BlackBerryJuice

I was also sleeved back in August at 25 (26 now)! I'm down 62 lbs and basically at my goal weight - I would like to get down to 140, but if I level out at 145, I'll be happy, too. I don't really think about my sleeve too much these days - I can eat anything I want, it's very rare that I get any pain or discomfort when eating. I also eat enough not to get weird stares from people who don't know about my surgery, but not so much that it'd make me gain weight. E.g. at 5.5 months out, I'll have half a 6" Subway sandwich with lots of veggies on it. I'm not very public about my sleeve - my immediate family and my boyfriend's family and 7 or 8 closest friends know, but that's about it.

I dunno, man, most Asian people I know happen to load up on tons of white rice AND somehow remain super-thin. You go to Japan or China and they eat 2-3 bowls of rice a day, but less than 5% of the population is obese. But you won't go to a restaurant there and get a serving of pasta the size of a soccer ball the way you will in North America. I really think it has more to do with QUANTITY of carbs than carbs alone - except for things like high-fructose corn syrup, but that's another story.

There's a couple of things that could cause it. Bladder prolapse is probably the most common one (esp. if you've had kids), but there are also some more serious things. Worth going to your family doc for if it becomes a regular occurence, IMO.

Sounds good...I'll probably be free in the first week, but after I'm swamped.

I think it's a mental thing....the nervous system in your internal organs is quite different from the one on the surface of your body, so you can't localize sensation very well. Kind of how people who have heart attacks can't pinpoint to the little spot on their heart that's dying.

ANA is not very specific for lupus, you might wanna ask for anti-ds DNA or anti-Sm.

Wow, great to hear!

2 eggs with some cheese in one sitting is where I'm at after 5.5 months.

I think it will help. Aerobic exercise is one of the only 3 treatments for fibromyalgia that actually has research backing it up, so definitely keep trying to do even just a little bit.

I was also rather hungry during the liquids phase. You should lose most of your hunger once you're on to solids, when your stomach actually remains full for several hours - the liquids go right through.

That's too bad that he's being such a stubborn fool about it. But good for you for standing up for yourself and realizing it's your own health and your own decision. If he continues to sabotage you and causes you trouble after the surgery, you know what to do.

Let me know how it goes. I got something like 5 sessions of Velashape at a mad discount (like $40 per session, I think?), just haven't gotten around to using it. I found some research on it - it looks like it has only been tested on the thigh area, which is fine by me, as that's where the last of my weight is being held. It looked like up to 80% of people experienced between 1 and 3" reduction in thigh circumference after 1 session. The only downside appeared to be some pain and potential bruising associated with it. I'm curious as to how painful it's gonna be.

Hey, thanks! I always lifted weights, so I had the muscle mass before the surgery - it's just been a matter of maintaining it and losing the fat on top since the surgery. I started some light weights maybe 8 weeks out (no ab work), and I went full throttle with heavy weights, weighted ab work, and bootcamp at about 3 months.

I agree! I've heard of people who are obese (between 35 and 40) gaining weight in order to get to 40+ and qualify, but if you are already at a normal weight, it just doesn't seem to make sense. I don't know if it's going to be very helpful. I bet she did more damage during these 2 years of gaining excess weight by overeating than she will by losing and getting her weight to 15 lbs before her starting weight....

I'm between 6 and 8 now, at 146. Not maintaining yet (lost 3 lbs this week). I was a loose 8 at 150 - I'm 5'5" tall.

Well, I've made my size 8 goal! My waist is more like size 6, but I've got another 2-3 lbs I wanna lose off of my inner thighs/butt - it's between 6 and 8 now. So I guess my new goal is size 6? But man, am I tired of wasting $ on new clothes! I just started wearing these size 10 pants like 1.5 months ago and I can't even wear them with a belt anymore! I ordered a size 8 on Ebay, but by the time it gets here, I suspect I'll need a 6. I've literally been going shopping AT LEAST twice a month!

Bfast: Protein bar Lunch: salad - mixed greens, chicken, Beans, corn, avocado, feta cheese, Peanut Butter, dates Snack: trail mix Snack: some more of the lunch salad Dinner: half a bagel with chicken liver pate, half a cup hot chocolate, some vegetables Late-night snack post-gym: 2 kids' yogurts (2 oz each)

I would stay away from yoga/pilates the first 2-3 months. There's a lot of core work in both, both in terms of flexing your abs and stretching them, which would put unnecessary pressure on the stitches in your abdominals.

I think she means not passing gas. Not much you can do about it, just keep walking and sipping.

I hope it's a glitch. If they decided to get rid of them in favor of the "Friends and Family" forum, I'm gonna pop a couple of staples!

Bfast: Protein bar lunch #1 (lol): some leftover burrito fillings from Monday (barbacoa, black Beans, rice, corn, lettuce, etc) Lunch #2: salad with grilled chicken, greens, corn, beans (you don't wanna be in the same room with me today), feta cheese Dinner: going out, as usual. Pasta, maybe?

Another pet peeve on a similar note - when you lose a bunch of weight and everybody who first said "you don't need to lose any weight!" starts saying how great you look. Or, even better, back-handed compliments - I remember one time back in the days I lost 30 lbs and my coach said "Wow, you are actually starting to look like a woman!" URGH.

Wait, I thought it was a miniseries about a weight-loss camp for teens? With Nikki Jablonski? I watched the first episode when I was on vacation in the US last summer, but then I got back to Canada and apparently you can't stream it from here!