My biggest fear with VSG

[ProudGrammy 8,322]

40% of my excess weight and the rest is up to me.

@@AllisonK1986

i think 40% is pretty low

i agree with doc that the rest of "weight"loss is up to you

i feel - from day one

your weight loss is up to you

the sleeve will help/assist you in losing weight

it has been frequently said here on the board - "the sleeve is not a magic pill

most of us do have stalls, a couple of bumps in the road

but in my opinion the sleeve or any WLS is worth it

you work hard with the sleeve and it will work with you

you must relearn/or learn how to eat less, eat correctly, healthy foods, drinking, many other important rules that have been suggested above

once you lose the weight your job is not over

you must continue/keep up all the rules you have learned for the rest of your healthier, happier, longer life

I've been at goal these past 2 1/2 years (105 lbs gone)

i have to follow all the rules, always to maintain my weight

That being said......

I'm not always perfect, (then again )

i do fluctuate sometimes more than i wish

gotta get back on the horse

i have to keep working so i don't fall off the horse

if you play your cards right, you will be a success with 4 aces - you win!!

i see determination in your pretty eyes

good luck

kathy

[AllisonK1986 68]

Thank you so much Kathy! I really appreciate your kind words! How do you get your 64-80 grams of Protein a day? I'm struggling with that. It's like am I supposed to sit around eating chicken, black Beans and Protein Shakes all day lol.

[ProudGrammy 8,322]

How do you get your 64-80 grams of Protein a day?

@@AllisonK1986

your welcome

last year we bought a cool stove top

it had 5 burners instead of the 4 i'm used to

now i am able to "cook" 5 pots of Water at the same time

in other words i am not much of a cook

read about recipes from places like EggFlace

you'll get good ideas

per your request, a few Protein examples

but this is protein 101

i do bake alot of chicken (no barbecue sauce!!)

salmon too!!!!

eggs

cottage cheese

tuna fish premixed pkg

i eat sooooo much Fage 0% greek yogurt

luv luv luv

baby bell cheese (other cheese too)

cottage cheese

Quest Protein Bars too

(those bars are addicting to me - so i have to be careful

on occasion i will have have a swiss chocolate pre-made GNC lean shake (25 gr protein)

we don't to go out to eat very much anymore

"they" say you'll save a lot of money

what "they" don't tell you is all the money you save on eating out

you spend on new clothes

when we do go out, i usually order a yummy 6oz steak

i ask for a to go container when my food arrives

put 1/2 the steak away immediately

check the computer you'll get more suggestions on foods with protein

special place on this board too

remember to drink drink drink 64+ oz of Water a day

the water situation can be hard to get used to

all the water rules are very very important

never, ever drink with your meals

people have been shot for less

good luck

kathy

[Kindle 8,667]

Thank you so much Kathy! I really appreciate your kind words! How do you get your 64-80 grams of Protein a day? I'm struggling with that. It's like am I supposed to sit around eating chicken, black Beans and Protein Shakes all day lol.

At 18 months out I eat a Quest bar and drink a large (24oz) protein smoothie every day. That's 50-60g protein right there. The steak, Jerky, chicken, fish, pork, seafood, cheese, Greek yogurt, edamame, burger, elk, ham, beans, cottage cheese, eggs, sausage, turkey, tuna, etc. that I then eat easily shoots me over my protein goals. It also gives me the freedom to eat plenty of fruits, grains and veggies with my meals. Not JUST protein.

[pinkbunies 359]

Its a life changing operation. It changes your entire life style for the better of course. Even if you only lost 40 lbs, thats 40 lbs less than you have been able to lose. The surgery is well worth it. No regrets here.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

I think whatever surgical assistance you choose whether lap band, sleeve or bypass you have to be in this 100%. That means even during those tough stressful days and holidays. You have to be committed to making a life style change in how you eat and activity level. If not you can stall and even regain. I'm pretty sure I heard higher numbers for how much you loose. I want to say 50 - 60 but I'm too lazy to dig out my handbook. That said I'm a 91lbs down with no pre-op diet. I work this each and every day. It's not stressful, but I know what I need to do in order to continue to lose.

[AllisonK1986 68]

It's day 3 and I'm missing some type of bread ???? or rice. Potatoes and Pasta is not that big of a deal for me but bread and rice is like ????????

[Debbie Jean 406]

It's day 3 and I'm missing some type of bread ???? or rice. Potatoes and Pasta is not that big of a deal for me but bread and rice is like ????????

The good news is that if you eat carbs you crave carbs. For me the opposite is also true. Now that I eat almost no carbs I no longer crave them the way I did. And I NEVER thought I would say that LOL Hang in there and you may have the same experience ????

BTW my surgeon says 65% of excess is the average weight loss with the sleeve. That's how she came up with 165 as my "goal". Started at 250 and at six months have reached 173 so almost there ????. At only 5' I'm going to keep working for more but at 62 I feel so unimaginably good, it's insane!

[AllisonK1986 68]

That's good to hear. My dr doesn't even talk goal weight. He wants us to be under a bmi of 30. He said my goal is a bmi of 27 n if I wanted 25. Right now my bmi is 44.6 at 270lbs.

[*Lexie* 1,486]

During my psych consult, they asked me if I would be satisfied if I only lost 50% of my excess weight (putting me somewhere around the 200 range). I said yes because I didn't want them to deny me the surgery but in my head I thought, hell no, I'm not going through all this to just be a little less fat. I found this message board and decided to learn everything I could to make me successful. Right now I've lost 78% of my excess weight and I'm still losing pretty steadily.

So to answer the question you really have. Yes, it's a bit of work but the surgery makes it so much easier to be successful. You still have to work to lose weight, but the work is so much more manageable.

[AllisonK1986 68]

I hear u Lexie. Hell I can't even find a psych who will do It bc no one will take my insurance. And everyone is quoting me 350+ cash for a psych evaluation ????

[skinnyrita 188]

I am only six weeks out from my VSG and I was having second thoughts too, right up to the minute they wheeled me into the surgical suite. Now, I'm so glad that I did it. I've already lost about 30 lbs counting pre surgery liquid diet. My blood pressure (which was out of control and very high) has now stabilized in the normal range. I no longer have the threat of becoming diabetic. My knees have stopped hurting. There are so many NSV ( non scale victories) that weight loss is secondary ( though I look forward to that too!) I feel more energetic with this weight off.

Anyone who says this is easy is a fool! It requires paying attention to eating habits, food choices, exercising, just as any diet, but it does give you restriction in the amount and type of food you eat. I also think it takes a lot of planning in order to be successful with VSG because if you just eat like you've always eaten, you will gain weight back. I researched, talked to other VSg patients and looked at a lot of utubes to find out what the ups and downs were. Like any surgery, results vary and it should be a carefully thought out decision.

I practiced my diet long before the surgery too, just to get on the right track. Hope you have a great success with your WLS!

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

I hear u Lexie. Hell I can't even find a psych who will do It bc no one will take my insurance. And everyone is quoting me 350+ cash for a psych evaluation

That's not unusual. At the informational session my doctor requires all patients attend even before you can schedule an appointment we were informed that depending on the insurance you have the psych consult and/or the nutrition class might not be covered by insurance. My insurance covered the psych eval but I had to pay $200 out of pocket for the nutrition class.

[AllisonK1986 68]

Yeah my insurance is covering everything thank God! I just got to find a psych who will take my insurance tbh I don't have an extra 400$ to shell out.

[texasdude 15]

Good luck