ms.sss

Ummmm...this looks like a picture out of Food and Wine magazine. Nice! (and YUM!)

Ok, going off on a tangent from food here, but I have to share my one and only celebrity encounter myself. 10 years ago, we got to meet Alicia Keyes backstage when she was in town for a concert. The Kid was sooooo upset she didnt get to go to the concert (she was 5!) because her fave song at the time was "No One", so she basically had a meltdown when she found out we met her AND had a picture with her....so I photo-shopped her into it, lol. Over the years, I think she convinced herself she was actually there now. 🤣

My new fave snack: Frozen Grapes!

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that skirt. I WANT it.

Agree whole-heartedly on both counts. Your husband will be better set up for success if he takes the responsibility upon himself to achieve it. Your support and encouragement will definitely help him 100%, but he also needs to be able make decision/choices/efforts on his own for long-term and sustained success. Good Luck to Hubs!

It's difficult getting calories in in the beginning. My doc told me just do what I can and not to force it. It will become easier as time goes on. The first couple weeks, I got in maybe 400 cals PER WEEK, yikes. Then at around the month mark to around month 3, I got in maybe 400-500 a day. From months 3-7 it was about 700-800 a day, average. Once I reached goal, I struggled to increase calories for a few months until I figured out I needed to stay around 1700-2000 a day to not lose nor gain weight. Everybody is different though, and will be able to handle different calorie levels. Do what you can, no need to push it. So long as your labs keep coming back clean, I think you should be OK. But do check with your team if you are concerned. Good Luck!

Also, 2-3 lbs average loss a week is actually considered an normally accepted rate of loss with WLS (averaged out over weight loss phase) Like I said above, I lost all my excess weight and my average rate of loss (not counting the first month) was under 3lbs per week. Pretty average.

@Ashliza ... Ultimately its up to you. While the surgery will definitely help you lose weight if you follow your plan, a lot of your success/failures and positive/negative experiences will depend on, and be affected by, your attitude and mindset. Nobody can predict the future, so it is very possible that you will suffer complications, OR gain all of your weight back. But the odds are you won't. The majority of WLS patients have very uneventful recoveries. The majority of WLS patents lose 60-70% of their excess weight and keep it off. Some lose more, some lose less. You won't know where you fall on the spectrum until you get there. I will say that I had a very similar pre-op experience as you. I kept changing my mind and second-guessing my decision about getting the sleeve done. I was approved way back in March 2016 and I started and stopped the process TWICE before I finally got into the right mindset of being confident with my decision...was sleeved in Oct 2018. I had no complications and lost all off my excess weight. I've very happy with my decision, only regret was that I just didn't get it done in 2016....but I guess I just wasn't ready yet. Good Luck!

OMG I used to love it when the boys at school would wear their pastel blazers and push their sleeves up 😍

I didn't have DS, but the sleeve. But I had issues with constipation several times (2 times specifically it lasted about 2 weeks each! yikes.). Milk of Magnesia and glycerin suppositories were my friends.

Isopure Dutch Chocolate was my fave...i found it the least sweet and the least chalky than others I had tried. I also used the non-flavoured version to sprinkle on foods.

That is unusual. I was supposed to stop eating AND drinking at the midnight before my surgery (which was at 10:00am) In any case, I'm excited for you...good luck, and keep us posted!

+1

5'2" RE: your sister. People would say I obsessed about everything I ate too during weight loss phase. They would tell me they were worried about me, that I lost too much weight, that I was anorexic, that I must stop losing weight immediately. They would comment on how little I ate, and constantly offer me food. They would give side-wise glances to each other if I declined a piece of cake. They would say/do this to my face, and behind my back. But not once did my weight go below what is "normal" for my height and age. At all my follow-ups and appointments, not once did my Dr. tell me I was not the picture of health. I think "they" just weren't used to seeing me at a normal weight, they weren't used to seeing me turn down food and eat less, and the change in me was so rapid and so different that it was just so in-your-face, they couldn't help but feel the need to worry. During weight loss phase when I get the "munchies" I ignored them (and was successful maybe 95% of the time, lol). I mean, they were just munchies, not actual hunger. And giving into munchies is one of the things that got me to morbid obesity. Unless your sister has health problems as identified by her team, is underweight, or has developed behavior problems that are negatively impacting her quality of life, then I think she is just being determined. But I'm not her Dr....has she seen them recently? Edited to add: Now that I'm 1.5 years out, the comments and concern have effectively stopped. Me, my weight, and my eating habits are old news, and everyone is used to my new normal. ❤️

