ouroborous

You'll be able to eat almost all of your favorite foods again, eventually (not at first, of course). Just much more slowly, and in much smaller quantities. If you're like me, you may eventually find that some foods -- especially, for me, doughy, bready foods -- that you used to love just don't seem as appealing to you. These days I find myself most interested in dense Protein and vegetables. If you'd told me a year ago that I'd be passing up a dish of Pasta for a steak and some veggies, I would have called you insane, but that's me today! Of course, I CAN eat the pizza and pasta if I want to, but... I usually don't want to! As to not having anyone there... well, *HUG* from a guy all the way across the country. All I can say is -- you're doing the right thing for YOU. And if you don't have as many friends and family around you as you'd prefer right now, just keep at it -- things will change, and if you keep doing the right things, life gets a WHOLE lot better post-sleeve!

FWIK, surgery itself can cause "foggy brain" symptoms -- any general anesthesia carries a risk of (possibly long-term, possibly permanent) cognitive impairment. Last time I read about this, there was a recent study correlating time "under" and cognitive impairment, and it was a pretty strong association. I strongly doubt that ghrelin itself is the primary modulator for memory and concentration, because then we would have been the sharpest tacks in the drawer PRIOR to our VSG's. Now, I have a crazy-high IQ, but my memory and concentration have always been poor, to the point where I still have a diagnosis and prescription for adult ADHD floating around somewhere. My guess is that this is a case of correlation/causation confusion; weight loss and metabolism are complex enough that it's really hard to generalize from "animal models" to human metabolism. In another ten years, when we have long-term meta-studies of VSG patients available, we'll know more, but right know I'm pretty sure that the costs/risks of obesity FAR outweigh (heh) the risks of VSG.

So guys, I need some suggestions on ways to hit some "problem areas" that I've been noticing since losing 100 lbs (with maybe 15-20 more to go). Unfortunately, all the flab was hiding the fact that my muscles weren't really all that I'd hoped. My legs are/were tree trunks, probably from carrying around all that weight, but even they have shrunk tremendously. Fortunately, I'm not having too much of the "deflated balloon" look -- I think my skin will pull back nicely, despite me being 40 (we guys just have it easier than women, I think...). And the fact that my testosterone has DOUBLED on its own since losing all the weight I've lost so far should really help me out. That being said, here's what I'd like to work on this summer: Abs -- despite not having that "crepe paper" loose skin, I still have some pinchable skin, and rather than let it get all saggy, I'd like to give it some muscle to adhere to. Are crunches the best things for upper/mid/lower abs? What about obliques? I want to be balanced. Arms -- I don't want the typical "wannabe weightlifter" arms -- huge biceps and measly tri's/delts. I'd also like to get some good muscle in my forearms, but I'm thinking that general lifting should take care of that. Shoulders -- I really have problems (esp. as I get older) with sore/popping delts and tris when I do focused lifting in these areas, so I need a good, relatively safe/low impact workout Neck -- before the WLS, my neck looked fine. But since the loss, my neck looks MUCH slimmer, which is generally a good thing except that I think it's TOO slim, plus I have a HUGE head (seriously: size XXL hats!) so I'm worried I'll get a bit of an "orange on a toothpick" look going on. What's good for (safely) bulking up the neck muscles; traps (shrugs)? What else? Legs -- I want to really work on my glutes and hamstrings and calves. My quads are still pretty strong from carrying around all that weight. I wouldn't mind working out the inner thigh too, to counteract some loose skin there. Given that I'm looking for basically "whole body toning," and given that I'm not super eager to spend all my time in a gym (I have a life), I wonder if you guys have suggestions for "natural" workouts that would hit these problem areas. By "natural" workouts, I mean things like bicycling, batting cages, martial arts, etc. Stuff I could do that's fun (I find weight lifting to be about the most boring thing on earth) and also will really exhaust and build up my muscles. Thanks in advance, I know this is sort of rambling, but it's been YEARS since I took bodybuilding seriously, and I'm struggling to figure out how to get back into it in my middle age. Just because I'm getting older doesn't mean I have to give up. One thing that I have on my side, btw, is that I'm naturally a mesomorph -- built broad (for my height) and easily building either muscle or fat. So I figure that if I can find a routine that I can stick with (IE, it's not too boring/doesn't take up ALL of my time/doesn't require incredibly expensive equipment), I should be able to bulk back up and fight off a little of the effects of aging. For a while. Edit: oh, I should add that I'm in Seattle, which means that my available "outdoor time" each year is limited to maybe 6-8 weeks. So whatever routine I figure out, the bulk of it has to be something that I can do indoors, or at least under a cover. That doesn't mean I would mind a little sun for the few months of good weather that we DO get, though!

