AnotherGuy

Hello All, I came to this site when I was doing research for my own surgery which was completed in December of 2021. I found it difficult to find numerous relatable stories from men who had weight loss surgery. Hence, I thought I would share my experience. I am a 56 year old male and I would consider myself just another guy. I started my own new business in 2015. If you have ever started a new business from zero, then you know it is a very stressful experience. Consequently, I gained 20 pounds a year for, roughly, six consecutive years. My weight ballooned to an all time high of 353 pounds. If it wasn't nailed to the floor, I ate it. If it was cold, I drank it. I take full responsibility for my actions. I freely made the decision to consume all of the food and drink. I also found ways to justify eliminating my regular exercise routine during this time period. Towards the end of 2021, from a health perspective, I was miserable. I had trouble walking any sort of distance. My poor dogs felt neglected because I could not walk with them. I had a difficult time standing for any length of time because my lower back would begin to ache. I was beginning to have problems with my joints, especially my knees and ankles. From an emotional perspective, I also had issues. I had to search for restaurants with tables instead of sitting at a cozy booth because I could longer fit in any booth. It is an awful feeling to ask, "Can I have that table over there instead of this booth?" It seemed to me they knew I asked because I couldn't fit in the space. I was forced to buy bigger clothes. Soon, those clothes didn't fit and I had to buy even bigger clothes. My clothes needed to be purchased in the "fashion forward" Big & Tall section of stores and websites. I began to hate to have my photo taken because I did not like the way in which I appeared in the photos. To me, the person who looked back at me in the mirror looked nothing like the person who appeared in those photos. Who was that guy in those photos? Was that really me? I began to feel self conscious about eating in front of other people. I just had this feeling they were saying, "look at how much food that fat guy is eating." while I was eating a slice of pizza. I found myself buying food to eat in the car while I was driving so no one would see me. I justified the binge eating by telling myself I was hungry and didn't have enough calories at such and such a place. I grew tired of family members asking me if I was "okay" each time they saw me. I grew tired of friends asking me if I was able to "manage" going somewhere with them. Consequently, people started to avoid me. It was my own fault. I was grouchy all the time. If you are reading this, perhaps you have had similar feelings to my own. I made the decision I needed a little help. I began to look for a surgical procedure to assist me in my weight loss journey. I decided to have gastric sleeve surgery. As previously stated, my surgery was completed in December of 2021. I followed my surgeon's instructions explicitly. I ate what they told me to eat. I drank what they told me to drink. I used an app on my phone to track every calorie. When permitted, I began a regular exercise routine. The routine began with cardio and, over time, I added weight training too. Day after day and week after week, I developed better habits. I ate better foods and less calories. My cardio improved and my strength improved. Oh, I also lost weight...a lot of weight. My weight went from 353 pounds to 199 pounds. Yes, that's right. Today, I weigh less than 200 pounds. My total weight loss has been a whopping 154 pounds in 17 months. My waist size shrunk from 48 inches to 34 inches. My shirt size went from XXX-Large to Large. Hell, even my shoes lost 1/2 of a size. The feeling has been incredible. Nothing tastes as good as thin feels. Today, I continue to perform cardio four days per week and I lift weights every other day. Luckily I have had no ill side effects from the surgery. I feel great. I feel like others who have described losing a lot of weight...fantastic. Apologies to you if I have rambled on too long. Hopefully you find something here in which you can relate. Good luck in your journey. All the best.

Hello @pintsizedmallrat I had my sleeve surgery in December of 2021. Hence, I am about 14 months postop. To date, I have lost 153lbs. from my highest pre-surgery weight. Interestingly enough, you had your surgery at the same location where I had my surgery...that is if there is only one Dr. Trace Curry who does bariatric surgeries. I did not have any complications from my surgery that were any different than situations that have been described on this site. As a male, I haven't experienced anything different than what others, male or female, have described. I will try to highlight some of the things I have experienced. I only used the pain medication for the first day. The gas from the surgery was the worst part for me. Once the gas went away, everything else was pretty smooth. I stayed at a hotel near the surgery center the first night. The next morning, I went home with someone else driving. I followed the doctor's instructions very closely when it came to food, vitamins and movement. I count every calorie for which I eat and/or drink. I was very cold for the first few months. Approximately 30 days after surgery, I was permitted to begin exercising. (walking) Once permitted, I began other forms of cardio like biking, jogging and the elliptical machine. Once permitted, I began to lift weights. I have continued the exercise regimen every week since. I weigh myself every week in order to track my progress. I don't know if any of this will be helpful to you. I hope your husband has a great experience. Best wishes to you and your family!

