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Tuesday jan 7, 29 months PO sleeve ‐----------------------------------------------------------------- Today was just not my day started out as a fast. Felt great throughout the fast no cravings I ate the following after 18 hour fast 6:00- coffee with milk 6:30 blended zucchini soup 7:00- keto cookie 8:00- 2 oz salmon 8:30- protien bar and soup broth Here's where it all went wrong TMI ALERT: I started feeling sick and projectile vomited for 10 min straight. I briefly felt better, than started getting terrible cramps which led to a massive bathroom explosion [emoji90] !!! Not sure what caused this as I am thankfully feeling loads better now. Was it the fasting? Or something I ate? I doubt it's a bug since i feel better so fast. I'm now scared to try another fast. Anyways this is my totals though I probably had less from all the vomiting -------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals- 731 cals / 46g protien / 36g net carbs / 40g fat Sent from my SM-G950U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

I think that’s the root of the problem here, I am a little shocked that your surgeon didn’t have a nutritionist as part of a team and a nutritional manual to help guide you through each phase of the bariatric surgery process including the fact that this is a lifelong tool that you use to make permanent lifestyle changes to your way of eating and perceptions of food. Perhaps gastric bypass surgery might have been more appropriate for you long term. If you can speak to a surgeon, do so. But a nutritionist and nutritional guidelines based on your personal needs and doing the head work of seeing this as a tool for life change in you way of eating and perceptions of food are very important. My story is long and boring. But I’ve fought my weight a long long time. But with this tool I hope to Finally reach goal and maintain the weight. I’m always afraid to lose that control. I track daily weight calories and protein as well as what foods I’ve eaten. Extreme maybe but takes a few seconds to do. In general it’s good to always keep to set rules for yourself. Some people find low carb helpful, combining intermittent fasting helpful as well. I need to be very strict with my calories due to metabolic disorders and inability to exercise. first step is to remember why you had the surgery. All the best to you in whatever you decide to do.

Well its that time of the week for my weekly check in. Today is 19 weeks I've been on this weight loss journey. I have to say my weight loss has slowed down too.. now it seems to take a few days to see any movements. I have started adding more real foods into my diet like tuna and mash potato which might explain things. It seems that it will take hard work to break into the 100s. As of today I'm sitting at 202lbs; I'm really hoping to get under 200 soon and eventually get to like 185 If possible I have ordered a decent rowing machine which I should get in a few weeks so that should help to move those last 20lbs as well as tighten up my belly area I've started looking into fasting where you only eat all your protein over a few hours then try fast the rest of the day with like just water and coffee and sugar free stuff...just trying to see if it will help kick my weight loss back into gear as I'm getting so close to goal!! thanks again Mike.

In the process of trying IF so last time I ate was about midnight last night. I had a coffee with 1.5 oz milk (28cals) 5:45 am (6 hours into fast). NOBODY WANTS TO KNOW ME IF I DONT HAVE MY COFFEE LOL. I had nothing else until now 6:00 PM. I had a coffee with milk so basically 18 hour fast. Thankfully I survived and feel fine. I still have to see how the rest of the day goes... so I have some questions #1 is it ok that I had my 1.5 oz milk? #2 what's the best way to break a fast (which foods do you eat? Do you eat a lot right away...) #3 how often do I need to do this for it to be effective? Is once a week good enough? Sent from my SM-G950U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

I tried 1 piece of black forest ham on day 5. Chewed to a pulp, went down fine. The next morning at 1am I ate one more with no problems. So I woke up this morning after fasting last night for labs this morning with my PCP office. I explained what I had done and explained that my surgeon was made aware that I ate lunch meat already. He said some people advance and heal faster than others. He said I'm at least craving protein. He asked if I've been getting all my protein in each day. I told him yes as I am. He said he will confer with my surgeon at the end of the day. He said try a few pieces of turkey or chicken is what he would recommend first. So on the way home I went to Walmart and bought some chicken lunch meat. Came home and eat 2 pieces well chewed, wated for 20 minutes. No growling, no distress just totally quiet. So an hour later I ate 5 slices that I weighed the meat out to be 2oz.. 1.5 hrs later I'm still great.

