marfar7

248 was the weight the day before my surgery. I think it happened to be my highest weight also. Even tho I lost most of the weight with my lapband (revision 3 mths ago) I count my weight as tho I lost it all with the sleeve (after all, it was all cuz of wls in general). While I've only lost 22 lbs since being sleeved (I knew it would come off slower cuz I started at 174) I've lost almost 100 lbs total since wls.

Back when I was fat, I hardly ever cooked. I ate frozen food, fast food, and Cereal for dinner almost every night. I might have made a homemade meal maybe once every 10 days. After losing 100 lbs, I started getting into cooking, especially for others. I luv to cook now. And now that we're living with my father in law and step daughter, I actually have someone to cook for (hubby is a low carb fanatic and no fun to cook for!) I'm in cooking heaven. Someone actually appreciates my cooking (hubby appreciates it when I fry him a chicken boob, a pork chop or a steak, other than that, he's not appreciative, lol). I'm obsessed with Diner, Drive Ins, and Dives. Luv watching the different resataurants all over the country and what they serve. Gives me great ideas. Nothing wrong with watching food channels. as long as ur not following Paula Deens "more butter" theory all the time! lol

Think about what they're doing: Removing 85% of ur stomach. No matter the size of the bougie, ur bound to lose weight cuz u only have 15% of ur original stomach size. I'm a band to sleeve revision (had my band out and sleeve done at the same time tho, thank God) also and have been losing much slower than those who had the sleeve only. 1 thing is becuz I started at a lower weight (174) and 2nd becuz I already had some restriction, I only lowered my intake a little, compared to those that only had the sleeve, that were' eating much more before their surgery (my opinion on this, no medical evidence). I'm 3 mths out and have lost 22 lbs. I lost 14 lbs the 1st month and about 1 lbs a week since. I will accept this rate cuz I eat whatever I want, I don't count calories, carbs, anything - I just listen to my body and stop eating when it tells me to. I eat about as much (maybe a couple bites less) than when my lapband was at it's premium condition 3 yrs ago (had it done 4 yrs ago but it was "perfect" restriction at about 1 yr). I eat bread, rice, Pasta and potatoes. I can only eat 1 pc of bread, a few spoonfuls of rice, maybe 5 bites of pasta, and maybe 1/4 of a potato. While I know I could speed up the loss by counting, stopping eating bread, rice, pasta, and exercising more than my 1 hr 4x a week - I enjoy eating normally and still seeing a 1 lb loss each week. I'm now in a size 8 and if I never lose another lb (my goal is 130 - I'm 22 lbs from it), I'm still happy with being able to eat whatever I want. It's why I had wls in the first place - to avoid the constant dieting. And counting stuff is dieting. I've done enuf dieting in my lifetime. I've had enuf. So, if u watch what u eat, count everything u put in ur mouth, and constantly think about food (cuz we all know when u count, ur obsessed with food), u will lose much faster. It's all what u want to make of it. If ur happy losing slower, I recommend not being obsessed with what u put in ur mouth. If u want to lose faster, then count. And yes, I know how much Protein and Water I'm sposed to get in a day. I also know that broccoli is better than cake. I eat very healthy - just not obsessively. And I know that there's some people who don't lose weight with the sleeve. U occasionally see them on this board. It's very rare tho. U can't convince me that by losing 85% of ur stomach and being forced to eat just 6 bites of a meal that u won't lose weight. Scientifically if u eat less calories, ull lose weight. If I eat only 6-8 bites of a meal, I'm regularly eating less than 1000 calories a day (yes, even I who doesn't count them can still average the amt I eat) I'm bound to lose, maybe not fast, but I will still lose. So, if u work at it, u WILL lose weight. Even if u don't work at it, u'll probly still lose, just much slower. Good luck!

Good point! They also took mine out the same incision they took my lapand out (right side). It was also the 1 of the 5 incision that looked like a black and blue Frankenstein.

