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Fitness level before surgery
SpartanMaker replied to Gucci73's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I agree with a lot of what's been said above. I think the way to think about is that weight loss is heavily dependent on what you eat, whereas how healthy you are is heavily dependent on regular exercise. Like any pithy statement, it's not an absolute, but it is a good guideline. My point is that you can lose weight without exercising, but if like me, your real goal is to improve your health, we can't rely on weight loss alone. In fact, also like you, I have several physical issues (I'm a disabled vet), but I'm also honest enough with myself to know that some of my physical challenges are due to my weight. One of my main motivators for having WLS is to make exercise less painful so that I can improve my overall cardiovascular health via exercise. -
Monthly weigh in and measurements
catwoman7 replied to liveaboard15's topic in Gastric Sleeve Surgery Forums
that's pretty average. That's about what I lost, and we started out around the same weight. I don't know of too many people who've lost more than that at that juncture - a few lucky ones, and those who started out MUCH heavier than us. But otherwise, no. That's a pretty normal loss for three months out. -
Sleeve to bypass hopefully
Tomo replied to lavette43's topic in Revision Weight Loss Surgery Forums (NEW!)
Mine took quite a few years. After that it was like gurgling acid in my sleep and a burning esophagus day on and day out. When you can't sleep, one tend to eat for energy. That didn't help my weight loss. It was horrible. I had a revision last August, and I feel so much better. -
Monthly weigh in and measurements
KimA-GA replied to liveaboard15's topic in Gastric Sleeve Surgery Forums
congrats on the losses!!! You are doing amazing 🤩 keep up the good work -
Fitness level before surgery
STLoser replied to Gucci73's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
For a woman that weighed almost 400 pounds, I could have been a lot worse off. I was able to still do most activities and walk, but everything was SO much harder for me, especially since I have asthma.. I was short of breath with very little activity, and with a bum knee that's had 2 arthroscopies, an unrepaired ruptured ACL, and arthritis, steps were very difficult, between that and the asthma. My recovery was actually wonderful because even a little weight loss helped so much. I don't feel like being as big as I was made recovery any worse at all. Now after losing 205 pounds I can run up the stairs with no pain or shortness of breath and I feel like I can do anything! Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app -
New Here! I was approved for the sleeve from Kaiser (Southern Ca)but took the classes over a year and a half ago.
MyDogsLoveMe replied to MyDogsLoveMe's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I hope I am replying correctly... Thank you and congratulations on your weight loss!! That is a huge accomplishment! Good luck on your skin surgery. My primary doctor referred me to positive change classes and I took the nutrition class about 3 years ago. After that and during covid I gained soooo much weight and she (primary) recommended the surgery. I took classes online and then did my blood tests and that was it. Then I had a hospital stay (unrelated to weight) March, 2021 so I had to wait on my surgery. Fast forward to April of 2022 and my doctor said I should be ok to have weight loss surgery. I contacted Positive Change and they did not require me to retake classes and reordered my blood tests, I had a psy evaluation, and did not pass the first because I had not lost any weight (I actually gained) and he didnt think I put in the work. I had another appointment with him about 6 weeks later (mid July) and had lost weight so he approved me. I just had a phone consultation with a surgeon and he approved me for the sleeve on the condition that my specialist says its OK. He said the sleeve is better for me due to the medications I have to take. Since I went through my classes a long time ago, I watched tons of videos on youtube from other surgical hospitals etc. A lot of places seem like they are really connected to their patients and give them so much support. For me, I feel like I am on an island. I haven't talked to a nutritionist, or anyone else walking me through this process. Most of my info this time around is via youtube; and I just found this place last night. What I am most worried about is drinking water. I get migraines if I get slightly dehydrated. I have been working out to lose weight and noticed how much I drink. I am trying to sip water throughout the day but I am failing at keeping myself hydrated and have had a migraine almost every day. How do you do it? Set alarms? How do you go through your day sipping so much water? How do you work like that? I also saw that you cannot eat gummy vitamins is that true? I cannot find that in the positive change book, maybe I missed it. Thank you for your support and all the help! -