Hello All. The scale moved again this morning and my BMI also moved: down to 30. What does this mean? Well, according to the CDC, I am no longer obese. I am just OVERWEIGHT! Who knew that being labeled overweight would be cause for celebration? I may have some extra chicken. 😁 So now the goal is to lower my BMI to under 25. This is the healthy range. It is only a matter of time. I love to read about all of your successes. Thank you all for sharing.

Happy Birthday @kcuster83 Just tossing in my two cents. I am coming up on 8 months post surgery. I began to drink alcohol again around month 5 or 6. I did not have a problem with alcohol prior to surgery and I do not believe I have a problem with alcohol post surgery. As others have stated, the alcohol hits you much faster than before so I would recommend that you are careful. I would also recommend not driving...even with only one drink. The alcohol really does go to your brain much faster.

Hey @FarfelDiego, You definitely got this! You are going to grit it out and work your way to a healthy lifestyle. Sure...there may be setbacks along the way. Every worthwhile journey has two steps forward and one step back. Here is an inspirational video of someone's journey. Perhaps this will help you too.

Congratulations!! Your results are awesome. Thanks so much for sharing. Cheers to your new life!

Good morning @debg74 Welcome to the forum! I am certainly not the official spokesperson here but wanted to make sure you felt welcome. Congratulations on your surgery. There is a large amount of information on this site. I am certain you can find the answer to almost any surgery or food related question here. Everyone is very friendly on the forum and those with similar experiences are willing to share their wisdom. I am only four months post op and I still have a long way to go. Best wishes on your journey!

Hello All, There are certainly many posts about non scale victories. Like many of you, I have clothes of various sizes in my closet. There is no need to purchase anything new yet, so I have not experienced the joy of shopping for smaller clothes. However, I was forced to purchase a couple SMALLER belts to use with the aforementioned clothes. Is there any better feeling than losing weight? I must say I truly felt joy disposing of the old, larger belts. I heard Oprah say this once, "..losing weight feels better than any food tastes." I agree. Please share any recent non scale victory you may have had. I like to read them. Best, AnotherGuy

Hey @thinblueline, So nice to have you here. I am not the most active member of this forum, but I like to read the things you post. I don't always reply to everything I read...sorry about that. As always, good luck on your journey.

Advice is sometimes given with the best intentions but everyone is different. You should do the things which work for you. Only you know what is best for you. Listen, learn and experiment with your routines. Find something which is sustainable to achieve your long term goals. In my personal case, I believe the following things contribute to my success. I eat less calories because of surgery. I made a decision to make healthier food choices. I exercise regularly (cardio.) I perform weight training regularly. I feel great. I am losing weight. This is what is important to me.

Congratulations on your achievement! It is fantastic that you are on your way to running road races again. 🏃‍♀️

Sound thinking...especially the snorting part. 😁 My surgeon recommended waiting 30 days for the stomach to heal before drinking coffee which, according to surgeon, could be an irritant. I waited 30 days and I have been drinking normal amounts of coffee since. There have been no issues.

I am a member of the "Polar Bear Club." It has not gone away...although I am no longer cold most of the time, just some of the time.

I am almost 8 weeks post surgery. Like you, I incorporate strength training and cardio every week. At the moment, I do cardio five days per week and I do strength training three days per week. One day per week, Tuesdays, I have a complete day of rest. Did I mention I love Tuesdays? It is my opinion that it is very difficult to build muscle while losing weight. To build muscle, your body needs the raw materials (food) for which to build muscle. While losing weight, your body has a calorie deficit...or in other words, a lack of food. Therefore, it is very difficult to build muscle while losing weight. Perhaps a good goal might be to maintain as much of the muscle you currently possess through strength training. As you lose weight, you will be losing fat and keeping lean muscle. And muscle burns way more calories than fat. Odd fact of the day: According to Harvard Health, adults lose 3% to 5% of their muscle mass each decade after the age of 30. (This is the reason we get fatter as we get older even though we eat the same amount.) 🤔

Your motivation is inspiring. 💪 Not too far from you, we are buried under snow. Got some extra exercise shoveling. I can think of 10,000 things I would rather do.