Its a show on the Travel Channel that stars Adam, a food challenger that travels the US taking food challenges. Like. 4 lbs buger with 2 lbs of fries that he has to finish in 30 minutes. Or finishing 50 super hot wings in 30 minutes. Ot how bout the 6 lbs of deep fried turkey nuts he eats in 60 minutes? Today I saw him finish a 9 lb steak platter in 1 sitting. He's successful in about 90% of the challenges. It grosses me out, makes my tummy hurt, but at the same time it pulls me in. He's a little chubby but by@no means obese. Not sure if he eats at any other time. I ate about 2 oz too much last nite and paid for it on the toilet (sorry, tmi). I can't imagine finishing 9 lbs of food. Can u imagine? Toward the end of any challenge, u see him getting a little sick, mouth start watering, sweating. Not sure if he ever vomits (of course it never shows that part). I think my tummy would rupture at about 1/10th of his challenges. And I'm being totally serious when I say RUPTURE. Anyone else watch this show? Like I said, it makes me cringe, sometimes making my stomach turn but it always pulls me in....

Agreed. I loved my band while it was working. helped me take off 104 lbs. Till it slipped. Not only did I suffer with constant nightime reflux and pain eating, I gained 30 lbs over a years time. Vomiting was so normal to me that I actually miss it now (I know, weird, huh?). I think I can credit about 75% of the loss to vomiting. I became a bulimic. Had my revision in July of 2013 and I'm 22 lbs from goal. Have only vomited twice in 4 mths (ate too much too quickly). I'm losing very slowly and I've heard the last 20 are the hardest so I'm giving myself a year to lose it. I don;t min losing slower if I get to eat whatever I want (it's about the same quantity of food as my lapband at its best). I don't count calories but I know I rarely get over 1000 (calories counting in the back of my mind, coming from years of proficient dieting). Congrats to u and good luck with the last 10 lbs. How much have u lost total, since 2007?

I think it's pretty rare to be on soft foods on day 3 (not unheard of, but really rare). I think my drs diet is a little conservative (4 weeks of liquids, 4 weeks of soft foods, then regular) but then I didn't have to deal with a lengthy pre op diet (24 hrs of liquids) so what am I complaining about? On week 3, I emailed my nurse telling her I was doing well and asking if I could go onto soft foods early. I was expecting a resounding - YES! What I got was the opposite. Absolutely not. Have to do the entire 4 weeks (and hubby was the diet nazi. He woulda tattled on me if I had cheated) I think the norm is at least 2 weeks of liquids however. And I didn't have purees, went straight to soft foods. When I was going thru it, it was tough. That 4 weeks was soooo long. But now I think "no big deal". You can do this. Get back to ur prescribed diet and kick it outa the park!

I was a band revision 3 mths ago. I chose the sleeve for the same as the above posters: No malabsorbtion, no dumping (but I still can't eat ice cream cuz it causes tummy cramping and diarrhea). I also liked the fact that I wasn't gunna look gaunt - I would lose slower (as I did with the band). So glad to see the lapband isn't on ur list of things to choose from. Had mine for almost 4 yrs and the 1st 2 were great, the last 2 weren't so great. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone... Good luck on ur choice. Also, I've known several people who regained almost all the weight they lost with the bypass. It's easier to stretch out ur intestines (which r still stretchy) than to stretch out the part of ur tummy they actually leave (the 85% they take out contains the stretchy part. It will stretch a LITTLE over time, but no where near where it was). Even tho there's no long term data on the sleeve, I've heard the regain is much less.

