Do These Genes Make Me Look Fat

Got this pic from here: http://www.losinghalfmyweight.com/

Update...I'm now down a total of 44 pounds since June and 28 pounds since my surgery 6 weeks ago. I am feeling pretty normal and am eating regular food. I'm not making perfect choices with food but it was Christmas and we baked too much. I'm not gorging myself though. I have had more baked goods than I should have. 

I was down to only 1 pair of pants fitting me and lots of tops are looking WAY too big and baggy on me. I had to go get a new pair of jeans. I didn't want to get too many because I know in another 4 weeks I will need a smaller size.

I went to try jeans on the other day at a couple of places. I grabbed a couple of different sizes, 18's and 20's and by accident grabbed a size 16. The first pair I tried on and got zipped and they looked awful and my fat rolls were totally obvious because it popped out the top! Talk about a muffin top! It was more like an inner tube over flowing my pants BUT not only did they go up my thighs but they actually fit over my hips AND zipped up!!! When I looked at the size it was a 16! I did a little happy dance in the dressing room knowing that in about 20 more pounds I will fit into it for real!

It took several places of trying on jeans...mostly because I can't see spending more than $20 on a pair of pants right now. I finally purchased one pair and came home a happy girl. I have some shirts that I need to get rid of as well as some other pants. I'll purge my closet tomorrow. It's almost time for a new black skirt because in another couple of weeks I won't have anything to wear to church. I'm solidly in a size 18/20 top but it has to be a women's size. They are cut fuller than a junior size 18.

Another 2.6 pounds and I'll be in the next lowest 10's for my weight. Again...some day I will confess my highest weight but I'm not ready to do that now.

Things I need to work on:

• Eating more protein.
• Writing down everything I eat during the day.
• Drinking more water.
• Taking my vitamins every day.

People who haven't seen me for a while are noticing how much I've lost and it feels great! Here's to a better week! Happy New Year...Happy New ME!

Pics

Got on the scale this morning and I'm now down 26 pounds since my surgery and 38 pounds since my initial consultation in June. I'm feeling better and better and went to try clothes on in a store yesterday. I can now fit into a size 20 pair of jeans. I would say that in another 10 pounds I will look better in those jeans. I didn't purchase them because I have one pair of jeans that size that fit me and when they are too big I will HAVE to purchase another pair.

Here are some pics for comparison.

 This is me back in June with my granddaughter at the zoo.

 This is November 15. The night before surgery.

This is me December 17. One month and 1 day out from surgery. 

I still have a ways to go but I'm proud of what I've accomplished so far.

There are cynics out there who will say that this is the "easy way out" but I have news for you...I've never done anything harder. It's an aid to my weight loss goals. I still have to watch what I eat...even more than I ever have. I have to exercise and keep track of what I am eating through out the day. The biggest difference is that I see a loss in weight most days that I step on the scale and it motivates me to keep going!

4 Weeks Post Op

Hard to believe that 4 weeks ago I had my surgery! I'm feeling back to normal physically and can pretty much do what I want. I need to start walking again if the weather would cooperate. It's probably time to join a gym since the weather here will only get worse over the next couple of months.

So...here are the latest stats...I got on the scale this morning and I am down 23.6 pounds since the surgery and 35.6 since my initial consultation in June. I've also lost a total of 17 inches off my body.

When I get dressed there are some clothes that appear larger to me than I remember them being. I'm sure that's because my body is getting smaller and my perspective is changing. It feels good to be able to fit into some things that I haven't worn for a while. In another 4 weeks I will have to purchase some new clothes. THAT will feel even better! I'm just trying to make due with what I have for the time being. Most all of my jeans are too big. I have one pair that fit and I'll wear those until they are falling off.

I finally went to the nutritionist yesterday for my 2 week follow up. She reminded me that I need to eat more protein. Protein helps you lose weight. I am supposed to eat 60 grams of protein a day. Yesterday I got it all in and got on the scale this morning to see a victory. It's wonderful.

So far I am able to tolerate most things. I had BBQ chicken for dinner last night but could only eat about 1/4 of a chicken breast. I also had steamed broccoli and carrots. A good dinner and filling. I am still dealing with issues about my head hunger and my sweet tooth. It helps when I can see the numbers on the scale going down. In another .4 pounds I'll be into the next lowest 10's! I haven't seen those numbers in a long time...since 2002.

