Spinoza

So lovely to hear about your journeys. Fantastic progress! Welcome to the rest of your lives 😍

Not sure why anyone would advise you to stop exercising? Surely that's a big part of your new life and maintaining your loss. Also - why does your loss need to be slowed - who decided this was best for *you*? What is YOUR goal? I say focus on that and how you can achieve it. Stick to your non-processed foods if that's best for you in the long term. You're in charge. I wish you the best of luck.

ALL the time and I think I always will.

Totally agree with @Arabesque in that a diet of shakes might be hard to sustain huskymama, particularly if you're slow to recover from your fracture. If you can revert to protein first, veg second, carbs (a long way behind) third you might be able to claw back your previous weight loss. I know it's rubbish to regain for whatever reason and I hope you can get it sorted while you recover.

Oh I agree, it's definitely a lifelong commitment to use our sleeve TRAVELRN. I also need to eat every 2-3 hours at this point if I haven't planned protein based meals in advance, which seem to keep me full for longer - then the pressure is off (for me anyway) and I can eat 3 meals a day. It's so very hard to keep on track though.

Lots of us experience this post WLS. I wear multiple layers now, summer and winter. I always budget for being cold even when other people are *far* too hot. My rule of thumb is to wear two extra layers of clothing in any situation. I can always take a layer off if I need to, but I rarely do!

Well done you Fred. You (YOU) have lost loads of weight after your surgery and I'm so glad you're now seeing the benefits! 😍 As an atheist I have absolutely no idea how and why you would want to attribute all your hard work and your loss to some deity or other but - yunno - absolutely good on you if you need to do that! We all get though our surgery and lose our weight in whatever way we can. I don't do that but kudos to anyone who needs to and does. Onwards and downwards.

Amazing @Arabesque You do simple elegance so very very well. Honestly I don't have the wherewithal. Think I need to post some photos on this thread soon. I do so love seeing everyone else's. I just have a mental hurdle to jump over first (embarrassment).

Oh I love your approach to this. I hope you're now out the other end of your surgery. I really look forward to getting to know you. 😍

*TRIGGER ALERT* Vomited milk! 🤢

I have never gone the fruity route in my life and I'm not starting now 😂

What stage are you at OP and what surgery did you have? I had a sleeve 22 months ago and from a few months post up I have got my protein mainly from meat/dairy (CHEESE but also yoghurt)/pulses/nuts. Deli meat is my go to snack even now. I often cook a little more meat than I need for family dinners and keep the leftovers in the fridge for easy grabbing. I make a point of eating nuts and seeds absolutely every day, even if small quantities, because I think they have loads of micronutrients that it's hard to get from elsewhere. I haven't done protein shakes or bars or added powders in forever but I'm sure they're a godsend if you're having difficulty in the longer term with getting your protein in - I just don't need them because of my sliced turkey addiction, LOL.

Oh dear, I am a real outlier here because I had blood tests for the first time after 6 months. My surgeon seems really relaxed about this (possibly because their dietitian is SOOOOOO good). I'm getting another set done at 2 years and that'll be it for me unless I develop symptoms of deficiency of something or other. I think it's different for people whose surgery induces malabsorption? Although of course I know not having a whole stomach does that for certain vitamins in some people.

Cottage cheese also a big no from me. Have tried it so many times. Won't say what the taste and texture remind me of, but suffice to say I had really nasty hyperemesis in my pregnancies and drank a lot of milk in an unsuccessful attempt to cure it. 🤣

This is what really scares me. People who have clearly done really well then slipping back into old habits. Thank you so much for sharing. I am one of the people who is afraid to relax. Still clenched 100% of the time. I an eat a lot more now I'm almost 2 years post surgery. I do stick to the protein first veg second carbs third ALL THE TIME though, maybe that's what's saving me. Do you think that might help you @SleeverSk ? I've had a few planned strays from the path and one or two unplanned ones but I've been able to get back on the path immediately after (so far). The tip I would share would be to track everything but I know that doesn't suit everyone. I would love to think that in another couple of years I wouldn't need to but I suspect I always will. Really interested in others' experiences. Thanks for starting the thread OP!