Well, I'm two inches shorter than you and was 100 lbs less than you, and I was able to lose 100 lbs -- and I'm still going, although it's slowed way, way down. So I think you should be able to EASILY get into the mid 200's. And no, wanting to live a more "normal" life is not at all asking too much. I'm STILL amazed that I fit in plane seats/theater seats (although since I'm still broad shouldered, that's still a problem; if you're built similarly, you may have similar issues!) and buy clothes from "normal" stores (IE, I don't have to make a beeline for the "big and tall" section these days, I just wear normal L/XL clothes). It's a really nice feeling, and it is a HUGE psychological shift. I actually found that I had a brief phase of panic, because I got so used to thinking of myself as a really "big guy" that losing 100 lbs made me question that. Now I know that I'm still a "big guy" but that these days "big" doesn't necessarily mean "grossly obese!" It's a GOOD thing...

I'd highly recommend checking with your doctor, especially for the heavy stuff (deadlift is something that I could see increasing the intrathoracic pressure to the point of causing injury if you do it too soon) and the core stuff. Arms/shoulders stuff should be okay, as well as calves, but again -- ask your doc. According to my doc, at 6 weeks, the VSG incision is at 90%+ of its original strength, and after a couple months it's as strong or stronger than the original tissue, but still -- check with a doc. Your mileage may vary. And it's better to be safe than sorry; injury will sideline you for much longer than the VSG alone would.

Also, to the medical geeks out there, my total blood testosterone went from just over 300 prior to the VSG, to just under 600 about 9 months later (and holding steady). The end result is that EVERYTHING is harder and firmer and, well, bigger, down there, and my morning wood is back (yay!) and my muscles and endurance are showing the improvement, as is my mood and concentration. And my libido is... slightly crazy. The only downside is that I now actually NEED to shave at least once a day, and if I'm not careful, I'll grow hair from all kinds of awkward places. But that's a small price to pay! So, while I wouldn't say I'm a teenager again (heck, I was obese as a teenager; I never WAS a teenager in that sense!) -- I'm not stupid and impulsive and rude -- I will say that losing 100+ pounds has been the best thing that ever happened to my sex life. Period. I only wish I could have had this when I was in my 20's instead of at age 40... but I'm still not going to pass up on the fun

I've actually found very little problems with ANY amount of Fluid, as long as I don't drink too fast. Now, solids -- yeah, I fill up really fast and get stuck easy. But fluids? Even carbonated fluids? No problem. That being said, Diet Coke is pretty much undrinkable (and it used to be just about my favorite) these days because of the acid, not the carbonation. It just kills me...

Seriously? There are guys who drop their drawers around their ankles? I'm an "over the top" kinda guy, for a number of reasons I won't go into (some of which would sound like bragging, too), but I've never had a problem with my boxers staying anywhere except right on my hips & ass. I find it way more annoying to go digging around and trying to "thread the needle" than I do just pulling the elastic down a couple inches in front.

Yeah, I'd wait and follow the doc's orders *to the letter*. There will be plenty of time to go pound the iron later, tiger. Health and safety first; if you tear an incision due to overdoing it, you'll be out of commission for a lot more than 18 days

Hate to be a downer, but ... how old are ya? Unfortunately, gravity takes its toll on us guys just like it does for the gals. It's just that for guys, it's OTHER things that sag with time. And post-weight loss, sometimes "the boys" get bigger (has to do with higher levels of protoandrogens due to reduced fat), which unfortunately... can make them hang lower (although that's not usually too noticeable; it's more likely just gravity).

http://www.scienceda...10419003651.htm Interesting; note that this isn't saying "carbs are bad," but for fatty liver (hepatostearosis), which many/most of us likely had or have, it DOES imply that low carb diets may be the best way to improve that condition. Considering that an alarmingly large number of obese people die of liver failure, this is important information, and one more piece of good news for those of us on the road to "normalsville."

I was having lunch with a group of coworkers recently, and the topic turned to weight loss, so naturally my sleeve experiences interested them (I don't hide the fact that I had WLS). One of the guys I work with is VERY fit, trim and relatively muscular (not bodybuilder level, but just in shape); I've seen him in the locker room at the gym in our building. He told me that according to his doc's BMI charts, he's overweight and needs to lose weight. Moral of the story; if people like that are "fat" then... well... the whole scale is suspect, to me. I think I'll focus on being healthy and feeling good.

Not terribly concerned if the only significant side effect is a perception of being cold. I'll stack that up against diabetes & heart disease any day. Metabolism is complex, so I wouldn't at all be surprised to find other complex systemic effects like this.

