Naughty Glitter Goddess

I'll be here ASAP!

Yes, Matt! It was based on several posts I've seen from you that I decided to order the scale for tracking fat loss. Thank you for that!

I have surgery tomorrow and started working on losing weight with the keto diet in early June. I'm down about 35 lbs. My doctor's preop diet was 3 weeks and very lenient, basically low calorie, low fat. In the first week of sticking closely to that diet including portion sizes, I gained 4 lbs. They told me to go back to keto since it was working for me! Anyway, my liquid diet was just yesterday and today but I'm down 6 lbs this week total. (keto Fri, Sat, Sun; liquid Mon Tues) In my experience with liquid diets in the past, there is in initial big drop the first week then more slowly after that. I think you could reasonably expect some good progress this week. Good luck to you! Such an exciting time for all of us!

I'm one day preop but I've read that so many people have stalled early on so I'm anticipating that happening to me. Good job on doing measurements - seeing that progress has got to be so hopeful when the scale is looking a bit disappointing. I'm also considering getting a scale that measures body fat based on some other poster's recommendations. I bet even when the scale doesn't change, your body fat is dropping. Exciting times!

It is so cool to read about how quickly some of the non-scale victories can be achieved! I'm not on a lot of meds right now but borderline with everything (diabetes, cholesterol, heart disease, etc) It so amazing that this surgery can change your life so much in such a short time. A couple of weeks of discomfort for a lifetime of wellness - I'll take that bet! Surgery in 2 days - was feeling nervous yesterday, now I can't wait!

LOL, I've been in this thread for 20 minutes, taking notes. Looking good, people!

Every time I work on losing weight I hit stalls. I can totally relate to that frustration. Something that really helped me was a conversation with my nutritionist about what is happening in your body during a plateau. As you lose weight, regardless of how, your metabolism is working to readjust itself and adapt to the new normal. Your hormones are regulating, your body is working to hang onto fat and muscle, your kidneys are making adjustments to regulating your water retention in this new environment and basically everything is in an uproar. In a good way! Also, the way fat cells react during weight loss has been discussed in a few other threads in more detail but basically they can hold on to quite a bit of water as you are losing fat. Eventually the water will be released and your scale will reflect that number. So now, when I hit a stall, I imagine the inside of my body, still working on the weight loss, but just doing something that doesn't reflect on the scale. It's hard at work making you small from the inside out so we've just got to let it remodel the infrastructure for a few days before the weight starts to drop again. Good luck - it's definitely a mental game!

What process do you use for measuring body fat at home?

I like the Trader Joe's chewable multivitamins. All their supplements are well priced. I buy my sublingual B12 from them as well. I do take a separate iron supplement as my program recommends. I bought the Barimelts brand which is fairly reasonably priced. My understanding is that down the road, I'll be able to switch to a small tablet which is much less expensive than chewables. Has anyone had good luck getting vitamins/supplements covered by insurance post op?

Thank you all for these threads about hair loss, even though I'm preop, I've worried about it a little bit. I'm glad to have the information so I can be prepared. I've always had thick, full, wavy hair that has thinned slightly at the start of menopause. Hoping this next adventure leaves it alone. Anyway, it's great to hear that the loss is usually temporary. What a relief!

I hope it went really well and you're right on track with your recovery. Good luck!

How soon after surgery were you able to tolerate the heat? I love hot drinks, my fall and winter will be ruined without them

I love seeing posts like this, congratulations!

There are two unflavored protein powders that I really like. The Bariatricpal Protein One and Genepro work really well for me primarily because they blend in quickly and easily. There is definitely a flavor which I ususally mask easily in a soup or broth. But the BEST way to mask the flavor in my limited experience is to mix the protein powder with water in the blender, then add ice, your sweetener of choice and then 1/2 of a Kool Aid packet (the tiny packets that you would usually mix with sugar) They taste just like a Kool Aid slushy! For a slightly different consistency, I've even added a couple tablespoons of sugar free Jello powder instead of Kool Aid and sweetener. My husband blended up a couple of these ahead of time and tossed them in the freezer - those are fantastic after a nice outdoor swim in this heat!

I'm 5 days away from surgery and have been on my very lenient pre-op diet for weeks. I don't think most of my favorites would be that helpful for the group but there is one liquid item I've used in the evenings to curb cravings and keep me from thinking about snacking. It's Millie's sipping broth. I know they sell it in the Baripal store but I purchase mine on Amazon. I really enjoyed the curry spice flavor and spicy tortilla. It's basically a teabag you steep in hot water to make a flavorful clear broth. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it - a much needed bit of savory in between all the protein shakes, etc.