Monthly weigh in and measurements
catwoman7 replied to liveaboard15's topic in Gastric Sleeve Surgery Forums
after the first month, a lot of us lose about 10 lbs a month, give or take----and then as you get further out, it drops to around 5 lbs a month (and after the first year, mine dropped to a pokey 2 lbs +/- until my weight loss finally stopped at 20 months out). So it may be a stretch to hope for a 19 lb drop at five months out (not that it's impossible - but not likely). Regardless, looks like you're doing pretty well so far! -
Hey y'all. I just wanted to post a Three-week update. I feel good. Pretty much normal even. Except, of course, with a smaller stomach capacity Incisions are fully closed. The small ones look good and only the largest still has any leftover scabbing. I'm trying to stay positive since I've lost more than 20 pounds since surgery. But my weight loss progress has slowed more than I thought it would this early. Maybe it's the third week stall we keep hearing about. W1: -12.6 lbs W2: -5.6 lbs W3: -2.6 lbs My conservative diet plan sucks, but it improves a little this week, since I can add cottage cheese, shredded cheese, beans, canned fruit and some specific well-cooked veggies (only carrots and asparagus look appetizing). I am logging everything. I am getting 80-100g of protein, 50-90 oz of water/fluids, and 650-750 calories daily. I have not done great on my steps/walking/exercise, but plan to fix that this week now that things at work has calmed a bit. I have now lost a total of 48.6 lbs since I started losing weight in late March when I had my "Oh Hell No!" moment and contacted the surgeon's office. I am feeling pretty good about that.
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New Here! I was approved for the sleeve from Kaiser (Southern Ca)but took the classes over a year and a half ago.
kcuster83 replied to MyDogsLoveMe's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
Hello and congratulations on your approval! The best advise I can give is have patience and just ride the weight loss train as it goes. Don't compare yourself to others, just follow your plan and do what you need to and the results will prove themselves! -
Fitness level before surgery
Nougato replied to Gucci73's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I had my sleeve done last year, Nov 2021. I used to work out religiously years ago, but since I'd gained so much weight, it went down to zero fitness level before surgery. Also, I've needed total knee replacements (on both knees) for a few years now. I'm 62 & hypothyroid, so I think that contributes to a slower loss? Anyhow, I only just started exercising as I can't walk far at all, even tho I've lost 90 lbs. I recently bought a CUBII so I can sit & peddle. It works wonderfully. I also use light hand weights & do exercises for seniors on YouTube. -
Watch the juice. Even though it may not have added sugar, the fruit itself naturally contains a lot. A juice is equivalent to eating several pieces of fruit too. We’re often told no juice at all & usually advised to slowly add small amounts of fruit (so you get all the fibre & nutrients in the whole fruit not just some of it from juice) as you progress through your weight loss. Check with your dietician, though.
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Fitness level before surgery
Arabesque replied to Gucci73's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I was one of those who didn’t exercise while losing & exceeded my weight loss goal. It didn’t affect my rate of loss. I do a little now (& I mean a real, real little - some stretching & a couple of at home resistance type exercises). So it can be done. But if you want to do some, there are a lot of online videos of exercises for those with mobility issues. Have you seen a physio for exercises to support the healing & recovery of your knee? They’ll help support your weight loss & general fitness too. And certainly it as you lose weight you’ll take a lot of pressure off your knee. -
Yeah I completed the 3 months of nutrition counseling with the surgeons office, but now they’re requesting a year of documentation that I did work with my PCP on my weight loss. Provided them 10 years of receipts from WW, weight logs from yearly exams, etc to show the weight didn’t magically appear in the last week (apparently that can happen with a BMI over 40 😂😂) SMH lol
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I think most insurance companies want you to go through a doctor approved weight loss program. I had to meet with a dietician every month for 6 months.