Well, I've been saying I've lost "about" 100 lbs for a while now, because at ~95 lbs, that's true. But today, I tipped the scale at 229.8, which means that I've lost just OVER 100 lbs since my surgery last May. Huzzah! Plus, it's nice to be in another weight bracket -- the 220's -- again. And I'm really enjoying clothes that fit (and some attention from the ladies!) All good things. It's going to be a FUN summer!

Thanks for all the kind words!

So here's a fun "problem" to have since losing 100 lbs. I now really need to start buying tailored clothes if I want them to fit! Across the chest and shoulders, I'm still an XL. I can fit into some L shirts, but it's really pulling tightly in those areas. However -- and this is the amazing bit -- in the midsection, I wear a L and increasingly a M. So if I buy size XL shirts and jackets, they are huge and baggy and billowy around my stomach; it looks like I'm trying to hide a gut that I simply no longer have. However if I buy size L or M shirts, they fit around my tummy except that my chest and shoulders pull them so tight that they ride up and look like I'm wearing a cutoff! This is a WONDERFUL problem to have. I used to just wear 2XL and 2XLT shirts to cover my gut and man-boobs and back fat. And that was okay because I was just big all over, so I could just buy "size huge" and know it would basically "fit" (like a mu mu "fits"). Now I actually have to start finding clothes that are shaped for MY body, as opposed to just giant cylinders of cloth to cover the lard. It means clothes shopping is both much harder -- I have to try on a LOT of clothing to find stuff that fits and looks nice and I like -- but also much more fun, since there's actually a chance of finding a piece of clothing that I actually like these days! Oh, and it's also nice to move from size 48 waist jeans down to being comfortable in a 38 and increasingly able to wear a 36! Holy crud, batman!

Astonishing progress! You look amazing!

Congratulations to you, too. And yes, it IS a great feeling. I know that substantively, there's nothing really different between 95 lbs and 100 lbs, but sometimes that extra digit makes all the psychological difference in the world!

I should add that my next goal is 226.8. Since I'm averaging about a pound a week at this point, that means that right around early-mid May (almost exactly a year out from surgery), I should achieve the goal of moving from morbidly obese, to obese, to just "overweight" -- according to the BMI charts. Of course, with a BMI of 29.9, that's pushing it, but it still qualifies! Since I'm extremely heavily built (no really, that's not just a euphemism like "big boned" -- genetically, I'm built somewhat like a tank), I doubt that a "normal" BMI weight of 185 lbs is EVER going to happen (I would seriously have to look and be anorexic), but I'll be content with just being "a little overweight." That's good company! Now I just need to get back into my exercise routine and start packing on some muscle for summer!

And then some...

Just a small scale victory, but somehow, while on vacation in Hawaii, I lost almost 7 lbs! Plus, I finally broke the 240 lb barrier, weighing in at 239.7 lbs! I felt like I ate a lot of junk food, but the truth is I wasn't eating much at all (too busy having fun to eat!) and most of it was Protein. That plus snorkeling and having fun in the sun all day means weight loss galore. So, thank you, sleeve, for making my vacation a weight loss success along with a vacation success! Now if I could just kick this stupid cold I picked up on the plane ride back (*grumble grumble kids who don't cover their mouths when they cough grumble*)

Just a quicky here; while I was in Hawaii, I discovered that I can now comfortably wear a 38 inch waist jeans, shorts, and slacks. The last time I could fit into pants with smaller than a 40 inch waist, I was 18 years old. I'm well on track to "bottoming out" at around a 36 inch waist by my birthday in June, and given how solidly built my legs and butt are (TMI?) that's going to be just about cloth on muscle and bone, very little fat. So that's a tremendously great feeling; to be fitting into clothes that I haven't fit into since I was a teenager! And only 9 months out! Huzzah!

If you have a good PS, the scars are not as devastating as y'all are making out. But still, it's a very personal decision. I'm still on the fence about it; I'm only about 9 mos. out now, so I have a ways to go before I have to make up my mind!

I can't speak for anyone else, but for this guy, well... I have been overweight or obese my entire life. The last time I wore jeans with a waistband smaller than a 40 was *before* high school. Now, during my Hawaii trip, I discovered that I can fairly comfortably wear a size 38 waist slacks, and I'm pretty much on track to get down to a size 36 by my next birthday. The last time I wore that, I was *16 frigging years old*. So, maybe some of it is marketing changes, but men's waistbands are measured in inches, not "small" or "extra large" -- so there's not a lot of wiggle room there! In many ways, the sleeve has made me the slimmest I've pretty much EVER been since I was a child. I wouldn't be surprised to find it had done the same for you, too!