How do they afford to almost GIVE away memberships to a really great gym? Just got a membership yesterday after taking the tour. What a great gym. They have about 150 cardio machines and about 75 weight machines. In addition, they have 2 separate areas. 1 for a 30 minutes total body workout (similar to curves) and 1 a 12 minute ab workout circuit. They have a big flashing light that goes off if ur a "Lunk" (someone who bangs the weights, wears a muscle shirt, and drinks Water from a 1 gallon container). No lunks allowed (meaning no serious body builders, just plain ole folk looking to increase their health) With the $1 for the 1st mth and $20 a mth (they also have a $10 1 too) they give me the use of any Planet Fitness in the country, ability to bring a guest in every single day, unlimted use of the tanning machine, unlimted use of the hydrobed (which is heavenlly), and the use of a skin thingy that's sposed to erase wrinkles and fine lines (ill letcha know if it works). I even got a free tshirt. Did I mention a personal trainer (groups of up to 5) is free also? And 50% off all their sports drinks. Wow. Start on Monday. Trying to get off the last 25 lbs. Not sure how the gym makes a profit. Luv them already. They're sponsored by The Biggest Loser. Can't wait to start...

Wow, didn't even notice ur only 3 weeks out. I take back all that I said about eating in the real world. I was still on full liquids at 3 weeks and I was scared of eating Jello because it was so solid. Went into soft foods at week 4-8. Started eating bread, Pasta, etc after 8 weeks. So, forget what I said about not beating urself up. U should kick urself in the butt and go back to ur prescribed diet until ur healing tummy can handle real food. Bad, bad girl (or guy...) ((HUGS - after that little bashing!))

Hardly anyone on this site will admit it but we've all been there. We all test our sleeves to see what it will handle. Last nite we went to Hometown Buffet. I filled my plate and took 1 bite of each thing. 8 bites total. I even took 1 bite of 3 different Desserts. I didn't beat myself up for it cuz I live in the REAL world, where we eat what everyone else eats. I did notice how many obese people eat there tho. Never really noticed it before. The table next to us had about 8 people, the least weighing in at about 230. They went back again, again, and again. It amazed me. I was satisfied with my 1 bite of each thing I loved. Got on the scale this morning and I lost 1 lb! Yeah! Hometown Buffet and I actually lost 1 lb. Amazing.... Just pick yourself up and quit beating yourself up. Ur gunna eat pizza, Pasta, bread, and other "taboo" foods. It's great just being able to eat a couple bites of it tho, isn't it? Thats what I luv about my sleeve.

Didn't see any donuts. They did have a bowl of Tootsie Rolls on the counter, however. I'm starting tomorrow so we'll see howw it turns out. I've got a 12 mth contract so it really doesn't matter if they serve donuts. I'm not gunna eat any...

The 1st week post op, I was excited that I was 1 of the lucky ones to lose their hunger. Than bam. Day 10 arrived and I became hungry again. It doesn't take much to fill me up (I can eat 2 bites of a burger and be full) but I'm hungry again 2 hrs later. Guess I wasn't one of the lucky ones to lose it. Bummer...

Its a show on the Travel Channel that stars Adam, a food challenger that travels the US taking food challenges. Like. 4 lbs buger with 2 lbs of fries that he has to finish in 30 minutes. Or finishing 50 super hot wings in 30 minutes. Ot how bout the 6 lbs of deep fried turkey nuts he eats in 60 minutes? Today I saw him finish a 9 lb steak platter in 1 sitting. He's successful in about 90% of the challenges. It grosses me out, makes my tummy hurt, but at the same time it pulls me in. He's a little chubby but by@no means obese. Not sure if he eats at any other time. I ate about 2 oz too much last nite and paid for it on the toilet (sorry, tmi). I can't imagine finishing 9 lbs of food. Can u imagine? Toward the end of any challenge, u see him getting a little sick, mouth start watering, sweating. Not sure if he ever vomits (of course it never shows that part). I think my tummy would rupture at about 1/10th of his challenges. And I'm being totally serious when I say RUPTURE. Anyone else watch this show? Like I said, it makes me cringe, sometimes making my stomach turn but it always pulls me in....