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Fitness level before surgery
ShoppGirl replied to Gucci73's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
Exercise is important to your overall health of course and it helps to keep the weight off down the road but it’s not imperative for weight loss. You should be able to get out and do a little bit as the weight begins to come off but it’s honestly more about your diet in the beginning anyways. You may need to walk some to get the gas out but you can do that with the aid of another person or a cane or walker, whatever is necessary. I actually didn’t have any gas. I walked anyways because it was the protocol but I never did have gas so not everyone does. -
Fitness level before surgery
catwoman7 replied to Gucci73's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
there are people who've lost quite a bit of weight after WLS even without exercise (for similar reasons as yours). Exercise is great for your overall health and people should do it if they can, but as far as weight loss, 90% of that is diet. -
Yes, you are over thinking this. During this phase, the first month or so, there is virtually zero correlation between your loss rate and what you are doing, as there is a lot going on with your body changing states trying to adapt to this big caloric deficit that you have thrown at it. Do a search here for the three (or third) week stall and you will see lots of anxiety over what is my weight loss doing and what have I done? Your loss will slow, often stall and maybe climb a bit before going down again. It often happens right around the time that our diets are moving from one stage to the next, so "that mush be it!" but it isn't - even those of us who never had all those stages go through something like this. Short answer is that when you go into a serious caloric deficit like this, your body first starts drawing on you glycogen reserves, short term carb reserves stored in you liver and muscles, which give you your quick response bursts of energy. There is a lot of water weight associated with glycogen. Once that is largely consumed, your body usually pauses to see if you are really serious about this caloric deficit thing. Then it will start to draw on your fat stores, which is what we are here to do in the first place. Fat also burns more slowly than glycogen/carbs (its that 9 cal/gm vs 4 cal/gm thing,) and it has to rebuild some of your glycogen reserves again (water weight on) so weight can be real flaky here for a while. If you really feel that you aren't eating enough, then a bit more wouldn't hurt and may be helpful, though that won't be what gets your loss moving again. I was up around 1100 calories fairly quickly, within the first couple of weeks, but I was also progressing on food types more quickly than your program suggests, and we had no specific caloric guidance. Others on these forums at that time were insisting that anything more than 6-800 calories would be death to your weight loss. I did fine, at least with my decent guy metabolism, and they did fine as well. I wouldn't rush things on too much, as it is much easier to add more later if you feel the need to than to cut back once you get used to eating a certain amount. I didn't increase my average calories from there until I was within about 10 lb of goal weight (at about six months) and needed to slow things down.
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SpartanMaker's Long and Winding Road
SpartanMaker posted a topic in Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story
I’m not sure why since I’m a pretty private person, but for some reason I want to share my story here. Honestly even if no one reads this, I think just writing it will help me feel better? This first thing people should know is that weight loss surgery has saved my life and I have not even had surgery yet! How? Well it’s a long and winding story. Grab a protein shake and settle in… In January 2020 (you know, back in ancient history pre-covid), my insurance changed and started covering bariatric surgery. I had thought about surgery before, but my wife was set against it and especially considering the out of pocket cost, had decided it wasn’t for me. With the change, I decided to investigate it more. In February of that year, I booked an info session at the biggest bariatric center in the state. They let me know all the things I’d need to do before I’d be approved, so I started the dietitian visits, started booking appointments with all my various doctors, and just generally trying to be as prepared as I could. Among the approvals I’d need from my various doctors, one was with my cardiologist. I was born with a bicuspid aortic valve, which can mean nothing, or can very serious. The biggest challenge is that over time, the valve can become calcified, causing an already reduced blood flow to become much worse. Since we knew it was potentially dangerous for me, my surgeon insisted we get full approval before proceeding. At the cardiologist appointment, he decided further testing was needed. By early April 2020, I had some CT procedures to get a better idea how badly the valve was blocked. Things were not looking good, so I was scheduled to undergo a cardiac catheterization procedure to see if I was a candidate for valve replacement via cath. Here’s where things take a turn for the worse. During the cath procedure, the doctor noted that my left anterior descending artery was 90% blocked. In the medical world this artery is known as the “widow maker” because blockage will cause a heart attack and the survival rate for widow maker heart attacks is only about 12%. I’ll stop here for today. (Yes it’s a cliff hanger, but spoiler alert, I’m still alive!) I think you can see how I can rightfully say bariatric surgery saved my life, even though I have not even had surgery yet. Had I not decided to have the surgery, I probably would never have had that cardiology visit, meaning I would not have known about the blocked artery.- 8 replies
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I've gone from 40J to 36 H. Doesn't seem as dramatic a shift as some others here! Almost at goal, so I think I'll be here or hereabouts moving forward. Have been buying less expensive bras during my weight loss phase but really need some proper scaffolding moving forwards.
