the best!

Excellent job! You look fantastic! We are July "surgery siblings".

I personally feel that getting a GOOD therapist/counselor that works with people that have food addictions is critical. You have done the 'first step' as the 12 step programs say and have admitted you have an addiction. This is ONLY my opinion, but when I had that same mindset that you openly and honestly admitted (and kudos for that!), I KNEW I was not yet ready for bariatric surgery no matter how many doctors in the past decade urged me to do it immediately. I also knew from long ago experiences with other addictions that I could "intentionally" make someone believe I'm ready OR..that someone, likely a counselor/therapist may pass me off as 'ready'..but I would not be. Postponing surgery while you work on your journey is NOT giving up. In the end, I hope whatever decision is made, that you are at peace with it. We will all encourage you. Delaying does not mean NEVER. And am not sure how soon your surgery is slated for...if it is months away, you have time to get a little extra help.. This is different than just the normal fear of failure. I was NOT ready to give up my addiction until 7 or 8 months ago and that was after looking into overall..honestly it was 5 years with 3 of those spent on this board in silent mode. People with addictions all have different 'bottoms' and for some ppl, they don't require hitting bottom. in order to realize that they were finally ready to do WHATEVER it took. Unfortunately, I was a stubborn/stuck in and loving and hating my addiction. Could you have surgery even with how you are feeling and have some measure of success...well, there are ppl here who did. I feel like though...it would be what I call 'white knuckle' recovery. This journey is amazing but it can also be very hard, especially the first 3 to 6 months. I do know that an overwhelming huge majority ALL wish they had done it sooner. I am in that number. However, for whatever reason, I was not ready. This also does NOT mean you cannot become ready faster than my stubborn self did! Seek out someone that works with food addictions, WLS and they are good at it. Find a great person who helps you challenge and overcome your current feelings of not being ready..and when you are ready, they will help you know that you are.

I completely blanked on this....I literally am having a hard time remembering things lately..to the point it is a bit embarrassing. Ironically, when they told me to start on real foods, P3's were mentioned and while I had a huge adverse reaction to scrambled eggs in the soft food phase, one of the easiest things for me to eat and keep down out of the P3 packs were actually the nuts! It is SO weird how different everyone's experience with certain foods can be. I literally sometimes gag when I'm eating lunch meat type items..and even cheese..I start to get nauseated after eating about 3 or 4 cubes..but the nuts..no nausea, no vomiting, no pain. Often I leave a few chunks of both meat and cheese uneaten in my P3 packs. I did keep to soft food phase today though. Nothing sounds good but my stomach is letting me know..my pouch...that it would like something more than 1/2 a protein shake. I'm out of cottage cheese but am grabbing a carbmaster yogurt. Thanks for your continued input. Truly didn't mean to disregard your wise advice. I think my brain is clogged sometimes I'll give my dr's plan a try - the carbs are definitely all what I call 'low glycemic impact ones' and I have at times during my intense 15 months of keto (I say intense as I was continually keeping carbs under 20 grams), sometimes when I'd stall, eaten/added some healthy carbs for a day...and then the scale would move again.

Both yesterday and today have been surprisingly ROUGH at getting food in 'real food', not protein shakes. After the huge and extremely painful episode of vomiting yesterday, I finally ended up grazing on a protein pack with sunflower seeds, jerky, and peanuts over the course of 3 hrs to get my calories and protein 'upped'. I tried protein shake in PM and my pouch was having NONE of it. Protein shake in AM went down fine. Fiber is not subtracted from carb amounts below but I know I stayed under my goal: TODAY has been a hot mess...and I had been coming out of that 'post op phase' and eating regular food all last week...I have no idea why the difficulty out of the blue yesterday and today. WHY in the world is it showing a calorie goal of OVER 1000 calories for TODAY?? I have 750 as my daily target goal! All of the other numbers for today are 'skewed' as well...I don't get it..I haven't even hit 400 calories today...I'm definitely not going to nor do I want to hit 1000 cals. i guess I don't understand how myfitness pal works?