I'm 3 mths out and sposed to be on 3 meals a day. I can also eat only about 2 oz at a time and I added the calories for those 3 meals plus a Protein shake and it came out to 450. Not enuf to live long term. I'm also hungry about 2 hrs after eating. So I eat 5 to 6 times a day. I think 2 oz is normal for a new sleever. Not sure about the 3 meals a day as I personally can't do it. However, my dr reccomends not snacking. Can't do it till I can eat a little more. Id count the calories that ur getting in to make sure its enuf. Protein is important but so is getting in enuf calories to power ur body

Absolutely I'm a "real life" kind of gal. I get bashed alot on here that I eat EVERYTHING under the sun (except ice cream but only cuz that give me tummy trouble) just in REALLY small amts. While my diet couldn't be considered "healthy" by any means, it's certainly healthier than pre wls (I was banded for 4 yrs previous to the sleeve). I've lost close to 100 lbs eating whatever I want also. Only 25 lbs left. Now for the caveat: My scale hasn't budged in about 6 weeks (and I'm only 3 mths post op - down about 20 lbs since being sleeved). I just joined a gym today (just moved 800 miles away last week and starting over in a new state) and will start my last 25 lbs tomorrow. I'm gunna attempt to eat a little healthier. Meaning :Less fast food, less potatoes, less bread - by no means does it mean NO fast food, potatoes or bread. I've heard the last 20 lbs are the heardest so I guess I'm gunna hafta be a little stricter on my diet for a while Hubby is an over the top Atkins Induction fan. Can't do low carb. Did it for 4 weeks last Feb and I was miserable. Wpuld've killed my mom for a cookie. It works for him tho. He's a volume eater. He can eat his weight in meat and veggies. Bread is so foreign to him. But if he eats a cookie, he eats the whole darn bag. While I can eat just 1 or 2 and be good for a couple days. And btw, I luv Chipotle. I get the chicken burrito bowl with black Beans, brown rice, fajita veggies, cheese, lettuce, pico de gallo, sour cream, and guac on the side (otherwise the leftovers are too soggy). I will eat maybe 6-8 bites and the rest is tossed after a couple days and about 4 meals (when I get sick of it). And hubby can eat there too. He gets a double portion of steak burrito bowl with fajita veggies, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, guac, and hot salsa. Maybe 6 gms of carbs (in the cheese and sour cream). Oh and he gets them without rice and beans. I say everything in moderation. I lost my weight slowly. Couldn't sped it up, I spose if I'd counted everything that went into my mouth. And now I guess I'm choking on my words of wisdom cuz now that I'm stuck with another 25 lbs to lose, I will be more carfeul about what I put in. But I still won't count anything. I will just limit a few things (like my fast food to 1x a week instead of 4) Good luck with ur weightloss. It's definitely forever and if you can live forever with counting everything that goes into ur mouth, then booey to u. More power to ya!

We all have to go thru it. I only had a 24 hr pre op diet but was on full liquids for 4 wks post op. If I ever have to look at another cup of split pea Soup I may vomit. It gets boring, I was starving at day 10, but I made it. Didn't cheat at all (( take that back. At 3 1/2 wks I had a lick of creamy pb off the spoon) On my full liquid diet I could have yogurt, sf puddings, cream Soups, and thinned cream of wheat. What does ur dr say is on ur liquid diet? R u pre or post op?

I've tried ice cream 5x (I'm a slow learner) and every single time it give me tummy cramps. The last time I was begging God to get me thru it (while on the toilet for 2 straight hrs) and Id never eat it again. Not sure if its truly dumping (my dr says that sleevers don't have dumping) but its close enuf for me I tolertae anything else, including bread, rice, and Pasta. Not sure if that's good or not?

Luv me some bugers and fries but McD's is the last place Id go for food. Livd across the street from 1 for 2 yrs and only went there once, for fries (dipped in hot mustard). Now if they were eating a Red Robin burger in front of me (and that wouldn't happen cuz I still eat em) Id be jealous... Good job on ur part

My dog used to luv me. She now gets no people food (due to food allerigies) but she never gives up hope. Anytime I eat anything, she's right there waiting for me to drop a crumb.

