Merry Christmas

Christmas season was a nice time for me. I really enjoy the getting out and shopping. The little things like impromptu concerts on the street and it is great sharing time with Marla as we make it through my recovery. Speaking of which, here I am stuck at -30. Stuck again. It appears that while those I know lose gradually like going down a slide, I appear to be going down like it is a set of steps. Down, slide a long, down, slide a long. So this time I don't panic. Just ride it out. I still exercise; I still eat less.

In our world we have this great schedule of Christmas activities. Christmas eve is a special dinner at home. Christmas day is a Scottish dinner with very dear old friends. Boxing Day is our own turkey dinner. I face it with a bit of apprehension because for our boxing eve dinner I made a very tender roast pork. I dumped. We had Game Hen for Christmas. I dumped big time. Now, Boxing Day I am not sure if I really want to make a turkey. It is all thawed and ready to go. Part of me says cut my losses and run. The other part is saying 'no, eat smaller, chew more, and learn".

I think that is what this is all about. Learning.

Catching up and not going anywhere

I had that darnedest thing happen this morning. I was looking in the mirror and for a moment - just a moment - I didn't recognize myself. My chipmunk cheeks were missing. The other thing that I noticed is that my fingers looked longer. I don't think they were longer further out from my body but they look narrower and hence longer.

I have been very angry with myself lately because I have stopped losing weight. It is dissappointing to see all these people reporting that their weight continues to fall and in the mean while mine has only dropped one pound in two weeks. Going down is better than going up, much better, but I am really frustrated. Everyone else says "Don't worry, stalls and plateaus are normal" but I thought they would come in five or six months after my surgery and not at five or six weeks.

I keep seeing a old British World War Two sign that says "Keep Calm and Carry On". It shows up everywhere and I guess that it is the universe giving me a message. So I am going to take everyone's advice and keep doing what I am doing - which is my best effort at staying healthy - and go on through my day. Keeping Calm and Carrying On. So out I go to exercise - I only have a few weeks left before work will interfere with my workout schedule. As my plan was before, I want to make the most of this time. I have increased my walks to between 8 and 10km and doing this now five or six times a week. The dog really likes the walks but after a 10k walk she wants to sleep for about an hour. Then it is back to being a crazy dog.

Plateaus, forums, and closet cleaning

Week Seven - I did my regular Sunday weigh-in and I am only down a pound. Crap. I know that plateaus are supposed to happen but that didn't stop me from wanting it to go on and on. I got used to my losing three to four pounds per week. But here I am only dropping one. One is good and losing one is better than gaining.
I think the biggest issue here is considering that I have undergone a major change in my physical structure; I should have an expectation for my body to take the occasional time to rebuild and adjust to my new stomach, eating plan, and exercise schedule. Thanks to some advice and counsel on Facebook and WLS Private Group I feel a bit better.
I was out having lunch with Marla yesterday, a trip downtown to enjoy the Tuba Christmas concert and lunch at one of our favourite restaurants. I find I still cannot eat steak very well but I enjoyed watching Marla have hers. I had a really good peanut chicken where I could only eat a few bits and bites of chicken and that was enough.
Yesterday was also our WLS Saturday Forum group. There were not many of us there; in fact I was a little disheartened that more people don't go to the forums. I am not sure why people do not attend the forums. It is like they go through the steps to get their surgery then stop when the forum could do them the most good. I really wonder why people dissappear after surgery. I think it is because at the heart of this disease is the desire to be independent. So as soon as they are done - poof - they are gone. I hope it works for them. For me I need the experience of people who have been there before.
Tonight Marla and I emptied my closet out off all the bad, oversize, and old clothes. We cleared out bunches of t-shirts and sweaters that I have collected over the years. Somebody at Value Village is going to get a whole bunch of rock 'n' roll roadie t-shirts real soon.