For a young/fit person with no health issues who also takes no medication that can 'blur' the picture, I personally feel that 'calories in vs. calories out' can be much more easily tracked and trusted as an 'indicator'. That being said, after years of watching Dr. Now on my 600 Pound Life, I've seen him bust several people who were actually NOT tracking/weighing/truly accounting what their 'in' vs their 'out' was. I remember he didn't even really get into it with most of them on what their 'calories out' calculation was - he just focused on the 'in part' but I am in NO WAY comparing these patients that we could EASILY see for ourselves were sabotaging their weight loss efforts by simply continuing their food addiction that they were still choosing to NOT address. I am also a slow loser. I've hit that magical age...went into menopause at 40, take meds that interfere with weight loss, etc. etc. etc. I cannot remember if you posted about this, but when I went back to the nutritionist and my surgeon complaining about slow weight loss, I was shocked when they told me to UP my carbs and my calories. I was like 'say what??"...I'm hardly losing right now why would I want to INCREASE anything. I think I even vented on a thread and ppl like Fluffychix, etc. pointed out that maybe I should listen to my surgeon/nutritionist and gave it a try. I up'd my numbers and within a week while I was not losing much more quickly than I had been, my body was given a bit of a shake up...and my numbers picked up weekly for me. Just seeing ANY improvement, whether I was losing maybe 1 lb more a week or really....since my body likes to do a 3 week stall followed by a 3 to 5..sometimes 6 lb weight loss...my overall 'monthly number of pounds lost" did start improving. It was NOTHING that would make me one of the fast losers...but the fact that I actually increased my calories from 600-700 a day to be 800 instead...and increased my carbs from LESS THAN 30 (usually hit 20 grams or less) to 60 (YES SIXTY)....my body basically..needed to be shaken up. There is much written about 'set points' and a whole bunch of other physiological data that proves there is science behind these set points we get stuck at. I think Dr. Weiner's videos address some of these....I'd have to get Fluffychix's thoughts on this but I know she has a wealth of knowledge accumulated in that beautiful head of hers. Because I'm now 6 months out and my weight loss is still slow...I know I have one thing in my control that has been set aside this past week - exercise....but I'm going to start exploring IF. I think you mentioned that prior to surgery you were doing intermittent fasting and maybe something else (can't remember) and your weight loss was more back then (although the more we lose/have lost overall, it seems.the harder it is to get the remainder off) . I know Fluffy mentioned a couple of months ago that I was still a bit early out to be thinking about IF...or maybe another poster mentioned, but that is the next thing I'm looking at as my body, for DECADES has ALWAYS managed to adapt to whatever method I was using to lose weight and in my mind, it went into survival mode and decided "thou shalt not lose any more weight". So I know I need to adjust/shake things up when I truly KNOW and can document I am doing the right things...but nothing is happening. I also know I need to wait until nothing has literally happened for at least 3 to 4 weeks before I concern myself with a 'shake up' in what I'm doing. Keep staying the course...and maybe ignore the peeps talking about in vs. out as there are SO many variables that can cloud this..whether there are things we are missing or actual variables like health, age, medical conditions, medication, body set points, metabolic resistance, etc. - and talk with your nutritionist about what are some changes they might recommend based on your personal history and where you are at...

Trust me was not happy cashing out for a surgery but i looked at it this way - Can not take it with you and if i keep going the way i am going to be in a ern Real fast

Everything moved extremely fast for me. I started the process in December 2018 and had surgery the following August. I have two insurances and paid ZERO for my surgery and my vitamins are all covered as well. Everything happens for a reason, trust the process.

I have have been waiting for almost a year for this process to start. I had my first appointment with my surgeon on January 2nd and it went well. My doctor has scheduled the following appointments. 01/28/2020 Physiological Evaluation 02/03/2020 Endoscopy 02/06/2020 Nutrition Visit 02/06/2020 Diet Visit 02/12/2020 Exercise Evaluation 02/18/2019 Pre-Op Classes The insurance coordinator said as soon as I am done with the Exercise Evaluation they will submit to insurance for approval they said this could take from a few hours to a few weeks to get it back. I have Blue Cross I hope the turn around time will be short. Once insurance approves me they said surgery would be scheduled for 3 weeks after the approval. Thankfully my insurance has no waiting time or mandated diet before surgery. Has anyone else had things move this fast? I am not going to lie I am getting nervous/excited at how fast its all going.

straight from the ada Diabetics should eat 4-5 small meals during the day instead of three larger meals, says the American Diabetes Association (ADA). This practice allows for a slower, continuous absorption of food, which prevents your body from ever switching over to a fasting state. Among the benefits are decreased blood sugar levels after meals, reduced insulin requirements during the course of the day and lower blood cholesterol levels. Eating several small meals may also decrease your hunger and reduce the overall number of calories you eat during the day.

