JennyBeez

(Also, look at your numbers so far -- they're absolutely great! No matter how long this stall lasts, you've already been kicking ass. ^_^)

Sometimes stalls are just stalls, and there's not much you can do about them. Sometimes just changing things up a bit so you body has something new to get used to can also help jar you out. I personally think of my stalls kind of like my body is a computer, and the stall is the time it takes the thing to reboot. Sometimes it's long, sometimes short. Sometimes uninstalling an older program and reinstalling an updated version will help your machine boot faster. If your body has gotten used to eating the same thing everyday, maybe try changing it up a little. For a week, maybe find a protein bar or a different source of protein like greek yogurt for breakfast. Replace your broccoli with green beans or leafy greens, or try a different dinner protein for a while. As for exercise, I agree -- any exercise is good exercise. If you've got access to a pool, swimming can act as both cardio and muscle strengthening. There are also water exercises you can find online that can target certain areas -- look up water aerobics or aquafitness on youtube if you need some ideas. I go to a local community pool twice a week for drop-in aquatics specifically tailored to be a sort of aquatic physio session, but there's lots of options out there to suit a variety of needs.

Ditto the ditto, and I also wanted to say WOW. 29 lbs in 2 weeks is actually pretty incredible when you think about it. Most non-WLS diets average 1-2 lbs per week at most, after the initial water-retention loss. Think about it -- can you think of any time in your life that you even managed to lose 5-10 lbs per week? 14 or 15 instead is amazing. ^___^ I think it's really important in WLS groups to remember that while we're all here to chime in and give support, share common trials and tribulations -- actual comparisions of weight or inches lost can be a little unhealthy / unrealistic. Everyone starts from a different place -- different surgery day weights, different co-morbidities, different physicalities. Even where we carry our weight can make a big difference in how it comes off. So while it's great to find common ground with others here, please please please never judge your own journey by how others' have gone before you. It's not a contest. The only winner is you, the individual who wakes up every day and makes conscious healthy choices (often difficult -- especially at the beginning) to work towards your goal. ❤️

I lived on strained Heinz soups at that stage -- especially cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, cream of broccoli. If you can handle the acidity of tomatoes, cream of tomato is super satisfying. I also really enjoyed the BariatricPal Bacon & Cheddar dry soup mix and ProtiDiet Chicken soup mix. I wasn't able to finish either of them by the time I was out of the liquid stage, but both made a great protein additive during the puree stage, and a good dip / sauce when I was entering the soft stage. Both were fairly salty to my taste buds at the liquid stage, but a little extra water helped.

Are you nervous about the procedure itself, or the recovery, or the Big Lifestyle Change? Either way, it's all doable. I was scared of the anesthesia myself (but ironically not the actual surgery or recovery). And I have to admit, the first time I went through dumping syndrome I regretted everything for about an hour or so. But other than that, I think most people here would chime in that this is one of the best decisions they ever made for themselves. If you work at it, it can really change your whole life around.

I too think that this will be a really good thing for you. In my program, their clinic's data shows that a sizeable portion of their sleeve patients needed revision after a few years. You're not alone -- the sleeve just isn't optimal for everyone. It's not a personal failure. Try your best to get that out of your head -- I know it's hard, I'm sure most of us here have a lifetime of blaming ourselves for our weight gain, 'failure' at prior weight loss attempts/diets, etc. For me, the side-effects of my RNY are part of what keeps me mentally on the right track. Part of my brain just reminds me "You didn't go through ______ to eff it up now for the few minutes you'll enjoy having downed an entire bag of chips. find a better way to get out of your funk." It sounds like you've done plenty of research these past months. Only you can decide if it's right for you -- which is an intimidating prospect for sure -- but your surgeon wouldn't be supporting you / suggesting it for you if he didn't think you'd do well with it. They're invested in your success, at the very least because it gives them better success rates to encourage future patients.

You look so happy to be back to work -- it's shining from your face! I'm glad for you!!

For me, it was important to get past the snacking hurdle pretty much cold turkey. My willpower is great after two to three weeks of a new routine -- but before that every minute is torturous. I think all my scheduled 'snacks' for the first month post-op were all like "half a protein shake" and "half a protein bar" lol. Now I'm finally able to snack healthily or with 'planned indulgences' (most of which I still try to make as healthy as possible, because I backslide too easily / get addicted to things very quickly). Last week I found a healthy quinoa puff (with no added oils / ingredients) at my local bulk food store, and toasting them up in a pan with some curry powder has become my new evening indulgence -- sometimes with a few peanuts or edamame thrown in. Ridiculously satisfying without throwing me off track. I've also found some baby snacks that are crazy-clean when it comes to fats/carbs/sugars, and they taste super plain but that's where my own seasonings come in. Baby Gourmet Cheesy Broccoli Puffies are made with quinoa and lentils, and one bag will last me for 3-5 snacks so I don't mind the price so much.