Its a question of size

Today I found myself having lunch with Marla. As usual we were in a hurry and I couldn't find really anywhere good to eat so we ended up at a shopping mall Japanese Restaurant - Edo Japan. Edo was one of my fav presurgery restaurants. It was fairly easy to knock off a large plate of teriyaki chicken, side of sushi, and a large coke. I was fairly confident that I could fool myself into eating healthy.
So here I am six weeks after my surgery, down 25 pounds, and feeling pretty good. So now it is a question of choices. I am now looking at this small plate that Marla and I are sharing thing "Wow, this isn't very much." Really it was more than enough. I was able to have some of the chicken - it was better with just a little sauce on it as opposed to smothered in sugary good the way I liked it before - and I enjoyed a few mushrooms. Rice, bad idea. But this time I could anticipate full and stopped before I got into trouble.

So what's the difference in six weeks? Here is a pair of pics a month a part. Not much difference for now but I can sure feel better.


Not a lot of difference yet, but at six weeks I am at the start of my journey not the end.

For me it is now learning that the amount I eat is smaller and its noticeable. I am getting smaller - barely noticeable. I keep reminding myself that I am at a point my choices are important. When I started eating smaller I used to get my servings on a salad plate instead of a dinner plate, now I have down graded that to a saucer. I know I am just a newbie at this, and who knows what changes will happen, but for now I am happy and grateful that things are going the way they are.

My First Buffet road trip

So here I am six weeks out of my RNY surgery and feeling very good. I am down about 25 pounds and under my doctor's instructions eating almost normally. I know a lot of you are going to say "I couldn't have normal foods for five or six months at least." He told me to go out and try things. Get of the soft liquid stuff and make the stomach work for you. I think it may have been a dare because there are definitely things I cannot and should not eat. Lettuce. But surprisingly he said "Try whole wheat bread now and then and not too much - the carbs will do you good." I haven't really been that brave yet.
This week is Marla's birthday so we are off on our bi-annual casino holiday. We start in Bellingham at the Skatgit and move down to Seattle and the Tulalip, then up again to the River Rock in Richmond. It is a nice get away and because a lot of it is comped it was a bit of a foodie frenzy in the pre-surgery days. I would waddle into these great American Buffets - filled with fried fatty things like deep fried chicken, gravy, and thick salad dressing - fill my plate four or five times and congratulate myself for stopping before it got ridiculous.
So now as I perused the buffet it became a question of "Oh My God, what is there here that I can eat?" First of all - nothing fried. Then no carbs. I fell back on my training over the last three years and ditched the plates that were the size of home plate in a major league baseball game and took the smallest salad plate I could find. I refined this decision and ended up using a saucer.
Secondly - another of my rules of buffets - I have to see the plate between the food. No overlapping and no piling on. So I went first for the fish - nice moist salmon. Then I had the carver give me a small small thin slice of just rare beef. My final selection for this round was chicken. Your likely saying - gee that's a lot. My serving sizes were about the size of a teaspoon or just a taste. Still I was eating the protein first.
Marla couldn't resist one of her and my old favourites. - mashed potatoes and corn. She was feeling guilty that she was eating something that I couldn't have. I reassured her that I really didn't want it and couldn't think I would handle it very well anyways. So it was all right.
Finally - I can't just have protein. We normally eat European style where the salad is the third or last course, but I am not so good with lettuce. What I did find was cottage cheese, peaches (which mix great with the cheese) shredded cheddar (a little fatty but okay), I went for danger and tried a tomato. There was actually some things on the salad bar that was okay.
I guess the biggest thing I had to decide was that it is okay to leave stuff on your plate. For desert I found the surgar free section. I had a slice of sugar free blueberry pie and only had the tiny point of the slice.
The first time we tried this I either chewed so much that I swallowed a lot of air and burped constantly for the next two hours. The next day, I ate smaller and chewed less, and no burps. I should also say that these were by far the largest meals of the day. They are pretty average in size to what I am eating, by my very rough calorie count, really rough, it is about 400 calories per meal. So I am still shooting for eating about 800 calories a day. And all my other meals are still soft food. I have grown to really like yoghurt.
Now I really reminiscing about food but I would much rather talk about exercise. So aside from all the shopping that Marla is making us do; I am also getting a whole lot of exercise done in the fitness facilities of the hotels we are staying. I get 45 minutes of swimming and water exercise each day, and another 45 minutes of cardio and strength exercises. I am feeling really good. Now if I could only win something in the casino.

