Feeling better after adding new foods.

I went to my facebook bariatric group and asked about my concerns about my eating being too focused on just protein and water. I was given some good suggestions and after going shopping and buying foods that are good for me, I am feeling much better:

Clearer in mind, less angry, less feeling like being cheated out of life. Calmer. And I dropped 4 pounds over the weekend, which was totally unexpected.

I even had a poo that was normal with no bleeding. Praise the Lord!

I swam today for 20 minutes at a good hard clip, swimming freestyle laps and plan a walk for later. I am going to walk 20 minutes, rather than the 45 minute death march that I had been doing.

I had been so worried that I would mess up my progress that I had forgotten that the main success of the sleeve is that even though we still eat, we eat much less. So I was able to eat a bit of cereal with some unsweetened cashew milk and a sprinkle of stevia and be ok.

I was able to have a Fiber one brownie and be ok.

I think that this increased fiber is why I had a decent experience in the bathroom without bleeding. 

One Month Post Op

It has been a four weeks. Here is an image that shows where I was just before surgery and where I am today. Still a long way to go, but I see progress. I have gone from surgery weight 256 to current weight of 235.

I wasn't going to take pictures, because I didn't think there would be any visable difference.

Guess I was wrong about that, huh?

The scoop on fullness

Here is the thing. I don't get "full" anymore.

I know how much to eat, my sleeve can hold two mushy ounces at this point. I can drink 8 ounces of water in an hour, but God forbid I eat over two ounces.

Unless it's whipped greek yogurt, which I no longer eat.

So I have a knowledge of how much to eat and after I am done, I am invariably still raring to eat more.

After about 20 minutes a feeling settles over my sleeve, a pushy feeling. It feels like there is something there and at that point, any thought of eating more is completely gone.

So the old feeling of gut bloating, pants loosening, leaning back in the chair saying, Wow. I am so full. That feeling is gone.

But so are a lot of pounds in a very short and painless time.

I can deal with the loss of that feeling of having feasted. I would rather be thin than to be full.

Things are getting more and more settled for me with each passing day. I had my Vertical Sleeve surgery on Feb 4th. Wow, it is hard to believe that I am coming up on three weeks soon.

 

I have gotten into a good routine of having my protein shake in the morning (cashew milk and chocolate egg white protein: 150 cals and 24g protein) and having soft foods for the rest of the day, such as egg beaters, fake lobster (white fish), and Yoplait whipped greek yogurt. I also puree chicken and tuna and have had some sweet potato pureed to add some fiber.

I am glad that I tried a lot of protein drinks before my surgery, so that I could find one that I can manage to stand the taste of, and which does not set off my daily sensitivity. Strangely enough, the yogurt is not bothering me, but I am having that in small quantities.


Yoplait has two different kinds of whipped yogurt. One is greek, with 9 grams of protein and 100 calories and one is regular yoplait whipped and has 5 grams of protein and 140 calories. Be careful when choosing. The higher cal/carb variety has more flavors, but I am opting for the higher protein greek type. This yogurt is not very filling and I believe it is a "slider food" so be careful.


I am down a solid 20 pounds since surgery, which is incredible for me, since I suffered through that six month insurance diet and only lost 17 pounds and it was a STRUGGLE the whole time. This has been so painless.

Some things that are harder are:

1. Waiting to drink until at least a half hour after eating.
2. Remembering to take water with me when I leave the house.
3. Learning what my "full" feeling is, without going past it.
4. Feeding my family and not eating what they are eating.

I have been cooking like a fiend, partially to get foods out of the house that tempt me and partially to keep the family happy. I had not cooked at all during my six month diet, except for little meals when I felt that I had to get something on the table. I just let my kids and husband fend for themselves.

Now that I am not as hungry or craving, I can cook again, but still, there are times when I see trigger foods and want them, but it is all head hunger and I am able to walk away from it.

I do not have an exercise routine yet, although I walked outside yesterday. It is cold and icy and I am afraid of falling. I am hoping to be able to get back into the pool soon, but as soon as I reactivate my pool membership, the end of my membership starts looming. I have about thirty days before I have to pay to renew it. I may do it as a single membership, which is $150 as opposed to $250 for the family.

2 week post op VSG check up

2 week post op video with weigh in: http://youtu.be/FwMrasGnzPE

Stupid Scale.

I had to hide my scale. I am 13 days post op and of course I am waiting for the BIG WEIGHT LOSS like it's Christmas and I am six years old.

I know that this takes time. I know that my body is changing in ways that are not reflected on a scale and I know that my period is less than a week away (if it decides to visit this month).

So, I am hanging in there, doing all the good things:

• Drinking my fluids
• Following my doctor's instructions
• Getting some gentle walking in 
• Resting

Still, it's hard to cope with the whole scale thing. 

I am going to try to refocus on my upcoming transition to the stage II diet (currently on all liquids) and think about other things than my number.

It's hard seeing others who have had the same surgery take much bigger jumps down the scale, but I know:

• I started with a relatively low BMI and that causes weight loss to be slower
• I can not compare myself with others. 
• I need to trust the process

So, that's it. I can't expect to see a pound a day loss on the scale and I need to get my head around that and keep going. Otherwise, I will crash and burn.

Golly I feel good.

Of all of the things that could have happened to me after my surgery, feeling really, really great was not one that I had counted on!

I slept in my own bed for the first time since my VSG surgery. I took a shower and blew my hair dried, which is something I rarely do, because it's thick and heavy (for now, LOL).

I feel so stinking GOOD.

Today 247 lbs

November 272

Day 8 after surgery. Feeling much better

Post op today 8 feeling really good: http://youtu.be/kqG6Q5LkVcM

I feel so great!

Check out the post op videos. I had written a long post and it got lost,  so enjoy the videos instead.

Post op: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMXjwYp4OzpMiCVeiBos-5SgSoPfXS8Df