I used to hate seafood other than salmon, butterfish and shrimp. Scallops had to be wrapped in bacon, lobster was just an excuse to eat something slathered in salty garlic butter for me -- and even shrimp, if it wasn't sauteed in that same salty garlicky butter or smothered in shrimp sauce, I just couldn't do it. But now I'm actively enjoying the flavours of various seafood items all on their own. I barely glance at most soy sauces if I go out for sashimi/sushi -- and I'm enjoying a far more varieties of fish and seafood than I used to. I don't know how much of this is the taste-bud change post-op, or just breaking old habits long enough to get the full experience of other flavours -- but I'm loving it. (I also crave fish much more often than any red meat or poultry. I'll eat the other proteins, but when I'm sitting at work in the morning it's the "Oooooh, I should call the fam and get someone to take the frozen cod out to thaw" and never "shoot, I forgot to the steak.") Summer-wise, I always seem to just want cold juicy fruits and veg. I could live on cold green grapes if they weren't so bad for my diabetes. My neighbour brought over a huge stash of snap peas and celery from her son's farm, so there's been a lot of crunchy raw peas in my life this week.

Can you sneak some protein bars or packets of roasted edamame or something in your bag, just to make sure you've got some healthier protein options -- just in case you find there's not much there to suit you? Or even keep some low sodium V8 juice in your hotel room -- even if it just makes you feel better about having had 'A Vegetable' at the end of the day. I know a lot of places don't 'allow' outside food but as a recent surgery patient maybe they'll give you more lenience (or maybe they can be tucked under a towel lol). Hahaha YES! I've taken to stashing vanilla-scented dog waste bags in my purse in case of a tummy-temper-tantrum. XD

Bone broth powder into any broth / soup is a big help. Unsweetened peanut butter powder into fat free plain greek yogurt or pudding can give you an extra boost -- or like @FifiLux suggests, make your own pudding-style treat with jello flavouring and a yogurt base. The sour / tangy taste of plain yogurt can make sweetened powders more palatable, and you can use less than required since you don't really need it for thickening (especially if you start with a greek yogurt base -- very thick already). Depending on your program, you might be able to have cottage cheese on liquid diet? Mine did, and it was already a great dose of protein but added a scoop of unflavoured whey and some savory spices was a nice change from faux sweetness. If you find a clear / water soluble protein powder, you can drink it diluted so it's not as strong and throw in a little squeeze of lemon or lime juice. V8 / tomato juice is another good option. I had a rough time mixing unflavoured protein powder into it without clumping, but chicken bone broth powder mixed with a little hot water before adding it to the tomato juice worked well for me.

(I love your username!) I feel like the majority of us turned to WLS as a last resort after many other WL-options didn't work out for us. I've done WW, Dr Bernstein, raw diets, different drugs, intermittent fasting, all sorts of fad diets / cleanses, etc. I feel you. This is different. This is a diet not as a noun, but as a verb -- a healthy way of eating for life. This resets our hormonal responses to food. It gives us a blank slate to re-learn those healthy habits of portion control, of prioritizing nutrients, etc. It gives us the opportunity to look at our old habits and realize we don't need them anymore. It gives us a jumpstart into weight loss so we start off with great momentum / kicking ass. Good luck to you -- but you don't need it. Good mindset is all you need.

I've heard / read that the dead parts died during the trauma of surgery, and it was only a matter of time for them to fall out. All we can really do is take care of the new growth --- aka protein-protein-protein, fluids, taking the post-op supplements & vitamins, being gentle on your hair, etc. My hairdresser suggested moisturizing shampoo/conditioner, said to stay away from most volumizing treatments as most of them work by drying out your hair which could make it more brittle. (She also said that most hairstyling products -- gels, hair sprays, mousse -- are going to do the same thing and if I could just bear with it while my hair is looking thin and limp, it'll be much healthier for the new growth to avoid those products until my body has re-regulated itself. That said, I'm early into my hair loss / thinning and it sounds like timing-wise you're coming out of it -- so maybe not a problem for you.)

