Today marks six months since my surgery! I am just short of 1 year away from my bariatric program start date.
I am at 176 pounds down in total, 76 since surgery. I am 3-4 pounds away from the goal weight I set at the beginning which was a BMI of 29 (Overweight!)
As I look back on the past year, I am amazed at the progress I made, amazed at the changes I have achieved and thankful for all of you who have been so very valuable to me as a daily support system. I only hope I can pay some of that support forward to those who come after me.
My story is one of a light slowly coming on to show me what I needed to do and being really ready to make it happen.
I have been heavy since about 8 years old, graduating high school at 290 pounds, College at 310, dropped down to 260 just out of college, but that was short lived and over the next 20 years my weight zigged and zagged on the way up to 420 pounds in 2014. My history of weight loss is a lot like many of us, periods of weight loss followed by regain to a higher spot. I was very successful with Fit or Fat in the early 90’s, and Body for Life in the early ‘00s but couldn’t keep up the exercise portion and that too fell away.
I was not an athletic kid, but after high school, I found that I loved sports, watching, playing, etc. In spite of my size, I continued to be an “athletic fat guy” into my 40’s, but as I developed arthritis in my hips, my ability to continue playing sports declined at an alarming rate. This single change helped me to make the decision that I was fooling myself about being able to make the long term life changes to lose the weight myself and I started preparing for Bariatric Surgery.
I have two family members who have been through the surgery route, so I was familiar with the general concepts and procedures. When my family members went through it, I was not convinced it was the route for me. As my physical state deteriorated, my view into the future showed a physical decline that scared me enough to change my views.
After a false start in 2011, where I got insurance approval just before my company changed health insurance options, I went through the process again with the new insurance and was approved in March of 2014. With insurance approval in hand, I walked into the Bariatric Orientation meeting April 15th, 2014. I was ready. The 4 hour long session taught us a ton of information on nutrition, the surgery process and set us off with a very simple 5 part pre-op diet plan:
1500 calories per day
100g protein per day
64 ounces of water per day
Start an exercise plan
Log all food and exercise.
I was completely bought in and jumped into the plan with both feet.
I knew from my past weight loss attempts that logging was a key component to successful weight loss. The session pointed us to a few on-line sites and I chose MFP and found these WLS groups and the rest is history!
Once I started, the weight started falling off. As a 6’5” 420 pounder, 1500 calories was a huge calorie deficit. At a followup meeting with the program nutritionist, I asked her if I should up my calories, and she told me that if I was tolerating it at 1500 cal, I should keep it up, as it would prepare me better for post-surgery life. I kept going and over the summer lost about 20 pounds per month.
On the exercise front, I made a subtle shift. Previously, when I made it to the gym, I would hit everything I did with a full out effort, leaving the gym totally spent. Unfortunately, that would result is skipping the next session because I was sore, didn’t have enough time, etc. I was a great excuse maker. Part of the Bariatric program was an exercise session with their physiologist. Most of what he did was teaching people how to use the machines and getting them started. With me, he put me on my machine of choice (elliptical) and we talked about *how* I exercise. He suggested a drastic decrease in intensity level and time, in order to stop the post-exercise pain and make it easier to exercise much more regularly. I changed my exercise goals from intensity to regularity and it did wondrous things. I set a goal of 25 times in the gym before July 4th, which got me there about 3-4 times per week. I walked out of each session energized but not beaten, and I hit the goal!
The one week pre-op diet was the final push and I walked into surgery down 102 pounds from my starting weight.
My surgery itself was unexciting, I firmly believe that because I walked in in very good physical shape, I helped my surgery and recovery be relatively easy for me. The day after surgery, I was up and walking the halls often and aggressively. I logged 11,000 steps on my Fitbit, getting accolades and teasing from the staff. I went home on the second day and started my post-surgery life!
I was off of work for four weeks and used that time to walk and sip, walk and sip. After three weeks, I was back to see the surgeon and he allowed me to start adding easy foods as I was able to tolerate them. I never really had a puree phase, going from liquids and creamy soups/cereals to eggs and mushy foods. I walked for two weeks and then started easing back to the elliptical. I got back out on the golf course in the pretty fall sunshine and was happy that my golf swing wasn't causing any stress on my healing abdomen. I loved my time off and went back to work refreshed. The main thing I needed was extra sleep during my time off, regularly needing a nap in the afternoon.
The rest of my post surgery time has been uneventful and similar to others’ stories. Learning my stomach’s stop signs, what foods I tolerate well and poorly, getting back into a regular exercise regimen. Calorie-wise, I have progressed from 5-600 calories per day up to a current 1100ish as I approach maintenance. I still have snacking issues, especially late evening and I am learning to control my head-hunger at these times. I have been moderately successful if I take that snacking feeling and respond with drinking a liter of water. Unfortunately, I don’t always make that choice.
The weight has continued to come off at roughly the same rate as pre-surgery for the first few months, slowing down now as I am closer to goal. My stalls have generally been a week long, followed by a few pound “Whoosh”, understanding that they will happen has really helped remain calm through them.
As usual, I am prone to rambling. If you have made it this far, here is my advice to those early in the process:
1. Find a Bariatric Center of Excellence or copy one’s plan. My insurance requires a Bariatric Center of Excellence, and as I looked into that requirement, I find that that certification means a great deal. It requires a solid pre-op plan, including nutritional, psychological and exercise components of the plan. I give great credit for my success to the plan I was presented with at the Orientation session. If you have a choice, use a Center of Excellence. If you are not in one, find a plan from one and follow it as much as possible (while still following your surgeon’s plan).
2. Buy into your surgeon’s plan. There are many parts of a plan that may not be as important as others. I made the decision early on to do what I was told without pushing at the edges too much. I decided to be a good follower in this case and let their program take me where it would. I was very successful with this model.
3. Hit the pre-surgery plan HARD! With 180 pounds to lose, I realized that the 6-9 month honeymoon period that the surgery gives me would not be enough to hit my goal before it got harder. Every pound I could lose before surgery was one I didn’t have to lose afterwards. I would not have expected to be as successful as I was, but I still think that putting in the work helped my ingrain the habits and behaviors needed for post-surgery life made a huge difference post-surgery.
4. Find a way to get exercising. I have had very little in the way of loose skin problems. I believe I am very fortunate to be in this position, but I alos think regular exercise helped that along.
5. Add some MFP WLS friends. As you read through the postings in the WLS groups, take note of people whose writing and comments resonate with you. Add friends from all stages of the process so that you can see what the day to day realities are. Seeing food choices as people progress through the process can be very enlightening and give you ideas for when you are there yourself. You will learn from the veterans, and give information to those behind you in the process.
6. Give yourself a break. As I became more active here, I wanted my interaction with others to be helpful and supportive. As I watched myself give advice and comfort to others, I realized that I would never be that kind to myself. I try (and don’t always succeed) to treat myself with the same kindness and support that give to others who have strayed a time or two.
7. Strive for regularity over perfection. Whether it be intake (food) or burn (exercise), you will never be perfect. Don’t let a less than perfect day lead to anything but doing your best at the next opportunity. Do the next right thing and forget the failure.
8. Learn, learn, learn. I find the main forums at MFP to be pretty hostile to the WLS process, although that seems to be changing a bit. I don’t spend a lot of time posting there, but I read a ton and have learned a whole lot about nutrition, metabolism, exercise, weightlifting, etc. I feel ready for my maintenance time, with my goal to be on a path towards improving my physical health while maintaining my weight using the information I have learned over this past year.
I am a pretty open book, so feel free to ask me anything about my journey. Who am I kidding, no one has read this far!
Rob
