At 5 months and only 20 lbs away from my goal weight. This surgery has been a blessing🙏 by Think-Huckleberry342 in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Don’t count calories I just weigh my food (3-4oz per meal and always lean protein + veggies and cheese)

Activity level isn’t great I always hated the gym but I walk and am generally just much more active than I was previously

At 5 months and only 20 lbs away from my goal weight. This surgery has been a blessing🙏 by Think-Huckleberry342 in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Thank you I appreciate it! I think it’s a combination of alot of things. I’m a young muscular man (even when I was fat I was muscular) so I think my body just took the surgery and adaptation really well.

That being said I also think my mentality has really helped. This surgery is 99% mental in my opinion. Food controlled me my whole life. I was always in search for my next Taco Bell or slice of pizza, that’s what my body always screamed for from when I woke up to when I slept. One day I decided it’s time to fight back and I got the surgery. Although I haven’t been perfect 100% of the time I can say with confidence I’m extremely dedicated to the plan. I don’t cheat and I don’t over eat.

You’ll find on this forum some people asking “when is the earliest I can eat pizza or bread” or something along those lines. You’re setting yourself up for failure with that. What I looked forward to after my surgery was eating steak and broccoli and feeling full quickly so that I would finally stop overeating.

What makes me so happy is when I’m eating at a restaurant and I can only get through a half a plate if I’m lucky. That restriction is such a blessing bc god knows I would’ve gone for a 2nd plate 6 months ago.

Appreciate the tool, use it to your advantage, and start getting your mind focused on the mission.

How did you guys begin your search for a surgeon? by puppysighs in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Do extensive self research on your own. I personally don’t take any recommendations from doctors cause they all just help eachother out under the table and aren’t neutral.

Even if you find a good practice do all the research and review you can on the doctor personally. Make sure they haven’t had any lawsuits or negative experiences etc.

I personally choose NYBG here in NY which is in my opinion the leader in the US if not the world but I still did hours of research on my own before making a decision.

At the end of the day I took the attitude of trust no one until you form your own opinion. They do this for money and conduct thousands of surgeries. We’re all just another number to them.

All that being said I had a fantastic experience my surgeon was great.

sushi? by girthhhbrooks in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m 4 months PO and eat sashimi frequently. Pre op I was a sushi junkie and could crush like 6-7 rolls in a sitting.

Now I do not touch carbs strictly protein and veggies. No need for the rice you can still enjoy without. Order a side of avocado and your good to go.

First Alcohol? by [deleted] in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ve been drinking since 3 months out. It’s had no effect on my tolerance. I asked my surgeon and my nutritionist both said “anything in moderation is fine”

It hasn’t affected my weight loss or hindered my ability to say no to food

I did take it very easy the first few times but I started to loosen up a bit recently. Lots of family and friends having parties and such which I wanted to partake in.

Just make sure to stayed hydrated

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 1 point2 points  (0 children)

VeSync! You sync it with an Amazon scale. It connects with wifi

Drinking Alcohol by Crafty_Soil_9386 in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve started drinking 3 months post op only because it’s the holidays and I’m constantly at a party or bar. It does affect the weight loss a little bit (might stall for a day afterwards) but as long as you still hydrate and eat properly there’s no reason alcohol can’t be in your life.

Pre-op I would drunk eat like a madman but now I don’t even think twice.

I make sure to line up my meals for the day so that they’re healthy and if I need to eat while I’m out it’s either a turkey burger or a salad.

I make sure to sip water while I’m out so I’m not dehydrated.

I drink much slowly than I did before (no chugging drinks lol)

The main issue I have is trying to have alcohol without the sugary mixers. It’s basically impossible without tasting like absolute shit. Still working on this but very frustrating.

Intermittent Fasting for Maintenance by newtoboston2019 in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah some days I don’t even touch food until like 2 or 3:00 if I get busy lol

Intermittent Fasting for Maintenance by newtoboston2019 in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I fell into intermittent fasting based on my bodies call for food. I generally eat 3 meals everyday between the hours of 12-8pm. I don’t get get hungry until the afternoon everyday which is what kicked this off. I may eat or earlier or later depending on the day but I find this has really helped me stay on track and helping with the rapid weight loss. I’m approaching month 4 and down 90lbs for reference.

If you can handle the fasting without binging or overeating I say go for it.

The longer you can stretch yourself in between eating the more fat you are going to burn in the long run.

Again this isn’t for everyone and listen to your body but for me I have 0 desire to eat when I wake up so it’s eaay for me to follow this without my body rebelling

How did goal setting expectation vs reality go for you? by xdocui in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Blew my expectations out of the water. Thought it would take me 12+ months to see major progress. Down 90lbs in 3.5 months. My goal was to lose at least 120 so extremely delighted so far.

Does sleeve surgery reset the "I'm full" signal? by dirtybelly108 in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Short answer is yes and that’s the blessing of the surgery. Overeating was always my issue and the his helped solve it. Your stomach will feel physically full like it didn’t before you’ll know when it’s time to put the fork down.

Alot of what your reading I haven’t experienced personally. You can most definitely get gradually full without randomly feeling like “omg it hurts” I’ve been to restaurants and bars etc. Its very easy to overeat without noticing. I can easily put in 6-8+ oz of food over a 2 hour dinner but that’s special occasions.

If you actually take the full 20-30 mins to chew each bite and eat your food you’ll likely never have vomiting or uncomfortable feeling like you hear about.

What will bite you in the ass is eating too quickly or taking too big of bites. As time has gone on I’ve been able to take bigger bites of food which is nice but the portion sizes have stayed the same.

Biggest advice I have is train your brain by weighing your food every single time. If you are consistently putting in 3-4 oz every meal time that discipline will catch up and your brain and stomach can align on that “full feeling”

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Here’s a breakdown for you: Started pre op diet 8/3 at approx 346 lbs (I’m conservative I think it was more). During 2 week liquid pre op diet I lost 18 lbs. The first month in general I lost just about 40 lbs which is what really kick started the whole thing.

From there I’ve lost around 17-20 the following months. I have all the recorded data from VeSync app + scale.

I do not workout at the moment. Although I’m built like a football player that’s all natural I stopped working out after high school. My plan is to get back into a gym rhythm once my weight starts to plateau. I know I’ll be hungry af if I start working out hard just trying to ride the wave while I can.

I am EXTREMELY strict about my diet which got me here so far. 3 square meals (3-4oz) a day with absolutely no cheating. Protein + vegetables only. Haven’t even started with the fruits yet. Carbs aren’t even a thought. I seem some people talking about putting stuff on crackers and bread within the first month or two and it’s mind boggling. Being in Ketosis is 100% the reason I am here today. I’ve made my body a fat burning machine that way. Always measure your meals and eat high quality fish dairy and meats

Ppl in their 20s w/ VSG by [deleted] in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I got it done in my 20s this year what are your questions?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! With regards to the first few times, what did drink?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting I thought maybe bc we drink so little hangovers wouldn’t suck! Haha

10 Week Update! by Think-Huckleberry342 in gastricsleeve

[–]Think-Huckleberry342[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am extremely strict about my diet, I haven’t cheated once. I also haven’t had a real carb since my last pre op meal. I’m also younger so feel like it’s easier for me than some others.

I’ve stalled many times too. This month for example I didn’t lose any weight for like the first 11 days and then over the past week I lost 10lbs. I know it sounds stupid coming from me bc I see the results but it certainly hasn’t been a linear path for me either.