Ashburn Event Observations.........

Good Morning Friends.... Well, like I said earlier, I made it home.  HA!  Not sure if in one piece...I'm still trying to figure that out. The weekend was SO much fun!  It was great to see some old friends and to make some new ones (Brenda from PA, our new honorary VA member).   OH did a GREAT job at putting this together.  Joanna, the events manager, is an absolute doll and SO much fun.  She definitely ROCKED this out!!!!  Nikki, the OH editor was wonderful.  Such a sweetheart and SO much compassion.  Kim did a great job at the "details"...and it was those "details" that made the difference.  And if something was not right...she was right on top of it.  Chris, Sales, HA!  SO funny!  Between him and Jeremy, exercise, I could hardly breathe Friday night.  Absolutely hysterical.  It was like hanging out with the "frat" boys..just without the alcohol - haha.   For Jackie...there are absolutely NO WORDS to describe the wonderful job she did.  Not only was she professional, but she made it a lot of fun.  She did a fantastic job at keeping everyone as close to on schedule as possible and was just a professional.  I know OH realizes how lucky they were to have her because she made their event professional....AND FUN!!! So...we started out the morning with breakfast. Not bad.  It was a hotel breakfast and not an OH breakfast, and I'll admit...the hotel did a great job.  Omelets, scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, oatmeal, pancakes, french toast, fruit....Not bad at all.  It was defiantly helpful having it there the way that it was.  It kept costs down for people travelling in and provided some great choices. Jackie started things off in her typical Jackie fashion...she got us syked up for a great event and even got us out of our chairs to meet someone we had never met before.  That was fun!  I met a girl who was there to support her mother who had had surgery.  Unfortunately, I cannot recall her name, but she was a sweetie! Dr Krieger was the first to speak.  Now, I have seen him speak before so I wasn't sure what he could offer.  OMG!!!!  He was wonderful!  He had GREAT slides that he did not show the last time I saw him speak and those slides put everything into perspective.  It was GREAT!  He took lots of questions and kept people on track.  Again...he was GREAT! His partner, Dr. Goldberg was also fantastic.  He spoke right after Dr. Krieger and offered a perspective that Dr. Krieger did not.  Again...it was GREAT!  As co-sponsors of the event, they did a great job in providing information and I hope that this event is fruitful for them, as they really deserve it. Dr Halmi was good with some good information.  My only comment was that I'm not sure that he truly understood who his audience was, because he spent a lot of time talking about the two most common procedures when the majority of us in the room have already had the surgery.  In my opinion, he should have done a quick overview of the two procedures and talked more about what we need to do to be compliant. We then broke for lunch and lunch was fantastic.  We were offered either fish or chicken and the side choices were great.  Definitely better than some of the other WLS events I've been to where you are forced to pick through the food to get something to eat. After lunch, Jackie was right back in the groove of things to get us pumped up for the afternoon. The next speaker was Heidi - she lost 110 pounds in 8 months and was later featured on Extreme Makeover.  She was a doll.  She had high energy, but I felt that she could not truly relate to us as she lost her weight differently.  And to some it could instill in them that there is something wrong with them because they had to go to the extreme of surgery.  That they were unable to do it on their own, like she did.  She NEVER rubbed that in our faces, it was a thought that I came across while listening to her.  She was fun, and some of what she said was interesting observation, but some of it was no different than what I already knew or get from Katie Jay (the daily inspiration post). The ladies from Fashion Fit were really cool, too.  My only thoughts were...too bad their product is expensive.  Many cannot justify paying $250.00 to fill out a questionnaire and have their measurements done to tell them what to wear and how to wear it.  But...it was interesting.... Next up, Jeremy Gentles- OH's fitness Guru.  Ok....I will start out saying that I had to really think about his approach to the whole subject and that's when it occurred to me...he is a science guy.  He is a physiologist and because of this, he looks at fitness from a very different perspective than someone like a Personal Trainer.  His approach to the subject of fitness was a little dis-heartening because he showed several slides that addressed a few studies (well over a year old, I will add) that I felt did not give the right message.  For example, he showed a slide that had 2 groups - those with RNY and who exercised and those with RNY and did not exercise.  This slide showed that there was no difference in the amount of weight each group lost and in fact lost almost the same amount of weight.  My concern (which was later validated) was that people would see that and think that they did not have to work out in order to assist in their weight loss.  I say later validated, because that is EXACTLY what someone said to me...I don't have to workout...his slides even said so!  UGH!!!!  At no time to he discuss the benefits of exercise, how to start an exercise program, the importance of changing it up to avoid plateaus and create "muscle confusion" or how to stay motivated when you have a hard time staying on track.  THESE are the areas that are important, not the information that comes out o some old studies.  