It must be really difficult to adjust your salad dressings to savory if you are used to and prefer sweet ones! I'm not sure how interested you are in making your own honey mustard dressing but a low fat one is super easy. I just eyeball it but approximate measurements are: 1/4 c greek yogurt + 2T dijon mustard + 2T honey, add black pepper or cayenne to taste, thin with lemon juice if too thick this has a decent amount of sugar from the honey so if you want it to be low carb you'll have to swap out that luscious honey for an alternate sweetener or a sugar free honey substitute like Nature's Hollow or Pyure I'm sure you could find a thousand island dressing recipe if you have time to get experimental in the kitchen. It's not something I've tried before.

Thank you - I'll check it out. Looking forward to coming out on the other side.

Thank you for this! While I am very committed to this massive life change, I'm also in the pre-surgery jitters stage. 5 more days! So, my anxious litte brain is fixating on any and all of the worries and complications associated with bariatric surgery. Nice to read some positive stats while in this frame of mind. Obviously, I have all the evidence I need that this is a great choice for me and lots of others (hello message boards). But, whew! I underestimated this anxiety in the home stretch. I think it's less about the actual surgery than is it about the fact that I absolutely hate being touched by strangers and especially in a medical setting. I'm also horrible about speaking up for myself because I'm trying to be the perfect patient. Therapy topic for this week perhaps?

Haha, better watch out for HR dropping your panties at work like that. I'm looking forward to needing new bras after shrinking these ladies down!

Hi everyone! I'm getting a little nervous/excited now. My pre-op appointment is tomorrow 8/7, surgery scheduled for 8/15. Now that most of my checklist is done, I have more free time to worry. Thank you guys for coming back on this thread to update us on how you're feeling after surgery. I feel better with every update I read. Anyone scheduled for 8/15?

Christ on a cracker! I'm having gastric bypass surgery in 2 weeks after going through a 6 month weight loss program. Damn, I never thought I'd find myself here. I mean WTF? I am having my entire guts rearranged just to get my weight under control. Sometimes it just seems ridiculous. So, grizzled veterans, what's the run down on your coping strategies? Do not tell me that you discovered a new-found love of exercise and that you just *like* go for a run when you are stressed and tired. For real, what are you doing? I mean, we go to all these classes and dredge up all our bullshit so ALL THE THINGS are simmering just under the surface and then our coping mechanism is ripped out from under us at the same time. I feel like a battered and bruised ball of sensitivity after talking about and trying to deal with self image, denial, abuse, etc. Then, the one thing that has always been reliable, has always worked for me (temporarily!) is not the thing anymore. The glass of wine, the pint of ice cream, the latte and scone with your BFF, the lasagna at mom's, BUH-BYE! I don't want to make it sound like I'm not doing the work; this is the first time in ages I've looked forward to the upcoming year. I've worked hard at breaking some of my worst habits: Fast food, eating in front of the TV, snacking after the kids go to bed - THE WORST ONE - checkity check! I've even lost 20 lbs because I'm fk-ing serious about this. But, damn, what now? I can't help but wonder...will I ever find my healthy coping mechanisms?

I'm in pre-op right now, my surgery is in 12 days. I did a trial period of my assigned pre-op diet about 2 months ago and it did not work for me, like, at all. I gained 2 lbs the first week and 3 lbs the second week. It was not a liquid diet; it was low calorie and low fat. I talked to my weight management nutritionist and she went ahead and approved some changes to it. I stopped all dairy, all sugar (including fruit), increased the healthy fats and protein and increased my exercise. It's working much better for me. I'd suggest you get in contact with your nutritionist to see if they can help you adjust your plan. I was really happy that I did.

That sounds really good - I'll be saving that idea for later. Nothing like sheer desperation to help you come up with new ideas, haha!

This entire thing, Dale. Seriously, thank you. I needed to hear all of that.

Man, you hit the nail on the head here. I did make a list of all the things that my weight was keeping me from enjoying back at the begining of this process several months ago. I'm going to revisit that tonight and hopefully brainstorm some things I can do as I'm recovering. My biggest goal is getting back to my travels - I haven't been overseas in ages because of airline seats. I can't wait to get back to it. I may actually get started planning that first trip for a year or two from now