Crap!

I mean it literally too!  I don't care what my great Doctor told me....I experience Dumping Syndrome!!!!  If you recall, I ate a little ice cream and had a horrible experience with sweating and heart pounding like I just ran a marathon followed by nausea, cramping, throwing up and horrible diarrhea.  He told me it was physically impossible to experience Dumping Syndrome with VSG.  I am here to tell him, it is not!

He told me that because I was severely limiting my carb intake, the sudden introduction of sugar is what caused my symptoms.  That may have been true then but since then, my carbs are up to about 40-50 g a day so I do not feel at all like I am severely limiting them.

Fast forward to last night.  The scene:  We are at CityWalk at Universal Studios heading to the Hard Rock Cafe for the Pink Floyd concert.  Its hot.  I see what I think is a mirage in the dessert...TCBY!  Now granted, I have not had TCBY in years, why all of a sudden I felt the need to have it is beyond me but have it I did.  I ordered a small Shiver, vanilla yogurt with peanut butter cups mixed in.  Oh yea, might as well go all the way, right?  I ate about 1/2 of the cup and started to get "that feeling" again!  Let me just say that I missed roughly 90% of the concert, not a terrible thing as I am not a fan, but really?  Spending that much time in a bathroom away from home was not the way I had envisioned the night.

Steve?  Oh, the few times he saw me he'd say "are you ok?" to which I'd answer "no", than my sweet, usually very caring and sympathetic husband would get this "look" on his face that said it all.  You know the look?  the "what did you expect?" look.  I guess I know where I stand when Pink Floyd is involved! Suffice to say, it was a very quiet car ride home!

I am still feeling the effects today in case some one out there cares!

I'm home and back in my routine!

I've been home since Wednesday actually and I've been really busy at work that this was the first opportunity I've had to blog!  I had a great time in NY with the family but I have to admit, a week is a long time to be a guest in someones home!

My girls are as beautiful as ever and it was great spending time with them.  I even got to spend some one-on-one time with each of them which is rare.  Mallory is very serious about running the Disney Princess Marathon in Feb and is training hard!  Jordan is even considering flying to be here to cheer her sister on.  That is huge for her because is has a fear of flying and hasn't flown for 2.5 years!  I am going to be really encouraging this as her fear of flying has limited how many times she has come to FL to visit me!  You can only drive so many times!

I came home with a 2 lb weight gain but it is gone now.  I think I will attribute it to eating out every single day! With the exception of two meals at exceptional restaurants, Mio Posto in Oceanside (thank you Allen and Sue!) and Le Chef in Southampton (thank you Kevin!), we ate at chain restaurants - Buffalo Wild Wings (never again - first and last time for me!), JC's - a restaurant at a golf course,  Bobbie Flay's Burger Palace and a pizza place or two :)  I was eating my usual, tiny portions BUT I was not drinking my usual 80 = 100 oz of  water!  Huge difference for me!  I also only made it to the gym 3 times and it wasn't my usual intense cardio workout as I find the classes offered at that gym seriously lacking.  I ended up doing cardio machines, and I hate them - Treadmill, Eliptical.

Thursday Morning I was back at my gym and I am heading there again today for a Fitness Fusion and Zumba class.  I feel so much better the rest of the day after I have a great workout.  And, thanks to Catherine, I have finally ordered my first Lululemon workout outfit!  I cannot wait to get it next week....its adorable!  I only ordered one pair of crops and one top as I wasn't sure about the sizing.  I ordered the crops in an 8 as this is what I am wearing now but I ordered a 10 for the top.  Not sure about the top as I normally would be smaller on top than on bottom but in this case, I'd rather the top be a little looser than the bottom.  I will let you know!

This afternoon Steve and I are meeting our friends in Palm Coast for a car show and an early dinner than Steve and I are heading over to Orlando for a Pink Floyd Tribute Show.  Can you guess who wants to see Pink Floyd?  If you guessed Steve you are right!  He jokes that if he didn't go to the Police Academy and ultimately become a cop for 30 years, he would have been a professional pot-head!    Ah, yes...opposites really do attract people!  I joke that I wish he'd take up smoking weed again just so he'd get the munchies and gain some weight!  I better be careful what I wish for!