Many of us use stability balls or resistance bands to assist us in our workouts and he basically said...don't use them, they offer no benefit.  Again...I think that the wrong message went out, and I thought that it was a bit irresponsible for him to say these things without consulting with doctors who support exercise AND are OH sponsors.  The only thing that I really got out his speaking was that free weights were the way to go.  HA!  For many free weights are intimidating.  He did say...find something that you enjoy and do it - that was good, but he offered no insight.  I asked him what he tells a person who has gained some weight since changing their exercise program.  As everyone knows, I've gained 7 pounds since starting pole dancing.  I already knew what the correct answer was, but I thought that it was important for people to hear that it is perfectly normal.  He blew his opportunity in that area as well.  He said that  it takes 12 weeks to build muscle....I say bullsh*t to that and pointed out to him that I actually gained 3 pounds of muscle in 7 weeks AND have my doctors notes to prove it.  I had to point him back to his our webpage where this is occurring to people who have suddenly increased their physical activity because of training for the various running events going on this summer.  So...again...he is a science guy and not my doctor, one of my personal trainers (I have access to 4 of them between my doctor and the dance studio), and is not consistent with my reading and studies...so...I'll take his info and make my own decision.  BUT...my concern is for those just starting out...... The day ended with the panel.  As a member of the panel, I am a bit biased.  But, I thought it was GREAT!  Jackie did a great job with having a variety of members on the panel.  HOWEVER...I will say that someone in the audience more than p*ssed me off! Two questions were asked:  How much protein do you get in and how much protein can I absorb in 1 sitting....The panel had not problem with the 1st question.  Jackie responded to the 2nd question by saying that we were not dieticians.  Jeremy pointed to a dietician in the audience who came up and completely took over the topic with her own PERSONAL point of view.  She told everyone in the audience that they only need 90 grams of protein a day and to stop wasting their money buying supplements.  OH NO!!!!  That they were a waste of calories.  WHAT!!!!  I was SHOCKED because I have heard horror stories about these mis-guided dieticians, but have never seen one up close.  HA!  I actually felt like I was on a Jack London Wild Animal show....anyways....after all of her loathing of protein supplements beyond the 1st 6 months (ok...I said that, but it really sounded like at all) I was torked.  It is these protein supplements that have helped keep me from hitting the ball with my workouts.  It repairs the muscle damage I cause with my intense workouts and I think it is the reason I look as good as I do (of course, along with my workouts) and how dare she tell me not to follow my doctor's instructions.  I say that, because at NO time did she tell me to follow them, only to stop wasting my money.  Oh no..... So, after the event was over with, I asked Miss 6'9" if I could have a few words with her.  I was pretty calm and told her that I was concerned that the wrong message may have gone out.  HA!  My mistake....she was an absolute bulldog on the issue.  She told me that she was really impressed by how well I have done and that I look fantastic, etc.  BUT...she has been a dietician for 25 years, has worked with Bariatric patients for 6 years, and has a Master's Degree.  She didn't ask, but I knew she wanted to...and what is MY expertise.....Uummm...I'm the patient!  I will say that she was a complete a*s about the whole thing.  She definitely had her position and was not going to consider that her words may have been more damaging than helpful.  I told her that she should have started her thoughts with You need to follow your doctors, etc. etc.  Instead...Jackie said it at the end (after telling this woman that they were out of time, because she had EVER intention of continuing).  She told me that that was Jackie's job and I reminded her that SHE was the medical professional and it was HER duty.  That there is no text book that all doctors are following, which means that they are taking their own data and creating programs for their patients.  She touted her medical concerns for following such a high protein diet.  GREAT...why didn't she say that??  All she kept saying was save your money.  She must have felt threatened by our discussion, because she felt the need to say to me "and if I was your dietician, you would lose that 7 pounds you have gains".  Way to boost the esteem, B*TCH!  I politely told her that I was working with my nutritionist and dietician, but, the bottom line is this...I DON'T EAT ENOUGH AND WITHOUT MY SUPPLEMENTS I WOULD NOT GET IN ENOUGH CALORIES!!!!!!!!!! Put and simple!  And until I start in taking what I am expending, I won't get rid of these 7 pounds! Later, I found out that she was a behind the scenes Vendor who gave us a sample dvd on cooking.  It's called Flourish the Journey.  Personally...I plan to send it back to her as I cannot support someone who tells me to go against my doctor’s orders. All in all....it was a GREAT event! Plans are in the works for another event in October...so mark your calendars.  I, for one, plan to contact OH to request Jackie again, as she was WONDERFUL!!! And they would be foolish to go with anyone else.  I have been to other WLS events and NO ONE can compare to the OUTSTANDING job that Jackie did.  If you went to the event, and had a great time, I ask that you contact OH and tell them!!!! So...until October!!!!!!!!!!!  

