2Bsmaller18

This might be a dumb question. I’m wondering when we have the honeymoon why does it end? Is it because we are at a stable weight near our body’s ideal for awhile or is it because our body becomes more efficient at absorbing calories (for bypass). Is it because we can eat more or we start to feel hunger or a combination of things? Could it also be just the nature of getting older and our metabolism naturally slowing a bit?

I can see not going overboard but I think the first 6 months is important for forming habits. I backed off on the amount of weight I lifted, rode the bike or treadmill at a slower pace etc.

My first one was horrible, heavy and cramps. I thought I would need to get a transfusion after. Make sure you are eating foods with high iron to compensate. I used a warm compress for cramps. The next few months were heavier but not as bad and now at 8 months it is almost back to my normal.

I would call the after hours emergency number but I would guess they will tell you to go to the ER.

It is a mental game for sure. I was freaking out in August since I was already at goal and still consistently losing. I felt I had no control and at that rate would be 110 lbs. by October. I increased calories and volume as much as I could and the weight loss eventually slowed but still felt like I didn't have control of it. Sure enough as many of you said it would slow down. I think I have lost 1-2 pounds over the past 6-8 weeks but on some days I have gained a pound back so I guess I am officially maintaining at 126.5-128lbs. I am now at 1500 calories consistently and can sometimes eat 3/4 of a cup of food (if it's soft, or slider type) at a sitting. I can now eat and egg with some veggies, yogurt or RX bar in less than 5 minutes and finish a protein shake in 15-20 if i am in a hurry if I haven't eaten in the 1-2 hours before so it has definitely improved. I have now seen 2 plastic surgeons to discuss arm and tummy skin issues for a spring surgery. Both have said (at 5'2.5 in and 127lb.) that I don't have anymore fat I could lose. They both made comments about how thin I am (that sounds crazy to me because I would NEVER consider myself thin) and both said I am just skin and muscle. I thought I had some fat in the love handle area but the PS said it's just skin. So now the decision I have is to try and stay at 127lbs. or do I let myself slip down a few more pounds assuming I will have the 10 lb. regain everyone talks about or should I purposely try to gain a few pounds for my ideal weight. If I could set the scale for the future for a consistent weight for the rest of my life I would actually like to be 5-7 lb and maybe even 10 lb. heavier. At that weight a few months ago I felt I looked good and didn't have as much saggy skin. I would anticipate I would be losing 2-3 pounds of skin in the spring for surgery as well so i need to account for that.

I had to break the chewable one into a few pieces, purposely put the pieces at the back of my mouth and grind them up, take a swig of water and try to swallow without tasting it. Then I immediately brushed my teeth. I stated on Procare ones to swallow around the 2-3 month mark. I would put it in warm water for a few minutes do it was softer and easier to swallow.

I have some across a "new" technique that a few surgeons do and have seen info. on you tube for a incision that goes along on the back of the arm. The supposed benefit is that if you raise your arm up then people don't see the scar since it's on the back of the arm. Maybe it's just me but I think a scar along the back of my arm that's visible 100% of the time in any short sleeves would be more noticeable. Sure only the people behind you see it but I still think that a scar on the inside of the arm is better. Thoughts?

That happened to me occasionally. Sometimes it was if I ate too much and irritated the pouch the day before so I backed off and just had liquids and soft foods like yogurt for 24 hours. It would also happen if I was busy at work and ate a lot less. It felt as if I was back to the first week after surgery and unable to get alot of food in. Either way after 24 hours I would go back to my normal.

My first guess is that maybe since you have lost weight your posture is changing and maybe you have a disc in your back that is putting pressure on a nerve. Look up the diagram of dermatome online and see if the area you have numbness relates to a lumbar disc. Does the numbness get worse/better if you flex or extend your back?

I have thought about in the long term postponing but I don't want to get surgery and wear compression garments in the summer so early spring would be best. I really don't want to go another summer wearing 3/4 length sleeves to hide my arms. I am also thinking that if I don't have as much loose skin and fat on my arms then if my body changes a bit or if I gain a few pounds it could actually be better ie fill in my saggy boobs or wrinkly butt. That may just be wishful thinking and it would go straight to my feet or something bizarre.

That makes sense. I think I prefer the traditional scar placement. I also asked about the bra roll/side boob. He would continue the incision from the arm all the way down. I am now thinking I wonder if it could be a separate incision so if i was wearing a tank top the side boob scar would be under a bra not all the way up towards my arm pit. Is yours going to be one long continuous incision?

Just a thought. If you have the tummy tuck do you think your breast/body shape would be more hourglass and then not feel the need to have the breast fat transfer? Look online at just tummy tuck pictures without any breast surgery to compare how the overall body shape changes and see if that would be enough for you.

Just curious- I am starting to look into plastics for next spring. So far the one Md i met with said he wants my weight to be stable for 2-3 months before and be 1 year post surgery. Is that what you have heard as well?

I like having yogurt for work lunches/snacks. Since it is a slider food I can eat a cup of high protein greek yogurt in less than 10 minutes. If I tried that with lunch meat I could only get a bit in. I would also take a string cheese and could stick it in my pocket and take a few bites in a stairwell or elevator between breaks just to get more protein in. If I was desperate I would also have protein water or protein shakes so i could get a few sips here and there.

That would have made me sick until month 5 or so.