Right now, I'm back to walking/stairs and some aquafitness twice a week. I bought a recumbent bike and it was awesome for a week but because of the body positioning, I've been told to lay off until I stop straining this one particular area lol. And some light stretching with a resistance band that avoids my core as much as possible -- I mean, I can't avoid it completely because everything's connected but I focus on arms and legs until I feel my core start to open up / stretch gently out and call it quits while I'm ahead. XD It's good to establish a 'new normal' for yourself in terms of blood pressure, so I'd suggest using your mum's machine a couple times a week just to get a new baseline. I've been lucky/unlucky that my post-op care-team, my personal PCP/GP and my endocrinologist have all been scheduling follow ups and tests for me with just enough of a gap that I feel like I've been seeing someone every 2-3 weeks -- and my official 3mo follow-up is in another week. (Even my local pharmacist is great, and prods me to use their blood pressure machine whenever I'm in to pick up prescriptions, questions how I'm reacting to such-and-such.) Hormones were definitely kicking my rear all last week, concentrating all my normal-level reactions into heightened states. Less than fun, I've had better weeks but eh.

A loss is a loss!! Especially if you've been struggling with pain (and pain killers). Honestly, even if it were a gain, the fact that you're learning from it and identifying where your problems were this week would still make it a plus, in my book. This is a life-long journey you've (we've) started, and we're going to keep re-negotiating things with our bodies and our digestive systems -- so anything that teaches us is at least a small win, right? Sodium has been a toughie for me post-op. So many food items take out sugars/carbs or fats but really seem to up the sodium to make up for it. I was always a little sensitive to sodium, but post-op? JEEBUS, the sodium headaches if I'm not careful. (Looking at you, sugar free drink crystals)

Oof, I'm still on cardio and working in light resistance training with bands (no weights yet). I keep re-straining my abdomen just doing simple things like twisting slightly when bending to get something out of a drawer at my desk, so my team has cautioned me not to start any actual weights until that pain leaves and stays gone for at least a week. :S My Monday is doing pretty good, but my weekend was awful (hormones, heightened body dysmorphia, heightened reaction to thinning patches of hair). This morning though, I found one of my matte eyeshadows is just the right colour to hide the most noticeable thin patch at my temple; I lost more weight this week than last even while fighting menstrual hormones and emotions; and several regular customers have complimented me this morning about both my hair and weightloss so even if I can't look at myself in the mirror without anguish, at least I'm getting some external confirmation that a lot of it is in my head. (@Bypass2Freedom I hope you're keeping an eye on your blood pressure too! After losing as much weight as you have already, it's not abnormal for blood pressure to lower even if it wasn't an active problem for you pre-op. Just make sure you stand up / raise your torso & head slowly after you've been exercising for a while)

Same here! I'm in Ontario (Canada), and for my provincial insurance to cover everything I have to go to all mandated appointments and follow-ups as scheduled. Honestly? Sometimes the feeling I get from my care-team in general is that they deal with a lot of people who don't pay attention in the pre-op classes, who don't read up with the handouts let alone do any of their own research. I feel like most of my care-team just assumes they're catering to the lowest denominator -- because as soon as I open my mouth they seem surprised I could follow along, let alone ask any detailed questions. And TBH, if I had to deal day in and out with people who couldn't follow even the basic instructions, I'd probably be telling them (by rote) the easiest, simplest, generic batches of information. It's not fair to the individual, but I can totally see someone's passion being drained out after dealing with everyday ignorance.

Ooh, yes -- this!! I like this energy.

You both have knocked it out of the park. You do both look younger, but more than that you both look happy and kind of like you hold yourselves with more confidence? Serious kudos to the both of you.

Keep in mind that most nutritionists, it's their job to tell you to stay within certain limits that were decided by prior care teams who-knows how many years ago, based on individuals who could be much different than you. Those limits may be absolute BS, but they have to cover their own ass and give you these 'healthy guidelines'. In my care team, I have three different nutritionists I've seen so far. One of them seems very open, very with it, and all her advice so far has been really helpful. The other two have been absolutely useless. (Ironically, one is constantly looking at my food logs and saying things like "and where do you see that you could have added more protein here" even though I'm usually already in the 80-100g range -- and I DO NOT work out) For what it's worth, I think you're doing exceedingly well. Every time I see you post around here, I pay attention because you really seem to be in tune with your own body. If you're not having any protein over-consumption symptoms and your labs are good, I would take what's useful from the NUT and throw the rest away. (Are they sending you for bloodwork routinely, or has that fallen through the cracks too?)