Its definitely the sugar alchols in the Atkins bars. I didn't the Atkins Induction diet last feb for 4 wks. Ate 1 to 2 Atkins bars a day. Any more than 1 and I had tummy troubles. As for the dumping: my dr says that sleevers don't have dumping Ithat it comes from bypass when ur body doesn't absorb nutrients). That being said, every single time (I'm a slow learner) I try ice cream I get bad stomach cramps and diarrhea. Not sure if its dumping or what (my dr would argue) but whatever it is, its not worth it. A few wks ago I noticed myself bargaining with God if He got me thru it, Id never eat ice cream again. Not unlike drinking too much at 18 yr old.... But I do know that Atkins bars (which r very good) cause cramping....

I live in the real world. Where people eat bread, rice, and Pasta. If someone told me id never be able to eat bread again after wls Id hafta hurt em. Melba toast was on my soft food list (hubby and I did an experiement. Put a pc of melba toast in some Water along with a small pc of bread. 10 mins later the bread was about 4x the size and the melba toast was the same. Then I understoof why I could have that vs bread). Dipped melba toast in my egg yolk, put tuna salad on them, used it to dip in my chili. Wherever I used to use bread, I used melba toast. At about 2 mths I had 1/2 of a 1/2 of a bagel. Went down fine. Since then, I eat pasta, rice, and bread on a daily basis. I can eat about 2/3 of a pc of wheat bread. Sits fine. I don't do low carb, otherwise I obviously wouldn't be so pro carbs. I had wls so Id never have to diet again and counting anything seems like dieting to me. I strive to eat healthy, cut back on fast food, cut back on junk food, but I don't limit myself to only Protein and veggies. Works for me. I'm losing slowly. I know I could speed it up by watching more of what goes into my mouth but I'm done obsessing over food. Its not my only thought anymore. And if I was couting everything, food would be my main thought in the day. Not sure if my plan is very popular around here. Thank God I have a sleeve that limits my portions to very tiny amts of food. Ok, what was the ? Again? Oh yeah, when can u have bread again. If it were me, I would've already had it. Most people try to stay away from it tho. The answer is in there somewhere....I think...

I ate a lot of eggs, refried Beans, tilapia, canned chicken, and hamburger. I was on a soft diet from wk 4-8. Oh, and potatoes. Its taboo to even talk about potatoes here but I'm a potatoe fiend and would be very depressed if someone told me that id have to give them up after wls. I think the only things I didn't eat on my soft diet was steak, ribs, and dry chicken breast. Oh and Jerky.

The 1st food that I actually chewed was a scrambled egg. 4 wks of liquids was long enuf...

4 wks ago we drove down to Ca to help out with my MIL. I knew she had Parkinsons right away. The following 2 weeks, we took care of her. My FIL asked us to move in to help with her, him (he's 90) and the house. We agreed. We'll move our whole lives 16 hrs away and move into hubbys old bedroom. Then MIL was in the hospital with a colon infection. Afer a week, we drove home to pack and move. She seemed to be getting better. She was talking and asking to go home. We spent a week at home (Oregon) and left yesterday, 4 days before we were scheduled to leave. Hubby had a feeling we should go early. Stopped 1/2 way there for the nite. Got a call this am that she had died. Hubbys dad was with her. Hubbys upset cuz we didn't make it in time. And I already had 1/2 donut wirh coffee this am. I'm sure there's gunna food galore for the next week. Not even gunna worry about what I eat this week. Since I can eat so little I don't think it'll make much of a difference in the long run. Hubbys never ever lost anyone. My dad died when I was 20 and my husband died when I was 40. I'm a pro at this now. I know what FIL is feeling right now. But being on the other side, I don't know what to say to him... Just wanted to vent. Riding in a 22 ft truck with our car on the back. Gives me something to do...