Have a great Saturday!

All packed and ready for a week with my girls!

Its that time again!  I am going to Long Island tomorrow for a week and leaving Steve and Brutus at home!  I gave Steve the week off as he will be spending a whole week with the Famiglia on the OBX next month. This week is just me, my girls, my mama, my sister and my niece!  I have a lot planned with both family and friends and I am really looking forward to it.

I see a lot of eating out on the horizon and I really hope that my dining companions will let me pick off their plates!  Seriously, when I am home, I have no problem ordering something knowing that I will be taking 3/4 of it home.  However, being away from home and knowing I will be eating out a lot, I just don't see the point of ordering my own orders.  I am still amazed at how little I can eat and be satisfied.  Lets take tonight for instance.  A very bad food choice night but I was rushed and I had a headache from not eating since breakfast.  I stopped at Publix and bought 6 chicken tenders for Steve (he ate 3 and will have the others tomorrow) onion rings and 2 chicken wings for me.  I had 1/2 of a wing and 1 very small onion ring.  that is it!  Full.  My first thought was to go to Houlighans, a local sports bar and order the wing appetizer.  10 wings in an appetizer!  That would have lasted me for 10 meals!  REally?  I am glad I stopped at Publix instead!

I have packed my individual packets of my new favorite protein drink, Syntrax Nector Roadside Lemonade.  Love it!  90 calories, 0 carbs, 0 fat, 23 grams of protein.  It mixes beautiful with water and ice in my shaker bottle.  Very refreshing.  I figure I can eat pretty normal for at least 2 out of the 3 meals and as long as I keep up with the gym, I will do fine.  This is the first trip back home (yea Steve, I said it, it will always be home to me!) that I am not planning my visit around food.  Pizza and bagels to be specific.  I have 0 desire to eat a hunk of dough (bagel) but actually, I will be tasting a slice of pizza.  Tasting being the operative word as I know I will never be able to eat a whole slice.

I am not sure I will be blogging much while I am there but I will be reading!  Have a great week my pretties!

The "coat picture" - Then & Now

As promised in my last post, here is the before/now pic.  Oh, and thank you for all your comments.  Pictures really are worth a thousand words!

This was me at 234 lbs and now at 152 lbs!

Ok, I found "The Picture"

This is me at my absolutely highest weight!  'nuff said on that!

I still have the coat....maybe I'll do a before/now with the coat later when I get home.  

Have a great Saturday!

Weigh-in today and........

I am officially 60.2 lbs down from March 24, 2010!  However, my husband thinks I am shortchanging myself and always insists that my weight was much higher at one point before lapband surgery and I should count my lbs lost from that weight.  If that is the case.....I am officially down 81.4 lbs from my highest weight ever!  So, in honor of my husband, who has truly been my #1 Cheerleader and Supporter throughout this journey, I am taking credit for all lbs. lost and changing my ticker to reflect this! (I will look for a picture of myself at my highest weight to post here but believe me, they are few and far between!)

Wow....I am very proud of myself.  First and foremost, it really is me who did this.  Actually, its me who got fat in the first place and its me who is rectifying that.  Oh, along the way I've had help from W W (too many times to count), Jenny (at least 3 times) , Lapband, VSG, the gym and a whole bunch of support from my family, most friends and this Blog Community.

The bottom line is, at the end of the day, I am the only one in control of what goes in my mouth!  I better keep up with the control as I am 2.6 lbs. away from my goal of 150 lbs!

This post is for Dinnerland!

D had asked if I could do a post with the how and what I am eating since I had the VSG surgery.  The first few weeks after surgery are very similar to band eating in the beginning.  As with the band, every doctor has a different protocol.  My Dr wanted me on clear liquids for 3 days, full liquids for the remainder of the first week and than pureed food for for 2-3 weeks.