Blake's Symphony of Burps

Burp!
I am almost five weeks out of RNY surgery.
Burp!
And I feel pretty good.
Burp!
But now it seems that every time I eat.
Burp!
I am giving up a symphony of Burps.

Big Burps, Small Burps, Two in a row.
Burps like hiccups. Burps like farts.
On and on they go.

They sounds quite disgusting.
They are wearing me out.
My family I am tiring.
I'm quite ready to shout.

It's not just what I am eating,
Protein, water or fat,
Sugar, fiber, not carb'ing
Burps are apparently where its at.

Apparently it is something
That may end eventually .
But each mealtime will bring,
One more loud symphony
Of me out there burping.

Big Burps, Small Burps, Two in a row.
Burps like hiccups. Burps like farts.
On and on they go.

Celebrations in one way or the other

The last couple of days have been interesting to say the least. I got a clean bill of health from my endocrinologist who tells me that I am doing fine, reducing my metformin by two thirds and only taking 10% of the insulin that I did before surgery is doing me some good. We reviewed my diet and blood surgars - from my eating habits he said I have a "cast-iron stomach" and approved me to keep on with my same plan.
Sometimes encouragement is not really a good thing. I felt good enough that I wanted a burger from White Spot. For anyone not from BC and not familiar with White Spot - it is a wonderful burger restaurant that has classed up over the years but still serves some of the best hamburgers. They are great at splitting our burgers so we only share one order. I had this urge to celebrate my doctor's blessing with some cooked beef. Aside from a tiny chunk of stewed meat I have avoided the bovine delights for the past six weeks.
Now I am totally on my good bariatric behaviour. I am not eating the buns! Frankly lettuce scares the hell out of me so I am not going for the lettuce or even the tomato. And the coleslaw is simply stiff lettuce, so I am staying away from that. But then there were the fries. No, avoid the fries and try the beef.
I cut it into small, small chunks. Oh, my G-d this is good. I take my time. Eat slow. Eat small and all is well. I finish but our waitress has disappeared. Oh yes, she said she was taking her break. Well whoever is looking after her table is obviously on a break too. The fries are calling to me. I move the plate away so they are not under my nose - tempting me with that crisp crust holding a soft sensuous potato. What the hell, I have "cast-iron stomach" so I idly tried one fry - no big deal. Then another - and I realized this is pushing it so I stopped. I put my plate on another table so it wouldn't tempt me and I wouldn't be sniffing it.
Marla and I were then going to go out for a walk along a real pretty trail in Saanich, the dog was anxious to go but by the time I got from the door of the restaurant to the tailgate of the truck I felt like my heart was going to explode.
I am getting familiar with this feeling. It is telling me - "hey I am full and you put something in me that isn't what I want." After three hours of a squeeze in the chest, a symphony of burping, and just plain uncomfortableness - I barfed. It is amazing how something so disgusting can make you feel so good. But I felt a whole bunch better.
The next day it was time to visit my GP - She had to give me the once over post surgery style. It has been four weeks today since my surgery and in review I am feeling great. I am happy. I feel a little smaller. So she checked my blood pressure and it was excellent. She got me up on the dreaded scale and I am down to 279 pounds. I haven't been under 280 in many many years. So all in all I am feeling great.
Marla got me an interesting present - when we were out at costco she found a Canucks hockey hoodie - I am a freak for hoodies. So she insisted on getting me a large size sweater. But wait - I have been wearing XXL and XXXL for years. So she had me put it on - and it fit. It was a tight fit but by the time we go see a game in January it should be fine. I like that she has faith in me even though she gave me a really bad time for trying out the fries.