 

Hey, Jill!! Glad you made it home. I worried about you. I left early and had to stop on 95 for over an hour due to an accident southbound at the Stafford line. If I had your cell, i would have called to warn ya. I am SO sorry I missed the panels. Must have been REALLY interesting.  I was so proud of Jacie and you are right the OH peeps are the best! I can't wait until October and know they will work to give us the best meeting ever. I am hoping they can plan this one closer to central Virginia. I think they will get a boatload of people to attend, if they do. And we all know the Drs who we have are not concerned with where their patients live...we all travel miles to see them because they are so good, not because they are local!! And I am all for the slumber party gir!! We would have a ball!! As always, thank you for including me in the fun!  Sue Baker

Oh heck, Sue....YOU RAWK!!!!!  You are just TOO COOL to not include - haha. Are you still wearing your red dot - HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Red dots are still in tact! And I am going to send you those tassles for your pole graduation. You can wear them when you start your masters degree in pole!!  (Mary, don't be jealous, you can have a pair, too!!) I love you guys...you are SUCH an inspiration!!

HAHAHAHA - AWESOME!!! Can I have them in pink sparkles????

Yep and the GLUE is included!! Send me your address ([email protected]) and I will mail them tomorrow!!

HAHAHAHA - You are TOO much! [off to email you my address] HAHAHAHA!

Well I want to first say what an awesome time I had I enjoyed meeting some on Friday night and was very excited for things to get started on Saturday. I do agree with everything you said though, Jackie was awesome and did a great great job and I did enjoy the first part of the day. Loved Dr Krieger and once I am ready for plastics I will most likely chose him so I am so glad I got a chance to meet him and very greatful and did one on ones!  As far as the second half I agree with you about Heidi, I am very happy she lost her weight and is doing great, but I truly felt she couldn't relate to us and in a way just made me feel a little bad because she lost so much in just eight months but I got over it and realized she is there to try and motivate us. Now the reason mom and I stayed for the second half, was to hear Jeremy speak, well I have to say I was very disappointed, I got in the car afterwards and asked my mom did she hear the same thing as I did, sounded like he said we don't need to exercise, which btw I know isn't true, but I was very scared that could be taken the wrong way, I really didn't like the studies he showed, I wanted to know what to do when I go to the gym, I still have 100 more pounds to lose and need to know what is best, but just seemed he wanted to talk about his dislike for the Gazelle lol or just tell us to find something we like. Oh well on to better things it was so good at the end when you and the other post ops got up there. All of you are true inspirations!!! Overall I am very glad I came and hope I made some new friends that can help me along the way especially when I fall down. Thanks again!!

OMG!  Karen...you and your Mom were AWESOME!  it was great to meet you guys, and you need to change your picture! See...exactly what you just said about Jeremy's performance was what I was afraid of.  That's exactly what I thought when I saw those slides and in conversation with Jackie and Jeannie int he car I bewgan to think maybe that's how I took it.  Then at dinner, other's commented the same concern - so it wasn't just me. You're smart...exercise is important and you know that.  You just need to find something that you like, becuase if you cannot have fun doing it you won't.  And consistentcy is the key!

I want to come in October. It sounds like you guys had so much fun. And I would love to meet you all in person. So will the next meeting be posted on here or how do you find out about it? Thanks, Penny