Week 3.5

So I didn't blog last week but things have been going pretty well. I started into my "Week 4, 5, 6 Soft Food Diet". This part of the diet allows me all sugar free beverages except for carbonation, caffeine and alcohol. I don't drink alcohol so that's not a big deal for me. I've also not had caffeine in a long time so I don't feel a desire for a diet coke at all.  I'm also allowed to have skim milk, low fat cream soups, soups of any kind, cooked cereal, cream of wheat, thinned grits (NASTY) mashed potatoes, crispy toasted bread, low fat cottage cheese, canned chicken, tuna, shaved deli meats, ground beef, ground turkey, cooked canned or pureed vegetables, cooked canned or pureed unsweetened apple sauce and bananas.

I actually ate chili a week ago with beans in it...didn't bother me one single bit. I only ate about 6 bites of it and I was full. The next day I tried a scrambled egg again...UGH! NOT good. A lot of people on the VSG (Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy) forum say that they can't eat bread but toast has not been a problem for me at all. The diet calls for no other fats other than margarine or I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray but I hate eating margarine on bread and I'm not spraying some ick on my toast. So I have used real butter sparingly on my toast without any ill effects.

The weight loss has slowed down a bit. I've only lost another 2 pounds since my last visit. I NEED to get out and do some walking. It's been so cold out in the morning that I've dreaded it and gone back to sleep. I decided that I need to join a gym where I can walk on the treadmill and use some weights to strengthen my upper arms.

I will admit to eating a cookie here and there (and they're not even whole cookies...just a bite or two) and although it's not on the diet I have not really felt "guilty" about having ONE cookie. In times past I could sit and scarf down a box in no time at all! Having your stomach fill up so fast is a benefit and really makes you not want any more than just a taste most of the time. I have overdone it on food and it's not a good feeling.

Non scale victory today...wearing a blouse that I haven't worn in about 3 years and having it be a little big!

Also took measurements and am down a total of 17 inches! It will be time for new jeans soon. I can pull of all but one smaller pair that I've had for a while, without unzipping them. Even some of my shoes are feeling looser.

People are noticing my weight loss and even my husband says I feel smaller when he hugs me. Life is good.

All I want for Christmas is to be another size down! I think I can do it!

And In This Corner, Weighing In At......

.....Well honestly I'm not ready to say how much I weigh on this blog yet but someday I swear I will. It will make your jaw drop.

Here's some of what's been going on since my last post a week ago.

Wednesday, Nov 23, I had my one week follow up appointment with the doctor. I got some staples removed and of course weighed me. I was down 18 pounds in a week! It was wonderful! I pretty much felt like crap but the weight loss made it worth it. I was also down a total of 27 since June 10, when I had my initial consultation with the surgeon.

I was "promoted" to the next food level which allows me to add reduced fat creamed soups and drinkable yogurt to my food plan. Truth be told I really wanted a tuna fish sandwich!

Thursday, Nov. 24-Thanksgiving. I wasn't really worried about Thanksgiving because I felt like I could have some soup and maybe some runny mashed potatoes and feel fine. That's pretty much what I did. It did fill me up and I didn't feel like I was missing out on too much. I wasn't hungry in the way I would have been prior to surgery. I did have a couple of bites of moist turkey which satisfied me. I was a little nervous about how it would make my tummy feel but all was well.

Friday brought a new challenge because I REALLY wanted something to chew. I had some tomato soup for lunch and added 3 Cheese-It crackers. NOT the best idea. It didn't bother me at all, except in my brain because I knew I shouldn't really have crackers. I figured it couldn't be all that bad since it was all soggy and mushy from the soup. I resolved that Saturday I would not add any extras to my food plan.

On Saturday I needed to go to the grocery store. I hardly eat a thing but the rest of my family needs to eat. I have been tracking my calorie intake and I'm basically surviving on any where from 300 to 500 calories. It's not a great way to sustain yourself when you have much to do. So basically I almost passed out at Walmart because by 3 in the afternoon I'd managed to get water in but also only about 4 ounces of a protein shake so that was only about 75 calories for the day. Walking around Walmart, pushing a cart and shopping pretty much did me in. Luckily my husband was there, took me to find a seat, gave me some applesauce and I waited for him to finish.

It was an interesting phenomena to be in Walmart surrounded by food but not really have the desire to want to buy something to eat it. Nothing really sounds that great except for tuna fish!

I joined a group online called Obesity Help and have found a lot of people in the same circumstances as I am. It is a great resource to have and a great way to feel supported by people who KNOW what I'm going through.

One thing I've found is that EVERY single surgeon out there has their own idea of how to "graduate" food levels. There are some people who are eating soft foods within 4 days of surgery. My surgeon, however, seems to be very conservative. His plan is for you to be on liquids for a week, then for the next two weeks to be on modified liquids with the soups and yogurt added in and then at week 4 to add soft meats, cheeses, etc.