Right I was not implying that a diabetic should snack between meals. Like I said they should definitely not fast and eat smaller meals at regular intervals. diabetes runs heavily in my family. I was my moms caretaker before she recently passed for the last 15 years. Been to many nutrition and diabetic support classes. eating one or two larger meals is not what a diabetic should do at all. Several smaller meals keep bs stable i myself have been on every diet known to man. The one that I lost the most weight and felt my best was the GI Diet. We ate small portions of low GI foods every 3 hours or so. That is based on glycemic index and is how it is recommended for a diabetic to eat.

29 months PO sleeve/ 5'2"/ LW 175 Sunday jan 5 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Breakfast coffee with milk / ptotien bar Snack: keto cookies/ coffee with milk Lunch: 2 eggs with way better tortilla chips Snack: half banana with whipped cream Dinner: brown rice salmon roll Snack: lavish roll with mozzarella cheese / coffee with milk ------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 1304 cals / 92g net carbs / 67g protein / 69g fat Mon jan 6 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Breakfast: coffee with milk / protien bar Snack: habanero chickpeas Lunch: salmon and veggies Snack: peanut butter / keto cookies/ coffee with milk Dinner: quinoa with beef Snack: hard salami ------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 1402 cals / 96g protien/ 93 net carbs / 72g fat --------------------------------------------------------------------- Not planning to go on scale until Friday Doing a fast today wish me luck!!! Sent from my SM-G950U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

Actually a non diabetic with insulin resistance should be fasting between meals not eating more often as it spikes blood sugar levels which then gets converted to fat and then fat gets stored via gluconeogenesis in the liver. So fasting is the way to go not eating more often. @Serengirl

Maybe it's just a sign I've been on BP too long, but over and over again I have seen people complain that they are slow losers, but are actually just average or even fast losers. How much of THE SLOW LOSERS CLUB is actually the Unrealistic Expectations Club? I'm not at all saying there aren't slow losers. Life is a bell curve, and there are half as many people on each end. But I think the attitude displayed by those like @FluffyChix, @Cheeseburgh and others are what make the difference. I mean even for slow losers, isn't weight loss the fastest after WLS then any other "diet"? Even most slow losers get to -100 lbs or more in a year or so. I just think labeling yourself a slow loser can be self defeating at times and seems very dysmorphic at others.

it is a tool and only a tool you need to get the whole workshop in order - do a search here on food plans tons of them here - Advice: Get moving as fast as you can and do not move thru the food phases to fast, Take your time let you body heal and decide when you are ready for the next phase. The food is simple its the shakes and vitamins that are a key to get balanced. This site has all the information you need and a ton of us to support and answer questions

Seems like it's going to be a great day, the sun is shining, I took my first crap, I ate a piece of Hillshire farms black Forest ham around 1am and still no problems, my decaf coffee and slim fast caramel latte 1/2 bottle is going down just smooth, my horse pill medications that my surgeon told me to keep taking are going down fine. I want to thank everyone for their support and to the ladies: love ya, to the guys: fist bump. Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using BariatricPal mobile app

Just had this discussion with my Nutritionist last week - Switch up you diet and lower you calorie intake a little - Body is saying eneogh! Mike i joined cross fit and it helped bust out the last few pounds. Also those short fast plans worked for me. Protein is hard to burn off so high protein diet may be a issue also

Great analogy, tortoise and the hare and great outlook as well. I'm definitely in this slow losers club. I hit my 3 month stall and the scale hasn't moved for 3 weeks now. I'm still eating between 500 and 800 calories a day. I hit my protein goal every day and I have significantly upped my water intake to 100-120 oz a day now. I mountain hike 5 miles at a time, 3 times a week and do yoga twice a week. I know it will come off. It has to. It does get frustrating though. But I'm a tortoise not a hare; I will finish strong not fast. Thanks GreenTealael Xoxoxo

Hi! Yes, I had my VSG with Blossom on December 23. I really liked their fast track procedure and have had no issues (other than hunger at times) since then. I was supposed to have my procedure right before Thanksgiving but when I got there, my BP was way too high and they sent me home to get it under control. I was at first angry bc I had told them I had high BP, but in the end it was fine. In retrospect, I was really stupid to have not gotten it under control to begin with. And they paid fof the second hotel stay, so all good. The people at Blossom and at Warm Springs (where the surgery is done) are all so nice. Many have had the procedure themselves. They put you up in a hotel nearby, and they have drivers that take you to and from your appointments. They are also so nice, and 2 of them have had the surgery. I was concerned about the billing having read some bad reviews. But I've had no issues at all, I paid the upfront quoted fee and nothing else. Let me know if I can answer any other questions!

