THE 411

Hello and greetings all Some of you know me.. some of you dont. I had my surgery 2 years and 1 month ago, and I am excited about all the new faces on the NJ board. I recently moved to Millinocket Maine, and I read all the time (the NJ board) but I dont post too much anymore. I felt it might be good to review what I call the big FOUR... the things to remember about the POST surgery experience (and hey Ill be honest.. to say hi to all you NJ peoples and greetings from the Great White North.. we have 2 feet of snow.. woo woo) So here goes. The things I learned that it is important to remember are... (these are not in order.. but all important) 1-PROTEIN - 80 grams a day As always consult your surgeon FIRST... but my surgeon (and others here on the board and elsewhere) talk about the importance of getting 80 mg of protein a day. SOUNDS like a lot right? Well.. .. Think of four or five smaller meals (I aim for five to seven meals a day) a day .. with 15 grams of protein a meal. 15 grams is not too hard to get... a lot of different things have high protein. Eggs, Cheese, lean meat, peanut butter, yogurt,... you have to make sure its low sugar.... or has artificial sweeteners rather than sugar.. but all these things and others have good sources of protein 2-Vitamins This is something that you have to have guidance from your surgeon. Taking vitamins once a day is important to keep your levels up in your body. LOTS of people have other ways.. I use childrens vitamins twice a day... some take a Centrum (cut in half to aid absorbing) .. but most of all it has to be DAILY and has to be something that works. My surgeon thinks Im nutty for taking 5 childrens chewables ( I look for flintstones or equivalent) TWO times a day.. (10 total) BUT...but he encourages me to continue because all my mineral and vitamin levels in my system are 1000 percent... two years out. So.. **shrug**... the IMPORTANT thing is work with your surgeon.. talk to other POST surgery patients.... get tested (like 2 months, six months, one year.. 18 months.. two years... ) .. get your blood work done on schedule as your surgeon suggests.. On Vitamins... FIND WHAT WORKS FOR YOU... and listen to your surgeon and when you find something that works and your blood work is good.. stick with it : ) 3-Water Drink a lot : P Easier said than done.. I use generic and regular Crystal Lite to make drinking water easier.... I aim for a gallon a day but usually average 3 quarts... again consult your surgeon. DEHYDRATION is not good.. it will affect your recovery... it will stall weight loss... and it will make you feel like dog doo doo. So keep drinking . Water is best... or flavored water. 4- Exercise. AJ.. I hand off to you. I am doing TERRIBLE... and I cant blame the snow either.. My goal is to get more over the next few weeks. Yes folks exercise is important... and if you want to continue to lose weight over the long term find something that is low impact.... regular ... and something you enjoy (hopefully).. but something you can do regularly. I did well for a long time when I was in NJ but exercise is something that I need personally to do better on. SO.. in summary If you do these four things and keep in contact with your surgeon.. and have regular blood work to make sure you are doing okay... you will lose weight : )) I did.. and continue to lose weight.... even two years out.... and when my weight loss stalls... then focusing back on these four things gets me back on track. God bless everyone.. I will talk to everyone later Hugs Timmy Ray S. Millinocket, ME

Hey TRS! Good to see ya, man! Hope things are going well for ya up north. Okay. I'm normally not one to post advice on the boards. (I'm much better with encouragement, silliness, and even a little bragging here and there) But, since my man, Tim deferred the exercise bit to me... I will humbly accept my assignment. So here goes. These are just MY opinions on the subject... take 'em or leave 'em: Look... you've had surgery, you are going to lose weight and burn fat no matter what, AT FIRST. Hell, you might even get below your goal without doing a lick of exercise. Just about all of us are guaranteed to lose 60-75% of our excess body weight through the surgery alone. But, is that really acceptable to you? I, for one, did not take the risk of surgery to only shed 3/4 of the weight that I needed to. Nor will I allow myself to put that weight back on. Like it or not, exercise will GREATLY increase your chances on losing more and keeping it off. We're talking about a complete lifestyle change here, not just how we deal with food. Get up and get moving. I'm not saying that you should be running marathons... walk, jog, run, swim, bike, dance, play tennis, shoot some baskets, roller skate, or do some tai chi. Howzabout a yoga class? Geez... try pole dancing! Something! Anything! As corny and as hack as it sounds, Nike's got the right idea... Just Do It. I do some sort of exercise or physical activity AT LEAST 5 days a week. And, I can't begin to describe how much it has enhanced the entire WLS experience for me. C'mon... reach your goal, keep it off, sleep better, feel better, look better, experience a new feeling of accomplishment, have fun, enjoy the outdoors, make new friends... What 'cha got to lose? (other than a few more pounds!) Alright, alright - That's enough outta me. I think you get my point. See? This is why I don't post any advice... I get all caught up in my opinions and just spill it all over the keyboard. On a similar note, what ever you do... Never, EVER ask me my opinions on politics or religion. This website doesn't have enough bandwidth to support all of the ranting and raving I could do! Okay... back to encouragement, silliness & bragging! Be Well... I mean it, A.J.