Mine said it was the size of an egg. Initially you don’t want to stretch it at all while you are healing etc. He says it stretches just like a normal stomach does but it will take a year to get to a 1 cup capacity, and should never get to 5-6 cups like a regular stomach.

I have read that found scar massage will help more than creams etc. you have to wait until the incision is fully healed but check into that as well.

I don’t think it’s sugar free. I remember looking it up and it still had calories so I didn’t try it.

Suddenly lost clumps at 4 months post. Slowed down after 1-2 months and I noticed baby hairs coming in at month 6. Now I feel like I shed the normal amount of hair. I can still see some baby hairs so it will take another 6 months to get back to my normal. Not sure if it helped but my vitamin has biotin, I use Nioxin shampoo, and git my hair cut to shoulder length to help the thin ends.

I know I am not eating the best foods nutritionally but feel like I have to get in some easy to eat carbs to get the calories i need in. I was bouncing around with a 1-2 pound loss the past month but according to the scale this am dropped another pound. 8am-- premier shake with .5 c milk (1%) 9am- Bevita breakfast crackers (carbs and has vitamins, fiber etc) 11am - egg with olive oil, 1c spinach, and slice of cheese of 1/4c shredded cheese 1pm- yogurt sometimes with a sprinkle of granola or a few berries or 1/3 c granola cereal with 1/4 c milk now I start pushing fluids since I often feel no desire to eat because it felt like work to get all of the above in 3pm --12-16 oz milk 4:30- RX bar or some triscuits or another yogurt if I feel too full to eat/chew 5:30- 2oz meat and 1/3 c veggies and literally a tablespoon of the carb side my family eats so 1-2 french fries or a tablespoon of noodles etc- again I feel like this is work to sit down and get all of this in 7:30-- 12 oz milk 9:30-- this is not good but I am usually low on calories and carbs so 2 sheets of graham crackers sometimes 6 triscuits with 2T of hummus, maybe a tablespoon of peanut butter 10-11pm- pumpkin seeds (150 calories), maybe a 1/3 c of berries Total ends up around 1400 calories, aiming for and usually getting close to my goal 40% carb, 30% protein (around 90-100g) 30%fat Things i am not happy with- feeling the need to graze all day, eating triscuits and graham crackers vs a healthier carb, having to feel like I am forcing myself to eat a tablespoon of peanut butter or other foods at night when i see I need extra calories, fat or carbs etc. My focus has been on trying to slow down weight loss. I feel way too bony and went to see a PS re an arm lift this week (for spring surgery) and he mentioned I don't have a lot of fat left on me. I think I need to find some healthier foods that are pre-made and easy to grab and have a small serving. I am not going to cook something just to get a few bites of it.

You may want to look at the maintenance thread. You may not be there yet but it’s a process not a sudden transition. Reading everyone’s experiences can help you prepare since it sounds like you are probably getting close.

I am at maintenance now at 8 months out. But I was only getting 500-600 the first few months then months 4-6 closer to 700- 800 with less than 30 carbs. I was loosing too fast (for me). I started at 35 BMI. Every surgeon is different if course but that sounds like it aligns with most of what I have read. I still do a protein shake every morning to make sure I’m getting a good amount of protein and vitamins. My paperwork said to transition to food from the shake by now but that was to make sure people didn’t get too high of calories. My MD and nut are fine with me on a shake a day indefinitely. Ideally in 6 months when I can eat more I would like to decrease that to maybe only every other day and get protein from real food but not in a rush now.

So I think my body is weird. I have been at over 1000 calories since August and still dropped a few pounds. September was closer to 1100-maybe 1300. The past few weeks I’ve been bumping up to 1300-1500 with 40% carbs (it was so scary to do that) and I have lost 1-2 pounds in the past month. It has been so much easier to eat more. I can now eat an egg, slice of cheese and 1 cup of cooked spinach in 10-15 minutes and usually finish that. I can drink 16 oz of a protein shake in less than 30 minutes vs it took me an hour to do that 1-2 months ago. Regarding exercise I only go to the gym 2x week but I’m pretty active at home and work so I am usually getting 7-10k steps on non gym days. Even though I am purposely eating more than I desire to slow down weight loss/maintain I do worry that I’m creating bad habits like eating when I don’t feel like it. If I’m busy at work I will go only have 250 calories and suddenly it’s 3pm and I’ve had nothing else. No I’m not eating cookies or chips but I am purposely eating high calorie foods. I do feel like I’m in control of things now. A few months ago I felt like I didn’t and was loosing too fast.

It depends on the calories too. I was only eating 800 calories and getting in 60-70g but once I upped the calories to over 1100 I had to increase protein to 80-90g since I wanted my protein/carb/fat ratio closer.

I have had a piece of sugar free candy here and there. I only ate 1 piece and since I haven't had real candy in over 8 months it tasted like the real thing to me. I have also had sugar free jello or pudding with a tablespoon of whipped cream a few times a month. It was good and satisfied the sweet craving or actually probably a mental craving thinking I was missing out. I don't want to eat a ton of the fake stuff since it is processed with chemicals etc so I limit it. I have had literally a teaspoon of real ice cream a few times but I am too scared of feeling sick to eat more than that. Ideally I would like to have a tiny serving of the real think on special occasions but I am not tempted to try that now. For Thanksgiving and in the long term for special occasions I am planning on having a tiny sliver of pie, not 2 pieces etc.