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I totally agree, a 10lb regain at 18 months seems not unusual after the sleeve. Can you go right back to your post op diet - protein first, veg second, and then stop when you're full? Eat slowly, no water for half an hour but drink plenty of water between meals? Are you tracking religiously - could slider foods or high calorie low nutrient foods have become the norm for you? Also, if you could fill in your weight loss statistics in your profile it would really help people to advise you.
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Hair * Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app
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Extended arm lift and breast lift done!
loridee11 posted a topic in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
I'm 4 days out from an arm lift, J lift, and breast lift that included replacing and downsizing old implants. Basically, I have sutures from about an inch below my elbow, up my entire upper arm, down through my armpit, and continuing along the curve of my breast with only about an inch or two gap from the other side. Then anchor incisions on the breasts as well. Apparently, one of my old implants was ruptured as well so took a bit longer than planned. I'm doing pretty good - the only challenge is some tingling/loss of sensation in my thumb and index finger on my right hand (dominant). Dr. isn't worried and think as swelling in the arm goes down it will improve. Otherwise, I feel a bit like a stuffed sausage but not too bad! I was able to shower and switched to Tylenol today. Hopefully, the swelling will go down little by little over the coming days although I realize it will be months before my results are final. So far I can tell the arms are going to be MUCH better. Even all swelling the contour is significantly better. The "j lift" should mean no more skin pushing out under my arm from my bra, and my chest feels like its going to be the right size. Once closer to final I'll share some pics. Too much effort right now- 16 replies
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10lbs of regain is COMPLETELY within the normal/expected bounds of maintenance weight fluctuations. Most all folks will regain a handful of pounds after hitting their lowest weight and going into maintenance. I am shocked that any doctor would prescribe weight loss meds, particularly Plenity, for a 10lb regain at 18 moths post op. You are exactly right in that it expands in the stomach to limit your intake, which is exactly what WLS did (limit intake). I would be concerned about malnutrition, blockages, and all other sort of potential complication. Was the prescribing doctor your bariatric surgeon? Have you discussed this with your bariatric team? Have you tried working with a registered dietitian who specializes in bariatrics? Additionally, the resurgence of hunger after WLS is very normal and often coincides with maintenance. All that to say, it sounds like you are actually exactly where you should be given your status post-op and weight loss meds are probably not the best solution.
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Does Anyone Take Collagen Peptide Powder along with Your Protein?
pintsizedmallrat replied to UtahGirlie's topic in Protein, Vitamins, and Supplements
I put a scoop of collagen in my coffee every morning, and I feel like it's made a difference in my skin and hair. I slacked off on using it for a month or so and feel like my skin looked noticeably "saggier". My hair regrowth has been fantastic, my hair was on the thin side before my surgery but it's now growing back thick and oddly, curly! In addition to the collagen, I take a pretty big dose of biotin alongside my multivitamin (6000 mcg) and that seems to be helping. -
That's right around where I was post operatively and then I had a stall that I think lasted for ten days and was probably the most annoying thing to happen to me. Everyone loses weight differently. Shows like My 600 Lb Life skewered my weight loss perceptions because I wasn't losing as quickly as they were; but I was never that big, either. A few things my surgeon's office told me: Make sure you're getting enough water-if a body is dehydrated, it will slow weight loss. Are you hitting your protein goals? When I'm not eating 70-80 g of protein a day, my weight loss slows down. Vary the pace of the walk-walk slow, followed by some speed walking, followed by walking at a normal pace. Also adding in things like hills can help as well.
