Pre-surgery lifestyle changes

Jessiegirl,

I agree with the above suggestions...they are all good things to do...I will not repeat them but comment.

for clarity: I am 23 years post op a WLS that was a combination of several things done today plus some that are not done. I say this so you will know my experience and intolerances will not be the same as yours...I still have not given up coffee. It does have heart protection in it as long as is consumed in moderation. The clinic I went to, did want me to quit it. I had already given up all fruits, in almost every form( perssonal intolerance), all milk products( can tolerate few now),and all liquids except a single black coffee, 12 oz, and water.( I even gave up tea). I looked dietician in eye and told him he could forget about my single cup of coffee! It was going no where...and told him what i have just repeated here one cup and water was my liquids...

There are a couple of other things you can do now:

....1) Pursue the diet you will be required to long term,

....2)make sure you measure all foods.Mine is 90 grams protein and limitation of 50 grams carbs.. ask your clinic what is the amount you should start with. If they have done a metabolism study- it will be based on that. (My metabolism was 35% more efficient than it should have been.) I had to record every bite and drink i had for a week, and turn in the diet diary..it was assessed by clinic.specialist.

Record everything in pen and paper..It helps to imprint the amount of food you are eating and helps you to truly focus on the amounts, and help with planning where you need to be for the rest of the day.

This practice will help you with the mindset issue so many are saying they have had issues with. The skill of measuring everything now will be required as your capacity is limited. It will prove invaluable as you begin to eat in public places after surgery, to avoild overfill.

...3) Look at yourself in a full length mirror,( every 1-2 weeks at first) love yourself for what you are becoming and the changes you see transforming your physical body. This will make it easier to realize the changes as your new tool is fully functional and the weight drops off. Will really help as you buy new clothes..

..as you loose weight, especially if you have a large amount to loose... support undergarments help to hold loose skin and can help some people with some of the excess ..holding it helps keep it from flopping and stretching..so the result is for some people less need for reconstructive surgery after. I should have had surgery but have never been able to afford it.

My daughter is your age, and has just begun...using ddpyoga..it has a starting place for even people who are bedbound and strengthens all muscle groups. she is also modifying diet and has begun a weight loss journey.

It is important for you to know. Obeity is a genetic predisposition/ thing. It was proven in a study done by the University of Tn, Memphis group, Me and My Mom were part of this study and genes were studed. They found the link in relations/mom/daughters/etc..and common in other obese people. It is the gene that controls metabolism of carbs and the storage of it. The surgery you have will give you a permanent tool to use in your new walk. I am lookig forward to your postings.

I did the same as the above poster - I worked with a dietitian and weaned myself off caffeine, stopped drinking carbonated beverages, started drinking lots of water. I gradually decreased my calories and carbs and increased my protein intake. I also started exercising regularly. All of these things made the transition to post-op life much easier, I think. Plus I lost 57 lbs pre-surgery to boot!

Oh..a "yes, and" on the carb weaning! I went through "carb detox" during the pre-op liquid diet. It was a hellish 3-day headache and zero energy. If I'd stepped down vs. cold turkey, I imagine it would have been a lot less brutal. Good news is that following the post op diet guidelines has been easy--because I was no nonsense on the 2 week liquid diet beforehand (ie, detoxed during that period).

My dietician has been great to work with - I actually started working with her about a year ago on diet and exercise options before I was seriously considering surgery. It's nice having the rapport all ready.

The carb step-down has been a consistent piece of advice though. It is something I'm going to bring up and work with her on starting at my next appointment.

jessiegirl84, before that appointment, you need to know exactly how many carbs you are consuming the diet diary, and accurate measure, can help with that.

You've gotten some really fantastic advice, so I can only echo those replies.

If you haven't already, start eating protein forward and get sugar and starchy carbs out of your diet, eat proper portions, work with a therapist to help with the headwork, quit drinking with meals, and drink at least 64 ounces of water per day.

The biggest (physical) hurtle I faced was learning not to drink with meals. I wish I'd practiced that longer than I did before surgery.

The BEST things I did pre-op were start eating low carb as soon as I could, and working with a therapist to help me with emotional eating*.

It was so much easier to eat that way once I was cleared for normal food. (My surgeon was very conservative with the food phases anyway; I didn't eat my life-long solid diet until 8 weeks out.) Because I'd started eating that way before surgery, I wasn't struggling with carb craving/withdrawals while I was trying to heal from surgery.

*Full disclosure: I'm 5 years out, and lots of life has happened. I started to waver in avoiding emotional eating after I hit my goal, but that initial therapy still really helped me, and I'd get my head back in the game and not give up completely like I'd have done pre RNY. When my life started spiraling out of control last year, I went back to therapy to deal with it. My eating habits improved tremendously just by being in therapy even though the focus wasn't on emotional eating. I'm currently 2 pounds away from my lowest weight and one pound away from my original goal weight, having lost 19 pounds of regain I experienced between years 3 and 4.

Hope this has helped. I'm wishing you all the luck in the world and am rooting for you.

Thank you so much for the kinds words and advice! It's sometimes hard to remember that what got me here is just as much mental as physical - and both need to be worked on.

Also - congrats on being where you are 5 years out and working through life's ups and downs. Hope things continue to go well for you.

Not drinking with meals was thing I had to stop doing.

It may not sound like a big deal. I was the person who would talk all through the meal then house it and wa**** down at the end with something to drink.

I also started this during the pre-op stage so I would have the habit broken before surgery.

I've already started on this as well - it's actually on the checklist of things that I need to be doing before surgery. It's so tough - but I've been been tracking meals and such on paper and I've been adding notes about when I finish eating so I know when I can start drinking.