I've been told I am one of those "faster losers", so I got to goal at around 7 months (127lbs, 108lbs lost at the time). I lost a little bit more after that, gained after a vacation in september, lost it, gained these recent 6lbs, lost it again. I went as low as 109 lbs (too small!!) and as high as 121 lbs (over my acceptable limit!!) in that time period. Today I am at 115 (total 120 lbs lost). 115-120 is my happy place. It does get a little bit more challenging the further out we are. I mean, losing 10 lbs off a 230 lb body is waaaaaayyyy easier than losing 10 lbs off a 130 lb body. Just keep on going, it will be slower yes, but if you make an honest effort ad stick to it, it will come off a little by little. It does get discouraging when the visible results are not as dramatic, so I get it. Maybe keep track of your body measurements? Sometimes you'll lose inches and not lbs. Also, I find that looking at old pictures of myself and seeing how far I've come to be a great motivator.

When I first started, I just walked (like once around the block). Now I'm running (about 30-40 mins a day/session). If you like to dance, may I suggest: TAP DANCING! I took it up in January this year and went to a few classes (but had to stop because it was hindering my plastics recovery, but I digress...) Anyway, I wanted to get back to it (I mean I have these awesome tap shoes that I bought and everything) and since quarantine prevents me from going to classes, I found some videos on YouTube to practice with. Not as fun as being in a room full of wanna-be tap dancing crazies, but good enough for now It really works up a sweat and is surprisingly a pretty good leg and core workout.

@JennieJuniper : Hey! I just realized we were both sleeved in Oct 2018! Yay, sister ❤️

I gained about 6 lbs over about 2 months...but is started just before quarantine, so I can't really blame it solely on that. It was basically due to eating more & being less active (which I suppose is the same reason for quarantine-gains). The gain took me over my "upper limit" so I stated to eat less and went back to running (which I haven't done regularly since plastics back in December due to recovery and all that). It took 2-3 weeks, but I lost those 6lbs as of last week and am back down to my "lower limit" (which btw, was a wake up call because historically I would have been able to lose those 6 lbs in a week with a real effort!). I haven't tried Noom*, but do what you can to address those 12 lbs if that is important to you! Addressing 12 lbs now is much more manageable than 50 or 60 later. It's a good that you recognize the contributing factors to your weight gain, because at least YOU KNOW what you need to address. Get up from the desk every hour or so and move around; try to stick in maybe 30 mins of dedicated exercise every day (maybe start at 15 mins if it helps to kick start yourself); figure out something else to do when you are bored other than eating, or keep off-plan foods out of the house & replace with better choices. I admit, I indulge with not-the-best choices every once in while...this is what I do when I recognize I am getting out of hand: If I want something that isn't the best choice, I'll get something to drink, and/or wait out 30 mins or an hour to reconsider. If after those 30-60 mins I still really want it, then fine, I'll have it. But more often than not, I won't want it anymore. This works for me, buy your mileage may vary. *Noom, from what I read is a food tracker + food idea provider + "personalized coach", which encourages healthy food and lifestyle habits with words of encouragement & a points "reward system", as well as an online community for further support. At $50 a month, the convenience of getting all this in one place *may* be worth it. BUT you could also get all the above for free from different sources if you are willing to make the effort (I use MyFitnessPal for food tracking...I signed up for the premium version for $50 a YEAR, because I wanted access to the macros, food analysis and export features, but you could probably get away with just the free version if you aren't anal like me, LOL.) Good Luck!

Congratulations! Yeah the first 6 months are the easiest, and its great you took advantage of it so well As for the exercise (unless you are an endurance athlete or serious weight lifter), it doesn't really contribute much to weight loss, its more really for overall health, well-being, body contouring. Food intake is the bigger determiner of weight loss. I hated exercise in beginning also. I basically forced myself to do it though (and I was really mad about it!). Now I actually love running and other cardio activities (who'd have thunk?), and I do it almost daily. BUT i still hate weight training. I figure it is a necessary evil and I force myself at least 15-20 minutes of it a day. It helps that Mr. is a fitness freak and is around for support & motivation (ie., physically dragging me to the mat, lol). Maybe get a workout buddy if you really want to get into it? P.S. do we get to see some Before and After pics?? We LOVE Before and After pics!