Let me start by saying, I AM NEVER HUNGRY!  I am one of the lucky ones whose hunger has gone away with the removal of Ghrelin.  That is the "hunger" hormone that lives in the part of the stomach that is removed during surgery.  With that being said, I will give you a snapshot of what I am eating.  Since the surgery, I have not eaten more than 700 calories on any given day but that has to change now that I am exercising again.  I can really feel the difference when I exercise and dont' eat enough.  I get dizzy and nauseous.

At this time my stomach can only hold 2 - 3 oz of solid protein....liquids and pureed foods go down much easier.  My doctor said that over the course of the next few years, my stomach capacity will possibly increase by another oz. at the most.

What I am eating today:

Greek Vanilla Yogurt, FF w/fresh blueberries - I ate about 1/2 of this before the gym and I will eat the rest as a snack later;

Pure Protein peanut butter/chocolate bar - 1/2 after the gym

Lunch - 2  - 3 oz of tuna w/light mayo and tomato

Late afternoon - If I feel I need some protein, I will have a Syntax Nector Protein drink.  Very light and refreshing and only 90 - 100 calories, 0 carbs and 23 g protein.  Love them!

Dinner - I roasted a bunch of veggies yesterday and will make a fritata.  I use a 12 in. saute pan and historically, I would cut it into 4's and than cut a section into 2 pieces and eat 1 of those.  I suspect that I will be able to only eat 1/2 of a piece.

If I want to have something after dinner, I will probably have one of these adorable little Dark Chocolate Frozen Baby Bananas...so good and refreshing!

I have to remind myself to eat....I can tell if I am hungry by my stomach contracting or I start getting a headache.

I have not had any bread, pasta or rice since surgery.  My doctor told me I should try everything but follow the # 1 Rule and that is Protein First...sound familiar?  The problem is, once I eat the protein, I am satisfied and full!  My # 1 priority every day is to get at least 60 g of protein in and if I start eating that other stuff, I am too full for the protein.

The sleeve is a totally different feeling than the band.  I have only gotten too full once and and I have never thrown up.  It was close but I didn't.  There is no getting stuck with the sleeve.  Its a more gentle feeling that "if you eat one more bite its coming up" but it doesn't hurt.  It just felt very uncomfortable.  In the past, quite often I would get stuck with my band but still be hungry....I would always try my hardest to get another forkful in.  I do not have that hungry feeling at all when I feel full/satisfied so its easy for me to offer my food to Steve to finish or save for another meal.  I used to actually resent it sometimes when I couldn't finish what was on my plate!  No more.

Other things I am eating:

I can almost eat a whole egg regardless of how its prepared.
1/2 cup of watermelon, 1/2 cup blueberries, a few cherries
2-3 oz of any protein, beef, chicken, steak, burgers
1/2 of a hotdog - tasted very different.  Thats another thing with the sleeve, something happens to your taste buds.  Not everything is affected but some things do not taste the same.  This was one of them. Ick! Oh, and I had a home made chocolate chip cookie and didn't care for it.  And, I am the one who baked them!  Again, this change in my taste buds is not such a bad thing!

Basically, I can eat anything I've tried so far but just a little amount of it.  I had an issue with ice cream on the 4th of July though.  I ordered one scoop in a cup.  I ate maybe a quarter of it and broke out in a cold sweat and just wanted to go home.  We had just gotten to the beach for fireworks.  Back in the car we went and didn't get home a moment too soon.  I had diarrhea so bad.  I had no idea where it all came from!  I know, TMI but really!  I told my doctor that I thought I had a touch of "dumping" that Gastric Bypass peeps get and he laughed at me.  He told me it was physically impossible to have "dumping" with the sleeve because your intestines are not bypassed!  He explained that what I was experiencing was a case of eating very low carb and than introducing liquid sugar into my system which resulted in my reaction. Oh well, call it what you want but it will be a very long time before I indulge in ice cream away from home, I can assure you!  I am not even sure I want it at home...it was a horrible feeling.  Again, not a bad thing!

All in all, the sleeve is very similar to the band and also very different at the same time.  For me, since I woke up from surgery, I've had non-stop restriction, not hit-or-miss restriction that I had with my band.  That alone is a Godsend for me.

If anyone has any more questions, ask away here or send me an email!