Well....one of the gals I met on the site had surgery the same day I did and she's been eating ALL kinds of stuff including eggs. I REALLY wanted something savory. The protein shake, sweet drinks, water, broth thing gets old REAL fast. So I made myself an egg on Sunday night. NOT the best idea I've ever had! That thing just sat on my stomach and made me feel terrible. I was up until 2 a.m. drinking water trying to get it down and out of my tummy. Lesson learned.

I go back to the doctor on Friday to have the rest of the staples removed. I've lost another 3 pounds since being there last week so the losing has slowed down significantly. It can be a little discouraging because I'm like, "Geeze, if I'm only eating like 500 calories a day and I can't lose more weight than this is it going to be worth it?" But I have read a lot and talked to a lot of people and I'm assured that my body is just adjusting and that I'll start losing more again.

Non Scale Victories- I put away my summer clothes NEVER to wear them again. I will donate them to the local clothes closet in the spring when they want summery clothes. It felt wonderful to say, "it's all too big!"

I also go out my winter clothes and all of my jeans from last year are already too big. I'll just have to wear baggy clothes for now. I'll have to get a couple of slacks at the new year for sure! Whoot!

The Incredible Shrinking Woman

So...I had my Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy on the 16th...6 days ago. I thought I'd feel better than I do. It's still a bit painful to swallow stuff and have "food" which is just liquids in my tummy for now. I see the surgeon tomorrow for a follow up. I was totally wishing they could undo what they'd done to me about 30 minutes after I woke up in the recovery room. I felt awful.

Today I'm feeling slightly better. I actually got up, got a shower, did my hair and makeup. I took a picture of myself and put it side by side with a photo I took on October 27. All I can say is A. MAY. ZING.! I took my measurements and I'm down 14.25 inches since the surgery! I guess feeling like garbage is paying off.

I'm not gonna lie...

As soon as I woke up from the surgery I thought to myself..."just put my stomach back and let me go home!" I was in quite a bit of pain and VERY groggy from the pain medication.

Honestly I didn't have any issues with not being able to eat anything until Thursday because I was so out of it after the surgery. Food was the last thing on my mind. I haven't really had any hunger pains at all. I have felt my tummy growl this afternoon but that's because I've been sleeping on and off since I got home.

The doctor presented my husband with this lovely photo of my guts. He says he loves my guts but honestly who wants to see this? (I'm assuming someone might since I'm posting it here) My doc was very surprised that I didn't have diabetes because of the fat infiltration in my liver. He says that as I lose weight this will go away.

See all that fat? It's disgusting isn't it? I wonder why they don't lipsuction it out when they are doing the surgery? That would be swell wouldn't it?

Anyway...the first night was pure hell. I didn't sleep for more than 45 minutes at a time because I had all these IV fluids going into me and I was up going to the bathroom ALL night long. I wasn't all that happy about them coming into my room to change the sharps container at 3 a.m. either.

At 8:00 a.m. they took about 4 of us down to the radiology department to do a scan of our stomachs to see if they were still holding, any leaks etc. The barium was so gross it made me gag. I really wanted a huge swig of water but there is no such thing as huge swigs right now.

Back to the room around 8:30 and I was brought clear liquids to drink. Protein drinks, Crystal Lite, chicken broth, water. They also brought me a sheet of paper to keep track of my liquids. I'm to drink 1 ounce of liquid every 15 minutes...and it should take just about 15 minutes to get that one ounce down too. I'm forever drinking but it is getting a lot better.

I have NO desire to eat any real food at this point. In fact tonight my family ordered pizza from my favorite pizza place but it kind of looked like my stomach pictures up there so I wasn't feeling cheated at all.

Last night around 8 or so I got on the scale...One day and 6 pounds gone. Today when I got home...another 4 pounds since Wednesday. I know it will slow down but I'm going to make the most of this by following the guidelines strictly. On Thursday, just in time for Thanksgiving, I can add yogurt drinks and soup to my regime. I'm good with that. I don't feel like I have to have pie or anything like that at all. I'm so looking forward to this new life.

I stayed an extra night in the hospital because my white count was up a little bit but after this morning's blood work it was working it's way down so I was discharged. I have to give myself lovanox shots for the next 7 days to thin my blood and prevent blood clots, got an RX for liquid hydrocodone and also for Zofran. I really haven't felt nauseated at all since a few hours after surgery. I'm getting used to swallowing for now.

Look for more updates later.