I picked a goal weight right in the middle of my healthy (hahahaha what even IS that?) BMI range. I had many many times lost weight and got there by various means previously. My surgeon and dietician thought it might be too ambitious given the average loss with a sleeve, so I was prepared to lose MUCH less. You can do it any way you like OP! Perhaps pick a weight that you have been comfortable at before. OR a weight/BMI that you really want to reach, for whatever reason. Or lick a finger and hold it up into the wind. Turns out my team's advice meant virtually nothing. I got to my goal weight and then lost some more. I didn't need to try or do anything specific - just stuck to my plan. I wish you the best of luck.

Oooh I hope this is going to be a fascinating thread - what is 'it's gone too far' - is it in the eye of the beholder?? We might all have our own idea of that. Thanks for the chance to discuss this OP!! I get asked pretty regularly now whether or not I am well (I SO AM) and whether or not I planned to lose this much weight (I SOOOOO DID). The inference being - you at best look thin of face and body, or at worst look really unwell (in that person's eye). I filter/ignore those comments depending on how much I trust/want to hear about that person's eye! I think allowing people to do what they want to and need to with their bodies for their own reasons without judgement is probably a good thing on a general and totally generic level. I know it can be difficult when people go beyond what we ourselves are comfortable with, and then that it goes up another level if they do things well outside our norms AND societal norms. If they are not hurting anybody then fantastic. Honestly you do you - if you want to have a skeletal face (and get paparazzi to follow you and your daughter for a day of "shopping") and it feels good to you then dooooooo it! And make your money out of it if you need that too. Absolutely ready for a big old discussion on this one. 😍

Interesting! Why not gold or silver at the get go?

Yes! When I was a couple of months post op and struggling to meet my calorie targets I regularly had a spoon or two of nut butter before bed to get me over the line. What are your concerns?

This absolutely makes sense to most of us. We do need the support of people who've been through what we've been through in order to feel normal or reassure us that we've achieved something good. I too had no idea my maintenance calories would be anything less than 2000 - although it now seems ridiculous to say that. I totally hear you on the 3 year regain - steeling myself for that as we speak. Please keep posting and let us know how your journey goes 😃

Thanks to the link for the BMR and calorie calculator - it was really interesting! I am at the tail end of my journey - still losing after 22 months but at a super slow rate - like half a pound a month now. I am still like 500 calories a day below my predicted maintenance intake. I can only presume that I will need to stay well below that in order not to regain. Amazing how different it can be for people who look the same on paper. I wish you the best of luck OP xx

Oh my word - reaching goal within Just over 3 months of surgery? That has to be a new record. Well done. I suspect that you will continue to lose for many months and that your current goal will by then have disappeared in your rear view mirror. Welcome to your new life 😍

It has never ever from day 1 felt the same as before for me and I'm 22 months post op. I think that I had a really delayed feeling of fullness throughout my adult life, which contributed to me eating myself into obesity. Having the sleeve has totally changed the cues my stomach sends when it's full. Weirdly they still seem to be really delayed, but I can predict and manage the cues better. It'll be really hard for you at 7 weeks out to predict how you will be long term but I think don't expect to 'eat normally and feel full' as you did before. The point of the surgery is to change what you felt and did before and, believe me. you will!! I wish you the best of luck.

I had a relatively easy time after my surgery but it took me *months* before I met my protein or fluid goals. Keep the faith - if you're there or thereabouts then you'll be absolutely fine. 😍

Huge congratulations, your photos are amazing. I love to hear success stories and especially of better health because of the surgery. I am 22 months post sleeve surgery and the fear of regain is real - I think I'll always have it and I think I need to have it. I have a lifelong bad track record and this is my one shot at countering that. I haven't yet relaxed into my new way of eating - I still track absolutely everything, so far that's working well so I expect I'll always do it. It's a small price to pay for a completely new life. I wish you all the best - you've done brilliantly.