Waking up in "Onederland"

Today I am six weeks out from surgery.  Monday is my weigh-in day for several reasons: it's easy to remember since it's the first day of a new week, and also because my surgery was on a Monday.  So, I got up this morning hoping to be pleased with the numbers on the scale.  I stepped on, waited a second and then looked down.  Imagine my surprise when I saw that the first digit of my weight started with a 1 instead of a 2!  Yes, I am back in "Onederland"!  My weight was 199.6.  Hey, it's barely under 200, but I'll take it!  I haven't been under 200 for at least 3 years.  I guess weighing under 200 was my first goal as a result of having surgery.  So glad to have achieved it already!  My next goal is to look great on my birthday, which is a month from tomorrow!

At this rate, I'm losing about 2-3 lbs. per week.  I couldn't be happier.  Super-rapid weight loss kind of scares me.  But 2-3 lbs. per week is a healthy rate at which to lose.  And besides, I don't care if it takes me a little longer to lose the weight.  I try to remember that "Slow and steady wins the race" mantra.

So, food-wise I'm back to being able to eat just about anything (except steak, pork & ham).  I'm still a bit timid to try rice and pasta just yet.  I'm scared they'll expand in my little tummy too much and cause me some discomfort.  We went to Sake Blue (a yummy Japanese bistro) on Saturday night and I ordered a Sashimi platter.  Didn't miss the rice for a second and the salmon and tuna went down so easily!

I really need to get some smaller pants.  I keep talking about it, but I think I'll wait just a bit longer.  All of my work pants are getting baggy, especially in the rear end.  I guess I'll be selling a lot of my "fat" clothes on eBay pretty soon.  I've still got some tops I'll be able to wear for a while.  I had a hard time parting with a lot of my "skinny" clothes after I regained weight for the millionth time.  That's really nice for me now, as I can just go shopping in my own closet!

The doctor's office called me Friday with my first lab results.  All in all, things are pretty good.  I was a little low on my iron, my ferritin and my protein.  I need to increase my protein to 70g a day and start taking 65mg of iron with 500mg of vitamin C two times a day.  Everything else is normal.  I am definitely doing better with my vitamins, so that is something I'm not worrying about so much anymore.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I love my sleeve!  Seriously, I have had absolutely no regrets and I am feeling fantastic!  My self-esteem is higher, my health is improving with every pound I lose, and I'm not hungry all the time anymore.  I would recommend this surgery to anyone who was considering any kind of weight loss surgery.

That's all for now.  Thanks for reading!

Seriously... One Month Already?

Today I am one month out from surgery.  One month!  How is that possible?  It feels like a week or two at the most that I was getting ready for it to happen.  Anyway, I'm happy to report that I have lost a total of 16 pounds since surgery, and am down a total of 24.2 pounds from my highest weight.  Clothes are fitting better and I definitely have more energy already.  Just to compare, here are some pictures of me from the night before surgery vs. 1 month post-surgery.  And let me just say, please disregard the hot mess that I was in the before pics.  It was about 1:30 am the night before surgery with no makeup and seriously bad hair...  Nuff said!

Obviously, you can tell I have lost a lot in my face already.  That's always one of the first places I notice weight loss in myself.  I can also tell that I'm less chunky in the middle and the back.  So far I'm thrilled with my results and that's only after one month.

I went for my one month checkup at the surgeon's office today, and they too are pleased with my weight loss to date.  I am cleared for any kind of physical activity, so I hope to start doing yoga again very soon.  They took a lot of blood today to check my labs.  Keeping my fingers crossed that I'm not seriously low on anything.  It's been a struggle lately to get most of my vitamins in.  I just don't like the chewable calcium and multivitamins I'm taking.  Tomorrow (read: payday) I am planning to buy some different supplements I'll actually be able to tolerate.  Next checkup with the surgeon's office is at 3 months out (August).

Food-wise, I'm on stage 4 foods.  What that means is that I can have everything from previous stages (clear liquids, full liquids, soft foods - yogurt, pudding, cheese, beans, eggs, cottage cheese, etc.) and FISH!  Tuna, tilapia and Chilean sea bass have all been very yummy so far.  Last night we had sea bass with broiled tomatoes.  I had 2 oz. of fish and couldn't eat any more!  If I haven't said it lately, I LOVE MY SLEEVE!  Next week I get to incorporate chicken, turkey and lean ground beef into my diet.

Until next time!!  Thanks for reading!