What was a typical day for you pre-WLS? What is a typical day for you now, post-WLS?

I'd love to read your day in the life befores and afters since I'm sure they must be quite a lot different!

For me, I didn't have much of a life before surgery. None at all really since I did not/could not work due to not just weight but emotional issues. I woke up, fed my animals, then fed myself and planted myself in front of my computer at my desk most of the day. I left my room to shower, do household chores, and to leave the house for junk food from the dollar store and fast food from wherever I wanted it from. There were also lots of naps involved, I slept so much.

Now, a typical day is a far cry from how it used to be! I get up, make my bed, eat breakfast and then am out of the house. Either I am going out of the house for a walk in my neighborhood, or I am heading to the gym first thing. Generally I shop after the gym for groceries for the day, the shop is right next door so I walk from the gym to the store. Walking isn't painful like it was pre-wls and I actually jog with the cart back to my car which is parked allll the way back at the gym. My preference is to spend more time outdoors than I ever did, so generally I go and spend time out with a friend, my grandmother running here and running there, going to thrift stores now that I can finally fit in to their clothes!

At home in the evenings when I am at my desk I am meal planning, or if I am playing a game I am content to just be at my desk and don't have the urge to snack and gorge myself on chips and sweets. After meal planning I will then get anything around the house done up that needs done. Dishes, laundry, vacuuming, dusting, etc. I do it every evening and am overall so much cleaner than I was before. Shower, then settle back in for the night with a warm cup of tea before bed.

How different are your days now from how they were before your surgery?

Interesting question, Mersh! Mostly when I think back to how much food I could eat, I feel sick to my stomach. I would eat an entire Chipotle burrito bowl plus chips and maybe have room for dessert. Or I would cook up a 16 oz (POUND!) box of noodles and add butter and parmesan and eat almost the entire thing. Or polish off a medium pizza with extra cheese. And then sit, heavily, on the couch.

Strangely, even at 350 lbs, I was very social and actually out and about a lot BUT not walking or being active. More so, being at happy hours or out at bars with friends or out at dinners. And dinner would have been "let's share an appetizer" and then I would have eaten an entire entree, and maybe even eaten when I got home. I definitely didn't walk to go meet people out - living in DC, I could take bus or metro or uber. Mind you, bus was nerve-wracking because I could tell from people's faces that everyone hoped I wouldn't be the one sitting next to them and spilling over onto their seat :( I always traveled but again, airplane rides weren't comfortable and I had to make sure there wasn't too far of a walk in between hotels and sights.

I look at my life now where a ten mile walk isn't daunting in the least, I do four or five hour-long workout classes a week, I can travel anywhere and everywhere without fear of having a middle seat on the plane...I literally could cry that I didn't make this change earlier in my life (I was 36 when I had surgery). When people ask me if I had any regrets, I couldn't give a more emphatic HELL NO!

Your new life sounds pretty awesome, and I am so proud of you. Not many people would go from 475 lbs to 150 lbs. You have surpassed all expectations, I am sure, and you really inspire me!

I'm with you when I think back at what I used to eat. There is absolutely no question of how I got to weigh what I weighed! Chipotle was a favorite, a big burrito with chips and salsa eaten in one sitting. There was never a time I couldn't or wouldn't eat an entire box or meal of something meant for a whole family. Yikes! It is amazing what we did to our bodies. We've both come a long way!

I would say a lot has changed but still stayed the same. Before surgery I'd get up with just enough time to get ready for work, feed & potty the dogs, and be to work on time. Come home to eat and sit on the couch unless I was teaching a training class. Weekends were sleeping in and doing the minimum with everything. I drank a ton of soda and crap plus didn't move nearly enough. We ate anything and everything we wanted without concern for our health. We did go out to stuff but not that often.

Post surgery, I get up way earlier to feed & potty the dogs and get ready for work. I arrive early or go someplace close by to get my morning walk in, I tried walking my dogs but we almost go hit by cars a few times... I walk on all my breaks at work and people tease me about my water bottles, I always have one in my hand and one in the frig. I hit the gym three days a week now and my husband and I got ourselves bikes to ride. Weather permitting we ride 3-5 times a week. I even get up early on the weekend to walk, I can walk my dogs then because there's no traffic trying to kill us. My dogs now love the weekends as well. I volunteer to teach more classes now and really enjoy being out more often. When we do sit down to watch tv, it's 1 or 2 shows and we are back up doing stuff! All our meals are planned and logged into My Fitness Pal. It's been great that my husband has gotten on the healthy eating/working out wagon with me. I also have a group of friends on Facebook and we are just finishing our third 100 day challenge, it's been so great to have a group of friends are working on being healthier. We are doing a holiday check-in once a week to stay on track once we finish on 11/13, then we'll do a post holiday 100 day challenge to kick start the new year. I hope to lose my last 5 lbs during our challenge.

I keep thinking about getting a bike. I would love to ride one, but now that winter is rolling around I may wait until spring. Also, I would need to learn to ride one! Last time I was on a bike was in elementary school, my goodness.

I think the last time I was on a bike before we got them was over 30+ years ago. I know I rode a bike in high and some in college but that was another life time ago. Honestly, I just took off...

I agree, definitely an interesting question!

Pre-op

I'd wake up around 9am and thought that was "early." I kept fairly busy with errands and other household chores, but I had a lot of downtime too, so I could read and watch TV. I went to the gym a few days a week to use the elliptical for an hour. I spent every waking moment thinking about food in some way or another. I also saw a lot of movies in the theater. I'd go to bed around midnight.

Post-op

I wake up between 6:30-7 every day and get ready for bed at 9:30 with the intent of being asleep by 10:30. I spend a few hours most days exercising after I get up - some combination of running, yoga, and pilates. I still handle errands and household chores. But I rarely have downtime due to being a full time college student, something that never would have happened pre-op. I don't think about food much at all, except when I'm really hungry or thinking about timing for dinner prep.

I'm a lot more scheduled now than I used to be and I feel like my mindset is that of a constantly active person instead of a constantly inactive person. It's rare for me to get downtime, which sort of sucks, but I tell myself that part of things is only temporary while I finish my degree.

I feel like a schedule is also a huge change for me. Before I just did whatever, whenever and those whatever things always revolved around food.

During the weekends I am very scheduled, though I do feel like I'm not nearly as much during the week since I am off work M-Th. Though proper sleep times have become an actual thing! I kept all hours before surgery, usually sleeping in late and staying up past two am, and then napping through the day regardless.

I've developed a healthy respect for "weekend jet lag" and the impact that staying up late and sleeping in have on me. So even the days I don't need to wake up at 6:30-7, I still do because I know it'll suck for me when I do need to wake up at that time otherwise!

And to think, when I was a kid I thought being an adult was all about getting to stay up as late as you wanted every night.

Wow I'm so impressed by these profound pro-health and self care changes !! I guess I lag a little behind the learning curve cuz I'm a stubborn cuss .

I'm skinny enuf ... I guess but rarely get out . My obsessions AGE ... which is also ridiculous . I'm amazingly healthy and actually look and feel relatively great ... but rather than dating ... living I choose 2 stay home in my comfort of tv video games work and pets dnd a bit of gardening. Ok .... not the WORST possible solution but def not the best - however I am seeing a therapist and working on getting out more