@FluffyChix - here are the macros from my dr's office (he has on staff nutritionist). I'm unsure how I feel about the 30% from carbs. I seem to lose better at the 700 or less range but I think they are pushing a bit for me to go higher instead which baffles me. I am tracking in MyFitness Pal (just started this week - previously I was logging in a spreadsheet): Track your intake in MyFitness Pal and aim for about 800 calories with 40% of total calories from protein, 30% from fat, and 30% from carbohydrates this should help increase your rate of weight loss Here is what I put in fitnesspal as my goals (they don't line up with dr office info, I would have to lower fat and the fat I have in my diet are the healthier fats...and I don't hit the goal often. I'd have to increase carbs to THIRTY PERCENT! ACK. I'm ok with taking fat amount down as there is no way I currently get even that much 'good fat' in my diet. I agree with my doctor on % of protein - 40%. Where the heck do you set a goal/limit for sugar grams? While I don't consume processed or regular sugar..there are sugar grams in some items although I try to keep them limited as popsicle. WHY WHY WHY do the outshine 'no sugar added' popsicles have to taste so good!!?? I've never been a popsicle eater until after surgery....they have SIX GRAMS OF CARBS EACH. I about passed out...my prior weeks have been so limited in calories that having 1 or 2 didn't impact me but I think they might be now.... I'm going to start making my own frozen popsicles..probably from the 1 million bottles of the Clear Premier Protein drink - tropical punch...or crystal light popsicles...I DO truly love the outshine popsicles (no sugar added) and I can deal with the sugar grams from them but not the SIX grams of carbs EACH.

Thanks for responding, Fluffy, especially with such a well-thought out post. I understand now that I may be 'too early' in the process. I'm such a slow loser and am hitting multiple stalls...that I was looking for anything I could do that would help. I have started tracking my food/water/liquids intake in the myfitness tool now that I was given macros by my dr's office but their plan has me consuming more carbs than I am comfortable with as I'm a big keto devotee and I lose better when I keep carbs low as a general rule. I did 'Atkin's' way back in the day and lost 80 lbs and kept it off for a decade. I restarted a keto WOL 15 months before having surgery as this way of eating helps my body feel better. Now I'm wondering should I follow dr's plan & not attempt to modify to be lower carb...unsure if only being 2 mos post op if my body would prefer that...but having had this body for a number of yrs (lol), I have such a difficult time losing weight...period. Usually it comes off much faster when I keep carbs below 20 ideally...or 30 for a stretch. Below is your list and I just wanted to put my responses in but I get what you are saying about it being too early for me to do IF. I'm hoping some of the things on your list that I'm already doing will have me better prepared should I go down the IF route later in this process: 1. FOLLOW your doc's and RD's plan for you and the stage you're eating at. You MUST be able to easily get the required protein in per day that they prescribe for you. And the amount of fluids you're told to consume. 2. Follow the rules of WLS. No eating drinking 15/30 or 30/30 depending your doc's plan. 3. Get ALL of your daily Vitamins in without skipping a single dose. I've been fortunate that I haven't had an issue with this even directly after surgery 4. Get to walking. And maybe even get to doing core strengthening exercises. Started hiking with youngest daughter several weeks ago. We've been consistent to this day. We currently do 2 x's a week and are looking to increase this but waiting for temperatures to cool down so we can do so..I also swim in my pool a couple times a week. 5. Protein first at every meal/snack >> al dente veggies >> a tiny bit of healthy fats (and that's it). Protein always first, especially since I'm only 2 mos post-op. If protein goes down ok, then I eat whatever veggie if i have one. 6. Cut out ALL C.R.A.P. (google it)--that means no sugar, grains, starchy root veg, starches, refined products, fake stuff, "treats" such as Protein Bars or Water drops. Severely limit the use of sugar substitutes. Did this 17 mos ago when I embraced keto WOL although I never believed in enormous intake of fat so my version had fats limited to ones that are healthier. I tended during this time to stay away from protein bars but if in a desperate pinch as I had a bad habit of not eating regularly (working so much I'd forget to eat, etc.) I might have one. I was a big user of artificial sweeteners during this period although I kept an eye on the research about them possibly causing hunger and many other things about them. Currently my limitation is 2 to 3 packets of splenda (or another fake sugar) a day in my post-op world. 7. Start drinking green tea now (I use decaff) and look into Earl Grey Tea. Ironically I just got a tea brew bottle and a pack of..I think it is green tea in a subscription box that I get. 8. Try to keep your carbs to <30g net per day (subtract Fiber grams of carbs from the total carb count to get net carbs. Yes, I'm a big believer in this! Trying to figure out how to fight myfitness pal as it does not have food listed in its DB, from what little I've seen, with net carb count. I may have to hand add all my stuff 9. No "snacking". Eat 3 meals + 1-3 small mini meals per day in order to limit meal portions to the volume recommended by your doctor and to reach your protein totals each day. A mini meal is an organized, orderly, planned event. Snacking is not. Snacking is hedonistic and reckless and it's possible to do a lot of damage with a single snack event. Since I'm 2 months post-op..this is usually covered although I am not yet this structured as I'm still having occasional issues at mealtime. My mini-meals are not yet planned, thought out events. Well, it's more like I know I will have a carbmaster yogurt in between my breakfast premier protein shake and my next 'meal' which is always an intake of real protein (i.e. meat that I can tolerate and is not a fatty meat). I also will parse out 7 almonds, etc. I think where I'm at is more like 'practicing for where I need to be'? I DID find myself recently..and it is always late at night as often don't eat my 1st meal of the day until almost 11 AM...going to get sugar free jello, sugar free popsicles but I was NOT hungry. It is old habits trying to creep back in. Was really upset that I started to 'go there'..this is a very slippery slope for me! 10. Aim to get 2-3oz of protein per meal (lean dense protein, no casseroles, no deeply satisfying gooey cheesy high reward meals. Keep is simple: grilled chicken, sauteed chicken, poached or sauteed fish, etc. No meat lube or stuff that adds to the pleasure of the food experience. My protein meals are much like what you said. Haven't had a casserole yet...wait, I did. It was shredded chicken I made in crockpot with chicken broth,fat free cream cheese and salsa..but no cheese involved. It is one of the few ways I can get 'moist' chicken. The macros do fit into my keto version including keeping the fat down more than most keto plans.