YUM YUM YUM. And water chestnuts! Thanks for the tip....been wanting something crunchy lately and I think that will do the trick, lol.

I was hesitant to reply to this, as I'm wary of the back and forth that will naturally ensue, but I just feel bad for the future newbie who would read this and be possibly led down a less-efficient track... With that said: I always feel like the term "starvation mode" is thrown around alot on here and used to explain situations that might not necessarily be 100% true or correct. The idea that one would NOT lose weight (or even gain weight!) OVER A PERIOD OF TIME at severely restricted calories + exercise with BMI classifying them as OBESE, is a fallacy. Sure, deceased calories may slow down your metabolic rate (as will inactivity, all over all mass reduction, etc), but it will NOT stop it until you are dead. And long before you get to that point, weight loss will be the least of your worries. Unless one has some serious underlying issue, an OBESE person eating less than NET 600 cals a day over two months WILL LOSE WEIGHT. Things get a little cloudier/less clear-cut when a person is at normal or under-weight, but that is not the case here. Further, I think less than NET 600 cals a day, every day, for more than 2 months straight is tough to do so far out of surgery, and I probably wouldn't recommend it to anyone other than the "professional" fasters. But that is ultimately up to you. Google is your friend, educate yourselves. P.S. Sorry if this post will get some people upset! My intention is not to blame nor point fingers, or otherwise dismiss you. I honestly just want you all to succeed/feel awesome. ❤️

Im a cheese-lover too. I did stay away from it during weight loss phase, though. In terms of cravings, I always want salty things, even during weight loss phase (which is weird because I did drink a crap ton of water during that time...). I know I probably add way to much salt to food (then AND now). I also go through periods of wanting dessert. It usually comes after having some. I've read, and experienced, that once you eat something sweet, you will crave even more sweet stuff. So when I think I'm going too far on the dessert front, I'll cut it out for a few days and the cravings will go away. Rinse and repeat, lol. I did gain 6 lbs from around the the end of Feb to around the beginning of April (which sort of coincided with a hiatus I took from the BP forums, and corona-quarantine...coincidence?) And according to MyFitnessPal, I was averaging around 2500 cals a day and practically ZERO EXERCISE. So yeah, weight gain. And this wasn't a fluctuation. I held onto those 6lbs for a couple weeks... I have a personal upper weight limit I set for myself, and those 6lbs took me ONE POUND over that. I long ago made a deal with myself that if I go over my upper limit, I have to bring myself down to my lower limit. I realize this may sound extreme, but a deal is a deal. Sooooo...I consciously reduced my calorie intake and went back to running daily and doing some strength training and am happy to report that as of last week I got back down to my lower limit. I figure this is my life now. Will eventually have a period of gain, and if that gain takes me over what I am comfortable with, it will be followed by a period of effort to reduce that gain. I mean, I do love cheese, lol. (I realize that my comfortable weight range may change in the future, but this works, and is maintainable, for me, for now) @Meadow76: have you considered doing some sort of alternate day fasting? Lots of folks on here have seen success with it. Simply put, you fast (or limit your cals to 500 or so) a couple days a week and loosen the reigns the rest of the week. They could be like cheese days, and no-cheese days, lol. This way, it may be easier to lay off the snacks today because you know you can have some tomorrow... P.S. Sorry this was so long!

yay! What about Mr.? Edit: oh wait, you already said he came back positive. Does this mean you have to stay away from him??

Ok, yeah, at 5'2" and 195 lbs, you SHOULD be losing weight at 600 cals w/ your stated exercise, especially after 2 straight months of doing this. I'm really surprised that you aren't. Maybe consult with your PCP?

@Kimyana1, if you don't mind me asking, how tall are you and how much do you weigh right now? As the other poster said above, if you are close to "normal" BMI, the weight comes off sooooooooo much slower. (Though at 600 cals a day + the workouts you report, that would make anyone lose weight over 2 months...even a 5-foot tall, 100lb woman...so if that's the case maybe consult with your PCP? You may have some underlying issue....)