Finished my Pre-Op appointments

[Mel24 51]

Friday was a big day, 4 hours worth of appointments.

sleep Study set up, thankfully it's at home. I have to do it for two nights, and will finish that tonight. Yay. This was a part I was not looking forward to, maybe I am afraid of the results. Not sure. But I will find out on Friday what the verdict is.

Medical Assistant did my body composition (down 3% in fat since August-woot!), EKG, blood work and metabolic test. They did the Resting Energy expenditure. Turns out my metabolism is slow, I only burn just under 1800 calories at rest. Well no wonder the diet I had been on hasn't been working. I've been eating too many calories. Which leads me to...

Nutritionist, where we went over what the diet will look like and what my goals will be. It was pretty general in the sense that I didn't get much in the way of written instructions. She said the Dr. will go over that when I meet her in a few weeks. She did say to start getting in the habit of slowly eating and chewing a lot. She told me to find a Protein Drink that I like and can tolerate for 6 weeks. She said she's not very "strict" on the nutrition label, besides being 20g of Protein or more. She said she'd prefer that it be sweetened with Stevia. Ok, I can do that. She also said I should aim for 1500-1800 calories a day (more on heavy exercise days). I had been doing 2200, so this is going to be a bit to get used too.

Then I met with the Exercise person who set me up on a strength training program to bulk up my muscle. He told me to cut back on my spin classes, only 2 now instead of 3. He wants me to lift 3-4 times a week instead, really aiming to build the muscle mass. He said the muscle mass will increase my metabolism which will burn more calories. I kind of knew that, but he was really cool; avid cyclist too! He gave me tips on wheels for my bike! Best part was telling me I will be back on my bike and spinning 4 weeks post op! That was the best news!!!

Next up is psych evaluation on March 2, then I meet with Dr. Patterson on March 12! This was starting to get real, and I was very nervous last night. But I am feeling better about it. The exercise Dr. said most sleeved women lose 20-25 lb a month. Wow!

So for those waiting to do the pre-op, this is what I did. Hope this is informative to you.

[Hoven 33]

The sleep test was something I dreaded too. I had to do mine at the sleep center. It was a very awkward and restless experience. They called me two days later stating that I had severe sleep apnea. I was so bummed. I really thought I couldn't possibly have it. But after a few days of the information settling in, I'm glad I did this. I realize that I've complained about my lack of sleep for a long time. I'm looking forward to getting on with my life and if the cpap is part of it so be it. At least I'll feel better. Besides, I'm hoping that after WLS that like some folks they come off the cpap altogether. Good luck with your test.