Glad you mentioned that...when I finally stood up and looked in the mirror, my face looked..reddish-purple...I was actually worried I had burst some blood vessels. I am SO relieved someone else has gone through this!!!!!!!!!

Ironically I work in the software development field and am usually working with ERP & warehouse systems, especially those used by grocery stores - although right now we are selling more in Europe. Just finished testing an enhancement to allow picks to grocery store 'grid patterns'. I actually love supply chain logistics..it is fascinating My family rolls their eyes as I get so excited when I pass a huge warehouse and am busily trying to count the # of dock doors they have...and don't get me started on my passion for barcoding. I think my family plans to put me away some day...but I truly love what I do.

Ditto what AZHiker said. I'm back on keto with exception of fat %. I use vinaigrettes for salads and some salad dressings that straddle line between low carb and low fat. I use spray butter instead of butter, avocado mayo mixed with low fat mayo or greek yogurt and I use sparingly. Instead of full fat heavy cream, I opt for a splash fat free 1/2 and 1/2 )or vanilla protein drink). On rare occasions if overall carbs are low, I will use 1 TBSP of heavy cream in something but that is rare. I use fat free cream cheese, etc. - I think you get the picture. On top of this, since my calories are between 700-800 a day I still can be in ketosis sometimes partly from lower calories & part from low carbs. I notice when I stick to this, I lose weight faster. If I do some of the 'low glycemic carbs' like oatmeal, sweet baked potato, beans, I notice slow down in loss but I've had these items sparingly.. My surgeon is a keto fan after full healing when he lets his us start eating "regular food" . On the ongoing nutrition plan I just received, they had the macros as follows: 800 calories with 40% of total calories from protein, 30% from fat, and 30% from carbohydrates this should help increase your rate of weight loss. I can understand 800 cals & biggest % being protein but I was a bit surprised by 30% from fat part although I know they mean healthy kinds of fat like avocado, etc. Here is what plan says about fat: Limit fats to 2-3 servings a day; avoid unhealthy fats such as cream, lard, butter. 1 serving of fat should = 5g fat. Some examples include: 1 tsp. oil, 1 Tbsp. regular salad dressing, 2 Tbsp. reduced-fat salad dressings, 1/8 avocado, 6 almonds, 1 Tbsp. peanut butter. In looking at sample meal plans, I will revise it for me by removing some of the bigger carbs that the list has like once a day having oatmeal or 1 pc whole wheat toast as I need to keep overall carbs down to lose more quickly.