Wow Guys, Thank you for that great advise. It seems like you are both very determined to do this thing right. Good for you.

Poledancing! Somebody's spending a lot more time in another forum than he should be! :D Hugs, Wendy

Hi Timmy Ray, Your advice is exactly what I was looking for. I will print it out and keep near me for reference. Thanks again for helping me understand what I will have to do in order to make this WLS successful. God Bless! Hugs, Connie M.

love the both of you TR and AJ i always try NOT to talk politics or religion either ;) but if ya ever want to go on a rant about sports i'm right there!!! i know i don't get enough water!! i carry the water with me -- i just never drink it i do drink a protein shake in the AM -- 50 grams there i do eat yogurt -- tuna -- crab meat -- turkey & cheese with raspberry dressing spray i don't get to the gym -- but as of next tuesday i have new hours in work so i can hit the gym every morning then!!! just changed my position in work so i get to work nights for a while -- anyone want 4 teenagers????? with autism/mental retardation??? ok i didn't think so........i'll keep them my surgery was 2 months ago yesterday i feel great!! i'm down a few sizes i wear make up again i can get from the floor to a standing position without the help of a table ppl in work tell me how good i look and how much happier i seem so far i'm doing good best of luck to all Roberta pretty soon ross will be the same weight at me!! the guy is doing fantastic!!

Hey Roberta! We love you too I'm so glad that things are going well for you and Ross. And, as soon a baseball season starts, (not really much of a football guy) I'm right there with ya for some good back and forth about steroids, the luxury tax, that stupid designated hitter thing, Bucky "Bleeping" Dent, and so on and so on! Just one quick thing that I noticed in your post: "i do drink a protein shake in the AM -- 50 grams there" A little unsolicited FYI: Depending on the body composition and metabolism of the person, the human body can ony effectively utilize 20-30 grams of a single type of protein at a time. Anything more than that at once just gets passed through. So essentially, with that 50 grams of protein at one shot, about half of them are just extra calories... with no other real benefit. In my post-workout shakes, I just use one scoop of whey protein powder instead of the 2 that's suggested on the container. (These companies know that the more you consume, the quicker and more frequently you'll need to go out and buy more of their product) See.. this way, just about all of the protein is going to good use, and I save 50 calories in the process! Although, a good way around this is by combining different kinds of protein in one meal - Whey protein, soy protein, egg protein, animal protein... you get the picture. Hope this is a help to you. Boy, I post a bit of advice one time, and the flood gates are open! Be Well, A.J.

hey AJ it's the 50 Gram Slam from GNC says on the can that it is a blend of WHEY and CASEIN -- says that casein is digested slower think i need to look this up now haha thanks for the heads up Roberta oh where oh where did my poor Trot Nixon go -- oh where oh where did he go.......to cleveland that's where!!

Hey Timmy! Hope all is well. It was really good seeing you at the OCWLS meeting last month...love the new 'do! And thanks for the great reminder on how to continue to use the tool that we've been given. Sometimes we get remiss after our "honeymoon phase", so it definitely helps to get us back on track. Will we be seeing you at group on the 2nd? Bring some lobsta's! Hugs, Wendy

Hi Wendy Tray lady : PP I couldnt figure out how to say your name during my short abortive stint as your angel lolol ( I finally did) Your last name. Finally figured out... Tray plus that NW states name... and woo ... problem solved. Duh... I went to college dontcha know... to figure out such lifes mysteries : )) No... I am currently in Maine... 12 below zero doncha know.. 442 am on this lovely Saturday morning....all the lobsters have dived to the bottom of whatever hellish ice floe infested river or bay that they are in. Bay I guess... unless they are freshwater lobsters.. lol. I vote boots with Suicide stilleto heels btw... from your other post? Just a thought. You look nice in whatever foot wear you decide on : ) I am doing so so.... adjusting to the cold... and cant find a niche for myself in the Maine ecosystem of life... but working on that one. Living with my family is proving daunting... just adjustment issues... but its good to be in a new place I guess? (I know I sound thrilled dont I?) I miss you guys a lot, the OCWLS crew... and hope to catch a meeting again before too long.. but no I wont be able to attend the one at Toms River in February. Give everyone a hug for me and tell em Timmy Ray says hello please? Take care Wendy Wendy Hugs Timmy Ray PS Previously car less when I first got here.... I took Greyhound to NJ and after the last Toms River meeting drove my volvo (affectionately known as my zoom zoom...) north.. to the Great white north... on that weekend where NYC saw like... 67 degrees? Sunroof all the way .... all night long ... was fun : ) My volvo works well by the way... however the Maine people look at me funny when I have my sunroof open and its like 12 degrees out.... they just dont know what to say at my redneck ways.... oh well. they betta LEARN :P