Agreed, your temper-tantrum-toddler-tummy is likely to go back and forth on things. The slower you eat, the easier it'll be to tell when something is even beginning to irritate your insides -- hopefully so you can stop before it leads to cramping or other nasty symptoms. For me, the transition from purees to soft foods was (and still is) a bit of a battle. I couldn't handle tuna or egg salad (unless it was completely pureed with greek yogurt / light mayo) until... uh.... well I'm 12 weeks in and I still can't? LOL, my body gets angry at anything not exceedingly moist, so canned fish and any egg other than poached just won't go down. Mayo and yogurt have been fine though. Anyway, whenever you run into digestive issues, just take a step back. Eat some things you know you can handle for a few days, and try again -- or try a different method of prep. I've found that steaming most of my foods (even found an awesome microwave steamer) helps keep them moist enough 8/10 times. Healthy sauces or dips are your friend. Don't rush yourself, you'll be eating more satisfying textures soon enough. (I've also found that for egg salad, if I puree half of my serving and then hand mash the other half, the consistency changes enough to give me less problems. I also throw in some mashed avocado and more greek yogurt than is probably needed.) (Have you tried egg drop soup? You beat an egg or two, and drizzle that in a spoonful at a time to simmering / lightly boiling broth. Simple, but can be really satisfying.)

- I found a small digital kitchen scale was my best investment, it helped me get a better idea of portions and made it so much easier to track nutrition stats throughout the day. - tracker apps are great! it took me a while to find one that worked for me personally, but there's a lot out there. I'd suggested testing a few free versions out ahead of time so you're ready before you get there. - bariatric portion plates or just tiny dishes. I actually couldn't find a portion control plate that worked for me (in Canada), but I found a bunch of cute little appetizer dishes and tiny bowls that make me happy to eat from. - if you don't have it, nab a blender or a handmixer when it's on sale. Makes the puree stage much easier, and also helps with smoothies and shakes in the liquid stage. Don't spend a lot of money on one though (unless you honestly feel you'll get a lot of use out of it after you're through those stage).

March buddies, how're you all hanging in there? Is everyone nicely healed up? Are you coming across any difficult hurdles? Finding a love of new healthy foods? How's your hair lol? Me, I keep hurting myself, lol. First I tried recumbent biking too early -- even though it was on the most minimal setting, my care team scolded me good for that. But even as recently as last week, I bent/twisted sideways while sitting at my desk trying to reach my purse, but it was snagged on something and something about being in that position too long (or tugging a resistant object) aggravated something internally. The same area that took the longest to feel 'normal' and not tight after surgery. I feel like a dope. My hair has just started thinning in the last week or so. It was only a few strands from all over at first -- not concentrated anywhere -- so I got a new haircut hoping that the thinness would look purposeful. Two days after I found a little patch right at the front where my buzzcut ends and the bob-length hair begins. C'est la vie. I'm finding I'm craving sashimi on the regular. It was one of my first meals 'out' after surgery, so maybe there's something psychosomatic going on -- but when I eat it, it just feels like such a clean protein and is moist so I know it'll go down easily. It's my new comfort food, I guess. (Ironically, before WLS I could really only stand salmon or butterfish sashimi, everything else had to be in a roll, preferably with spicy mayo or unagi sauce -- and I hated tuna -- but now yellow tail and tuna seem to be my go-to.) I'm dealing with the cravings much better than I would've pre-OP, but I swear every three or four days something in my brain is trying to convince me that I should ignore my pre-packed lunch and go pick up some ice-cold fish instead.

Pea soup, re-pureed to a smoother consistency with a dash of parmesan cheese. I loved putting fat free refried beans or ricotta cheese into anything I could, but I think I pretty much lived off of cottage cheese. I think I ate it every day, and just stirred in different seasonings (dill with garlic, chili powder, curry powder, rotisserie chicken powder. I even tried dill pickle popcorn seasoning!) Depending on your program, you might also be able to have certain crackers already -- my team told me saltines or melba toast were good in small doses at this point, eaten slowly and with something wet -- ie. melba toast dipped in hummus.

Your program might be different, but mine allowed sugar free pudding. Add a scoop of protein powder or peanut butter powder -- after it's set -- and/or make it with a milk like fairlife that has added protein. During my stage, I went to my local fav Vietnamese restaurant and bought a couple servings of pho broth, which I added a little extra bone broth powder to. I got tired of my protein shakes pretty quickly, but I'd use half of one to make a faux smoothie using either sugarfree drink mixes or sugarfree jello, watered down with extra milk or water so the sweetness wasn't overpowering. (premier protein chocolate shake + nsa peanut butter powder (PB&Me) = peanut butter cup shake) Tomato juice is awesome to awaken your taste buds after so much faux-sweet shakes. Campbells cream of tomato soup mixed really well with unflavoured protein powder for me, provided I added it after I finished heating the soup. (I used Boost unflavoured protein).