My view only: I totally agree with the above and i did not do any research pre op - I saw the success my brother had and just went for the sleeve. I also lost fast and it was must for me. However i have a hard time eating and staying with the intake of food, That is a common side effect to the sleeve, If i was to do it over i would most likely Research other options and the pro;s and cons of both. This is a life long decision and it takes time to figure out your route - But i would have never lost the weight without the surgery and would have died very shortly so for me i can live with the little side effects that saved my life

I completely understand and BTW we have a support thread in the Sleeve section called the The Slow Losers club - for support. I feel the exact same way but i will say 90 lbs in 3 months isn't a realistic expectation. I dont know ANYONE who has lost that much weight that fast who started less than 300 lbs. Has the increased calories been working? Do you drink enough water? I wish i had the answers because I have the exact same thoughts... its so hard to know others have lost twice as much in the same amount of time... I am here for you and hopefully one or both of us finds work arounds to help speed up our loss. People say stick to the plan, and we can and will and do but its much harder to stick to the plan when you're barely eating and dont lose weight. The payoff for all of the sacrifices IS the weight loss (thats why we did this in the first place!!!) so if you dont have have that- its very hard to stay the course and not wonder why you went this route in the first place. I do think there are a lot more slow losers than we think though... they just dont admit it out of shame and disappointment because we compare ourselves to normal or fast losers who get all of the glory and all of the satisfaction that this was the best decision they ever made.... Sending you hugs.

Hello. Just wondering if anyone had surgery here through fast track and their experiences?

First of all YOU LOOK AMAZING!!! I didn't lose weight that fast and still had the feeling of not being me it takes time for your brain and body to connect and realize the changes its been going through. Sent from my SM-G950U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

I stick to very simple things, I’d have stuck to shakes for breakfast but because of dysphasia thinner liquids aren’t going off too well for me but I still do the occasional Koia RTD and I my evening coffee so I’m trying to figure things out. I like to do PEScience protein powder in TwoGood yogurt. I don’t need big variety. But change a few things up as I can get them or are available to me. and keep them handy either shelf stable or freezer. I’m a creature of habit. Not much food appeals to me. I keep it simple. Some days it’s small meals some days it’s just protein powder and yogurt and maybe some juice flavor protein. I did start to add 2.5 oz veggie burger and BariatricPal has protein mashed potato that pair well with it. I haven’t ordered it again yet. So I made a 2.5 oz veggie burger with a egg on top. just to add some veg. I just track my protein calories and weight each day and what I eat. I think we need to learn what works for our bodies and do it on a timeline that works for us. Slow is better than going too fast and rushing into “normal food” my nutritionist and surgeon were like why aren’t you eating normal food yet. Well A. I have medical issues and B, I’m not ready and C. I’ll do what I feel comfortable with. we all need to keep In sight why we went into this and not fall into habits that got us here. And slowly learn the new way of life for our bodies. Also I find it weird that some guidelines allow for a lot more carbs and sugar and moving faster into “normal foods” which can easily lead to failure ... my relationship with food is tenuous at best with having lost my proper ability to taste food years ago, weird food allergies, now dysphasia, issues with my damn sensitive esophagus so I have to eat foods that are easy to chew soft and I have very little energy to chew. I’ve been totally turned off by meat especially chicken. But salmon sashimi with wasabi was actually pretty good. I’ve always had issue with nausea ... I like vegetables but my body doesn’t seem to. I guess I will shut myself up. When we go on this weight loss journey we take a good hard look at our selves and we can’t just climb right back into our old way of doing things. Food is not everything.mits not the be all end all of existence. We eat to live not live to eat and it’s a hard lesson to learn. But yes we can allow our selves little things here and there. Like I put a little sf land o lakes whip on my yogurt ... but there’s no need to rush to “normal” rather, learn what your new normal is. And sometimes that changes moment to moment and day by day.

Thank You for the Replys!!! I will trying the fasting thing. Sounds like something that will help. Other then that i don't think i have ever been happier then i am right now.